Recipe: Chunky Tomato Salad

Here’s a salad-alternative recipe you will find helpful if you have a garden that produces more medium-to-large tomatoes than you know what to do with! It is easy, light, different, and perfect for this time of year! It has become a favorite around here. Check it out!

Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 0 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients:
2 large tomatoes, preferably heirloom, seeded and coarsely chopped
¼ cup chopped fresh basil
2 shallots, finely chopped
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons olive oil
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper

Directions:
Are you ready for this? Simply toss together the tomatoes, basil, shallots, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper directly into the serving bowl you plan to use. This salad is especially tasty if chilled in the fridge before eaten. Enjoy!

The Triple-Orange Daylily Bulbs: Revisted

Back in May, we posted about Grandma Gigi's Texas Garden. Remember, she had the orangest daylilies ever? When she visited us last year, just after E was born, she brought some of these lilies up with her. I believe she may have even snuck them on the plane (sorry TSA!).

During her stay, she "nursed" these bulbs & stems in a pan of water of our deck where they could receive the best sunlight. Then they were planted. After she left I watched and waited for something I could report out on, but nothing came. I was concerned the neighborhood deer might have found them irresistible because I never saw a thing, but I was told it would take just over a year for the blooms (I guess good things DO come to those who are patient...).

Well, the good news did come! One has popped up to say hi! Perhaps I am just getting older, but I was prompted to ask her about the exact history of this flower, especially since I knew it had some family meaning. Here, in Grandma Gigi's own words is the account of the Triple-Orange:

~~~~~

My mother loved flowers. It didn't matter what kind they were, as long as they bloomed, they grew in her yard. I think I was about 8 years old that spring when she found the triple-orange daylily bulbs in a seed catalog. They were expensive, & we were on a limited income, so she told me we'd have to save our money. One day she said we had enough, so we ordered them. I remember "helping" her fill out the order form, then I got to carry the envelope out to the mail box. I think I was as excited as she was about them. She would look every day for the bulbs to arrive in the mail, & one day, there they were. I remember the package being kind of bulky - the mail box wouldn't even shut all the way! I carried the package very carefully. I was kind of disappointed when she removed those ugly brown bulbs from the package; was this what all the fuss was about? Mother told me that we'd have to wait for a little while, but the wait would be worth it. We planted them the same day we received them. Mother had so many other daylilies - all colors & shapes, but she said THESE were special; the blooms were to have a triple layer of petals on each blossom & be a beautiful bright orange! They came up right on schedule, but I had to wait the rest of that year, plus part of the next spring, before they finally sent up tall, green bloom shoots. I watched the buds grow fat. One morning there were three opened, & they were everything the seed catalog (& mother) said they'd be! Yes, they were worth the wait! Mother called all her friends & told them to come see them. Such are memories made of. I found that those triple-orange daylilies proved to be very user-friendly. They are healthy & hardy, & I found that they would grow in all types of soil. Through the years I've made it a point of carrying a bulb or two of those lilies to just about every place I've ever lived, & left them for the future owner to enjoy. I have also made it a tradition to bring them to family, no matter WHERE they live! Every time I see a bloom, I'm taken back to that summer when I was a child & "me & mommy" planted daylilies together.

~~~~~
Here are pictures of the actual flower, which has bloomed here in our backyard.

In a digital age of .jpg's and txt msgs, we are elated to know there are still physical objects that can be "passed down", or better yet "planted". What does your family pass down from one generation to the next?

To Another Six...

Dear S,

I certainly can't properly express my feelings for you here, but I can say that the last six years have been the best part of the ride so far. If I think back to our wedding day, I remember trying to predict the future with you. I never, ever could have seen something so bright as what we have - a wonderfully happy marriage, a beautiful & energetic little girl, a strong & growing faith and commitment towards our Lord and each other - it seems so unreal. But I know that it is. I look forward to another six (and more!) with you. I know the best is yet to come. I love you.

Yours,

L

The Sack Lunches

Naturally, email forwards clog our inbox as we are sure do yours. Few are deemed worth sharing, but this one though, true or not, definitely is. It is also very timely considering a neighbor of our street just had their son return from a tour in Iraq. Perhaps today will be the day we stroll down there to thank him...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Sack Lunches

I put my carry-on in the luggage compartment and sat down in my
assigned seat. It was going to be a long flight. I'm glad I have a
good book to read. Perhaps I will get a short nap, I thought.
Just before take-off, a line of soldiers came down the aisle and
filled all the vacant seats, totally surrounding me. I decided to
start a conversation.

"Where are you headed?" I asked the soldier seated nearest to me.

"Petawawa. We'll be there for two weeks for special training, and then
we're being deployed to Afghanistan."

After flying for about an hour, an announcement was made that sack
lunches were available for five dollars. It would be several hours
before we reached the east, and I quickly decided a lunch would help
pass the time. As I reached for my wallet, I overheard a soldier ask his buddy if he planned to buy lunch.

"No, that seems like a lot of money for just a sack lunch. Probably wouldn't be worth five bucks. I'll wait till we get to base."

His friend agreed. I looked around at the other soldiers. None were buying lunch. I walked to the back of the plane and handed the flight attendant a fifty dollar bill.

"Take a lunch to all those soldiers." She grabbed my arms and squeezed tightly. Her eyes wet with tears, she thanked me.

