Little m Long a

I don’t feel it but Stevie does….

…….RATED!

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The activity is constant and endless.  Lifestyles are adjusted to the heightened levels of chaos always bordering on calamity.  Insignificance is just that, even more so.  It does not matter.  Priorities shift in an effort to provide balance, continuity and stability in what by all appearances is disorder.  Time does not sit idly by.  Things happen constantly.

As testament I present a few happenings of the past 24 hours.

Zoë kicked things off this past Saturday night (OK, I know that was more than 24 hours ago but work with me here.  Some things need preface.)  by heating things up, namely her core body temperature.  Not too alarming–102 and easily controlled with that miracle drug–Motrin.  Have you heard of the stuff?  I used to say that all the time to parents that would bring their kids to the ER at 3 in the morning with fevers.  When I asked if they had given the little fireball anything they would reply, “No, I wanted you to see how high the fever was.”  Like they thought I wouldn’t believe them.  Geesh!

I digress.

Maura gave Zoë a quick once over when she got home and determined she most likely had strep.  And they say doctors don’t make house calls anymore.  Antibiotics were started in very short order.

Inevitability.  (That means if you’ve got a house full of crazy kids and one is sick–it won’t be long before you’ve got a house full of crazy sick kids.)  Zane was first to follow suit though Zander was looking a bit pasty Wednesday evening.  Once again, Maura was called to duty and after assessing all of the kids determined that yes, indeed, lymphadenopathy was rampant.  Except for Zella.  She seemed fine.  “That,” I said, “is only logical as Zella never eats and the chances of her eating or drinking after any of the other kids is astronomically low therefore her chances of becoming ill are significantly decreased.”

Antibiotics were started in short order.  A lot of antibiotics!

Zane stayed home from school.  As we were watching a riveting show about building bridges, Zane screams, “Oh my God!  My tooth!  I lost my tooth!”

And he had.  Zane lost his first tooth.  Really lost it.  He had no idea where it was.  We quickly dismantled the couch and found it nestled between the cushions.  Zane lost his first tooth!

An hour and a half later, he lost his second!

Before bed last night I sewed Zane a little pouch to put his two teeth into as an offering to Flossie–the Tooth Fairy.  I had made a little pouch for Zoë but I didn’t think Zane would appreciate a pink pouch for his tooth. Short notice and a long day but I think it came out….acceptable.

Tonight kicks off our Football Friday Nights.  You may remember that Maura is team doctor to the local high school football team.  Building on our fantastic experience from last year there’s a new job in the family.  Zane gets to be a water boy!  He even gets a jersey.  The boy is stoked.  We’ll see if the steady downpour (much needed, I might add) that we a currently experiencing will temper his spirits.

Which reminds me….The cushions on the deck are getting soaked.  Typical!

Seems every time the family gathers for a cookout or a meal (is there any other reason for a family to get together?) I am asked to make guacamole dip.  My World Famous Guacamole Dip.  It’s the stuff of legend.  It’s slap your mamma good.  Really.  I’ve seen it happen.

It’s been a closely guarded secret, until now.  Some recipes are sacred, never intended to be shared (Harlan’s Chicken for example).  I have kept my guacamole preparations hush hush for long enough.  It’s football season, and I’m in a giving mood (just ask the guys in my fantasy league).  If you don’t like guacamole, you haven’t tried mine.  If you do like guacamole, you’ll love this.

I give you–Ed’s World Famous Slap Yo Mamma Guacamole.

I usually make enough to feed a small army so adjust your portions accordingly.

You will need:
10-12 ripe avocados  (skin color more black than green and quite soft–not squishy)
8-10  ripe plum (or Roma) tomatoes–DICED

Salt
Pepper
*Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning*  (This should be a kitchen staple!  It’s great on everything–says so right on the label.)

Remove the skin from the avocados and place in a large bowl.  I have found the easiest way to do this is to cut it in half….

lengthwise….

and use a spoon to scoop out the avocado.

At this point you will want to add salt, freshly ground pepper, the juice from one squeezed lemon and a generous portion of Tony’s.

Now comes the fun part, mixing and squishing up all of the avocado.  I’ve used a heavy fork, a mashed potato mixer upper tool thingy and bare hands all of which are labor intensive and messy.  An invaluable kitchen tool for this project is the Braun Hand Mixer.  Or any hand mixer.  They work really well.

Once mixed, taste.  Adjust your seasonings according to your taste preferences.  I prefer spicy so I usually add more Tony’s and possibly some more lemon.  Keep in mind that you’ve got more yumminess to add.  The onion will kick up the spice notch while the tomato will bring it back down.  That’s one of the great things about making this dip.  At each stage of the process you get to taste it and it just keeps getting better.

Blend in the diced onion and again taste.  The final add is the diced tomato.  I reiterate–Roma or plum.  That’s key here.  Also, do not use the hand mixer when blending in the tomato.  You’re going to want those tasty chunks whole.

The tomato may bring down your spicy level so if you want to get that back just add a bit more lemon juice and some more Tony’s.

Here’s a little tip:  If you need to keep your dip for a while you can toss in a couple of the avocado seeds (3-4).  They will help keep your dip from turning brown too quickly.  However, the best way to prevent this is to keep the dip in an airtight container and uncover just prior to serving.

I normally do not have any trouble with my dip turning on me…..