How You Doin' (Part Two)

I told you I was committed to updating this little blog of mine. In a way I'm a little surprised myself. I had always sworn that if I got backed up I would just pick up right where I was and not back track. This certainly isn't the first time I'm going back on something I swore I would never do. You should just ask the youth leaders I had growing up about everything I said I would never do.

The thing is, with the blog I never really wanted this to be a journal. For now I feel like it's been a good spring and summer that needs to be documented. So, no...I'm not journaling. I'm simply documenting.

Early Celebrations This year marks 10 years of wedded-ness.Being that this year is the really the first whopper of an anniversary, we decided to go on an adventure sans children. It was the first time. Ever. Ever, as in since the girls entered the picture. Okay, our anniversary is not until November, but who says you can't celebrate a milestone of this magnitude for an entire year.

So we left the children in the capable and loving hands of Grammy and my niece, Victoria and headed to the rainy Northwest for a week.We had never been to Seattle, and the stars aligned in such a way that the city kind of chose us. For the record, the only time it rained was the day we left, but it was much colder than I anticipated.

We found a week away to be too long not only for what there was to do in Seattle, but it was difficult being away from the girls for that long. We divided our time between the northern Puget Sound/San Juan Islands and Seattle. Seattle has some fun and whimsical neighborhoods that we loved, and hiking up north was breathtaking. The antique stores weren't too shabby either.

The week away certainly did it's job: we were able to reconnect in a way that isn't possible when the kids are around. It's amazing how much effort is required before you remember how to have conversations without the typical interruptions and that don't revolve around the functions of life at home. I think we're sold on an annual couple's retreat. Maybe not for quite as long next time. 

My Happy Place Once again we are participating in the Great Country Farms CSA. Getting out to the country once a week where the girls have an opportunity to play after we pick produce from the fields is just about the happiest thing we've done this summer. I don't think there has been one time the girls didn't want to go.

Though they were very ready to leave this past week when we were DRENCHED by buckets of rain that lasted only while we were picking our peaches and raspberries. It started as the hayride to the fields left and stopped when we pulled up to the store coming home. It was kind of nice to have use of the heater in August.

More to come. Certainly the best is yet.

All I Want is A Bouncy Cow

Friday was my Sweet Addie-Cake's birthday. Who knew three years could go so fast. No longer the chunky 8lbs 8oz babe, she is full of personality, happiness, and a mind of her own.

Did I mention that she knows what she wants? We're going to the farm again this year, where one of her favorite things to do is play with the bouncy cows. Silly thing.

So that's what she got. And she bounced all evening while she played with her cousins. What can I say, the girl likes to move.

It was more than a little difficult getting her here, but who could resist those chunky cheeks and rolly-polly legs. And that cute smile.

A Fly On The Wall

Why is it that I always have ideas for a fab blog post only to find by the time I get my rear in gear to write the moment is gone? Yeah, that's pretty much the story of my life.

It's been one of those weeks, or two, that not a whole lot has happened, yet there's gobs to tell. If you were a fly on the wall in my life, this is what you would have seen:

1) It's official. I'm running another 26.2 miles April 9th. Now I really need to find someone to run the entire 26.2 with me. Or just someone that is insane enough to tag along for the long runs. A few friends of mine are running the half marathon which will be great fun for the first 13.1 miles we run together. But then they are done.  And that's really not helpful to me especially on those long, arduous runs this winter. Any takers?

2) I've realized yet again that I'm all or nothing. The past few weeks I've been an organizing maniac. Label maker and all. The result was a large pile-o-crap, a few tense moments between Otterpop and I while we negotiated what should stay or go. And of course our stuff is a great deal more organized than it was before. Why was it this experience that made me realized it's all or nothing for me? You see, in the time I was going through all that, everything else was neglected. Blog included.

3) Yard Sales really aren't for those who don't have mountains of crap to unload. I'm usually the sale-ee, but a few weeks ago Otterpop's sister's community was having their fall community sale and we tagged along with their sale. We tried to sell the crap from #2, and ended up with $40 in our pocket and a big carload to the Salvation Army. The kids, other the other hand, made $60 on their bake sale. Lesson learned: If you want some extra cash, load a table with goodies on the corner and set your kids out there to sell them. (The goodies, not the kids)

4) But...the trip to the Salvation Army made the scant $40 we got for hours of labor well worth it. You see, Serendipity occurred while I was dumping our junk. Another dump-ee pulled up the same time I did with a FABULOUS round, green ottoman. The kind I've coveted for not a short amount of time. Before I even asked if I could buy it off of him, the man offered to load it into my car. For free. I suppose you could say I was paid $40 to get a fabulous piece of furniture I've wanted for a long time.

5) With the end of the growing season comes the end of our CSA season. Bummer. I've really enjoyed our weekly box. The silver lining is that we now get to be gleaners. Last week I gleaned lots of green tomatoes, bell peppers and jalapenos and made a roasted tomato salsa. It's not my favorite, but it's not bad either. Oh yeah...and I canned it. How industrious am I? Madre y Padre are so proud.

6) Lester visited this weekend, and I was reminded how much I've let myself go this summer. I really haven't been running much, so when I went for a run with her Saturday I felt like a slug. I tell my self lately it's because I've had that nasty lung infection that everyone seems to have. However......I. Must. Run. More.

7) I've also been hearing the song "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" sung over, and over, and over again by my favorite two year old. Lester got it on video.

