Not just sweater weather, which it had been all week and I am LOVING IT, but it%u2019s lamp light weather too. I forgot that I had all these fantastic lights around my house and yesterday when it was dark out at 6 (it was raining so the sky was cloudy) I got to turn on a couple lamps that haven%u2019t had any action in months. It was soooo nice and cozy. This my friends, this is the best time of year!
Camping last week was great and not so great. The campground was pretty, but our fellows campers were very rawdy and loud and there was a party at the picnic pavilion that had a shitty classic rock cover band playing. The noisy people and shitty music echoed through the park for longer then anyone should have had to deal with it. But I guess that happens, especially on a long holiday weekend. And really, besides the buttheads, we had fun. We went for a nice hike through the woods and into giant fields of wildflowers and goldenrod then spent some great time in the kayaks on a nearby lake (away from all the people). Plus after eating dinner and then packing it in for the night, we didn%u2019t get soaking wet, which we could tell by the many car doors slamming and people screaming at 1am , a good few people did. Our tent stayed nice and dry inside and we even managed to stay dry when we got out of the tent and and realized it was sitting in a giant puddle. We even managed to stayed pretty dry packing up and getting on our way home, in the rain! It%u2019s because we are good at coming I guess.
Then the rest of the week came and went in a fast blur. Mostly some same. Had lunch with Barb, cleaned apartments for new tenants,, made cards for artwork, picked up farm share, and you know, other life stuff. I have been busy in the kitchen harvesting garden food and canning or freezing it as well. Trying to stock up on as much food as I can for the winter. Then the littles slept over Friday. We watched Dumb and Dumber and I fell asleep on the couch. Woke up made waffles (I was so excited to use my waffle iron. It%u2019s been too long) and sent them on their way home to be moody tweens because that is now happening.
Oh, and I can%u2019t forget about how some little shithead smashed in the back of our car. Yup, that happened too. But that is pretty much it. I think%u2026.
Now for today. Mt Auscunty State park if all goes to plan. Should be a fun one with lots of hiking and a big high tower and stuff. I know it is gonna get mighty cold tonight so I am packing my winter long underwear and a jacket, hat, and mittens. So excited!
Links to explore on the internet.
–Doctors are now prescribing houseplants to help treat anxiety and depression. Makes a whole heck of a lot of sense to me. And why not try this simple remedy before trying a bunch of drugs?
-I wasn’t;t surprised much when I read this. Junky processed food is so bad, especially if it is all you eat. .19-Year-Old Goes Blind Due to Diet of Pringles, Bread, Fries, and Processed Meats
–Lush Botanical Forms Translated Into Abstract Embroideries%u00a0. So very pretty.
-Another good reason to ditch that pessimistic attitude and to look at he bright side of things. It doesn%u2019t hurt to try. Optimists For The Win: Finding The Bright Side Might Help You Live Longer
–Why do clowns creep us out?%u00a0Because they are creepy, that is why.
-I want, no, I need this cabin. Totally Off-the-Grid Cabin in the New Hampshire Woods
–This Apple Might Be the Most Anticipated Piece of Produce in History. I heard about this apple few years ago. I wonder if it%u2019s gonna live up tp all the hype. We shall see.
-Why don%u2019t we have one of these? The Otter: The 1950s Amphibious Caravan That Time Forgot!
–Can Bullet Journaling Save You? I am a list maker in all the ways. I a ma doodler to no end. I love pretty things and I love hand writing and have a ton of sketch books but besides the occasional list of note in a sketch book, I have never really gotten into Buju. It%u2019s to time sensitive I think, for me anyway.
–Squeeze in a Quick Nap at Work with This Under-Desk Hammock. A new way to sleep on the job. HA.
Pictures from the week.
For the past few days the mr has been telling everyone that yesterday was the official last day of Summer. For some reason he truly thinks September first is the first day of fall. It%u2019s not true as you probably know (the last day of summer is September 22nd) but around here is sure is starting to feel a lot like fall so I%u2019ll take it.
Last weekend camping was a blast. First we headed to Maidstone, the most remote state park in Vt. Left early in the morning, stopped at a yard sale or two then drove down a very long and bumpy dirt road until we got there.. Maidstone was amazing, a big lake in the middle of nowhere off the edge of nowhere in the nowheres of the NEK. The weather was amazing, our campsite was cool with wooden stairs, the hiking was fantastic, and the loons were all loud and vociferous. And the weather, it was just perfect. Cool and partly cloudy. I got to wear a sweater while hiking and pull on my wool socks in the evening. There are few things that can top a cool night under the stars with the sound of water lapping the shore and loons making sweet loon noises all night and right now I can%u2019t think of them.
After waking up maybe a weee bit to early (I can%u2019t help it), we packed up and headed to the next park, Brighton. A pond in little town still in the middle of nowhere, although it felt more somewhere then Maidstone due to the fact that there was a store and a gas station in town. And there was an actual town. We stopped and walked around the little neighborhood and along the train tracks then we found a few little hiking trails in random places, and hiked them. The mr did some fishing, I did a lot of reading, all before we even got the the park at lunch time. Once we got there, the usual occurred with a good hike, chillin by the fire, eating food, and after being out and about all over for the past few days, we were dead beat. So we crawled into the tent as soon as the sun set and passed the F out. Woke up freezing and happy but then kind of sad. Had to get on getting on home.
Then we were home. The mr went straight away to work, I might have passed out a little bit, but then stuff needed doing so I got on that.
As far as the rest of the week, there was the last day of summer vacation surprise dinner and park play we had with the littles which was followed by first day of school. I spent a good chunk of time finishing up a bunch of rainbows (and clouds) and installed them for Art Hop next week. The floors at the apartment were sanded (the mr all the way) and are now in the process of being urethaned. I picked up farm share (I missed it last week so I was running scarily low on veggies), maintained a casual relationship with my own garden, and watched the 15 foot tall sunflower in the front yard bloom. Did this and that and ran all over. Typical stuff.
Now we are back to Sunday again and we are raring and ready. Gonna grab the camping stuff, toss the kayaks on the car, and head out. Going south this weekend to lake Bomoseem. I am very much excited. The weather looks terrific for the day, (it is suppose to rain in the middle of the night but that is totally fine) and we are just ready to be out of town for the day again. And hopefully tomorrow being labor day and all we can not do to much and just chill. Rainy and cool. Perfect weather for a blanket, a book, and hot coffee all day long. I might even get some knitting out%u2026..
Internet for you.
–The Life of a Person Who Wakes Up Really, Really Early. That%u2019s me, an extreme lark!
-If I ever need to plant grass. A Miracle No Mow Grass. Actually looks so nice and soft.
–The Difference Between Pepitas & Pumpkin%u00a0Seeds. Nope, they are not the same but kinda are?
-Could you imagine nit having a summer vacation from school? Honestly, I think I would rather have a winter vacation, or 4 smaller vacations if I had a choice I the matter. The Case For Summer Vacation
-It%u2019s back. A short cultural history of tie-dye
–On Being a Great Aunt. I am a great aunt%u2026 right? I think so anyway.
-Among other things I want to protect myself from Gwyenth. Dr. Jen Gunter Wants to Protect Your Vagina From Gwyneth Paltrow
–FOR THE CHAIR COLLECTORS OUT THERE. Love a good chair.
-We are drowning in plastic. U.S. Recycling Industry Is Struggling To Figure Out A Future Without China
–Battle of the Bubbles. I should have started a seltzer water business when I had the idea 10 years ago. Oh well.
Pictures from the week.
Already? That week just blew on by. Probably because of the midweek holiday and that always makes time move in weird ways.
This week felt like a lot went on. Some of the same old, same old, but there was a lot of activities thrown in. We went on a bike ride picnic one day, another day we had lunch at the co-oop with my mom. Then on the third of July a lot of places do fireworks and so, after the mr saying we had to do something this year, we decided to go to the fireworks in Montpelier. Whoa did that kick my butt. Staying out and awake past dark was no way an easy feat. But well worth it. Sure the fireworks were ,well, they were what they were (I don%u2019t really care for fireworks) but the lead up was amazing. On our way to the town we stopped on the side of the road at a giant old graveyard. We were so early that we decided it would be something cool to do while it got dark out. Well this graveyard was on a massive hill and when we got to the top, we had the most amazing view of the valley and where the fireworks were going to go off so, duh, we stayed and walked around. And then it happened. Dusk came, it started to get dark, and all of a sudden. Fireflies. Everywhere. It was magical. And then the fireworks went off and we couldn%u2019t get home fast enough. I was dead ass tired.
The next day, I was exhausted, but oh well. The littles came over for the afternoon and we played the day away in the sprinkler and ran around with water guns. Barb and Paul came over too, ate grilled veggies dogs, mac and cheese, chopped cabbage, and popsicles. We lit the sparklers, walked the block, and then off they all went to do more fire stuff and I went to bed super early. I was still trying to recover from being out so late the night before.
The rest of the week was doing little things around the house, going to the studio, running errands. Being hot.
Then yesterday. A very productive day even with the nasty humid. Grocery shopping, the dump, rainbows, cleaning. I even did a good hour of weeding in the garden even though I was sweating through my soul. Gosh it really was gross. And then I went for a little walk and got caught in a crazy downpour of rain. And I wasn%u2019t made about it. Not one bit.
And it is Sunday again. Today is unplanned for the most part. I%u2019ll bike to gym and thats all I got so far. After yesterday, doing anything outside will be fantastic so I am hoping that the mr wants to go for a hike or something. I know he said there was work he needed to do but come on, mid 70%u2019s and no humidity%u2026. I%u2019ll be dragging his ass somewhere.
Internet links from me to you.
-Living in Vermont, we are so lucky to not have to deal with earth quakes. The science behind California%u2019s two big earthquakes
-It%u2019s just about tomato season so you should know this. How to Store Tomatoes So They Stay Plump & Fresh for a Very Long%u00a0Time. And know this too.How to Pick the Right Type of Lettuce for Way Better%u00a0Salads
–After 6-Year Battle, Florida Couple Wins The Right To Plant Veggies In Front Yard. How crazy is it that they were not allowed to plant veggies in THEIR YARD because they were unsightly%u2026 What the F!@K is wrong with people? !
–The Science Of Smiles, Real And Fake. Don%u2019t tell me to smile. I will bite you.
-I think I need a pool. This COWBOY POOL DIY.
–This Skinny House That%u2019s Just 10 Feet Wide Is for Sale in New York. I kinda really want it.
-I alway love the backs of embroidery. These rugs are awesome. Raw-Edges Flips Traditional Embroidery on Its Head with Backstitch Rugs
–The Joy of Not Wearing a Bra. First thing I do when I come home (sometimes even in the car on the way home) is to take my bra OFF! But really, I avoid bra wearing at all cost.
-I want these boots. Grund%u00e9ns Deck-Boss Ankle Boots
-I really wanted to be a water witch when I was growing up. Still kind of do. The Magic of Dowsing Keeps Holding On
Pictures from the week.
I%u2019ll try to be good and not bitch too much about how hot I am. And really, it hasn%u2019t actually been that bad. At least I am not in France. If I were in France, I would be losing my shit. I think they reached 113 degrees a day ago. So I am puting things in perspective here. I am not that hot.
Yup. Another week come and gone and now were are more then half way through the year. It%u2019s hard to believe but time stops for no one. So what did you do with you week? For us, it was the basic. Work stuff, family stuff, trying to get out into the world as much as possible. The mr and I snuck (well the fence had yet to go up) into the new pool construction zone around the corner from us to take pictures and see what all the construction commotion has been about all week. As of now, it a giant ass hole in the ground. We found the mr a new desk for free on craigslist and It weighted a thousand pounds and almost killed me moving it up the stairs. I picked up farm share and picked me some fresh flowers. We went to a river for fishing/reading time. And there were a few bike rides, lots of walks, amazing sunsets, rainy days, hot nights. Trying our darnest to live up the summer as much as possible. Now we just need to get our shit together and get our camping and kayaking game going. It might be a slow start to the season but we will get there. Maybe next week and every weekend after that.
Dad Jeff came to town for a couple days and so Friday, right after I came home from work, I had the family over for family dinner. I made 8 pizzas (all the dough the night before) and ice cream cones with sprinkles. A hit for sure. We got lucky because it wasn’t raining so we all got to play around outside. The littles in the sprinkler or playing soccer with the mr. Dad sitting on the stairs talking about rare coins and trying to give away the most creepy porcelain dolls that were my grandmothers and should really be buried as to not come alive and murder people. And there was no arguing or fighting, just shinny happy people holding hands. HA. But really, it was good. It%u2019s always so nice to get everyone together. We are all a bunch of lunatics so we really understand each other.
And then yesterday I spend half the day cleaning up all those happy feeling. The sprinkles from the ice cream made there way into every crack and crevice in the house which makes no sense because everyone ate ice cream outside. Those littles. They are good at tracking the shit into the house.
Today is up I the air. I am going to bike into town to the gym and library and the maybe stop at the coop for some spices, but after that I am probably going to be hanging around the house. The mr has a big delivery coming sometime today and needs to be available at a moments notice so we can%u2019t really take off. Just as well. I have a bunch of projects that I should be wrapping up. Today might just be that day. Or I might just sit around a read all day. I am good with either.
Interent from the internet that might be of some interest to you.
–Why We Remember Stonewall. Because it was important and significant in helping launch a civil rights movement.
-I prefer to carry a spork, but you get the picture. Why carrying your own fork and spoon helps solve the plastic crisis
–8 Types of Indoor Fruit Trees You Can Grow in Your Living%u00a0Room. I have a lemon tree. I want the rest of them.
-Well done San Francisco, well done. San Francisco Bans Sales Of E-Cigarettes
-Now if I just had 2k just kicking around%u2026..Garden Dome Igloo.
–These Prefab Treehouses Were Inspired By Cartoons. And they are so cool.
-Because you have been wondering all along too. How to solve the water puzzle from Die Hard 3
–The Infrastructure of Joy. Will building delight into cities make them more cloying or more fun? Definitely for sure. I know I am more joyful being anywhere that is more bright and happy. Isn%u2019t everyone?
-Imagine living without time, or without the confines of knowing the time. Whoa. Meet The Residents Of A Norwegian Island Who Want To Kill Time %u2014 Literally
–The Best Potatoes Are Boiled in Exxxtremely Salty Water. Not going to disagree.
And pictures from the week.
It%u2019s official. Summertime is here. Take it all in and enjoy it because that%u2019s what we need to do. Before it is gone again.
The week has been good. Besides the usual work and stuff, we have spent a lot of time with our people and trying to do things outside everyday. There was an afternoon of Barb and Coco where we went to the beach to find drift wood and throw rocks. Megan and So came over for lunch and teeth wiggling (her two from teeth a loose!! (Sophias, not Megans)) another afternoon. We stopped over to Erins to see the painting mess and Coco drawings all over the walls. The mr and I went for a little hike that took us out under bridges to a graffiti wonderland. That was unexpected and very cool.
Then there is thing that has been on my mind for the past few days. One night in the middle of the week, the mr and I both woke up to a terrifying screaming noice. Like something was dying, killing something, or some creature was about to suck out my soul. It definitely was not anything human. It freaked me out so much that I didn’t want to get out of bed to look out the window because I thought whatever was making the noice would see me awake and come kill me or some shit. So I laid in bed until it stopped then was worried it stopped because I didn%u2019t know where it went%u2026. CREEPY AS FUCK! And it happened again Friday night. So I am officially scared that the hell moth in opening up in my back yard. Or it could be a fox. Not sure. I%u2019ll let you know either way. But until I figure it out, I am going to freshen up my Buffy the Vampire Slayer knowledge. Just in case.
Other then that, the rest of the week was a success. The mr finished off the beautiful cedar outdoor table, I picked up farm share and cleaned out my home studio. At the BCA Studio, the kids summer camps started so working there was a bit different. Instead of loading kilns, I was doing clay things with kids. Just got to say, after working all Friday with others peoples kids, hanging out with just Judah that night was pretty much the best. Being around other peoples (not in my family) kids really makes me realize just how cool my littles are. I mean, how cool is it that while I was at work, Judah helped the mr fix a roof? All for a slushy and my home made pizza and just wanted to hang out and draw? That%u2019s a cool kid.
Yesteraday was just a gem. I woke up, did a few things before the sun even came up then sat on the front porch, drank my coffee and read. I even was able to go to the grocery store and cleaned out the pantry before Judah even woke up. (He ended up sleeping over Friday.). I then made pancakes for the boys, harvested greens, and played with the sprinkler. We then picked up Coco to go walk by the waterfront, throw rocks, and of course go down the slide a million times. All this before lunch. After we dropped the little back off, we came home and just hung out. Went for a bike ride, the mr secured the tree from the blowing winds and worked on the treehouse. I cleaned and puttered. The only crappy part was while I was putting away dishes I stabbed a fork under my finger nail. The prong went in deep and it bled like crazy. AGH. I would have rather cut my finger off. And now I have a swollen, still bleeding sometimes, very painful finger that has my heartbeat throbbing in it. But the rest of the day, and evening, besides the pain, was relaxing and lovely.
Today is suppose to be another wonderful day and we are hoping to enjoy it as much as the day will let us. I am going bike to the gym then come home and hop into car with the mr and drive away for the day. Where we are going, not exactly sure. Just out of town, into some of the world. Windows down, wind in my hair, tunes on the radio, coffee in my cup, and a lovely love by my side. Things are good.
Interesting internet. Take a look.
–How to lucid dream, and why you’d want to. I think I really started to think about controlling my dreams I might freak out go crazy.
–How important is seasonal eating? It is important to me for so many reasons. Biggest reason, I try to grow as much as I eat and the seasons depict that. Not a lot of fresh tomatoes coming Vermont in the winter.
-The terrifying screaming might be this? Red Fox Sounds.
–Whatever Happened to #Vanlife? Well, Things Are Changing. Van life is not just for the surfer dudes anymore.
–No Matter the Hack, Some Kitchen Tasks Will Always Be a Pain in the Ass. HERE HERE!! But here is a hack for garlic%u2026.just eat the freaking skin. No peeling. HA
-These are some kickass vinyl floors.
-Why wouldn%u2019t pants like good tunes. Good vibrations. It just makes sense. Music For Plants Is Real (Even If The Science Isn’t)
–What’s the Difference Between Sparkling Water and Seltzer? I needed to double check.
-Give me a good, healthy life, over a really long life. Human Lives Might Be Long Enough Already
Pictures from the week.
Besides the usual hubbub of life around here, a few things really stick out to me from last week. First off, at the beginning of the week we FINALLY BOUGHT A VAN!!! It was amazing. A big white astro van. Original big boat like seats. The three door trunk that was everything. Ashrtays in the back seat (yes they did) . Its was perfect. Perfect for work, for travel, perfect for life. But notice I say %u201cit was%u201d. Well guess what? We also RETURNED A VAN!!!! Yup. We bought it, brought it home, and as soon as we got home, the brakes went out. Oh, ok we thought. Let%u2019s bring it to our mechanic and see what he says. Turns out the mechanic that we bought it from was a little shady and sold us a lemon. Not only were the bakes rotten, but there was a bunch of other hidden issues. So yeah. no more van. We were, and still are a bit crushed, but it could have been worse right? We could have been flying down the interstate when the brakes gave out and that would have been much much worse.
Enough about the van. A good thing this week is Erin and I went and got bikes for the littles. It was awesome. They were so excited and cute and it was just so good. We walked into the bike shop, picked out bikes, test rode bikes, and bought bikes, all within an hour. Yeah I might have told them they suck because they were able to just go get a bike and I have been bike shopping for over a month and have spent hours at the bike shop, but whatever. And so we brought the bike back to my house, I made dinner, and they biked around the neighborhood. At first Judah was having really hard time because he had never ridden a grip brake, shifting bike, but after a little lesson from the mr, the kid was off. Only stopped to tell us that his nuts hurt. (Good to know kid).
