To the playground...

Sorry I don't have pictures of everyone, but here are a few...


On her own Tia tried out the biggest slide in the playground, let me just say it was only the night before that she went down the little 2 foot fisher price slide we have in the back yard...brave girl.

She looks a little scared but she did it anyway.

Just a wee bit of static.
Here she is coming to the bottom.

Silas found a new playmate in William...they got a long like two peas in a pod.

Tia was laughing so hard she had to be held on.

Brushes & Bisque Playdate

Here we are at a cute little shop called Brushes & Bisque, what a great place! The kids got to paint their own plates, animals, bowls, etc. In the end, after being glazed and fired they will have a nice piece of pottery.

Here is Silas diligently painting his multicolored frog.

Jacob painting a spoon-rest.Tia, well...she just made a mess, and had a lot of fun doing it:o) Mommy tried to redeem her little bowl...we will see how it turns out.

Eric did a great job in painting a plate and Zachary was in a dangerous spot to be painted by Tia from a crossed the table.

Thanks for organizing it Stacie, it would be a fun girls night out some time...they had big platters, large serving bowls, vases, cookie jars to paint. It would be great fun!

Chicken Marsala

I had it all planned out, we were going to have steak coated with crushed coriander seed grilled to perfection last night, with garlic mashed potatoes and salad. Its so much easier when you plan your meals before the week begins! I can't stand having the nagging thought going on in my brain all day, "What am I going to make for dinner tonight?" So, I have resorted to planning my meals for the week, it makes things go so much more smoothly, but let's just say it works great when I actually go according to my plan. I'm too sporadic of a cook for my own good and this is what was made for last nights dinner instead...Chicken Marsala. I used this recipe as a base and then did my own thing.
It was delicious, even Tia ate some of it...and if my picky little girl will eat it, it must be good! Try it, you won't regret it.


You will need:

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3/4 c flour
1/4 t paprika
few turns of fresh ground pepper
1/4 t salt
1/4 t garlic powder
1/4 t parsley
2-3 T olive oil
2 T butter
3 c sliced mushrooms
3/4 c marsala cooking wine
1 c chicken broth
cornstarch

1. Pound chicken breast in between two pieces of wax paper with rolling pin(it works best) until about 1/2 inch or less thick.
2. Combine flour, paprika, pepper, salt, garlic powder, & parsley and dredge chicken in it.
3. Add olive oil and butter to a saute pan and heat over medium high heat, add chicken pieces when oil is hot(chicken should sizzle when placed in pan) Cook chicken, turning once until done, remove and set aside.
4. Throw sliced mushrooms into pan and saute until browned around edges, you may need a little more oil if they really start sticking.
5. Once mushrooms are done pour in marsala cooking wine and bring to a boil, cook liquid until reduced by about half, then pour in chicken broth and bring to a boil.
6. At this point I used about a 1/2-1 teaspoon of cornstarch mixed in a small amount of water to thicken sauce, whisk continuously until sauce is desired consistency. Make sure you reduce heat when introducing cornstarch to liquid otherwise you will end up with a globby mess in the pan.
7. Add cooked chicken to sauce and serve. (If it has taken you a long time to prepare the sauce chicken may need to reheat for a few minutes in the pan before serving:o)
Enjoy!