Farewell Tea Party

Madeline, Isabella, and Eva wondering what is going on here!
Eva and Isabella plotting their next move.

While all dressed up in their Sunday finest, Eva and Isabella bid farewell to their dear friend Madeline with a super sweet tea party hosted by Isabella's Mom Natalie. Needless to say the tea party portion only lasted a few minutes while the chasing and marshmallow eating portion of the party lasted a long time.

Madeline and her Mommy Julie will be missed tremendously. Life in Altus won't be the same for the DeMaso's. Julie and Madeline's bright bubbly smiles and personalty were a true joy of our day to day life. We wish them lots of love and happiness as they venture to Scott AFB, Illinois.

No wonder they only give you three

Sorry the pictures doesn't make these handmade dumplings look as apptizing as they are. You'll have to trust me when I say it was worth the time of hand rolling/folding them. They were tasty. I often pass by the wonton wrappers in the grocery store and think to myself, hmmm it can't be that hard to make steamed dumplings. Well, I was wrong. While making the filling was easy, rolling the little suckers was quite time consuming. Which is why, when you order these at a restaurant, they only give you three!

Here is a quick recipe for the dumplings.




Filling
cooked pork shredded (optional)
shredded cabbage
shredded carrots
scallions
cilantro
chopped red pepper
juice of one lime
rice vinegar
sesame oil
dash of hot sauce
tamari
honey

Mix all ingredients together, fill wonton wrapper or egg roll wrapper according to package directions. Steam in large pot or deep fry.

Violet's Walking Debut

Just day's before her first birthday Violet took the walking plunge. While she teased us with her one step here and two step there, it wasn't official until late August. The first few days of her walking world were full of drunken sailor steps, but now she has traded in her sea legs for track star legs. Lets hope I can keep up.

ABC's

If you listen carefully you'll hear Eva singing her ABC's while she pretends to wash her hands in the lake....makes me laugh everytime.

Chicken a la Delicious

I would love to take credit for this Chicken and Nut dish, but I can't. I had no part in cooking this delicious dish. It was made for me by my Aunt Denise and Uncle Henry. I'm not really 100% sure how it's made. I do know that you need to roast a whole chicken, and saute a variety of nuts in butter. After the chicken is slowly roasted, you shred it and mix it with the buttery nuts and serve over rice. Oh and of course you must serve it with your favorite cocktail. I believe the cocktail in this picture is a wine cooler mixed with proscecco. Which let me tell you , after a long and grueling day at the beach this is a perfect drink.
Once again, sorry I really don't have the exact recipe for this dish. I would love to get the recipe, but I don't think I'll ever make it for myself, because the true beauty in this dish is that it was made for me by people I love dearly. Which makes the dish impossible to duplicate.

Oh Lake Champlain

Where do I even start......I guess I'll start up North in Lake Champlain, NY. Our summer vacation was filled with lots of adventure and travel. We spent a few days in Lake Champlain visiting Grandma and Grandpa DeMaso's lake house. The limited amount of time we spent there was jammed pack with activities, boating, fishing, swimming, tubing, water skiing (Lew only of course), hiking, trainspotting, sailing, and of course jetskiing.
Needless to say with all of those activities their isn't much time for sleeping and eating. Which is why spending time at the lake is a bit of a challenge for me!
But we do love the little time we spend there. I can tell already that the girls think it's a magical place, just like their Daddy. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa for making a summer home so very special.

Pool Pals

Here are the little ladies, chattin it up at the base pool. If only there was a picture of their mommies doing the same thing!

The Boat's Back

It's official, summer has begun for the DeMaso Family. The boat was launched into Lake Altus this past Saturday. It was a beautiful 100degree day here in Oklahoma. Luckily we had plenty of sunblock packed along with two coolers, a double stroller, 2 inflatable tubes, 25 life jackets, 3 extra bathing suits, 15 diapers, a package of wipes, and our camera. Needless to say, it was a tight squeeze on the boat. But never the less, the girls loved the water and had a great time. We had so much fun that we might even try it again.

We ventured to the Spray Park at Fort Sill Army Base in Lawton , OK. It' s not really that much of a venture, it's only 50 miles down the road. But anytime we get out of Altus, it's a big deal. Violet and Eva loved, loved, loved, the park and so did their Mommy. I wish I could have a Spray Park in my backyard. Hmmm, maybe I'll add that onto Lew's Honey-do list.