My little girl is potty trained. The last of the bunch. That part of my life is over.
sniff……
sniff…….
YEAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! NO MORE DIAPERS!!!!!!!
I MADE IT! I MADE IT! OH YEAH! I MADE IT!!!!
just thought you would like to know.
PrintAs you all know, one of my very favorite places to eat is Olive Garden. I could eat there every week and I excitedly order the very. same. thing. which would be the Soup, Salad and Breadsticks. Zuppa Toscana soup to be exact! Of course you must wash all this down with a glass of Bellini iced tea also.
The other day my wonderful hubby was telling the girls at work how much I love that soup and one of the girls found a recipe online and printed it off for me. I must admit that I have tried other “sausage and potato soup” recipes in hopes of hitting the same exact taste that Olive Garden serves up in a bowl. I never have found it…… UNTIL NOW!!!
This recipe tastes exactly like the real thing. So I must share it. You must make this. You must eat this. You must enjoy this as much as I.
Zuppa Toscana
Makes: 6-8 servings
INGREDIENTS
* 1 lb ground Italian sausage
* 1½ tsp crushed red peppers
* 1 large diced white onion
* 4 Tbsp bacon pieces
* 2 tsp garlic puree
* 10 cups water
* 5 cubes of chicken bouillon
* 1 cup heavy cream
* 1 lb sliced Russet potatoes, or about 3 large potatoes
* ¼ of a bunch of kale
1. Saute Italian sausage and crushed red pepper in pot. Drain excess fat, refrigerate while you prepare other ingredients.
2. In the same pan, saute bacon, onions and garlic for approximately 15 mins. or until the onions are soft.
3. Mix together the chicken bouillon and water, then add it to the onions, bacon and garlic. Cook until boiling.
4. Add potatoes and cook until soft, about half an hour.
5. Add heavy cream and cook until thoroughly heated.
6. Stir in the sausage.
7. Add kale just before serving. Delicious!
Buon appetito!
PrintLast week Mom had her routine Cat scans and PET scans done. She reviewed the results with the Dr. yesterday. The Cat scan showed nothing but the PET scan showed a couple of small areas that looked suspicious. They were dense and could be a sign of cancer forming. They did her tumor marker count and today she heard back that it went from 9 to 19. That is still in “normal” range but the rise is not a good indication.
At this point they will wait 4 weeks and do another tumor marker level. If it continues to rise then they will discuss chemo again. I know that right now, Mom feels like she just finished chemo and it is hard to even think about.
Please pray with us that this tumor marker count will stay down, that God will continue to provide for her healing and also for peace of mind for Mom.
Here is a picture of my family at Christmas.
But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.
~ 2 Corinthians 4:7-10
Okay, I’m curious at what new little nuance did you learn today. We really do learn new things everyday and we don’t even realize it. I am trying to take note of new things that hit my brain and make a new connection these days. Probably because they seem to be less and less the older I get!
So…today I learned that you can take the knobs off the stove!!! Did you know this? You can pull the burner knobs right off and wash them. This makes for easy cleanup around the knobs where all the messy fingers and food get splashed. I learned this thanks to my friend Jules! So thanks Jules for having your knobs off your stove today. I came right home, pulled them off and enjoyed cleaning that mess. No more trying to get a rag around and behind those silly things!
Another thing I am learning is this…and it’s because of my tongue situation (check out my previous post if you don’t know what I’m talking about).
James 1:19 (message version) “Post this to all intersections, dear friends: Lead with your ears, follow up with your tongue, and let anger straggle along in the rear.”
I think my life is so much of the time characterized by the complete opposite of the above. I let something tick me off or annoy me, then I follow it up with my tongue yelling and yapping and then later I might listen. Actually I probably never listened at all.
For some reason I think that it is no accident that I am starting 2008 with a mouth full of sores, full of pain and having to quit talking! My mouth really does feel so much better when I keep it shut. I also am learning the art of listening, sizing up situations and learning the most effective and brief words to use to dissolve kid spats, conversations and meaningful moments of love. This has been painfully good for me!
So tell me something YOU learned today…anything…no matter how silly!
PrintOkay, I’m weird. I must share this with you because it is just too amazing.
This week I came down with a bunch of canker sores in my mouth. It started last Saturday and by New Year’s Eve I was in serious pain. Still am. The sore on my tongue just kept growing and growing and I finally had to go to the Dr. yesterday. I totally freaked the doctor out and he just couldn’t get enough of looking at it. He prescribed some anti-virus meds, swish and spit with lidocaine and Vicadin. Yup, I’m a freak!
So I must show you a picture. ..
If you are squeemish, don’t look.
enjoy.
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas time. Here are a few pictures of the kids. I so enjoyed each of them, the wonder on their faces on Christmas morning and the magic of the season seen through their eyes.
I love this picture of the kids together dressed up!
The boys received Ninja outfits and they have really put them to good use.
Evely cleaned up on Princess stuff.
Here’s Ninja #2.
All Recipes
Dave Ramsey