Master Procrastinator

It was beautiful outside for a time on Saturday before it rained. I should have seized the day! and done some much needed weeding, mowing, and general yard work. But I didn't, I procrastinated and it's been wet all weekend. Ultimately it's good for my plants, just my grass gets a little longer. Sitting outside earlier I resolved to do some weeding anyway in this wet weather, who knows, it may even be easier. It's also time to start tying up my tomatoes and a few plants already need a second ladder added. I've had to use every tomato ladder I ordered for every plant in my garden-and it still has not been enough to deter the wrath of Kane. I don't know if I had unrealistic expectations or if she has gotten more garden destructive, but either way she has decimated my garden.With the surviving plants I don't know what to do...The ladders are great supports but not Kane proof. I guess I need to look into something else or just be prepared to find them torn to shreds one day.

I have been busy party planning away for my company's summer party at the Vintage Virginia wine festival. It's been fun but because I'm neurotic, it's been time consuming. It's only a few weeks away and I need to take planning to next level here and start buying supplies/ordering food. I'm making the desserts myself but I think homemade is always better, and I did a test run of a recipe last night. I made Sopapilla Cheesecake Pie from allrecipes- http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Sopapilla-Cheesecake-Pie/Detail.aspx
Although it needs some tweaking before I make it for the festival, it was really good. I am sending Chris to work with the leftovers b/c it's some seriously delicious stuff and I don't want it around.

I hate Mondays b/c my mind is often at work wondering if everything is okay.

It's been a while

So it's been awhile since I last posted. Which a foreboding thought considering my past blogs' track records. At least I can say it's in due part to being away the past two weekends. Each of which was spent in Baltimore. The weekend before last was due to Easter. And this past one was due to Neil Young playing at the Hipppdrome.

Easter weekend was nice but not without a few hiccups. The K family photo shoot went well and the photographer took some photos with just Chris and I along with the pets. Kane as usual was uncooperative but hopefully some of the pictures of her turn out well. Later that day we went to meet up with our friends and ended up on sailboat! We had a blast sailing around drinking cocktails in Annapolis harbor. The next day for Easter I made mashed potatoes but in the process clogged up the sink so bad it stopped working. It was unusable the entire day, and would require a plumber. I felt awful! This followed by the fact that Kane did serious damage to my father in law's library. It was the only place to keep her and she destroyed the door, door jam, and his putting green. So we caused quite a bit of damage. :(

This past weekend we saw Neil Young and it was awesome! He sounded just as good live as he does on his records. Our seats were awesome, I only wished he had played more of his hits than his newer stuff.

Other than that not much else is new. Chris and I were talking the other day about how life seems to just fly by at sonic speeds. My garden is doing well. Everything I planted seems to be thriving albeit one blackberry bush Kane sat on. While not the most productive weekend, I did manage to check a few things off my to-do list the past few days.

I made a lasagna yesterday and just enjoyed a slice for lunch. This is my absolute favorite recipe. It is the best lasagna I have ever had. I got the recipe off allrecipes.com -my favorite recipe site. Here is the link http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Worlds-Best-Lasagna/Detail.aspx by: John Chandler

I make mine a little different just because I like more ricotta and fresh basil. I also reduced the cooking time b/c each time I've made it it has burned slightly on top, I might reduce the temp. for the second half to 350 next time, keep an eye on it. I always double the sauce and freeze extra just have on hand to make spaghetti. I've made it with both sweet and spicy Italian sausage, I definitely prefer it with sweet sausage. This requires a large lasagna pan. My slightly different version below.

Ingredients

• 1 pound sweet Italian sausage
• 3/4 pound lean ground beef
• 1/2 cup minced onion
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
• 2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
• 2 (6.5 ounce) cans canned tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1 bunch fresh basil chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1 package dry lasagna sheets, break if needed to fit pan
• 32 ounces ricotta cheese
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 packages sliced mozzarella cheese
• 1 bag grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. In a Dutch oven, cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, 1 tablespoon salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with eggs, remaining parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
3. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
4. To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a lasagna pan. Arrange noodles over meat sauce. Spread with one third of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with  Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining ricotta, sauce and mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 15 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.