And last but but not least, maybe the worst part of life at the moment. The MOTHERFUCKING MOSQUITOS. Those fuckers be feasting on me like what. It%u2019s nasty disgusting, and all sorts of terrible. All of a sudden there are millions and billions and you can barely even walk out of the house before they start to swarm. I have received no less then one thousand bites this week, and that is me trying not to get bitten. (Yes I am exaggerating, but seriously.) I don%u2019t even know what to do anymore. It is so bad that when you walk from the house to the car you are probably going to get bitten in the face at least once if not a bunch of times. It is all sorts of wrong and I just can%u2019t even. I lay awake at night trying not to itch off all my skin because of all the bites. And they are not normal mosquitos bites, these bits itch and almost hurt for days. Gardening.. please. I am out there in all my socks, pants, jackets, and hoods. Still they attack my face and hands. Hopefully this is the worst of it and any day now all the bats will come and eat them aaaaaalllllll!!!!!I(I might start importing bats to my house) That or I am going to turn myself into an electric bug zapper. How? Not sure yet. I%u2019ll let you know if I figure it out.
Anyway. That is mostly the gist of the week. Some downs, some ups, but all and all not horrible. The weather alone folks. Let talk about that for a minute. How freaking fantastic has it been? I am loving it. Little sun here and there, Some rain showers, a few thunderstorms. Not cold, not hot. Pretty much perfect in my eyes. And the world. So much pretty! The trees. I mean, can you not say spring foliage might be even better then fall? The trees are just so vibrant in greens, whites and purples. It is good. We are good.
Now for today. I am leaving the house much too early to go read and drink coffee in the car, waiting for the gym to open. Why you may ask would I do that. Well if I want to go to the gym, I need to get inside the perimeter of the Vermont City Marathon. The course starts right around there so the roads will be blocked off with thousands of people running for a few hours this morning. Sure I could skip gym and run around here, but I would rather not have to run in full body armor. (DAMN the MOSQUITOES AAAGHHHH!!!!) And really, I don%u2019t mind. I can even sit on the steps at the gym that overlook the lake. It actually will be kind of nice. After that, I%u2019ll come home, grab the mr, and we will head up to Belvidere for some family time. Cousins are in the state so we, and the other sisters, are going up for lunch. Let%u2019s just hope the mosquitoes are not as bad up there. I can%u2019t take it.
Interent for the taking.
-I have always considered the use by date a suggestion. I think the simple wording change will make a big difference. To Reduce Food Waste, FDA Urges ‘Best If Used By’ Date Labels. And really, who says the best isn%u2019t yet to come? HA
-Erin has the right idea, to buy THESE in bulk. I am seriously considering getting at least one set. I can%u2019t take the MOTHERF$%#ERS anymore!
-This feels heavy. Finding purpose is a somewhat fluid concept, don%u2019t you think? Either way, this makes a lot of sense. What’s Your Purpose? Finding A Sense Of Meaning In Life Is Linked To Health
-My dad sent me this link. It%u2019s a little video of his life goal, to be a extreme mountain bike nanny. (my dad is a weirdo.)
–GLAMOUR CAMPER SPF 50+ ALL NATURAL SUNSCREEN WITH ALL NATURAL BUG DETERRENT & GLITTER. And Glitter. Need I say more?
-I love old charts and pictures from textbooks. These are particularly fantastic. Cross-Sections of Geological Formations and Views of the Cosmos Bring the World to Life in 19th Century Educational Charts
–What Is A Moonbow?%u00a0 And now on my life bucket list of things I need to see.
–This Study Shows That Having Flowers and Plants Can Ease Pain and Anxiety. Truth. Flowers and plants are everything.
-Firefly magic. How these mysterious fireflies synchronize their dazzling light shows
Pictures from the week
This week has definitely gone by really slow except that it has flown by super fast, you know what I mean? It%u2019s probably because of all the up and down weather and my overall crazy brain that is pulling me all over the place New seasons do that to me, make me crazy.
The week started off with Easter. We went to my moms (half the family didn%u2019t show up (butthole reasons), did some lunch, played outside, and that was that. Then I came home to continue yarding (yarding is a new word I invented that means to spend time in the yard doing yard stuff)
The rest of the week went. We worked, the mr finished putting the floor down in the porch (I forgot to take a picture) He moved the camper and created a new workshop, applied large stickers to doors, made me 6 more raised beds (4 are TRIANGLES!!!). He has been doing all sorts of stuff. Me, I have been spending as much time outside I as I can, in between the piles of papers that I am trying to deal with, working at the studio, throwing pots, thinking about fixing my bike, and all around trying not run through a wall. I am in that head space where everything needs to be done and I am trying to do everything. All at once. Thats my spring brain. All of a sudden and BAM, my brain is awake, the world is awake, and there is a ton of shit to do.
On one of the nicer days (it has been a little chilly and rainy all week) we spent a few hours with Megan her littles and I grabbed the other littles. We took them outside, into the world, away from screen for a little jaunt in the woods, some time on the playground, and a bagel sandwich lunch. Fresh air, stick collecting, and see sawing was the highlight of the afternoon and a highlight of the week. I mean, gown ass people and little littles on the see saw, well you will see. Haha.
Saturday morning, 8 am, grocery store. If you need to grocery shop, this is the time. Yesterday I got to the store and no one else was there except all the stockers who had nicely stocked everything that I was looking for. I got to it before all the other people did and was rewarded with the best cabbages and apples! After that I went home, the mr took off to work with his work guy and I ended up staying home for the morning, cleaning house, doing laundry, and trying to organize the unorganizable. After that the mr came home we went and hung out with the littles for a few and got texted $5 each of store credit to the hardware store which in turn turned into a bunch of new seeds. Yay free seeds!
Today the mr and I were planning on hitting up the Kingdom to watch some jumping trout, but with the weather being as it is (raining and cloudy) we are going to hold off on that and just find a nice little, not too flooded stream for the mr to fish in and for me to sit nearby and spend some time reading. With all the coffee my can cup and bring. It%u2019s gonna be great.
Some stuff you might find of interest from the internet.
–Our Grocery Stores, Ourselves. Loyalties to the grocery store are deep. I know I have mine, kind of. (I shop around and I am more loyal to the farm then any grocery store.) But I do think there is a definite quality difference to stores, at least around here. You get to know which store sells local. Which stores have the crappy greens, or which store charge and extra $2 for the same exact thing you can get at a different store for that much cheaper. Straight to the farm . Always best.
-Always water, mostly because it is free and I hate having to have stock or broth on hand. WHEN WATER CAN BE THE KEY TO MORE FLAVORFUL SOUPS
I am pretty into these murals Maybe i%u2019ll try not do something like on one of my walls. Interior Murals by Camille Javal
-I could, and should, and dang it I am going to make something like this A frame. Simple and sweet. Now were to put it?
-Just in case you don%u2019t know. What%u2019s the Difference Between Jam and Jelly?
–Wait, I Should Clean My Fridge *How*%u00a0Often?. Yes folks. And I tell you, clean the stove every time! It%u2019s one of the best habits I have ever created.
-I wish I could embroider like this. Pretty freaking awesome. Graceful Figures and Shimmering Peacocks Embroidered on Tulle
–Can Nothing Change Your Life? Essence of flower is a thing and it might just be what you need in your life.
-Trees are magical. Trees by starlight%u2026 Whoa. See the world%u2019s oldest trees by starlight.
–I am very excited to find this pattern for this FRENCH MARKET BAG. Now I just need to learn how to crochet%u2026%u2026%u2026Yeah.
And pictures from the week.
I think we did it, we made it through the winter. That little bit of snow the other night, well that was it. Until next winter!!!!! Now lets all just do all the spring things and enjoy the niceness of moderate temperatures and the sight of green things growing. We are in it and it is wonderous.
The past week flew by so fast. A lot of being everywhere at once and alll over. Now that spring has sprung there has been much to do. Besides working and the usual (the little apartment projects are just piling up) we have looked at not 1, but 3 different cars. The one van on Sunday was a bust (the guy was crazy and the car was dead. Craigslist. A definite miss there), and two others. Those were not good either (but not nearly as bad) so the hunt continues, as does the back and forth car sharing situation. We are definitely getting to our limit with sharing one small car but I have faith we will find something soon. Our poor car. It%u2019s getting trashed.
In between the work and life stuff we got to spend the most magical raining morning harvested wood from an apple orchard for future spoon projects. That might have been the highlight of the week, especially because I have now realized that I am suppose to live and work on apple orchard. I think it is my calling so I got to get on that. Other fun things included an evening of egg dying with Qui, Adrianna, and the littles which was fun and gross and I actually hate the whole real eggs and dying them thing, but the mr was all about it so%u2026.We also got to spend (babysit) an afternoon with So where she basically spent the entire time to beating on the mr and feeding us unicorn jellybean soup. Good times with that one.
And then there were taxes. I spent ever single free minute attempting to finish the stupid taxes and learn all about tax laws and try to be component. It got to the point where I was almost in tears%u2026 then I gave up. As of Friday morning, I now have until October to get those stupid things done. And I think we are just going to find a new accountant because really, I don%u2019t want to spend all my time learning tax law. Not my thing. I mean, when it takes me twenty minutes to figure out that the form won%u2019t summit because I am entering the wrong date (2018, not 2019), well, I should just leave it to a professional.
Saturday was the gem. Woke up to temperatures in the mid 50%u2019s, went for a nice walk, spent the morning throwing pots, and did some light cleaning. For the afternoon we met up with all the sisters, the littles, Mom and had lunch. The boys went away (they hung out at the park being dangerous) while us ladies went to the theater%u2026..Mamma Mia. Us girls bought the tickets for Mom%u2019s birthday present a few weeks ago. Not exactly my thing, but I was game.. And it was better then I was expecting, although I was%u2019t sure what I was expecting. I don%u2019t think I would have gone if not for many other circumstances, but it was fun and my mom had a great time. My biggest complaint was it was really loud and there were a ton of people. Oh, and that I have a Dancing Queen ear worm. But other then that, not bad.. After the show, the mr picked me up, we rushed to get some more things done before going home to finish cleaning. That might not sound fantastic but it was still light out, the world was still warm, the doors and windows were open and it just felt so good. Oh yes. Spring is finally here!
Today is going to be good. I plan on spending most of it out in the yard doing yard work. I am going to lather on the sunscreen, grab the tunes, the rake, hoe, and the shovel and get to it. Then hopefully I%u2019l be able to throw some seeds into the ground which I am already getting concerned about. The squirrels have come out full force and are looking hungry!.
Let the garden battles begin!
Some stuff I read on the internet from the week.
Again, I filed an extension. Why do they have to be so freaking hard? Another thing they have right in the Netherlands. Filing Your Taxes Is an Expensive Time Sink. That%u2019s Not an Accident.
-So my kind of home. This 650-Square-Foot Family Home in Ohio Is Off-Grid %u2018Country Minimalism%u2019
–Day hikers are the most vulnerable in survival situations. Here’s why. We have lost the trail before and it was actually kind of scary. Luckly we were on a small mountain and we knew there was a road at the bottom. We just kept going down until we hit the road. Ever since I stay very away of the trail.
-Genius. Pure genius And they are Vermont students too!. SheFly: Answer Nature’s Call
–How to Get Out of Your Own Head. I spend a lot of time in my head but that is where I feel the least crazy.. Or is that crazy. People make me crazy. They can%u2019t get me in my head.
-I exclusively clean with vinegar. Even my hardwood floors. Vinegar Is the Only Floor Cleaner You Need (Even for Carpet!)
–Oprah Bought an Avocado Orchard Because Grocery Store Avocados Were Too Expensive. The lady has got her priorities straight. For real, I would buy an avocado orchard too if I was Oprah rich too.
–Are Plastic Bag Bans Garbage? We (humans) just need to stop making more and reuse all the junk we already have. Reusable bags made out of all the old clothing and shit has no purpose anymore.
–“Do Skunks Like Their Own Smell?” And Other Stumpers! I always thought that skunks deals with their stink kind of like a person deals with their own farts%u2026 They just deal. HA
I%u2019ll try to be good and not bitch too much about how hot I am. And really, it hasn%u2019t actually been that bad. At least I am not in France. If I were in France, I would be losing my shit. I think they reached 113 degrees a day ago. So I am puting things in perspective here. I am not that hot.
Yup. Another week come and gone and now were are more then half way through the year. It%u2019s hard to believe but time stops for no one. So what did you do with you week? For us, it was the basic. Work stuff, family stuff, trying to get out into the world as much as possible. The mr and I snuck (well the fence had yet to go up) into the new pool construction zone around the corner from us to take pictures and see what all the construction commotion has been about all week. As of now, it a giant ass hole in the ground. We found the mr a new desk for free on craigslist and It weighted a thousand pounds and almost killed me moving it up the stairs. I picked up farm share and picked me some fresh flowers. We went to a river for fishing/reading time. And there were a few bike rides, lots of walks, amazing sunsets, rainy days, hot nights. Trying our darnest to live up the summer as much as possible. Now we just need to get our shit together and get our camping and kayaking game going. It might be a slow start to the season but we will get there. Maybe next week and every weekend after that.
Dad Jeff came to town for a couple days and so Friday, right after I came home from work, I had the family over for family dinner. I made 8 pizzas (all the dough the night before) and ice cream cones with sprinkles. A hit for sure. We got lucky because it wasn’t raining so we all got to play around outside. The littles in the sprinkler or playing soccer with the mr. Dad sitting on the stairs talking about rare coins and trying to give away the most creepy porcelain dolls that were my grandmothers and should really be buried as to not come alive and murder people. And there was no arguing or fighting, just shinny happy people holding hands. HA. But really, it was good. It%u2019s always so nice to get everyone together. We are all a bunch of lunatics so we really understand each other.
And then yesterday I spend half the day cleaning up all those happy feeling. The sprinkles from the ice cream made there way into every crack and crevice in the house which makes no sense because everyone ate ice cream outside. Those littles. They are good at tracking the shit into the house.
Today is up I the air. I am going to bike into town to the gym and library and the maybe stop at the coop for some spices, but after that I am probably going to be hanging around the house. The mr has a big delivery coming sometime today and needs to be available at a moments notice so we can%u2019t really take off. Just as well. I have a bunch of projects that I should be wrapping up. Today might just be that day. Or I might just sit around a read all day. I am good with either.
Interent from the internet that might be of some interest to you.
–Why We Remember Stonewall. Because it was important and significant in helping launch a civil rights movement.
-I prefer to carry a spork, but you get the picture. Why carrying your own fork and spoon helps solve the plastic crisis
–8 Types of Indoor Fruit Trees You Can Grow in Your Living%u00a0Room. I have a lemon tree. I want the rest of them.
-Well done San Francisco, well done. San Francisco Bans Sales Of E-Cigarettes
-Now if I just had 2k just kicking around%u2026..Garden Dome Igloo.
–These Prefab Treehouses Were Inspired By Cartoons. And they are so cool.
-Because you have been wondering all along too. How to solve the water puzzle from Die Hard 3
–The Infrastructure of Joy. Will building delight into cities make them more cloying or more fun? Definitely for sure. I know I am more joyful being anywhere that is more bright and happy. Isn%u2019t everyone?
-Imagine living without time, or without the confines of knowing the time. Whoa. Meet The Residents Of A Norwegian Island Who Want To Kill Time %u2014 Literally
–The Best Potatoes Are Boiled in Exxxtremely Salty Water. Not going to disagree.
I think we did it, we made it through the winter. That little bit of snow the other night, well that was it. Until next winter!!!!! Now lets all just do all the spring things and enjoy the niceness of moderate temperatures and the sight of green things growing. We are in it and it is wonderous.
The past week flew by so fast. A lot of being everywhere at once and alll over. Now that spring has sprung there has been much to do. Besides working and the usual (the little apartment projects are just piling up) we have looked at not 1, but 3 different cars. The one van on Sunday was a bust (the guy was crazy and the car was dead. Craigslist. A definite miss there), and two others. Those were not good either (but not nearly as bad) so the hunt continues, as does the back and forth car sharing situation. We are definitely getting to our limit with sharing one small car but I have faith we will find something soon. Our poor car. It’s getting trashed.
In between the work and life stuff we got to spend the most magical raining morning harvested wood from an apple orchard for future spoon projects. That might have been the highlight of the week, especially because I have now realized that I am suppose to live and work on apple orchard. I think it is my calling so I got to get on that. Other fun things included an evening of egg dying with Qui, Adrianna, and the littles which was fun and gross and I actually hate the whole real eggs and dying them thing, but the mr was all about it so….We also got to spend (babysit) an afternoon with So where she basically spent the entire time to beating on the mr and feeding us unicorn jellybean soup. Good times with that one.
And then there were taxes. I spent ever single free minute attempting to finish the stupid taxes and learn all about tax laws and try to be component. It got to the point where I was almost in tears… then I gave up. As of Friday morning, I now have until October to get those stupid things done. And I think we are just going to find a new accountant because really, I don’t want to spend all my time learning tax law. Not my thing. I mean, when it takes me twenty minutes to figure out that the form won’t summit because I am entering the wrong date (2018, not 2019), well, I should just leave it to a professional.
Saturday was the gem. Woke up to temperatures in the mid 50’s, went for a nice walk, spent the morning throwing pots, and did some light cleaning. For the afternoon we met up with all the sisters, the littles, Mom and had lunch. The boys went away (they hung out at the park being dangerous) while us ladies went to the theater…..Mamma Mia. Us girls bought the tickets for Mom’s birthday present a few weeks ago. Not exactly my thing, but I was game.. And it was better then I was expecting, although I was’t sure what I was expecting. I don’t think I would have gone if not for many other circumstances, but it was fun and my mom had a great time. My biggest complaint was it was really loud and there were a ton of people. Oh, and that I have a Dancing Queen ear worm. But other then that, not bad.. After the show, the mr picked me up, we rushed to get some more things done before going home to finish cleaning. That might not sound fantastic but it was still light out, the world was still warm, the doors and windows were open and it just felt so good. Oh yes. Spring is finally here!
Today is going to be good. I plan on spending most of it out in the yard doing yard work. I am going to lather on the sunscreen, grab the tunes, the rake, hoe, and the shovel and get to it. Then hopefully I’l be able to throw some seeds into the ground which I am already getting concerned about. The squirrels have come out full force and are looking hungry!.
Let the garden battles begin!
Some stuff I read on the internet from the week.
Again, I filed an extension. Why do they have to be so freaking hard? Another thing they have right in the Netherlands. Filing Your Taxes Is an Expensive Time Sink. That’s Not an Accident.
-So my kind of home. This 650-Square-Foot Family Home in Ohio Is Off-Grid ‘Country Minimalism’
–Day hikers are the most vulnerable in survival situations. Here’s why. We have lost the trail before and it was actually kind of scary. Luckly we were on a small mountain and we knew there was a road at the bottom. We just kept going down until we hit the road. Ever since I stay very away of the trail.
-Genius. Pure genius And they are Vermont students too!. SheFly: Answer Nature’s Call
–How to Get Out of Your Own Head. I spend a lot of time in my head but that is where I feel the least crazy.. Or is that crazy. People make me crazy. They can’t get me in my head.
-I exclusively clean with vinegar. Even my hardwood floors. Vinegar Is the Only Floor Cleaner You Need (Even for Carpet!)
