Independence Day 2009

Our fun friends Sandra and Walter let us celebrate the 4th with them. It was so fun, and Lily took some great pictures to prove it! (Thanks Lily!)
Elijah (and Julia) love this dog. A slide:
A seesaw:
A laughing girl:



A happy boy:
A sandbox:

A happy Momma:
Two sweet grandmothers:


Cows!

Fireworks!
A ball!
Fun!
Tired.
A pyrotech in the making:
A happy Independence Day. Thanks Sandra and Walter!

Zucchini Lasagna

What are we doing with all our zucchini? We are seeking to enjoy it in all kinds of new ways. Last night's dinner of zucchini lasagna was a hit. The recipe comes from this post, where I would recommend you head for pictures. My additions to the recipe are incorporated into the recipe below. Let me know if you try it!
Zucchini Lasagna
- 2 large zucchini, about 3 lbs
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 3 Tbsp minced garlic
- 15-16 oz ricotta cheese
- 4 eggs
- 1 tsp dried oregano (or a hearty handful of fresh)
- 1 tsp dried basil (or a hearty handful of fresh)
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp freshly ground black pepper (a good minute of hand-grinding)
- 1 cup Parmesan-Roman cheese
- 2 cups breadcrumbs, homemade, if available
- 1 quart tomato sauce
- 3 cups Mozzarella cheese


1. Slice zucchini into thin, long slices so it looks like a lasagna noodle. Cook in boiling water for five minutes. Drain on paper towels.

2. Cook turkey and garlic over medium heat until browned.

3. Combine ricotta, eggs, oregano, basil, salt, pepper, ½ cup Parmesan-Romano cheese, and ¾ cup breadcrumbs with a wisk. Stir well. Set aside

4. Grease a 9x13 glass pan. Layer lasagna like this (from bottom to top):
- Thin layer of tomato sauce
- ½ cup bread crumbs
- Zucchini
- ½ of the ricotta mixture
- 1 ½ cups mozzarella cheese
- Turkey & garlic mixture
- Remaining zucchini
- Remaining tomato sauce
- Remaining bread crumbs (3/4 cup)
- Remaining ricotta mixture
- ½ cup Parmesan-Romano cheese
- 1 ½ cups mozzarella cheese

5. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour. Let stand 20 minutes before serving.

The best part about this recipe is that we used zucchini, basil, oregano, and tomatoes from our own garden. My first attempt at tomato paste/sauce was by no means delicious, but it tasted just fine in this recipe. Our bread crumbs were from a disaster loaf of bread. (I let it rise WAY too long because I forgot about it. Then, I turned off the oven and the timer but forgot to actually take the loaves out of the oven until much later. It was that kind of day.) God has blessed us with so much good food this summer, and I was glad to be able to use so much of it in this recipe.

Late Night Harvest

Me, annoyed at having not gone to the garden sooner:

Eric has been working out, but these zucchini almost got the best of him.
*Lydia's Gardening Tip: Visit the garden daily both to give it water and harvest its crops.

Exersaucer

Can you believe that this little boy......already looks like this?
PawPaw bought this exersaucer for Elijah and it is still a much loved toy...for both children~:-)

On a Hike

Elijah Millard, 10.2.2007
Haven Elizabeth, 7.3.2009
Children improve everything, even the great outdoors.

Mombo Comes to Visit!

We were so happy to have Mombo here for a few days. Elijah had lots of plans for her visit including Peek-a-Zoo! and, of course, Rosie's Walk, among many other books. Haven was also allowed in on the action. We had lunch with our friends Sandra & Walter at Merridee's, and then walked around downtown Franklin. Mom got to hear all about the perks of our new stroller, push it herself, and even tell others why it is so amazing.
Haven received some much-needed attention.

Mombo brought cute new outfits for the children.
Sweet girl.
Lots of storytime happened and happens in our house. We love books!
To help Mom's heel spurs we took her on a five mile hike. She had assured us it would be fine, but we all realized later that we bit off a bit more than we could chew. Like all good hikes, we finished the whole thing...with both kids in the stroller, Haven laying down in the stroller, Elijah walking, Elijah on Daddy's back, Elijah on Momma's back, and Haven in the Ergo. Back problems, you ask? Why, no. I have an Ergo.

Oh, and we found innumerable blackberries on the trail. They made for a fabulous snack. In much need of nutrition, we used two(!) coupons and let Mom treat us to delicious Copper Kettle food. Mom and I partook of the best okra in the state.

Come again, dear Mother, we'll only force you to the creek and back next time~:-)

Gardening

Gardening has been so fun this year because we have actually grown a handsome bit of food. Here I am with one of our homegrown zucchini. Yum! Haven loves to come with me, as long as she is in the Ergo. Have I told you all how much I have enjoyed the Ergo? Oh my! It is FABULOUS!!! It makes the Baby Bjorn seem like trailer trash. {I say that in a non-condescending way, as we do not own a dwelling of any type.}
*Lydia's Gardening Tip: For maximum flavor, pick zucchini when they are about 4-6 inches long. If, however, no one told you this, they are still edible and delicious at a much, much bigger size.
And, who can resist a picture of this tiny hiney on her way to the bathtub?

Back to the Grind

Elijah is slightly obsessed with lining things up/moving things to new locations/hiding things around the house. We like to say he's "working." Well, work he does. All. Day. Which is one reason we have little piles of miscellaneous things throughout the house. I took a picture of these because it looked like Elijah was trying to build a semi-circle (which he has done!).

Since Daddy was back at work and inspired by Panda Cake, we cooked.

Then I put mousse in Elijah's hair. Doesn't he look so big here?

Haven, snug in her pajamas and waiting patiently for someone to interact with her~:-)

Happy Days!

Guess Who?

Staycation: The End

Our photo shoot with Haven could have gone a little better, but we do the best we have with our lowly point-and-shoot~;-)Good thing she is so cute!Look at this little bottom, perhaps my favorite thing about a baby! *Outfit courtesy of Connie or Aunt Abigail.We took Daddy to meet Clyde, our local pony, for the first time.
Elijah went with apple treats for Clyde. Unfortunately, we neglected to educate Elijah on proper feeding techniques for animals, namely, that one must LET GO of the apple when Clyde's mouth gets close. Alas, Elijah was bitten by huge pony teeth.
Nevertheless, Elijah and Clyde remain friends.
We finished off our staycation by eating at Woody's Steakhouse. [Coupon again.] (Note: this was >24 hours after starting our antibiotics; we were supposedly out of the contagious zone.) I ambitiously ordered a whole rack of ribs. I think I ate one before getting a to-go box~:-) Mmmm, leftovers.
It was a very happy vacation. We got to do lots of things around Nashville, but the most fun thing was just having Eric home with us.