Cast-Away

Anybody ready for a party? I am. I want to throw a "Cast-Away" party. Alexandra gets her cast off tomorrow July 1st! We are so excited but at the same time not sure what to expect. Anyway, my party would require a dress code of leis, grass skirts and LEG WARMERS! I feel like we really have something to celebrate since my baby has been in a body cast for 12 WEEKS!!!

I think her legs will be in this spread-out position for a while. It will help though when it comes to trying out for cheerleading... It will probably be pretty painful when she gets the cast off at first as well. Hopefully, she will adjust to life without the cast as well as she did to life with the cast.

She loves her peas just like her sisters did at her age. I can't wait to put her in a REAL high chair so her peas don't drop to the floor so easily.

She can't get enough of her sisters. The cast hasn't stopped Abby from holding her and carrying her all over or Sammy from playing all sorts of games with her.
But life without the cast will make all these things a bit easier.

Alex has made up all kinds of games she plays with us. She sucks anyone around into playing them too. She is quite a joker and easy to get a laugh out of.

We can't wait to give her a bath and cuddle her again. Abby can't wait to put her ladybug swimsuit on her and take her to the pool. Sammy has been counting down the days. Forget July 4th at our house, July 1st is FREEDOM day....

Summer Dinners

Homemade Pita Bread
2 1/4 c. warm water
3 c. all purpose flour
3 c. white wheat flour
2 tsp. salt
2 TBS. vegetable oil
2 TBS. sugar
1 TBS. yeast
Add water, sugar and yeast, and mix. Let sit for 10 minutes until foamy. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Knead with machine or by hand for 10 minutes. Place in oiled bowl, cover with warm cloth and let rise until doubled in size.

Preheat oven to a piping hot 500 degrees! Turn dough onto floured countertop. Divide into 16 pieces, roll each piece into a ball, and roll out into a 6-7" circle. Set on floured counter, loosely cover.

Place 2 pita circles on a wire cake rack. Place the cake rack directly on oven rack (or on top of baking stone) and bake for 4-5 minutes until lightly browned. Remove and immediately place in a brown paper bag to keep steam inside of bag. Once the pitas are soft, cut in half. Store in plastic bag in refrigerator for several days, or in freezer for up to 2 months.

You start with this...

...after a 500 degree oven you put them in a paper bag....

and then you get this! Aren't they lovely? You can watch them puff up in the oven. They are very good too.

Using these lovely pitas, I then made the following:

Beef Pitas with Yogurt Sauce

1 cup (8oz.) plain yogurt

1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

1/8 teaspoon salt

grated cucumber

Pitas:

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary

salt & pepper

1 pound boneless beef sirloin steak, cut into thin strips

1 large sweet onion, sliced

olive oil

4 whole pitas, warmed

For sauce, in a small bowl, comine the yogurt, parsley, garlic, salt and cucumber. Refrigerate until serving.

Saute onion until golden brown. Remove and keep warm. Saute beef strips in remaining oil until no longer pink.

Serve beef and onion on pitas with yogurt sauce.

And since I am at it, here is one more recipe that is an easy summer dish:

Sausage Veggie Grill

1 pound italian sausage links, cut into 1/2 inch slices

1 medium zucchini, cut into 1 inch slices

1 medium yellow summer squash, cut into 1 inch slices

1 medium red pepper, sliced

1 medium onion, cut into wedges

1 cup quartered fresh mushrooms

(I also added gently boiled red potatoes, diced)

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1 teaspoon paprika

In a large bowl, combine the first six ingredients. In a small bowl, combine the oil, oregano, parsley, garlic salt and paprika. Pour over sausage mixture; toss to coat. Divide between to pieces of heavy-duty foil. Fold foil around sausage mixture and seal tightly. Grill, covered, over medium heat for 25-30 minutes or until meat is no longer pink and vegetables are tender. Open foil carefully to allow steam to escape.

Enjoy!

Tea, Anyone?

The girls had some friends over and wanted a tea party in the club house. We are so lucky to have this huge club house hooked to our swing set. It makes for a fun place to play. It can be arranged for playing house, throwing tea parties, space ships to the moon, or a pirate ship out at sea. There is a whole other room that you can't see off to the side as well. Anyway, I am grateful for our little club house and the hours of fun it provides.

Of course, in order for the girls to play up there, I have to climb up and rid it of any spiders they see, no matter how small.

Hooray for afternoon tea with friends!