twenty-two pleasant

in the kitchen

2012-01-28T20:36:00.000-04:00

Homemade yogourt in Weck jars in the fridge, next to plenty of eggs from the Farmer's Market, made me smile to myself all day.

I seem to have a lot of cookbooks. (Some aren't pictured.) Do you have a favourite recipe from any of my books that I need to make? Please share! I'm feeling adventurous. I love how cookbooks look, almost as much as what's in them - they seem to be a pretty lot, there on the shelf.

Adam's out, I think the boys are both asleep (they're quiet, anyway) and my brain is just shutting off for the evening. Nope - I take that 'quiet' comment back - T just started talking. In fact, his exact words were "Mama, Dadoo, Phillip. Mama, Sheeeeerrie!" It is so cute when he calls me by name. I'll be wrapping up some soap to send to Molly (sorry I didn't get it out last week, M!) as I watch something on Netflix. (Yes, probably Murder She Wrote.) Oooh, we finally started watching Downton Abbey the other night, and everyone who recommended it to me was right - it's glorious. Along with the good dialogue, plot, etc., the clothes are insanely beautiful, and the sounds are wonderful. Rustly book pages, clinking dishes, shoes on wood floors, and no plastic to be seen. Beautiful cinematography in the opening particularly, and the font and style of the credits is lovely. Mmmm. Those are the things I love in a show. (Does that make me strange, or does everyone else like those kinds of things, too? No, really - I don't know.)

I adore this spice rack. At that price, though, I don't think it will be mine any time soon.

Oh, hey - speaking of buying things - want to buy a house? Ours is still for sale! (And I love it more and more with every other house we go to see.)

I hope that you're having a pleasant weekend!

an un-storm day

2012-01-27T06:18:00.001-04:00

I'm up before the boys, but still groggy. There's some nasty snowy/ice-pellety/freezing rain-y weather coming today, and I was hoping that it would be a snow day and I wouldn't need to go to work. But it's not. (The ice pellet stage is supposed to happen when the kids are safely at school and then it will turn to rain before they come home on the buses. I, however, need to drive all over the place during that time. I can cancel seeing the students and work at my office if it's too risky, though.)

Now I need to go and get all of Phillip's things ready for school that I didn't last night because I was SO hoping that it would be a snow day. Alas.

I took these breakfast pictures on the weekend. I love grapefruit.

Have a good Friday, and a lovely weekend!

homemade crackers!

2012-01-25T19:24:00.002-04:00

You can make crackers, you know. (And it's really, really easy, if you have a food processor.) There are a lot of things that Adam can't eat, especially certain oils, and it seems like most of the grocery store options that he can eat taste like cardboard. Or else they cost more than a kidney on the black market. (Not that I would actually know what a kidney on the black market costs, of course.) With these crackers - problem solved! I use olive oil as the oil, they taste fantastic, are super inexpensive, use ingredients I have on hand, and I can flavour them however I like. And they are super quick to put together. How's that for a good deal?

I got the recipe from Kristin, and the original is here. I've changed it a little bit, so I'll give you my version:

Impress Your Neighbours Crackers
(mostly copied from and very slightly adapted from Kristin's adapted recipe, here.)

2 cups flour (I used 1 cup whole wheat and 1 cup unbleached white)
1 tsp baking powder
3 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp kosher salt, plus more for the tops
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp paprika
few shakes of turmeric
few shakes of garlic powder
1 egg
1/4 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 to 1/2 cup cold water (my dough needed 1/2)

Put all the dry ingredients into a food processor. Pulse until it's a coarse meal. (Kristin added a sprinkle of minced dried onion; I didn't have any on hand, but I'll bet it would taste fantastic!)
Beat the egg, oil and vanilla with a fork in a measuring cup.
Slowly add the oil, egg and vanilla to the dry ingredients. Pulse and scrape down (repeat) until it's a consistent texture.
Add the water, a little bit at a time, until it all forms one ball.
Put half of the dough on parchment paper, and using a bit of flour, roll it until it's thin. Cover it with plastic wrap (I actually didn't because my dough was damp enough that I didn't think it needed it), and put it into the fridge on a cookie sheet to keep it flat. Do the same with the other half. Leave them in there for half an hour or more.
Preheat the oven to 350.
Take out one part of dough. Roll the slab thinner.
Prick it all over with a fork. Paint some water onto the dough. Sprinkle with kosher salt. Lightly roll the salt down so it sticks. Cut them into whatever shape you like - a pizza cutter worked really well to cut into squares.
Slide the parchment paper full of pre-crackers onto a pan, and place it in the oven. Watch them closely. Depending on your idea of "thin," they could take 8 to 25 minutes to cook. I copied Kristin and took off the outer (thinner) ones as they browned, then put the rest back in to cook more, repeating this process a couple of times.
Cool completely on a rack before storing in an airtight jar.
And Kristin's copied suggestions, because I love her style: "Instead of garlic and onion, try cheese. Or herbs. Or seeds. Or, you know, whatever floats yer boat. This is your cracker! Have a party." Have a party, indeed! Thanks, Kristin!

Has anyone else made crackers? Have a recipe or technique to share? Please do!

a roll

2012-01-24T22:18:00.000-04:00

I seem to be on a thrifting roll lately. Today's finds: this beautiful bowl, and something else I've been hoping to find for a long time: a handmade surprise mug. Total: $2.30.

Phillip looked out of the window on Sunday morning and yelled, "Mama! A one-legged something was in our backyard!"

I hope you're having a good week. Mine has been full and busy, as usual. A lot of driving to and from students again this week. 10 degrees (celsius) and wet today - I was going to and from the car with no coat this afternoon (after the rain was done, of course.) This is January. And the snow pictured was from the weekend. Crazy.

Good night!

last one

2012-01-22T09:06:00.000-04:00

They're long gone, now, but I had one more picture to share. Happy weekend!

star anise & licorice love

2012-01-18T20:44:00.000-04:00

Hi folks!

I made some soap the other evening, and set aside some perfectly perfect star anise seed pods to take pictures of the next day. Aren't they gorgeous? (That's actually a little bit of soap smudged on the one in the bottom picture, oops.) If you're not familiar with star anise, it has a strong licorice flavour, and its extract is used as the flavouring in many black candy licorices such as the Panda brand ones. Chewing the seeds is good for digestion and fresh breath, and it tastes wonderful, if you like licorice. The seeds have a nice crunch that would be kind of awesome sprinkled on vanilla ice cream, now that I'm thinking about it.

Licorice root is an entirely different beast from a different plant. You can buy the root dried and in little pieces at most health food stores. I make a tea similar to the Aveda tea with it and a few other herbs. I blogged about it back in 2009. Just mix licorice root, mint, basil, and sweet fennel (leaves if you can find them). Steep for 5-7 minutes. The licorice root is lovely in a tisane - it makes it sweet but not overly licorice-y, which you might not expect. Seeing as how it's licorice and all. Yum.

Are you a licorice fan? I am, 100%. Can you tell? I went to Fox Hill Cheese House today for work, (well, I was in the area for work, and made a stop on my way home) and they had licorice gelato that made its way home with me. Yum! (Alas, they didn't have my favourite, coconut. Maybe next time!)

One other little bit of miscellany that's stuck in my head: I already wanted to go to Iceland. This video seals the deal (and I can't stop playing that song! I love it.)

Happy Wednesday!

!

2012-01-17T18:32:00.000-04:00

Look what arrived today!

hold on to your hats, and a recipe

2012-01-15T18:23:00.000-04:00

Okay, folks. Hold on to your hats.

Okay, not that...

Or those - but aren't they gorgeous?

Look at this:

Oh, yes. Found at Frenchy's after all of the other great things I posted last week. The lid is also a small skillet. It's a sweet little Le Creuset pot that we've already used a few times, after a day's worth of scrubbing and soaking to bring it back to its beautiful self. A Le Creuset piece is something that I have always dreamed of finding at a thrift store, and now it's happened! (I know that you're secretly a little bit jealous, and I don't blame you at all. I would be too. Come over, and I'll make something for you in it.)

Tonight's leftover meal (being reheated in it in the picture) is one of our favourite meals. I posted the recipe back in 2009 - it's Lentil Sloppy Joes. The boys inhale them, we love them, and they only get better the next day. They're vegan, filling, delicious, and even healthy. The original recipes is from a book of vegetarian slow cooker meals, and I've lost the name of it. If you know, please tell me! Here's the recipe again:

Lentil Sloppy Joes

1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
pepper to taste
1/2 cup ketchup
1 1/2 cups water, or more as needed - it tends to burn with too little water
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 cups cooked brown or green lentils, drained and rinsed
hot pepper sauce (optional)
toasted hamburger buns

1. In a skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and celery and cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, oregano, salt and pepper and cook, stirring for one minute. Stir in ketchup, water, balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, and mustard. Transfer to slow cooker stoneware. Add lentils and stir well.

2. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or on high for 3 hours, until hot and bubbling. Add hot pepper sauce to taste, if using. Ladle over hot toasted buns and serve immediately.

You can also bake this in the oven at 375 for an hour and a half or so, and if you're not set on it being vegan, you can top it with shredded cheese.

Enjoy!

After a full weekend, it's back to work tomorrow. We had an open house yesterday, and we're having another next weekend, so who knows? Maybe something will come of that. Have a good week!

thrifted treasures and a funny kid (no smiling!)

2012-01-12T15:54:00.001-04:00

I found this Better Home and Gardens 'New' Cookbook at Frenchy's and couldn't pass it up. Jessica Fletcher has one on the top of her fridge, you know. (And they even move it around from episode to episode! I love that.) Most of the recipes are a can of this and a package of that, add some luncheon meat and you're all set. But there are some cookies recipes and this Breakfast Cocoa one that are pretty decent. It was delicious. Perfect snow day fare.

How could you not find that greenish jell-o salad kind of awe-inspiring?

And I also found these little goodies at Frenchy's:

500 mL wide mouth Ball canning jars. We can't buy the Ball brand here in Canada; Bernardin is the Canadian equivalent. But I like the way 'Ball' looks on the jar so much better, and this is a great size.

A Brody (made in USA) planter (intended for a vase?) for a peperomia prostrada plant that I have yet to find or buy.

And the best of all - a gorgeous handmade teapot in perfect condition. Not a nick, chip, or crack to be found! I was especially thrilled with this one, especially since it was only $3.

Phillip put these signs on the living room doors. He later said that it's okay for his friends to smile in the living room, but no one else.

Happy Thursday from our snow-bound house to yours!

monster in the rain

2012-01-11T21:24:00.000-04:00

"A Clown" by Phillip

"Monster in the Rain", also by Phillip.

Set this kid loose with some art and craft supplies, and he is one happy boy.

And the amaryllis is still beautiful; two double blooms, with another on the way.
Happy Wednesday!

dates

2012-01-10T10:05:00.000-04:00

My sweet mother-in-law brought me two kilograms (close to 5 pounds) of dates when they were here at Christmas. (She shops at Costco.) So - do you have a great way that you like to use dates? Preferably not in a cake, although Queen Elizabeth cake is one of my favourite cakes in the world. I'm thinking that I should expand my date horizons. Something healthy that Phillip can take to school in his lunch - maybe a bar, square, snack ball, or something else entirely that I haven't thought of? Maybe a savoury use? I haven't searched for recipes yet; I know that you guys have some good ones. Thanks in advance!

