Emily First Day of School

11:57 AM Thursday, August 28, 2008

Emily started 3rd grade 2 weeks ago. I know I am a slacker mom and posting really late. She is loving her teacher and her class. She really is growing up so fast and it has been so fun to watch her learn and get more responsible. Charlotte had to wear her shoes and socks like her Emy and pose with her too.





Sleepover

8:00 AM Wednesday, August 27, 2008

We had one of Emily's friends sleepover last weekend. I thought it would be so fun to sleep out on the tramp like I did when I was 12. Well, not so fun. First it was cold, second, the girls all sagged to the middle and I hate to be touched when I am sleeping, third I am NOT 12 anymore. The girls had so much fun and are begging me to do it again.

Emily, Mariah, and Char played dress-ups the whole time Mariah was here. Emily had so much fun playing with her friend.

Emily and Mariah made up a dance to Miley Cyrus and they were so cute. I took video of it but I don't think there is enough time to view it. Their dance was 2+ minutes long and I had to stop taping at 2 minutes.


We are finally getting blooms on our shrubs. We planted 5 of them 2 years ago and they have been struggling showing us any blossoms. This year all of our shrubs have blossoms. Charlotte is my little gardener and she is always out helping me pick weeds and "paydo's" (tomatos). We thought the flowers were so beautiful we took some pics for all of you to enjoy!

It's been a while since I made a post, but I had to share...


Made ribs tonight - holy cow, they were so good. Many thanks to Dad for encouraging me (in his own way) to get a Weber. Many more thanks for sharing a recipe with me that has made cooking ribs so much fun.


When I was working for 1-800 Contacts many many moons ago the chef there made the best dry rubbed ribs known to man. That was until just a few short months ago when I had the best ribs you'll ever eat. Dad tried out a recipe - don't worry, I'll share in a bit - that was divine. The ribs were slowed cooked, juicy, tender and flavored to perfection. That was take 1/2 (I only claim partial credit because I really only helped load the ribs on the grill and "watched" them as all good men do around meat on a fire).


Thanks to Mom and Dad Holt for being the guinea pigs on Take 1. Unfortunately - Take 1 was too dry, good flavor, but it a little "crunchy."
Thanks to Jen Summerhays for being the guinea pig on Take 2. These were much better, good rub and flavor, but not quite the moist tenderness that I needed.

Take 3, Sunday, August 17, 2008, we have achieved perfection. Perfect flavor, juicy, tender, heaven-on-the-bone-yummy.


I know, I know - every one of you wishes to be part of the next Knotwell sunday dinner. We would love to invite every one of you over, believe me. In the event that the invitations don't come as swiftly as you would prefer, here's the recipe if you want to try it yourself.

Ribs - I was fortunate to be able to experiment the first couple of times on "free" ribs. Missouri raised pork got me most of the way there. You can cook 3 racks of ribs on the Weber, so go to Costco and buy the value pack. Trust me, you'll be eating for a while.

Dry Rub: If you like BBQ Sauce ribs, this is not for you. You should boil the ribs for a bit, then bake them in your oven. BBQ Sauce is for wimps. :)

Here's the recipe from this book:
1/2 cup FRESH ground pepper
1/2 cup paprika
1/2 cup turbinado sugar (you might find this in your grocery store as "Sugar In the Raw." It is critical that you use this kind of sugar. Raw sugar is larger and sticks to the meat. If you use granulated white sugar, you will not be as pleased.
1/4 cup coarse salt (sea salt)
4 tsp dry mustard
2 tsp cayenne

Mix it all together in a bowl. This rub is enough to do 6 racks of ribs, so store it in a cool, dry place (your pantry works).

Cut your ribs into sections of 3 or 4 ribs each. Thoroughly rub the mixture on the meat. Yes, you need to get your ands dirty, don't be a girl about it.

Cook on indirect heat for 1 hour, 15 minutes (or until the juice runs clear). If you're using a kettle style (Charcoal) grill you'll want to cook on indirect flame. 22-25 briquettes on each side, add 10 more briquettes on each side after 30 minutes. If you don't have the ability to cook on indirect heat, bake in your oven. High heat is 350 degrees. Don't quote me on the time though, cause I don't cook in the oven.

Enjoy!

My latest knitting project

4:59 PM Saturday, August 16, 2008


I promised to showcase the hat I made for Charlotte, so here it is. She loves it and wears it all of the time. I am going to make a flower that will go on the side, so I will post that when I get it done. My mom-in-law Sally is going to give me a lesson over the phone on how to make them. I am actually taking another knitting class and learning how to make knitted UGG's called SNUGGS. This one will take me a while so don't hold your breath for a post in the near future. with those.