Amy's Visit

I have to say we had a wonderful visit with Amy and her room-mate Kat. After their long flight through San Francisco, they were pretty tired when they arrived, but after a few hours sleep, they were off to the beach. They had originally planned to go to Busch Gardens on Thursday, but decided to wait until Friday. Thursday afternoon I rented them a small car and off to Tampa and Busch Gardens on Friday. I also got them a room in Tampa so they wouldn't have to travel home at night, so they decided to go to the beach in St Petersburg and swim in the Gulf of Mexico. When they came home of Saturday, they were both very, very red. They also said the gulf water is so warm, 86 degrees, they really couldn't cool off.

Because of their sunburns, they didn't go to the beach on Sunday and we just enjoyed their company. We played 10,000, with Kat winning 2 of 3 games (Betty beat Kat the 2nd game by 50 points), and basically just enjoyed their company. Off to the beach again on Monday, and then Tuesday was their flight home. We were going to take them shopping one day, but we ran out of time. It was just great having them here, and that was the most important thing. I know Amy missed her "kitties" and even though she played with and loved Kujo, it wasn't the same as Kujo is "Betty's dog" and has limited time for others.

I didn't get many pictures because the girls wouldn't let me, but I will share some of the ones I did get. Actually, the best ones were taken by the girls while we were going to the airport. So, here goes:

Betty "helping" Amy with a crossword puzzle on her DS.


Amy and Kat playing "Set", while Betty tries to learn the game.
We had to order a Set game so Betty and I can learn to play.


Self portrait
Taken in the car by Amy


Kat

Amy

They made a video while we were driving that is really funny but I can't get it to load.

Now to answer my cousin's questions. Top Hat is just a very simple concoction that all of the Johnson girls make. Well, most of the Johnson girls anyway. LaDonna has a kitchen just because it was part of the house when the house was purchased. It is so simple to make, yet is so good. (All of the Johnson girls can tune out now because I'm going to explain how to make it)

Here's how to make it:
Cut up some bacon and begin to fry it. After a short period, add chopped onion and cook with bacon 'til soft. Add ground beef, cooking 'til done. In the meantime, boil some salted water and cook noodles addente. After the meat mixture is cooked, add a can of Cream of Mushroom, or Cream of Chicken soup, and heat until warm. Add warm noodles and then finish off with a pint of sour cream, heating until warmed through.

Top Hat, like many dishes, is better after the flavors mix, but no one can wait long enough for that to happen. That's why when I make it, I use a pound of bacon, a medium to large chopped onion, two pounds of ground beef, a can each of Cream of Mushroom and Cream of Chicken (and sometimes an additional can), and a bag of egg noodles. To save on calories, I only use a pint of sour cream. I'm guaranteed leftovers, which is alright with me.

Until tomorrow. I expect a run on bacon and ground beef now.