–Oprah Bought an Avocado Orchard Because Grocery Store Avocados Were Too Expensive. The lady has got her priorities straight. For real, I would buy an avocado orchard too if I was Oprah rich too.
–Are Plastic Bag Bans Garbage? We (humans) just need to stop making more and reuse all the junk we already have. Reusable bags made out of all the old clothing and shit has no purpose anymore.
–“Do Skunks Like Their Own Smell?” And Other Stumpers! I always thought that skunks deals with their stink kind of like a person deals with their own farts… They just deal. HA
We went from -30 degrees to 50 above in 2 day. What the F! Yesterday the day rained but got nice and warm, then the temperature fell hardl and last light the world started to get so slick and slippery. Going out was getting a little scary because of the ice. I went to bed a little afraid that I have to leave the house today for fear of slipping and smacking my face. It’s a real fear and I know its bound to happen. I can already picture it, me walking along, maybe whistling a little tune, and smack, just like a cartoon character slipping on a banana peel.%u00a0 I will go down fast and hard. I am not a graceful person.
But the day is going to happen and I have things to do that involve leaving he house.. I have the arnica and frozen peas ready just in case, but I might just leave on my hands and knees.
Enough about my irrational (but totally rational) fear. Lets talk about food. I am already thinking ahead to dinner. Or more like I am thinking behind to last nights dinner of oatmeal. A grain typically used as a breakfast food, cooked until light and fluffy, topped with sugars and fruits and sweet things.%u00a0 Oatmeal for breakfast is always welcomed and always will be. But today my friends I am going to blow your mind and tell you to eat your oatmeal at dinner time,with salt and pepper and lots of yummy savory beans and veggies.%u00a0
Pow!
But doesn’t make complete sense? Oats are so good, hearty, heart healthy, and pretty freaking cheap. Easy to cook, goes with everything. It’s almost like rice, but I find is even more filling and contains more protein. Have no idea what to do for dinner. Grab the oats and a can of beans! Had a long day at work and just want something quick and easy and comforting. Oats with a bunch of veggies!%u00a0 You can pretty much do anything with a bowl of oatmeal and it will be good. (tomato sauce, crispy tofu, a fried egg, cheese if you like.. you get the idea) It seems weird to me now that people all over are not eating oatmeal for dinner all the time…. yet. I have a strong feeling that everyone is going to be eating savory oatmeal for dinner very soon, so I am giving you the heads up so you can jump on this wagon now!
The stuff. A big cup of old fashion oats, a few mushroom, an onion, some cooked chickpeas, a clove or two of garlic and a mound of chopped greens. And we are going to also need a little olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper and, if you have any, a small handful of cashews (or any other nut).
Begin by dicing up the onion and the mushrooms nice thing ans tossing them into a skillet with a touch of olive oil. Stick the skillet on the stove on medium heat and begin to cook.
When the veggies are on the stove, bring 2 cups of water to a boil, sprinkle it with salt, then dump in your oats. Give the oats a quick stir, then tun the heat down to medium and place a lid on the pot and leave it alone.
Once the veggies have cooked down a bit, mince up the garlic and toss into pan, along with the chickpeas (drain any liquid). Add a good glug glug of balsamic vinegar and continue to cook on medium heat until everything is nice and cooked and golden brown and tasty.
And lastly, toss in the chopped up greens and stir around until wilted.
And i bet that your oatmeal is done by now, cooked until oats are soft and the water has absorbed.
And the veggie bean mixture is ready.
A big heaping scoop of oatmeal, sprinkled with salt and pepper, and topped with a hearty heap of the cooked veggies and chick peas. Adding a few chopped nuts on top and another glug of vinegar…. It’s the most perfect meal.
Happy Wednesday and watch you footing!
-C
Serves 2
1 cup old fashion oats
2 cups water
1 cup or so of cooked chickpeas
small onion
3-4 large white or cremini mushrooms
2 big handfuls of chopped greens (kale,spinach, collards, or broccoli leaf.. whatever greens you got!)
1-2 cloves garlic
balsamic vinegar
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
handful of cashews or some other nut (optional)
Start by chopping you mushrooms and onions and tossing them with splash of olive oil into a skillet. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and Begin to cook on medium heat.
Grab a heavy bottom pot ans bring the water to a boil. Once boiling, dump in the oats, add a pinch of salt, give a little stir and reduce heat to medium low. Stick a lid on pot and leave it alone for about 10 minutes.
Once the mushrooms ans onions are starting to cook down, mince up garlic and add in, along with the chickpeas (drained of liquid) and a few tablespoons of the vinegar. Continue to cook until the veggies are browned, the chick peas are hot, and everything tastes good (give it a taste) Lastly, add in the chopped greens and stir around until wilted.
And the oatmeal should be done. (it;s done when its nice and light and fluffy and that water has absorbed)
Grab a bowl, add a big scoop of the oatmeal, sprinkle with salt and pepper, top with a large amount of the veggie bean mixture and top with another glug of vinegar and some of those cashews all chopped up.
It’s official. Summertime is here. Take it all in and enjoy it because that’s what we need to do. Before it is gone again.
The week has been good. Besides the usual work and stuff, we have spent a lot of time with our people and trying to do things outside everyday. There was an afternoon of Barb and Coco where we went to the beach to find drift wood and throw rocks. Megan and So came over for lunch and teeth wiggling (her two from teeth a loose!! (Sophias, not Megans)) another afternoon. We stopped over to Erins to see the painting mess and Coco drawings all over the walls. The mr and I went for a little hike that took us out under bridges to a graffiti wonderland. That was unexpected and very cool.
Then there is thing that has been on my mind for the past few days. One night in the middle of the week, the mr and I both woke up to a terrifying screaming noice. Like something was dying, killing something, or some creature was about to suck out my soul. It definitely was not anything human. It freaked me out so much that I didn’t want to get out of bed to look out the window because I thought whatever was making the noice would see me awake and come kill me or some shit. So I laid in bed until it stopped then was worried it stopped because I didn’t know where it went…. CREEPY AS FUCK! And it happened again Friday night. So I am officially scared that the hell moth in opening up in my back yard. Or it could be a fox. Not sure. I’ll let you know either way. But until I figure it out, I am going to freshen up my Buffy the Vampire Slayer knowledge. Just in case.
Other then that, the rest of the week was a success. The mr finished off the beautiful cedar outdoor table, I picked up farm share and cleaned out my home studio. At the BCA Studio, the kids summer camps started so working there was a bit different. Instead of loading kilns, I was doing clay things with kids. Just got to say, after working all Friday with others peoples kids, hanging out with just Judah that night was pretty much the best. Being around other peoples (not in my family) kids really makes me realize just how cool my littles are. I mean, how cool is it that while I was at work, Judah helped the mr fix a roof? All for a slushy and my home made pizza and just wanted to hang out and draw? That’s a cool kid.
Yesteraday was just a gem. I woke up, did a few things before the sun even came up then sat on the front porch, drank my coffee and read. I even was able to go to the grocery store and cleaned out the pantry before Judah even woke up. (He ended up sleeping over Friday.). I then made pancakes for the boys, harvested greens, and played with the sprinkler. We then picked up Coco to go walk by the waterfront, throw rocks, and of course go down the slide a million times. All this before lunch. After we dropped the little back off, we came home and just hung out. Went for a bike ride, the mr secured the tree from the blowing winds and worked on the treehouse. I cleaned and puttered. The only crappy part was while I was putting away dishes I stabbed a fork under my finger nail. The prong went in deep and it bled like crazy. AGH. I would have rather cut my finger off. And now I have a swollen, still bleeding sometimes, very painful finger that has my heartbeat throbbing in it. But the rest of the day, and evening, besides the pain, was relaxing and lovely.
Today is suppose to be another wonderful day and we are hoping to enjoy it as much as the day will let us. I am going bike to the gym then come home and hop into car with the mr and drive away for the day. Where we are going, not exactly sure. Just out of town, into some of the world. Windows down, wind in my hair, tunes on the radio, coffee in my cup, and a lovely love by my side. Things are good.
Interesting internet. Take a look.
–How to lucid dream, and why you’d want to. I think I really started to think about controlling my dreams I might freak out go crazy.
–How important is seasonal eating? It is important to me for so many reasons. Biggest reason, I try to grow as much as I eat and the seasons depict that. Not a lot of fresh tomatoes coming Vermont in the winter.
-The terrifying screaming might be this? Red Fox Sounds.
–Whatever Happened to #Vanlife? Well, Things Are Changing. Van life is not just for the surfer dudes anymore.
–No Matter the Hack, Some Kitchen Tasks Will Always Be a Pain in the Ass. HERE HERE!! But here is a hack for garlic….just eat the freaking skin. No peeling. HA
-These are some kickass vinyl floors.
-Why wouldn’t pants like good tunes. Good vibrations. It just makes sense. Music For Plants Is Real (Even If The Science Isn’t)
–What’s the Difference Between Sparkling Water and Seltzer? I needed to double check.
-Give me a good, healthy life, over a really long life. Human Lives Might Be Long Enough Already
This week has definitely gone by really slow except that it has flown by super fast, you know what I mean? It’s probably because of all the up and down weather and my overall crazy brain that is pulling me all over the place New seasons do that to me, make me crazy.
The week started off with Easter. We went to my moms (half the family didn’t show up (butthole reasons), did some lunch, played outside, and that was that. Then I came home to continue yarding (yarding is a new word I invented that means to spend time in the yard doing yard stuff)
The rest of the week went. We worked, the mr finished putting the floor down in the porch (I forgot to take a picture) He moved the camper and created a new workshop, applied large stickers to doors, made me 6 more raised beds (4 are TRIANGLES!!!). He has been doing all sorts of stuff. Me, I have been spending as much time outside I as I can, in between the piles of papers that I am trying to deal with, working at the studio, throwing pots, thinking about fixing my bike, and all around trying not run through a wall. I am in that head space where everything needs to be done and I am trying to do everything. All at once. Thats my spring brain. All of a sudden and BAM, my brain is awake, the world is awake, and there is a ton of shit to do.
On one of the nicer days (it has been a little chilly and rainy all week) we spent a few hours with Megan her littles and I grabbed the other littles. We took them outside, into the world, away from screen for a little jaunt in the woods, some time on the playground, and a bagel sandwich lunch. Fresh air, stick collecting, and see sawing was the highlight of the afternoon and a highlight of the week. I mean, gown ass people and little littles on the see saw, well you will see. Haha.
Saturday morning, 8 am, grocery store. If you need to grocery shop, this is the time. Yesterday I got to the store and no one else was there except all the stockers who had nicely stocked everything that I was looking for. I got to it before all the other people did and was rewarded with the best cabbages and apples! After that I went home, the mr took off to work with his work guy and I ended up staying home for the morning, cleaning house, doing laundry, and trying to organize the unorganizable. After that the mr came home we went and hung out with the littles for a few and got texted $5 each of store credit to the hardware store which in turn turned into a bunch of new seeds. Yay free seeds!
Today the mr and I were planning on hitting up the Kingdom to watch some jumping trout, but with the weather being as it is (raining and cloudy) we are going to hold off on that and just find a nice little, not too flooded stream for the mr to fish in and for me to sit nearby and spend some time reading. With all the coffee my can cup and bring. It’s gonna be great.
Some stuff you might find of interest from the internet.
–Our Grocery Stores, Ourselves. Loyalties to the grocery store are deep. I know I have mine, kind of. (I shop around and I am more loyal to the farm then any grocery store.) But I do think there is a definite quality difference to stores, at least around here. You get to know which store sells local. Which stores have the crappy greens, or which store charge and extra $2 for the same exact thing you can get at a different store for that much cheaper. Straight to the farm . Always best.
-Always water, mostly because it is free and I hate having to have stock or broth on hand. WHEN WATER CAN BE THE KEY TO MORE FLAVORFUL SOUPS
I am pretty into these murals Maybe i’ll try not do something like on one of my walls. Interior Murals by Camille Javal
-I could, and should, and dang it I am going to make something like this A frame. Simple and sweet. Now were to put it?
-Just in case you don’t know. What’s the Difference Between Jam and Jelly?
–Wait, I Should Clean My Fridge *How* Often?. Yes folks. And I tell you, clean the stove every time! It’s one of the best habits I have ever created.
-I wish I could embroider like this. Pretty freaking awesome. Graceful Figures and Shimmering Peacocks Embroidered on Tulle
–Can Nothing Change Your Life? Essence of flower is a thing and it might just be what you need in your life.
-Trees are magical. Trees by starlight… Whoa. See the world’s oldest trees by starlight.
–I am very excited to find this pattern for this FRENCH MARKET BAG. Now I just need to learn how to crochet………Yeah.
These are definitely my favorite shaped cutout cookies I have ever made. I mean seriously, carrot shaped carrot cookies, what could possibly ever be better? Nothing, and that%u2019s truth for you.
Not only are they carrot shaped, they are also carrot flavored. Yup, Carrot shaped, carrot flavored, awesomeness. A little cinnamon added to the cookie for little extra boost of flavor and an orange glaze because it works and orange is good and fresh and springing. All good stuff.
You might be thinking, huh, carrot puree in a cookie, well that doesn%u2019t sound right. But it is, it is right. And you know how I know that these cookies are awesome? Well I packed them up, (2 dozen of them) and took them over to the littles house for an after school treat. When I got there, the two older ones had friends over. I asked them if they wanted a carrot which earned me that look that said %u201care you serious%u201d but them showed them the cookies. Of course the wanted a carrot so I gave them each one. They ate their cookies then proceeded to beat the shit out of the mr. Then they asked for another cookies and beat the shit out of the mr some more. This when on and on for about a 1/2 hour until all the cookies were gone and the mr was crouched in the corner with a broom trying to defend himself against 4 rulely kids who where slashing at him with light sabers and spraying him in he face with kitchen cleaner. It%u2019s because they wanted more cookies. (and yes, the littles are getting crazy). So yeah, the cookies are good. Ass kicking good.
Anyway, a cookie with some goodness mix into it, shaped into a great shape, that will make everyone smile and happy. You could make them by yourself, make them with your friends, make them with some kids, with some old people. They are the perfect cookie to leave out for the easter bunny(do you leave carrots out for the easter bunny?) or to serve up at any easter party, spring party, or any garden party you might be attending. This cookie is pretty much perfect for any and every occasion that required a cookie. Or a carrot because carrots are always welcome.
To the carrots! I mean, the cookies!
The stuff. Flour, baking soda, salt, sugar, vegan butter, carrot puree, cinnamon, an orange, some powdered sugar, and food coloring.
Into a big bowl the sugar, vegan butter, and carrot puree go.
Beat for a minute or two until completely incorporated.
Add in all the rest of the dry stuff and mix by hand until it turns to dough.
This is the dough it turned into.
Gather the dough and wrap it or place in a plastic bag and stick it Into the fridge for a few hours or overnight. The dough NEEDS to chill.
After you let the dough be, remove from fridge, liberally dust counter, and roll out dough about 1/4 inch thick.
And then it%u2019s time to cut the cookies out. I unfortunately do not have a cookie cutter so I improvised and make 2 carrot cutouts from paper and hand cut each cookie. That worked but took forever so I got crafty and used a fat Christmas tree cookie cutter then just did a little trim and pinch to make it into a cookie. (I am a genius for that). Any way works, and you can also do other shapes too, the cookies don%u2019t change taste in different shapes. (but that would be so cool if they did)
Carefully place cut out cookies onto a baking sheet, giving them a little space because they do spread a tiny bit.
And into the oven to bake they go.
Out in 10 minutes looking all carrot like.
Carrots waiting to cool so they can be glazed.
The glaze. Pretty straight forward. Just zest orange into powdered sugar and juice the orange into the sugar and mix.
Divide glaze and dye one orange and one green
And glaze away. I recommend doing it over a rack and baking sheet to minimize mess because they do drip a bit.
Now just you look at that, carrot shaped carrot sugar cookies .What a sight!
And of course, carrots come in bunches. HA
Enjoy some carrots!
-C
makes about 2 and a half dozen (depending on size)
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour plus more for dusting
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup vegan butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup carrot puree ( see note about how to make puree)
For the glaze
2 to 3 cups powdered sugar
on orange
orange and green food coloring
Note. To make carrot puree, steam a couple carrots until completely soft them blend until smooth.
Place sugar, vegan butter, and carrot puree into a big bowl. Beat with a beater until light and fluffy. Add in the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon and mix by hand until completely incorporated and mixture tunes into dough. Gather dough into a disk and wrap in plastic or place in a plastic bag and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to overnight.
Once dough has chilled enough and you are ready to go, preheat the oven to 350.
Place dough on a flour dusted counter and roll out about 1/4 inch thick. Cut out the cookies with a cutter or by hand and place on a baking sheet. Bake cookies for 10-11 minutes or until just starting to turn slightly brown around the edges. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.
Once cookies are all baked and cooling, make the glaze. Place powered sugar into a big bowl, zest in the orange then add in the juice od half the orange. Mix completely and check consistency. You want it to be slightly running but not liquid, but also not to stiff. Add more juice or more sugar to get it right. Once it is the right consistency, separate into 2 bowls. Dye one green and one orange. Now glaze you cookies. A knife or small spatula works best and yes, the glaze drips a little so do it over a baking sheet, but after about 10 minutes the glaze hardens.
And then you have carrot cookies and all is good. Now go eat a carrot cookie!
Store uneaten cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days. They can be frozen too.
What with all the holiday and family get togethers we have had over here at my house the past few week, we have had quite a few bags of chips and pretzels left over. Always almost empty%u2026 Always dumped into the compost because I mean, I am not so keen on seeing bags of little bits of chips and pretzels in the pantry that I know will never get eaten. Plus it is not like I am saving carrots or grapes or anything I would eat, it%u2019s junk food. But still. I hate the food waste. That is why I made these cookies. To not waste food. And because we had people coming over to the house for dinner and I cannot not have something for dessert. That would be just wrong. And lastly because I am pretty sure that chips and pretzel pieces only make a plain chocolate chunk cookie into an amazing sweet and salty cookie that will just blow your mind.
And I was right. I made the cookies, I feed them to the mr, the sister, friends and all the littles and they just couldn%u2019t get enough.
Current thought. I am sitting here typing and have come to the conclusion that I should start a bakery that makes cookies out of people almost empty bags of chips, like a Cheeto dust cookie, or a peanut butter Funyun cookie or chocolate chocolate chip Dorito cookie.
Yes. this is a good idea. Oh man, I am a genius.
But back to theeese cookies. Start with these. I%u2019ll let you know when I open the storefront to Garbage Cookies (that is what I’ll call the place) You can stand in line for the peanut butter Funyun cookies. I have a feeling about that flavor. Until then%u2026
To the cookies!
The stuff. The small bowl has flour, baking powder and baking soda. The big bowl has brown and white sugar. Then you need oil, almond milk, vanilla, chocolate chunks, some pretzels and some plain salted potatoes chips.
Start with the wet. Mix the oil, the milk, and the vanilla into the sugars until completely smooth
Whisk together the dry stuff.
And mix until its a cookie dough. Now here is the thing, you need to stick the dough in the fridge for a couple hours and if you mix in the chips and pretzels now, well I think that might make them extrealemy soggy, so hold off. For now, cover dough and refrigerate for 2-4 hours.
When the time comes for baking, grab the mix ins and with whatever method you chose, crush the chips and pretzels into small bits. (avoid turning into a dust, you want bits)
All salty and crumbly and ready to go
Grab the dough from fridge and dump in the stuff that needs to go in (crushed chips and pretzels and chocolate chunks).
Scoop dough into balls and place on a baking sheet.
Into the oven and out they come all golden brown and smelling like yes and mmmmmm.
