Meatball ItailanoAmericanoKiddo Recipe

My very own meatball recipe:

1 lb ground chuck 80/20
1 egg
1/4 to 1/3 cup breadcrumbs
1.5 tsp oregano
1.5 tsp basil
1.5 tsp garlic
0.5 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 small can tomato paste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.
Mix and squish the ingredients with your hands until well blended.
Measure out 3 Tbsp of the mixture and form a ball, making about 12 meatballs.
Arrange the meatballs in 3 rows almost touching each other in a ceramic baking dish or in a foil lined pan.
Bake for 40 minutes or until the internal temperature of the meatballs reaches 160 degrees F.
Remove the meatballs from the baking dish into a clean dish. (Do not allow meatballs to sit in the drippings.)

Serve alongside spaghetti with meat sauce or marinara sauce and Parmesan cheese.
Serve with sauted green peppers and onions and rice. Cover with a gravy made with some of the meatball drippings.

Biggie's Chili

I love making chili. It reminds me of my Biggie. My mom made this same recipe, too. It's a family tradition. I remember the time I called my mom to ask her all the stuff to put in the recipe. She gave me the ingredients and I've been making it ever since. I've even modifed the recipe slightly, like I use ground cloves instead of whole cloves, but that's about it! Also, Lucks quit making the chili hot beans, or the store quit carring them, so I've started using Bush's chili beans, or even my own leftover beans. Making chili is fun.

Thomas and his Tooth

A couple of days ago, Thursday evening, Thomas had his tooth knocked loose! I just knew it was going go fall out! I'm so thankful to God that it didn't fall out. He's walking so well and so fast that he's almost running now, at least he joins in with the "get me" running around the loop in the house now! Also, Joanna has taken to running Thomas down and jumping on him. They both laugh histerically and get up and do it again. I've been discouraging this game as it's seems a little too mean for my liking. (Even though they are laughing, the fact is Joanna is pushing him down.) Well, Thursday evening, I think both games got combined...Joanna and Thomas were going around the loop. I think Thomas was going after Joanna for a while, then he waddled out of the "loop" into the dining room by the office and Joanna followed him...then there was a thump and a wail. Joanna had pushed him down, both of them laughing all the way down. I am reminded of the saying "It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt." He was almost inconsoable. I was shocked to see blood on his mouth! I asked Joanna to get a tissue and pointed out what she had done had hurt Thomas. She started crying too! Thomas was o.k. After about two or three minutes, he'd forgotten all about it and was on to playing again. I just made sure not to give him any hard foods the next day just in case his tooth was still loose! As I write this I think that Joanna has not pushed him down again since. But it has only been two days!
Joanna does like to play with Thomas. She's been the "bigger one" for  a while, but that is starting to change. Here's a story about how Thomas got Joanna rustled up recently. I have always kept the bathroom cabinet empty and Joanna  has always loved climbing in there. With Thomas added to our family, she still gets in there but now but it's like a big game of peek-a-boo. Thomas follows her and stands outside the cabinet while she opens the door and screams, and he screams and pushes the door closed, this is repeated ad nauseum. I have found this activity wildly amusing and I just love that they are delighted together. Well, earlier this week, they were playing cabinet peek-a-boo and Joanna just started sreaming, "Thomas" then, "Mommy" with panic in her voice. So, I jumped in there and pulled her out.  I think Thomas held the door shut instead of just closing it and Joanna couldn't open the door with her own force. That'd set me into a panic wouldn't it you? Having fun, then suddenly, you are trapped. Poor girl. Now, I'm sure Thomas hasn't ever had a bad thought in his life, and loves Joanna more than one could imagine. But, this was a game-changing moment of Thomas becoming stronger.

Free Digital Scrapbook Stuff

Visit http://digitalfreebies.com/ and sign up for the Friday Freebie. You'll get an email on Fridays notifying you of a link to some neat digital scrap booking files. The links are only good for a period of time, then they expire. If you really get into digital scrap booking, you can purchase inexpensive kits from this web site. I had this site recommended from a friend. It's neat to browse the gallery to see some really fantastic ideas. There are some super creative people out there!

Jason is 35

So, Jason is turning 35. Let's see. This makes the 13th time I've had the privilege of telling him "Happy Birthday." This has been a neat year. We've enjoyed travelling to Great Lakes, IL to see Jon graduate Navy Basic Training, and to South Daytona Beach, FL for vacation. Joanna had swine flu and Thomas had RSV. We "dedicated" Thomas to Christ. We sold both our nice cars and got rid of that debt. We are driving reliable and respectable paid-for vehicles. We mourned the passing of our dear friend Ed and tried to help Joanna cope with and try to understand his absence.  Our kids have grown in emotionally and physically. We haven't stopped growing and learning as well. We have gardened, made scratch biscuits, canned food, and butchered meat.  We are blessed with health and happiness our family and friends.

A collage of fun pictures from the last year.

Some firsts

Joanna "spat" for the first time while brushing her teeth!

Thomas tried to say "baby" when he saw the baby hair wash.

TV Commercials

I had the opportunity to tell Joanna, "We don't let TV tell us what to do" the other day. She decided she wanted some chocolate during a commercial for Lindor Truffles.