First day of school, 2014

Last Monday, we celebrated the first day of school by getting up at 5:15, getting ready, and walking Megan to the bus stop, in the dark, so she could catch the bus, in the dark. 

The kids had a great, if not a little overwhelming, day. Megan became known as "Comic Book Girl" in one of her classes, and Danny signed up for Safety Patrol, continuing in his dad's footsteps. I can't believe that my little baby girl is in high school, and my baby boy is in his last year of elementary. Just two years ago, they looked like this...

By the way, Megan is wearing these same pants today, and she commented that they were getting shorter. She's the only adolescent girl I know who can wear the same pants for years and years. Funny enough, it seems like yesterday that they looked like this...

Time is flying, and while I miss these days, I am so excited to see the young people they are becoming.

One Awesome Dog

This summer, our Harley turns 9. Our beautiful Great Dane/Treeing Walker Coonhound mix is the best dog that could have chosen us as her family. Harley's favorite pastimes are napping (especially during the day with her Daddy),

 

 

 

walking with her kids,

watching over her humans, especially when they're sick,

chewing up toys,

and monitoring the cooking process for and stray particles.

 

 

Always alert, she is an excellent watch dog. 

She is always happy to see us and she always exhibits a very obedient, mostly passive friendly personality.  She doesn't bark much, but she talks all the time. She is the sweetest dog on the planet. Except when she's threatened...

A few months ago, we decided to adopt Norm, a big English Mastiff.

Norm was a sweetheart to us, and walked into our house like he owned the place.

Unfortunately, Harley immediately disliked Norm, and while they eventually could be in the same room,

we experienced one too many scenes from Call of the Wild, and Harley ended up with a hole in her chin.  Sadly, we made the decision that Norm was a liability to Harley and to us, and we had to give him back. However, we learned one very important lesson in all of this. Harley is a bad-ass. She stood her grounnd and fought a dog that outweighs her by 3 times. My respect for this dog is boundless.

I thank God every day for bringing Harley to us. We love you Harley!

An All Natural Deodorizing Room Spray

Yesterday, Danny came home from camp with a note from his ceramics teacher to me. In the note, she explained that she had eaten some garlic for lunch one day that week, and it was so stinky that she had to break out her room spray to cover the odor. Danny loved the spray so much that she wrote down the makings for the spray for him to bring home. So, last night we stopped at Earthfare and Target and bought some essential oils, distilled water, and a spray bottle.

Ingredients for the spray:

4 drops Lavendar essential oil

3 drops Frankencense essential oil

6 drops Rose Geranium essential oil

(we couldn't find Rose Geranium, so we used 4 drops Geranium and 2 drops Rose separately)

 

1/2 cup distilled water

1 small spray bottle

 

 

Add distilled water to spray bottle. Add drops of essential oils. Replace bottle cap, shake and enjoy!

Happy 21st Birthday, Zachary!

Wow, I can't believe it, but Zachary turns 21 today. To celebrate, he spent the night with us last night, and after a dinner of Chinese and a dessert of Gator-colored cookie cake

Zachary, Megan and Danny enjoyed a night of playing cards, and laughing. Taking a quick nap, Zachary managed to lose his phone under Danny's bed, and after taking Danny's room nearly apart, he was awake and ready for the next phase of celebration. At midnight, George and Zachary had a whisky and bourbon tasting. They tried several different kinds including tried and true Glenlivet

 

some Jameson Irish Blend, some Balvenie Portwood (only a sip - that stuff's expensive!),



and some Blanton's bourbon. He even tried some of my favorite - Drambuie. The jury's still out on whether he really likes it or not (it is an acquired taste after all), but afterward George made him a Jack Rose with Applejack brandy, a drink he very much likes. Thank you, Zachary, for spending the night and letting us celebrate with you by trying to get you drunk! Happy 21!

Naan Breakfast Pizzas

A few days ago, I was running late coming home from work and running short on options for dinner. As we always have eggs and bacon in the house, and we often have garlic naan (Indian flat bread available in the deli section), an awesome idea came to me. Why not make breakfast pizzas on the naan? I've had naan pizzas before - you can get them from the Indian markets in the freezer section - but I had not made one, especially not a breakfast pizza. I made two different flavors (pictured below).

The first was bacon, egg and cheese only for the kids. The second, mine, included bacon, onions, bell peppers, eggs, cheese, and herbs. This recipe is so versatile, you can put anything you want on the pizzas. Here is the full recipe.

Naan Breakfast Pizzas

 

 

Ingredients:

 

2 pieces Stonefire Garlic Naan

4 eggs

3 pieces bacon or 1/4 cup sausage, cooked and crumbled into small pieces

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (or 3 cheese Mexican blend)

Toppings like chopped onion, mushrooms, bell pepper, etc.

butter or cooking spray

 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a buttered or sprayed skillet, sautee desired toppings until soft. Remove from pan. Add more butter or spray and then add eggs, scrambling until just less than firm. Remove from pan. Place naan on a parchment-covered baking sheet. Sprinkle bacon or sausage onto naan. Scatter toppings, spreading over surface of the bread. Top with scrambled egg and shredded cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 7-8 minutes or until cheese is melted.

 

Enjoy!