Labor Day Weekend

Happy September and Happy Labor Day weekend!  The days are going by so quickly...

The kids' basketball games yesterday were a definite improvement over the ones they played last week! While Cailtynne's team lost again, it was only by three points - the score was very close the entire game and the girls (on both teams) played really well. Since the girls all go to school together and most of them are pretty good friends, it is fun to watch them interact during the game. They are very competitive but the minute the whistle blows, they are chatting and laughing together - sometimes too much. Kevin was in town this week and he took over as co-coach for me. He and the other coach seemed to actually know what they were doing so maybe that is why the game was so close?!?  Caitlynne is No. 40 in the photos below.  

She is definitely one of the taller girls on the team.

 

 

Christopher's team won by quite a bit and he played a great game.  

Kevin also helped coach for Christopher's game. Kevin leaves for the U.S. next week and will be gone for several weeks so he is making the most of his time here.

The Basketball League trains and pays the kids to scorekeep the games throughout the season. The photo below is terrible but it is of Caitlynne and a friend scorekeeping a game yesterday.  Caitlynne loves to earn money and this is a fun way for her to do it!  

Caitlynne and another friend (and another terrible photo!) relaxing after their game.

A few nights ago, I made 

 From this cookbook...

I will be honest... usually (well, ALL the time!), I just grab the "Manwich" pre-made sauce at the grocery store and use that to make Sloppy Joes. However, there was none to be found in Nichada and since I have also been trying to use less prepared foods in my cooking & our meals, I looked through my cookbooks for a recipe. Rachel Ray came to the rescue!

The browned ground beef. 

Chopped sweet red pepper and onion.

Tomato sauces & paste.

Red wine vinegar and Worcestershire sauce for flavoring. I also added freshly ground black pepper and a pinch of salt.

Dinner!  

A fresh fruit plate, a green salad and the Sloppy Joes (served over hamburger buns) made a complete meal for us (with very little left over). This was incredibly easy to make and was very good.  Never again will I use the canned/pre-made sauce.

In other news... we are teaching Caitlynne to drive the golf cart so that she will have the experience of driving some kind of vehicle before it is time for her to learn to drive a car. Both Kevin and I had experience driving tractors or ride-on lawn mowers when we were growing up but (obviously) she will never have that experience so we will use the golf cart.  Very quickly, it became very apparent that Kevin will be teaching both of the kids to drive. Although I beg to differ, it has been said that I  screech and scream too much. 

Have a great Sunday and enjoy the long holiday weekend!