Get those cookies on a wire rack to cool and to free up the baking sheet to keep baking.
Look at this proud cookie. Chips, pretzels, and chocolate chunks all on display.
Now is when you get yourself a plate, pile it up high, and eat.
Remember, sharing is caring so maybe share a cookie or two. (but like you don%u2019t HAVE to)
Stay happy this weekend.
-C
makes about 2 dozen cookies
2 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
6 tablespoons plant milk
1/2 cup crushed potato chip
1/2 cup crushed pretzels pieces
3/4 cup chocolate chunks or chips
In a large bowl, mix together the sugars, oil, milk, and vanilla until completely combined. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and soda. Dump the dry into the wet and mix until the dough comes together. Gather the dough together in the bowl and cover with plastic and stick in the fridge to rest for at least 2 hour and up to a day.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350
Right before you take the dough from fridge, get your chocolate chunks, pretzels, and chips out. If the chips and pretzels are not already in little bits, place them in a bag (just use the chip bag if you have it) and smash with a heavy object until you turn the chips and pretzels into bits. Be carful that you don%u2019t turn it all into a dust, look for small bits. Pull dough from fridge and mix the stuff in. Scoop out balls of dough and place on baking sheets. Bake cookies in oven for 11-12 minutes or until lightly browed. Remove from oven and immediately transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool.
And now you eat.
Store uneaten cookie in a airtight container for up to a week or freeze them but I doubt you will have too. The cookies went fast.
Currently it is like 50 degrees outside and raining buckets of cats and frogs and what not. I live in Vt for a few reasons, and one of them is winter, so the warm rain is just not nice. Apparently these cookies are the closest thing to snowflakes I will be seeing for a little while%u2026(sad face inserted here) But I am hoping that juuuust maybe it will turn, and all of a sudden it will be snow coming down and not rain. And that it snows and snows and snows, like a foot or 2 of it. I want so much snow that I am stuck in my house for a least a solid 24 hours (of course with the power still on and all the necessities I would need) and the only way out being by foot or sled. And you know what I would do if I was snowed in? Lounge around in my pj%u2019s all day (or at least until like 10 am), have a never emptying cup of hot coffee in hand, play around outside and make a snow fort, and definitely make cookies. Doesn’t that just sound so nice?
But I am not snowed in, and wasn%u2019t snowed in and probably will not be snowed in for the foreseeable future. But I can still, and did make cookies so there is that. Chocolate cut out snowflakes with orange glaze to be exact. A good all around chocolate cookie jazzed up with a citrus kick. Simple, elegant and perfect for all of your holiday cookie needs. Plus it is just a really pretty cookie. I just might make a few more batches and liter the front yard with them. I%u2019ll make my own freaking snow, even if it is out of cookies. Then I really wouldn%u2019t be able to leave my house due to the crazy fat squirrels attacking the lawn. That would be something. HA.
To the snowflake cookies! (They can be any shape really, but snowflakes are so nice)
The stuff. Sugar, vegan butter, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, canola oil, brewed coffee, grind chia seeds, vanilla extract, an orange, and some powdered sugar.
First, mix the ground chia seeds with the coffee for caffeinated chia eggs.
Beat the butter with the sugar to give it a good fluff, then add in the oil, vanilla, and chia eggs to the mix.
Place all the dry into a bowl and whisk together until fully incorporated.
Dump the mixed dry into the were and grab a wooden spoon. Start mixing.
Cookie dough is a-formin.
Collect the dough in some plastic and smash into a disk. Place in fridge to rest for at least a few hours, but a day is good too.
Chilled dough, flour, a cookie cutter, and a rolling pin. I think you know what to do. Just really make sure to keep the counter and rolling pin floured or else the dough will stick and that is just so annoying.
Yes this dough is a little delicate, but not in a bad way. It might tear or slightly crumble but you just smoosh it back in there and you are all set. Anyway, after rolling dough out to about 1/2 inch thick, cut cookies out with a well floured cutter.
Cookies on the baking sheet ready for the oven.
Cookies on a baking sheet right out of the oven.
Now those cookies got to cool so get them on a rack.
While cookies are cooling, fix yourself some glaze. The powdered sugar, zest of orange and juice of orange will do the trick.
A good looking glaze. Thick put drizzable consistency.
And to finish. Drizzle the cookies with glaze, dunk the tops in the glaze, or do a little of both (I say both). The glaze does harden after a few minutes so these are very much stackable cookies.
And then what you do with the finished cookies is up to you. I let the mr eat a good few, saved a few for Christmas and dropped some off to some peps. They were well received for sure.
Hope you are enjoying the weekend and are able to get in on some cookie making.
-C
makes about 3 dozen cookies
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup vegan butter
1/2 cup oil
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons ground chia seeds
6 tablespoon coffee or water (coffee brings out the chocolate flavor more)
1 orange
1 cup powdered sugar
In a large bowl, cream together the white sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add in the oil, vanilla, and coffee chia eggs. Mix until incorporated. In a separate bowl mix together the flour, cocoa. salt. and baking powder. Dump dry into wet and mix until a dough forms. Gather dough into a ball and place in plastic and flatten into a disk. Place in fridge for at least an hour or overnight.
When you are ready to bake, preheat oven to 350
Take dough from fridge and unwrap. Place on a well floured surface and roll until it is about 1/4 inch thick. The dough is delicate and a little crumbly, but don%u2019t worry to much, just squish it back together and keep rolling it out. With a floured cookie cutter, cut your shapes and gently place them on a cookie sheet. Gather remnants of dough back into a ball and re-roll out and cut more cookies until you have used up all the dough. Place cookies into oven and bake for 11-12 minutes or until the cookies have puffed up a bit and the bottoms are slightly browned. Once cookies are cooked, let cool on a wire rack.
While cookies are cooling make the glaze. Mix about a tablespoon of the zest of the orange with the powdered sugar and add in a few tablespoons of the juice of the orange until the glaze is slightly runny. Once cookies are cooled either dip the tops in the glaze or drizzle the glaze on top of cookies (or do some of both). Then eat. If you wait a little while, the glaze will harden and then you can stack them and then if you want, maybe wrap on a few in little packages to give to someone you like. Either way, place uneaten cookies in a airtight container. Should last about a week, but can you not eat them for that long?
I love making cookies. There something about having to keep a close eye on the oven, the anticipation of the perfect time to pull them from the oven. Not too early, but never to late. You have to pay close attention. A cookie is not very forgiving if left in for a minutes or two too long. Those minutes can make or break a great cookie. OS baking them is , to me anyway, like a form of meditation. You can%u2019t be distracted, thinking about things like %u201cwho came up with the name Banana Republic and then used it for a clothing store?%u201d, or looking up %u201c large metal rolling balls%u201d. No, you need to pay attention to cookies, or else your cookies might burn. But don%u2019t let that scare you, and really, you can totally think of all the random, but important, things you want while baking, just use a timer or think those thoughts while watching the oven.
These cookies are the cookies that you want to make. A cookie yes, but almost like little soft cakes, full of chocolate chips and pumpkin seeds and warm spices to elevate the pumpkiness of the pumpkin. A perfect cookie to bake when you are freezing and want nothing else then to sit in front of a warm oven, spacing out, and revealing in the smell of a fall kitchen.
Fall pro tip. Place outwear in the kitchen while baking. I had my jacket on a stool close by while the cookies were baking and even now, a few days later, it still smell like cookies.
To the cookies!
The stuff. Brown and granulated sugar, flour with salt, cinnamon, allspice ,nutmeg, and baking soda and baking powder. Pumpkin puree vanilla extract, canola oil, chocolate chips, and toasted pumpkin seeds.
Mix the sugars, oil, vanilla, and pumpkin puree together until completely incorporated.
Whisk together all the dry
Add dry to wet. Mix gently, until just incorporated.
A now you have cookie batter. But wait, can%u2019t forget the chocolate and seeds.
I like to give the chocolate chips a rough chop to make the chips a bit smaller. You can skip this step or just use small chips if you want.
Chocolate chips and toasted pumpkin seeds go into batter.
After a gentle mix, it%u2019s time bake.
Scoop the dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet (important to line or use a splat mat, or else they will stick)
Into the oven and out of the oven. Bakes to a plump golden brown perfection.
All the cookies cooling on a wire rack like all cookies should.
And then thats it.
Cookies for you and cookie to share, if you are nice like that.
Happy weekend!
-C
make 2 dozen or so cookies
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 allspice
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
3/4 cup cane sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup toasted pumpkin seeds
2/3 cup chocolate chunks or chips
Preheat oven to 350
In a large bowl, mix together the sugars, purlin puree, oil, and vanilla until completely incorporated. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and baking powder, salt, all spice, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Once whisk, dump into the bowl with the wet gas gently mix together until just incorporated. Do not over mix.
Dump your chocolate ships onto cutting board and give them a rough chop just to break some of the chips apart. (or use small chips) Add the chop chocolate and the toasted pumpkin seeds to the batter and gently fold them, just to even distribute them.
Line being sheets with either parchment or use a splat mat and scoop equal size ball of dough onto the baking sheets. Leave enough room for the cookie to rise and spread. Place baking sheets into oven and bake fir 12-14 minutes or until the cookies have risen, are golden brown, and a tester stuck into the middle of a cookie comes out clean. Remove from oven and place the cookies on a wire rack to cool.
Then you eat them.
Any not eaten cookies should be store in an air tight container and can be left out at room temperature for a day or two but should be refrigerated or frozen for longer storage. The mr likes to eat them straight out of the freezer.
The rhubarb is ready and I am ready. There will be rhubarb in everything for weeks. But what to start with? I was debating if I should go classic and make a pie, or maybe savory and make a rhubarb tomato soup (going to make that soup later), or maybe just a big batch of jam to stick on and in everything.. Then I remembered %u00a0that I had a cookie dream last fall, a dream that I had made almond rhubarb cookie. (that is the extent of my dream memory) %u00a0And who am I to ignore a cookie dream? So I starting off rhubarb season with cookies.%u00a0
These cookies are all sorts of good. They have oats, almonds, flax, and a vegetable (because we all know that rhubarb is technically a veggies right?) so right there is a good enough excuse to make them. And to eat whenever, including breakfast, because remember, all the good stuff. But don’t let that good stuff fool you. These cookies are just as good, if not better then any other cookie. Soft and chewy. So nutty, sweet but not too, and rhubarb all tart and fantastic cutting in to say hey hey hey. These are springtime, any time, cookie time cookies. Dream cookies that are now reality cookies.
Let the rhubarb begin!
The stuff. Almonds, oats and rhubarb. Brown sugar, vegan butter, a flax egg, cinnamon, baking soda, vanilla and salt.
First we need to turn the oats into flour so blend them in a food processor until that happens%u00a0
Next up are the almonds. These you want to pulse for about 2-3 minutes they become %u00a0more of an almond meal the flour. Don’t over blend or else you might end up with almond butter.%u00a0
Next up. Sugar, vegan butter, cinnamon, vanilla, ans flax egg all go into a big bowl.
Mix well until all combined and incorporated.%u00a0
Now add in the oat flour, almond meal, cinnamon, salt, and baking powder.
Stir it up and there you go.. but the rhubarb!
Remove the leave from rhubarb if you haven’t already.%u00a0They will kill you!(or make you violently ill).%u00a0Chop the rhubarb stalks into small pieces that are roughly the same size as chocolate chip. Some chunks can be a little bit bigger, but you don’t want the piece too big or else you will end up with soggy cookies.
Rhubarb goes into cookie batter Mix it all in.%u00a0
Scoop out dough onto baking sheet and give them all a good pat to flatten them down a good bit. Place them into the oven for %u00a017-22 minutes to bake. until nice deep golden brown.
Golden brown and baked all nice. Look at those rhubarb chunks.%u00a0So pretty.
Cookies out on a wire rack to cool and firm up a bit.
So now you eat yourself a cookie. Or two.
-C
makes 18-22 cookies depending on size
1 1/2 cups raw almonds
1 1/2 cups old fashion oats (gluten free if needed)
1/3 cup vegan butter room temperature
1 flax or chia egg (1 tablespoon ground seed and 3 tablespoon water)
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon cinnamon
2-3 stalks rhubarb (about 1 1/2 cups chopped)
Preheat oven to 350
Add oats to a food processor and blend until the oats turn into flour, which will take about 2 minutes. Dump the now flour into a bowl. Add almonds to the food processor and pulse for 2-3 minutes until the almonds turn into fine meal. Dump into the bowl with oats.
In a large bowl mix together the vegan butter, brown sugar, flax egg, and vanilla until fully incorporated. Add in the oat and almond flours, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda and mix until la dough forms.%u00a0
Grab rhubarb and chop into little pieces that are roughly the size of a chocolate chip. Measure out 1 1/2 cups and dump into batter. Mix until incorporated.%u00a0
Scoop out cookies onto a parchment lined baking sheet and flatten each cookie to aboutt 1/2 inch thick. Place into %u00a0preheated oven. and bake for 17-22 minutes (rotate after 12)%u00a0%u00a0or until a nice golden brown on top and bottom. (Depending on your baking sheet and stove, it could take a few minutes longer, just keep your eyes on the cookies!)%u00a0%u00a0Once bakes, place on a wire rack to cool.%u00a0These cookies are very fragile until they cool off so be careful handling them.%u00a0
Let cool and eat. And yes, these are 100% exceptable to eat as a breakfast cookie.%u00a0
Left over cookies should be stored in an airtight container at room tempature for 2-3 day, longer in the fridge, and can be frozen .
And eat yourself a cookie. Or two.
Cookie anecdote. %u00a0I placed a cookie sheet full of cookies back into a cold oven to store while I was cleaning up the kitchen. And left them there and kind of forgot about they, And then I cranked the oven on to make dinner and a few minutes later smelled something burning. OH fuck… the cookies! I pulled them out just in time to see that I had completely burnt the bottoms. SO PISSED ( I might have raged cried a little). But you know what I did? I cut all the bunt bottoms off and placed the crumbles up un-burnt bits onto a bowl. The mr came home and ate the bowl of crumble and was happy as a clam. And lucky had left out half of the cookies l on the counter so not all were lost. But lessons learned. Cookies crumbles are just as good as whole cookies and always check the oven before turning it on. There might be cookies in there!!!%u00a0
I have fond memories of young me skipping school and sitting in front of the tv with peanut butter,%u00a0a package of graham crackers, and a glass of milk to dunk the peanut butter cover crackers in,%u00a0watching myself some Martha Stewart. I also have some fond memories of the days in college I would skip class (obviously to finish a paper or something), and sit around eating graham crackers covered in peanut butter and nutella,%u00a0dipped in beer? Wait no, it was coffee.%u00a0(although….beer? Could be something there.)%u00a0%u00a0Apparently I liked to skip class and eat peanut butter graham crackers. But don’t blame the cracker for the bad behavior, blame the eater. And I didn’t do it all the time, only once in a while. (A girl needed to watch her some Martha or write a 20 page paper.)%u00a0
We had a BBQ this week and for some reason I though people want to eat s’mores at a BBQ. (I guess I got that confused with camping.) %u00a0I figured even though the days of skipping life and eating graham crackers has passed me by, that I needed to make the graham crackers for others to enjoy. And then I wondered why the heck no one ever makes graham crackers. They are by far the underrated crispy cookie (lets just call it what it is ) of the snack world.%u00a0%u00a0I think I might make it my new thing. I’ll make graham crackers for ever cookie swap situation, every event that requires a dessert, every time a snack is need,%u00a0until people realize what they are missing. I’ll bring the graham cracker into all it’s glory.%u00a0
These graham crackers were raved over by people who like graham crackers and were absolutely perfect for s’mores.%u00a0%u00a0A few of the littles that don’t like graham crackers did not care for them, but I guess you can’t make everyone happy. Tthey just wanted to eat the marshmallows.)%u00a0They are crispy and crackery, tiny bit smokey and sweet but not to sweet, and perfect for all your graham cracker needs.
The stuff. In one bowl there is graham flour, all purpose flour, baking soda and salt. The other bowl has brown sugar, honey and molasses. Also going to need vegan butter, vanilla, and a little bit of plant milk.%u00a0
The big bowl of sweet stuff get beaten together with the butter and vanilla until smooth, then the dry mixture and milk go in an beaten until just combined.%u00a0
. This is what graham cracker dough looks like.%u00a0Course %u00a0and chunky,%u00a0but done. Don’t beat it anymore, just use your hands to gather it tighter.%u00a0
Gather the dough into a ball then wrap %u00a0in plastic (or stick in a plastic bag)and smoosh flat and rectangular. Place in the fridge for at least 2 hours, if not overnight. IT needs the time firm up.%u00a0
After the dough has firmed up, its time to roll it out. Cut the dough in half (place the other half back in fridge until you are ready for it) and roll out on a very floured surface. The dough is sticky and %u00a0not super strong so go slow and make sure to keep the surface and the rolling pin floured so it doesn’t stick .
When it’s all rolled out, trim the sides even the cut %u00a0into into squares or rectangular (or any shape you want). I was going to measure and make them all the same size and then I was like, yeah, no. I just eyed it and made them kind of the same size. I don’t live in a world where I need perfect graham crackers.%u00a0
Gently transfer the crackers (%u00a0I used the bench scrapper to list them, but a spatula would be good too) on a parchment lined baking sheet. Run a %u00a0line the doesn’t cut all the way through in the middle of each cracker and then poke 6 (or how many you want) hole on each side. You can use a toothpick or a wooden skewer. I used a size 8 kitting needle.
Get all your crackers made and sprinkle the tops with a little graduated sugar. Pop into the preheated oven to bake for 15-20 minutes,%u00a0rotated around 10 to keep an even bake.%u00a0
Done. Golden brown graham cracker success.%u00a0
Cool the crackers on a wire rack.
And now you have yourself graham crackers for all your graham cracker needs.%u00a0
May I suggest a smear of peanut butter, maybe a glass of milk or coffee and some Martha Stewart on the tv?%u00a0
-C
Makes between 20-30 crackers depending on size
1 1/2 cups graham flour (unbolted whole wheat flour with the germ and bran)
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour%u00a0
1 teaspoon salt%u00a0
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup honey (can sub %u00a0in golden syrup or brown rice syrup)
2 tablespoons molasses (not black strap)
1/2 cup vegan butter%u00a0
1 teaspoon vanilla%u00a0
1 tablespoon plant milk%u00a0
1 tablespoon white sugar
Stick the butter, brown sugar, honey, molasses , and vanilla %u00a0into a large bowl and beat with an electric beater until smooth, In a smaller bowl, whisk together the flours, salt, and baking soda. Dump the dry into the wet, add in the milk and beat on low until mixture just starts to come together,then use your hand and smoosh and knead the dough into a ball. Either wrap or place dough ball %u00a0in a plastic airtight bag, smoosh into a flat rectangular shape, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, if not over night.
When you are ready to bake the crackers, preheat oven to 325 and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.%u00a0
Cut dough in half and place one half back in fridge while working with the other half. Flour a surface and the rolling pin and roll dough our into a retangle about 1/8 inch thick. Trim sides ( a pizza cutter or dough scraper works really well here)%u00a0to make a sides straight (straight enough) and then cut into equal sizes pieces that are the size of your liking. (What it did was cut in half, then each half into thirds %u00a0vertically %u00a0then the whole thing in thirds hortiztally. I ended up with 18 pieces) %u00a0
Place the crackers on prepared baking sheet and take you cutting instruments and run a line along the middle of each cracker without cutting all the way through (if you cut all the way through, it should fuse back together in baking) Take a wooden skewer %u00a0and poke 6 holes into each side. Sprinkle with white sugar. Now grab the second half of the dough and do the same thing. And don’t forget to gather all the trimming and either roll into more crackers or just make one weird shaped blob cracker for taste testing.