8) Halloween is quickly approaching. I couldn't be more excited. While Lester was here I helped her make the patterns for her costume. It's going to be WONDERful. And Otterpop and I figured out our costumes. Last year I was Willy Wonka and Otter was my Oompa Loompa. It was FAB. And a lot of work. Luckily the work is cut in half this year because a friend is letting me borrow a costume. So now I just have to make Otterpop's. CAN'T WAIT!!!!! It's going to be epic.

Oh yeah....the girl's have their costumes picked out too.  But who ever said Halloween is about the kids?

9) Sweet Cheeks started preschool last week. Does it make me a bad mom if I don't bother bringing a camera to document her first day of preschool? I mean, this is her third year of preschool, and she went to the same school last year. So really it's nothing new. Okay. That's me justifying my laziness. Poor kid.

10) Otterpop is out of town. Again. Boo. But...Well, I was going to say there's something good about his traveling this time. Nothing comes to mind. It's another week without Daddy. Hours of Fun for Everyone.

I think that pretty much covers it. I'm trying to force productivity today. That's a pretty silly idea when I just got a book from the library that I've been waiting for over a month to get. You can bet what I'll be doing as soon as this is posted. Till we meet again, wish me happy reading.

A Belated "Thanks A Lot" to Earl

Earl kicked us out of North Carolina. OK, that was last week. It's kinda old news at this point, but hey, I've been a slacker.

I could give you all the riveting details, but, like I said, it's old news and you've probably forgotten there was even a hurricane last week. Plus lots have happened since the book-induced neglect. Here's the rundown:

OBX - oh how you are missed, my friend
Last summer my family fell in love with North Carolina's Outer Banks. This year we rented a beach house in Corolla with Otterpop's family. The benefit of renting the last week of the summer is that the rates are discounted. Deeply. The drawback is that you are gambling with hurricane season. Which usually isn't much of a gamble because hurricanes don't regularly hit the Carolinas.

We lost the gamble this year, and Earl sent us packing 2 days early. The silver lining is that we left the night before the evacuation order and didn't have to deal with the traffic. I have a nagging sense of superiority because we got out before the other vacationers. Of course I would have felt like a complete idiot had the storm blown over after we voluntarily skipped out on two full beach days.

Here are picks. To get an idea of our fabulous location, the picture of the dunes was taken from our deck. It really was perfect.

My nickname should be Freckles.

A Night Out On The Georgetown
Otterpop and I hit Georgetown on a double date with his sister's in-laws who also came with us to OBX. We don't go there enough. Then again, if I was a more frequent visitor I would probably spent a lot of money. Too many fun things in too many fun stores. We went on a Friday night, so I pretty much felt like an old lady next to all the bar-hopping college students. Well, sort-of. There were people of all ages, but I definitely noticed how young college kids are. They really are just kids. Weird.

Invading the Farm
A friend of mine took family pictures for us at the farm. I'm in the process of sifting through 500+ pics and editing the ones I like. So fun! Really. I love it.

Missing In Action...again
Otterpop has been out of town...all week. This time in the slightly more exotic Jacksonville. I have friends whose husbands leave for 6 or more weeks at a time, so really I can't complain. But it really is a drag.

Big Girl Unders and Puddles
Addie-Cakes has been working hard on using the potty. I tried it early this summer and gave up when after three days Addie-Cakes obstinately refused to even go near the potty. She's doing much better this time. Except for the times she asks for a diaper and tries to put it on herself. And as long as I remember to take her every 30 minutes or so. Otherwise it pretty much sucks to be me. The water fall on my bed this morning was great fun.

Tomorrow we're taking advantage of the beautiful weather to pick apples and make apple sauce. Yea for fall!!

More posts to come now that I've officially left behind slacker mode. At least for the time being ;)

The Spoils of Nature...

This year we became members of Great Country Farms,which means we get a share of the GFC harvest weekly from June through November. GFC is a fabulous place, and I recommend anyone living in NOVA visit. We love it.

The thing about it, though, is that we get lots of food stuff that we normally never eat. Of course that's the point of it, but it becomes tricky trying to find something to do with a hundred pounds of Swiss Chard or Kale. I got lucky with the Swiss Chard, still looking for the Kale.

Last week we got a pint of tart cherry's, but I haven't had time to do anything with them until today. Fortunately, I opened Elana's Pantry and the new recipe she just posted today was for Cherry Blueberry Crumble. YUM.

The blueberry fields were closed today, so we picked black raspberries instead. I guess this will be a Cherry Black Raspberry crumble instead.

I'm not sold on almond flour as a GF substitute, so I'll have to figure out how to do this probably with Bob's Red Mill All Purpose flour. It's not my favorite because I think the sourgum flour leaves a strong aftertaste, but it's still my go-to flour and I'm sure it will work just fine.

Here is the recipe if you don't feel like going to Elana's Pantry to get it:

Cherry Blueberry Crumble

Filling:

4 cups fres cherries, pitted

1 pint fresh blueberries (black raspberries in my case)

1/4 cup agave nectar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons arrowroot powder (I'm sure cornstarch would work just fine)

Topping:

21/4 cups GF flour mix

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup oil

1/4 cube agave nectar

1. For filling, place cherries and blueberries in a 3 quart baking dish.

2. Sprinkle fruit with agave, lemon juice and vanilla, then toss in arrowroot (or corn starch)

3. To make the crumble, combine flour and salt in a large bowl

4. In a smaller bowl combine oil and agave.

5. Mix the wet ingredients into dry to form the topping

6. Then crumble topping over fruit mixture.

7. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until bubbling

8. Uncover and bake a few more minutes until topping is golden brown.

9. Remove from oven and serve.