Granparents.com

This is the coolest website I just discovered. There are all kinds of ideas for grandparents. Take a look at it and pass the info along to any grandparents you know. This is one of the articles posted:

25 Reasons Kids Love Grandparents
by Jacqueline Carroll

1. We're always up for an adventure. Whether it's a nature hike, a day of kayaking, or a weekend of camping, we like to get outside as much as the kids do.
2. We know lots of stories — and some of them are even true.
3. We can grow things. Maybe it’s a garden of tomatoes and zucchini. Maybe it's just a potted plant. And if the kids help, we'll let them get their hands dirty.
4. We know our way around libraries and book stores. Where are the picture books? Where can kids find something for tomorrow’s report on Conestoga wagons? We can be great guides.
5. We're not afraid to be silly. Did a grandchild make a mask or a funny hat? We know who will try it on. Is no one at home willing to listen to kids' knock-knock jokes? Guess whom they should call.
6. We let grandchildren take their time. When kids stay with us, they don't need to rush to get dressed in the morning. They know we will wait for them.
7. We make the best audience. When grandchildren learn a new poem, some fancy dance moves, or their first violin piece, they count on us to watch, listen — and applaud.
8. We have the coolest pets. Whether it’s a cocker spaniel or a real, live, talking parrot, we share our animals with the kids. What's more, we let our grandchildren help take care of the animals.
9. We love to travel. We're up for a week in Yellowstone, a vacation at Disney, or a family cruise.
10. We knew our grandchildren's parents when they were kids, and we have the pictures to prove it. We can tell the kids stories about their parents that their moms and dads would never tell themselves.
11. We make great popcorn, not to mention brownies and sundaes. And we always let kids help, even if it gets messy.
12. We know tons of good songs, especially the ones kids learn in nursery school and kindergarten, and we love to sing along.
13. We're always thrilled to hear from our grandchildren, especially when they have something special to report.
14. We're walking history books. Most of us can remember when televisions had antennas, cars had fins, and phones had cords. When we take kids to a science or history musuem, we make exhibits come to life.
15. We collect and display our grandchildren's art like museum curators, and we wouldn't trade a grandchild's first sunny-day scene for the Mona Lisa.
16. We send kids the coolest care packages when they go away to camp, to college, or just for the fun of it.
17. We pay our grandchildren to help out around the house, and sometimes we even beat minimum wage.
18. We believe whatever stories our grandchildren want us to believe, even when neither of us can stop laughing as the kids tell them.
19. We have skills to teach our grandchildren that they can't learn in school, like patching a tire, catching a fish, and sewing a hole in a favorite pair of jeans.
20. When our grandchildren aren't feeling well, we will snuggle up on the couch and watch cartoons with them, even SpongeBob.
21. We'll read our grandchildren's favorite books to them, over and over again. Then we'll go out and get new books that are even better.
22. Even if we live far away, we stay in touch and make sure grandchildren know that we're thinking about them.
23. We let our grandchildren teach us things, like how to use a cell phone and share photos online.
24. We want to make every day we spend with our grandchildren special. And when we're not with the kids, we go online to find more things to do with them.
25. We love our grandchildren unconditionally. Now, what could be better than that?

The Ukrop's write -up about Denty and the Shrimp..Hip Hip Hooray!

This past spring, Ukrop's shoppers were invited to enter Ukrop's first ever Joe's Market Recipe Contest by submitting their favorite recipes using at least two products from our gourmet Joe's Market product line. We received more than 100 delicious entries, which we narrowed to 10 first-prize winners and then to three finalists for the grand prize.

The three finalists were invited to the Ukrop's near Chesterfield Towne Center on Friday, July 18, for a final tasting. The judges were Ukrop's executive chef Tom Pearce, Joe's Market chef Eugene Peay and Richmond magazine's associate editor Sarah McDonald. All three recipes were inventive and delicious, but one final winner had to be chosen.

Each recipe was judged on taste, providing a creative dinner idea and unique application of Joe's Market products. Congratulations to Denton Roman whose recipe for Gazpacho Verde and Cilantro-Lime Shrimp with Spicy Chile Dipping Sauce won over the judges' taste buds.

Judge Pearce described Roman's dish as "providing a great complete meal" that was "seasoned perfectly." He went on to say the green gazpacho possessed "the perfect combination of heat and flavor." Here is part one of Dennis Roman's entry: Cilantro-Lime Shrimp with Spicy Chile Dipping Sauce, and keep an eye out next week for his Gazpacho Verde recipe. Roman won a weeklong vacation to North Carolina's Crystal Coast for his culinary creativity. We'll also be sending out the other two outstanding finalists' recipes in coming weeks. Our nine other finalists each won a $250 Ukrop's gift card and a basket of Joe's Market products.

