Busy and hot

We were right around 100 degrees for much of the day, and are under a heat advisory tomorrow because we'll be around 105 most of the day, even staying into the 90's well into the evening. (We always cool down at night, so this is going to be weird.)

I got the school supplies shopping done, so that's one thing off my mind. Got a ton of household chores done, too. It's a good feeling. Too bad the house still doesn't look nice. But hey, it looks better.

My FaithWriters entry for the topic "Telephone" didn't win any awards, but it's now available through the index (see link on the right side of the page.)

Tonight's dinner was Ham Noodle Potato Bake.

1-1/2 lb ham; cooked and diced (I use turkey ham)
2 cup elbow macaroni; cooked
2 cans potatoes, diced; rinsed and drained OR about 3 potatoes, diced and cooked tender.
8 oz shredded cheddar
4 cans tomato soup
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1 to taste garlic powder
1 to taste onion powder

Drain noodles and combine with ham, potatoes, soup and spices in a 10x15 pan. Top with parmesan followed by cheddar. Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes.

More Fun in the Sun, and Other Things

Today was a busy day. It started fairly early with a trip to the dental hygienist for Nathanael. He did very well, especially since he was able to bring a DVD and watch it while she worked on him! Then came grocery shopping which cost far, far more than it should have. Then some errands/laundry/usual stuff, and then it was off to a pool party with the Small Group that we've belonged to for years. We had a lovely time, with good food and a lot of fun playing catch. Yes, you heard me right, playing catch. Three of us "old enough to know better" ladies, plus Andrew, all threw soggy tennis balls back and forth (2 of them, to keep things interesting) in the pool. We also got to see the very mischievous side of a certain one of us who loves to make the ball land just in front of you so it splashes water in your face, or right beside you when you aren't watching for it! That was fun, all of us hooting and hollering and laughing and acting half our ages! Nathanael had fun being out of his boot and in the water for the second time in a week. Phillip had fun fluttering around and thinking whatever thoughts amused him. John relaxed with the guys and talked.

Then we went home and had the usual evening routine, which now includes two blogs...

Yep, busy day.

Tomorrow we have to further abuse our bank account by shopping for school supplies! Eek!

Oh, my contribution to the picnic dinner was Five-Bean Salad. Want the recipe?

Go to Sam's Club.
Buy it.
Easy.
Yum.

Sprinklers, Braces, and Mashed Potatoes

This is Phillip's idea of playing in the sprinkler. I had a better picture of it, but I had taken it with the camera tilted to "portrait" rather than "landscape" orientation, and Blogger can't handle that. It turns them over again on their sides. Frustrating. Anyway, Phillip hates getting wet, and normally doesn't try to play in the sprinkler at all. But today he decided to get out the umbrella and, as he put it, "risk my life here."

Nathanael will be going in to have his teeth cleaned tomorrow. Then on Friday he goes in to have impressions made, and on the following Wednesday he gets his braces on!

My new blog, "Just Another Clay Pot," hasn't gotten many visitors yet, which isn't surprising since it's so new. It isn't surprising that all but two of the visits have come from Colorado. What IS surprising is that the other two visits have come from two different cities in Poland! I don't know how or why people found it from way over there, unless perhaps one or both of them are photographers from whom I got permission to use pictures. Regardless, the internet is an amazing place.

Phillip gave me fits for a little while tonight, but I'm glad to say he improved his attitude and behavior. Things are much better now. He decided on something unusual for a bedtime snack, and with my help made himself instant mashed potatoes. That's a first, but it probably won't be the last.

Dinner tonight was Bacon Chicken Alfredo

16 oz fettuccine
1/4 cup bacon bits; or to taste
3 cup chicken; cooked and shredded
1/4 teaspoon Salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
16 oz Alfredo sauce
10 oz frozen chopped spinach; thawed, squeezed dry
1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/4 cup grated Parmesan

Thaw and dry the spinach. Cook fettuccine according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook chicken with salt, pepper, and bacon bits until juices run clear. Drain fettuccini, stir into skillet. Add the Alfredo sauce, spinach, and Italian seasoning. Cook and stir until heated through. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Fun in the Sun

My friend invited us over to swim at the lake near her house today. We spent most of the day there, and it was a lovely time. (The photo above was taken last year at the same spot.) It was nice for Nathanael because he could play and have fun without his boot on. We helped him hop on his good foot into the water, and once he was in there, he could use a floatie "noodle" thing and the life vest he was wearing to enable him to keep his weight off the injured foot. He had fun doing that, and afterwards we all went to my friend's house where the kids played some games while my friend and I talked.

Phillip is starting to show some interest in learning to ride a bike! This is a big deal, and I hope his interest holds. It was really sweet earlier because Andrew took it on himself to try to help Phillip learn. I wish I'd gotten a picture of that.

I can hardly believe that school starts in just over two weeks!

Tonight's dinner was just quick stuff. John grilled burgers and I cooked up corn. Nothing exciting to share there, I'm afraid.

Another New Venture

The biggest news of today is that I've decided to start another blog. It won't take the place of this one, but will be a complement to it.

