What we did on our summer vacation

We finally got up to the race track. We love to watch the races on Saturday evenings. This was the first race that we have made it to this year.
I don't know who enjoys this more . . . Mom and Dad or the boys.

Baby boy did great! He did not even mind wearing the headphones. He slept through the last three races, and did not mind the noise at all. I don't know why I worried that it would be difficult to take a baby to the racetrack, he did awesome!

We also went to our favorite camping spot on Deer Creek. I was worried about taking a baby camping. But he was a natural.

It was a little bit chilly in the evenings, but we just threw more wood on the fire and bundled up.

We also broke out the Stomp rockets. These were so much fun. This will be a repeated item next time that we go camping.

There is a park that is close by that has a great water feature that the boys love to play in. It has water that shoots up at random intervals, waterfalls, and little streams. It is very cool. We spent the afternoon playing in the water.

Even the baby got to splash a little!

We had a great time on our "vacation"! It is such a shame that we have to wait until December for our next time off of reality.

Frozen Creamed Corn

The past 8 months have really flown by. This little fella has changed so much! We are so blessed to have this sweet boy in our family.
When we brought home Baby boy#4 home from the hospital, our amazing church family showered their love on us with meals and visits. A very dear lady brought us this recipe, and I have been waiting for the super sweet summer corn to be on sale to stock my freezer. This was so delicious. My tummy is growling as I sit here and think about it!

Frozen Creamed Corn

22 cups of corn

2 cups 1/2+1/2

1 1/2 cups butter

Bake for one hour, covered at 350°. Stir frequently (every 15 minutes).

These were the notes that she wrote on the back of the recipe card: I get about four batches from 150 ears of corn. We use an electric knife. I put 2 1/2 cups in bag to serve our family of 5. Once bagged, lay flat on cookie sheets and stack in freezer. After frozen flat, they will take up less room and stack well in a shoe box in freezer. We like to husk corn first (keep covered in bags), then cut off the cob and start baking. I use big roasters to cook. It keeps frozen for well over a year.

For more recipes check out the Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap.

My Lists

We are getting ready to go camping this next week. One thing that I have done in the past that I am very thankful for this year, is to write down right after our last trip what we took and needed more of, what we wished we had brought and what we did not need to bring. For example: we had to go out and buy more firewood last time. We ended up using 7 bundles of wood, so this time, we will bring seven bundles with us. We brought two boxes of graham crackers and only used one- we will leave one at home. We found that we needed warmer sleeping bags for two of the boys- a fact that I had forgotten, but my list told me! So we will make sure that they will have warmer sleeping bags before we set out.

I make these types of lists after most things that I do- birthday parties, major craft making days, parties, vacations, Christmas. You name it, I have a list for it. These lists tell me what I liked and didn't like, what I would or would not repeat. I am the mom of four boys- my brain can only remember so many details! This is what really works for me! For more great ideas check out We are THAT family.

The Countdown!

We are in our final week of school. Friday is "Finish Line Friday". I took the boys to the Dollar store and I let them each pick out water balloons in a different color. We are going to have a spectacular water balloon fight! I think that I am also going to surprise them with cake pops from Bakerellas site following these directions. However, I think that I won't make ours pink- it might not go over all that well with this group! If they turn out, I will post a pic or two later!

I am very ready for this school year to be done. We took off time when baby boy#4 was born, so our school year has extended itself into July. I really don't like doing school in July! However- I think that the boys have really learned a great lesson out of this. Following through is sometimes tedious and difficult, but finishing strong is a reward in itself! Four more days!!!!

My Latest Project

I have been making burp cloths for a couple of new little baby girls. I got to use pink! Pink fabric, thread and ribbons! That is a color that I don't get to see to much of! I found a great site here, that really helped me out. I was blessed by a bunch of these with baby boy#4, they work great and looked nicer than plain white cloth diapers.

Red Potatoes and Green Bean Foil Packets

My latest thing is cooking with foil. It really has some great advantages. The best advantage is the clean up. You just throw the used foil away! This is a recipe that I threw together to go with my Lemon Pepper Tilapia foil packet.

Red Potatoes and Green Bean Foil Packet

Slice red potatoes and green beans into small bite sized pieces. Toss with olive oil, kosher salt, pepper and chopped fresh rosemary. Dot with butter. Place on the center of two large pieces of foil. Wrap up into a packet. Bake at 400° for 30-35 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Go check out more wonderful recipes at Grocery Cart Challenge here.

Lemon Pepper Tilapia- Tempt My Tummy Tuesday 7-7-09

Back in the day- my family would have a wonderful fish fry of sorts. Sometimes we would have fresh fish and my mom would whip up a batter and fry them right up. It was heavenly. I can still see her in my minds eye standing over the stove. And the smells, my mouth is watering- sigh! Unfortunately, that was one recipe that my siblings and I never asked her for. So I have resorted to making fish a different way whenever the mood strikes and this recipe is one that I threw together after scouring the web for tips and ideas. I hope that you will try it and enjoy it. My whole mob loved it, which surprised me, I thought there would be one who would turn his nose up.

Lemon Pepper Tilapia in foil packets

1 lemon- cut into slices

Tilapia fillets

Kosher Salt- to taste

Pepper- to taste

Lemon Pepper- to taste

Butter

Get your foil ready, it needs to be large enough that you can create a little envelope. Click here for a great step by step guide. Place two lemon slices on the foil, then top with a fish fillet. Season with salt, pepper and lemon pepper. Dot with butter. Fold up and bake at 400° for 20-25 minutes. If I had any fresh herbs that day I would have thrown them on top as well. You really can tweak to your family's taste preferences. So simple, so yummy! For more delicious recipes check out Tempt My Tummy Tuesday hosted by Blessed With Grace.

Menu Plan Monday 7-6-09

I hope that this week will be "normal" for us. Our kind of normal is a little bit fast paced and strange to many- but I sure do miss it when we get off our pattern!

Here is the plan for Chow time for my cowboys!

Monday: Grilled Hamburgers

Tuesday:Crock Pot Ravioli and Homemade Foccacia

Wednesday: Antipasto Wraps

Thursday: Sour Cream Enchiladas

Friday: Chicken Packets

Saturday: We are going to the races!!! We will be bringing leftover antipasto wraps and other types of sandwiches.

Sunday: Fish packets with potato packets (recipes to follow this week)

I just heard the weather forecast- it is supposed to be very summer like, so I might be making these early in the day and reheating in the evening. I hope that will help keep my house cooler.

For more excellent menu ideas and recipes check out Menu Plan Monday.

Love . . . .True Love . . . .

We are so excited for my sister. She has met and fallen head over heels for a very sweet and special man. He popped the question this weekend, and of course, she said YES!! I don't know who is more excited? Staci and Steve, or my boys that she will be marrying Mr. Steve! Hip Hip Hooray!!!!