The Neverending Desk

I thought I'd never get done with this desk.... but here it is... all finished.  Now onto making my own laundry detergent. :)

Zeke

I think the pictures speak for themselves, but I LOVE THIS BOY!

Black Bean Salad

There are a few special items you need to buy for this black bean salad, but it is totally worth it.  I really liked this salad and the chipotle chiles in adobo sauce totally make it.

4 scallions, sliced thin (I used red onion)
1 T minced canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce (I cut up on chile and then froze the rest of the can to use another time)
1 tsp honey
1/2 C lime juice from 3 limes
salt and pepper
1/4 C olive oil
2 C fresh or frozen corn kernels
2 (16 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 ripe avocados, pitted, skinned, and diced (I left out the avocados)
2 medium tomatoes, cored and chopped
1/4 C finely chopped fresh cilantro (I used dried)

1.  Combine scallions, chile, honey, lime juice, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp pepper in large bowl.  Slowly whisk in 2 T oil.  (Dressing can be in fridge and last up to a day or so)
2.  Heat remaining 2 T oil in large skilled over medium-high heat until shimmering.  Cook corn until spotty brown, about 5 minutes.
3.  Add beans, avocados, tomatoes, cilantro, and toasted corn to bowl with dressing and toss gently to combine.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Barbie Swim Lessons

Coffee Creamer

It's HOT here, but going to birthday parties with squirt bottles makes it much better.

and cake too.

Tonight after dinner we noticed the the spider that has taken up residence in between our window and our storm window has an egg sack.  At least that's what I think it is.  I haven't bothered to find out what kind of spider it is, but maybe I will now.  The kids were very excited the spider is a mommy spider.  I asked Gwen if she'd like to name it and she said "Yes!  It is coffee... creamer... coffee creamer!"  A highly improbable name for a spider, but there ya have it.   

Coffee creamer and her egg sack.

Dress Up

Nicaraguan Grilled Skirt Steak with Chimichurri

I made this one night when we had guests coming for dinner.  I must say... it was delicious beyond belief!  Yes, I did buy the fresh herbs...but when you do this... you wanna do it right.  Oh, and my market didn't have skirt steak, so I went with flank steak and chopped it up into portion sizes.

4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1 tsp salt
2 C lightly packed flat-leaf parsley leaves and tender stems, finely chopped
1/2 C fresh oregano leaves, finely chopped
1/2 C red wine vinegar
1 C olive oil
1 T crushed red pepper
3 pounds skirt steak, trimmed of extra fat

Chimichurri:  Place the crushed garlic on your cutting board and sprinkle salt over it.  Wait a minute or so:  you will notice some moisture leaching from the garlic.  Holding your knife blade almost parallel to the cutting board, scrape the blade over the chopped garlic a few times, turning the garlic into a semi-soft paste.  Place the garlic paste in a small mixing bowl.
Add the parsley, oregano, vinegar, oil and crushed red pepper in the bowl with the garlic paste and stir well to combine.

Serve or store:  To store for later use, place in an airtight container and refrigerate.  Chimichurri can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Marinate the steak (that's what I did.  I did 2 days!)  If desired, cut the large skirt steak into smaller steaks.  Place the steak in a resealable plastic bag or deep bowl and pour 2 C of the chimichurri over it, making sure to coat all the surfaces of the meat.  If using a plastic bag, press out as much air as possible before sealing the bag.  If using a bowl, place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the meat and marinade, creating an airtight cover.  Allow meat to marinate for at least an hour.

Grill the steak:  Preheat the grill to the highest temperature, close the lid and wait 15 minutes.  Oil the grill grates with a vegetable oil-soaked paper towel held with a long pair of tongs.
Remove the steaks from the marinade, letting the excess marinade drip off, and place on the grill.  Lower the heat to medium-high, close the lid, and cook for 4 minutes.  If you tend to get flare-ups on your grill, you may want to leave the lid open; this will result in a longer cooking time.  Turn the steaks over and cook for another 4 minutes to reach an internal temp of 125 to 130 degrees for medium-rare or until it reaches the desired doneness.  (I like well done)

To serve:  Place the remaining 1 1/2 C of chimichurri in a small bowl and servve with the grilled skit steak.

My Mother- The Bride

This is a silhouette I did of my mother in her wedding dress.  I'm not sure if I'm happy with it or not.  I'll keep tweeking it and trying again and again until I like it.  I can't get her mouth right.  Ben says it looks like Benjamin Franklin's head is coming out of her crotch.  Oh brother...

Owl in Flight

Owl in Flight

Indian-Style Grilled Chicken

Try this marinade.  I love it because I love Indian food, but anyone would like it.  Admittedly, some of these spices you might have to go to an Indian grocery for, but they are wonderful to have around.  By the way, if you go to an Indian grocery, get coriander there instead of your local grocery.  They have it so much cheaper!

1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp coriander
1 tsp chili powder
2 tsp garam masala
1/4 C chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 C hot sauce
3/4 C plain yogurt
1/4 C heavy cream or milk
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 T soy sauce

8 chicken breasts.  Marinade overnight to a couple of days.  Grill and discard marinade.