Also, thanks so much for your concern about my sickly self! I'm feeling quite a bit better, and am still waiting to hear from the doctor. In the meantime I'm laying low and thinking about making all kinds of good stuff when I'm back to my usual self, hence the date plans. Have a good Tuesday!

little walk

2012-01-09T14:00:00.000-04:00

We went for a (much-needed by me) short walk down by the harbour yesterday in the sun. The fresh air was wonderful and smelled a bit like spring, and the sun was definitely restorative.

I'm just waiting to hear back from my doctor on my bloodwork; hopefully I'll know soon exactly what I have. In the meantime, I'll keep up my tea habit and my laying around one, too.

Have a great week! Go enjoy a walk somewhere beautiful, okay?

spending time

2012-01-07T10:42:00.000-04:00

Happy Saturday! While spending some time lying still and trying not to swallow too often, I've come across some things I thought were worth sharing.

Toys and play. This post on the basics of Waldorf education is a great explanation of exactly what I value in play and preschool education. I've never been trained in Waldorf education or even visited a Waldorf school (one of the downsides of living in a very small rural town) but everything about it just makes perfect sense to me and what I know about child development (which I have been trained in).

These are brilliant. In the same kind of "Why didn't I think of that?" way that Post-its are brilliant. And perfect for hanging a certain 4 year old's art work.

I love just about everything over at A Sonoma Garden. If you're looking for a slightly different version of the lotion recipe I posted awhile back and make regularly, this one is done entirely in a single jar and has no added water. Which equals much less mess and cleaning time, and potentially a more stable lotion. When my current stash runs out, I'm absolutely making some.

Hummus. Mmmm. (You can pre-order Marisa's book now! I can't wait for my copy to arrive.)

Sundried tomatoes packed in oil. They sound SO tasty right now!

Greek yogourt crème brûlée. I'm curious to try it and see if it's comparable to the real thing.

This is so cute. (Austen sent me the link yesterday, knowing that I was home sick yet again. How sweet is that?)

If I opened a general store (which would be AWESOME), it would look like this.

Have you found something that rocked your world lately? Please share! Have a great weekend.

ahem.

2012-01-06T10:37:00.000-04:00

So. Apparently the last round of antibiotics didn't hear my wish for a healthy 2012, and didn't do the trick. Back to my doctor this morning (thankfully, was in and out in no time) who sent me for bloodwork, another throat swab and a new round of antibiotics and thinks that I may have mono. Mono! So I'm resting at home, enjoying these beauties and thinking healthy thoughts. I hope that your week is germ free!

paperwhites

2012-01-04T18:43:00.001-04:00

They're on the way! Forced bulbs are one of my favourite things about January and February. I never manage to get them started in time to bloom for Christmas. So I wait until after Christmas, and buy the bulbs for half price. (Tip: never buy boxed bulbs without opening the box and checking them out first to make sure that they're not shriveled or moldy, and that they look full and healthy.) I have a fantastic amaryllis coming, too, which I'm sure you'll see more pictures of very soon. It's a great way to get through the dark winter days with a little bit of springy brightness.

superior

2012-01-03T20:15:00.000-04:00

You may (or more likely, may not) remember our woodbox. It's a gorgeous antique trunk that I found at a yard sale for $5. $5! So when I saw this crate from a long-defunct local dairy at a local antiques shop, I knew that it would be the perfect place to house our newspapers for starting fires.

So far, 2012 is shaping up to be a good year. We're feeling motivated, intentional, focused and tidy! Adam took the boys out for the afternoon a couple of days ago so I could do some serious cleaning / purging / tidying. It was amazing - for a couple of hours, all of the pieces of all of the toys were together, the floor was clear, the beds didn't have anything hiding under them... and on the whole, things are still pretty neat. I love it.

It was back to work for me today, and it really is nice to get into a routine. Phillip was very happy to get back to school, but I think that Thomas was a little bit lonely for us. I hope that your year is off to a good start, too. Happy Tuesday!

gifts

2011-12-29T18:57:00.000-04:00

How are you doing in this limbo week between calendar years? It's always felt kind of like non-time to me. Which I am loving right now, since I have little planned and lots I'd like to do around the house before I go back to work next week. I went through the boys' clothes today, which is always very satisfying. The toys are next on my list; I'm planning on tackling those tonight and tomorrow. Ah, I love cleaning and purging!

Above are a couple of the little gifts that we gave to friends and family this year. Phillip helped me decorate the vanilla jar. I think he did a great job! Have you made vanilla before? It's just about the easiest (and most delicious) thing possible; all it takes is a little bit of time. And you can buy organic vanilla beans on eBay for waaaaay less than at the grocery store. And I made the beeswax candles, which smell heavenly, too.

We don't have any grand plans for New Year's, but I do have some double-cream Brie, pecans, and maple syrup. Sounds like a party to me! I hope that you have a great time ringing in 2012. Happy New Year!

two more

2011-12-27T17:05:00.000-04:00

I couldn't resist posting a couple more pictures from our lovely Christmas together. The tree was beautiful but short-lived this year; the stand cracked on Christmas Eve, releasing its water on the gifts. Only a couple got really wet, and they weren't valuable or special, so it was okay. We have family here for a few days, which is super fun. Speaking of which (whom), supper is waiting. (Supper which was made by someone else while I've been puttering around - nice!) Happy Tuesday!

merry christmas

2011-12-24T10:35:00.001-04:00

christmas eve eve

2011-12-23T17:18:00.000-04:00

The fire is burning merrily, the snow was falling beautifully for most of the day, and all is well at our house. Well, mostly. I came down with strep throat and have been feeling pretty awful for a couple of days, but I have some antibiotics (bananacin, anyone?) and should be up and running again soon. Here's to 2012 being an antibiotic-free year in which you don't hear about my pneumonia, sinus infections, strep throat, or other maladies. This year was a doozy. With that, I'll leave you with some much lovelier images to fill your head that I took as I roamed around the house this morning.

Okay, this last one warrants an explanation. Phillip has been given free reign with the tape dispenser this week. Along with wrapping numerous presents (mostly of the egg carton, flyer, or other-miscellany variety - please act delighted if you're a recipient) he has been using it to 'set traps'. This involves either a single long piece of tape across the whole doorway, or several smaller ones connected by a variety of other materials. They were initially for Thomas, who loves ducking under them. So now Adam and I have to move the traps to go through doorways. How adorable is that?

Speaking of adorable, this morning when it was snowing beautifully, Phillip said "Snow is actually broken up clouds, I think."

I hope that you and your favourite people have a wonderful, relaxed, calm, festive, joyful and healthy holiday together. Merry Christmas!

light

2011-12-20T21:10:00.002-04:00

I have been delighted by these German Pyramids (I'm sure there's another name for them) since I first saw one several years ago. And today, I was the lucky gal who bought the last one (with 30% off!) at a shop downtown during a last-minute hunt for a little gift.

I didn't realize until today that it depicts a full nativity scene, replete with angels and shepherds. And of course, Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus. The heat from the candles turns the blades at the top, which sends the shepherds, sheep, and wise men running around. Mary, Joseph, and Jesus sit calmly and peacefully in the centre at the bottom, immune to the scurrying around them.

ginger jam-jams (say that five times fast)

2011-12-18T21:28:00.001-04:00

I spent a little bit of time at Waterfront Antiques downtown this morning, and oh, the treasures I found! I can't share all of them (Christmas gifts!), but here's something that I bought just for me, and have been enjoying all day. Almost as soon as I arrived home, I got to work making some Ginger Jam-Jams. (Until today, I didn't know that a jam-jam is simply a jam-filled cookie. Nifty!)

There are hundreds of recipes in here, as well as some that were written in by a previous owner. The copyright date in the front of the book is 1913, which as Phillip says is "Even older than Papa!", and one one of the recipes written on a piece of newsprint, the date is 1906. It's amazing that it has survived so well. The pages are brittle, but it's well bound, and I'm planning to use it plenty. While I may not make the Peanut Loaf, Eonomical Batter Pudding, or Peanut Sandwiches (the ingredients include vinegar, brown sugar, flour, egg, pepper, salt, mustard and peanuts) there are plenty more that sound delicious.

That's the extent of the recipe. Just do the usual creaming, mix in the wet ingredients, then add in the dry. I used butter in place of shortening, six (!) cups of flour, rolled them out and baked them at 350 for about 11 minutes. It makes a very large batch, so I have some of the dough well-wrapped and chilling in the fridge.

Someone was helping me with the molasses.

Showing off his teeth and dirty nose, and holding his jaw to the side, for some reason. He looks so old in this picture!

I filled them with raspberry jam made from our backyard raspberries this summer. I can't tell you how good it made me feel, making cookies from a 1913 cookbook and using my very own jam from the most local possible berries. Yum!

And lastly, one little treasure I found that I can share, since I already gave it to the recipient. Adorable!

charlie brown tree

2011-12-18T07:05:00.001-04:00

Good morning!

I'm up before the boys this morning. E-mails have been replied to, lists have been made, and I'm so excited to be on vacation. Speaking of which, we watched half of National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation last night, which is a great way to feel Christmas-y. A Christmas Story and It's a Wonderful Life are the other two mandatory ones.

My list to do today is a fun one. I'll be making some gifts for friends (which I can't list, since they might be reading!), hopefully getting some wrapping done, and maybe a little bit of baking, if I'm really lucky. Toss in some visiting and laundry, and the day is complete! (No day is complete without laundry.)

If you have access to tiny trees, you should do this tree-in-a-jar, too. Super cute, easy, and I'll replant the tree when we're done with it. Any sweet little vintage jar, teacup, bowl, or cup would do nicely. It's a great way to have a tree if you'll be away for Christmas but still want a tree, or if you want a little something in a small space. I bought the tiny ornaments on sale last year after Christmas, but it would be super cute with homemade ones. Or little bows, or something.

I hope your list for today is a good one, too. I hear some rustlings upstairs, so I'll go see what those boys are up to. Yesterday morning, it was Phillip taking out all of Thomas' sheets, blankets, socks, and piling them up on the floor. He goes in every morning, turns on Thomas' light, and gives him some books to look at. It's so cute to hear them - sometimes he'll sing a song for Thomas, or read him a book, or explain how something works. It's so sweet.

Have a great weekend!

le bonhomme de neige

2011-12-15T21:48:00.000-04:00

Phillip had his Christmas concert tonight. It was adorable, if a bit unintelligible. That's him, right in the centre.

Tomorrow is my last day of work before the break, and I can't wait. An assortment of special people are here visiting (yay!), and I am looking forward to relaxing with everyone and just soaking in the season.