Cilantro-Lime Shrimp with Spicy Chile Dipping Sauce
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
8 wood skewers
1 lime, zested and juiced
1/2 cup Joe's Market Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
32 large shrimp (about 1 pound), peeled and deveined
1/2 cup Joe's Market Thai Roasted Garlic Chili Sauce
1/2 cup reduced fat mayonnaise
1 lime, thinly sliced (8 slices)
Preparation: Preheat grill. Soak the skewers in cold water for 20 minutes. Whisk together the lime zest, juice, oil, cilantro, salt and pepper. Place shrimp in a shallow dish and cover with marinade. Let marinate for 15 minutes. Mix mayonnaise with Joe's Market Thai Roasted Garlic Chili Sauce and divide into 4 small dipping dishes. Thread 4 shrimp on each skewer with a slice of lime in the middle. Place shrimp on grill and cook for 1-2 minutes on each side, until shrimp is pink.
Serve a bowl of gazpacho verde (Recipe to come next week!) on each plate with 2 cilantro lime shrimp skewers and spicy chile dipping sauce.

To SWIM or not to SWIM?..... That is the question.

Well, I am a convert to swimming.....aerobic or otherwise. It was a big step for me to buy a swimsuit, join the expanded YMCA and actually go to the pool. I have been making excuses for years. My pain has gotton so bad, I knew I had to do something. I did this week. So far I have been 3 times...3 days in a row. I haven't been swimming for many, many years...but kicked right back into gear. I CAN STILL SWIM. Not great form but I am moving. I haven't moved this much in years either. It felt so good to move my arms and legs without any pain. It is amazing how much the water helps. It is fun to have someone to go with. Greg came the first day and Lindsay the last 2. I will keep you posted on my progress. I feel like it is going to help long term if I can just fit it into my life. So if you haven't tried it, I am here to tell you stop WAITING and GO FOR IT. That isn't really me with my leg up..but it could be. You will probably never see any real pictures of me in a swimsuit with wet hair. Need I say more.

Denton took 1st Place in a Cooking Contest

Marissa( his wife) wrote this post about her husband Denton ( my son). I told you he was a good cook. Hooray for Denton!
He is pictured with his daughter Leo Caroline who is 5. She loves to cook with him and is following his footsteps.
You can see the pics if you go to their blog:http://littleromans.com/

Marissa said:
"My favorite chef Denton took first place today in the Joe’s Market Recipe Contest through Ukrops!!!! There were 100 entries from folks throughout the Richmond area and the top 3 finalist were invited to the final judgement. We were able to sample the other 2 finalists dishes: Salmon Packet Joe and Peppered Crostini Crusted Crab Cakes with with Tropical Remoulade Sauce. Denton submitted his Cilantro Lime Shrimp with Spicy Chili Dipping Sauce and Gazpacho Verde. I’ll post the recipe at a later date when Ukrops puts it online.

A panel of 3 judges decided on the winner, one of them being the Executive Chef for all of Ukrops’ stores. After the tasting, the judges gave their commentary on each of the dishes and gave RAVE reviews for Denton’s meal, especially the Gazpacho Verde. He said, “The flavors were so “bright” and everything tasted fresh and of the season.” Afterwards, he told Denton he should look into making this a career. Although Denton is OVERLY modest about all this, we’re very proud of him and look forward to eating more of his food!!

Next stop: Iron Chef, don’t mess. "

Suzie said: "So cool Denty... we are proud of you and love to eat your food. I think you are ready for TV."

Accouterments anyone?

All of my kids have done many great creative things in their lives. They have made cards, videos, books, games, etc Clayton's massage video when he was 11 comes to mind. But recently. Denton gave Greg one of the coolest presents for Father's Day.....a real labor of love. As you can see in the picture, a 12 pack of special HOMEMADE condiments made (and some even grown in his very own garden). This is what part of the card ( that matched the homemade labels on the jars) said:

" Dad, Thanks for teaching me one of life's great lessons. A love of pickles, condiments, and other sandwich accouterments.
I have fond memories of beets at the salad bar, banana peppers at Subway, and pickles just about everywhere."

I thought it was such a cool gift. Denton makes the things that seem so hard and almost impossible to accomplish look EASY. Although I know this one wasn't..... I am sure he spent many hours. He just got a book to learn how to can.....then just did it.
I am hoping their won't be any stomach pumping involved after we ingest a few jars.

