Get Sauced!

Why, you ask, would someone assemble all of these ingredients to make a batch of what is already in the fridge and what you know is going to taste perfectly fine?

When your son turns to you and says, "Hey, we should make our own barbecue sauce and we could make it taste like Famous Dave's!" well, what can you do? Seriously, what can you do, because I'm not all that into cooking and if there's a way to divert his attention, maybe with something shiny, I'd like to know about it!


Three recipes--one spicy, one with a beer base, one with a Carolina-style vinegar approach. All start with some yellow onions, garlic, paprika, and chili powder.

It's important to carefully measure. It's also important to know the difference between a tablespoon and a teaspon, becuase they are NOT interchangeable.

I can't show you the rest of the carnage--thank goodness I have an ayi! No seriously, I cleaned it up...we don't do that to poor Xiao! The smell of the cayenne and onions had our eyes watering way out to the living room.

On the left, beer sauce, on the right, the vinegar sauce. In the middle, the "spicy space." I thought we should have a catchy name like "Hell's on Fire" but thanks to creative (mis)spelling, we now have our famous "Spicy Space" sauce.

I made shredded pork (a pork tenderloin, beer and chicken broth, and then dump in a bunch of onion, garlic, and peppers or whatever might make it taste good and let it slow cook for 5-6 hours). Everyone decided to dip before piling it on the sandwich.

Smiles, or a grimace before grabbing that water to cool off the spicy sauce? Either way, he looks pretty satisfied. We all were, too. Three sauces, and each one was someone's favorite. The best overall in terms of texture and flavor was the spicy one--I'd definitely make it again, but tone it down for normal folks!

This is my delightful and quite unpredictable child. You need to CARPE DIEM whenever the opportunity arises with him. You know those emotional bank accounts or gas tanks the experts always talk about? We need to pay way ahead whenever we can, because the withdrawals can be heavy. My feelings about cooking and my love for easy-peasy aside, we had a GREAT afternoon together, my boy and I.

Anything Goes

In olden days a glimpse of stocking, Was looked on as something shocking,

But now, God knows,

Anything Goes.

You're the Nile, You're the Tower of Pisa,

You're the smile on the Mona Lisa;

I'm a worthless check, a total wreck, a flop,

But if baby, I'm the bottom, You're the top!

Blow, Gabriel blow, Go on an' blow, Gabriel blow,

I want to join your happy band,

And play all day in the promised land

So blow, Gabriel blow.

Come on you scamps, get up you sinners,

You're all too full of expensive dinners,

Stand up on your lazy feet and sing!

Cameron did a great job--and with our new improved mikes, we could hear him sing on the group numbers and he can sing! The Chinese converts were especially hilarious and would have probably been PC-ed up back home. Cameron's friend (the one one the right) had to work on his fake Chinese accent. HA.

And to all of you who wondered how he learned to be such a convincing drunk...it's called acting. So THERE. I love American musicals and this is one I haven't seen (or thought about) for forever! It was all good.

What We've Been Up To...

I think this might have been the longest I've neglected the blog. There are so many reasons why...that will come later. But the truth is, we are a busy family, like so many others. A quick run-down...

Three band/orchestra concerts. None of my kids sit in a place where I can get a picture of them actually playing, though...All the concerts take place in the same week, all of them involve kids from 6th grade through 12th grade (and, for the orchestra, groups that start in 3rd grade) so it's a tiring week. Watching the beginners play, and ending with the high school groups really shows how much progress kids make each year!

The truth is...we are not a singing family. Oh, we sing around the house...we just don't sing well. Ava especially seems to like singing and has really loved being in choir. Funny the worst singers (me) are the ones that sing all the time--the better singer (Ava) rarely sings in front of anyone on her own!

One act plays. The one-act festival is fantastic. Students write their own plays or direct already published works. Students are responsible for recruiting, auditioning, and directing the play. Some of them include original music (score and lyrics) as well. Cameron was in three plays this year and is considering directing one next year.

Noah always surprises us. On a whim (actually I think it was because of the coach, who is completely cool) he decided to play volleyball. He did a great job learning a new sport and had a great time. He's moved on to contact rugby, one of just a few 6th graders on the team--again, fantastic coaches--seriously, they are worth their weight in gold in terms of building a kid's confidence and inspiring a sense of fun!

What little girl doesn't go through a love affair with horses? It must be an especially painful thorn in Ava's side that I actually did own my own horses and I could step out my back door any day of the week and just ride (and I did!). Ava has read every book, watched every movie, collected every statue--really, the child needed the chance to ride. Am I jealous? You bet--I always wanted to take lessons and ride in the Olympics. Maybe it's Ava's chance...