Bowties and Sausage

I made this recipe for our Alpha shift Sunday dinner yesterday. Every Sunday that Bryan works we have lunch after church in dispatch. I look forward to it and to seeing everyone because a lot of times regular people don't really understand what law enforcement life is all about. It's hard and it's stressful and it helps to spend time just enjoying a nice meal and catching up with everyone. I was asked for the recipe and while typing it up I decided I'd share it on the blog.

Bowties with Sausage

1 box bowtie pasta

2 T olive oil

1 pound sweet or hot Italian sausage, casings removed and crumbled

 

½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

 

3 cloves of garlic, minced

½ cup diced onion

28 ounces stewed tomatoes, drained (and I usually smash them up with my hands)

1 ½ cups heavy cream

Salt and pepper to taste

 grated parmesan

In a large skillet over medium heat, brown sausage and red pepper flakes in the olive oil. Stir in onions and garlic and cook until onions soften. Add tomatoes, cream, and salt. Simmer about 10-15 minutes until sauce thickens a little. While sauce simmers, cook pasta, then drain and add to the sauce. Serve with grated parmesan. If I have basil from the garden, I'll garnish with it and it really sends this dish over the top, in my opinion... but I love basil.

 

This is one of Bryan's favorite meals and since food is my love language, I really enjoy making it for him. And it's so easy so you can't beat that.

 

~Tara

Things Maddie Says...

Maddie can say some crazy stuff, some funny, sweet and profound. I thought I'd document some of her most recent sayings....

• While getting ready for bed one night last week she said," Mom, you know if Mom's got paid for all the work they did at home, we could be millionaires!!" So true.

• While trying to procrastinate doing her laundry she said, "But Mom, what if the laundry monster gets me while I'm doing my laundry?" To which I replied, "I've been battling the laundry monster for years, and I always win, so you can too." She didn't like that response or having to put her laundry away.

• She plans to adopt 4 babies, two boys from Africa and two girls from China, because she says, "There are lots of babies in the world without parents, so why have more?" 

• After hearing on the news that Hillary Clinton had announced her candidacy for President she said, "No, No, this cannot happen... I'm going to be the first woman to be President." She's got some big goals. 

Maddie is witty, funny, sometimes rather opinionated, and full of awesome personality. She's also an old soul and she can say some things that are wise beyond her years. She's about to graduate 5th grade and she's a beautiful girl. We love her, lots!!

~Tara

Just Stuff

Sometimes life's full of "just stuff". It's when there's plenty to keep you busy but nothing exciting and extremely memorable or blog worthy. This also happens when as your kids get older they begin to value their privacy more and don't find it amusing to see themselves appear on Mom's blog. Either way, here's some of our "just stuff" that's been going on lately...

Maddie had her last volleyball practice last night. She has really enjoyed playing and her skills have improved very much. She's usually always practicing sometime during each day, mainly by serving into her bedroom wall. :(

Maddie has been asking for a loft bed for about a year now and this weekend we have plans to build it, finally. I hope she likes it as much as she thinks she will. I'll be sure to write a post on how it goes.

Over the weekend, Maddie wanted to cook our dinner. She pattied and grilled our burgers, prepped our plates, and made chocolate chip cookies by herself. It was all wonderful. It makes me happy to have her in the kitchen.

Bryan has been on a couple of trips over the last month. Both of these pics are from Pittsburg. He also went to Chicago, both trips were training for work. He sent me pics of all his food because he knows I'm a foodie and would appreciate it. He had deep dish pizza in Chicago that he said was delicious. I'm just glad the travelling is over for a while. I sure do miss him when he's gone. I become very thankful for Face Time during these weeks, what did we ever do without technology.

 

I've been out walking/running more since spring has arrived. Last week on my way up to the track I noticed these flowers blooming out front of the store. They reminded me of happy times there. This was also the place where Grandpa planted his cherry tomatoes and my brother and I would pick the tomatoes and squeeze them until they would "puke" on the ground. It's funny the things you remember.

I also took this flower picture during a walk. Yes, I just posted a poop picture on my blog. But this reminded me that sometimes you have to endure the bad to get to the good. I can see God teaching me this in a lot of different situations in my life. Sometimes one thought will lead to the next that will cause me to realize some truth he's showing me. That's how this picture came about. When it's crappy, keep on looking for the flower.

~Tara