Lastly for tonight, I have delivered my last straggling bars of soap to Yarmouth Natural this morning. There won't be any more delivered there before Christmas, and apparently they've been flying out of the store, so now's your chance. My shelves here at home are bare, too! What a lovely situation to be in. Thank you so much if you ordered some soap from me this season - I hope that it's enjoyed in good health.

quick quaker muffins

2011-12-12T20:00:00.000-04:00

Thank you, Ruby Grant. From one of Nana's cookbooks that we've been enjoying lately. (Phillip can read her cursive writing. I thought that was pretty amazing.)

cookie house

2011-12-08T19:27:00.000-04:00

This cookie jar / 'gingerbread' house lived in a cupboard when I was growing up. I'm guessing that it was bought by my mom or given to her as a gift sometime in the 70's. It was broken at some point in its life, and was (quite well, actually, which leads me to believe it wasn't my Dad who did the repair) glued back together. There's something I just love about it, and every time I walk by it I smile a little bit. It's just the right size, and perfectly imperfect. And how do you like my little tree in a mustard crock? I found the idea here, via Pinterest.

I see now that Phillip turned the roof around between the time I set this out and when I took the picture. (It's been pretty dark lately, making great pictures tricky.) That kid. He has infection in both ears; he finished a round of antibiotics yesterday, and his ears still hurt. So we took him to the doctor this morning, and it's not cleared up. So he needs to take another round of some better tasting stuff. He's super cooperative at both the doctor's office and in taking medicine, which is wonderful - I just wish he didn't need to.

I'm getting ready to make this cake tonight for company tomorrow night. When it's baking, I'm planning to wrap up some soaps for Yarmouth Natural to deliver tomorrow. I'm getting pretty low on soaps, which is lovely; all I have left to make are special gifts! That's the extra-fun part.

beeswax star garland

2011-12-06T22:11:00.001-04:00

It's beginning to look like Christmas around here, and I love it.

I saw a tutorial somewhere recently on making a garland of beeswax stars, cut from those bumpy sheets of beeswax used to roll and make taper candles. I loved the idea, so I asked at Hands on Crafts, our local source for all things crafty, and they had smooth sheets. Which I like so much better than the bumpy ones! They also have metallic and coloured beeswax sheets, in gold (pictured above) and red, I believe. The plain sheets that I bought were $2.50 per sheet, and I cut 15 large stars from one.

The sheets are super thin, and need a brief warming with a hair dryer to soften them a bit. This helps to prevent them from breaking. Then, just cut them with a cookie cutter (you need to press really firmly on all of the corners to make sure the cutter is through), and string them into a garland, or individual ornaments if you prefer.

These would also make great little tags for gifts; especially tied to jars filled with homemade goodies. Super simple, inexpensive, and cute! I'll definitely be making more of these before we deliver all of our gifts; act surprised if you get one, okay?

airborne

2011-12-05T20:31:00.001-04:00

I turned 30 in March, and this was Adam's gift to me - a flight over my beautiful town and the place where I grew up. The timing for the flight didn't come together until yesterday, and it was amazing, despite a bit of queasiness toward the end. To stave off the queasiness until the end meant that I didn't get a whole lot of pictures, and the size of the plane and the inability to, well, move didn't help. But I enjoyed every minute.

From the moment I saw the headsets, I was totally channeling J.L. If you know that reference without clicking the link, we are kindred spirits. If not, there's still a chance that we are; it may just mean that you didn't grow up in Canada in the 80's.

Happy Monday!

ears

2011-12-02T20:49:00.000-04:00

Before I get started, I just wanted to say a special little welcome to any new (or new-ish) readers. I know there are some of you out there. Hi! I'm glad you're here.

I'm always listening to something. I drive a lot for work as an itinerant teacher, so I like to take advantage of the time to myself. Sometimes I drive in the quiet, but not too often.

CBC Radio One almost always has something relevant or interesting, and if I'm driving for longer than a few minutes, I'll usually check in to see what's on there first.

My second option is Martha Stewart Living Radio on Sirius, especially Everyday Food and Whole Living. I always learning something new. I avoid the pet shows like the plague, though. I do not want to hear about a dog's digestive woes, thanks. Gross.

I love a few podcasts, and I don't think I've talked much about them here on the blog. I have a little gadget that connects my iPod to the car radio (the car I drive for work is old and predates built-in things) and I love to listen to them that way. Or when I'm washing dishes, folding clothes, or other busy work after the boys are in bed. My current top three are Spilled Milk, Joy the Baker, and Simple Mom.

Sometimes, though. I just want music. Lately it's been Helplessness Blues by Fleet Foxes. The whole album is amazing. They have this magical sound that I love; the harmonies remind me of Simon & Garfunkel. Lisa Hannigan's new album Passenger, is kind of awesome, and in many ways very different from her first. And Mumford & Sons' Sigh No More. Still.

Speaking of music, Jango is a free internet radio site I just found yesterday. I haven't figured it all out yet, but I love it.

What have you been listening to lately? Any recommendations?

(Nope, the muffins don't have anything to do with anything. I chose a completely random image from a folder from 2008, and this is what I got. )

Happy weekend!

odds and ends

2011-11-28T21:06:00.001-04:00

Some lovely Spiced Rum shaving soap. I just made a batch on the weekend to fill some 'manly soap' Christmas requests. Just let me know if you'd like to order some soap of any kind - I'm in a bit of a soapmaking frame of mind. Take advantage!

In other news...

Anthology Mag. Awesome, free online magazine with all kinds of goodness. I haven't even finished reading it, but wanted to share the loveliness.

Cheesy Vegetable Chowder. Making it this week.

I love her illustrations! I especially love this one, with the Le Parfait-type jar and Orla Kiely bowl. Mmmm.

I had a great Monday, and I hope that you did, too. Phillip is feeling much better (ear infections kept him down on the weekend) and I think tomorrow will be another ordinary, lovely day.

tree lighting

2011-11-25T19:17:00.000-04:00

Our town had a lovely little tree lighting ceremony tonight, and we took the boys to see it. Thomas just squealed every now and then out of pure joy ('light' is one of his favourite words), and Phillip had a great time, too. Being outside after dark is a big deal when you're four.

pantry news, again

2011-11-24T19:56:00.000-04:00

I guess there is one empty space there in the cupboard after all. I didn't notice that until I looked at the image on the computer. I still have some fruit that I froze in the summer and fall (pears in particular) that I have canning plans for. Once a few more jars are freed up, I'll have to fill in those spaces. Did I tell you that we opened a couple of jars of those dill pickles? They are AMAZING. Super crunchy, super tasty. I'm especially pleased because they're my first dills, and we eat them year-round. I will be making loads more next summer - it's yet another case where homemade is a huge improvement on the store variety.

Soap! I am still squeezing in some soapmaking in between all of the other busy-ness that fills my days. If you would like to order some for yourself or as a sweet gift for someone you like, just send me an e-mail and we'll sort out the details! If you're local, I'll be delivering some more to Yarmouth Natural over the next few weeks (I'll be dropping off a few tomorrow), or you can always call or send an e-mail. I can even (sometimes) deliver! Now's the time to let me know what you'd like - I'll be making a bunch this week and next, so speak up!

Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving to you Americans! I hope that you've had a relaxing, turkey-filled, thankful day with your favourite people.

oatcakes

2011-11-23T20:06:00.000-04:00

Today was one of those days that had awesome potential (snow day!), but I got stuck being everywhere but in the present. And kept using the tone of voice with Phillip that I hate hearing from myself.

We made oatcakes together, which was sort of half successful. I got the recipe from a friend, and hers were awesome. Mine aren't. Maybe mine weren't because Phillip and I were struggling to work together. Or maybe because I left out the coconut so Adam would be able to eat them. Either way, I'll let you know when I get the recipe perfected. Good night!

book swap

2011-11-19T20:00:00.000-04:00

We hosted a book swap / potluck today, and it was fantastic. Might I recommend that you do the same? We've been doing some rearranging, tidying, and cleaning out of our books, and we discovered that there were 123 books in this house that we didn't feel the need to keep. So we invited a pile of friends over, asked them to bring any books they no longer wanted, and it was a free-for-all.

Phillip did a great job at evaluating his books and deciding which to keep and which to give away. (That picture was taken before anyone came - that's only some of the books that we contributed.) He ended up donating about 1/3 of his collection, which was many, many books. And in return, we picked some of the ones that were brought by others, and the boys have some new-to-them books to enjoy. The left over books will be donated to the library.

Even better than that, we had piles of friends in the house for the afternoon. I loooooove having people over. Now that the kids are for the most part old enough to more-or-less play on their own together, there's an extra level of fun. I can't think of a better way to spend the day.

how to clean one's microwave

2011-11-16T19:57:00.000-04:00

Here's my dirty microwave. One too many lasagna reheats left it in a mess. And in classic Sherrie fashion, I got distracted and didn't take an after picture. (It's clean - I promise!) Anyway, it occurred to me as I was cleaning it that you might not know the magic trick, so here it is: heat a cup or so of water (you can add a bit of lemon juice if you like) for 3-5 minutes on high. Let it sit there until you get around to taking it out. (Waiting at least a few minutes helps the magic to happen and keeps you from burning your hand.) The walls and ceiling inside will be wet from all of the steam, and you can wipe it completely clean in a few swipes of a clean cloth. Even the grungiest food goo comes off easily. Done!

the office

2011-11-15T06:20:00.000-04:00

I don't write much about my 'real' work here. I think of this as my non-work, fun place. When I'm working, I'm most often in my car, driving from student to student. But I do have a work cubicle that I recently added a $2 Salvation Army thrift store lamp to, and you know what? Using that instead of a small flourescent light above the desk has made a huge difference in the atmosphere there. That and plenty of clementines. It's the little things. There. Have a seat and do some of my work for me, okay?

red berries!

2011-11-13T11:19:00.000-04:00

It's red berry season! Yipee! These were foraged as I was driving along last week. I keep pruners (and now Bogs garden shoes) in the trunk of the car for occasions such as these. With that, my love of Jessica Fletcher, (and the fact the we drive a gold Corolla - have you ever seen anyone under 70 driving a gold Corolla?) I think I'm kind of a senior at heart. Oh dear.

a poppy

2011-11-10T22:17:00.000-04:00

For Remembrance Day.

gingerbread cake

2011-11-09T19:59:00.000-04:00

Have I got a treat for you! This is my go-to fall / winter cake. It is absolutely delicious (a must, of course), super quick to put together (10 minutes), and it makes the house smell incredible. (Yes, there's an abundance of italics. I love this cake!) It's also a perfect vehicle for whipped cream. It's moist and slightly spicy and just plain wonderful. And if you have molasses in your house (I understand that it's not a default item in some places! Craziness!) you probably have everything to whip one up right now. The original recipe is here.

Oh - one more note about molasses in case you don't usually buy it - you're looking for the fancy kind. No, really - it's called "Fancy Molasses". You don't want blackstrap. And heaven forbid you see that 'light' stuff on the shelf. Leave it right there.

