Still Summer.....

The temeratures have really soared into the 90's this last few days, reminding us that it is still summer. The kids are anticipating school registration, the first day of school, and the fall festival that is coming to town this weekend. Derek and Emily will be in the pig scramble on Thursday!! The basement is getting closer to being finished, and John is still working on a lot of cars. The fresh veggies are still coming in and I'm still doing a lot of canning. Of course the big hit with the kids this week were the ooey, gooey, chocolatey frosted brownies that I made on Monday!!

I found another great recipe this week.....Mexican Bubble Pizza.......

It was a big hit with the whole family....I thought I'd share this recipe.....

1 lb ground beef

1 pkg taco seasoning mix

3/4 c. water

1 can (10 3/4 oz) condensed tomato soup

1 can Grands Homestyle biscuits

2 c. shredded cheddar cheese

shredded lettuce

diced tomatoes

sliced ripe olives

1 container sour cream

sliced green onions

salsa

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 375*

brown and drain ground beef, add taco seasoning mix, water and tomato soup...bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally....remove from heat

add in grands biscuits that have each been cut diagonally into eight pieces stir and pour into a 9x13x2 casserole dish....

bake for 18 to 22 minutes or until sauce is bubbly and biscuits are golden brown...sprinkle with the cheddar cheese and bake for 8-10 minutes longer or until cheese is bubbly....cut into squares and top with remaning ingredients...

Even thought it's small this year, our vegetable garden has been very generous......we harvested about 20 lbs of yukon butter gold potatoes, crisp aromatic green peppers, and lots of firm cucumbers,......We've also had a lot of beets, green beans, tomatoes,and banana peppers

Mom stopped by the other day with some great treats for us.....Fresh cantaloupe, a giant watermelon, and peaches and cream sweet corn.......It was all very good, fresh and tasty!

When John was growing up, he was extremely close to the neighbors next door. The Culvers were the kind of neighbors that you would die for.....and John became very close to Toren and his Mom, Carol....otherwise known as "Mom" to John. Carol made a Norwegian cookie called Kringla....it is a light pastry type cookie that John loved. Recently he was finally given the recipe. I made it and it turned out great. John took one bite and had an instant grin on his face. He said, "It taste just like when I was younger!"

I think it's great to have childhood memories. They are somewhat comforting at times. I sometimes sit and wonder what my children are going to remember from our household when they get older. I wonder what stories they are going to pass on to their children. I hope they are happy memories. I hope they are about when Grandma Lonas lived in Phoenix and came on a plane to visit and how excited they were to go to the airport and pick her up. I hope they are about Christmas dinners, gifts, new clothes, and the yearly cheesball that I make every year. I hope they are about school shopping and the first day of school. I hope they are about going to Lake Story a couple times a year and how we always take a picnic and the dogs with us...they always come home with some treasures that nature left on the ground. Maybe they will remember how hard we worked on all the houses we ever lived in...not because we needed something to do or something to spend money on, but we wanted them to have the nicest place possible and to be proud of their home. Or maybe they will remember when Aunt Teri or Aunt Sheri came to visit and slept in their room and how much fun they had by making pallets on the floor, jumping with Libby and Hallie on the trampoline all day, and sitting all over the house eating some wonderful recipe they we made just so we could share new recipes.. I hope their memories are as funny, happy, sentimental, and comforting as mine are.