Recipe for Potato Salad

Roasted New Potato Salad – courtesy of Southern Living magazine - my favorite magazine!

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 pounds small red potatoes, diced

1/2 medium-size sweet onion, chopped

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 teaspoon coarse salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

8 to 10 cooked crisp bacon slices, crumbled

1 bunch green onions, chopped

3/4 cup prepared Ranch dressing

Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

1. Place oil in a 15- x 10-inch jellyroll pan; add potatoes and the next 4 ingredients, tossing to coat. Arrange potato mixture in a single layer.

2. Bake at 425° for 30 to 35 minutes or until potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally. Transfer to a large bowl.

3. Toss together potatoes, bacon, green onions, and dressing. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately or cover and chill until ready to serve.

This recipe makes 4 - 6 servings. I typically double or triple this recipe for cook-outs and family gatherings.

Yummy and always a hit!

A Great Season!

Jacob and Ben had their last baseball games this week. Even though it will be nice not to have a busy schedule of games and practices, we will miss it. Jacob and Ben both had a great time and we were fortunate to be on teams with great kids and good parents. There was not any drama or politics!

Here are some pictures from the year. (The good ones were taken by Joe, one of the parents from Jacob's team.)

Benny enjoying a snack with his pals at Jacob's game.


Benny getting instruction from his coach.


Jacob and his buddy enjoying a snack after Ben's game.


Jacob's pitching debut!


Keeping his eye on the ball!


The coaches planning some baseball "strategery"

They Win Again!

Jacob's baseball team won their 4th game in a row in an exciting come from behind victory! They beat a Deerfield team 10 - 6. Jacob had a good game. He got on base for both of his at bats. He was hit by pitches both times though. At his first at bat, he was hit on the arm. Jacob said it did not really hurt. During his second at bat, he was hit in the side - right in the rib cage. It hurt, but Jacob knows there is no crying in baseball. He then ended up scoring.

It has been great to see the team do so well! They have really improved since the start of the season.

Frog and Toad (and Snake!)

When I was a kid and learning how to read, my favorite books were the Frog and Toad series. Perhaps this explains why I like frogs and toads so much.



For the last few weeks, a toad and a snake have been hanging around my parent's backyard. My dad has been taking some pictures and emailing them to Jacob and Ben. Today we received another email and found that the toad and snake are not getting along so well. Here is what happened:




Luckily for the toad, the snake is not big enough to get the job done. My parents separated the two of them and hoped that the toad and snake will stay away from each other in the future.

In the Frog and Toad books, Frog is described as easy going and relaxed whereas Toad is usually more serious and is easily irritated. I can certainly see why the toad would be irritated....being eaten by a snake cannot be fun! Meanwhile back at the Snow house, our frog, Steve, lounges poolside!

3 in a row! Unbeaten in the last 4!

Jacob's baseball team is tearing it up and has won three games in a row. They won 17 - 11 tonight. With this win, they are now unbeaten in their last four games.

It was an interesting game. The other team's coach was very vocal and took every opportunity to yell at his players, his team's fans, and some unruly kids playing field side. (We hope the children he was yelling at were his own!) I thought we might see some fisticuff action when he was yelling at his parents and fans. After they were yelled at by the coach, some of the younger boys who were running around tried to convince Ben to put a rock in the restroom toilet. Luckily I intervened before any damage was done.

It's all about Ben!

Ben and Jacob jumped in the pool late in the day on Father's Day. Ben braved the water the longest and ended up being caught on film by Colin's girlfriend Erin.


"I WILL go in the pool Uncle Colin!"


Watch out for the "whacker 2000".


George trying a sneak attack!


All is cool, in the pool!

Father's Day

Despite the cool and rainy weather, we had a great Father's Day. The entire crew, minus George's brother Caleb who lives in Seattle, came over for a cook out. George grilled up some fantastic steak tips and my parents brought their delicious chicken thighs in the spicy marinade. The meal was rounded out with my mother-in-law's famous potato salad. I also tried out a new orzo salad that will become a regular in my summer time line up.

Since the weather did not cooperate for pool-side fun, folks played some games on the Wii. Billy and Elizabeth tried out the Wii fit and found out how in or out of shape they are based on the Wii's ratings! Neither was happy with the results!

I'll post more pictures later in the week but here is a nice one of the three fathers.

My dad, George, and Mr. Cook