Brett and Persephone

Persephone is my tiniest dog. But she mothers Brett. She likes nothing better than for the two of them to be in my lap. Brett is being raised surrounded by dogs, from his dog, a chocolate Labrador Retriever named Choxie, to my dogs and his grandparents dogs, Elaine and Ronnie. So he has no fear of dogs and seems to really like Sephy. Here are some photos of us together and notice how Brett is holding on to Little Miss P.

Jenny & Brett Talking To Kyle In Qatar

Thanks to the Internet, Kyle can call in on Jenny's computer when he gets off from work (Air Force in Qatar, Persian Gulf). With their digicam they can see each other as they talk. They do this as often as possible!

New Brett Pictures

I tried to take these photos myself but my camera was too heavy to hold it steady with one arm so I didn't get a good one.

Lee and Melinda Volunteer At The Church Food Pantry

Every week, Lee and Melinda go to a local grocery store to pick up perishables that have come to the end of their expiration dates. They take them to the church to be distributed. They do the pickup and bring it to the church. Others volunteer to meet them and set up appointments for those who want to pick up the perishables. They have to be cooked or frozen that day since the expiration dates are up that day. You can donate money to buy non-perishable items for the Food Pantry too.








http://www.agbethel.org/

A Day At The Scrapbook Store

Jenny and I met Katie at Scrapbook Creations (our local Scrapbook store) to spend time scrapping together. It was a lot of fun!

Katie shopping


Jenny shopping. She had little Brett with her.










Katie made this beautiful Mother's Day card for Kathi. She's been scrapping now for a year or so. She's doing a great job!


Jenny was making a mini album to send to her husband in Iraq. This was her first scrapping attempt and she did a wonderful job. She worked for a week on it but the result was great.

Homemade Beef & Vegetable Soup

Sharon's Big Pot of Homemade Beef And Vegetable Soup

4 large fresh tomatoes
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 lb beef (browned hamburger, browned stew meat or ox tails)
2 cloves fresh garlic
1 cup fresh parsley, minced
1 Tbsp fresh thyme, minced
1 Tbsp fresh oregano, minced
1/2 tsp fresh sage, minced
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, minced
Salt and Pepper
1 lg diced onions
3 yellow squash, sliced
3 lg potatoes, sliced (or 3/4 cup Barley)
1 can carrots or fresh carrots, sliced
1 bag frozen peas or 1 can peas
1 can of green beans or fresh green beans

Depending on what meat you use, you might need to simmer it longer to get it falling apart. Browned hamburger doesn't need additional cooking time but ox tails need to be cooked longer and pull the meat off the bones before you start your soup. Stew meat needs to be dredged in flour and browned with some oil. Then add some water and let simmer for an extra hour or two before making up soup. You don't want to put all your vegetables in too early because they will dissolve (especially the potatoes).

Take the fresh tomatoes, the canned tomatoes and garlic cloves and liquify in my Vitamix mixer. Put all ingredients in a large pot. If you need more liquid, use water. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about an hour. Note - it's good to freeze.

Last week I made this homemade soup and had the family over. When I went to peel the potatoes I found this heart shaped potato. Isn't it neat!?!