I love these little boots...=)
Here's a few scenes from our backyard these days....though I'm saving the vegetable garden patch for later....it's almost complete!
If you're not into plants, then you might just want to browse the pictures and wait for a more interesting blog to show up....=)
I guess the biggest point I want to share about gardening is that you can glean so much from other fellow gardeners....most people have at least a few plants they wouldn't mind dividing/sharing with you. The majority of my garden was grown out of the generosity of others! RIght now I've got shasta daises, candytuft, sweet woodruff, and baby iris to share if anyone is interested!
Most of the plants you see are perennials that if I don't let them freeze, I can hold them over for next year. The others I pulled from other spots in the garden or found in the 1/2 off section of Lowe's. Did you know about that? They have a section for less than perfect flowers...most of the time there are a little sad looking, need some dead-heading, and good soak in water and they'll look just fine. Sometimes you can find great stuff back there.
This planter was a hand-me-down from the in-laws several years ago....
In the back are some grasses transplanted from the front yard, mini-iris's from Elsa, creeping Jenny from Mom-in-law, and this variegated light green plant that I found in the 'bargain bin'! Eight little starts for a $1! You'll see this a lot....
I found this Japanese Maple years ago at Wal-mart when it was just a tiny thing....now it looks so much better more grown up! In the little pot within the pot is a different tiny little Japanese maple gleaned from a patch of weeds alongside the road. We'll see if it survives the summer....
The colorful one in the front is called 'Nandina' or 'Heavenly Bamboo' (not really bamboo)..It is a perennial favorite of mine.
Havilah's grapevine starts....THANK YOU!
This weeping cherry was a housewarming gift from my mom and dad when we first moved in.....It has issues with bugs right now....but it's also a favorite of mine.
Here's just a hodge-podge of more...if you care what something is you can ask!
Here's some more fun photos....just cause I love Jonathan and Liz and want to show off their fabulous event...
Instead of giving y'all an update on our busy weekend with words, I'll just show you some photos....so bear with me if you have no idea who these people are!
But who doesn't like to look at wedding photos!!
Congrats to you Jonathan and Liz...it was a most glorifying event!
Here he is .... our little man all dressed up to walk down the isle...(someday I'm gonna say that with tears in my eyes!).
Ok, Janellie, this one's for you....
I'm hesitant to post the recipe for rosemary syrup that I made, because I think the end result tasted a little bitter. But I'll give you two, and you can take your pick.
My instructions were:
3 TBS chopped rosemary
(make sure you don't use the woodsy stick part...tip straight from a caterer's mouth!)
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup water
....and I made 60 cups worth! (Thanks for the help, Mom!)
We brought the water to a boil, added the sugar to simmer for 10 minutes, then added the chopped rosemary to a low simmer for another 10 minutes covered. We strained out the rosemary through a series of medium to small sieves, then let it cool.
This amount is designed to go with one can frozen lemonade (made with 3 cans water), but I imagine that the overall flavor would be improved if you were squeezing lemons and using the fresh juice...=) (who's going to do THAT for a wedding!) And since, my dear, your lemons are cheap and in abundance (and perhaps unofficially organically grown?) you'll probably be using the real deal.
SO here's (look at March 19, 2008...sorry, you'll have to scroll down) recipe for the real thing....and oh how I do love this blog....Chef's beware....it makes you drool, and want to start dinner now! Enjoy it with me....
I understand that an update is in order....however I must first announce...
"WE HAVE A WALKER!!!"
Little Grace is now preferring a classier mode of transportation these days. She is so proud of herself that she'll stop mid-walk to clap! Perhaps she's just trying to signal her crowd that now would be an appropriate moment to join in...which we do...
She's just in time for her first and joint birthday celebration with brother....
And don't little dresses look so much cuter on little walkers!??!
Congrats to you, my baby girl...you're growing up so fast!
(Someday I'll figure out how to post videos!)
Well, we've got one busy week ahead of us...so I thought I'd just post to say that I won't be posting for the rest of the week....if I can stand it! I figure if I tell you not to expect anything and I have an unexpected lull...then you'll all be surprised! We've got our community group, double date on Thursday, Friday my parents are coming for the weekend plus a rehearsal dinner for a wedding on Saturday in which Josiah is the ring bearer and Brent and I are reading Scripture! Whew! We'll be baking pies, shopping for last minute wardrobe accessories, making a rosemary syrup for the lemonade at the reception, getting Josiah a haircut (yikes!), and doing the mounds of laundry that have piled up while we've been out gardening and playing in the sunny (formerly) weather!
