What'd She Say !?!

Today is an extra busy day so I thought I'd send y'all a note extra early. Mrs. Marie, I hope your Chicken Pot Pie was yummy last night. You'll have to let us know how you liked it. Our cookout last night was lots of fun. They have a pet miniature donkey that Meredith liked better than being in the swimming pool. I wonder if I could have a donkey here in town? Think the neighbors would notice?

Back to Meredith, she has been saying some rather unusual, and comical, things lately and I thought I'd take today to share a few.

--On Sunday we went with friends to watch a ballet school's production. Meredith sat enthralled through it and has been telling everyone how much fun it was at the dance recycle.

--We had walked to the bus stop the other day to wait for the boys. It was an especially hot afternoon and the bus was running late. We went and sat down in the shade of a tree that is at the edge of a neighbor's property to try to keep cool. You could see a little five year old dilema playing out in her mind. She kept asking about the tree and who it belonged to. I assured her it was okay for us to sit there. She kept thinking on it then finally said, "We're shade robbers. But it's okay. Shade robbers are still good people. They're just hot."

--The church where we attend Bible study has a couple of magnolia trees planted. They're young ones and the blooms are low down, just at the right height for Meredith to reach. I was telling her as we were walking up about how my Granny had a big magnolia tree in her yard when I was little and how I'd climb in the tree and I liked the flowers. She went over to one of the trees at church and gave a big sniff. I asked her if she liked it, but she wrinkled up her nose and said no. I asked her why she didn't like it, that I had always thought they smelled good. She said, "Well, a bee must have come in this one and sat down, 'cause it smells like a bee's bottom."

Don't forget about our recipe for supper tonight. We're having Italian Pasta Bake, Salad, and Garlic Toast. The recipe makes a big dish full, it'll be enough for plenty of leftovers or for a crowd (or when you've got two boys going through growth spurts, just enough).

Italian Pasta Bake
This recipe comes from a cookbook called Sonlight Cooks. It was a gift when I ordered some home school curriculum. We're not home schooling currently, but I really loved using Sonlight and would highly recommend them to anyone.

4 c. mozarella
1 lg jar spaghetti sauce
1 lb sausage
1 15 oz. can tomato sauce
1 pkg noodles, your choice of shapes
1 onion, chopped
3 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 c. sour cream
1 Tbsp. italian seasoning
Parmesan

Brown sausage and onion; drain. Meanwhile, cook noodles; drain. Stir in spaghetti sauce to sausage. Stir in cream cheese and sour cream into hot noodles. Layer half of the noodles in greased 13x9 pan. Add all of the sausage mixture and half of cheese. Add remaining noodles. Pour tomato sauce over the top. Add remaining cheese. Sprinkle with italian seasoning and parmesan cheese.