Ginger Lemonade

What could be more refreshing than ice cold lemonade during this last hot days of summer?

Here is a wonderful recipe that is also healthy. It really perks you up! 

* 2inches fresh ginger root
* 2-3 lemons
* stevia to taste
*2 quarts of water

Wash & peel ginger. Grate is finely over a bowl. Squeeze the grated ginger mash with your fingers to extract the juice (I covered mine with a lemon net) Discard the dry mash. Bring water to a boil. Remove from heat and add ginger juice ans juice from 2-3 lemons (I used 2). Add Stevia and stir well. *Note, I used fresh stevia leaves from my garden that I crushed with a mortar & pestle. I used about 5 leaves-wow! first time trying this and it is sweet :)
Drink hot or chill. Add ice and slices of lemon.

Kosher Pickles

Our second attempt at canning this summer ended up being a wonderful, easy jar of dill pickles!

After making the bread & butter batch, I was prepared for a 2-day process, but was pleasantly surprised how easy it was.

Per Jar:
5 pickles sliced into spears
9 oz. water
5 oz. white vinegar
1/4 tsp sugar
2 dill heads
1 large garlic clove
1 onion, chopped
1 tbsp kosher salt
handful of mustard seeds

Chop onion & garlic and add to clean jar. Add mustard seeds. Pack pickles in vertically. Boil water & vinegar just to a boil. Pour vinegar mixture into jar and refrigerate.

Bountiful Harvest

Our garden had an explosion around the end of July. We had so much to harvest every day!

Our cantaloupes did really well. We ended up yielding about 10, but some were small.

Here is a fabulous recipe that DH made with our sweet bell peppers.

The Dog Days Parade

Our neighborhood held is "Dog Days of Summer" Parade and it was HOT!  The theme was "dog" days, so some floats were decorated with animals and there were dogs walking. L & B dressed up as cats and decorated their bikes with things and even put the cards on the spokes so they "flapped".

It was a lot of fun. The local fire dept was there with their trucks and tours for the kids. A face painter was on site to decorate.

The girls won "best bike"

They won a free rental for a bicycle built for 2- so that will be fun for us when it cools down a bit.

Summer Sunrise

A few summer's ago we started this beautiful tradition of a summer sunrise on the beach.

We take a light breakfast (and hot tea for mom) and a blanket and go across the street to the beach.

It is always the best part of day, cool breeze and not too many people. We lay down our blanket and watch as the sky evolves from grey, to light pink to orange.

It is so serene and energizing. I always say ,"We'll do this again." But, we never do, until the next year.

Homemade Pickles

This year in our garden I decided to add a few pickling cucumbers so we could make sweet bread & butter pickles. We have had quite a crop coming in, so it was time to get to it. I have never canned anything before, so I checked out Youtube and watched it step-by-step.

Here is what we did.

 Chop pickling cucumbers about 1/4" thick. Then put in a large bowl and cover with ice
and Kosher salt. Let stand about 3 hrs.

When the 3hrs is up, rinse and drain cukes. Pour 4-5 cups white vinegar into large pot. Add 2 1/4 cups sugar, 1 Tbsp mustard seed, 1/2 tsp celery seed, 1 tsp turmeric. Bring to a boil and add the cut cukes.

Get your canning jars ready!

Boil water in another large pot and carefully drop in jars and lids. Boil a few minutes then very carefully remove. There are special canning tools, but I don't have any- yet.

When your cucumbers start boiling again & looking like green pickles (about 15 min) they are ready!

Fill jars with a slotted spoon within 1 inch of the top. Then, add liquid brine to the top, add cover & screw on lid tightly. You are done!  If you are planning on canning a lot and not refrigerating the cans, then do one more step. Put filled & lidded jars back in the boiling water and boil 10 min more. Water should cover jars by 1/2".  Yum!

First Garden Harvest

The Snow Peas are going wild and things are really sprouting in our newly planted garden.  We had a small late winter garden with Swiss chard and spinach.  The Snow peas are early spring vegetable due to the wilt and burn up in the heat.


 New comers popping up their heads are radishes, carrots, cucumbers, zucchini, cantaloupe, lots of peppers!, tomatoes (heirloom and cherry) and planted this morning yellow wax beans, Lima beans, green bush.

Hanging 'em on the Line to Dry!

After my talk with Hip Mountain Mama's, Suzy the other night about Eco-Friendly Kids, I was inspired to bring some small changes to our family.  For some reason, the idea of a clothesline really resonated with me. So, I picked up some wooden clothes pins and a line from the local store and hung it up!

