Why we love children . . .

I got this delightful e-mail from a good friend of mine named Jacquie yesterday. It really brought a smile to my face and I thought that I would like to share it with all of you. I hope that you don't mind and that it brings a smile to your face too!

Why we love Children

1. Nudity - I was driving with my three young children one warm summer evening when a woman in the convertible ahead of us stood up and waves. She was stark naked! As I was reeling from the shock, I heard my 5 year old should from the back seat, "Mom, that lady isn't wearing her seat belt!"

2. Opinions - On the first day of school, a first grader handed his teacher a note from his mother. The note said, "The opinions expressed by this child are not necessarily those of his parents."

3. Ketchup - A woman was trying hard to get the ketchup out of the bottle. During her struggle the phone rang and so she asked her young daughter to answer it. The daughter answered the phone by saying, "Mommy can't come to the phone right now, she's hitting the bottle."



4. More Nudity - A little boy got lost at the YMCA and found himself in the women's locker room. When he was spotted, the room burst into shrieks, with ladies grabbing towels and running for cover. The little boy watched in amazement and then asked, "What's the matter, haven't you seen a little boy before?"

5. Police #1 - While taking a routine vandalism report at an elementary school, I was interrupted by a little girl about 6 years of age. Looking up and down at my uniform, she asked, "Are you a cop?" "Yes," I answered and continued writing the report. "My mother said that if I ever needed help, I should ask the police. Is that right?" she continued. "Yes, that's right." I replied. "Well then," she said as she extened her foot towards me, "Would you please tie my shoe?"



6. Police #2 - It was the end of the day when I parked my police van in front of the station. As I gathered my equipment, my K-9 partner, Jake, was barking. I saw a little boy staring in at me.
"Is that a dog you got back there?" he asked. "It sure is," I replied. Puzzled the little boy looked at me, adn then asked . . . "What did he do?"

7. Elderly - While working for an organization that delivers lunches to elderly shut ins, I used to take my 4 year old daughter on my afternoon rounds. She was unjfailingly intrigued by the various appliances of old age, particularly canes, walkers and wheelchairs. One day I found her staring at a pair of false teeth soaking in a glass. As I braced myself for the inevitable barrage of questions. She merely turned to me and whispered, "The tooth fairy will never believe this!"



8. Dress Up - A little girl was watching her parents dress for a party. As she noticed her father putting on his tuxedo, she told him in all sincerity, "You shouldn't wear that suit, you know it always gives you a headache the day after."

9. Death - While walking along the sidewalk in front of his church, our minister heard the intoning of a prayer that nearly made his collar wilt. Apparently his five year old son and his playmates had found a dead robin. Feeling that a proper burial should be performed, they had secured a small box and cotton batting, then dug a hole and made ready for the disposal of the deceased. The minister's son was chosen to say the appropriate prayers and with sonorous dignity intoned his version of what he thought his father always said, "Glory be unto the Father, and unto the Son, and into the hole he goes."



10. School - A little girl had just finished her first week of school. "I'm just wasting my time," she told her mother. "I can't read. I can't write, and . . . they won't let me talk!"

11. Bible - A little boy opened the big family bible. He was fascinated as he fingered through the old pages. Suddenly something fell out. He picked up the object and looked at it. What he was was an old leaf that had been pressed between the pages. "Mama, look what I found!" He called out. "What is it?" his mother asked. With astonishment in his voice he replied . . . "I think it's Adam's underwear!"



Hope this gave you a chuckle this morning. Out of the mouths of babes eh? I also hope you enjoyed these pictures of my grandsons and a couple of my sons, not to mention that baby picture of me. My goodness but a lot of water has run under the bridge since then!!



We had the missionaries over for supper last night. I always love it when they come to spend time with us. They are such nice young men and always bring such a wonderful spirit with them into our home. One of them is a vegetarian and so I had prepared a lovely Vegetarian meal for them. A delicious lasagna which you can find on The English Kitchen, and then on the side I had this wonderful salad! With some crusty ciabatta rolls, it all went down a real treat. Tune in tommorrow for dessert!

*Green Beans with Garlic Vinaigrette*
Serves 4
Printable Recipe

I just love salad. I could eat it three times a day every day. I am always on the look out for new and refreshing ways to prepare salads. Salad doesn't have to mean a few limp lettuce leaves on your plate. This is a really tasty way of presenting green beans. Serve warm or at room temperature. It doesn't hold up well, so is best eaten on the day.

Vinaigrette:
The finely grated zest of 1/2 a lemon
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp of good quality olive oil
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 fat clove of garlic minced
healthy pinch of sea salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 pound fine French green beans, trimmed
2 TBS sliced almonds, toasted
2 tsp fresh thyme leaves, chopped



Put a pot of lightly salted water on the boil. Add the beans and cook until crispy tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain well. Place in a salad bowl.

Whisk together the vinaigrette ingredients. Pour over the green beans. Toss to combine. Sprinkle with the almonds and thyme leaves just before serving.