I do have a yummy curry red lentil dish that I've written down to share with you (I never write anything down!)...that we had last night for dinner and that I could eat at least once a week.....but I guess I'll just leave you with that teaser! So stay tuned, though not for the rest of the week! Love to you all....enjoy your Memorial day weekend!
Gotta love 'em....
Just kidding...no, I'm not prego...but with my dear friends having babies and growing bellies...I thought it would be fun to relive that memory! And yes, it is blurry for a reason....I'm not super confident about baring my belly for all the world to see!
Cass, Heather....Karina....congrats again to you all!
And of course, how could one forget this bulging beauty....=) Congratulations dear Tarena...you win the "amazing mommy to four" award!! As well as the "most enthusiastic blogger" award!
You're right, I do love you...=)
This is a super book...recommended by Amy...I'm in the middle of it now, and it's a great starter book for those interested in learning more about nutrition, but don't know where to begin.
This little guy has been living outside for the last month...dirty hands, dirty face...happy heart!! He's a little sunburned today from playing outside all day yesterday...as am I....but isn't great to see the sun again! I feel like I've been hibernating!!
Here's the great bread recipe that I got from Amy...who got it from Cheryl...
As you can see, it's gotten quite a bit of use since I received it...last month!
I have a few 'connections' with friends who have grain grinders =) and they've let me grind some wheat flour for my freezer! Thank you, Thank you!
It is amazing the difference it makes in the taste. I've also read that once grain is milled the wheat germ oil becomes rancid (though wheat berries will last indefinitely on the shelf!).
You must also know that for my entire life, it has been a goal of mine to make bread from scratch. Yet I have been completely terrified of trying... partially due to my phobia of baking, and also because I have no idea what to do! Well, since I was well informed from my friend about how the Kitchenaid mixer kneads the dough for you...I felt empowered to try! So for those of you who knead without the Kitchenaid...my hat is off to you!!!...perhaps someday I'll get up the courage to try...with a tutorial, of course!
Here's how my friend walked me through it...
- you dissolve the sugar or honey (honey supposedly makes it more moist?)
- stir in the yeast (I keep my, Costco size, in the freezer, some keep it in the fridge) and let it sit till the mixture bubbles
- add the olive oil and salt
MIx in six cups of flour....
- this recipe recommends using at least two cups white flour and the rest whole wheat or a mixture of several types of flour....
- Yet, if you want to try 100% whole wheat go for it...my wise and experimental friend, Amy, used a mixture of flour made from soft wheat berries and hard winter wheat berries, and found that it worked well. You can also add a couple tablespoons of vital wheat gluten (should also be stored in the freezer) keep it from becoming too dense and crumbly.
- Knead till smooth (I've always thought this was such a vague statement...coming from one who wouldn't know when 'smooth' was really the type of ' smooth' it should be!)...8-10 min on medium/high speed with the dough hook attachment of the Kitchenaid...is more my style of directions (though I capable of change!).
- Let rise in a greased bowl...covered with a cloth...in a warm oven (you can heat up the oven to 250* and then turn it off and let it warm in there)...for one hour
- Shape it, then let it rise again...for another 15 minutes or so...
- And YES, I did forget to copy down what temperature to bake it at....Any suggestions?
I'd also love more recipes and tips....
We use this for pizza dough and I made calzones with it last night....
Thanks for the recipe and help, Amy!
About the no shampoo thing...I've read a bit more about it from other sources, and apparently in order for it to work the best, it has to be a very gradual switch over to the natural. They recommend using less and less shampoo, then switching to a shampoo soap (less harsh) or bar, and then trying the whole baking soda/vinegar wash. I have tried it a few times, and thus far it's felt really great on my scalp, has left my hair feeling soft and easy to style, but still feeling a bit too oily for me. So today I bought some Castile Soap from Trader Joe's and will try that for a while....wish me luck! It's fun to experiment and see how close we can get to eliminating our use of chemicals....Ok, at least I think it's fun...Brent doesn't fully understand and at times thinks I'm wacko...=) That's ok....I'm full of surprises....=)
Check out these links for more ideas and info!
http://hubpages.com/hub/Shampoo
http://www.craftbits.com/viewProject.do?projectID=133
http://www.pioneerthinking.com/hair.html
http://www.naturemoms.com/no-shampoo-alternative.html
