The End of an Era

Today was Chris' last day as a lawyer at a law firm. I can't believe it's over. This will be the first weekend in about 9 years that a Blackberry will not be glued to his side. He will be able to sit through a baseball game without having to send an email. He will be able to make it all 3 hours of church without having to be on a conference call. He will be home at 5:30 every night (maybe). I will have to start cooking dinner. I will have to clean the house earlier in the day. I will not be able to sit on the couch all night reading. He will be able to help the boys with homework. We will get to spend time together. Besides the cooking dinner part I am really excited to see what a 9-5 job is like. I am really happy that he will be able to work a little less. He works so hard it makes me feel like a slacker. I am proud of him and all that he has accomplished in the 14 1/2 yrs we have been married. He is a great guy!!!

The End of a Season

We ended our baseball season tonight. It was a great night of baseball. Christopher finished an amazing season-but he is glad to be done.

Jackson had an interesting two night tournament. On Monday night, he got beaned by the ball (he gets hit about once a game). This one was really bad. Here is a little picture.

On Tuesday, last game of the season, Kimball decided to give me a heart attack and have Jackson pitch. He has never pitched before. He threw his first pitch in his warm up. He did an amazing job. He got 2 outs and they didn't score any runs from his pitches. They came from behind and won the game. Jackson got hit twice tonight-but they weren't very bad. He played fantastic!!!

We have had a great season, great weather, good company, and great results this season. What a year.

Summer Reading

I have started my summer reading program. I have a small list of books that I am going to try and get through. Yesterday I read Siddhartha by Herman Hesse. It was a fairly easy read and it was short so that was a plus. It was a book about a man looking for enlightenment. It is based in India and is an interesting and thought provoking book.

Coming up next: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

Best Ribs Ever

I am not a ribs person. I don't really like to chew meat off the bone, but our friend Kimball has found the best ribs recipe. Chris made them for our Memorial day lunch and I loved them. Here is the recipe. The sauce takes a little time, but they just fall off the bone and they are soooooo good.

Ingredients
1½ cups water
1 cup white vinegar
½ cup tomato paste
1 tbsp yellow mustard
2/3 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 tspn hickory flavoring liquid smoke
1 ½ tspn salt
½ tspn onion powder
¼ tspn garlic powder
¼ tspn paprika

Preparation & Cooking Instructions
Make the barbecue sauce by combining all of the ingredients for the sauce in a medium saucepan over medium heat When it comes to a boil, reduce heat and simmer sauce, stirring often, for 45 to 60 minutes or until sauce is thick.
When you're ready to make the ribs, preheat the oven to 300°F.
Brush sauce over the entire surface of each rack of ribs.
Wrap each rack tightly in aluminum foil and arrange the packets on a baking sheet with the seam of the foil facing up.
Bake for 2 to 2½ hours or until the meat on the ribs has pulled back from the cut ends of the bones by about ½".
When the ribs are just about done, preheat your barbecue grill to medium heat.
Remove the ribs from the foil (careful not to burn yourself- the liquid inside will be hot!) and grill them on the barbecue for 4 to 8 minutes per side or until the surface of the ribs is beginning to char.
Brush sauce on both sides of the ribs a few minutes before you remove them from the grill. Just be sure not to brush on the sauce too soon or it could burn. Serve the ribs with extra sauce on the side and lots of napkins.

Last Week of School

I am so happy that school is almost over. It has been a busy week and I will be glad when we can sleep in and do nothing. Here is a little review of our week.

Chandler received one of the six character awards for the fifth grade.

Christopher receiving an honor roll medallion. He was on first honor roll for the whole year.

Jackson presenting his report on Stonewall Jackson (all of his school reports have the word Jackson in them).

Chandler on his 5th grade picnic.

Father's and Sons

This was a special weekend for me. It was the annual Father's and Son's camp out. This is kind-of a big deal because that means I have an evening all to myself. I look forward to this weekend just as much as my boys. So the planning had begun-what were we going to do. My friends and I were planning dinner, a good chick flick and some good girl chat. So Thursday afternoon I started feeling a little sick-I kept telling myself I would not be sick. This was my weekend! Then I convinced myself it was just an upset stomach no big deal (Jackson spent last week home with the stomach flu) I did not have the stomach flu. About 5pm I quickly came to terms that maybe I was a little sick. It kind-of gets a little hazy from there on out. I think my husband took my boys camping. I know my friends called to check on me. I hope I told them I was okay. I know I spent some time sleeping on the bathroom floor (the tile is nice and cool). Next thing I know Chris and the boys are home from camping, my weekend alone is over and I lost 5 pounds. I hope I had a good time.