Wednesday

A bottle of Two Buck Chuck.

A bunch of fresh raspberries and a couple of peaches to make a beautiful bright red jam.
A little too much sage growing in the garden. Well, that is if you're not going to use it to make Sage & Walnut pesto.

Did I tell you how much I'm enjoying summer?

All this and I didn't even mention Eclipse... (Yes I went to the midnight showing!)



Tuesday

Snap, snap - It's a Lego House.

I just finished watching James May's Toy Stories, for the second time. The first was last night. With a glass of wine in hand I snuggled down in my comfy chair and prepared myself to listen to the droning of May's voice. And yet, I was delightfully surprised at how my heart started to quicken. All of a sudden, I sat up a little more in my chair. I put down my wine (gasp) and I actually started to listen to him talk. Yes, I sometimes stop listening to his voice on Top Gear - but then I drown out Jeremy and Richard as well so it's not just him...

And I laughed and laughed some more! And then, I thought it was the most brilliant idea in nearly a century (or whenever they started making wine)! A house, made out of LEGO - and not just the kind my kids make with the 1000 pieces they have, but one made from 3.5 million pieces of Lego. A Lego toilet. A Lego sink. A Lego cat. Brilliant! Who wouldn't love that? Okay, maybe not a Lego toilet but the structure of a house made out to Lego? Why, yes, I believe I'd like two - a blue one and a red one!

And now, my children are downstairs fighting over Lego trying to recreate the house that James made. It's not peaceful. It's not quiet. However, the engineering of their little replications is going to be awesome. I suspect there will be flowers in a pot just outside the door.

Thank you Mr. May for helping millions of childrens dreams come true or at the very least two little boys dreams come true.

Monday

Two Parts!

Oh, we all knew it was coming and here it is! The Deathly Hallows Part One. Be still my beating heart!

As an aside: Special hugs being sent out to Robin tonight. I mixed up a batch of the lovely cinnamon tea you sent me, put it in the fridge to chill (for 24 hours), added some ice cubes, simple syrup and vanilla rum and now, I am one HAPPY lady! Stacy liked it. Mr. A. loves it (especially now that I added the vanilla rum). It's absolutely fantastic. If you haven't already done this - DO IT! So very, very yummy. Put it on the list Robin!

Saturday

SGF - WTF?

Okay, this is funny. I feel bad that I think it's funny - it's just wrong...

Saturday at the market.

CRAZY BUSY! I got there around 9:15 am - it opens at 9. The egg lady had 4 dozen eggs left. I bought two and the lady behind me bought two. So as it would seem today is the day that you don't want to sleep in.

And there were people everywhere. Lolligaggers! If you would allow me to rant for just a moment; the very morning section of the market time should be reserved for those of us who know exactly where we're going and what we want. If you've got mom and dad or grandma with you and you're just 'showing them the sights of Worthington' then please, come later. Like 10. I only need 15 minutes to get from end to end.

Alright, sorry. I'm done... I did get my two dozen eggs so I was quite happy. I even ventured out and got a couple of kohlrabi. No, I've never cooked them before but I thought they would be a nice addition to my vinegar potato salad. Just a little 'crunch' to spice things up a bit. I also bought a zuccini to make a couple of fritters. My kids will actually eat those - even better if I put a little applesauce on the side. And that was it.

I apologize also for not posting dinner menus lately. I've been a slacker lately (translation: it's too hot and humid to eat anything other than peanut butter and banana sandwiches) and meals just haven't been made - aside from last nights hot dogs and baked beans (sooo yummy). I'm slowly adjusting to summer (very, very slowly) and I'm hoping things will pick up this week (I'm out of bananas). I'll try to keep you posted.

One great thing that has come from the heat is the Shandy. I know I was buying the bottles and yes, they are delicious BUT I went back to the old version - just plain ol' beer and lemonade and I'm even happier now (translation: I checked the bank book and Miller light and a bottle of Minute Maid Lemonade is cheaper than a 12 pack of ready made Shandys). What's your drink of the summer? Are you mixing it up? Making Mojitos and trying to use the mint in your garden? Let me know!

Tuesday

Dave Matthews Band - Crash Into Me

I'm going to see him tonight. I can't promise I won't faint. So. Very. Excited!

Monday

Two Birthdays?! (June 20th)

Happy Birthday Mr. S! I am thankful for you everyday. (insert mom sob style information here...)

And my Colorado partner in crime, Robin - Happy Birthday Lady! Hope you had a good one!

(Note: The above video taping was done by an amateur. She was too busy laughing to put any real effort into the taping.)

Friday

Cake.

I'm currently making a white chocolate ganache to go into Mr.S's birthday cake. This is the first time I've ever tried my hand at ganache. I don't want to jinx it but I have to say it's not half as scary as I thought it was going to be. I'll post a picture of the cake once it's done... last year I made a 'pirate ship' cake. The ship caved in before I got it outside. I told the kids it hit a reef and was sinking. They thought it was cool.

I'm also having a Summer Shandy. It's a scorcher out there!

Wednesday

Garden dinners.

I was fretting about dinner on Monday. Then, I took the dog out for a walk and noticed that E.'s peas were ready to go and the sage plant is so full I'm wondering how to use it up. A little inspiration was all it took! The above picture was Monday's dinner - in olive oil. I took the veggies out, being sure to leave some of the oil in the pan, and put the sage leaves in. All was served over the Trader joes medley. Mmm.... super yummy.

Last night was hot dogs at the pool and tonight - more of the peas, some noodles and homemade chicken stock. Chinese Chicken Noodle Soup! It's not just for winter. I'm thinking we go south of the border tomorrow night for a big, gross plate of nachos! You can come too... bring the beer!