New Garland and Silhouettes

 Banana break.  We were talking about different fruits and looking at what we had in the fruit bowl and they both decided they'd like a banana.

Making our fruit of the Spirit garland.  I got a little tired of seeing the fiesta pennant banner, but I saved it and I'll put it up another time.

These are early morning pictures, but you can see through the apples and it has the fruit of the spirit written on them.  I got the idea from the site "I can teach my child".  When I read off the fruits of the spirit and I got to goodness Gwen said, "Oh my goodness".  Not exactly what I was aiming for.

These two are my friend's children that live a few doors down.  

Summer Corn Salad

This is what I have been craving almost every day this summer.  When the temps heat up... this is a main stay in my house.  I LOVE IT!  You've simply got to try it to believe it.  I double it.

1 T lime juice (preferably not from a bottle, but an actual lime)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp hot pepper sauce
5 tsp olive oil (I use less)
1 1/2 C fresh or frozen corn (I use frozen that has been sitting in hot water... but ooo... garden corn would be fabulous!)
1 1/2 C cherry tomatoes, halved (or a couple of large tomatoes cut up into cubes. Garden tomatoes= da bomb)
1/2 C finely chopped cucumber
1/4 C red onion chopped (I've used white onion here when I didn't have red onion, but the red tastes better)
2 T fresh basil (I put more cause my plants are gynormous) or 2 tsp dry
1/4 C crumbled feta cheese

My Latest Silhouettes

I did these two sisters because the one on the left with the long hair is turning four and we have been invited to her birthday party.  I thought I'd give it as a gift.  Here lately I have been doing just children, but I'd like to try a mother and baby and my pregnant friend said I could do one of her baby bump.  It's a lot of fun, but I get kind of anxious sometimes with it.  I want the kids to turn out just right.  At the bottom is a picture of a silhouette I didn't do, but I like the style and idea.  You can get this done for $25 on etsy.com from that lady.  I've thought about selling them, but I think I just want to do them for fun and for gifts until I get really good like that bicycle guy in Boston.  :)  These that I just did are the first black and white only ones.  I like how the long hair came out on the one on the left.

(not my handywork, but lovely)

Neat Silhouette

An artist in Boston did this.  Isn't it amazing?

Splash Pad

Today we went to the splash fountains at Crown Center.  It had a fountain show every hour with symphonic music and we had a nice time.  Here are a few pictures I took.

Projects and Trumpets

The sanding phase of my desk redo is over and now I am onto the staining phase.  Here's where I am at the moment.  It's a little slow of a project because you cannot stain very well with two little children underfoot and it is very hot here.  I can do it only when the kids are sleeping and only for short amounts of time.  I like the color of the stain though and I can't wait to see how it turns out.

Can you guess what I will be doing next?  I've got all the supplies but I am making myself wait until the desk is all done.

I really enjoy doing these projects, but honestly, I have been neglecting my Bible reading and prayer... so I have decided I can not do multiple projects at once.  So, yesterday I opened my Bible and instead of hopping right back into the read through the Bible in the year program my church is doing, I thought I'd run to Psalms. My pastor says that Psalms are great if you need encouragement or comfort.  Now this next part is a little embarrassing, but I chose Psalm 34 because I'm 34 years old.  The first thing I read is in the introduction "Of David.  When he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he left."  I thought... ok... starting off a little odd here.  Here's my fav passage from Psalm 34 (vs 12-14) "Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.  Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it."  I also decided to try e-mailing God.  I e-mail all my friends anyway... so why not God.  I'll just put it in drafts folder or something.  Do any of you e-mail God?  All in all, yesterday was a good time of confession and renewal which I need all the time.  I have a tendency to think to myself Oh, I've read the Bible... I know what it says.  I forget that it is live and active.

OK... enough about me... let's here the trumpets!

Today

Gwen and Zeke pushing their babies around.

Early training.  Actually, he begged me to let him sweep.  He's become quite the talker.  Not everyone can understand what he is saying... and sometimes I can't either.  He's definitely got a baby alien language in his little raspy voice.  It's precious.

Zeke was very distressed when he saw Gwen put on her new hat that Grandma gave to her.  He wanted a hat too.  So, I gave him Ben's John Deere hat.  He seemed pleased.

Tomorrow marks one week that I have "for real" tried potty training Gwen.  She is a stubborn little thing and isn't always the happiest when I tell her it is time to go and try on the potty.  BUT we are getting through it and she's catching on.  Huge breakthrough this week is that she is sometimes saying "I've got to go potty."  That's huge.  She gets no diapers at all during the day, but gets one at night.  I know it is a process and I think of it like me working with Zeke to crawl all those times.  It seemed we were making no progress and then one day it clicked.  I'm waiting for my miracle.  I would love any advice you have other than "put her back into diapers".  I'm determined and when my determination wanes I call my mother and she tells me I HAVE to keep trying. 

Happy Together

Can't even imagine not being able to experience this.  Thank you Lord that I get to stay home with these two.

Peanut Birds

Unusual