Basil-Orange Lemonade

We have all been enjoying the beautiful springtime weather here in Texas.  Especially since soon we won't be able to go outside without fear of melting from the heat.
Spending time outside preparing the yard for spring and watching the plants begin to flower has been a real pleasure.

One major plus of spring is the reappearance of fruit on the grocery shelves.  Even though winter is one of my favorite seasons, I miss being able to enjoy all the wonderful fruit spring and summer offer us.

Since my guys are all in love with lemons I decided to make them lemonade with a twist.
As usual RJ was all too happy to help.  He was great with the electric juicer, that will be his job from now on.

I absolutely love basil and am currently growing large leaf and purple basil in my garden.
I decided to add a few leaves to the lemonade to give a little added flavor.
I also bought a large box of naval oranges from Costco (I LOVE COSTCO) so I thought I would juice an orange and add it to the lemonade also.

Once the lemonade chilled for a while, Hubby and I went outside to enjoy a glass and to watch the boys play on the trampoline.
 The lemonade was a big hit with my guys.  I am sure I will be making lots this summer.

Recipe

1 cup sugar
6 cups water
16 oz fresh squeezed lemon juice
4 oz fresh squeezed orange juice
5-6 basil leaves

 In a small saucepan dissolve 1 cup of sugar in 1 cup of water and bring to a boil.  Set aside until the syrup is completely cooled.

Meanwhile juice approximately 6-7 lemons to obtain 16 oz of fresh squeezed lemon juice.  Also, juice 1-2 oranges to obtain 4 oz of fresh orange juice.

Pour lemon juice, orange juice, syrup, remaining 5 cups of water and basil leaves into a pitcher and refrigerate until ready to enjoy.

Renee

Video Game Birthday Party

             This year for MJ's 11th birthday we had a video game themed party.  We considered having a game truck since we had one a few years ago but the price of the game truck has gone up considerably since then.  My boys have a Wii, an X-Box 360 and a regular X-Box, so we decided to have a video game party at our house.  

When the boys arrived they each received an All Access pass to wear during the party.

I tried to put as many video game characters as possible into the decorations.  I wanted the boys to feel like they were inside a video game arcade.

I was really happy when all the boys stopped at the Pac Man wall and said how "cool' it was.

MJ made these cute Pac Man ghosts out of legos.  He was very proud to show them off to all his friends.

I also made some Boo ghosts and hung them from the ceiling.  They were a big hit, especially with RJ. He had a blast shooting at them with his Nerf gun :-).

We also pulled out the Nintendo 64 to add the old school video game theme.  Too bad we didn't have our Atari or Intelevision from when we were kids, the boys probably wouldn't have known what they were, LOL!

 The boys also got a kick out of the Mario mustaches, the 7- "Up" cake and all the different labels on the Gatorade and water bottles.

I had a great time getting the dessert counter ready.  

The streamers on the back wall really added a great touch.

These chocolate covered marshmallows were a huge hit.  All the boys loved them, and I must admit, I loved them too.  This was my first time making them, but I promised MJ and RJ that I will make them more often.

The cupcakes were delicious too.  I just made a yellow box cake with a delicious butter cream frosting.  I stuck with the primary party colors, red, blue, yellow and green for the frosting colors.  

When the boys left they each received a goodie bag filled with stickers, pencils, erasers, a cup, tattoos, and a pencil sharpener.

 MJ had a great party.  He was so excited all day.  I was a little concerned since we were partying on a budget, bit it worked out great.

Renee

Chocolate Chip Cookies

This will be the first Christmas that my parents have spent with my family in our house.  We usually do all the holiday traveling, but this year they are coming to us :-).  

A Christmas tradition in millions of homes, including ours, is to leave cookies out for Santa.  I've decided this year to make a few batches of cookies and of course I started with my favorite, chocolate chip.

I absolutely adore chocolate chip cookies, especially when they have pecans in them.  

Unfortunately for me, these are MJ and RJ's favorite too :-(

I bought one of these cute holiday tins from Target to put the cookies in.  All of the cookies didn't fit in the tin, so I was able to hide some away from the boys.

This is one of the best cookie recipes that I have found.  The boys and I have been enjoying them.  Hopefully there will be a few left for Santa.

I guess it doesn't matter much because from what I hear Santa is a big oatmeal raisin cookie guy :-) 

Renee

Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Ya Ka Mein

Yakamein, (pronounced Yakameat by local New Orleanians) is a delicious meal made with beef, spaghetti, green onions and eggs.  Many locals also call the dish Old Sober because of it's reputation as a hangover cure.    

No one knows the true origin of the dish.  Some say it originated from Chinese immigrants who were brought to New Orleans to help build railroads between New Orleans and Houston.  Others say it is a version of Korean noodle soup dishes brought back to New Orleans from African American troops who fought in the Korean war.  Whichever is true, I am sure glad someone thought of it.

Since we got a taste of cold weather this weekend in Texas, MJ begged me to make ya ka mein for him.  RJ is not a huge fan, but he does love the noodles, what 4 year old wouldn't??

Not only will this dish help you recover from your hangover, it will also be a treat for your tastebuds and warm your insides on a cold night. 

For all yall who want to make this great cold-weather meal, here is the recipe:

3-4 pounds beef stew meat 
4-5 quarts of water

2 tablespoons of beef bouillon base 

1 teaspoon of Lawry's seasoned salt

2 teaspoons of Slap Ya Mama (Cajun seasoning)

1 teaspoon of onion powder

4 tablespoons vegetable oil

salt and pepper, to taste

1 pound of spaghetti noodles

one half hard boiled egg per bowl of soup

1 green onion, sliced

Soy sauce, hot sauce, to taste

Renee

Superhero Bookmarks

At one time MJ loved reading.  Unfortunately, his love of reading has 

been replaced by a love of video games.  

In one of my pinning adventures I ran across a great idea on the Crafts by Amanda blog that may help to ignite his reading again.

I know that MJ and his friends are into the Avengers, so I thought if he had Avenger bookmarks he would be excited to use them in his books.

Both of the boys really like the bookmarks.  RJ uses them as toys with his action figures.  He insisted that I take pictures of the bookmarks with the "real" Spider Man and Wolverine.   

When MJ brought them to school, he began coming home almost daily asking for certain characters for friends.  After a week of constantly making bookmarks, Hubby started joking that I had a bookmark assembly line going in our kitchen.  

Unfortunately, the bookmarks have not brought back MJ's love of reading, but they have inspired him to pull out his books again.  Fortunately, we make him read daily so he does use the bookmarks and reads whether he wants to or not :-).

Check out the Crafts by Amanda tutorial if you'd like to make your own.  I followed her tutorial for all but Wolverine and Hawkeye. I made my own versions using the Marvel book in the photos. 

Renee