Once all the crackers are prepared, stick into the oven to bake for 15- 20 minutes (15 for a softer cracker, 20 for a more crispy cracker)%u00a0, rotating after 10 minutes to insure even baking. Once the crackers are a nice %u00a0golden brown, remove and place on a wire rack to cool.
Eat the way you do.%u00a0
Store uneaten crackers in a airtight container for a up to a week.%u00a0Crackers can be frozen for later use.%u00a0
I have had a shit ton of rhubarb in the freezer all winter and the other day I just needed it gone so I made a big old batch of rhubarb jam. I was actually saving the rhubarb to make the mr a pie for his birthday, but that was like 2 months ago and he ended up with ice cream sandwiches and that is why the rhubarb was still there. Oops. But now we have rhubarb jam. And I think I was feeling a little guilty about not making the pie so I, like the nicest girlfriend in the entire universe (self proclaimed yes, but so so true), used that jam to make little hand pies. And in the shape of hearts no less because hearts are amazing and it doesn’t hurt that it is Valentine Day next week.%u00a0%u00a0
%u00a0Valentines Day. What does that even mean? I think the primary meaning of Valentines Day is that all things should be in the shape of hearts. The rest is to be determined by however you may feel about the day. Whether you hate it or love it, (we love it, It’s an excuse to take the day off and cover the house in hearts) you get to make the day yours. Just make sure that whatever you do, you make it with hearts. And with pie.%u00a0
These heart pies make for great little additions to hand made Valentines day cards ( I see maybe for a kids class), are great for breakfast because they are basically just like heart shaped pop tarts,%u00a0or even for an evening of bindge watching Netflix with a loved one or by yourself. It’s pie my friends. Eat it whenever, and with whomever you want.
Also, hearts are not just for Valentines Day. And pie sure the hell isn’t either. They both just happen to work for the occasion.%u00a0
The stuff. Basically just pie crust things. Flour, a little sugar, salt, coconut oil, and ice water. Then you need jam. Jam or perseveres of any flavor(s)%u00a0%u00a0you like. I used grape and rhubarb and %u00a0had raspberry here, but I didn’t use it because I didn’t want to open it.%u00a0
Make the crust. Flour gets mixed with the salt and sugar %u00a0and the the coconut oil gets cut in until it %u00a0looks all crumbly.
The water is added %u00a0in tablespoons until a shaggy from forms.
Dump the dough onto the counter to gather all together and rest for a bit. Or if you like, wrap in plastic and refrigerate %u00a0for up to a day or two.
After the dough got a good rest, roll it out and cut your hearts out. (Not your actual heart. Please and thank you)
Half of the hearts get a dollop of jam
Then each heart gets a top and crimped together with a fork. Poke a little hole into the tops to allow for steam to escape then all of the hearts get stuck into the fridge (or place on the back porch) to get nice and cold for a bit.
%u00a0After the chill, off they go into the hot oven to bake and be.
Look at these cuties. A little jam overflow, but all is good.%u00a0
I decided last minute that they needed a little something. Powdered sugar, lime zest, and lime juice. The easiest of glazes. You could do lemon, or vanilla, or almond, or even melt a little chocolate and drizzle that on. Next time I will do chocolate because because.%u00a0
Drizzle that glaze all over.%u00a0
There you have it. The cutest little hand pies ever .
Share if you like, or just eat them all. They are your hearts so do what you will.%u00a0
-C
makes 18 %u00a0three inch pies
2 1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon salr
1 tablespoon sugar
8 tablespoons ice water
3/4 cup solid coconut oil
about 1 1/4 cups of some sweet ass jam (any kind you have)
1 cup powdered sugar
1 lemon or lime%u00a0
Combine the flour, salt and sugar in a large bowl. add coconut oil in large chunks then with a pastry cutter or a fork (I used a fork) cut the oil into the flour until the flour looks crumbly and there are lots of tiny little chunks of coconut oil throughout the mixture. Add in 5 of the tablespoons ice water, toss around, then add in another 3. Mix around until the dough starts to come together when squished. If it still seems too dry, add in a tablespoon or 2 more water. (I always end up using a little more in the winter months) You want the dough to just be able to come together. Dump dough onto counter and press and smoosh dough into a ball. Let dough sit for 1/2 hour or wrap in plastic and place in fridge and using within the next day or two.%u00a0
After the dough has had some time to sit, flour the counter and roll it out to about 1/2 inch thick. Take a cookie cutter ( I used a 3 inch at the widest part heart cookie cutter) and cut out the hearts (or whatever shape you want) Make sure you have 2 cutouts for each hand pie. After you have cut out as many as you can, gather dough into a ball and roll out again. Repeat until dough it gone.%u00a0
To assemble.
Place a tablespoon of jam into the middle of half of the cut out hearts . Gently place the remaining heart cut outs on top of those.%u00a0. Take a fork and press the edges together and then with the fork or a knife, pierce of cut a small slit into the tops to allow the steam to escape while baking. I did this directly on the baking sheet but found out after it was easier to do on the counter and then move it to the baking sheet. Do what ever it easier for you. Once they are all assembled and on the baking sheet,%u00a0refrigerate for 15 minutes.%u00a0
Preheat oven to 350
After the time in the fridge, remove and place directly into the hot oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the bottoms are a nice %u00a0%u00a0golden brown. The tops will be slightly pale so check the bottoms.%u00a0
Remove and let cool on the baking sheet.%u00a0
While they are cooing, make the glaze. Zest the lime and juice the lime and combine with the sugar. If it is too runny, add a little more sugar, too dry, add in a splash of water. Once the pies are cooled,%u00a0drizzle each one with icing.
Now you have a bunch of cute little heart shaped hand pies and you should probably eat one (or a few)
Is it weird to crush up a cookie to make a new cookies? I don’t think so , I actually think it’s kind of my best idea ever (although I am sure that I am not the first to think of this). I now have this desire to make all sorts of crushed cookie cookies and crushed cake cookies, and crushed up cookies in cinnamon buns and you get the idea. Picture it now. A cookie full of huge hunks of birthday cake, or a crushed chocolate chip cookie inside a chocolate chocolate cookie crushed up inside of a peanut butter cookie rolled in crushed up chips….This could get dangerous.
Back to these cookies.%u00a0
Not going to lie, these cookies were 99 percent inspired but Lindsey Lohan. And no, not because they are like crack (although that’s what the mr’s brother thought) but because of the movie,%u00a0The Parent Trap.%u00a0Yes, it is now on Hulu and yes, I watched it, and yes I was by myself, and no I will not feel shame for that.%u00a0%u00a0In the movie the Lindsey’s (well, the one Lindsey that plays two Lindsey’s.. you should watch it if you don’t know what I am talking about)%u00a0are away at summer camp being all innocent and cute (what happened to you Lindsey?) but get into a little trouble and are banished to a cabin away from other campers. After getting over there anger at one another, they start talking about their parents and how they share the same birthday and how they look exactly alike. Then they start to eat Oreos dipped in peanut butter. This is the point in the movie where they know something is up and that they are actually twins separated at birth. (Not because they look exactly the same or share the same birthday, it’s totally the cookies.%u00a0Powerful Disney moment.) %u00a0I mean, if that food combination could do that for these girls, well what could it do for me? (so far not a damn thing) %u00a0But I had the peanut butter and a few Oreos left from a ice cream cake and I needed to bake because I needed to so I listened to the innocent cute Lindsey’s and make these crushed up Oreo and peanut butter cookies. And the world thanked me, but really, we should thank Lindsey too.I hear she could really use a win right now. And maybe I will eventually find a girl that looks like me and share my birthday and can be my twin too. I’ll make her these cookies.
The stuff. We are gonna need some white and brown sugar, vanilla extract, flax eggs, peanut butter and earth balance. Also flour, baking soda and baking powder,%u00a0a little bit of salt, and of course, Oreo cookies.
Add to a bowl the sugars,%u00a0flax eggs,%u00a0peanut butter, vanilla, and the earth balance.%u00a0
Mix until smooth and creamy.
After mixing all the dry together, dump it into the wet and mix until cookie dough happens.%u00a0
Then add in your crushed Oreos! I just used my hands and crushed them directly into the bowl, but you could also stick them in a bag and smash them. Your choice.%u00a0
Cookies in the cookie dough.. Don’t eat it.%u00a0Ok,%u00a0maybe eat a little.%u00a0
Scoop same sized amounts of dough onto a cookies sheet and take a flat something or another and smoosh the balls into flat disks.
Once the oven is preheated, pop those suckers into the oven to bake. I did 12-13 minutes and they came out perfect.%u00a0
Now fill your cookie jar with al those perfect cookies and hide it. If seen, they will be devoured. Share with your long lost twin.%u00a0
In a large bowl combine the sugars, the peanut butter, vanilla, earth balance, and the flax eggs. Mix until all completely combined and smooth. In a smaller bowl combine the flour, baking soda and powder, and salt and whisk to mix. Dump the dry into the wet and mix until combined. Take Oreos and crush them into small pieces (I used my hands but you could stick them in a bag and smash them with a rolling pin or something) into the dough. Mix until evenly disturbed.
Measure out same sized balls of dough and place them on a cookie sheet. Take a flat surface and smoosh the dough so it it a flat dish. Bake cookies for 11-13 minutes or until the edges are starting to lightly brown. Remove and place on a cooling rack.
Have you heard of switchel? A lot of people haven’t so don’t feel bad if you don’t know what the hell I am talking about (like my computer. It keeps auto correcting switchel to switched). So switchel. It’s basically a drink made from water and apple cider vinegar. But wait, don’t grimace and click away, it’s also has fresh ginger, lime, and maple syrup mixed in and is really really really freaking refreshing and tasty and just really good. I guess it was even used back I the day as a sort of sports drink, like Gatorade because it has all sorts of electrolytes and anti-inflammatory properties from the ginger.%u00a0%u00a0Plus apple cider vinegar has got all sorted or health benefits,%u00a0so it’s a tasty treat with benefits. Who doesn’t love the benefits?%u00a0
You can drink the switchel %u00a0straight up hot or cold, add it to seltzer for a bubbly soda like drink or even %u00a0mix some cocktails with it. I enjoy a nice cold glass when I am feeling thirsty but what I usually do it fill up half a %u00a0jar with boiling water, then fill the rest of the jar up with the cold switchel. It’s a nice tangy, spicy,%u00a0refreshing and warming drink that I look forward to every day. I even got the littles to try it.%u00a0%u00a0One thought it to be nasty (can’t win them all), but the other one really liked it too, so you know it’s not just me that thinks it good.%u00a0
The stuff. Apple cider vinegar (the good stuff that is raw and has the mother), fresh ginger, limes, maple syrup, and water.%u00a0
Fresh ginger is the best. Give it a little peel with a spoon, just to maximize gingerness exposure then chop into small pieces.%u00a0
Ginger and water goes into big pot. Bring it to a boil then turn down to a high simmer for 10-15 minutes to really get the ginger infused into that water.%u00a0
After it’s cooled a bit, strain the now ginger water into a pitcher or a big jar.
Add in the vinegar, the juice of the limes and a bit maple syrup. Start off with a little maple, you can alway add more later if needed.%u00a0
After the switchel has some time in the fridge to cool (at least 2 hours, but I like it best when it’s sat overnight) grab a glass ,some ice cubes, and a slice of lime. It’s go time.%u00a0
A drink to you my friends
-C
Makes bout 6%u00a0 cups%u00a0
1/2 cup raw apple cider vinegar (with the mother. Braggs is a popular option)%u00a0
5-6 inch piece of fresh ginger%u00a0
2 limes
5 1/2 cups water
1-4 tablespoons maple syrup%u00a0
With a spoon, gently peel ginger . Not perfectly, just get some of the skin off. Chop it into small pieces and place it into a large pot with the water. Bring to a boil then let simmer for 10-15 minutes. Strain ginger water int a large pitcher or jar.
Add in the apple cider vieager, the juice of the limes, and a tablespoon or two of maple syrup. Give it a good stir then place in the fridge until cold (about two hours but overnight is best)%u00a0
When it’s cold, give it a good stir again, taste, and if it needs more maple, add it in. And then it’s ready.
You can drink it on ice, maybe add some seltzer to it, or mix it into some fancy cocktail. It can also be reheated for a nice spicy warming treat.%u00a0
My contribution to last nights dinner at my sisters…. Freshy fresh veggies spring rolls.I had about 30 minutes between work and getting over to my sisters house to throw something together so it needed to be something fast, easy, and something I could make without going to the store. She was making the main course (some teriyaki situation and rice) so I was doing up the veggies.
I had just bought a package of spring roll wrappers%u2026. Bingo! The perfect and logical choice. I grab the wrappers, a variety of veggies and after spending 12 of my 30 minutes trying to scrub the oil based paint off of my face and hands, I still managed to completely prepare, construct, and take pictures of these lovely tasty spring rolls. and get over to my sisters in time for dinner.
Impressed? %u00a0
Damn right!
The stuff. Carrot, beet, asparagus, red cabbage, and kohlrabi, which all (except asparagus, which I just cut into thirds) got cut into matchstick sized pieces with my mandoiln. Then there are the rice spring roll wrappers that we need to make the veggies into rolls. Also a bit of red wine vinegar to drizzle onto the veggies for a little extra zing. And lastly, soy, fresh ginger, and a couple cloves of garlic for a spicy salty dipping sauce.Start by having everything set out and ready to assemble.%u00a0Fill a large shallow dish or baking sheet with really warm water. Working with one at a time,place a rice wrapper into water and let sit for about 10 seconds or until the paper starts to soften. Remove from water and place on a damp surface (just splash a little water on the counter) Take a little bit of everything and and place on the lower middle part of the paper. Fold in the sides first, then tuck and roll the wrapper as tightly as you can without ripping the wrapper.
Repeat until you have used up all you veggies.For the dipping sauce. Finely grate ginger and garlic and add to soy sauce. Stir%u2026 and it’s done.Freshy, pretty and fantastically delicious. And for real, took about 8 minutes to make. (I even had enough time to wash the dishes before we left!)
I am so awesome!
Hump Day Pow!!!!!
-C
Fresh Veggies Spring Rolls%u00a0
Makes 8-10 but can easily be increased or decreased to desired amount%u00a0
8-1o rice spring roll papers
Splash of Red wine or rice vinegar
1/4 cup soy or tamari sauce
2 cloves of garlic
teaspoon %u00a0freshly grated ginger
1 medium carrot
1 medium beet
1/4 head of purple cabbage
10 thin fresh asparagus
1 small kohlrabi
Note%u2026 I used the veggies that I had in the fridge at the moment. If you have a bunch of veggies but not these particular ones, use what you have. Pretty much all veggies taste good inside a spring roll!
Gather your veggies and prep by either using a mandolin, a grater, or some sick knife skills, and julienne, shred, or slice you veggies into thin match sticks. Once all the veggies are prepared, sprinkle a little vinegar over the top.
For the rolls…Grab a large shallow vessel %u00a0(a rimmed baking sheet works great) and add in warm water. Working %u00a0one at a time, place the wrapper into the water for about 10 seconds or until the wrapper starts to soften. Remove and spread onto a clean, damp work surface. Gather a bit of each veggie that you are adding and place towards the bottom %u00a0middle of the wrapper. Now fold the sides in over the pile of veggies. Then with the side closest to you, tuck and roll wrapper away from you, trying to keep it tight, but not to tight that it rips.. (Hopefully that makes since.) Place finished rolls onto a damp surface to keep from sticking and if not serving right away, drape with %u00a0a damp towel or paper towel to keep from drying out.
For the soy ginger dipping sauce. Add grated ginger, %u00a0minced garlic, and soy into a bowl and mix together. %u00a0Serve with spring rolls.%u00a0
Eat one, two, or a plateful. It’s nice to share but not a necessity.
%u00a0 %u00a0 %u00a0%u00a0And that’s how I know that this is a winner.%u00a0As an awesome aunt, when I have any of my nieces or nephews, %u00a0I feel the need to make something special for dinner, something that the kiddos might not get very often, but also keep it on he healthy side. I have 2 littles for the night which gives me the perfect opportunity for a trash food recipe. You know trash food, things like boxed mac and cheese, beefaroni in a can, or, in this case, sloppy joes.
Sloppy yes, trashy, not so much. These are made with beans and bulgur. No meat.
And I figured it is nice enough out that I can make the kiddos some messy food and then just bring them out back and hose them off%u2026 I mean, why not right?
The stuff%u2026 We start with onion and green pepper, chopped into pieces. Black beans, bulgur, can crushed tomatoes. Chili powder, garlic powder, a bit o apple cider vinegar (which I forgot to picture) ,and some salt and pepper. Oh and cheese if you want%u2026 Plus a bun of some sort is necessary.%u00a0 %u00a0 %u00a0 Toss the chopped onion and peppers into a deep skillet or pot with a drizzle of oil. Cook on medium heat until tender and toss in the spices. Give a stir.%u00a0Add in the beans, bulgur, and tomato, a splash of vinegar. Stir it all up, cover, and let simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the bulgur has absorbed the liquid and is nice and tender.
If you are a bun toaster%u2026 toast while waiting. If not, just get the buns ready%u00a0And Then dump a good heaping pile right onto a bun. Add some cheese, or not..and eat with wild abandonment, %u00a0making sure to get as much on your face as you get in you mouth.%u00a0
Fantastic Friday!! Live it up.%u00a0
-C
Black Bean and Bulgur Sloppy Joes%u00a0
2 cups or 1 can cooked black beans
1 16 oz can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup bulgur
1/2 cup water
1 small onion
1 green pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder%u00a0
1 teaspoon chili powder
salt and pepper
a splash of apple cider vinegar
olive oil
4-6 burger or bulky buns
cheese (optional)
Dice the onion and the pepper and toss with a drizzle of olive oil into a large skillet. Saut%u00e9 on medium heat until veggies become tender. Add in the spices, stir in and let cook for a minutes, then add in the beans, the tomato,water and the bugler. Cover skillet and let simmer until bugler becomes soft.
When the slop is ready, either toasted or not, scoop a generous portions onto buns. If so inclined, add some cheese.%u00a0
Eat with hands%u2026 Sloppy is good.
Before we left for the weekend, I was was trying my hardest to empty the fridge out of all food with the intention of leaning it empty so I could leave it open to defrost while were were gone. Unfortunately I was not able to make it happen. What I did make happen was emptying it almost completely so that when we got home, we had pretty much no food in the house, except for a few things that probably should be eaten. %u00a0Plus one of the last things that I want to do after sitting in a car for 6 hours is go to the grocery store, or anywhere for that matter, so I was determined to make with what wet had in the fridge:
Carrots
half of a gigantic kohlrabi
soy milk
iced tea
bananas that needed to be frozen
strawberries
Perfect! %u00a0A few carrots and half of a gigantic kohlrabi.. plus at the hotel we were staying at, there were fruit bowls in he lobby full apples. Every time I went past the apples (which was a lot) I grab one or two, so I have a few apples (I actually have a lot of apples now). All the things I need for a super awesome salad slaw. Apples with their %u00a0nice sweet crispiness and kohlrabi with its cabbagey, crunchy earthiness, tossed together with some vinegar, some toasted walnuts and some carrots, I mean, so freaking good. And to make it a bit more of a meal, I made some lentils to go with it. But the best part was there was no need to leave the house!!
%u00a0%u00a0 %u00a0%u00a0The stuff%u2026 A huge hunk of a bigger then my head kohlrabi (or 2 normal bulbs). A carrot, an apple, toasted walnuts, red wine vinegar, and some salt.
