Ethan in Raleigh

Aunt Erin, Uncle Stephen & new baby boy Ethan came into town for the weekend. It was so good to see them and to have Ethan stay with us. As you can see...he is incredibly cute.  

I like this pic of them 

Here is the last photo of Lily, the leapfrog, before she went missing. All I remember is that Ethan was hungry and Lily was getting on his nerves jumping in front of the camera.??

Ethan telling mommy he loves her.

I love my baby Luke. He is the "big boy" now but he will always be my baby. He has captured my heart with those big beautiful eyes. He is learning allot right now about sharing the spot light....but I guess we all learn that at some point in life. Grace, Grace, Grace! 

Fun in the sun....

Luke had fun at the pool with his buddy Conner. He is a great kid & is the only friend Luke has that is actually taller than him. It is refreshing! 

Ella had fun "laying out" with her best girlfriend Sadie Claire.  (not really- they both slept and ate under the umbrella - disclaimer for grandma Bonnie ) It will be neat to look back on these pics when these girls are teenagers. They are almost like sisters....sniffle sniffle. 

Besties.....or Beastie Boys

Collin came over to play. After playing outside for a bit they watched an intense episode of Thomas. Then we took a trip to the Chick-fil-A. Their favorite! 

Ella loves Collin too and really likes that he is all about her! She loves that he always wants to hold her hand. :) We love Collin & are grateful he is our buddy.

I love a man that loves to cook!

So Greg made the Hot Pot recipe from Fins on Sunday night. We substituted a few things but it was great. Here is the recipe for those interested. Enjoy :) 

Tom Kha Kai with Braised Lobster (Hot Pot Style) - from Fins

1 tbsp. olive oil

1/2 oz. ginger or galanga root (sliced thick) - we minced

1 1/2 lbs. lobster meat - can substitute with any protein - we used shrimp 

2 large cloves of garlic - we minced

1 tbsp. red curry paste (Thai)

2 stalks of lemon grass - we recommend mincing this

2 lime leaves (whole) - use basil if you want or leave out

2 Thai green chilies or serrano pepper - we used serrano

1 cup rick chicken stock 

21/2 cups of thin coconut milk

1 cup heavy cream or thick coconut milk

2 tbsp. lemon juice (freshly squeezed only)

11/2 tbsp. granulated sugar

2 tbsp. chopped coriander leaves

salt & pepper to taste

       In a well conductive 4 quart sauce pot, bring to medium heat 1 tbsp. olive oil. Lightly saute lobster pieces until they turn opaque. Remove from pan and set aside, reserving oil in pan. 

   Over medium heat saute garlic cloves, ginger root and Thai chilies, about 1 minute. Add red curry paste and sugar, saute briefly making a kind of paste which will coat the bottom of the pot. Stir constantly adding chicken stock, coconut milk and cream. 

Bring soup to boil, skimming the foam from the top, and reduce heat to a simmer. Add remaining ingredients, reserving lobster and lemon for the for the end; as the lobster will over cook and the lemon juice will curdle the cream. Simmer for 8 minutes and adjust your salt tolerance. Place lobster pieces in a large serving bowl; pour soup over them. Stir in lemon juice and garnish with chopped coriander leaves; serve.   

Date Night- Fathers Day- Super Size it!

Greg & I had a hot date out to Fins in downtown. I have only been there 3 times but it must be said....it is my fav-or-ite! I give it 5 stars.....PB&J's all week again! They have a "hot pot" appetizer that is killer.

     We are not photogenic :)
  

What a good Daddy looks like.

He just gives! 

The Simple Life......

I love going to my grandmas. She is more alive than most of the young people I know. Yesterday I packed our lunches and drove the exhausting 7 minutes to her house. This quilt is the same one I used to lay on when I was little. Grandma would be watching her "stories" on tv or The Price is Right would be on. It still smells the same & there is always a new adventure outside. I brought Luke's slip-n-slide & blow up kiddie pool. Fun was had by all.

For those of you who do not know....this is a combine. The next time you eat a sandwich or bread in a restaurant - you now see what harvested the wheat.

Webster's can help you "city slickers" out - a harvesting machine for cutting and threshing grain in the field.

Luke had a field trip in Grandma's back yard. When he got off he declared that "cousin Ryan" was his favorite boy! He rode in the cab of the combine for almost 20 minutes & was in awe. It is a huge machine!

Light. Utility. Vehicle

Milestones

 

Someone tell Marty I need to borrow his time machine! Do you see this.....all fours! 

Ella is two days from 6 months & she had her first taste of Earth's Best Rice Cereal tonight! I am so sad/happy for her. She was overly interested in food. We would all be sitting at the table & Ella would just stare at our mouth's as we ate. She is on a whole new level now! Sighhhhh.....

  

Our weekend....

Greg made a AWESOME dinner on Saturday night! We had Sea Bass, Grouper, crab legs, NY Strip, & the sides. I meant to take a picture but got too busy. It is great that he loves to cook! We all enjoyed it & will be eating PB&J's for the rest of the week ;)   

Ella & I went to a baby shower for new baby Lieb.  Jess got a lot of awesome stuff. We made onesies with cool iron on decals. I am going to make some for gifts soon. I love Andrea's yard and cute red barn. Huge trees and really spacious yard....I want this :)      


Mom & Dad Boush came to visit which is always fun. But way too short! The much awaited arrival of Grandmommy & Granddaddy was, as always, the most fun for Luke. He tries to soak up the attention like a little Remora in a short span of time. This can be a bit "intense" sometimes because he is now old enough to know how fast time flies. He tries to take advantage of every second. So ....I am tired. I love that boy! As they were leaving ...he yells...."look out for Diesel 10!" - you have to know Thomas stuff for that to be funny.