Might as well just eat the brownie!

These are the brownies they brought to work for desert after lunch today.

When I was 15 or so,  I would have passed these up.....not even tried them.   Not because of the decadent fudge (Oh yumminess beyond measure!) , because of the walnuts.  My tastes have changed with age and I eat things that shock my parents. There is no way I would have even considered some of the things I eat now when I was younger. Who would have thought green pepper, tomato, eggplant, squash, onions  any cheese other than Parmesan, cheddar or American, ....the list goes on, were so delicious?

Example.... green chili pork.   Mouthwatering.  


Would I have eaten it when I was younger?


Nope.  

My husband should get most of the credit for my gustatory transformation.  He eats things that shock me......and most other Americans.  With the exception of Andrew Zimmern, he has eaten things Peter doesn't even like.


So when these brownies showed up today, I tried to be good.   I cut a small chunk off to try. 


That was stupid.


When have I ever been content with a small chunk of something so gooey and decadent?


Um...... never!  Not sure why I even bothered.  I ended up going back 3 times to get another small chunk.

Evil brownie.

Burnt chops and bumped noggins

The other day when I was off work, I got some pork chops out of the freezer.  Big beautiful 1/2 thick chops still on the bone.  When they were thawed, I poured BBQ sauce over them and let them stew in their juices for a while.   I was going to be playing sand volleyball that evening so I wanted things to be easy to get ready.

Peter arrived home and was put on Dad duty so that I could cook un-interupted.  The grill was started and hot, so I turned the flame down , threw the meat on, then got busy on the side dishes.   While in my peaceful cooking coma, I heard squeals of laughter coming from the bedroom. One of my favourite sounds in the world.  It took me moments to guess that they were playing the "Daddy will catch you" game.  

Basic rules of the "Daddy will catch you"  game. 
1. Daddy sits/ kneels on the floor next to the bed.
2. Carter head dives off the bed.
3. Daddy catches Carter.
4. Carter laughs, Daddy laughs...everyone is happy.

I told Peter maybe that was not such a good game to teach him.....but boys will be boys.   

Several minutes go by and I figure it's time to check the meat.  

Flames.

Bright red, orange, with yellow edges flames.

The porkchops now resemble hockey pucks and there is no way to salvage any part of them.  I trudge back in the house, defeated by the grill to see what else we have. 

As I enter I hear the soft, hiccoughing cry of a little boy.   The basic rules of the game were not followed.  Instead, it went something like this.  

1. Carter takes a little break.
2. Daddy decides to put some clothes away. 
3.Carter head dives off the bed. 
4. Daddy does not catch Carter.....Daddy is nowhere near Carter. 
5. Carter hits the floor and does a sumersault. 
6.Carter cries, Daddy scopps Carter up off the floor......no one is happy.  
7. Carter gives Daddy the evil eye for the next 20 minutes.

You will notice the additional steps in what happened and the deviation from the original steps of the game.


Carter is fine.  Daddy will recover.  We ate sandwiches.

30 Years

A little blurry  picture of their wedding photo. 

My Uncle G and Aunt K celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary  by having the family out to their house for a delicious prime rib dinner and party.  We ate, then took some family pictures, followed by a renewal of vows.

The couple getting ready to say grace.

The "bride" enjoying dinner.

Little cousin A she is 2 months younger than Carter.

Little cousin A and Carter...there was a lot of  pleading to both of them to get this picture. 

Jenn and Ian

Jenn, April and Ian.   See Ian does smile!

Carter was a busy kid that night.  I'm not sure  who the phone belongs to. 

Uncle Ian and Carter

Jenn and Theresa

During the family pictures Carter decided to be the most unruly kid while we were getting organized. So that meant that we ended up on a chair in the front row of the pictures.  Organizing 28 people for a family picture with 4 of them under the age of 5 can be quite a challenge.  Not to mention that we took these pictures in a pasture on a hill with grass up to our hips and a number of bugs about.  So every now and then one of the girls would say something to the effect of " Eewww.... get it off of me!" or "Oh! Look at that big spider" or "Why didn't I wear tennis shoes instead of sandals."    By the time we were organized, Carter was finished with the being outside and sitting still business.  S the photographer had to work hard to get his attention. 


General rule of taking family pictures with small children:  Let the photographer get the child's attention. You as the adult need to only ready yourself and look pretty. Don't check out what the kid is doing it only makes it take longer, leading to the said child having a complete meltdown because they are being forced to sit still.


Incidentally S if the same photographer who took Uncle G and Aunt K's wedding photos. He is also the same photographer who took, or attempted to take,  Aunt S's wedding photos.  It turned out that the camera had broken, so all the pictures turned out blurry. This is a fact that S has never quite lived down in our family.  Every one kept asking him if there was film in the camera, because that is what my Grandpa had asked him every time he saw him after the fiasco with Aunt S's wedding pics.   He is also the same photographer who took my senior pictures.


Anyway....... back at the house they did a renewal of vows. A lovely ceremony with a candle symbolizing the grandma's and a plaque symbolizing the grandpa's.  Babies crying or running around through the whole thing...... because, again we were trying to make them sit still with the whole big wide world to explore right in front of them. 

The Bride and Groom.....Aunt K's brother J led the ceremony.  

Uncle G and Aunt K with their 3 boys. 

We had to pause during the ring exchange because Uncle G had to go inside and get his ring.  He is a rancher/farmer so wearing a wedding ring poses some hazard.   


 My cousin C's fiance A and I kept checking out the sky because it kept getting darker and darker.

 She would whisper "That cloud looks unfriendly"


 I would reply  "Yes,  very vicious looking."


 At the end of the ceremony everyone started toasting the couple.   Uncle G toasted (he cried a lot and had to stop a few times.)  Aunt K quoting a George Straight song "I may not love you for the rest of your life but I will love you for the rest of mine." To which Aunt K  choked out a "Whoa!" and there was not a dry eye in the place.

Just as the toasts  were finishing and we were gearing up for some cake. A wall cloud  came rolling over us.  Followed by a vicious wind and a few sprinkles of rain.  Everyone watched as the clouds swirled, then someone said, "Everyone inside!" and we jumped  into action getting chairs pulled inside the shed,  the awnings on the campers rolled up, and the grandma's and babies into the house. There was a downpour of rain  and hail and they told us to head for the basement.   About the time we got the Grandma's, the babies, and a couple of the dogs down to the basement they said it was safe to come back out.

One of the beautiful things about thunderstorms in the valley is that you can see them rolling in and you know about how far they are from you by the number of  fields between you and the rain.  It is just gorgeous and awe inspiring watching them come in.  How could something so beautiful be so vicious?

It was still raining a little, but it did not stop us from having a good time..... and eating some yummy cake. Happy anniversary to a great couple!

Congrats on 30 amazing years!