Last Sunday Dinner in August

Barbecued chicken with homemade barbecue sauce....that's what's for Sunday dinner.  Get the recipe and the rest of the Sunday dinner menu here.

Eight Steps Closer to Eagle

Now that's a happy boy, earning eight merit badges last night at the Court of Honor!  Easton worked so diligently this past summer trying to finish up a plethora of merit badges.  It was hard work and there were a few grumpy moments but Easton learned a lot about sticking to the task until it's done!  I'm so proud of my son and the great young man he is becoming.  He just got called to be the Deacons Quorum president in our ward and with that calling he is also the Patrol Leader for the Scout Troop.  He conducted the Court of Honor, created the program/agenda and also supplied the refreshments.  He is learning how to be a leader and doing a fabulous job already.

Strawberry Shortcake for Dessert

Look what we had for dessert today after our Sunday dinner!  Find the recipe and the rest of our Sunday menu by clicking here!

War Airsoft

Easton's at it again.....another airsoft battle ensued over the weekend with his friend Carter Baumgart.  I have yet to get a picture of Easton from the front, but I will keep trying.  Teenagers don't really love pictures.

We fried Easton's battery using the super quick charger at the Airsoft place.  Nobody told us that his batteries couldn't be plugged into the Quick Chargers and that it required a special charger in the back room.  Oh well....lesson learned.

Oh So Yucky!

Right below this little paragraph you will find a horrifyingly gross picture.  I'm giving you advance notice that it's going to seriously creep you out and make you shudder and feel a little squeamish.  I'm warning you....if you can't handle seeing slimy creatures of the long, skinny, slithering version that go ssssssss then do not scroll down any further.  Just X out of the blog and simply move on!
















Well, there you have it!  I warned you that this picture was going to be downright nasty and I was right, wasn't I?  This is what I found the other day when I sauntered through my garden in pursuit of some juicy, ripe tomatoes for dinner.  Ugh....so YUCKY!!!  I was totally freaked out.  I had walked past it and kind of caught a glimpse of it through the corner of my eye and just stopped dead in my tracks.  Slowly I turned to look at it, hoping so desperately that it wouldn't move and try to eat me! After the initial shock of standing right next to a very long snake I was able to assess that it was dead, very dead!  It had gotten caught in the netting I had placed around the tomato plants a couple days earlier to keep out the critters eating my veggies and had it had died.  I went inside feeling a little grossed out and pleaded with Stephen to get the dead snake out of the garden.  I'm usually pretty good about dealing with bugs and other creepy things but this snake just really got to me.  I wanted it gone and I didn't want to be the one getting it gone.  When I went to the church to drop Easton off for Young Men's Stephen had the neighbor boy, Justin help him remove the snake.  They measured it and took pictures so we could look online and see what kind of snake we had.  We thought the pointed shaped head indicated that it might be poisonous.  We identified it as a Rat Snake...a very harmless snake that eats all the small rodents that have been eating my garden.  May you R.I.P. rat snake and may your siblings, Mom, Dad, Aunts, Uncles, and cousins stay far away from my garden.

The Rat snake measured 57 inches long!

What's For Dinner?

Remember last week when I wrote about my new blog, Sunday Dinner Diva?  It's been updated with today's Sunday dinner menu.  Click here to see what a delicious dinner we had.

Sunday Dinner Diva

Drum roll please……I’m here to introduce a new blog, “Sunday Dinner Diva”!  I've been thinking about doing this for awhile now.  Let me explain…..Sundays have always been an important part of my life.  I grew up going to church every Sunday morning with my parents and brothers and sister.  Now that I’m grown, I still go to church with my husband and children to be uplifted and edified spiritually and to learn how to be more Christ like.  It’s a very integral part of who I am and what makes me tick.  When our Sunday meetings are over each week the family jumps in the car and we head home.  Invariably the question is asked, “What’s for Sunday dinner?”