Pretty simple stuff going on here. Just peel and julienne the kohlrabi, carrot and apple. (no need to peel the carrot or apple unless you want too) and stick it all into a bowl. %u00a0I used my mandolin, which is one of my favorite kitchen tools ever, but if you don’t have one, a box grater works too.Sprinkle with salt and a good glug glug of red wine vinegar. Chop up the walnuts (some big chunks and some very small pieces makes for good eating), toss it all together and, well that’s it. But wait%u2026. let it sit for a few minutes before serving to really let the flavors draw out.And there we have it. Super fast, full of flavors and crunchy texture. A salad slaw after my own heart.
Serve it as it or add to a bed of greens, rice, or lentils%u2026 and make sure to save at least as little%u2026 cause its an awesome little pre-bed snack.
Happy Week!!
-C
Kohlrabi Apple Walnut Slaw
2 medium sized Kohlrabis%u00a0
1 medium apple %u00a0%u00a0
1 small carrot
1/2 cup toasted walnuts
red wine vinegar
salt
In a large bowl, julienne kohlrabi (after peeled) apple and carrot. Sprinkle with salt, add in vinegar. Rough chop walnuts and toss the whole bit together. Let sit for at least 10 minutes, if not longer before serving. (A great salad to make ahead of time)
Eat as is, or toss onto a bed of greens, plate of rice or a bowl of lentils.
Any left overs only end up tasting better the next day.
Last week pineapples were on sale everywhere%u2026%u2026So I bought 5. Don’t judge%u00a0
And I bet I am not the only one that got overly excited at $1.50 pineapple and bough themselves a few. We will just call ourselves opportunists. %u00a0Now we have plenty of pineapples and don’t have to pay %u00a0the $4 a piece prices. (Justification) %u00a0
But if you don’t have a pineapple laying around, you must go get one. (Maybe if your lucky, there might still be some sales going on) because you must make this salad. I am on a mission to make everyone I know eat it because, for lake of a better way to say it%u2026%u2026.It will rock your world.
Dill and pineapple are a serious match made in heaven. Pineapple, with its sweet, tangy, citrusness %u00a0and dill with it’s super fresh earthiness. Mixed together with a few other helpers to create a fresh, clean, chunky, tangy, over the top, flavor. I could stop right there, but toss in a handful of lentils, some creamy avocado and a bed of kale%u2026It’s like the best spring time, celebration on you tongue, happiness in you tummy, kind of salad.
A salad that will make you smile. (and maybe buy %u00a05 pineapples)%u00a0
%u00a0Stuff for the goodness. We got the kale, some avocado because all salads should have avocado and some cooked lentils because, well, all salads should have lentils (or beans or nuts.. so you could totally something else) Then a few sprigs of fresh dill, a clove of garlic, red wine vinegar, salt and a bowl of chunked up pineapple.%u00a0The pineapple, dill, garlic, red wine vinegar, a splash of water and a pinch of salt get blended in a blender or whatever blending device you use. Go as smooth or chunky as you like, I recommend going smooth, but leaving a little chunk, like half blended.
The prep is done, now compile. %u00a0Kale in bowl, top with lentils,. Toss on avocado chunks, and, last but not least, the blended pineapple dill mixture.So good%u2026%u2026So so good.
Happy Friday!!
-C
So Good Pineapple Dill Kale Salad
Serves Two
3 cups washed and chopped Kale
1/2 a avocado, diced
1 cup fresh pineapple chunks
1-2 springs fresh dill
1 tablespoon Red Wine Vinegar
Salt%u00a0
1/2 cup cooked lentils%u00a0(or any bean or nut will do)
Note. No fresh dill? You can use dried, just sub in 1 teaspoon for the fresh and after blending with the pineapple, let sit a little longer to really let the flavors meld together.%u00a0
Place pineapple, dill, pinch of salt, vinegar and garlic into a blender or whatever you own that blends and blend stuff together, leaving it a little chunky. Let sit for 5-10 minutes.
Kale goes into a bowl and add the lentils and diced avocado. Pour the blended pineapple on. Toss around.%u00a0
Now eat.
%u00a0 %u00a0%u00a0%u00a0I love mustard, and when I say love, I mean LOVE. I eat it on anything and everything. And not just small quaintites, I buy jumbo sized containers of the stuff because I go through it so fast. %u00a0Over the past few years I even %u00a0started taking down others with my mustard eating obsession. Sisters, brothers, even some of the littles are now mustard eating feens. %u00a0One of my little nieces is now just as bad as me. I don’t think I have seen her eat a single meal without a side of mustard. Her favorite snack, clementines and mustard, %u00a0although sometimes she skips the clementines and just goes in with her fingers. Oh so good. I think that child could possible be mine.%u00a0 And yes, it’s mostly the yellow grocery store variety of mustard being consumed, but yellow mustard is just the tip of the ice berg. There is a whole world of flavors, textures and colors when it comes to the humble mustard seed. Whole grain mustard, to me, is one of the best and easiest to adapt to any persons specific taste. You can make it plan or add in just about any spice, vinegar, even a little sweetness that you might like. One of my favorite variations of this mustard is to skip the vinegar and use picked jalape%u00f1o juice. Aah, my mouth is watering just thinking about it.
So if you are anything of a mustard connoisseur, you really must, at least once, make your own batch.(It’s so easy!) And you will love it and share it with all your friends and they will think you are a bad ass for making your own mustard and your life will just be so great. All because you are now a mustard maker. %u00a0Yes.%u00a0
Yellow mustard seeds, brown mustard seeds, apple cider vinegar and salt. The most basic ingredients.
Note- If you want, add in a pinch of any spice that you want.. Chili flakes, granulated garlic, turmeric…. And you can use the vinegar of your choice. I like apple cider because its mellow with a slight sweetness but white or sherry or any vinegar would be great. Even left over picked juice is fantastic too.
%u00a0 %u00a0%u00a0In a large jar, combine the mustard seed , twice as much vinegar and a pinch of salt. Cover and let sit for on the counter overnight until the seeds have soften and look almost like caviar.%u00a0
Now blend those seeds. You might want to add another splash or two of vinegar to help %u00a0blend and to thin out a bit. Chose how creamy or seeded you like you mustard. I like to make it creamy but seedy so I blend it half way to creamy.
Taste and add another pinch of salt if its needed and%u2026%u2026..
You have got mustard! Make sure you have a good snack ready to eat with it.. My go to is carrots. I could eat this all day long. %u00a0
Enjoy and have a great Tuesday full of mustard and stuff!
-C
Whole Grain Mustard
1/4 Cup Brown Mustard Seeds
1/4 Cup Brown Mustard Seeds
1 Cup Apple Cider Vinegar
1 Teaspoon Salt
Optional..A pinch of %u00a0Garlic Graduals, Red Pepper Flakes, Curry Powder (Anything you want)%u00a0
Combine all ingredients into a large jar that has at least a few extras inches for the seed to expand. %u00a0Leave on counter for 8-12 hours.
Once seeds are nice and soft and have expanded, either eat as is (Mustard seed caviar) or blend the seeds to desired consistency (I like it half smooth, half seedy) Add a pinch more or salt and another splash or two of vinegar to help blend.
Refrigerate and use on anything and everytihng.
I am so happy its Friday, but like whoa, this week has flown by so fast. I think%u00a0I need to make a pie to slow things down a bit.. What Kind of pie am I making? We will get to that, but first we must make a killer pie crust, one to hold of the goodness to come. %u00a0
Crusty Stuff. Flour, a stick of frozen butter (or a stick of frozen Earth %u00a0Balance, which I have used and it turns out much the same) a %u00a0bit of sugar, some salt, ice water, and apple cider vinegar*. %u00a0
Whats with the vinegar you ask? Well first %u00a0off, don’t worry about tasting it, you won’t. Secondly, I add it because it helps keep gluten from forming in the flour, which in turns makes the pie crust more flakey and less doughy. If the though of vinegar really bothers you, you can use lemon juice or even leave it out.%u00a0
The flour, salt, ans sugar are mixed together into a bowl. Then with a box grater or hand grater with big hole, grate the frozen butter directly into the flour, stopping every few tablespoons to toss around in the flour. (DO this or you will end up with a big pile of shredded butter that is starting to melt back together) Also, hold the butter with the wrapper to keep from warming the butter with your hand.
Once the whole stick is shredded, take a fork and just toss the chunks around a bit more just to evenly distribute. Now add in vinegar and water. Toss with fork until the mixture starts to come together. If you think that dough seems way to dry, add in one more tablespoon of ice water.Dump the dough onto a lightly flour surface and kind of squish, smoosh dough into a pile. The dough is all clumpy and weird looking, Well thats what it is support to look like, so your good. Once the dough is gathered into a ball, place onto a piece of wax paper and wrap. Now is the most satisfying part..Smoosh the wrapped dough into a disk but applying pressure. Aaahh, kind of looked like pie crust. Now Stick it in the fridge for a least a hour (Don’t skip this or your crust will be blah)
Out of the fridge and awaiting a roll and a filling.%u00a0
Weekend plans for a pie are set!
Have lots of good times!
-C
Pie Crust
Notes… You can for sure make this %u00a0pie crust vegan by replacing the butter for %u00a0a stick of Earth Balance. %u00a0Also, this is the stuff for a single pie crust but I usually habra bit left over to make a few little cutouts for the top of the pie or pie scrap cookies.
To make this a double pie crust, just double everything up. %u00a0
1 1/4 %u00a0cups %u00a0all-purpose flour
1 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter (or Earth Balace), cold or frozen
1/4 cup ice water
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar %u00a0
In a large bow, whisk together the flour, salt, and sugar. Place grater in bowl and with the biggest grate hole, grate the frozen or cold butter directly into the flour mixture, stopping ever few tablespoons to toss around in the flour so you don’t end up with a big pile of grated butter. With a fork, toss around a bit until %u00a0the butter is evenly disrupted in the flour being careful NOT%u00a0to work the butter into the flour. %u00a0Add in the vinegar and water and mix as little as possible with a fork until the mixture starts to come together. The mixture will seem kind of dry and almost like it is falling apart, but thats what you want. If dough is really too dry, add in another tablespoon of ice water. Dump mixture onto a lightly floured surface and squish together to form a ball, handling as little as possible. Place on a piece of wax paper and wrap. Give it a good squish to flatten out a bit and place back into fridgerater for a least one hour, if not longer.
And then you have crust
Crust can be frozen.. just wrap in plastic wrap and place into a freezer bag.%u00a0
When something goes on sale at the grocery store, I tend to buy it. Being that it is Valentines Day this week, all the stores are having specials on all sorts of sexy things%u2026 and strawberries are one of them.%u00a0 Now I am not a huge fan of buying produce that is terribly out of season, but I can’t help myself%u2026a good deal is a good deal and the strawberries were a super good deal. I was just going to make some sweet ass strawberry jam or maybe a lovely strawberry cake with them (and I probably still will), but these strawberries are actually super juicy and full of flavor, and it’s always nice to eat some full flavor freshy strawberries%u2026 especially soaked in balsamic vinegar. %u00a0And yeah, %u00a0I think that this salad is pretty sexy, so it makes for a perfect Valentines day dish.
A handful of ingredients and 5 minutes will get you to a fantastic salad experience.
A bowl of %u00a0baby spinach, a few chopped up strawberries*, %u00a0half a sliced avocado and a small handful of toasted almonds.. Oh, and don’t forget the balsamic vinegar%u2026.%u00a0
*Note.. Strawberries are kind of heart shaped already so if you want, reserve a few slices to fancy up you salad presentation, but chop up the rest into smaller pieces.
Pour the vinegar on the strawberries and let sit for at least 5 minutes. (the longer the strawberries can sit with the vinegar, the better)
%u00a0Pile it on.. %u00a0thinly slice avocado.. rough chopped toasted almonds%u2026 It’s pretty much as easy as it can get.And last but not least, toss on the balsamic soaked strawberries and drizzle the remaining vinegar. (if you made hearts, place on top to make pretty) Sprinkle with a pitch of salt and pepper and pow! Fancy, sexy, delicious salad.
Not to shabby for %u00a05 minutes and a handful of ingredients. %u00a0Anyone (don’t feed to a person with nut allergies) would be so syked to be fed a salad like this%u2026 You yourself should be pretty excited to eat a salad like this. Heck, I am excited to eat a salad like this!
A love salad for everyone and everyday!
YAY for Thursday and Happy meal planning!!!!%u00a0
-C
%u2665 Balsamic%u00a0Strawberries on Spinach Almond Avocado Salad%u00a0%u2665
Ingredients for 1 large or 2 small salads
3-4 ripe strawberries
handful of roasted almonds (slivers or whole)
1/2 avocado
2 tablespoons Balsamic Vinegar%u00a0
3 cups baby spinach
Pinch of salt and pepper%u00a0
Dice strawberries into small pieces (reserve a few whole slices for heart shapes if you want) and toss in a small bowl %u00a0with the balsamic vinegar. Let sit for at least 5 minutes. Rinse and dry spinach. Place in a bowl(s) and top with thinly sliced avocado, chopped almonds and balsamic soaked strawberries. Drizzle the residual vinegar on top and sprinkle with a pinch of salt and pepper.%u00a0
I sometime struggle with certain veggies, not like in a eating way (I have no snuggle eating any veggie)%u00a0but in a making something with that certain veggie kind of way,%u00a0like I don’t make anything out of them, I just eat them raw as they are. (That was terribly long winded and does it even make sense?)%u00a0I don’t find this to be a problem most of the time, but sometime I think I need to be less lazy about eating and maybe prepare a dish for a meal rather then just eating raw beans out of the garden for lunch…..I mean, I am not going to stop doing that but I am going to start being a little more creative and planning meals with a little more substance. Adding nuts is more substance right?
These beans were freaking fantastic. %u00a0Blistered and charred, and not soggy and soft. They were perfect.%u00a0(I like my veggies either raw or burnt)%u00a0I made them late morning and was going to save them for dinner but the mr, Barb, and I ate them all just on snacking on them. %u00a0Just a really good, A+%u00a0veggies situation here. Highly recommended, hot or cold. Almost beats a bean lunch in the garden. Almost.%u00a0
The stuff. Green beans, almonds, garlic, ginger, soy, and a little oil.%u00a0
Quick fast, rough chop the almonds and give them a toast in a dry skillet (you can skip this part if you have already toasted almonds)%u00a0
And here would be the time to trim the beans if you are a person that does that. I am however, not a bean trimmer. But you must wash them, so give them a good rinse , and keep them a little wet. The moisture will help them cook.%u00a0
Just washed beans go into a medium high hot skillet (add in a tablespoon of oil) and get a nice little cover to start the cooking process. %u00a0Leave them alone for a few minutes, then remove lid and toss them around. Do that ever few minutes.%u00a0
While the beans start cooking, mince the garlic and the ginger and add to the soy sauce.
Smells so good!
Beans have cooked for about 10 minutes here and are all nice and blistered and just about done so now add in the ginger garlic soy mixture and toss around. Keep cooking for a minute or two.
And now don’t forget those almonds, mix those in too. Then it’s into a bowl they go.%u00a0
Green beans so good. Can’t go wrong with these.
Have a marvelous weekend, maybe go pick some green beans!
-C
About a pound of green beans (trimmed if you want to trim them)
2-3 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger%u00a0
1/4 cup almonds
3 teaspoons soy sauce
tablespoon oil
Rough chop almonds into small pieces and place in a dry skillet (meaning no oil). Turn heat on to medium high heat to toast for about 5 minutes or until you can start to smell the almonds and they are slightly browning. (you can skip the tasting %u00a0part if your almonds are already toasted, jus chop them into small pieces)
Dump the almonds into bowl and set aside. Keep skillet on heat and add in the oil. Rinse beans off, keeping them damp,%u00a0and very carefully, dump the damp beans into the hot skillet. Place a lid on beans and let cook about 4-5 minutes. In the meantime, mince garlic and ginger and combine with the soy sauce. After a few minutes, remove the lid from beans and toss the bean around. Keep doing this for another 8-10 minutes or until the beans are cooked though and blistered in places. Once the beans are cooked,%u00a0%u00a0dump the garlic ginger soy mixture into pan. Toss around and leave in pan for another minutes then stir the toasted almonds in. Transfer the whole bit of it into a big bowl or plate.%u00a0
Eat right away or.. They taste freaking fanatic cold too.%u00a0
As a reward to ourselves for finishing the floor laying week (what a freaking week, I will share some pictures soon) I stayed home for a little while yesterday morning and made some donuts for the mr ( I got to bake and do a little knitting and he got donuts.) Initially I was gonna make a cake, had it on my agenda for a cake at some point this week, but last minutes I felt the need to use my unused donut pan. I think it was a good call. Donuts don’t require as much pumpkin puree.%u00a0 I roasted a pumpkin a few days ago for the purpose of baking a cake with it but have slowly eaten most of it (on accident) so that there was just enough left to make the donuts. I have no willpower when it comes to roasted squash, I can’t stop eating it.
Anyway,%u00a0 I had me a mighty fine morning of trashing the kitchen, using my pretty mixing bowls, basking in the glory of the residual heat coming from the oven, and making the house smell all nice and fall spicy. And now there are donuts in the house with lots of sprinkles and only the mr to eat them. He really really likes them, like a lot. (me “don’t eat all those f*ing donuts dude, save some for later!”)
Another reason donuts were a good call, they are easy to share. Maybe I should go drop off a few to a friend. Any takers?
The donut stuff. Flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt are in that bowl. Then we have pumpkin puree(homemade or canned) soy milk(or any milk), brown sugar, cinnamon, oil, and apple cider vinegar
All the wet stuff gets mixed together and the dry stuff plus the cinnamon gets whisked together too.
Wet into dry and mixed until combined.
Scoop batter into well greased donut pan and don’t do what I did and overfill (I always forget not to overfill). My fist batch came out a little bit bigger the expected with holes. No biggie.
Once pan is filled,%u00a0 pan goes into preheated oven. Bake until golden perfection (about 15-18 minutes or until a tester comes out clean)
Slightly overflown donuts cooked to all the goodness and popped out of the pan to cool on a cooling rack.
Glaze stuff. Powdered sugar, cocoa powder, a pinch of salt, a splash of vanilla, and a bit of soy milk….Mix it all together and that’s that.
Completely cooled donuts (very important to be completely cooled) go heads down into the bowl of glaze.
All glazed and looking good but I think somethings missing…..
Pumpkin, chocolate, sprinkles. BOOM!!!
Happy Friday!!!!
makes 10 donuts
For donuts
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup soy milk (any milk works)
3 tablespoons neutral oil like canola
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
For the glaze
7 heaping tablespoons powdered sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 tablespoons soy milk
splash vanilla
pinch of salt
sprinkles!!!!…optional
Preheat oven to 350
In a big bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and baking soda, salt, and the cinnamon. In a separate bowl mix together the pumpkin puree, sugar, soy milk, oil and the apple cider vinegar. Dump the wet mixture into the dry and mix until combined.
Ready the donut pan by really making sure it is well grease. Fill each donut mold about a 3/4 way full. I use a spoon but you could transfer that batter to a piping bag if you want. Place pan into oven and bake for 15-18 minutes or until the donuts are golden brown and a fork stabbed into one comes out clean. Pop donuts out of mold and let cool completely on a cooling rack.
Note. I have one pan that does 6 at a time. I had to wash, dry and re-grease the panto bake all the donuts.
Once donuts are cooled, gather the glaze ingredients. In a shallow bowl whisk together the sugar, cocoa, and salt. Add in a splash of vanilla and then the soy. Mix together until a glossy not to thick but not to thin consistency . If its too thick, add in another splash of milk, to think, more powdered sugar.