Gingerbread Cake

1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 egg
1 cup molasses
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup hot water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Greased and flour (important!) one 9 inch square pan.
Cream together the sugar and butter. Add egg, and beat well. Mix in the molasses.
Whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and clove. Add dry ingredients to the creamed mixture; add the hot water, and mix well.
Pour batter into pan and bake for one hour, more or less. Start checking with a toothpick in the centre around 50 minutes. The top tends to darken quickly, so I always put a piece of foil tented over the top during baking. Allow to cool in pan and serve with copious amounts of whipped cream and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

channeling jessica fletcher

2011-11-07T21:17:00.000-04:00

I know that some of you are giggling to yourselves at my newfound love of Murder, She Wrote. Well, giggle on! I found this working phone online, and it now resides in our bedroom. On the show, Jessica Fletcher had the exact same phone in her Cabot Cove kitchen. You have no idea how much I love the ring. So please, give me a call! Just not when Thomas is napping. It is a bit loud.

pantry

2011-11-06T15:14:00.003-04:00

I never, ever get tired of glass jars. The end.

weekend links!

2011-11-05T20:10:00.002-03:00

I love driving Phillip to pre-primary every morning. Yesterday, we left with enough time to spare for a couple of pictures. The light will be entirely different next week, with the time change and all. Speaking of which, don't forget to set your clocks back tonight. I'm looking forward to the earlier light in the morning, not so much the dark-by-5:30 business.

A list of things I've been enjoying lately:

I love this post. Of course it sounds unreasonable to expect so much of ourselves when it's all written out, but it's what we do.

I was so excited that Marisa posted a picture of my quince jelly over at Food in Jars! Have a peek at this post - there are some seriously stunning canned goods. Especially that carrot daikon pickle - it's unlike any other pickles I've seen!

Speaking of pickles, we opened a jar of my first ever dill pickles. And they are kind of AWESOME.

We saw Gypsophilia last night, and they were fantastic! I think you just might love them, too.

I don't use mouthwash, but if I wanted to, I would try this recipe.

Okay, and now for something amazing and beautiful and worth watching: Murmuration.
Murmuration from Sophie Windsor Clive on Vimeo.

happy halloween!

2011-10-31T19:20:00.003-03:00

One ferocious shark...

And one sweet elephant. (Those two photos are Adam's. You can read his Halloween post and see another picture here.)

The sweet elephant thought that the insides of the pumpkin should go back in when we were carving yesterday. And you know what? I didn't take any pictures of the finished pumpkins!

The ferocious shark can't tolerate apples very well at all. So I made some pear sauce for him yesterday. Delicious.

And even though it will be November tomorrow, the garden is still giving us beautiful things to enjoy.

Happy Halloween!

those cheeks!

2011-10-28T22:36:00.001-03:00

I've been away for work for most of the week, and I am so very happy to be home. Telling everyone how cute my boys are made me miss their sweet little cheeks which are so perfect for kissing. And isn't Thomas adorable in that fox sweater? He was playing with a pop-up ghost in a styrofoam cup that Phillip made at school. So cute. Seeing Phillip's face light up when he saw me was the highlight of my week. I love my boys.

I did have fun while I was away, though! I met up with Alli and found some treasures at Value Village, and we had a phenomenal dinner at Morris East. (I highly recommend the pear pizza.) Today, I got together with Rachael (Movita Beaucoup) on my way home for a delicious lunch at Epicurean Morsels. (The lamb sliders were AMAZING. Thanks again, R!)

The work part of my week was pretty great, too. We had a terrific (and to put it very mildly, knowledgeable) speaker, Dr. Christine Roman, who literally wrote the book about Cortical Visual Impairment. (She's also a lover of all things handmade, so we had a nice chat about that, too.) I'm feeling inspired and excited to do some new things with some of my students. This is good.

On that note, good night!

quince jelly

2011-10-22T20:45:00.004-03:00

I adore quince. They sound magical and nostalgic, like Christmas goose, sugar plums, and other lovely English things. And they smell so wonderful - like a combination of apple, pear, and pineapple. They can't be eaten raw, but they make a delicious and gorgeous jelly. I made some for the first time last year, and it was the first thing on my list to make this year. I'm feeling quite a bit better, and making the jelly was actually a great thing to do, since I got to stand still in a very steamy kitchen. I was worn out afterward, but quince wait for no man - they needed to be preserved, and quickly!

Here's how it's done:
After delighting in the amazing scent of the quince sitting in your kitchen, wash and quarter them.
Boil, covered by about an inch of water, for an hour or so, until soft.

Tie up in cheesecloth bags or proper jelly bags, and leave overnight to drip into a bowl. (Edited to add: don't squeeze any juice out, or your jelly will be cloudy!)

Measure the juice you have, and add in almost a cup of sugar per cup of juice. Just over 3/4 of a cup for each. I mix mine together and let them sit for a few minutes while I do something else, so the sugar will dissolve really well.

Slowly bring to a boil, and boil until it will set on a cold plate. This took quite awhile; at least 45 minutes, and probably more for the 8 cups of juice plus the sugar that I had. I kind of lost track as I was making two things at once. (Edited to add: 1 tsp of butter added in will keep the foaming down. Worked like magic!)

Seal in sterilized jars, and just be happy looking at it. Isn't it the most gorgeous red?

Add some cute labels, and you're good to go!

With the other quince that I quartered and cooked (I had 12 pounds total), I made a quince paste. I took the cooked quince, ran them through a food mill, mixed with an equal weight of sugar, and cooked it down until it was really thick, and canned it. I can't wait to have this on homemade crackers with some gorgeous local cheese. Or with pork. Yum.

strikes like a man-eating shark, indeed

2011-10-19T18:00:00.000-03:00

Isn't this the best poster? I wish they still made ones like this. So, it turns out that I have pneumonia. And all I feel like doing is lying in bed, watching Murder, She Wrote on Netflix. (Which is, as you may have guessed, not my usual modus operandi. But lying perfectly still and breathing in just the right way keeps the coughing fits down.) I am falling in love with Angela Lansbury (well, Jessica Fletcher, really) and especially Cabot Cove, her sweet little hometown (which is, ahem, much like mine.) Did you know that Angela Lansbury is 86? And she did a movie this year? What a neat lady. Should you need to cuddle up and watch an episode (or several), my absolute favourite so far is Season 2, Episode 10: Sticks and Stones. I love all of the little house scenes. And Jessica's green phone! I think I'm going to order one on Etsy for the boys for Christmas for their 'store'.

So if I owe you an e-mail or a blog post (sorry, Mad - I'll try to get to it soon) I'll get to it. But right now I'm going to start another episode while Adam's gone to pick up the boys at my Mom's and to get my new antibiotics. I don't like taking them, but it's definitely preferable to this!

today

2011-10-15T19:37:00.000-03:00

Today turned out to be a beautiful day, when I was fully expecting cloud and drizzle. I love it when that happens. Adam's shooting a wedding today, so I had the boys to myself. I took them to a playground for most of the afternoon, and when Thomas was napping, Phillip and I played games. Including Mille Bornes, which you should get. It's super fun.

Odds and ends:
I have never grown sunflowers successfully until this year. A blue jay has been helping himself to plenty of seeds, which is fun to watch. That is the lone survivor after hurricanes and other windy weather events. Anyone know the best way to save some seeds?

In other yard news, our oak tree has acorns! Neither of us remember this ever happening in the six and a half years that we've lived here. They are so. cute. P and I are going to make some felted balls and glue the little hats on. Adorable.

Those gorgeous maple leaves on the table were scavenged when I locked myself out of my car in the middle of nowhere and was waiting for CAA to come and rescue me on Thursday. It's a ridiculous story (the thing that I wanted from the trunk was actually in the front seat all along), but all's well that ends well. I still arrived at my student's appointment on time, and it wasn't raining while I waited. A very kind lady in a silver Dodge Caliber stopped and let me use her phone to call for roadside assistance. Thank you, kind lady!

Lastly, I'm either having a reaction to an antibiotic I've been taking this week (that's another story, ugh), or I'm coming down with something very unpleasant. I am soooo sore all over - it hurts to move or be touched, and I have a fever. I'm waiting for our telehealth nurse to call me back so I'll know what to do. In the meantime, I'm so thankful for usually being so healthy! It's so easy to take for granted.

I hope that you have a very healthy weekend. Enjoy those fall colours - they won't last long!

thanksgiving

2011-10-09T10:14:00.003-03:00

Happy Thanksgiving! Here in Canada, we celebrate it a bit earlier than you folks in the States. It makes perfect sense to me - the harvest is abundant, and there's a longer break between turkeys than if it's at the end of November. But if you're like my sister, who lives in NH, you celebrate both days - now that's clever. We have stock simmering, turkey and dressing waiting to go in the oven, cranberry sauce made, and pie crust waiting to be rolled. And so very much to be thankful for.

This crow sat there, at the top of that tree and cawed at me the whole time I was hanging out clothes yesterday. I thought he might want some attention, so I got the camera. And he promptly took off.

Happy Thanksgiving!

sky

2011-10-06T19:53:00.002-03:00

The weather was dramatic today. It was warm and rainy yesterday, then suddenly cold overnight. It cleared through the morning, and we enjoyed sun for much of the afternoon. But just on the edge of the sun were these dark, ominous, lovely clouds. To top it all off, just before supper, there were snowflakes! Only a few, but still. I took a camera along with me as I drove between schools, and wondered what I would find to take a picture of. This was at the edge of a school parking lot. I love that little stand of trees.

I am tired. I'm looking forward to some sun (every day in our seven-day forecast shows full sun and much warmer temperatures), time outside with my boys, and a Thanksgiving celebration. We have so much to be thankful for. Especially little boys who are up and out of their beds again, and reading what Mama's typing. Right, Phillip?

I'm off to tuck a boy in. Again. Good night!

pumpkin dip

2011-10-03T20:23:00.001-03:00

I mentioned in my last post that I met some new friends this weekend. We were invited to a potluck at their place on Saturday, and although Adam had met them once, I hadn't. Making food for people you've never met can be kind of tricky. There's all of the "What do I want them to think of me as reflected by the food that I take?" angst, accompanied by the facts: I didn't have time to make anything quite as elaborate as I would have hoped. But I decided to go for a guaranteed crowd-pleaser and cross my fingers that the others would eat dairy: dips. I made two dips, a sour cream and salsa kind of nacho dip and this sweet pumpkin one. With two cups of sugar, it makes no bones about the fact that it's a treat and is certainly not a healthy dip. (Maybe next time I'll make hummus.) It's the kind of thing that you (ahem, I) just might be tempted to eat by the spoonful and skip the chips altogether. Oh, and the chips! Tortillas cut into triangles (you could, of course use cutters and make cute shapes), lightly brushed with olive oil, sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar, and toasted until golden. For you fellow Canadians out there, thinking ahead to Thanksgiving next weekend, who may want to try something new: here it is.