Sunday dinner is the constant in our home that brings our family together.  We rest on Sundays from the cares of the week and spend quality, uninterrupted time together bonding as a family.  Growing up in my family mother always prepared an amazing Sunday dinner and placed it on an elegantly set table with candles, a centerpiece, china, silver serving dishes, and a perfectly pressed linen tablecloth for us to enjoy the gourmet feast.  She treated Sunday as a special day, a day different than any other day of the week.  We ate in the dining room on the dining room table that was reserved only for special occasions.  What better occasion than observing the Sabbath?  When “Time to Eat” was hollered we would all graciously come to the table with the anticipation of eating a most delicious meal, a meal different than our normal weekday fare.  We still had our church clothes on which was an unwritten requirement for participation in Sunday Dinner.  We practiced using good manners while we ate and had impromptu lessons during dinner from Mother about various sophisticated eating standards like which fork in our place setting was the right one to use or what the little plate placed above the fork was to be used for.  The food that was lovingly prepared was always delicious. The menu was well-balanced and carefully planned to not only taste wonderful but to be aesthetically pleasing to the eye as well.  We learned from my mother that “presentation is everything”.  The presentation of the food always looked as good as it tasted.

Because of the weekly Sunday dinners I had while growing up, I continued the tradition with my family, following my mother’s example.  I wouldn’t say every meal I create is as exquisite as my Mom’s but I do my best.  And I must be doing pretty well because my children still ask each Sunday with anticipation, “What’s for Sunday dinner?”  This Sunday dinner thing is a constant in our lives that brings us closer as a family.  Now that I have grown children, the numbers at our Sunday dinner table are dwindling and I sometimes have to recruit guests so that we have less “empty chairs” in the dining room but it’s still important for me to continue this tradition.  In order to help pass on this legacy to my children and to continue to feel motivated to cook phenomenal meals even though I have less people to cook for, I thought that a blog would be a good forum to showcase Sunday dinner menus and recipes so that future generations of family had access to them.  Many of our family favorites have come from family and friends over the years and I am happy to share them.  I have a tendency to tweak my recipes a little to make them my own.  My daughter, Ashton always calls me in frustration wanting to know what I did to change an old recipe.  She knows that she can never just follow a recipe of mine because I never cook it quite the way it is written on the cute, little stained recipe card.  

Just so you know….I’m not a professional food blogger or professional food photographer.  As you browse through my Sunday dinner menus and recipes I hope you will be inspired to create some Sunday memories around your dinner table with your family.  So here’s your official invitation to join us for Sunday dinner!  Click here to visit the new blog.

Back to School 2014

August 5 and here we go again, back to school for another year.  Easton starts eighth grade today at North Gwinnett Middle School.  He's at the top of the heap this year....next year HIGH SCHOOL!  We had a waffle breakfast, packed up the new florescent green lunch box, and loaded up the backpack with supplies.  And then he was off!  Back to my quiet house for the next nine months of life, bleh!

Look What I Built!

 We seem to always be working on some sort of project over here in the Carroll house and this week was no exception.  Easton had been hired to build two ladders to be used on the garden ledges to make it easier to climb up and down.  He came up with a plan and list of supplies and after a trip to Lowe's he was ready to build.  After measuring the ledges he figured out how big the ladders needed to be and then the serious work began.  With our serious electric saw, I helped Easton cut the wood and then together we drilled starter holes for the screws and then put the long screws in to hold the ladder rungs in place.  It was fun for Easton to use the power tools and we definitely learned things along the way!

 After the ladders were built Easton put a coat of stain on each one so they would blend in nicely with our railroad ties.  He only spilled the can of stain twice and painted his knee once!

 And....here is the finished product!  Easton worked very hard and he should be proud of the work he accomplished.  He planned and executed his plan and did an awesome job!

 I've already used the ladders numerous times.  They're just great and certainly make my life a little easier in the garden!  Thanks Easton!

So Goes the Battle

Easton sharing a moment with his dad while they examine his new airsoft gun.

 

This looks like an all out battle, doesn't it?  Easton has worked and saved his money this summer to be able to buy an airsoft gun.  Well, it finally happened for his this week!  Stephen and Easton went to Airsoft Atlanta and bought a serious airsoft gun and all the protective gear that goes with it.

Friday evening from 6-10:00 Easton experienced some serious airsoft battles along with his cousin, Blaise.  On Friday nights at the airsoft place it is for children ages 8-17.  I could not believe how many kids were decked out in protective padding, goggles, vests, neck scarves, gloves, and helmets.  These are some crazy, serious kids who are very intense.  Stephen and I hung out and watched the kids getting ready for battle.  We were able to sit in a glassed, enclosed safe area to watch the battle.  It's crazy to watch and I can see how these kids just love it. They play in teams and work together to achieve their goal of capturing the flag.  Easton had a blast and was definitely ready to play the very next day!  It looked so fun that I may have to try it one day.  Out of the whole crowd of kids I saw only two girls and they looked like they were having a great time.