Tuesday

To Ser and Andrea.




Happy Birthday! Hope you get the big piece of cake with all the icing!

Monday

Friday

The grass is doing well.

The Clover is too and the 10 crows in my backyard tell me that they're all quite happy as well. Unfortunately for most everything else in my garden, the rain is slowing stuff down -or perhaps its the Black Walnut tree. The above is a picture of my radishes. These are the only ones I could salvage. I think that I'm probably lacking a ton of nutrients in my soil - perhaps it's all been washed away by the rain?!
See the little birds nest? Thankfully there was no eggs in it. It fell from my maple tree and landed 'smack' onto the patio slabs. I think it's a nice addition to the little bush don't you? I have a little fairy garden door on the opposite side of the tree. It's all quite magical.

The Dragon's Tongue (I just love that name) is in bloom. I quite like the soft blue blooms next to that vibrant burgandy. It looks even better in person! I'm hoping this spreads and/or they have more of it next year at the nursery.

My two curly garlics are going along about their business. I'd like for those to spread as well - cross your fingers. I'm not sure if they do.... the onions have gone to bloom; see them in the back? And that is a sunflower with the big leaves from bird seed - thanks to Miss K. for taking pictures for me last year! They pop up everywhere! I'm hoping for more - natural birdfood!!!
This is the amaranth I bought in the spring. It's not taking off at a fast rate (again, nothing is) but it's gorgeous just the same. On the tag it said you could use the leaves like spinach. Has anyone tried this? And when can I do that? I expect it to get quite tall - perhaps I should read the tag. Yes, I kept it. I can't rely on my memory or my knowledge of flowers to get me by! I think I'm still waiting for that pregancy brain to go away... it's been 5 years...

Thursday

My Monday in pictures.

These are the grocery bags I brought in and emptied. Then I realized I should have taken a picture of everything that was in them... oops... Trust me, they were full. Very, very full. I'm hoping that next week all I have to buy is milk and flour. Cross your fingers 'cause there's not much left in the bank account for anything else!
Probably because I bought a LOT of this kind of stuff! It's summer and around here that means there's going to be snacking - and more snacking and probably not a real meal to be found. I try to keep our 'snacks' fairly filling so you'll notice theres bagels, nuts, carrots and tortellini's on the menu. The kids aren't yet aware that most of this is good for them and if any of you tell them you're going to be in trouble!
I just threw this picture in 'cause I was sooo happy to find this in my garden! The peas are up and producing and E and I are eating them faster than any thing. I don't think they'll make it into the house but who can get mad at a kid eating raw peas?! The squash plants are in full bloom now too. The backyard is a sea of yellow flowers. With any luck the squash borers won't get at the plants and I'll be able to have a boatload of goodness. I'm currently battling the slugs - they're winning...


Monday

The Weekend.

It rained and rained and then, finally, from out of nowhere, the sun shined. It's still here today so cross your fingers that it doesn't disappear again. We've got big plans for the next couple of days.

Cutting my lawn is not one of them because my backyard is a swimming pool and not like this which is the place where I'll be spending the majority of my summer. The window is still leaking and I'm sure I've got a wet carpet in the basement - I haven't been brave enough to check yet...

We've had tornado warnings already. Worthington has these big sirens that go off when there's a warning/sighting/watch. I fully expect big ol' war planes to be circling in the sky! Jeepers, a little overactive imagination...

Well, that's all for today. A little scatterbrainish - I suspect it's going to be that way for a while. School's almost out for the summer. It's not going to be half as exciting as this but hopefully a lot less creepy. We don't have too much planned as of yet - perhaps a trip North? It's the standard summer trip for us. What are you doing? And yes, eating cheese doodles counts.

Thursday

Some things make me Happy.

Beautiful purple Water lilies. A friend picked them up for me last year but they didn't bloom. I guess this years rain is making them happy too!
I spy with my little eye... Things pop-up in the garden when you're not even looking!
Little snippets of love in a mist (the white and blue flowers). I just love these and their name.
The peas are flowering on the teepee I made for the kids! No snowpeas yet - my mouth is watering just thinking about them.

Tuesday

It's like a Zen Garden in here.

It's been raining on and off. It's great for the garden, for the birds, for the rain buckets but it's not so great when you've got a leak. Not good at all...

There's a breezeway inbetween the house and the garage. The people who lived here before (I sometimes curse them - is that wrong?) decided to put up some walls and a roof and make that area into an office. Ingenious if you do it right. Nutbarish if you don't.

The walls are not insulated. Mr. A sits in there in the winter and grows icicles on his nose (ok, that's funny). We bought a little heater to keep his feet warm. The office is great as a bar fridge in January. But now that the temperatures have increased a little bit we've noticed that the roof wasn't sealed properly either. There's no flashing. I'm not entirely sure what 'flashing' is but I know it helps keep the water on the outside of your house and when it's not there you really, really miss it.

Water is pouring down the office walls. No joke. At the points where the wall of the house and the roofing of the office join, the rain gushes down. I'm not entirely sure where it goes after that (perhaps the floor is not sealed either). Have you ever seen one of those Zen garden rocks things? The water rushes down and pools in the bottom? Yah, pretty when it's in the garden but not so much when it's the wall inside your house... wait, maybe that's what we could do instead of me being on the roof with tar.

Get that picture in your head... me, roof, tar, 80 degree weather, humidity 90%. Can you see the grumpy expression on my face. Trust me it's not pretty.