To glaze, take each donut and place face down in glaze and give it a little twirl.%u00a0 Remove and place back on cooling rack (glaze size up) and cover with sprinkles. (optional)
Then eat the donuts
Any uneaten can be placed in airtight container for 2-3 days or can be stuck into freezer.
%u00a0And that’s how I know that this is a winner.%u00a0
As an awesome aunt, when I have any of my nieces or nephews, %u00a0I feel the need to make something special for dinner, something that the kiddos might not get very often, but also keep it on he healthy side. I have 2 littles for the night which gives me the perfect opportunity for a trash food recipe. You know trash food, things like boxed mac and cheese, beefaroni in a can, or, in this case, sloppy joes.
The stuff%u2026 We start with onion and green pepper, chopped into pieces. Black beans, bulgur, can crushed tomatoes. Chili powder, garlic powder, a bit o apple cider vinegar (which I forgot to picture) ,and some salt and pepper. Oh and cheese if you want%u2026 Plus a bun of some sort is necessary.
%u00a0 %u00a0 %u00a0
Toss the chopped onion and peppers into a deep skillet or pot with a drizzle of oil. Cook on medium heat until tender and toss in the spices. Give a stir.%u00a0Add in the beans, bulgur, and tomato, a splash of vinegar. Stir it all up, cover, and let simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the bulgur has absorbed the liquid and is nice and tender.
%u00a0And Then dump a good heaping pile right onto a bun. Add some cheese, or not..and eat with wild abandonment, %u00a0making sure to get as much on your face as you get in you mouth.%u00a0
Before we left for the weekend, I was was trying my hardest to empty the fridge out of all food with the intention of leaning it empty so I could leave it open to defrost while were were gone. Unfortunately I was not able to make it happen. What I did make happen was emptying it almost completely so that when we got home, we had pretty much no food in the house, except for a few things that probably should be eaten. %u00a0Plus one of the last things that I want to do after sitting in a car for 6 hours is go to the grocery store, or anywhere for that matter, so I was determined to make with what wet had in the fridge:
%u00a0 %u00a0%u00a0
The stuff%u2026 A huge hunk of a bigger then my head kohlrabi (or 2 normal bulbs). A carrot, an apple, toasted walnuts, red wine vinegar, and some salt.
Sprinkle with salt and a good glug glug of red wine vinegar. Chop up the walnuts (some big chunks and some very small pieces makes for good eating), toss it all together and, well that’s it. But wait%u2026. let it sit for a few minutes before serving to really let the flavors draw out.
And there we have it. Super fast, full of flavors and crunchy texture. A salad slaw after my own heart.
Last week pineapples were on sale everywhere%u2026%u2026So I bought 5. Don’t judge%u00a0
%u00a0Stuff for the goodness. We got the kale, some avocado because all salads should have avocado and some cooked lentils because, well, all salads should have lentils (or beans or nuts.. so you could totally something else) Then a few sprigs of fresh dill, a clove of garlic, red wine vinegar, salt and a bowl of chunked up pineapple.%u00a0
The pineapple, dill, garlic, red wine vinegar, a splash of water and a pinch of salt get blended in a blender or whatever blending device you use. Go as smooth or chunky as you like, I recommend going smooth, but leaving a little chunk, like half blended.
So good%u2026%u2026So so good.
%u00a0 %u00a0%u00a0
%u00a0I love mustard, and when I say love, I mean LOVE. I eat it on anything and everything. And not just small quaintites, I buy jumbo sized containers of the stuff because I go through it so fast. %u00a0Over the past few years I even %u00a0started taking down others with my mustard eating obsession. Sisters, brothers, even some of the littles are now mustard eating feens. %u00a0One of my little nieces is now just as bad as me. I don’t think I have seen her eat a single meal without a side of mustard. Her favorite snack, clementines and mustard, %u00a0although sometimes she skips the clementines and just goes in with her fingers. Oh so good. I think that child could possible be mine.%u00a0 And yes, it’s mostly the yellow grocery store variety of mustard being consumed, but yellow mustard is just the tip of the ice berg. There is a whole world of flavors, textures and colors when it comes to the humble mustard seed. Whole grain mustard, to me, is one of the best and easiest to adapt to any persons specific taste. You can make it plan or add in just about any spice, vinegar, even a little sweetness that you might like. One of my favorite variations of this mustard is to skip the vinegar and use picked jalape%u00f1o juice. Aah, my mouth is watering just thinking about it.
Yellow mustard seeds, brown mustard seeds, apple cider vinegar and salt. The most basic ingredients.
%u00a0 %u00a0
%u00a0In a large jar, combine the mustard seed , twice as much vinegar and a pinch of salt. Cover and let sit for on the counter overnight until the seeds have soften and look almost like caviar.%u00a0
Now blend those seeds. You might want to add another splash or two of vinegar to help %u00a0blend and to thin out a bit. Chose how creamy or seeded you like you mustard. I like to make it creamy but seedy so I blend it half way to creamy.
You have got mustard! Make sure you have a good snack ready to eat with it.. My go to is carrots. I could eat this all day long. %u00a0
I am so happy its Friday, but like whoa, this week has flown by so fast. I think%u00a0I need to make a pie to slow things down a bit.. What Kind of pie am I making? We will get to that, but first we must make a killer pie crust, one to hold of the goodness to come. %u00a0
Crusty Stuff. Flour, a stick of frozen butter (or a stick of frozen Earth %u00a0Balance, which I have used and it turns out much the same) a %u00a0bit of sugar, some salt, ice water, and apple cider vinegar*. %u00a0
Dump the dough onto a lightly flour surface and kind of squish, smoosh dough into a pile. The dough is all clumpy and weird looking, Well thats what it is support to look like, so your good. 
Once the dough is gathered into a ball, place onto a piece of wax paper and wrap. Now is the most satisfying part..Smoosh the wrapped dough into a disk but applying pressure. Aaahh, kind of looked like pie crust. Now Stick it in the fridge for a least a hour (Don’t skip this or your crust will be blah)
When something goes on sale at the grocery store, I tend to buy it. Being that it is Valentines Day this week, all the stores are having specials on all sorts of sexy things%u2026 and strawberries are one of them.%u00a0 Now I am not a huge fan of buying produce that is terribly out of season, but I can’t help myself%u2026a good deal is a good deal and the strawberries were a super good deal. I was just going to make some sweet ass strawberry jam or maybe a lovely strawberry cake with them (and I probably still will), but these strawberries are actually super juicy and full of flavor, and it’s always nice to eat some full flavor freshy strawberries%u2026 especially soaked in balsamic vinegar. %u00a0And yeah, %u00a0I think that this salad is pretty sexy, so it makes for a perfect Valentines day dish.
A handful of ingredients and 5 minutes will get you to a fantastic salad experience.
Pour the vinegar on the strawberries and let sit for at least 5 minutes. (the longer the strawberries can sit with the vinegar, the better)
%u00a0
Pile it on.. %u00a0thinly slice avocado.. rough chopped toasted almonds%u2026 It’s pretty much as easy as it can get.
And last but not least, toss on the balsamic soaked strawberries and drizzle the remaining vinegar. (if you made hearts, place on top to make pretty) Sprinkle with a pitch of salt and pepper and pow! Fancy, sexy, delicious salad.
THE LOVELY CRAZY
September 15, 2019 by maximios • Blog
Not just sweater weather, which it had been all week and I am LOVING IT, but it%u2019s lamp light weather too. I forgot that I had all these fantastic lights around my house and yesterday when it was dark out at 6 (it was raining so the sky was cloudy) I got to turn on a couple lamps that haven%u2019t had any action in months. It was soooo nice and cozy. This my friends, this is the best time of year!
Camping last week was great and not so great. The campground was pretty, but our fellows campers were very rawdy and loud and there was a party at the picnic pavilion that had a shitty classic rock cover band playing. The noisy people and shitty music echoed through the park for longer then anyone should have had to deal with it. But I guess that happens, especially on a long holiday weekend. And really, besides the buttheads, we had fun. We went for a nice hike through the woods and into giant fields of wildflowers and goldenrod then spent some great time in the kayaks on a nearby lake (away from all the people). Plus after eating dinner and then packing it in for the night, we didn%u2019t get soaking wet, which we could tell by the many car doors slamming and people screaming at 1am , a good few people did. Our tent stayed nice and dry inside and we even managed to stay dry when we got out of the tent and and realized it was sitting in a giant puddle. We even managed to stayed pretty dry packing up and getting on our way home, in the rain! It%u2019s because we are good at coming I guess.
Then the rest of the week came and went in a fast blur. Mostly some same. Had lunch with Barb, cleaned apartments for new tenants,, made cards for artwork, picked up farm share, and you know, other life stuff. I have been busy in the kitchen harvesting garden food and canning or freezing it as well. Trying to stock up on as much food as I can for the winter. Then the littles slept over Friday. We watched Dumb and Dumber and I fell asleep on the couch. Woke up made waffles (I was so excited to use my waffle iron. It%u2019s been too long) and sent them on their way home to be moody tweens because that is now happening.
Oh, and I can%u2019t forget about how some little shithead smashed in the back of our car. Yup, that happened too. But that is pretty much it. I think%u2026.
Now for today. Mt Auscunty State park if all goes to plan. Should be a fun one with lots of hiking and a big high tower and stuff. I know it is gonna get mighty cold tonight so I am packing my winter long underwear and a jacket, hat, and mittens. So excited!
Links to explore on the internet.
–Doctors are now prescribing houseplants to help treat anxiety and depression. Makes a whole heck of a lot of sense to me. And why not try this simple remedy before trying a bunch of drugs?
-I wasn’t;t surprised much when I read this. Junky processed food is so bad, especially if it is all you eat. .19-Year-Old Goes Blind Due to Diet of Pringles, Bread, Fries, and Processed Meats
–Lush Botanical Forms Translated Into Abstract Embroideries%u00a0. So very pretty.
-Another good reason to ditch that pessimistic attitude and to look at he bright side of things. It doesn%u2019t hurt to try. Optimists For The Win: Finding The Bright Side Might Help You Live Longer
–Why do clowns creep us out?%u00a0Because they are creepy, that is why.
-I want, no, I need this cabin. Totally Off-the-Grid Cabin in the New Hampshire Woods
–This Apple Might Be the Most Anticipated Piece of Produce in History. I heard about this apple few years ago. I wonder if it%u2019s gonna live up tp all the hype. We shall see.
-Why don%u2019t we have one of these? The Otter: The 1950s Amphibious Caravan That Time Forgot!
–Can Bullet Journaling Save You? I am a list maker in all the ways. I a ma doodler to no end. I love pretty things and I love hand writing and have a ton of sketch books but besides the occasional list of note in a sketch book, I have never really gotten into Buju. It%u2019s to time sensitive I think, for me anyway.
–Squeeze in a Quick Nap at Work with This Under-Desk Hammock. A new way to sleep on the job. HA.
Pictures from the week.
For the past few days the mr has been telling everyone that yesterday was the official last day of Summer. For some reason he truly thinks September first is the first day of fall. It%u2019s not true as you probably know (the last day of summer is September 22nd) but around here is sure is starting to feel a lot like fall so I%u2019ll take it.
Last weekend camping was a blast. First we headed to Maidstone, the most remote state park in Vt. Left early in the morning, stopped at a yard sale or two then drove down a very long and bumpy dirt road until we got there.. Maidstone was amazing, a big lake in the middle of nowhere off the edge of nowhere in the nowheres of the NEK. The weather was amazing, our campsite was cool with wooden stairs, the hiking was fantastic, and the loons were all loud and vociferous. And the weather, it was just perfect. Cool and partly cloudy. I got to wear a sweater while hiking and pull on my wool socks in the evening. There are few things that can top a cool night under the stars with the sound of water lapping the shore and loons making sweet loon noises all night and right now I can%u2019t think of them.
After waking up maybe a weee bit to early (I can%u2019t help it), we packed up and headed to the next park, Brighton. A pond in little town still in the middle of nowhere, although it felt more somewhere then Maidstone due to the fact that there was a store and a gas station in town. And there was an actual town. We stopped and walked around the little neighborhood and along the train tracks then we found a few little hiking trails in random places, and hiked them. The mr did some fishing, I did a lot of reading, all before we even got the the park at lunch time. Once we got there, the usual occurred with a good hike, chillin by the fire, eating food, and after being out and about all over for the past few days, we were dead beat. So we crawled into the tent as soon as the sun set and passed the F out. Woke up freezing and happy but then kind of sad. Had to get on getting on home.
Then we were home. The mr went straight away to work, I might have passed out a little bit, but then stuff needed doing so I got on that.
As far as the rest of the week, there was the last day of summer vacation surprise dinner and park play we had with the littles which was followed by first day of school. I spent a good chunk of time finishing up a bunch of rainbows (and clouds) and installed them for Art Hop next week. The floors at the apartment were sanded (the mr all the way) and are now in the process of being urethaned. I picked up farm share (I missed it last week so I was running scarily low on veggies), maintained a casual relationship with my own garden, and watched the 15 foot tall sunflower in the front yard bloom. Did this and that and ran all over. Typical stuff.
Now we are back to Sunday again and we are raring and ready. Gonna grab the camping stuff, toss the kayaks on the car, and head out. Going south this weekend to lake Bomoseem. I am very much excited. The weather looks terrific for the day, (it is suppose to rain in the middle of the night but that is totally fine) and we are just ready to be out of town for the day again. And hopefully tomorrow being labor day and all we can not do to much and just chill. Rainy and cool. Perfect weather for a blanket, a book, and hot coffee all day long. I might even get some knitting out%u2026..
Internet for you.
–The Life of a Person Who Wakes Up Really, Really Early. That%u2019s me, an extreme lark!
-If I ever need to plant grass. A Miracle No Mow Grass. Actually looks so nice and soft.
–The Difference Between Pepitas & Pumpkin%u00a0Seeds. Nope, they are not the same but kinda are?
-Could you imagine nit having a summer vacation from school? Honestly, I think I would rather have a winter vacation, or 4 smaller vacations if I had a choice I the matter. The Case For Summer Vacation
-It%u2019s back. A short cultural history of tie-dye
–On Being a Great Aunt. I am a great aunt%u2026 right? I think so anyway.
-Among other things I want to protect myself from Gwyenth. Dr. Jen Gunter Wants to Protect Your Vagina From Gwyneth Paltrow
–FOR THE CHAIR COLLECTORS OUT THERE. Love a good chair.
-We are drowning in plastic. U.S. Recycling Industry Is Struggling To Figure Out A Future Without China
–Battle of the Bubbles. I should have started a seltzer water business when I had the idea 10 years ago. Oh well.
Pictures from the week.
Already? That week just blew on by. Probably because of the midweek holiday and that always makes time move in weird ways.
This week felt like a lot went on. Some of the same old, same old, but there was a lot of activities thrown in. We went on a bike ride picnic one day, another day we had lunch at the co-oop with my mom. Then on the third of July a lot of places do fireworks and so, after the mr saying we had to do something this year, we decided to go to the fireworks in Montpelier. Whoa did that kick my butt. Staying out and awake past dark was no way an easy feat. But well worth it. Sure the fireworks were ,well, they were what they were (I don%u2019t really care for fireworks) but the lead up was amazing. On our way to the town we stopped on the side of the road at a giant old graveyard. We were so early that we decided it would be something cool to do while it got dark out. Well this graveyard was on a massive hill and when we got to the top, we had the most amazing view of the valley and where the fireworks were going to go off so, duh, we stayed and walked around. And then it happened. Dusk came, it started to get dark, and all of a sudden. Fireflies. Everywhere. It was magical. And then the fireworks went off and we couldn%u2019t get home fast enough. I was dead ass tired.
The next day, I was exhausted, but oh well. The littles came over for the afternoon and we played the day away in the sprinkler and ran around with water guns. Barb and Paul came over too, ate grilled veggies dogs, mac and cheese, chopped cabbage, and popsicles. We lit the sparklers, walked the block, and then off they all went to do more fire stuff and I went to bed super early. I was still trying to recover from being out so late the night before.
The rest of the week was doing little things around the house, going to the studio, running errands. Being hot.
Then yesterday. A very productive day even with the nasty humid. Grocery shopping, the dump, rainbows, cleaning. I even did a good hour of weeding in the garden even though I was sweating through my soul. Gosh it really was gross. And then I went for a little walk and got caught in a crazy downpour of rain. And I wasn%u2019t made about it. Not one bit.
And it is Sunday again. Today is unplanned for the most part. I%u2019ll bike to gym and thats all I got so far. After yesterday, doing anything outside will be fantastic so I am hoping that the mr wants to go for a hike or something. I know he said there was work he needed to do but come on, mid 70%u2019s and no humidity%u2026. I%u2019ll be dragging his ass somewhere.
Internet links from me to you.
-Living in Vermont, we are so lucky to not have to deal with earth quakes. The science behind California%u2019s two big earthquakes
-It%u2019s just about tomato season so you should know this. How to Store Tomatoes So They Stay Plump & Fresh for a Very Long%u00a0Time. And know this too. How to Pick the Right Type of Lettuce for Way Better%u00a0Salads
–After 6-Year Battle, Florida Couple Wins The Right To Plant Veggies In Front Yard. How crazy is it that they were not allowed to plant veggies in THEIR YARD because they were unsightly%u2026 What the F!@K is wrong with people? !
–The Science Of Smiles, Real And Fake. Don%u2019t tell me to smile. I will bite you.
-I think I need a pool. This COWBOY POOL DIY.
–This Skinny House That%u2019s Just 10 Feet Wide Is for Sale in New York. I kinda really want it.
-I alway love the backs of embroidery. These rugs are awesome. Raw-Edges Flips Traditional Embroidery on Its Head with Backstitch Rugs
–The Joy of Not Wearing a Bra. First thing I do when I come home (sometimes even in the car on the way home) is to take my bra OFF! But really, I avoid bra wearing at all cost.
-I want these boots. Grund%u00e9ns Deck-Boss Ankle Boots
-I really wanted to be a water witch when I was growing up. Still kind of do. The Magic of Dowsing Keeps Holding On
Pictures from the week.
I%u2019ll try to be good and not bitch too much about how hot I am. And really, it hasn%u2019t actually been that bad. At least I am not in France. If I were in France, I would be losing my shit. I think they reached 113 degrees a day ago. So I am puting things in perspective here. I am not that hot.
Yup. Another week come and gone and now were are more then half way through the year. It%u2019s hard to believe but time stops for no one. So what did you do with you week? For us, it was the basic. Work stuff, family stuff, trying to get out into the world as much as possible. The mr and I snuck (well the fence had yet to go up) into the new pool construction zone around the corner from us to take pictures and see what all the construction commotion has been about all week. As of now, it a giant ass hole in the ground. We found the mr a new desk for free on craigslist and It weighted a thousand pounds and almost killed me moving it up the stairs. I picked up farm share and picked me some fresh flowers. We went to a river for fishing/reading time. And there were a few bike rides, lots of walks, amazing sunsets, rainy days, hot nights. Trying our darnest to live up the summer as much as possible. Now we just need to get our shit together and get our camping and kayaking game going. It might be a slow start to the season but we will get there. Maybe next week and every weekend after that.
Dad Jeff came to town for a couple days and so Friday, right after I came home from work, I had the family over for family dinner. I made 8 pizzas (all the dough the night before) and ice cream cones with sprinkles. A hit for sure. We got lucky because it wasn’t raining so we all got to play around outside. The littles in the sprinkler or playing soccer with the mr. Dad sitting on the stairs talking about rare coins and trying to give away the most creepy porcelain dolls that were my grandmothers and should really be buried as to not come alive and murder people. And there was no arguing or fighting, just shinny happy people holding hands. HA. But really, it was good. It%u2019s always so nice to get everyone together. We are all a bunch of lunatics so we really understand each other.