Pumpkin Dip
1 can pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling) (the big one that's about 2 cups' worth)
1 block cream cheese (softened, if you think of it in time)
2 cups icing sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1 teeny pinch cloves
1 pinch nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp ground ginger

In mixer, beat cream cheese and icing sugar until smooth and fluffy. Add pumpkin, spices and vanilla, and mix until blended, scraping down sides if needed. Serve warm or chilled with sweet toasted tortilla chips, and refrigerate any leftover dip. This recipe makes 3 1/2 cups, which is a lot. So plan to share!

how to clean a dirty bottle

2011-10-02T16:24:00.005-03:00

Quick tip: if you have a thing for little glass bottles, as I do, and you have a dirty bottle on your hands (see above), there's an easy way to clean it. Shake some coarse salt down into the bottom, fill halfway with warm water, and shake it like crazy, in all directions. The salt is abrasive enough to scrub off the grime, but won't scratch. Also, it dissolves, unlike rice which I've seen recommended. Ta-da!

I hope that you're having a lovely weekend. Ours has been packed with plenty of fun and birthday parties, and a potluck (and board games!) with new friends. Today we're having a nice quiet day, relaxing at home. You know, doing things like making yogourt and letting the milk boil over while I change my profile pic on Twitter. (Which I can't seem to crop within Twitter. Bah.)

Phillip says: I had a great time reading books and playing games and also doing things with the other kids [at pre-primary]. - PHILLIP

home

2011-09-28T15:39:00.000-03:00

Over the past couple of days, I have made kefir, yogourt, pumpkin bread, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, coffee cake and my first batch of goat's milk soap. (Well, my first two batches, really - the first one isn't looking so great. But the second one looks amazing! I can't wait to try it.) I've also touched up some paint on the house (in and out), stacked some firewood, cleaned the entire kitchen, pantry and fridge, complete with drawer-washing, watched Murder, She Wrote while knitting, and finished a book. Oh, and worked and attended a volunteer board meeting, too. You might think that this is impossible, and it would be, except that I've had the house totally to myself for three days. I kind of turn into a crazy person when left to my own devices. I was happily folding and putting away laundry at 10:40 last night.

But you know what? As much as I do love having the freedom to come and go as I please, eat when I want, accomplish tasks the first time around from start to finish, find something exactly where I left it, revel in a tidy house, drink a full cup of hot tea in one go, and sit in complete quiet - being without my boys makes me antsy. It's a vague unsettled-ness that just doesn't feel right. I'm a lucky, lucky lady.

september lettuce

2011-09-25T20:09:00.001-03:00

Lettuce! After our first round bolted and became bitter, Phillip and I tucked a few extra seeds we had in the ground a few weeks ago. I love the speckled one in particular. The season's winding down, and that makes me a teeny bit sad.

You know what? I haven't shared many links lately. I think it's because I keep track of most of that goodness over at Pinterest these days. I know, I know - you're thinking "I don't need another thing to keep track of!" But you do. Because, you see, Pinterest keeps track of things for you. It's a supremely simple way of organizing stuff that you find online: like pretty bookmarking where you can see other people's if you want, too. So if you haven't already (and I know that some of you have, thanks!) you can come find my boards over there and see what I'm loving as of late.

In case you're still wrinkling your nose and deciding that it's not worth the bother, here are a few things I've found on Pinterest lately. Just to whet your appetite.

Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread which would be so much fun to eat!

Pumpkin syrup. Yum.

And kitchens. I seem to pin a lot of gorgeous white kitchens. Like this one, this one, and this one (that FLOOR!) Oh, and this one, too. With almost the same floor. And this bathroom.

And lastly, miscellaneous things like badgers, oxford commas, and baby elephants abound. Love it!

Have a good week!

the woodsmen & a special day

2011-09-20T20:41:00.002-03:00

There are two little ones in this house who live to do what Dadoo does. It's pretty adorable. Did you notice P's little work gloves?

I feel as though I've been neglecting you folks lately. It happens every year - these first few months of school are always extra crazy and all kinds of other things wait. (I did take these pictures on the weekend, and also made some Peach Lavender Jam. Delicious is an understatement.) I also realized a few days ago that today would be a very significant day - it's been six years (six!) since I wrote my first blog post. I had no idea then that I would enjoy it so much, or that I would meet so many lovely people. In all seriousness, blogging has changed my perspective on life. I choose for this to be a place to share beauty and all of the loveliness at hand. In turn, I'm much more aware of all that there is to see, and all that I have to be thankful for.

Thank you, thank you for reading along, and for being so sweet and kind and generally wonderful. If you've ever liked anything that you've read or seen here, please leave a comment and say hi! It would absolutely make my day.

date night

2011-09-18T15:13:00.000-03:00

My sweet husband and I went on a date last night. A fancy one, as evidenced by the fact that a) it was free (well, we did have to pick up some marshmallows) and b) it involved stargazing on the beach. And I took a bunch of Hipstamatic pictures on Adam's phone. It was a perfect way to spend the last Saturday night of the summer.

How are you spending your last days of the summer?

guest post

2011-09-16T16:47:00.002-03:00

Adam and the boys picked up this gorgeous little mushroom on a walk this week. Isn't it lovely?

I have a little guest post up over at the Canadian Living Craft blog today, with a review of Amanda Soule's new book The Rhythm of Family. If that's where you came from today, welcome! I'm happy you're here.

Happy weekend!

this morning

2011-09-11T10:08:00.002-03:00

It is a beautiful morning. I got back from a brisk walk and took a few pictures around the house. Yes, those tomatoes and that little strawberry were promptly eaten. And they were perfect! We have two sunflower survivors after Irene blew through. A new crop of lettuce is looking gorgeous, and our Jacob's Cattle beans are quite lovely, aren't they? I love this time of year.

Hope you're having a lovely morning, too.

a big kid, a little one, and a perfect bread recipe

2011-09-06T20:57:00.001-03:00

This is what we've been up to.

Somehow, it's September 6 already, and Phillip started pre-primary this morning. I've been coping by cooking and cleaning like a maniac, and we've also been squeezing in as much end-of-summer fun as possible. He was so excited (and a little bit nervous) about the whole thing. Truthfully, I was as excited as him - I had waaaay too much fun labelling his things, packing his bag, and writing a little love note for his lunch. He had a perfect drop-off, reports that he had lots of fun, and he's looking forward to going back tomorrow. So all in all, a resounding success. Adam took a picture before Phillip went out the door this morning.

Those red things are rosehips, foraged by P and I. We picked a bag full, and I was planning to make rosehip jelly. It ended up as lemon rosehip syrup, and it is delicious. Don't eat them raw - those little fibres are apparently very unfriendly on their way through.
And in other exciting news, I finally found a perfect whole wheat bread recipe that works perfectly by making the dough in the bread machine, and baking it off in the oven. It's all whole wheat flour, but makes a light, beautifully textured loaf. It's really, really lovely. Phillip took this picture of a loaf for me; I apparently jabbed it in the side when I was loosening it out of the pan. Oops.

Whole Wheat Honey Bread
1 1/8 cups water
1 tsp salt
1/3 cup honey (I've used a combo of honey and agave nectar, and it worked perfectly)
1 tbsp skim milk powder
1 1 /2 tbsp butter
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp yeast

Place ingredients in bread machine, in the order listed. Well, approximately anyway - as long as the flour's on top and your yeast is on top of that, you're fine. Select the dough cycle. When dough cycle is finished (you can even let it sit a bit longer after the cycle is done), turn it out into a greased loaf pan, cover with a clean dish towel, and let rise while the oven preheats to 375. Pop it in there for 40 minutes. Let it sit in the pan for 10 minutes or so, to let the steam loosen it from the pan a bit. Take it out of the pan (without puncturing the side!), let it cool, and enjoy!

I hope you're having a good week getting back into a routine. This bread is great for toast during your morning rush, and excellent for sandwiches to send with the kiddos (or yourself!) for lunch. Enjoy!

a good mail day

2011-08-29T21:39:00.000-03:00

While I was out running errands this morning, a package arrived. Not just any package, but a package of goodies from Amber! I'm absolutely the sort of person who dives right in with complete disregard for wrapping paper and other formalities, but I made myself take a picture of the cute little bundles she sent before I tore into them.

She made me an apron. A beautiful, perfect, lovely apron, with pockets. And ties. And two layers on the bottom part. I love it. (Oh, see our hutch in the background? Full of our craft supplies (mostly P's.) And the sunflowers that blew down and I'm hoping will open. And other miscellaneous life, strewn about the house!)
She also sent me a candle that she made, a needle felted tomato that Thomas particularly loves (said to bring prosperity and good luck) and a rhubarb print that she stamped. And the round thing is a dutch disk thing to hang on the shed, representing prosperity and fertility (go, garden!). I asked Amber about it when I saw it on her shed in one of her posts. I love everything - thank you so much, Amber! I also just noticed that everything has a little bit of red. So does my house - I think you know me better than I thought, Amber!

And just in case you were jonesing for a couple pictures of the boys:

Thomas does this every time we say 'strong'. Usually until he turns red in the face. He loves it.

And Phillip barely made it into the house before diving into his new library books. Look what he's doing with his hand. On the way home in the car, he said (completely out of the blue) "Mama, I love you more than anything in the world." I love that kid.

dorothy and rachel

2011-08-27T19:44:00.000-03:00

We had a really good day. Dorothy and Rachel (the lady goats), hens, a lovely visit, and popsicles. Not to mention seeing friends at the market this morning. I couldn't ask for more.

plum jam

2011-08-27T08:23:00.001-03:00

The plum jam is delicious. Something magical happens to plums when they're cooked - they get this amazing depth of flavour and earthy, wonderful deliciousness. A spiced plum butter is my favourite thing that I preserved last year, so I made sure to try some jam this year. And some spiced pear butter (same recipe, different fruit) is going to be put up, too.

*Edited to add: there's a free download of those cute labels, in several different designs and colours, here.

I haven't gotten to the fruit leather yet - my other plums are still very, very firm, so I have a few days to get that experiment going.

I return to work next week, and I think I'm ready for it. We have the most beautiful Septembers, and I get to travel in our little neck of the woods quite a bit, which I enjoy. Speaking of which, I'm looking for some new music to listen to while driving around - any suggestions?

If you're in Irene's path, I hope that you're prepared and safe to ride out the weekend.

Take care, and have a safe weekend!

phew!

2011-08-24T18:37:00.001-03:00

Adam is home! I've had the boys all to myself since Friday. I will admit that there was a bit of trepidation on my part, but you know what? Things went pretty perfectly. We had calm, relaxing days together, with some beach and lots of playing thrown in. And not a single screaming, throwing-himself-on-the-floor tantrum from Phillip. There were lots of 'no's and not cooperating, but nothing major.

And look what Adam brought home for me! Some new Weck jars for me (because a girl can never have too many jars, right, Marisa?) in the 3/4 L size, and tonnes of plums that he picked up in the valley this afternoon. He bought a giant bag of seconds, which I'm going to turn into fruit leather and plum jam (anyone have a great reicpe?) post-haste. The jars are from the very nice Sydney at The Jade W in Halifax, and you can also order them online. It totally made my day that there is also a strawberry logo on the side. Sigh! What a lovely husband!

I hope that your Wednesday has been pleasant. You can expect to see some plum jam and fruit leather pictures soon. What have you been putting up?

