One more week!

Danny has worked to get all of his yellow belt stripes, and this Wednesday he got his "ready stripe" to test for orange belt. He is so excited because the belt test is only one week away! I am the most proud of him because he perservered through a very stressful and emotional time this winter and spring, and he worked hard to learn all of his benchmarks. Go Danny!

Danny's Project and a Revelation!

This week, Danny completed his science fair project.

The question he asked was, "Does the thickness of a paper towel make it more absorbent." He tested a few brands

by pouring water into the center of the paper towel to see if it would drip through or soak into it. Because he's in 2nd grade, the methods were simple and not the most scientific, but he completed it and did produce some surprising results. So, you ask, which one was the most absorbent? Out of six brands altogether, I was shocked to find that this brand was indeed the most absorbent.

It was so absorbent, it beat out Bounty, the quilted quicker picker upper, by a landslide. No matter how much water he poured on, it did not drip through. They're not the prettiest (kind of a grocery-bag brown) and not the softest (Viva were the softest, and they lost miserably), but being the practical person that I am, I have found my new brand. It was truly amazing!

My "21st" Birthday

Yesterday was my birthday, and it was a wonderful day! My fantastic husband made me breakfast in the morning, and then took Megan to the bus stop to save me some time.  When I got to work, my staff surprised me with bagels, cream cheese, and the largest jar of Nutella I've ever seen...I was beyond happy! Around lunchtime, my men (George and Zachary, that is) surprised me with some of the most beautiful flowers I've ever received.

My day continued at work with the usual meetings, and although I would have liked to leave much earlier, I got out at about 4:30. Upon arriving at the house, George and the kids made me sit down and open my presents

and then took me to dinner at the Country Club. After dinner, we all came back and had some fun eating cake,

taking pictures,

and just playing around.

Well, most of us did. George spent most of the time setting up the new laptop he got me so I can write my posts anywhere in the house.

The day ended with me going to bed early for some much-needed rest. Thank you so much to everyone who made it so wonderful!

Take Your Child to Work Day, 2012

Megan came to work with me today for the annual Take Your Child to Work Day. The last few years, she had a blast at the police department, but her dad's back on the street, so she had to be bored with Mom today. I tried to explain to her the excitement of managing a $9 million budget, reading all of the legislation proposed for our department to determine the impact, overseeing information security services and the project management office, etc. Unfortunately, after the first few minutes, her eyes glazed over, and I could tell her attention was drifting away from the topic. The real highlight of the day was a photo opportunity with the Secretary of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR).

The first picture opportunity hit a snag when Secretary Lawson asked her a question and his booming voice was a bit much for Megan's sensitive ear.

The second was just right. She enjoyed meeting some of the Department leadership, but mostly she enjoyed the day off from school.

Roasted Herbed Red Potatoes, it's what's for dinner

Tonight for dinnner, I decided to try cooking with some herbs from my front porch garden. We love red potatoes, so I made the following side for some pork chops with a white wine sauce.

Roasted Herbed Red Potatoes

16-18 New potatoes (or 8-9 larger red potatoes cut into quarters)

3 Tbsp. Olive Oil

2 Tbsp. Fresh Herbs

Kosher Salt

Fresh Ground Black Pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place the potatoes in a large bowl and drizzle with the olive oil, stirring to coat thoroughly. Mix in the herbs (I used the rosemary and the chives - Danny loves chives! - from my garden, but you could use any combination. If using dried, reduce to 3 tsp. as they are stronger), again stirring to coat evenly. Place in a greased (I use Pam Olive Oil spray) 13 X 9 inch pan. bake for 1 1/4 hours, stirring every 30 minutes for more even browning. Enjoy!