365.73: C'mon, You Know You Really Do Like Meatloaf

I know that meatloaf is the food that everyone loves to say they hate. But what's to hate?! It's like a giant hamburger you slice up, which is exactly what I tell my kids.
I was making the meatloaf recipe from my MIL (mom-in-law) with with my Aunt Shelley's recipe for roasted potatoes, when in dawned on me just let them share a pan! I used onions and bell peppers from the farmers market and rosemary from our yard.
Just look at all this rosemary! We have two huge bushes of it. Anyone know the proper method for drying herbs? If so, I'll send ya some!

Here's the meatloaf before I stuck it in the oven:

And the finished product:

365.72: I Am So Martha Stewart

Let me just say that today,
though the kitchen may be a mess of dishes from four meals piled up,
though the living room floor cannot be seen for the mounds of toys,
though the boys got to bed an hour late,
I am PROUD of my accomplishments.

Today I finished a two-day project of repainting and re-covering the patio chairs! I am so excited to enjoy meals, play games, and just hang out on the front porch, so I really wanted to spruce the set up a bit.

Here is a before shot of the chair:

And my after:


There are two that are solid blue and two striped. And though it may be difficult to tell in the photo, the iron was black and rusted before, and is now a bronze with a hammered finish.

But don't you think this photo is just so much cuter for some reason?

I feel proud of this rare, crafty moment in my life.

365.71: SYTYCD

No, guys, those are not just jumbled letters. They represent the dance phenomenon that lets me vicariously live out my childhood hopes and dreams...

So You Think You Can Dance.

I mean, watch this piece about a son walking with his mom through cancer, and tell me you don't get goosebumps.

365.70: Cook-Out and Ice Cream at the Park

A sweet couple who will be attending Day Elevate, Mary Lou and Charlie Halley, invited the Montgomerys and us out to cook out hot dogs and have oce cream cones in the park. This was the first time we've met this couple from Greenville, NC, and they were so sweet! Since I forgot my camera [shocking], I swiped these shots from Cristie and John's blog.

365.69: Dirt

I am pretty sure that the boys' favorite thing about this house is all the dry, dusty dirt and the rocks in the back yard. No red Georgia clay here!
And now, some shots of Holden enjoying said dirt.

This is Holden's rock collection, which he is so excited about. I think this idea of having "collections" is shiny and new, which makes it so fun.

This is the rock that Holden thinks looks like a giant tooth. He finds it almost every day.

Look at this silly, dirty face! Right before I stuck him in the bath before bed.

365.68: Summer Cobbler

Tonight I served leftover spaghetti to the three boys for dinner. Well, actually, I mixed up the noodles and sauce in a corningware dish before putting it in the fridge the other night, then covered it with cheese and stuck it in the oven tonight. And voila...it was now "spaghetti casserole!"

Anywho, after the boring dinner, I was in the mood to bake something! I had peaches that needed to be used up, but not quite enough for a cobbler. So I threw in some strawberries as well, and baked up a delicious cobbler, courtesy of Paula Deen and foodnetwork.com.

It smelled so good, I had to keep peeking into the oven to look at it:

And the final product:


Here's the recipe I used:

Ingredients: 2 1/2 cups peeled, sliced peaches
1 1/2 cups sliced strawberries
2 cups sugar, divided
1/2 cup water
8 Tbsp butter (Yeah, that's right. what'd you expect from Paula Deen?)
1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
1 1/2 cups milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the peaches and strawberries, 1 cup sugar, and water in a saucepan and mix well. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Put the butter in a 3-quart baking dish and place in oven to melt.

Mix remaining 1 cup sugar, flour, and milk slowly to prevent clumping. Pour mixture over melted butter. Do not stir. Spoon fruit on top, gently pouring in syrup. Sprinkle top with ground cinnamon, if using. Batter will rise to top during baking. Bake for 30 to 45 minutes.

To serve, scoop onto a plate and serve with your choice of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Over My Head

Let me take a minute to pause from Project 365,

and to once again enter a weekly contest at iheartfaces.com!
The theme this week is "Over My Head."
This is a shot of Ryan stringing up our hammock in the new backyard here in Texas.

365.67: Meet the Robinsons

So as I'm sure you all know, Ryan and I hope to end up in Portugal at the Haven after training with Antioch here in Waco. There is a family there right now named the Robinsons (whom we're yet to meet) with two sweet little girls that are really close in age to our boys. I realized today that we may seem a little stalker-ish because we know all about them and are so stoked to join their team, but I'm not sure if they've ever even heard of the McCormicks! haha...
Anyways, every week at Antioch they highlight a different team of missionaries in the field on the back of the church bulletin. This week I sat down and saw...the Robinsons!



If you're interested in praying alongside us for the Haven and the Robinsons, please see the prayer points above! Thanks!