Oh, and one more thing, if you want to buy a house - ours has a new price (jars not included).

pickles and more food

2011-08-19T19:49:00.000-03:00

I am ridiculously proud of myself for making my very first dill pickles last night. Last summer, I made a batch of bread and butter pickles, which were fine, but it turns out that we don't really love them. Through the winter and spring, though, I noticed that there was almost always a jar of dill pickles in the fridge. I planted a few dill plants in the spring, with vague plans that I might maybe make some. A few months ago, I found a box of large Ball jars at Frenchy's. I took it as a sign, bought my other supplies, and and picked up seven pounds of pickling cukes at the Argyle market last night. In case you're not a pickler or jammer, these are way easier than jam (not that jam is all that difficult), but there is a fair bit of prep work, scrubbing the cucumbers and such. Along with all of the other sterilizing and processing business. Totally worth it, to me.

This morning, P and I went to a fantastic berry picking spot with some great friends (Hi, G's!) and had a wonderful time staining our hands and filling our - well, my - bucket. Mostly with wild blueberries. There is nothing like them. That spot is covered in blackberries, too, and we have plans to go back and stock up when they're ripe. I see jelly in my future. This time of year makes me a) very thankful that we live where we do and b) very regular.

Speaking of which, tonight, we had some really delicious corn on the cob. It was sweet and juicy, and the boys wolfed theirs down. Phillip looked especially like a cartoon character, going around and around the cob. And Thomas took his empty cob (which I had cut the kernels from - it's tricky when you only have six teeth) and used it to play peek-a-boo. So cute, they are. And if a certain one of them says 'No' to me once more today, I just might lose it. Sometimes I'm at a loss with him - he knows exactly what I just told him not to do, and he goes and does it. And he has a detailed explanation for why. Which I explain isn't the point. Something no other mother in history has ever dealt with, I'm sure. Yargh.

I have plans for a perfect evening once he stops coming down for a band-aid, water, more water, to tell me something, or to have a hangnail clipped. I'll be wrapping some soap, reading, having tea, and maybe an episode or two of Mad Men. The dresses! I love the dresses in that show.

Happy Friday! Have a lovely weekend.

blues

2011-08-16T20:37:00.000-03:00

My aunt and uncle have an organic blueberry farm, and we have been eating boxes of their gorgeous berries this week, and freezing lots for the winter. They also have chickens, and two new goats that I am planning on taking the boys to meet, very soon. Goat pictures, people! I adore goats. They have the sweetest faces! If I know you in person, I've probably told you of my plans to eventually get a couple of lady goats (I even have their names picked out) and to make goat's milk soaps. I don't know how soon I'll have my own goats, but I'm very excited to meet theirs!

And our hydrangeas are still blooming. Happy Tuesday!

august

2011-08-14T11:53:00.000-03:00

There's not many things that I appreciate more than the fleeting season of August's market finds. Happy Sunday!

summer reading and rhythm

2011-08-12T20:52:00.000-03:00

I've been trying to read a lot this summer, since that seems to be the determining factor of whether or not I feel as though I've had a relaxing vacation. I just finished reading Simplicity Parenting after reading about it on Rachel Wolf's blog, Clean. Rachel's business is LuSa Organics, making lovely, natural, handcrafted body care (more about that in a minute). Pretty much everything in Simplicity Parenting is what we work hard around here to live by. It was one of those books that reinforced what we believe and how we try our best to parent the boys, which is always nice. There were some new-to-me ideas in it, too, and it's full of practical, hands-on kind of stuff. One of the main themes is rhythm and its importance in giving kids a solid base to 'go forth' from, and how that impacts everything in the long run, from academics to interpersonal skills. I won't go on any more about the book specifically, other than to say that if you have kids (particularly small ones) it's absolutely worth reading. There's also a fantastic Simplicity Parenting website with a blog and all kinds of great stuff. Great stuff, I tell you - go check it out.

So, I've been thinking a lot about rhythm, and of a bunch of things to share with you. Guaranteed, I'm going to forget some and mention them in the comments or in another post. I'm also planning ahead a bit for the changes that will come to our house when I go back to work in September and Phillip starts at pre-primary. I think that rhythm will absolutely be more important than ever, so I'm starting to build some things into our days now that will hopefully carry us smoothly through September. If this is piquing your interest, here you go:

Rhythm of the Home. Poke around here for a little while to find tonnes of inspiration, ideas, craft-y things, and on and on.

Rachel's recent post on rhythms at her home and her enthusiasm about the rhythms they've been working on fits right in with all that I've been thinking and reading about, and Amanda Soule's new book came out this week and it's all about - you guessed it - rhythm! For routines specifically tailored to mealtimes, I've also been reading The Family Dinner, and there are lots of good ideas and suggestions in there, too. From recipes and setting the table tips to suggested rules to abide by (no answering phones, everyone stays at the table, etc.)

Bringing things back around to Rachel, I was lucky enough to win a giveaway over at her blog, (the canning and preserving she's been doing have me in awe this summer!) and I am thoroughly enjoying all of the goodies I received. You may remember that I've sung the praises of her Baby Wipe Juice before - I love the stuff - but this time, I got to choose things for me! The Lavender Lotion Bar is superb, and I also really, really love the essential oil roll-on. I chose Energizing (Like I need that! I should have chosen something mellow) and it's great. Because it's essential oils, of course, it doesn't last in the way that a synthetic perfume does. It is lovely and natural and I don't mind rolling it on through the day at all. Thank you so, so much, Rachel, for the goodies and the inspiration that your blog provides!

And I wish you all a lovely weekend!

good morning! welcome to p's art gallery

2011-08-11T10:36:00.000-03:00

I'm enjoying some quiet time to myself until Thomas wakes up this morning, while Phillip is at the Waterfront Gallery with Adam, 'helping out'. In preparation, they made Phillip's own art gallery out of our dining room yesterday. It's full of red dots! Regular drawings are $5 (pretend money is acceptable) and commissioned pieces are $8. So far, all of his pieces are called "insert colour name here" swirly-whirly. And there are many, many more than I've documented. Fun!

A couple of other things I thought you might like:

Free, cute, vintage-style canning labels that you can print! You just need the sheets of printable label paper. I've printed a bunch and will be dressing up my goodies this canning season.

Gorgeous beach pictures. I am seriously considering that tattoo. I've been thinking about getting one for awhile, but I want to make sure I get something that I won't get tired of. My other option is for something tree-y, vine-y, or nature-y in some way with the boys' names or birthdates or something. Any suggestions?

I'm off to enjoy a hot cup of tea and a bit of reading. I hope you're having a lovely day, too.

thrifty (another rambly one!) and the best baked beans

2011-08-10T10:30:00.001-03:00

This post contains pictures I took on my little point-and-shoot, and I found some pictures and videos that Phillip took on the card. This is one of them. Is he his Mama's boy or what?

On to the thrifting. I walked downtown to a physio appointment yesterday, and the Salvation Army thrift store is right on the way. I had a few minutes to spare, so I thought I would pop in. I don't usually shop there, but I do donate lots of things. While dropping off bags of stuff last week, though, a pitcher caught my eye, and ever since I've been wondering what other dish treasures there might be, just waiting for me. I'm particularly looking for a great platter and a new pottery teapot, in case you're wondering. (Reason for the physio: my foot hasn't been cooperating since I slipped and twisted it at the end of June. My running has been compromised, but I'm doing as I'm told and doing a walk / run routine. I'd rather treat it gently and let is heal properly than have it get worse and be a much bigger problem!)

I found this hilarious fabric. I laid it out on the floor to take a picture, and P *had* to stand on it. It says 'calories' in the grey background letters, and next to each one of those adorable illustrated foods is a number. You guessed it - the calorie count for each of those foods. Part of the reason I find this so funny is that I have never counted a calorie in my life. And the illustrations are so cute!

I may make a market tote out of it. Ah, 1952.

I also found the adorable fabric below. We know lots of little girls, and which of them wouldn't like something made from this? It totally reminds me of my sister (maybe because she had a Strawberry Shortcake quilt on her bed when we were kids?) so let me know if you want it, Marla, and I can make something for you, too.

And Phillip wanted to help model another Le Parfait jar that I found.

Can someone tell me if this is a heat lamp? It has a clip on it, it works, and I think it will be a great industrial-looking reading light if it won't light anyone on fire. It does get pretty warm, even with the regular light bulb that someone left in it, so it might have to wait until we have some chicks. Or until we don't have little boys in the house.

And lastly, this has nothing to do with thrifting. Well, I guess it loosely could - my lovely mother-in-law bought me a set of three Paderno mixing bowls at some kind of crazy super sale they had. They are now my go-to bowls, as evidenced in nearly every kitchen picture I've posted lately.

This isn't a particularly summer-y recipe, but it's what's in the slow cooker right now. I am not a huge fan of baked beans. They're okay, and I'll eat them for one meal (I really prefer the butter on fresh brown bread!) but Adam loves them. I do love putting them in a bowl to soak, and smelling them in the slow cooker all day, though. Adam's mother has the simplest and tastiest recipe that I make, and even though it's not as revolutionary as the oats, here it is:

Roxanne's Slow-Cooker Beans

1 pound dried beans (the ones I'm making today are Nova Scotian!)

In a bowl, cover beans with plenty of water overnight. In the morning, drain, cover well with water in a pot, and boil for 45 minutes - 1 hour or until you're done breakfast. (Until skins split when you blow on them and the beans are tender.)

Drain again, and place beans in the slow cooker along with 1/2 cup brown sugar, pepper, 1 tbsp mustard powder, a pinch of salt, and water to cover. Turn the cooker on low and let it go for as long as you need. A few minutes before serving, add about a cup of molasses, stir well, and, of course, serve with fresh brown bread and plenty of butter. Enjoy!

an interruption to the usual...

2011-08-09T13:35:00.000-03:00

For a 'moose hug'. Thomas does this (almost always at meals) and waits expectantly (see that look on his face?) until someone comes along and 'locks horns' with his and gives him ridiculous, sloppy moose kisses.

Back to your day!

this one's all over the place (including a steel-cut oats recipe!)

2011-08-08T12:23:00.002-03:00

Eeek! Marisa posted one of my jam pictures on her fabulous blog, Food in Jars. I know I've mentioned it before - it's a good one. Thanks, Marisa, and welcome to any new readers if that's what brought you here! Grab your tea, and say hi!

This beluga / mariachi combination made all of us smile this morning.

Shopping at thrift stores. Great post, and a gorgeous image.

A few other tidbits from the home front:

Kitchen fail! Last week, I mentioned that I saw instructions for making ricotta from whey. I tried it yesterday, and all that happened was that the whey boiled, making the kitchen smell like baby spit-up, and then cooled, leaving.... whey. Before making it, I couldn't figure out how it would work because the milk solids had all been turned to yogourt, but there are a lot of things I don't know, so I thought that some kind of magic might happen with a second heating. No such luck! What else can I do with whey left over from making yogourt?

