Greek Goodness

For Tuesday Dinner, as part of the ongoing effort to finish our CSA box before we pick up our new one tomorrow....i was trying to work the things we got into some meals this past week. When i got the cuke's the first thing that came to mind was tatziki sauce...but you can't have sauce for dinner. I found this recipe for Keftedes,or Greek Meatballs, to go with it. That is also farm box lettuce, and more cuke's on the plate. When are meatballs not a hit? I did change the beef to chicken. Everyone loved it....what is better than a nice dinner with a nice glass of wine, and a nice family of course?

Finally

After more months of procrastinating than i can count i finally finished a project!!! Hooray! This bag has been sitting on my sewing table for forever, right mom? As i mentioned in a previous post, i am a craft procrastinator. I am afraid of hard projects and as soon as one gets tricky i set it aside for a day when i am feeling much, much braver. By the way, those days are few and far between. :o) This bag had no pattern to help me figure things out. I was just making it up as i went along...trying to keep track of what i did in case i ever wanted to make it again. Yeah right?!?! All that being said, i like it. I really like it! It holds all my junk and is way prettier than my other mommy bag. Since i just finished it this morning i have not taken it out on the town yet, but i will, and hopefully she has what it takes. And for me that just means lots of space(ie bottomless pit) a couple pockets for all that little stuff you don't know where else to put and that it can fit over the handles of Mitchies stroller. Thanks to my very handsome purse model.

Faux Breakfast Treats

We have been occupied today, getting July blogging off to a busy start!!!

When Avery was a baby she loved nutri-grain bars. But as time has gone by, her interest in such things faded. And my eyes were opened to how bad things like hydrogenated oil and high fructose corn syrup were, among other things. I won't quite get on the soap box at the moment. For some reason those bars came up, and i said we don't get them anymore because they are full of yuck. Avery had a big idea and she thought that it would be no problem for me to make them from scratch. This is my endeavor. A recipe was easier to come up with than i thought, and i had all the ingredients in the house already.***let me set the record straight here. It was not my intention to make it sound like i made up that recipe. I did not even realize that it did until i was mistakenly complimented on it. Although i am flattered, I found the recipe here.*** Ave helped me mix them up this morning, we did a half batch, and they were so yummy. But, truthfully they are more like a cookie than a cereal bar. And although they may not be low in fat, i feel better knowing that the ingredients were mostly good, and whole and there were no additives and preservatives. Soap box again...sorry.

Faux Nutri-grain Bars

1 c. Butter, softened
1 c. Brown Sugar
1 c. Whole Wheat Flour
1 c. All purpose Flour
1 1/2 c. Oats
16 oz. Strawberry Jam
1 t. Almond extract

Cream butter and sugar and extract. Add dry ingredients. Mix well. I chose to use a whole wheat/unbleached white flour 50/50 mix. Press half the crumb mix in a greased 13x9 pan. Spread with jam(there went the first jar i mad last month). Sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes. Cool and but into bars.

Vegging Out

My very fantastic juicer was brought out of semi-retirement today. She and i have not been acquainted in a while, so when i got it out i had to re-learn how to use it. Like riding a bike, really. Part of the CSA box this week was beets. I thought i would juice them. I have been a bit under the weather so i did not get to it until today, nearly a week later. I juiced 2 beets and 4 apples and 3 celery stalks, and this gorgeous bright pink juice is what we got. I have to say that this is adventurous for us. In the past we have stuck to carrot and orange juice, which i am making for dinner, and we have been totally happy with that....but why not juice all these veg that i don't know what else to do with. I was very proud of Mitchell. He said it tasted weird...beets do taste a little like dirt...but he drank the whole thing down. On one condition, that he be able to do it in the pool where he was already playing. And props to my photographer today, Chris...who i found lying in the grass taking this picture. It was sweet and also very filling, which i was surprised about. Cheers! Here is to more ways to eat those veggies!!!
***just for you Dee, i went back in and added this picture...that is beets on the bottom, apples in the middle and that pretty green on top is the celery***

Sunday Brunch

We were all terribly lazy this morning and did not get up until 10. While i was taking a shower Chris was making "breakfast" for everyone. Avery had the idea to make the muffins into a smiley face on the pan. Dee, i think she is getting inspirations from somewhere else....looks familiar doesn't it? She got the camera and she took the pictures, and wanted me to say that she thought that it would be fun to do it like that.

Ice Archaeology

It was hot today. Hot enough for a little fun from the freezer. Weeks ago in anticipation of a hot summer afternoon like this i interred some items in ice. What better than a freezing cold block of ice to play with on a day like today(hot and humid!)? This is not an original idea, i give all the credit to this mom and to this kids craft sight for passing it along. I have found tons of great boredom buster ideas on this blog. This one is one of them.

So you just get a bunch of random kid things from around the house...you can see what we used in this picture. Toys, buttons, money, hairbands, jewelry, beads, acorns, stones and etc. Remember to freeze in layers! I think i did ours in three. Just put a little water in the bottom of a rubbermaid container and place a few of your found items in. Freeze solid and do another layer, until your container is full. It takes some patience to set up but it was well worth it.

The kids had so much fun with it. I love it when they really attend to a project like this one. I gave them a few old toothbrushes, a turkey baster and some medicine cups and syringes to excavate all the items. They shared the whole time and even helped one another. They really worked hard at it too. There is something about doing things outside or just out of the ordinary that makes a lot more peace and harmony around our house.

Three Alarm Fun

this week for our Thursday field trip we made a visit to one of our local fire stations. They were so nice and let us go right in and one of the firefighters took us around to look at the trucks. Mitchell was happy to sit right up there in the driver seat of the new ladder truck. He had lots to say to the firefighter and lots of questions about what everything was and where things were in the truck. When it was time to get out of the drivers seat Mitchie said in a funny little voice, "that was hard work driving the firetruck".

