Legion Baseball

Kidlet Three is playing Legion baseball this summer.

This past weekend was the annual Firecracker Baseball Tournament

sponsored by the American Legion William T. McCoy Post 92

in our Home Town.

The tournament has been held for the past five years and the

winners have not been from our Home Town...

 until this year.  

Kidlet Three's team won over 15 teams

 from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Nebraska, and Canada.

How exciting is that!

We watched many great games over the weekend and 

we are so proud of how these boys played.

It was rather cute watching them get organized

for a team photo at the end of the game.

 They got themselves together with that great trophy 

and posed with their finger-pointing that they are

#1

It was also great honoring our country with the

American Legion.  For the final game, the

color guard led us in the National Anthem.

The Fourth of July was amazingly fun.

Boston Creme Cupcakes

I made these Boston Creme Cupcakes recently.

Start with a yellow cake mix and follow

the directions for cupcakes

 This ice cream scoop is perfect for each cupcake

 Bake according to the directions

 While the cupcakes bake, make two packages

of instant vanilla pudding and refrigerate

 When the cupcakes are cooled, slice them in half.

Place a spoonful of chilled pudding on the

bottom half

 Put the cupcake top on the pudding 

 Drizzle chocolate sauce over the cupcake...

I bet you can't eat just one

Amazingly.....delicious! 

A Night At Home

Last night I found myself at home

An early afternoon hockey game was done

My next college class hasn't started so I had no homework

Our laundry was all caught up

The house was clean

It felt foreign

It felt nice

There wasn't anything I had to do

So I watched a recorded Christmas Hallmark movie

and I crocheted

One dishcloth after another was created

Don't you love the bright colors!

It was an amazing night

What would you do if you had a free night?

Warmth

It is cold outside.
I believe the temperature is -11.
The wind chill brings that number down and I just cannot say it....
My toes and fingers are cold even in the house.

The backside of my house faces north.
As I pulled a spoon out of the silverware drawer (along the north-facing wall) even the SPOONS feel cold.

I'm not complaining.  Does it sound like I am?
Guess I just want to state a fact.

It is cold.

Which makes it the perfect time for me to dig through my photos for pictures from last summer.
The perky orange flowers at the top were from a pot on my deck last summer.
Don't they just make you smile?

The color makes me feel warmer....

Just off the deck we have a bird feeder on a gardening hook.

We feed the birds year round.

Last summer one of the feeds had sunflowers in them.

Lo and behold the birds dropped seeds and we had a sunflower bloom.

What an added bonus of color for us.

It was so fun to watch the birds peck the actual seeds from the flower.

Color brings warmth.

Today is the perfect day to dig through photos looking for color.

And warmth.

If it is cold where you live, I hope these pops of color bring you some warmth.

For those of you not living in The Frozen Tundra, enjoy the heat!

Warmth...it is So Amazing.

Parsley Chicken with Lime Rice

This summer I have had almost every type of fast food because of baseball games every single night. Don't get me wrong, I am not proud of this.

When I finally had a night at home it was with great joy that I made a homemade meal.  We almost licked our plates the food was so good.  I marinated chicken in a parsley concoction then grilled it.  Along with this was lime rice and a cucumber/tomato salad.  If you are looking for a delicious meal, give this recipe a try.

Parsley Chicken

3 pounds trimmed boneless skinless chicken breasts

1/2 cup fresh flat leaf parsley, minced

1 large lemon, washed thoroughly

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

2 garlic cloves minced and pressed

1/2 tsp. garlic salt

1/2 tsp. ground pepper

Halve lemons and juice well.  Combine all ingredients, except chicken, in a bowl.  Add chicken and coat evenly.  Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes to an hour.  Honestly, I mix mine together before going to work so it marinates at least six to eight hours.  

Preheat grill.  I grill my chicken off direct heat (on the shelf) 10 minutes on each side or until done.  Remove from the grill and let set about 10 minutes before serving.

Lime Rice

1 tsp. vegetable oil or butter

2 tsp. fresh cilantro

2/3 cup white basmati rice

1 cup water

1/2 tsp. salt

1 lime

In a 2-quart heavy saucepan, heat oil or butter over low heat, stirring until melted.  Add rice and lime juice, stir 1 minute.

Add water and salt, bring to a full rolling boil.  At boiling, cover, turn down to simmer over low heat until rice is tender and the water is absorbed, about 25 minutes.  Add in cilantro and fluff with a fork.

I wish you could have been here to enjoy this amazing meal with us!  Let me know if you make this and how you like it.

Fish - Fish - Fish

One first, two fish, red fish, blue fish

Dr. Seuss says fish, fish, fish!

