Coconut Ice Cream

Good Tuesday morning!

The Gallery Pics are from Father's Day. After we left Mikie's family, we went to Bass Pro Shop for a little while, and then out to eat at Dreamland. It was a long day, but a very good one.

RANDOMNESS #1 - The boys were fussy yesterday. I know. I know. I don't usually admit the children fuss and fight. It messes up the "perfect facade" I've created on the blog... but yesterday they were both grumpy at the same time and fussing ensued.

The straw that broke the camel's back (or finally made me angry) was the fight about who would eat the last pitiful piece of cold, undercooked, Little Caesar's cheese pizza left over from the pool. When I heard Austin say, "Well in 2002, you ate the last of the Cinnamon Toast Crunch... ," I knew I had to step in.

"Guys! Get in here." Their bodies filled the doorway. "What IS the problem?" I asked, hoping it was more than just a sorry slice of pizza.

They started talking over each other. It wasn't anything else. It wasn't a deep resentment which had been building for years. It wasn't their inner child crying out for much-needed attention. It was that stupid piece of pizza. (Oh. And did I mention they had already eaten lunch AND the leftover ribs from Dreamland. It wasn't even about being HUNGRY!)

Since I know many of you look to me for parenting advice from time to time, I wanted to share my incredibly wise, Biblical solution.

"After listening to both sides, I have decided to do what King Solomon once did to solve a similar problem," I said.

Josh stood there looking toward the heavens, and Austin looked down shaking his head.

"Yes. After much consideration, I have decided to cut you both in half."

Silence.

"Uh. Don't you mean cut the pizza in half?" Josh offered.

"No. That would only solve the problem for a little while. My solution will take care of it forever."

"Mom. I think you've got the story mixed up... again," Austin mumbled. "King Solomon was going to cut a baby in half because he knew the real mother would never let that happen. When the woman told him to give the baby to the other lady, King Solomon knew she was the REAL mother. Cutting me and Josh in half wouldn't really fix anything."

"Oh, just forget it. Austin can have the pizza. I'm not even hungry," Josh said.

"I don't really want it either," Austin said. And they both shuffled out of the room.

I took the cold, dead pizza, tore it in half and gave it to the beagles... who truly appreciated each and every bite.

Biblical parenting... It ain't as easy as it looks!

RANDOMNESS #2 - I wanted to share something a little boy at the pool said which I thought was so sweet.

My nephew, Zac, came swimming with me yesterday and he brought a buddy. He was a really cute little guy. He was very polite and respectful. I liked him... I liked him a lot.

The boys were putting on sunscreen, but they were in a hurry to get in the water. I offered to spray Zac's back, and then I turned to his friend and said, "Just use Zac's sunscreen. I'll spray you and you'll be good to go."

"Well, what SPF is on the bottle?" he asked. (How many boys have you ever heard ask that question?)

"Uh, 30," I replied. "What SPF are you using?"

"I'm using 50," he said. "That's what my Mom gave me, and I'm pretty sure she knows what she's doing."

Ahhh. Now there's a Mom who knows how to raise a child! When you can get them to admit at an early age they're "pretty sure she knows what she's doing," you probably won't have to threaten to cut them in half when they become huge, doorway-filling teenagers.

I have to admit... I was a little jealous.

Coconut Ice Cream

I borrowed this recipe straight from the Southern Living Archives. On the few (albeit wonderful) occasions we've gone to Cold Stone Creamery, Austin always orders coconut. In honor of The Boy, I'll be posting this easy and delicious-looking recipe for all of us to try.

You will need the following:

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (5-ounce) can evaporated milk
1/2 cup whole milk
1 (13.5-ounce) can coconut milk
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Whisk first 3 ingredients in a 2-quart pitcher or large bowl until blended. Cover and chill 30 minutes.

2. Whisk coconut milk, lemon juice, and salt into milk mixture.

3. Pour milk mixture into freezer container of a 1-quart electric ice-cream maker, and freeze according to manufacturer's instructions. (Instructions and times will vary.)

4. Remove container with ice cream from ice-cream maker, and place in freezer 15 minutes. Transfer to an airtight container. Freeze until firm (about 1 to 1 1/2 hours).

5. Serve ice cream with toasted coconut, shaved chocolate, or chopped macadamia nuts.

NOTE - To make a tropical sundae, top coconut ice cream with sliced bananas, mango slices, and pineapple chunks (wearing a coconut bra and a grass skirt).

(This would be a great dessert to serve at a luau, wouldn't it? I'm thinking Hawaiian chicken served over a bed of rice and sweet tea served in plastic coconut cups is in the Faulkner Five's near future. What do you think?)

Have an absolutely incredible Tuesday. I'm going to try to have one of those, too. I'm not sure how I will accomplish such a feat, but I'll let you know how it turns out. Wednesday is full of wisdom, traditions, randomness and pics. Wednesday is ALWAYS a busy day on A Simple Life.

Take care, and I'll talk to you tomorrow.

Sincerely,

The Enchanting Belinda