Puppy party

Yesterday Bill and Virginia had a party at their house. It was supposed to be a party for their niece and nephew but it turned into a puppy free-for-all. And it was cool!

A few months ago they got a new dog, Mocha. A few weeks later they learned she was pregnant. She had 6 puppies. Bill and Virginia kept one and found homes for the rest of them with Jeff and some of their friends. Yesterday all but one of the puppies came to the party with their humans. It was hilarious! These guys are 3 1/2 months old now and just as cute as can be. It was like moving through a river of puppies. And it was so fun watching them play. At one point one of them discovered an empty water bottle and pretty soon they all wanted to play with it.

Lots of people and lots of good food. Bill barbequed burgers and dogs, there was a pasta salad, veggies, beans and snackies.

Here's my bean recipe. The amounts are approximate because I usually don't measure when I'm throwing this together. I use canned beans. If they come in a sauce I use it. If they're canned with water, drain them.

1 large can baked beans
1 large can kidney beans
1 can each of black beans, butter beans, white beans, pinto beans
1 can of tomatoes
1 large yellow onion, chopped and browned in olive oil
1 package Jimmy Dean sausage (any flavor)
1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1/4 cup of molasses
1/2 cup of ketchup
a splash of Tobasco

Brown the sausage and drain. Combine with the rest of the ingredients and bake at 350 degrees for about an hour. It might take longer. When the sauce is thickened they're done.

That was a great party. Bill and Jeff's sister, Pam, was visiting. It was nice to see her. I wish we'd had more time. I enjoyed talking to Bill and Virginia's friends. They know some very nice people.

And the puppies were awesome.