Back to the Midwest!

Ok, not technically, but it felt pretty close to it.  On the bus ride home this evening, I was talking with a small group of staff members sitting near my seat and I over heard Lisa sharing the menu she was preparing for her family tonight.  Steve and Lisa, are a couple from good ol' Minnie that also brought along their two adorable 7 year old twins, Natalie and Thomas. When I heard "Sloppy Joe's", my ears instantly perked up and I got a bit giddy thinking of Momma J's Sloppy Joe's.  I think she thought it was quite funny how excited I was for such a meal.  About an hour later I received a call from the cute family around the corner inviting me, with another couple, Musa and Kathleen, to Sloppy Joe's (how could I refuse!?!).


We opened the door and walked in the flat, the smell was overwhelming.  The aroma brought on a flood of good memories, like a mix of Gram Jo's house and MJ's cooking.  The entryway opened into a large living and dinning room which were connected to the kitchen through an old fashion bar that peered right into the kitchen.  I think it took Natalie 30 seconds before she grabbed my hand to give the proper tour.  She led us into her room filled with dolls, a Hannah Montana poster and awards she had earned at school.  Thomas showed me his spider man web shooter-- pretty sweet.


The best part of the night, even before any food was served, was when Thomas and his Dad brought out a sand dollar they found on the Red Sea a few weeks ago.  Right before the family left for their trip, I was talking with Thomas, Natalie and their Dad about looking for washed up sand dollars on the shore.   I remembered how excited my siblings and I would get as babes when Grandma Ursula brought us sand dollars from Florida.  She showed us why we should crack open the dried out sand dollars and how to find the little symmetrical surprises inside.  Thomas decided these pieces HAD to be fossils or teeth!  It was really neat to see the conversation the kids and I had together about Grandma Ursula, encourage them to find sand dollars on their trip and bring it back to show me.  It was undoubtably a Chris Scheldrup moment (he might have even cried at this one).


When dinner was served we shared a pretty killer dip, salad, fries with ketchup and/or sour cream, sloppy joe's and to top it all off she baked banana bread with chocolate chips!!  I couldn't really believe my eyes or my taste buds.  After five weeks away from the simple pleasures of the midwest (good food, good beer, good football, good peeps), I was so thankful for the invite to a Sloppy Joe night.