On the neverending quest for a more natural dishwasher detergent that works, I have found something that I really, really like, although I don't know how 'green' it really is. It's President's Choice Green Phosphate Free Dishwasher Detergent, in the little packets. I bought it on sale for $10.99 for 44 packets, which is admittedly still pricey, especially compared to making your own. But it works much better. Of course it's phosphate free - if I remember correctly, somewhere around 1992 phosphates were banned. And there is no ingredient list on the package, so I don't know what all of the other ingredients are in it. But I love that there's no chlorine in it, and that it has no scent.

And some kitchen success. Steel-cut oats. I made them in the slow cooker overnight awhile back, which was good, but a little fussy. I came across the following recipe somewhere a couple of weeks ago, and I've made it three times since. It could not be easier. Really. Phillip will be starting pre-primary in a few weeks, and I'm thinking ahead of ways to make our days a little more routine and simpler. (More about that soon.) I think that this will be made at least a couple of times a week.

Laziest Steel-Cut Oats in the World
In the evening, put 1 cup of steel cut oats in a bowl with 2 cups of water. Cover and tuck in the fridge overnight. In the morning, plunk the uncovered bowl in the microwave for 5 minutes, and you're done. Done! Add milk, fruit, whatever you like. Yum.

**Edited to add: this makes exactly enough for the four of us. That's about as specific as I can be about the final amount, but I'm sure it would work in any volume as long as the ratio stayed the same. Also, it can be refrigerated after cooking, for up to a week. And if it ends up soaking in the fridge for longer than overnight (say, two overnights), that's fine, too. Enjoy!**

The light was gorgeous the other evening when Phillip and I picked more raspberries. We've been picking about a litre a day from the backyard. Happy Monday!

phillip's pictures (a guest post by phillip, with permission this time)

2011-08-06T16:03:00.000-03:00

Knock knock.
Who's there?
Rock.
Rock who?
Rock thank you very much!
naaa
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annapolis royal historic gardens

2011-08-06T15:37:00.000-03:00

I borrowed my mother-in-law's camera to take a few pictures while we were at the Annapolis Royal Historic Gardens last week, mostly of an Acadian-style thatched roof cottage in the garden. It is absolutely worth a visit - the gardens are beautifully maintained, everything is lush and gorgeous (and labelled!), and it's nice and shady on a hot summer day. And that cottage? My new house inspiration. I'm only half joking.

Happy Saturday!

friday

2011-08-05T10:37:00.000-03:00

I love summer. Especially days like today where there is a clear, cool breeze, and I started the day with a walk in the fresh air with one of my boys. Sigh! I am SO thankful that I have the summers off. I am soaking in every minute.

This salad dressing from Rachel is delicious. Since we've started making our own dressings, there is no way I could ever go back to bottled ones. I don't mean to sound snobby - homemade ones just taste real and aren't so sweet and thick. For awhile, I just ate all of my salads naked. (Adam says that sounds fun.) But homemade dressing is better. Adam makes a ranch dressing that he loves; I'll see if he'll do a guest post and share it with you. And I came up with one to copy a delicious dressing served on a seafood salad at Rudder's Restaurant - once I come up with some measurements, I'll share that one with you, too, if you'd like.

And lastly, I wanted to mention a couple of things that I bought at the Fredericton Farmers' Market back in July. Sanctuary's products are lovely. That deserves more emphasis - they're lovely. My skin is especially loving the chamomile toner. It's in a little spray bottle and is especially refreshing on hot days. The Moroccan Rose soap smells perfect (I haven't opened it yet). I sniff if every time I walk by. All of their products are 100% natural, and come highly recommended by yours truly - they're gentle, natural, and smell wonderful. And I say all of this under no coercion whatsoever - I bought these myself, and just wanted to spread the love.

Happy Friday!

red

2011-08-03T11:42:00.000-03:00

These are the beets we grew this year - chioggia. They are gorgeous, but I didn't find them very tasty when I roasted them last night. I don't know if it was something particular to our batch (weather, etc.) or if that's just kind of the way they are. But they're so pretty - I think this picture was worth it.
And this has me beaming. Ten teeny, perfect jars of non-floaty-fruit raspberry jam, with seeds evenly distributed throughout! Just raspberries, sugar, and lemon juice. Even better, there are more raspberries than sugar. And the best? The raspberries are all from our backyard!

Our raspberry patch requires an hour or two of maintenance a year - just enough to cut down last year's canes at the end of the winter. If we were fussy about it looking orderly, it would require more, and the berries probably wouldn't produce as well, since that always seems to be the way. The canes are thornless, so we can dive right in to pick them, and the berries are very large.

The recipe is from Well Preserved, a canning book I love. What have you made lately?

Happy Wednesday!

odds and ends

2011-08-01T20:01:00.000-03:00

Thomas does this adorable thing where if we're sitting on the floor, he backs up until the backs of his legs touch mine or Adam's, and then he sits down on us. It could be on our feet, knees, back, arms - whatever he finds comfortable. He waves at everyone and says 'hi' in this casual singsong, and 'bah-bye' with his chubby little fingers slowly opening and closing.

I'm going to make some raspberry jam from our backyard raspberries tonight. This makes me really, really, ridiculously happy.

Speaking of things that make me ridiculously happy, I made more butter last week, and used my new butter mold! Cute, eh?

I also made yogourt the other day, and did you know that you can use the leftover whey to make ricotta? I'll be doing this soon.

Phillip keeps saying things like "I get the hiccups so much because I have more veins than Mama does." He has been reading some new-to-him old-school Sesame Street books for almost four hours now. Yes, four hours. He's completed the library's Summer Reading Club requirements. As of a few weeks ago. I'll have to go up and pry the books out of his hands, and most likely he'll have a fit when I tell him it's time to go to sleep.

Good night!

july 30

2011-07-30T22:32:00.001-03:00

It's a very happy day for a sweet friend of mine (Hi, AC! Oh, you're AS by now!) - it's her wedding day. And I've been thinking about her all day, so this post's for her. Here, we had crazy rain and wind for most of the day - I hope that the weather in Alberta was perfect for you, A. Since I'm not able to be there, almost all of the way across the country, I wanted to say congratulations, and I hope that everything went as planned and that you had a wonderful day. I'll track your mom down soon for the details. And I can't wait to see pictures. May you have many, many happy years together! *Hug*
Sherrie

that turkey!

2011-07-29T19:58:00.000-03:00

"On Duty". This is the sign for Phillip's store, and he's on duty. As you can see. He is very diligent about changing the sign when he leaves the store (his bedroom). It's adorable.

He named the store the "Graham Half-Family Market, Half-Family Store" and he and Thomas are the proprietors. They mostly sell sandwiches and pizza. They're a little tough since they're made of wood, but not bad.

Our summer list is taped all over his world map.

A growth chart from Molly!

My mom was babysitting this afternoon while I was in outpatients - had a kidney stone, apparently - I don't recommend it! and apparently NOT watching Phillip as he published the post we started together earlier, and proceeded to create three other ones and publish those, too! Since they're kind of cute, despite the fact that he knows he's not supposed to use the computer, I'll leave one of them up. Turkey!

Anyway, here's the interview post I had planned on putting together.

I saw this over at The Things We Do, and thought that Phillip would have fun with it. So here's an interview with P, 4 years and 2 months old.

Favourite food? Pizza.phillip
Food you don’t like? (silly voice) Crayons. phillip
Coolest person on earth? Gabriel.phillip
When you grow up what do you want to be? A doctor.phillip
Favourite colour? Blue.phillip
Favourite song? ABC's.phillip
What do you like to do outside? Play hide and seek.phillip
If you could go anywhere in the world where would you go? To Hands on Crafts.phillip
When you were little you… I saw myself playing with my toes.phillip
Your best friend is? Catherine.phillip
Favourite snack? Peanut butter and apple.phillip
Favourite movie? I haven't watched any movies, so let's skip that one phillip
Favourite thing to do with Thomas? Play tricks on each other.phillip
Favourite thing to do with Dadoo? Play.phillip
Favourite thing to do with Mama? Play.phillip
A book you love? The one Nanoo gave me. The big one full of activities.phillip
Favourite sport? Basketball.phillip
Favourite thing to wear? Shorts.phillip
If you had one wish what would it be? For a truck full of cookies.phillip

Thanks, Phillip! That was fun. (He giggled through the whole thing. Cute kid.)
phillipphillipphillipphilip

He added in all of those 'Phillip's when he was taking over my blog.

Look at this! I finally caved and bought it at a local antique shop. I am in LOVE! It now houses all of our craft supplies. Terribly exciting.

Have a great weekend!

phillip

2011-07-29T16:52:00.000-03:00

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almost...

2011-07-27T20:38:00.002-03:00

company

2011-07-27T09:09:00.001-03:00

We have family here this week, and I am enjoying it soooo much. Adam's parents and grandparents are visiting, and we are having a lovely time together. It's so nice for the boys to get to spend time with their great-grandparents! I didn't have that experience, and I'm so glad that they do.

Isn't Grammie (Mary) gorgeous? That's my mother in law on the right, being held by her brother. He and her other brother, on the left next to Grampie (Bob), both passed away in their teens. The life that Grammie and Grampie have lived has been full and difficult. They've been married for 60 years. Can you imagine having three very little ones with no running water or a washing machine? I love hearing all of Grampie's stories and getting housekeeping tips from Grammie. (Note: rhubarb flower stalks need to be pulled out, rather than cut. Add a pinch of baking soda to your stewed rhubarb so you don't need to add quite so much sugar.) They are so such lovely people - I married into a wonderful family. Really.

I'll be back in a few days! I hope that you're getting to spend time this summer with the people you love!

chamomile and housekeeping

2011-07-24T06:47:00.002-03:00

The sun is rising and I'm in a quiet, sleeping house. I have a cup of mint tea at hand, and no particular plans for the day other than doing some cleaning and baking to get ready for family who will be coming this week.

Phillip had a fever yesterday, slept all afternoon, and was up last night until 11:00. I stayed up to be sure that he went to sleep. Poor little guy. Thomas tripped and put his tooth through his lip after his bath last night. Adam was gone for the day to shoot a wedding. Since P slept all afternoon, and T had his regular nap, I had a bit of very unexpected quiet time and finished a book. (Fast, fast read. Nothing lifechanging, but fun for the summer!)

Housekeeping: along with the physical housekeeping that will be going on here today, I've also finally imported my Birch Bark Handmade Soap blog to this one, so that all of the posts will be included here, in one place. I plan to delete that blog, so things are a bit more condensed. Since soapmaking is still fun (I made four batches on Friday!) but doesn't hold quite the same level of priority since having Thomas, I thought that was a good plan.

Cookie tip du jour: in case you don't do this (and I don't as often as I should), you should do it today. Make your regular cookies, shape them or plop them onto a baking sheet, and freeze. Remove them from the sheet and store in an airtight bag after they've frozen. When you have company and don't want to spend time beginning at the beginning to make delicious, homemade cookies, you can just bake these up - no defrosting necessary.

I hope that no one is feverish at your house and that you're having a lovely weekend.

