Pardon me for being a teeny bit materialistic this week, but I really must take time this Gratituesday to appreciate my dishwasher. 

It’s just that I didn’t realize how much I appreciated my dishwasher until I was so sick for several days.  At one point when I had about two minutes worth of energy, I took the opportunity to load a few dishes into the dishwasher.  At that moment, I was so grateful to have a dishwasher, I thought I might weep.  How wonderfully nice to have a piece of machinery in my kitchen that is happy to be overloaded with as many dirty dishes as I can fit into it…and then with the push of a button it will make my dishes all sparkly and ready to eat on again.

I suppose that I certainly can’t be grateful for my dishwasher without first and foremost being grateful for my father-in-law, who bought it for me. 

For all of our married life I was used to not having a dishwasher.  When we moved into this house six years ago, the house came with a dishwasher.  Hooray.  I didn’t care that it was 436 years old.  It was a dishwasher. 

And then about a year after we moved in, the dishwasher stopped working.  I was bummed, but not bummed enough to do anything about it.  In my mind, a dishwasher is a luxury, not a necessity.  We didn’t have the money to replace it, and I knew that I could certainly wash my mountains of dishes by hand.

And so I did.  For two more years.

Then Matt’s dad came for a visit.  While he was here, we fed him well….and he fixed some odds and ends around the house.  It was great.  He noticed that I wasn’t using my dishwasher and asked me about it.  I told him that it had broken quite a while back and that if he wanted to look at it and see if he could fix it while he was puttering around fixing things that it would be fine with me.  If he couldn’t fix it, I was okay with that too.

He looked at it and saw that it wasn’t fixable.  The very next night after dinner, he took us all to an appliance store to pick out a new dishwasher.  Wow.  I was not expecting that. 

So now I have a dishwasher.  And it works.  Very well.  I don’t even have to rinse the dishes much before I load them to be washed.  It’s awesome.

My father-in-law’s goal was to make my work load lighter.  He knew that it would help me, and that the boys would be able to help load and unload it too, which would make my work load lighter yet.  And he was right.

And so, as I was standing in my kitchen loading my dishwasher last week with my tiny bit of strength…I recognized how much I appreciated my dishwasher. 

I do believe I need to call my father-in-law once again and tell him how grateful I am for it.  I just bet he’d enjoy hearing how much his gift means to me.
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I can’t wait to hear about what you’re thankful for this week!  Write about it on your blog and come over and link up!
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If I ask my husband what special meal he wants for his birthday or for Father’s Day…he usually grins and says, “Can you make me a Stromboli?”

It is SO YUMMY…it’s no wonder he always requests it! 

Cheesy Turkey Sausage Stromboli

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 T. honey
1 t. sea salt
1 package yeast
3/4 cups warm water
1/4 cup warm milk
1 T. melted butter
1 pound turkey sausage
2 cups white cheddar cheese, shredded
2 eggs
1 t. basil
grated Parmesan cheese

Combine flour, salt and yeast.  Add water, milk, honey and butter.  Knead until smooth and elastic.  Place in a bowl, cover and let rise until doubled, about one hour.

Meanwhile, in a skillet cook sausage.  Stir shredded cheese, one egg and basil into the sausage.  Set aside.

Punch dough down and roll into a 15 x 10 inch rectangle.  Spoon sausage mixture down one side of the rectangle to within one inch of the edges.  Fold dough over filling and pinch to seal.  Place on a cookie sheet.  Cut four diagonal slits on top of the stromboli.  Beat remaining egg and brush it over the stromboli.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. 

Cover and let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.  Bake in a 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.  Slice and serve warm.

This is definitely a family favorite!  Hope you try it and enjoy it!

Find more kitchen tips at Tammy’s Recipes!