Happy Birthday To My Hubby!

Today is Charlie's birthday...I have shared 25 of his birthdays with him, I hope I can share 25 more!
He is my Rock.
I am is his Calm.

We may be opposites but it works, it really works for us....

My Gangster of Love

He indulges my need to look cool at Baseball Games!

Have a Happy Happy Birthday Honey Bunny!!

Happy Birthday Buckaroo!

Wow, time sure does fly!
Ethan, our first grandson, will turn 9 tomorrow.
I got to watch him his first 3 years and we had a blast! I introduced him to Rachael Ray cooking shows, raced him on all his mobile toys and bought him his first push-up off the ice cream truck!
What a blast we had, but then he got older and needed to go to pre-school to learn to be social, so off he went..to grow up and become a little man.
He now races Bandelero race cars,(they can start at 8 years old!) and he does not even have a drivers license???  What?? Those cars go up to 80 miles an hour!! I won't even do that on the freeway - yeah, that's me in the slow lane soaking up life people!! While he is out there pedal to the metal racing that car!!
Anyway, just wanted to say Happy Birthday Ethan, I love you, you will always have a special place in my heart!

Here is a look back through his scrapbooks that I made!

Awww, chocolate cupcakes, gotta lick the spoon!

He loved playing with the pots and pans, come on culinary school grad!!

My favorite, the first ice cream off the truck, love that face!!

Every day we stopped to watch Rachael Ray cook us something!

Hey, he learned to race from me! Just so you know!!

UH, he wrecked on his own, I swear!!! I win!!!

That cat loved Ethan more then spaghetti, and that cat loved spaghetti!!!

Ethan's race car next to his dad's race car!



Ethan with John Force the big time Drag Racer, one of my hero's! Lucky kid!

P.S I hope you become a chef due to Ma-maw's influence!! or a pro-baseball player, it's all good! 

Happy Mom's Day!

I no longer have my mom or my mother in law on this day to celebrate.

My Mom

Charlie's Mom

I would be making dinner for my mother in law, Margaret, since she lived close to us, and I would have sent my mom, Joyce, flowers, instead I received a beautiful bunch of flowers from my son, Travis,  and his wife, Rebecca....

Gorgeous!

Last night I attended the Modified Races at the Bullring here in Las Vegas, Joseph was running the #29 Mod, he got 4th quick time qualifying, sat on the pole for the trophy dash, and finished 7th in the 75 lap feature!! Whoo-hoo, that was a good night of racing!
Here is one lap of the race:

My sister, Christy and her friends, walked yesterday in the 5k walk in California at the LA Colosseum, 50,000 people were there!
I am very proud of her!

Christy on the right.

Christy on the right.
 

Hope you have a wonderful day and a wonderful week, remember to take time to relax and just breathe, life is for living so get busy......

Clams, Herbs, and Crabs!

Well, did not mean to leave you so long...just been in a funk, yes, I got a little taste of summer then it left, we have had thunderstorms and rain, so my sunny skies turned gray.

We are rooting for the Time Bandit, because that is where Josh is.
We are hoping one day he gets his dad's boat back and becomes a captain, he deserves it so much!

But not to worry, I found a  little happy! We have been watching our beloved crab guys on Tuesday, and Boston Red Sox baseball (Go Napoli!!) and the only herb that survived on my windowsill was the rosemary, I love the way it smells, so I planted an outdoor herb garden, we will see if that works.

I served it with sourdough bread, yum!

I made clam chowder for dinner, my husband really liked it! I loved it! This recipe is nice and simple and sooooo yummy, not too clammy and not to creamy, just right blend of everything!!

I searched the internet until I found one that used canned clams (I do not know where to get fresh seafood in las vegas) and I needed it not to have too much onion or veggies...this was great, just potatoes, shallots and I added celery because I need celery in my clam chowder!!

The recipe comes from www.budgetsavvydiva.com

Here is the recipe:

Copy Cat Recipe – The Chart House Clam Chowder

Ingredients

• 1 slice bacon, minced
• ½ teaspoon butter
• 1 shallot minced
• 1 teaspoon seasoning (see spice blend recipe below)
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 (6½ ounce) can clams
• 1 cup bottled clam juice
• 1½ cups half-and-half
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• 3 medium potatoes, boiled, peeled and diced (I added the potatoes at the end and let the soup cook 45 minutes to cook everything together and cook the potatoes-worked great!)
• 3 stalks celery chopped small

 

• Ingredients for The Cliff House Spice Blend ( you can store the extra)
• 2 teaspoons marjoram
• 2 teaspoons dill
• 4 teaspoons thyme
• 4 teaspoons basil
• 1 teaspoon sage
• 4 teaspoons rosemary
• 2 teaspoons tarragon
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Instructions

1. Mix the spices into a mortar — crush as much as you can. If you do not have a mortar — use the blender. The goal is to try and ground the spice blend as much as you can.
2. In a large skillet – add butter and bacon – cook over medium heat. After 5 minutes add shallot, celery, and spice blend ( 1 teaspoon) – turn heat to low.
3. Drain clams — add juice to “soup” also add the bottle of clam juice. Add flour -Set to medium heat, Bring to a boil ( reduce heat to low) . Add half and half. Stir.
4. Add pepper, and clams – stir and cook for 45 minutes (if you use raw potatoes)
5. Serve in bowls or bread bowls
6. Enjoy!

Summertime....and the living......

Summer is on it's way, my happiest time of the year. Summer just suits me to a t!
I feel good, I look healthy with the extra vitamin D I get. I feel happy!

I came home from work and jumped in the pool and took a nice relaxing swim, it soothed my soul.

I am a pisces and I love the water, not the ocean, but swimming pools and lakes. I grew up near Manhatten Beach, California, I hated the beach, the sand always got in places you never imagined and the sharks and riptides were the scariest things I ever lived through...I saw JAWS 13 times as a kid.

But put me in a pool or let me float with the current of a river or stream and I am at one with the world.

I remember as a teenager, one of the kids we knew had a swimming pool and we all went over to his house and played in it during the summer. I sat there one summer and said one day I will have my own swimming pool. And sure enough there it is in my own backyard, my very own swimming pool!! I just love it!!

I hope you can look back at some childhood dreams you had and make them come true this summer!
Life is short and we have but one life to live, so let's make it count and let's enjoy our summers!!

Summertime and the living is easy....

Here's a little Janis to keep you company...I am headed out to the pool to light the tiki torches and sip a little wine....rock on....

Summer is on it's way!

Cooking up a storm!

I have been trying to get some cooking done before I head off to work, I decided I want to bake a loaf a bread on mondays, no more store bought bread full of chemicals!

With rapid rise yeast it only takes about 2 hours to get 2 loaves made!

You mix, knead, rise 30 minutes, divide to 2 loaf pans, rise 30 minutes, bake 40 minutes, and you are done!!
Here are my 2:

I also got some veggies roasted and made Roasted Veggie Mac & Cheese for dinner last night!

AND....I made my own Pico De Gallo! Love this on my Vegetarian Tacos!

Whew! That was my cooking adventures for this week! I will try to make something new and exciting next week!!