And then yesterday I spend half the day cleaning up all those happy feeling. The sprinkles from the ice cream made there way into every crack and crevice in the house which makes no sense because everyone ate ice cream outside. Those littles. They are good at tracking the shit into the house.
Today is up I the air. I am going to bike into town to the gym and library and the maybe stop at the coop for some spices, but after that I am probably going to be hanging around the house. The mr has a big delivery coming sometime today and needs to be available at a moments notice so we can%u2019t really take off. Just as well. I have a bunch of projects that I should be wrapping up. Today might just be that day. Or I might just sit around a read all day. I am good with either.
Interent from the internet that might be of some interest to you.
–Why We Remember Stonewall. Because it was important and significant in helping launch a civil rights movement.
-I prefer to carry a spork, but you get the picture. Why carrying your own fork and spoon helps solve the plastic crisis
–8 Types of Indoor Fruit Trees You Can Grow in Your Living%u00a0Room. I have a lemon tree. I want the rest of them.
-Well done San Francisco, well done. San Francisco Bans Sales Of E-Cigarettes
-Now if I just had 2k just kicking around%u2026..Garden Dome Igloo.
–These Prefab Treehouses Were Inspired By Cartoons. And they are so cool.
-Because you have been wondering all along too. How to solve the water puzzle from Die Hard 3
–The Infrastructure of Joy. Will building delight into cities make them more cloying or more fun? Definitely for sure. I know I am more joyful being anywhere that is more bright and happy. Isn%u2019t everyone?
-Imagine living without time, or without the confines of knowing the time. Whoa. Meet The Residents Of A Norwegian Island Who Want To Kill Time %u2014 Literally
–The Best Potatoes Are Boiled in Exxxtremely Salty Water. Not going to disagree.
And pictures from the week.
It%u2019s official. Summertime is here. Take it all in and enjoy it because that%u2019s what we need to do. Before it is gone again.
The week has been good. Besides the usual work and stuff, we have spent a lot of time with our people and trying to do things outside everyday. There was an afternoon of Barb and Coco where we went to the beach to find drift wood and throw rocks. Megan and So came over for lunch and teeth wiggling (her two from teeth a loose!! (Sophias, not Megans)) another afternoon. We stopped over to Erins to see the painting mess and Coco drawings all over the walls. The mr and I went for a little hike that took us out under bridges to a graffiti wonderland. That was unexpected and very cool.
Then there is thing that has been on my mind for the past few days. One night in the middle of the week, the mr and I both woke up to a terrifying screaming noice. Like something was dying, killing something, or some creature was about to suck out my soul. It definitely was not anything human. It freaked me out so much that I didn’t want to get out of bed to look out the window because I thought whatever was making the noice would see me awake and come kill me or some shit. So I laid in bed until it stopped then was worried it stopped because I didn%u2019t know where it went%u2026. CREEPY AS FUCK! And it happened again Friday night. So I am officially scared that the hell moth in opening up in my back yard. Or it could be a fox. Not sure. I%u2019ll let you know either way. But until I figure it out, I am going to freshen up my Buffy the Vampire Slayer knowledge. Just in case.
Other then that, the rest of the week was a success. The mr finished off the beautiful cedar outdoor table, I picked up farm share and cleaned out my home studio. At the BCA Studio, the kids summer camps started so working there was a bit different. Instead of loading kilns, I was doing clay things with kids. Just got to say, after working all Friday with others peoples kids, hanging out with just Judah that night was pretty much the best. Being around other peoples (not in my family) kids really makes me realize just how cool my littles are. I mean, how cool is it that while I was at work, Judah helped the mr fix a roof? All for a slushy and my home made pizza and just wanted to hang out and draw? That%u2019s a cool kid.
Yesteraday was just a gem. I woke up, did a few things before the sun even came up then sat on the front porch, drank my coffee and read. I even was able to go to the grocery store and cleaned out the pantry before Judah even woke up. (He ended up sleeping over Friday.). I then made pancakes for the boys, harvested greens, and played with the sprinkler. We then picked up Coco to go walk by the waterfront, throw rocks, and of course go down the slide a million times. All this before lunch. After we dropped the little back off, we came home and just hung out. Went for a bike ride, the mr secured the tree from the blowing winds and worked on the treehouse. I cleaned and puttered. The only crappy part was while I was putting away dishes I stabbed a fork under my finger nail. The prong went in deep and it bled like crazy. AGH. I would have rather cut my finger off. And now I have a swollen, still bleeding sometimes, very painful finger that has my heartbeat throbbing in it. But the rest of the day, and evening, besides the pain, was relaxing and lovely.
Today is suppose to be another wonderful day and we are hoping to enjoy it as much as the day will let us. I am going bike to the gym then come home and hop into car with the mr and drive away for the day. Where we are going, not exactly sure. Just out of town, into some of the world. Windows down, wind in my hair, tunes on the radio, coffee in my cup, and a lovely love by my side. Things are good.
Interesting internet. Take a look.
–How to lucid dream, and why you’d want to. I think I really started to think about controlling my dreams I might freak out go crazy.
–How important is seasonal eating? It is important to me for so many reasons. Biggest reason, I try to grow as much as I eat and the seasons depict that. Not a lot of fresh tomatoes coming Vermont in the winter.
-The terrifying screaming might be this? Red Fox Sounds.
–Whatever Happened to #Vanlife? Well, Things Are Changing. Van life is not just for the surfer dudes anymore.
–No Matter the Hack, Some Kitchen Tasks Will Always Be a Pain in the Ass. HERE HERE!! But here is a hack for garlic%u2026.just eat the freaking skin. No peeling. HA
-These are some kickass vinyl floors.
-Why wouldn%u2019t pants like good tunes. Good vibrations. It just makes sense. Music For Plants Is Real (Even If The Science Isn’t)
–What’s the Difference Between Sparkling Water and Seltzer? I needed to double check.
-Give me a good, healthy life, over a really long life. Human Lives Might Be Long Enough Already
Pictures from the week.
Besides the usual hubbub of life around here, a few things really stick out to me from last week. First off, at the beginning of the week we FINALLY BOUGHT A VAN!!! It was amazing. A big white astro van. Original big boat like seats. The three door trunk that was everything. Ashrtays in the back seat (yes they did) . Its was perfect. Perfect for work, for travel, perfect for life. But notice I say %u201cit was%u201d. Well guess what? We also RETURNED A VAN!!!! Yup. We bought it, brought it home, and as soon as we got home, the brakes went out. Oh, ok we thought. Let%u2019s bring it to our mechanic and see what he says. Turns out the mechanic that we bought it from was a little shady and sold us a lemon. Not only were the bakes rotten, but there was a bunch of other hidden issues. So yeah. no more van. We were, and still are a bit crushed, but it could have been worse right? We could have been flying down the interstate when the brakes gave out and that would have been much much worse.
Enough about the van. A good thing this week is Erin and I went and got bikes for the littles. It was awesome. They were so excited and cute and it was just so good. We walked into the bike shop, picked out bikes, test rode bikes, and bought bikes, all within an hour. Yeah I might have told them they suck because they were able to just go get a bike and I have been bike shopping for over a month and have spent hours at the bike shop, but whatever. And so we brought the bike back to my house, I made dinner, and they biked around the neighborhood. At first Judah was having really hard time because he had never ridden a grip brake, shifting bike, but after a little lesson from the mr, the kid was off. Only stopped to tell us that his nuts hurt. (Good to know kid).
And last but but not least, maybe the worst part of life at the moment. The MOTHERFUCKING MOSQUITOS. Those fuckers be feasting on me like what. It%u2019s nasty disgusting, and all sorts of terrible. All of a sudden there are millions and billions and you can barely even walk out of the house before they start to swarm. I have received no less then one thousand bites this week, and that is me trying not to get bitten. (Yes I am exaggerating, but seriously.) I don%u2019t even know what to do anymore. It is so bad that when you walk from the house to the car you are probably going to get bitten in the face at least once if not a bunch of times. It is all sorts of wrong and I just can%u2019t even. I lay awake at night trying not to itch off all my skin because of all the bites. And they are not normal mosquitos bites, these bits itch and almost hurt for days. Gardening.. please. I am out there in all my socks, pants, jackets, and hoods. Still they attack my face and hands. Hopefully this is the worst of it and any day now all the bats will come and eat them aaaaaalllllll!!!!!I(I might start importing bats to my house) That or I am going to turn myself into an electric bug zapper. How? Not sure yet. I%u2019ll let you know if I figure it out.
Anyway. That is mostly the gist of the week. Some downs, some ups, but all and all not horrible. The weather alone folks. Let talk about that for a minute. How freaking fantastic has it been? I am loving it. Little sun here and there, Some rain showers, a few thunderstorms. Not cold, not hot. Pretty much perfect in my eyes. And the world. So much pretty! The trees. I mean, can you not say spring foliage might be even better then fall? The trees are just so vibrant in greens, whites and purples. It is good. We are good.
Now for today. I am leaving the house much too early to go read and drink coffee in the car, waiting for the gym to open. Why you may ask would I do that. Well if I want to go to the gym, I need to get inside the perimeter of the Vermont City Marathon. The course starts right around there so the roads will be blocked off with thousands of people running for a few hours this morning. Sure I could skip gym and run around here, but I would rather not have to run in full body armor. (DAMN the MOSQUITOES AAAGHHHH!!!!) And really, I don%u2019t mind. I can even sit on the steps at the gym that overlook the lake. It actually will be kind of nice. After that, I%u2019ll come home, grab the mr, and we will head up to Belvidere for some family time. Cousins are in the state so we, and the other sisters, are going up for lunch. Let%u2019s just hope the mosquitoes are not as bad up there. I can%u2019t take it.
Interent for the taking.
-I have always considered the use by date a suggestion. I think the simple wording change will make a big difference. To Reduce Food Waste, FDA Urges ‘Best If Used By’ Date Labels. And really, who says the best isn%u2019t yet to come? HA
-Erin has the right idea, to buy THESE in bulk. I am seriously considering getting at least one set. I can%u2019t take the MOTHERF$%#ERS anymore!
-This feels heavy. Finding purpose is a somewhat fluid concept, don%u2019t you think? Either way, this makes a lot of sense. What’s Your Purpose? Finding A Sense Of Meaning In Life Is Linked To Health
-My dad sent me this link. It%u2019s a little video of his life goal, to be a extreme mountain bike nanny. (my dad is a weirdo.)
–GLAMOUR CAMPER SPF 50+ ALL NATURAL SUNSCREEN WITH ALL NATURAL BUG DETERRENT & GLITTER. And Glitter. Need I say more?
-I love old charts and pictures from textbooks. These are particularly fantastic. Cross-Sections of Geological Formations and Views of the Cosmos Bring the World to Life in 19th Century Educational Charts
–What Is A Moonbow?%u00a0 And now on my life bucket list of things I need to see.
– Shipping containers just keep getting cooler. Modpools. Shipping Container Pools
–This Study Shows That Having Flowers and Plants Can Ease Pain and Anxiety. Truth. Flowers and plants are everything.
-Firefly magic. How these mysterious fireflies synchronize their dazzling light shows
Pictures from the week
This week has definitely gone by really slow except that it has flown by super fast, you know what I mean? It%u2019s probably because of all the up and down weather and my overall crazy brain that is pulling me all over the place New seasons do that to me, make me crazy.
The week started off with Easter. We went to my moms (half the family didn%u2019t show up (butthole reasons), did some lunch, played outside, and that was that. Then I came home to continue yarding (yarding is a new word I invented that means to spend time in the yard doing yard stuff)
The rest of the week went. We worked, the mr finished putting the floor down in the porch (I forgot to take a picture) He moved the camper and created a new workshop, applied large stickers to doors, made me 6 more raised beds (4 are TRIANGLES!!!). He has been doing all sorts of stuff. Me, I have been spending as much time outside I as I can, in between the piles of papers that I am trying to deal with, working at the studio, throwing pots, thinking about fixing my bike, and all around trying not run through a wall. I am in that head space where everything needs to be done and I am trying to do everything. All at once. Thats my spring brain. All of a sudden and BAM, my brain is awake, the world is awake, and there is a ton of shit to do.
On one of the nicer days (it has been a little chilly and rainy all week) we spent a few hours with Megan her littles and I grabbed the other littles. We took them outside, into the world, away from screen for a little jaunt in the woods, some time on the playground, and a bagel sandwich lunch. Fresh air, stick collecting, and see sawing was the highlight of the afternoon and a highlight of the week. I mean, gown ass people and little littles on the see saw, well you will see. Haha.
Saturday morning, 8 am, grocery store. If you need to grocery shop, this is the time. Yesterday I got to the store and no one else was there except all the stockers who had nicely stocked everything that I was looking for. I got to it before all the other people did and was rewarded with the best cabbages and apples! After that I went home, the mr took off to work with his work guy and I ended up staying home for the morning, cleaning house, doing laundry, and trying to organize the unorganizable. After that the mr came home we went and hung out with the littles for a few and got texted $5 each of store credit to the hardware store which in turn turned into a bunch of new seeds. Yay free seeds!
Today the mr and I were planning on hitting up the Kingdom to watch some jumping trout, but with the weather being as it is (raining and cloudy) we are going to hold off on that and just find a nice little, not too flooded stream for the mr to fish in and for me to sit nearby and spend some time reading. With all the coffee my can cup and bring. It%u2019s gonna be great.
Some stuff you might find of interest from the internet.
–Our Grocery Stores, Ourselves. Loyalties to the grocery store are deep. I know I have mine, kind of. (I shop around and I am more loyal to the farm then any grocery store.) But I do think there is a definite quality difference to stores, at least around here. You get to know which store sells local. Which stores have the crappy greens, or which store charge and extra $2 for the same exact thing you can get at a different store for that much cheaper. Straight to the farm . Always best.
-Always water, mostly because it is free and I hate having to have stock or broth on hand. WHEN WATER CAN BE THE KEY TO MORE FLAVORFUL SOUPS
I am pretty into these murals Maybe i%u2019ll try not do something like on one of my walls. Interior Murals by Camille Javal
-I could, and should, and dang it I am going to make something like this A frame. Simple and sweet. Now were to put it?
-Just in case you don%u2019t know. What%u2019s the Difference Between Jam and Jelly?
–Wait, I Should Clean My Fridge *How*%u00a0Often?. Yes folks. And I tell you, clean the stove every time! It%u2019s one of the best habits I have ever created.
-I wish I could embroider like this. Pretty freaking awesome. Graceful Figures and Shimmering Peacocks Embroidered on Tulle
–Can Nothing Change Your Life? Essence of flower is a thing and it might just be what you need in your life.
-Trees are magical. Trees by starlight%u2026 Whoa. See the world%u2019s oldest trees by starlight.
–I am very excited to find this pattern for this FRENCH MARKET BAG. Now I just need to learn how to crochet%u2026%u2026%u2026Yeah.
And pictures from the week.
I think we did it, we made it through the winter. That little bit of snow the other night, well that was it. Until next winter!!!!! Now lets all just do all the spring things and enjoy the niceness of moderate temperatures and the sight of green things growing. We are in it and it is wonderous.
The past week flew by so fast. A lot of being everywhere at once and alll over. Now that spring has sprung there has been much to do. Besides working and the usual (the little apartment projects are just piling up) we have looked at not 1, but 3 different cars. The one van on Sunday was a bust (the guy was crazy and the car was dead. Craigslist. A definite miss there), and two others. Those were not good either (but not nearly as bad) so the hunt continues, as does the back and forth car sharing situation. We are definitely getting to our limit with sharing one small car but I have faith we will find something soon. Our poor car. It%u2019s getting trashed.
In between the work and life stuff we got to spend the most magical raining morning harvested wood from an apple orchard for future spoon projects. That might have been the highlight of the week, especially because I have now realized that I am suppose to live and work on apple orchard. I think it is my calling so I got to get on that. Other fun things included an evening of egg dying with Qui, Adrianna, and the littles which was fun and gross and I actually hate the whole real eggs and dying them thing, but the mr was all about it so%u2026.We also got to spend (babysit) an afternoon with So where she basically spent the entire time to beating on the mr and feeding us unicorn jellybean soup. Good times with that one.
And then there were taxes. I spent ever single free minute attempting to finish the stupid taxes and learn all about tax laws and try to be component. It got to the point where I was almost in tears%u2026 then I gave up. As of Friday morning, I now have until October to get those stupid things done. And I think we are just going to find a new accountant because really, I don%u2019t want to spend all my time learning tax law. Not my thing. I mean, when it takes me twenty minutes to figure out that the form won%u2019t summit because I am entering the wrong date (2018, not 2019), well, I should just leave it to a professional.
Saturday was the gem. Woke up to temperatures in the mid 50%u2019s, went for a nice walk, spent the morning throwing pots, and did some light cleaning. For the afternoon we met up with all the sisters, the littles, Mom and had lunch. The boys went away (they hung out at the park being dangerous) while us ladies went to the theater%u2026..Mamma Mia. Us girls bought the tickets for Mom%u2019s birthday present a few weeks ago. Not exactly my thing, but I was game.. And it was better then I was expecting, although I was%u2019t sure what I was expecting. I don%u2019t think I would have gone if not for many other circumstances, but it was fun and my mom had a great time. My biggest complaint was it was really loud and there were a ton of people. Oh, and that I have a Dancing Queen ear worm. But other then that, not bad.. After the show, the mr picked me up, we rushed to get some more things done before going home to finish cleaning. That might not sound fantastic but it was still light out, the world was still warm, the doors and windows were open and it just felt so good. Oh yes. Spring is finally here!
Today is going to be good. I plan on spending most of it out in the yard doing yard work. I am going to lather on the sunscreen, grab the tunes, the rake, hoe, and the shovel and get to it. Then hopefully I%u2019l be able to throw some seeds into the ground which I am already getting concerned about. The squirrels have come out full force and are looking hungry!.
Let the garden battles begin!
Some stuff I read on the internet from the week.
Again, I filed an extension. Why do they have to be so freaking hard? Another thing they have right in the Netherlands. Filing Your Taxes Is an Expensive Time Sink. That%u2019s Not an Accident.
-So my kind of home. This 650-Square-Foot Family Home in Ohio Is Off-Grid %u2018Country Minimalism%u2019
–Day hikers are the most vulnerable in survival situations. Here’s why. We have lost the trail before and it was actually kind of scary. Luckly we were on a small mountain and we knew there was a road at the bottom. We just kept going down until we hit the road. Ever since I stay very away of the trail.
-Genius. Pure genius And they are Vermont students too!. SheFly: Answer Nature’s Call
–How to Get Out of Your Own Head. I spend a lot of time in my head but that is where I feel the least crazy.. Or is that crazy. People make me crazy. They can%u2019t get me in my head.
-I exclusively clean with vinegar. Even my hardwood floors. Vinegar Is the Only Floor Cleaner You Need (Even for Carpet!)
–Oprah Bought an Avocado Orchard Because Grocery Store Avocados Were Too Expensive. The lady has got her priorities straight. For real, I would buy an avocado orchard too if I was Oprah rich too.
–Are Plastic Bag Bans Garbage? We (humans) just need to stop making more and reuse all the junk we already have. Reusable bags made out of all the old clothing and shit has no purpose anymore.
–“Do Skunks Like Their Own Smell?” And Other Stumpers! I always thought that skunks deals with their stink kind of like a person deals with their own farts%u2026 They just deal. HA
And pictures from the week.