Avery got in on a little bit of the action when it was time to pose for a picture. Otherwise she was a little shy and not into getting in the firetrucks or talking with the firefighter.

Mitch asked (well really he told) if he could wear the firefighters helmet, and he was indulged. He put the helmet on and had a hard time holding that noggin up. You can see in the picture how heavy it was and what a hard time he was having. It was all covered in soot and had pictures of his family on it....very cool.

Farm Day

Every week when we go to the farm to pick up our farm share box we make a visit to the goats. They have three very nice, pretty goats. Last week after we had come home Mitch wanted to know if he could see them milk the goats...so, we checked with the farmers and they told us they were milked at 6 and 6 and that we were welcome to come and see. We planned our veg box pick up for the same time they milk

Farmer Brian was so kind and gracious to ask Mitchell to help him milk the goats. I was very proud of Mitch. He sat right down and listened carefully to the instructions, and then he did it, he got milk on the first try. **I have to come back and add in here a funny Mitchell comment. When Farmer Brian was preparing the goat for milking Mitchell wanted to know, "Why do you have to clean her 'gutters'?"**

Avery also a found a friend and an animal she was interested in. As you can see it was not the goats. Farmer Brian asked her if she wanted to help milk too but she said no. I think she probably wanted to do it but was too shy to say so and take a turn. So she sat with their dog in the hay and they got to know one another.

We also fed the chickens today. We were told when we first went to the farm that they like grapes, so the kids saved some of their snack grapes from the ride there and fed them to these lovely chickens when we finished milking.

here is what we got in this weeks box. Beets(going to juice those), arugula, lettuce, cucumbers, zucchini and summer squash(saute with onions), scallions, sage(maybe dry) and eggs.

My Babies

I dug deep to find these today. Look how little they both were and now the time is just flying by and they are growing before my very eyes. I am sure most of you mommies out there can relate to the little bit of sadness i feel, sometimes a lot of sadness, at how quickly they go from helpless babies who need you all the time to little kids(or big kids) that can do things for themselves and even want you to leave them alone sometimes. I miss the little baby times. My whole life i wanted to be a mommy, back then i always envisioned myself as the mother of babies, never the mother of actual children. Imagine my shock!!! It was like i never wanted to believe that they would grow or become independent.

This afternoon, i was watching them play together in the backyard...lying on the backyard blanket and loving being together. Playing simple games and just sitting. Here i was in the house doing dishes and busy work watching them have all the fun. And then it dawned on me, these times are going by too quickly, and I should be right there where they are. Enjoying them, listening to what they have to say, really listening, and watching clouds together on the backyard blanket. So out i went! It was such a simple thing to do together but i really loved it, and i think they did too. I need to remind myself not to miss the sweet moments.

just a random picture of them laughing and having fun at school!

No We Didn't..

...Oh yes we did. Chris and I both were "dumpster diving" today. He brought home 2 office chairs from the dumpster outside Mitchie's school this morning and i found these there this afternoon. They were just sitting in a bag beside the dumpster so i pulled them out and look, they were lovely. I love the top one...it has little princess' and castles all over on the squares. So cute! And free makes them ten times cuter!!!!! I am just going to give them a little wash and make them ours.

The kids already adopted one. I said it would be great for sitting on in the backyard and that is the first thing they wanted to do when we came home. You would have thought i bought them the coolest gift ever. They spread it out in the shade and then laid there together for a long time just being brother and sister and being together. I love them.

Monday Meal

I know, enough already, but here is another one. I still had a few vegetables hanging around from our last weeks CSA box, and i kept asking myself and others(you know i am talking about you Dee), what am i going to do with this swiss chard? It was so pretty i should have stuck it in a vase to enjoy it when we first brought it home. The stalks are a really beautiful soft rainbow of colors...pinks, oranges, reds, greens and almost yellow. But alas it sat in my fridge and looked back at me every time i opened that door, as if to ask me, "well, what are you going to do with me? When are you going to cook with me?"...but honestly i had no idea. But then it came to me,all of a sudden. Quiche!!! It happens that way doesn't it? You have no idea what you are going to make with these strange mystery ingredients, or just any time you have to make dinner, and then it hits you in a flash. SO tonight, i sauted some onion and garlic in a pan with some olive oil, then i threw in the chopped and washed swiss chard until it was wilted and softened. In another bowl i mixed up 5 eggs, 2 and 1/2 cups of half and half(i think i cut that down with some extra milk), dash of nutmeg and salt, whisked that together. I used store bought crust(sorry Mary) and fit it into my pie plates....put the cooked chard on the bottom, sprinkled with some chopped ham and about a cup grated cheddar. I poured the egg mix on and put those bad boys in the oven. Then baked them for 15 minutes at 425 and then turned it down to 325 for another 30-35 minutes, until golden and a knife comes out clean. I made the kids one without the swiss chard, just ham and cheese. They do good at eating veggies but i know when i am pushing my luck and i was able to accommodate them tonight so i did. And thank goodness, they liked it!! This finished off our box for the week, since we ate the rest of our salad along with it.

***fixed!! thanks to my computery husband i got the picture re-posted. Sorry!***

Strawberries, Round 4

What more can i say...what is even left to say about the strawberries. I am sure you all have had enough food blogs, but this is what has been taking up my time and attention lately. Making sure they did not go bad on my clock! All we have left now is a few frozen berries for smoothies some other time. But who doesn't love a nice strawberry shortcake? I am not sure that the whole wheat shortcake went over that well with Mitch, Avery did not seem to mind.