yummy soup

Okay, so it's 90-something degrees outside, but I had a craving for minestrone soup. Probably because I went to Olive Garden for my birthday dinner - and passed up soup for salad. Anyway, I looked on cooks.com for a recipe.... I revised it to my liking and here it is! 1 lb ground beef, 1 cup chopped onion, 1 cup sliced carrots, 1 15oz can red beans, 1 can green beans, 1/2 cup uncooked macaroni, 1 sm bay leaf or 1/4 tsp crushed bay leaf, 1/2 tsp thyme, 1/4 tsp basil leaves, 3 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, 1 can tomato sauce, 4 cans water, and top with grated cheese. Just brown the meat with the onion, drain and add everything else, bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 1- 1.5 hrs. Even Ben liked it! Even Ryan liked it :) It's great and I had everything on hand. You can add stewed tomatoes, or use rice or potatoes for the pasta. It tends to be salty, so add the salt last a little at a time.

My birthday was great! Thanks for everything :) Ben took me to olive garden, and surprise! he invited some friends too. It was nice for an evening without kids :) I had the 'black tie' chocolate pie for desert...mmmmm..... I think Matthew likes it too, because he's been eating a lot today :) 27 is GREAT!!!!!