It took a but of rigging up to be tight enough to hold my sheets!  (Can you see I have had no experience with this at all?)  Anyway..I washed the girls sheets in hot water and added Eucalyptus oil (as recommended by Jennifer Tan from her Aromatherapy talk!) and then I hung them.  It was wonderful!

Beautiful Blogger Award

Thank you so much to my amazing friend, Jen of Ancient Hearth blog for passing this award to me!

I must now pass it to 15 blog I enjoy AND share 7 things about myself..Hmmm...
1) I am an organic Master Gardener and used to be a garden designer.
2) I love to read and have been found secretly "sneaking" a chapter or 2!
3) I cannot cook (and don't like to!) but I really enjoy baking
4) I actually enjoy diddling on my computer and I am discovering I might be a computer geek.
5) Being outdoors is my way of getting centered. All is well when it is sunny and birds are singing in the garden.
6) I am writing a children's spiritual book.
7) I am very happy being me.

Aromatherapy Bedtime

I noticed it was taking longer, and longer to get my girls calmed down and "ready" for bed. Especially, L. Though they were in jammies and teeth brushed, they were still in that rowdy mode that seems to happen after dinner. My hubby suggested we move the bedtime up later. I pondered, they are 7 1/2 now, but I felt 8pm was plenty late enough already. (we start the undressing, etc.. around 7:30)

I decided to try another route first and so far it is working like a charm!

I announced one night if they were all ready and quietly lying in bed, they would get a lavender back rub and 2 books read to them. They scrambled quickly!

I dimmed the lights, lit a beeswax candle and rubbed some lavender back-rub oil onto their backs. While I rubbed, I started talking about the day and asking them to visualize what they enjoyed and what they were grateful for.

They were so quiet when I read I couldn't believe it! I kissed them good night, closed the door and they were sailing sweetly off to dreamland.

Easter Celebrations

After hopping down the bunny trail and finding the hidden baskets, we were awakened by girls clamored into our bed to announce the muddy bunny paw prints they found in the kitchen! And a few pieces of lettuce from our garden!

The rest of morning was spent together baking Hot Cross Buns, a yearly favorite and perusing the goodies in the Easter Baskets.
Later, my parents came over for dinner and we took some lovely photos of the girls in their new Easter dresses in the garden.

My HUGE Birthday Surprise!

Well, for once I am speechless. My family actually was able to surprise me with quite a gift last night. I rarely do not know what is going on in my house. If you knew me and my personality, you would see what a job this is.
After a nice dinner out, my parents and a few friends came by for cake. Then an envelope from my hubby revealed a CRUISE to the Bahamas!
 

And- it is for next Sunday!  He is sending me and my mom for a much needed R&R trip, while he stays to take care of and school the girls. Could I be anymore lucky?  *Smile*

Now, I am desperately trying to get those winter pounds off in 9 days!

Life is Science

The creek at the end of our street (where I previously posted about our boat sailing) has now become the main attraction when we take our nature walk each morning. My girls run ahead so they can steal a few extra moments of playful bliss. Last week's discovery was tadpoles!
Out came the old fish bowls and they were hard at work with a butterfly net (!) and the tadpoles didn't have a chance. About 45 muddy minutes later, 8 were in the bowls and swimming in their murky new home.

I now know all about the eating habits of tadpoles. They will eat algae and other plants until their back legs come in. Then they turn into carnivores.. for now they are eating fish food and newly added creek water daily.

Isn't it amazing how life becomes our school if we just take the time to notice it?

A Touch of Spring...

Finally, I little bit of spring coming our way.

Even though it is March these daffodils are just peeking out their sweet little heads. I have tried to enjoy the colder, snuggly weather and just go with it.. It has been nice to knit and bake and cuddle under blankets, reading. O.K. Now, I am ready to plant my garden and get my hands dirty and my face in the sun.

Sweet Moments

Valentine's Day is such a fun holiday for all us ladies in the house. Daddy has become the giver of gifts (giving mommy a break).

He gets yummy chocolate hearts and candies from a local candy shoppe right near our home. For me, nothing can compare to the amazing dark chocolate truffles! Filled with rich, amazing smooth fillings..I try not to gobble them all the first day!  *wink*

 

I did bake some homemade Heart-Shaped biscuits to go with our breakfast frittata.

YUM!