 And fish we did

 Casting for crappies (phonetically say crop peas)

we had a good haul

and then the northerns started hitting

 Oh how exciting to have this big fish take your pole

and bend it until it looks like it will break

 One fish then two fish...

 then three fish and more!

My dad and brother were busy taking

the fish off the hook for me.

Yup, I haven't mastered touching the fish

after all these years.

For this post my dad and my brother get the 

Amazing Award for taking care of the

fish!

Loony

Recently we were in The Northern Woods.

While fishing, we had a visitor.

She swam around us as if we weren't even there.

I wish you could see the drops of water on her head!

And then plop, under the water she went, probably

in search of her supper.

And when she resurfaced, away she went.

What a treat it was to enjoy this beautiful

creation of our Amazing God.

I Had the Best Day

I had the best day today.  It was my day off work and I decided to drive to the City-Of-3-Million people to spend the day.  There were three things on my agenda:

1)  Kidlet Two started a new job recently as Kitchen Lead with a catering company.  I wanted to see where he worked. When I showed up in the kitchen asking where he was all of the employees starting laughing that mommy is here to see you! Poor kid! My son was gracious and shrugged them off.  Right away he handed me a spoon to start tasting the delicious soup he was making.  How honored was I when he asked for my opinion on the salt content!  My arrival was just in time for his break so I enjoyed his potato soup, Bison sausage, couscous with beets, peach-glazed chicken, and a whole lot more.  It was a delightful visit and I am so proud of Kidlet Two and how he uses his cooking skills.

2)  Visiting with Kidlet One and Grand Baby C were also on my agenda.  We spent a fun afternoon together despite Grand Baby C having a sore throat and we could tell she just wasn't herself.  After a long nap she still wanted to snuggle with her Mama.  There were some smiles and giggles as we looked at books and played with some toys.  My Nana Love Tank was definitely filled up as I pulled out of the driveway for the 90-minute drive home!

3)  Visit this place:

Approximately 33 years ago I purchased a complete set of tableware from the potter, Peter Deneen.  Dinner, salad and dessert plates, bowls, mugs, serving bowls and other miscellaneous pieces in the brown and blue glaze shown here filled my cupboards.

My bridal registry was in the store that sold this pottery in My City.  For years our family used these -each-piece-handmade dishes and they held up beautifully.  Until piece by piece they broke or chipped until I didn't have enough pieces for a complete setting.  I still use the serving bowls but the plates and bowls were tucked away into boxes until recently.  I Googled the potter and found him in The Big City.  His family was very interested in getting back the pieces I no longer was using.

The company now makes mugs with name plates on them.  Each mug is handmade.  During my tour of the facility, I watched the clay being mixed, the potters with their spinning wheels making mugs, workers applying the handles, the kilns, the glazing, and the packing room.  It was so impressive.  Three mugs were given to me as a gift and I can't wait to have my morning coffee in one of them tomorrow!

For some reason I got choked up when I met the man who made each and every piece of my dishes.  I guess the reality of his talent and the memories of so many family meals being enjoyed with those dishes caught up with me.  As the tears streamed down my face I thanked him for using his gifts and making such beautiful creations.  The poor man seemed a little uncomfortable with me sniffling there!!  Later as I was touring, he caught up with me and handed me this personal piece that he had made.  As I carried it along on the tour, all of the employees commented on it and told me how special this piece was.  Several employees seemed surprise that I was given this piece. 

The last mug that was given to me has the company name plate on it.  If you own a company that would use mugs, I would encourage you to contact Deneen Pottery to have them design their one-of-a-kind mugs.

Spending time with two of my Kidlets and seeing a potter in action made it just an amazing day!

The Husband's Outdoor Fashions

The Husband scrubbed the deck last weekend and has started applying some GUNK to it now.  I call it GUNK because it is thick and has to be rolled on.  He explains to me it is the consistency of peanut butter (can you picture it?) and will protect the deck for years. 

Well, those that have the honor of living near us have often commented on how fashionable The Husband is when he mows or does lawn work.  This weekend was no different as he wore this attire all weekend as he started The Deck Project...

 Can you hear the runway announcement...

The Husband looks snappy in his straw hat,

fashionably worn Life is Good tee shirt,

denim shorts and oh yes, let's not forget

The Boots.

Rubber Boots...your outdoor

work cannot be complete without

a pair of Rubber Boots. 

 As an added bonus, the denim shorts

are able to become paper towel dispensers

and plastic bag holders.

 The iPhone is quite safe on the

belt during The Deck project

It was too hot to be wearing jeans on the weekend.

Perhaps in a Fall Fashion Show, I can grab a picture

of The Husband's jeans-that-are-held-together

-with-duct-tape...