"My son was a soldier in Iraq; it's almost like you are doing it for
him." Picking up ten sacks, she headed up the aisle to where the soldiers
were seated.

Then she stopped at my seat and asked, "Which do you like better - beef or chicken?"

"Chicken," I replied, wondering why she asked. She turned and went to the front of plane, returning a minute later with a dinner plate from first class. "This is your thanks."

After we finished eating, I went again to the back of the plane,
heading for the rest room. A man stopped me. "I saw what you did.
I want to be part of it. Here, take this." He handed me twenty-five dollars.

Soon after I returned to my seat, I saw the Flight Captain coming down
the aisle, looking at the aisle numbers as he walked. I hoped he was
not looking for me, but noticed he was looking at the numbers only on
my side of the plane. When he got to my row he stopped, smiled, held out his hand, and said, "I want to shake your hand."

Quickly unfastening my seat belt I stood and took the Captain's hand.
With a booming voice he said, "I was a soldier and I was a military pilot.
Once, someone bought me a lunch. It was an act of kindness I never forgot." I was embarrassed when applause was heard from all of the passengers.

Later I walked to the front of the plane so I could stretch my legs.
A man who was seated about six rows in front of me reached out his
hand, wanting to shake mine. He left another twenty-five dollars in my palm.

When we landed I gathered my belongings and started to deplane. Waiting just inside the airplane door was a man who stopped me, put something in my shirt pocket, turned, and walked away without saying a word. Another twenty-five dollars!

Upon entering the terminal, I saw the soldiers gathering for their trip
to the base. I walked over to them and handed them seventy-five dollars. "It will take you some time to reach the base. You will be wanting another sandwich. God Bless You."

Ten young men left that flight feeling the love and respect of their
fellow travelers. As I walked briskly to my car, I whispered a
prayer for their safe return. These soldiers were giving their all
for our country. I could only give them a couple of meals .... it seemed so little.

********

A veteran is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check
made payable to, "The United States of America", for an amount, "up to and
including my life."

That is the meaning of Honor .....

Look Out, Rachel Ray!

Oh boy, do you have competition coming, girl! E spends time in her kitchen every day! Chopping. Mixing. Baking. Souffle-er-ing. (also chucking, jumping and emptying, but we won't talk about those here!) She's getting good, too. So, for the record, you've just been put on notice!

Superman To The Rescue!

We went to visit Rocketship's cousin's - Mickenzie & Cole - who were in town for a few days; spontaneously stopping on the way over for ice cream (caution: summer will do that to you!)

It was E's first time having ice cream and it just seemed appropriate to select the flavor Superman to mark the event! Any correlation between the Superman colors and E's outfit were merely coincidental!

Surprisingly, she only had about a dozen extremely-excited bites, then like a switch flipped downward she was done! Hmm, okay, more Superman for the 'rents!

Then it was off to perform one of her most talented maneuvers; gathering rocks by the handful and transporting them to new locations!

Here are E and her cousins (Cole upper, Mick lower), together and astonishingly still enough for a group picture:

Look Who's Mallin'

Here is another "dead" post from the "drafts" folder. I vividly remember taking this picture for the blog, probably about 6 months ago. We were at the mall and this was the first time Rocketship (little e) wanted to sit up in her stroller versus the usual reclined position.

She sat up and observed the surroundings the entire time we were there. She even wanted to lean forward, so I eventually found myself unbuckling the seat belt, until she almost fell out of the front! Oops, I guess those belts really were there for a reason!

I just remember thinking this was such a big change for her. And it was - she hasn't been the same at the mall since. She really, REALLY enjoys it! I believe I overheard someone once describing that as normal behavior for a little girl!

"Starlight", as made famous by the band Muse

"Starlight"

Far away
This ship is taking me far away
Far away from the memories
Of the people who care if I live or die

Starlight
I will be chasing the starlight
Until the end of my life
I don't know if it's worth it anymore

Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold
You in my arms

My life
You electrify my life
Let's conspire to re-ignite
All the souls that would die just to feel alive

But I'll never let you go
If you promised not to fade away
Never fade away

Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations
Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations

Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold
You in my arms

Far away
This ship is taking me far away
Far away from the memories
Of the people who care if I live or die

And I'll never let you go
If you promise not to fade away
Never fade away

Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations
Our hopes and expectations
Black holes and revelations

Hold you in my arms
I just wanted to hold
You in my arms
I just wanted to hold

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I love music. I mean, I REALLY love music. Those of you that know me (really know me) already know that. I have always been attracted to that little piece of our brain that tells us if we like a certain song or melody. Isn't that crazy? I mean we usually know this after hearing only a snippet of the work!

I believe most people like a song if they find the tune catchy or if they've heard it enough it becomes familiar to them. Personally, I feel as though there are two reasons to find a song desirable, either I like the tune or I like the lyrics. A "flawless" song for me captures my attention on both accounts.

I chose to post these Muse lyrics for that last reason. No matter how many times I enjoy this song, I have no reason to discount it from the status of "flawless".

What's in YOUR catalogue under the "flawless" heading? Share it here.

Heart-melter Rating: 10

"Please" is the newest word/phrase most commonly heard at our household. I do believe we enjoy it more than anything else E has spoken to date, yes even including "mama" or "dada".

Here is a sampling: