We had Samuel's birthday party Saturday night. We had to have it a week early so that his friends could come.
Friends coming to your birthday party is the biggest reason to have a party after all.
Everyone he invited came.
aside: I really dread birthday parties. I always fear that no one will show up and my
child will be crushed.
And they all brought presents. Presents for an 11 year old boy no longer include gift wrap. Just a card, envelope and money. Sometimes a card isn't even necessary, just an envelope and money. It is easy to please an 11 year old boy!!

So, here are the highlights of the party (in list form because I LOVE A LIST!)

• We had a huge bonfire!!! It would make any boy scout proud.
• 2 kids threw up. One in the yard, and one somewhere in the street ( I didn't go looking for it)
• The boys played flag football, and can't tell you which team won. I think that is a good sign.
• We had 13 kids people at the party, roasted 38 hot dogs, a bag of marshmallows, consumed 3 Hershey bars, 2 packs of graham crackers, 2 bags of chips, one pound of cheese dip, six 2 liter drinks (this could explain the throwing up)
• The boys rode all of our bikes and scooters (even Anna's Dora bike and princess scooter),around our block many times.
• They also did the "ding and ditch." You know where a cute little innocent 11 year old boy goes up to a house rings the doorbell and then runs away.
• I made Samuel's birthday cake. Yes, I know. While standing in the cake mix aisle at the grocery store Thursday looking at brownie mixes, Samuel says (with excitement) "you're going to make my birthday cake?" So, I made him his request. A white cake with white buttercream icing. I didn't have 2 cake pans that were the same size, so the cake was doomed for failure once I noticed, while I was icing, that one was bigger than the other. So I went to the store looking for sprinkles, and found none. NONE. So I bought Skittles. Decorated the sides of it with them and then made an S on top of the cake. Because you know Skittles have an "S" on them, for Samuel.

Those are the birthday highlights. I'm sorry for those of you that couldn't make it. Which I believe would be everyone that reads this. If you read this and were at the party please let me know!!! It was great fun.

Julie

Linda over at 2nd Cup of Coffee is hosting a neat carnival, where everyone can share their favorite fall recipes. I think this will be a weekly thing but I'm not sure.
When we returned home from Gatlinburg last week, the weather was a little bit cooler and I couldn't think of anything else other than my mom's vegetable soup! Call it a pregnancy craving or whatever but I just had to make it. I've made it in the past but it never tasted quite like hers. So I did what any daughter would do, I called her from the grocery store and had her tell me exactly what she uses and bought the exact ingredients she told me to!
So here's the ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef, browned and drained
1 16oz. package frozen soup vegetables
1 28oz diced tomatoes (make sure it's just the tomatoes, nothng extra)
1 8oz tomato sauce (if you like it real "tomatoey" which I do!)
salt and pepper
water

In a large pot:
Brown your meat and drain off the grease. Then add the vegetables, diced tomatoes with all the juice and the sauce. I use the sauce can to add the water and I added about half a can. You can always add more water later. Add salt and pepper to taste, put the lid on your pot and let it cook. I let mine cook on medium to low for a couple of hours. But you could cook it at a higher temp.

options:
use can veggies
add extra potatoes, which I did, it makes it so much heartier!
I also added some extra okra, just because we have a ton of it in the freezer!

This is a very simple recipe but soooo delicious. I think in the past I've tried to 'season' it up too much but when we had it the other night Steven said it was the best I'd ever made! That's good enough me!

Enjoy!

Okay...after just getting back from yard saling (is that how you spell it?) my husband and I came to a very important conclusion...we need to host a yard sale.

Can I get a heeve-ho? Anyone?!?

Wow. Where did the weekend go?
Well, I am doing the "Monday recooperate from the weekend" cleaning routine.
It usually follows the "Its the weekend so who wants to life a finger" routine...
I did have a garage sale and made $180 that somehow is already spent?
And you can tell by looking at my house....
I have atleast 10 loads of clothes to wash, dry and put away.
I am so not kidding.
I have another load of dishes to load and run through the dishwasher.
Oh how I am singing the praises of my servant girls this morning.
I also have oldest daughter home for a dentist appointment today and a grumpy toddler who is suffering from the first cold of the fall season.
I have a ful weekend to tell you about later this week. Plus the book giveaway this weekend!
I will post more about these two tomorrow....for now.....the servant girls need more orders.

Melinda at Traveling the Road Home is talking about a secret that one in three Christian women reportedly have. She explains it a lot better than I can, so I will leave it to her. Please go visit her blog and see what she has to say and what she's doing about it. In 6 years married to a minister, this secret has only been shared with me one time by someone I know personally. When I think about the statistic that one in three women are holding onto it, it grieves me that so many are suffering in silence. I'm praying that God will use Melinda's blog to turn the tide and bring healing to many.

We went to see this movie this past weekend. We both highly recommend that you go see it. I am not one who buys very many dvd's but this one is on my list to purchase as soon as it comes out.

If you have already seen it too - leave a comment and let me know what you think about it.

Go to http://www.fireproofthemovie.com/ for more information.

Oh, and by the way...I will be posting about the first poll results tomorrow. And I am working on the next poll. Thanks to all of you who responded.

Dominica
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Not to be confused with the Dominican Republic.

Commonwealth of Dominica

OUR FLAG


Motto: "Après Bondie, C'est La Ter" (Antillean Creole)
"After God is the Earth"

Anthem: Isle of Beauty, Isle of Splendour

Capital - Roseau

Official language English

OUR COAT OF ARMS


Demonym Dominican

Government Parliamentary republic
- President Nicholas Liverpool
- Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit

Independence from the United Kingdom
- Date November 3, 1978

Area
- Total 751 km² (184th) 290 sq mi
- Water (%) 1.6

Population
- July 2008 estimate 72,514 (195st)
- 2003 census 71,727
- Density 105/km² (95th) 272/sq mi

GDP (PPP) 2005 estimate
- Total $468 million (177th)
- Per capita $6,520 (91st)

HDI (2007) ▲0.798 (medium) (71st)

Currency East Caribbean dollar (XCD)

Time zone (UTC–4)

Internet TLD .dm

Calling code [[ 1-767]]

1 Rank based on 2005 UN estimate.

The Commonwealth of Dominica, commonly known as Dominica, is an island nation in the Caribbean Sea. The name is pronounced /ˌdɒmɪˈniːkə/ (do-mi-NEE-cuh). In Latin, its name means "Sunday", which was the day on which it was discovered by Christopher Columbus.

Dominica's pre-Columbian name was Wai'tu kubuli, which means "Tall is her body".[1] The indigenous people of the island, the Caribs, have a territory similar to the Indian reserves of North America. However, its official language is English because of its history as a British colony, territory, and state though a French creole is spoken by many, especially people of older generations. The demonym or adjective of this country is "Dominican" in English, same as that for the Dominican Republic but unlike the Dominican Republic, in which the stress is on the first "i", the stress is on the second "i".

Dominica has been nicknamed the "Nature Isle of the Caribbean" for its seemingly unspoiled natural beauty. It is one of the youngest islands in the Lesser Antilles, still being formed by geothermal-volcanic activity, as evidenced by the world's second-largest boiling lake. The island features lush mountainous rainforests, home of many very rare plant, animal, and bird species. There are xeric areas in some of the western coastal regions, but heavy rainfall can be expected inland. The Sisserou parrot, the island's national bird, is featured on the national flag. Dominica's economy is heavily dependent on both tourism and agriculture.

For the next hundred years Dominica remained isolated, and even more Caribs settled there after being driven from surrounding islands as European powers entered the region. France formally ceded possession of Dominica to the United Kingdom in 1763. The United Kingdom then set up a government and made the island a colony in 1805. The emancipation of African slaves occurred throughout the British Empire in 1834, and, in 1838, Dominica became the first British Caribbean colony to have a Black-controlled legislature. In 1896, the United Kingdom reassumed governmental control of Dominica turning it into a crown colony. Half a century later, from 1958 to 1962, Dominica became a province of the short-lived West Indies Federation. In 1978 Dominica finally became an independent nation.

My hubby and I are doing a free Spanish class offered by the Venezuelan Institure here in Dominica from last semester. We are now in Basico Dos(Basic 2). It's been fun doing this with him.

I am huge on continuing education. If you don't use it (your brain cells), you lose it. Invite your husband to learn with you. It can be as simple as reading a book together or as complex as taking some major courses together.

Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Henry Ford

Think generous! Lori <><

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All Rights Reserved
http://www.the-generous-wife.com