For quite a while now I've been taking notes during my daily Bible study times, and that's always been a very encouraging and helpful process for me. But I don't often share those notes and thoughts with others, which means I'm not sharing the encouragement and help with others, either. So I've started a blog called, "Just Another Clay Pot." Whenever something comes along that encourages me from God's Word, that will be the venue I use to share it. There's a link to it on this page, there with my other links.

This blog will stay as it is... day-to-day stuff, recipes, etc. But I won't be sharing any recipes today. It was "Clean out the fridge day," and I know that everybody knows the recipe for that!

Today's sermon was very good. Pastor Vannoy preached out of Haggai, talking about being so self-centered that you disregard what God wants. Convicting stuff.

All three boys chose to stay in adult church, and I'm glad of that. Phillip spent most of the time sitting with his head between his knees and with his ears covered, but I think he still took in something of value somewhere along the way. I'm not sure why he prefers to stay in adult church, but it's fine with me.

Try not to faint at the shock of it, but I went out and trimmed a bush today. Now I can see out my kitchen window. The work wasn't strenuous or sustained enough to bring on that awful "Hot poker under my shoulder blade" pain that limits my physical activities so much, and it's encouraging to see the difference that little bit of effort made.

Workday

One quick note: Last night I forgot to post the recipe for dinner, which was Spaghetti with Slow-Cooked Spaghetti Sauce. I've gone back and added it to yesterday's post, so if you'd like to have it, look there!

I got a lot of work done today. It's a good feeling, and I'm thankful to the Lord for His help. There's still an awful lot left to be done. In fact, it's almost 11 pm, and I still need to re-empty and re-fill the dishwasher, and dole out all of the medications for next week. So I'll just post some recipes and get back to it.

Tonight's dinner was "Chicken and Vegetable Noodle Soup" with "Herb Garlic Loaf" as a side dish.

Chicken and Vegetable Noodle Soup

7 cups milk
2 lb california-blend vegetables; frozen
1 cup american cheese; cubed
2 envelope dry chicken noodle soup mix
6 Cups chicken; cooked and shredded or diced

Note: 6 Cups shredded chicken = approx 2 lbs.

Crock Pot method:
Put all ingredients except for cheese in the crock pot on low heat for 8 hours. Add cheese during the last half hour.

OR (Below is the quick way to cook it, which I don't normally use.)

In a large saucepan, bring milk to a boil. Stir in chicken and vegetables and return to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 6 minutes. Stir in cheese and soup mix. Return to a boil. Reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 5-7 minutes or until the noodles are tender and the cheese is melted, stirring occasionally.

Herb-Garlic Loaf

3 cup bread flour
1 envelope savory herb with garlic soup mix
1/2 teaspoon Salt
4-1/2 teaspoon nonfat dry milk powder
1 tablespoon Sugar
4-1/2 teaspoon Butter; softened
1 cup water (I substitute Ginger Ale...makes fluffier bread)
2 tablespoon water
2-1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast

Bake in bread machine. Use basic bread setting.

Accepting comments now!

It has come to my attention, thanks to a dear concerned reader, that I have not been receiving comments that have been posted on this blog. The fact is, no comments HAVE been posted here, despite some people's kind attempts to do so. I did not realize that I would have to go into the settings and change some things in order for you to be able to post them successfully. So my apologies to any and all who have tried to leave comments. Hopefully that problem is fixed now. If anyone wants to go back and re-post any comments that they tried to make on earlier entries, feel free to do so.

Just remember, all comments are publicly visible, so if you want to tell me anything privately, please email instead.

VBS finished today, and I must say it was a very good experience. We all finished up by enjoying a "Thank-you" luncheon that the church hosted for the workers.

The housework really suffered this week. Well, it's been suffering for longer than that, but it got even worse this week. So I'm planning to make tomorrow a serious workday. I'm posting that because I want you all to hold me accountable. More importantly, I'd like all the prayer I can get. I need it. We all do.

At VBS today, Phillip's craft was pottery. He, of course, made a telephone. I think it's great, but he hates it. He said it was one of his worst failures, and he was so upset that he ended up lying on the sofa in the foyer and burying his head between the back cushion and the seat cushion. That's a pretty common position for him when he's too upset to face life. But he got over it and had a pretty good day after that.

The kids all made dreidels this week, and learned how to play the dreidel game. That was pretty cool. They got to sand the wood and paint it and hammer the post through the hole and everything. They also did some basket weaving with paper and some sort of fibrous reedy material, and they made a few other things besides. I think they were the best crafts I've seen at a VBS, and all the kids seemed to enjoy them a lot.

Nathanael is more than halfway through with his boot-wearing time. He'll be glad to get rid of that.

His voice is deepening, though it can't be said to have "changed" yet. There's still a noticeable difference from just month or so ago. How do they grow up so fast?

Dinner tonight was Spaghetti with Slow-Cooked Spaghetti Sauce

2 lb ground beef
4 can diced tomatoes; undrained
16 oz tomato sauce
12 oz tomato paste
2 each bay leaf
2 tablespoon brown sugar
8 clove garlic; minced
4 teaspoon basil
4 teaspoon oregano
2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon thyme
16 oz spaghetti noodles; cooked
2 medium onion; chopped

In a skillet, brown sausage and onion; drain. Transfer to a slow cooker.
Add all but noodles. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours or until heated
through. Discard bay leaf. Serve over cooked noodles.