Greg said he would share with all of us. We broke out the hot and spicy mustard last weekend......it was enjoyed by several.

So if you are looking for something to do with all of your garden vegetables and spices.....this is a very AWESOME idea.

Thanks Denty...you are the man.

Can you say Pizza, Costco and Family Home Evening?

Tonight we had a fun FHE with Denton's family, Lindsay ansd Regan and Greg and I. Costco had their pizza coupon on...so we met for dinner. Then Aunt Lindsay put together a little lesson on parables and lessons from Jesus. We split up into teams
to answer the questions and to go find the objects that helped us learn the lessons.......the parable of the 10 virgins, the parable of the talents, the parable of the sheep aned goats, and the feeding of the 5,000 with the loaves and fishes. Posted are several of our shots from our stations acting out our lessons. I am not sure how much the kids got out of it, but they thought it was fun. And they especially liked the ice cream at the end. I would be really fun for older kids.....maybe even make a movie that you could watch back. I think we got a A for effort and for doing a creative FHE. How many people do you know that have their FHE lesson in Costco. Only the creative ghetto Romans.

Oh Happy Day!

We had a awesome weekend. Friday night we left with our friends, Jim and Stacey Handy, from our ward to go to DC for a fabulous dinner at Benihana's. It was the favorite place of our friends.....and we were celebrating their happiness as they were going to be sealed in the temple on Saturday. They asked Greg and I to be their escorts and we were honored. We had a great night.....stayed in a Marriot.....then off to the temple early the next morning. We did an endowment session ( a first for Stacy) with several members of our ward ....then had the sealing. Actually, my childhood friends daughter's father in law was the sealer. Could you follow that?..the seven steps to Suzie Romans. After the temple, we all went to a great little sub shop near the temple for steak and cheese subs. It was fun to be with so many good people for such a happy occasion.

It was so great to be a part of their experience. They both had lived a very different life and found their way back to the gospel after many experiences. We are so proud of their courage and dedication. They are a great couple and I know the Lord will bless them for their efforts. It will always be a sweet memory for us.

Uninhibited and Proud of it!

CALLING ALL COWS! It was Cow Appreciation Day at Chick-Fil-A today....all over the country, If you wear partial cow attire, you get a free sandwich. If you wear head to toe, you get a free combo. Guess what we got? Of course combos. I had us dressed up really cute.....but not as cute as all the people we saw in there. I talked Greg into it, which was a miracle in and of itself. And he let me take pics before we left. I only wish I had my camera with me at the store. It was awesome seeing everybody. And to top it off, Greg turned into me in the line. He made friends with the guy behind us and then gave him some paraphernalia after we ordered to hook him up. He was a retired lawyer from DC here baby-sitting his grandkids...a liberal no less. But a very nice guy. Greg told him all about our law school boys, Clayton ands Regan, and then covered the gammit. Even went back over and talked to him after we got our food. So there you have it. After 35 years, I have finally had an influence on his personality. I have never seen him so social......to someone we will never see again. So for all of you that think I am too friendly and talk to everyone (and too much), I now have a partner in crime. I actually was trying to get him to come sit back down. I made friends with the lady in the next table while I was sitting alone eating my lunch. And to think he didn't really want to go... let alone dress up. It was a happening place today. I emailed my LIST and called a few folks. It is dangerous when you are semi-retired and hungry and don't want to cook. Actually it was really fun to hang out with all the cows. I had on my moo moo. I knew it would come in really handy one day. Although, I do wear it just about everyday :) After we left , we went to get a free slur-pee at 7-11 ( they were out of cups) and then I to COLDSTONE for my free birthday signature ice cream cone. What we will do for something FREE. We do have our limits !

So now we are headed overnight to the temple in DC for a special session and sealing for some dear friends in our ward. We are their escorts tomorrow. But we are going overnight with a stop at their favorite restaurant for dinner to celebrate their happiness. That will be a post for another day. I am sure there are no costumes involved tonight and nothing free.

Head 'em up and head to Chick-Fil-A...you still have a few more hours. Dinner anyone? MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

4th of July Happenings

Well I had a fun day on the 4th. Woke up to the picture of me( taped on the oven) transposed into Mt. Rushmore by Lindsay Marie....very funny. It is posted here. I got lots of calls and emails that morning as well as a in person "shout out" from my good friends the Tooley's, who were visiting from Colorado. Thanks to all for remembering me.