 

Seriously, The Husband has worked really hard

over this past weekend and has made great progress

in re-sealing the deck.  

Once all the peanut-butter-gunk is applied,

we can move the new patio furniture back

and perhaps even throw a party.

I think we should all wear rubber boots to the party.

Wouldn't that be amazing!!!



Baby Yoga

Grandbaby C came for a much-enjoyed visit recently.  She is already four months old.  Those of you that are grandparents, you know what grandbabies do to a Nana's heart.  There aren't words to describe the love and emotions tied up with a grandchild.

Baby C and I spent some time on the floor talking and singing.  She does sing with her mom but she wasn't really in a singing mood with me.  Kidlet One sings Farmer in the Dell to her and when the pig snorts are made, Baby C giggles, giggles, giggles.  My pig snorts must not sound like her momma's as she didn't giggle for my singing!  However, as you watch the video below, don't you think she could lead a Baby Yoga session with all the bending and stretching she does!?!?!?

Here is an amazing baby...but then I don't think clearly when she is around!

There is Life after Baseball

Traveling baseball has been done for one week.  That means that every night last week I was home.  For the past two months we've been on the road to games or practices three nights a week with hockey practice the other two nights.
 
Being home after a day at work is kind of nice.
 
The Husband and I did go shopping one of the nights we had baseball freedom.  We actually were pretty dangerous as we bought a new patio set and umbrella.  It has been a couple of years since we sat on the deck with a table.  Kidlet Three had commented at some point this summer that it would've been nice to eat supper outside and we are now able to do just that.
 
For at least three hours on Saturday, The Husband and A-Great-Neighbor, put the chairs and table together.  Thankfully the weather was nice for these two BOYS to sit outside tackling a task they thought would take, maybe, an hour.
 
Kidlet Three was the first one outside to relax and enjoy the new chairs.
 

 
I decided a hobo packet of sliced potatoes, frozen corn from last year's freezing, onion and lots of butter should be on the menu for supper.  I also marinated chicken in Italian dressing and grilled that separately.

As I grilled, I set the table.  Doesn't this look peaceful and inviting!

Our supper was delicious.  There were no bugs outside.  It was a pleasant, relaxing meal. 

Kidlet Three decided Riley should eat his treat on one of the new chairs. 

The chairs 'rock' so Riley wasn't sure he really sure he liked them.

 

 
Baseball season is really fun.  It is also fun being done.  I hope you've had a chance to be outside enjoying the summer evenings.  Or maybe even your morning coffee on your deck. 

We are amazingly blessed to have this deck, new furniture and nice weather.  Thank you God!

Mini Muffin Smores

***Warning***

The food item described below is dangerous.  You will not be able to eat just one of these mini muffin smores.

This evening we arrived home from a multi-day vacation.  Within an hour of our arrival home, Kidlet Three needed to leave for hockey practice.  Thankfully I had shredded barbecue chicken in the freezer that I could thaw for a quick supper. 

After supper, my sweet tooth was not satisfied and I started craving something chocolate.  One of the recipes floating through Facebook came into my mind and I just knew that was what I needed to make tonight.  The recipe is called Smore Cups aka Mini Muffin Smores.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

7 whole graham crackers, finely crushed
1/4 cup powdered sugar
6 T. butter, melted

Combine the above ingredients.

Drop a spoonful of graham-cracker mixture into each cup of a mini muffin pan.  Gently press the mixture down.

Bake 4-5 minutes.

Remove from oven. 

I used chocolate chips instead of Hershey bars.  Into each cup I dropped four chocolate chips.

Cut large marshmallows in half.   Place marshmallow cut side down in each cup.

Bake an additional 1 to 2 minutes.
Remove from oven and set aside for 15 minutes.
Remove the smores from the pan. 
As I 'snacked' on them, I decided to not add the additional chocolate to the top. 

Bet you can't eat just one of these amazing treats!

Baseball and The Booster

Kidlet Three's summer baseball league

played in a tournament

this past weekend.

 

After five breath-taking games,

they made it to the championship game.

The grounds crew chalked the school's

initials into the batter's circle before

the Big Game.

The Husband is the self-appointed

Booster Club for each team that the

Kidlets have been involved with.

For baseball, check out this video of

a common Booster scene.  Kidlet Three

is in the video warming up to bat (#12).

 On Sunday, the Rockets team played

three baseball games in HOT weather.

The games were played one right after the

other.  Between two of the games. Booster

 and I went into the dugout with the tunes to get

the boys jazzed up for their next game.  They all

got a little camera shy when I stepped in....

 Out of 16 teams, Kidlet Three's team WON first place!

Here is Kidlet getting his trophy from the coach. 

A great group of guys that play some amazing baseball.

So proud of them!