We had sourdoughs with the family. Dana took the kids to the movies while Greg worked on fixing the computer.Lindsay, Regan, Chelsea and I went on a historic boat ride on the canal downtown by the James River and learned alot of old Virginia history. I fell asleep a few times....as you can see in the pics Lindsay took of me. Not that is wasn't fascinating...but it was sooooooooo hot and crowded in our boat. It would be a cool thing to do in the cool weather with a smaller crowd.

Later that day,we had a great cook out with all the trimmings (including Denton's chocolate orange cheesecake and Lindsay's layered patriotic jello bars) made by all the kids for my BD dinner.

I couldn't persuade the masses to watch "live fireworks" again this year. They are soooooooo old already. They think it is too hot and too boring and too big of a hassle. I had to make peace with it or join another family. So we watched 3 different celebrations on TV...which was the next best thing. I sure hope their kids get to see fireworks someday. I sat and went down memory lane of all the cool 4th of July's I have spent watching fireworks. I think NYC on TV was the best this year.

Another cool thing is Clayton got to go to the white house celebration this year. He has a roommate who got tickets. They were up close and could see President Bush pretty easy. I posted a few of the pics he sent from his IPhone.

All and all it was a fun day. We went to a party on the James River at a friends home on the 5th and continued the celebration. I am actually celebrating all week as I have some dinner and lunches to attend. That is one fun thing about being born on the 4th......you have to celebrate after because everyone is with their family or friends on the 4th. And I am ok with that....makes the fun live on and on for a while. I have appreciated all the gifts, calls, emails and cards. My peeps and family rock!

Happy 4th of July

Well Happy Birthday to America and Happy Birthday to me. I am born on the 4th of July and happy to share my birthday with America. Funny thing is, until I was 5, I thought all those fireworks in my backyard were for me. What a shock to find out we were celebrating Independence Day too. Ruined me, it did. But it also created in me a love for this country and I have always been very patriotic. I have the picture of "George Washington Kneeling in Prayer" hanging in my family room. It always reminds me of the courage and the sacrifices of those who have gone before and those that are currently serving in our military to protect and preserve our freedoms.

America is a wonderful country and I feel so blessed to have been born here. I think the American way of life is the best way of life and the best place to allow us to live the gospel. I love the principles of agency and individual rights the constitution is based on and I consider it a sacred document. I hang my American flag proudly and cover my heart when I say the pledge and hear the National Anthem. I appreciate and value my right to vote. I appreciate that my father served in the army and Greg's
dad was a pilot in the Navy in WW2.

One of my neatest experiences, was going to New Hampshire this year to work for Mitt Romney in the primary election .I was asked to come to New Hampshire ( along with 50 others) to help with the New Hampshire primary. I helped gather names for the petitions needed to put Mitt on the ballot in Virginia. Several of us were identified from Virginia...it is considered one of the most civically minded states. We were one of the few groups that was paid for by the campaign. There were 6 of us from Richmond and the rest from Northern, Va. It was difficult to re-arrange my schedule to go, but I am so glad I did. Our group took 6 vans from DC to Manchester, N.H. That is where the Mitt headquarters was . We actually stayed in Andover in a lovely Marriot Residence Inn. We spent most days at headquarters calling lists and having discussions with residents about the candidates and why they should support Mitt. Some very interesting conversations. We also went to a town hall meeting ....met Mitt and Ann Romney and some of their children. We met several famous national reporters from the different stations. I was interviewed by several and was even on Fox news. I also made the Washington Post the day after the election.There were several European dignitaries that came from abroad to see our political process. We heard comments and mini-talks from a few dignitaries. Mitt and Ann Romney came to speak to us and thank us at Headquarters the night before the election. .We worked up until a few minutes before the polls closed then headed over to another locale for what we hoped was going to be a victory party. Unfortunately it didn’t turn out that way..but we worked very hard. It was an amazing experience to see everything so up close and personal. And how involved the people of New Hampshire are in the political process. It is amazing how many people work at the Headquarters doing different jobs. And there were some great volunteers from all over the country. Our team was really fun and we laughed a lot the whole week. And had a lot of discussions on religion and politics..made me grateful for my knowledge and testimony. I am so glad I went. It was a once in a lifetime experience. And I felt good about the service I gave and what I learned. I was asked to come work in a few other primaries but couldn't work it our after having been gone for a week in January.

I was glad to be more involved in the politocal process this year. I have worked on several campaigns in my life, but never going out of my local area. This truly was unique. Only In the USA, could something like this happen. I guess that is why everyone wanted to come see our way of doing things. I hope I never take my freedom and the principles I value for granted. Thank You America and Happy Birthday!