4:31am

2011-07-23T04:41:00.001-03:00

A very early good morning to you. I have been up for a few hours, for no apparent reason. Well, part of one of my dreams was that Thomas was choking, and I woke up just as I was about to do something about it. So it took me a few minutes to wake up properly and realize that it had been a dream. Then I laid in bed for a looooong time. It's a hot, muggy night, so I went and got a fan and set it up by the bed. And laid there some more. For what seemed like forever. Then I gave up.

We get Phillip up to pee every night before we go to bed. Tonight (last night?) when I was tucking him back in, he said, "I'm going to be an ant again now." And went back to sleep.

So, good morning, and I hope that you're sleeping peacefully.

hamburger buns and butter

2011-07-20T20:45:00.000-03:00

You may (or may not, if you read this in a feed) have noticed that I changed the design of the blog a bit. Please don't mind the current imperfections. It turns out that I'm even busier in the summer than during the school year, somehow. Anyway, I'll get to working on the sidebar and fixing the header and a few other things that need perfecting. Please be patient!

I think that the reason that I'm busier is because I've been spending a lot of time in the kitchen. And I think that I'll try to reduce that for the rest of the summer - I want to be outside and doing fun things with my boys. And the summer only come around once a year. That said, each of these delicious goods required very little hand-on time. Like, 10 minutes. Not even that much for the chive butter. And they're good.

Making butter in the Kitchen Aid involves pouring in heavy cream and whipping it with the whisk attachment until it separates into butter and buttermilk. That's it! Plop the butter chunks into a piece of cheesecloth and squeeze it out, and you have butter! Knead in some salt, herbs, whatever else you like, and you have a little bit of heaven in your kitchen. Or in your mouth, if you're like me. Save your buttermilk for salad dressing or to fry chicken, and you're all set. Now all I need is a cow...
While I do realize that items like hamburger buns and butter can be purchased at the grocery store in these crazy modern times, it it is sooo much fun to do it myself. And these hamburger buns are absolutely worth the little effort they require. I (finally - it's been in my binder for about a year - good grief - I just checked the date and could it have been TWO years?) tried Teresa's hamburger bun recipe, and as usual, I said "Why didn't I try this sooner?" The dough is done in the bread machine, easy peasy, divided into bun-ny blobs and left to rise. Then popped in the oven, and delicious! Soft, perfect texture - we had some plain tonight, but I can't wait to try them with a burger. Oooh, a portobello one would be delicious. With the chive butter toasted onto the bun! Yum.

I much prefer these to the store ones. Although they might look a bit crusty, they're not - the outside is just as soft as one would want it on a burger. And they can also be shaped into hot-dog shapes, if that's the way you roll. (Ha!)

So follow the link to her recipe, and make these!

Happy Wednesday!

oven dried herbs

2011-07-18T13:11:00.001-03:00

I have several pots of herbs on the go this summer and some in the raised beds, and I've been keeping my eyes and ears peeled for ways to use them while they're fresh. Like the delicious pea and mint soup we had this week, herb-infused water, or tossed into a salad. In anticipation of winter, though, I've also been thinking about drying some, and yesterday, I did it for the first time in the oven. It worked extremely well for me, (not to mention that it's super easy). You also don't have any of the dust or humidity problems that can happen if they're hung to dry in bundles. Here's how I did it!

Pick your herbs. They're supposedly at their flavour peak early in the morning after the dew's evaporated. Trimming the plants back encourages them to put out more growth, too, so that's another good reason not to wait until the end of the season to harvest them!

Wash and dry well. I thought this was pretty clever of me - to wash them, I used the salad spinner. It's now one of my favourite kitchen tools, and I bought it recently at a thrift store in Halifax for 99 cents. Score!

After the herbs are washed and dried (you can also use a kitchen towel to dry them if you don't have a spinner), pick off the leaves. With most (like oregano, thyme, tarragon) you can hold the top of the sprig with one hand, and run the fingers of your other hand down the stem in the opposite direction. They'll pop right off. Then lay them out in an even layer on a baking sheet.

Set your oven to the lowest temperature it can reach. On my oven, it's 170. I had two sheets of herbs, which I tucked in for 40 minutes. Then I turned them with some tongs, and set the timer for another 40 minutes. I checked them again, and they looked almost perfectly dry. Since I was in the middle of something else, I turned off the oven and left the door open for a minute (there were no babies around!), then closed it and let them sit for another 20 minutes or so. If there's too much moisture, they can mold, and if they're in the oven too long, they might burn, so try to find that perfect middle ground!

And here are the dried herbs, waiting to be used. On the left is mint, top middle is sage, underneath that is bee and lemon balm, top right is oregano, tarragon is on the bottom right (my favourite!) and stevia in front. I will absolutely be doing more of this! And watch out if you're on my Christmas list!

If you don't have your own herbs, it's not too late. The garden centres are closing for the season here in Nova Scotia, and you just might be able to get your hands on some super cheap potted herbs. I saw some at the Superstore the other day, and you can also get some from the market and plunk them in some water, and start your own. If you can find some perennial ones either of those ways, it's absolutely worth it, since you can use them for the rest of this season, and keep them in the garden for years!

Happy herbing! Let me know if this works well for you!

sunday

2011-07-17T13:17:00.002-03:00

So far today, I've:

- continued the couple-days-long strawberry jam recipe from my first and favourite canning book

with the first boil. Strawberry jam is Adam's favourite. I like making things that I know he'll love! Tomorrow is the canning bit.

- dried bunches of herbs (in the oven! more on that soon) that I cut from my back step stores; I'm particularly excited about the tarragon and stevia

- baked up some bread

- roasted some cubed potatoes in olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. So simple, and delicious.

- got a clothesline full of beautifully clean diapers, getting a breath of fresh air

- read a few pages of Miss Dahl's Voluptuous Delights. So far, so good - I kind of love it.

Adam is off to shoot a wedding this afternoon, so the boys and I will be hanging out. I think we'll search for crabs on the beach near my parents' house. Happy Sunday!

i missed you!

2011-07-14T21:36:00.001-03:00

We arrived home yesterday after a relaxing, lovely-especially-because-we-got-to-see-lots-of-people trip to New Brunswick. And I missed you guys! Here's the newsy rundown of our trip. The pictures are from our ferry ride from Saint John to Digby on the Princess of Acadia. (The composition is off; a bit from the right of each is cropped. I'm trying to get that sorted out. You can always see my flickr stream if you're terribly concerned!)

In no particular order: We went to my first ever Trivia Night with Barb at Big Tide Brewing Co., (don't order the nachos - they were extremely disappointing) and was surprised by how difficult many of the questions were and how many people knew the answers. In other trivial news, I won two games of Settlers of Catan, which surprised even me. (We loooove board games - if you do, you'll like this one. And Carcassonne, too. SO much fun.)

We visited. A delicious dinner at Isaac's Way (I highly recommend the lamb burger) and late-night mini-golf (thanks to the grandparents!) with the greatest friends anyone could ask for. (And no visit with them is ever really complete without a good dose of mini golf.)

And I took the boys to visit a bloggy friend and her sweet family.

We also visited Sarah Jones of Jones Gallery. She's just lovely. We make a habit of popping in to see her and her work when we're in Saint John, and it's always worth it. (She drives a red Vespa!)

I went thrifting (on at least three occasions) in NB and found a few treasures. A great Supermaggie shirt and a couple of pairs of jeans in Fredericton, and a brand new pair of Pediped shoes for Phillip to wear this fall at Value Village in Saint John. I also found some deals on work clothes at RW&Co - I love their look. I don't often buy new clothes, so this was kind of a big deal. And everything was half of the already discounted price. (Naturally.)

We arrived home to a new computer! I'm kind of smitten. The old laptop properly died on Monday after a long and drawn-out ordeal. So now I'm trying to learn to use Lightroom and find some old files (we had everything triple backed up, so we didn't lose anything.) Thanks to Adam for the help, and for mowing the lawn!

Of course, I am happy to be home. I whipped up some classy freezies for Phillip, Thomas and I to share this afternoon, and I think that you should try them. Unfortunately, coconut is one of the foods that Adam can't eat, so he won't be able to enjoy these, but I'll describe them in great detail to him. They are as simple as follows (and they kind of sound like something from a 50's cookbook -must be the pineapple.) In the blender, whiz a can of coconut juice (not water or milk) with a can of crushed pineapple, a banana, and a blop of agave nectar. Freeze in molds, and enjoy! I love the teensy-tiny little bits of pineapple. Yum.

Happy Thursday! It's nice to be back.

july

2011-07-07T18:40:00.000-03:00

Oh, July. I love you.

We are really, really enjoying spending lots of time together, now that I'm off for the summer. We've been swimming a few times and have been enjoying some lovely weather.

Other things we're enjoying:
The Cat in the Hat game "I Can Do That!" Perfect for 3-5 year olds.

I can't remember if I've mentioned it here before, but my sister Marla has a newish 365 blog, fivesevenfive, of haikus. Funny ones. She and I share the same sense of humour.

I just started reading an excellent book, Simplicity Parenting. Love it so far.

And I'm sure there are other things that I just can't remember right now.

The following pictures are from a few months ago, when Thomas was first sitting at the table to eat a snack. Can you tell that he likes a)eating and b)having his picture taken? He looks so much older now!

ginger syrup and rose water

2011-07-03T09:06:00.001-03:00

This is what the countertop looks like right now. That's bluebarb (blueberry and rhubarb) jam left over from last year, and it is sooooo good.

Also in the kitchen (although I brought them into the dining room for better light), two very fun and easy things I've made lately. On the left, ginger syrup. It is so good, you won't be able to stand it. I actually had some, still warm, drizzled over oat squares cereal last night. Yes, we need some groceries. Including club soda, to make our own ginger ale! Wouldn't it be cute in a small glass bottle with those adorable striped straws?

Ginger syrup
1 1/2 cups chopped ginger (in a food processor works best)
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 1/2 cups water
Combine in saucepan, bring to a boil and simmer for awhile, until the syrup thickens and darkens. For me, this was the time it took me to make five batches of soap, so about an hour and fifteen minutes. Strain, and add to sparkling water for your own pop (or soda, for you Americans), drizzle over vanilla ice cream, or try any of these. Oooh, drizzled over a cake would be wonderful.

And on the right is some rose water. (In a Le Parfait jar I found at Frenchy's.) It could not be easier, or smell better.

Rose water
1 cup rose petals
2 cups boiling water
Place petals in a heatproof bowl or jar. Pour boiling water over petals, and cover. Let steep for half an hour, strain out petals and let cool. It smells amazing, is so pretty, and makes a lovely toner for your skin. It can be used in recipes, and it can be used for many other purposes, too!

Also in the garden, we're waiting for these silver dollar seed pods to turn silver. Phillip's very excited for 'the coins to be ready'.

I just overhead Phillip say "I need to do downward facing dog!" The boys are doing their morning stretches. He's also started saying 'lovely' a lot lately. Which is, of course, adorable.

Hope you're having a lovely weekend!

school's out!

2011-06-30T20:33:00.003-03:00

Today was my last day of work for the summer! I'm officially on vacation. We went out for supper to celebrate, and came home with enough time to play outside and take a few pictures before baths. While I'm enjoying this feeling of newfound freedom, here are a couple of summery posts you might enjoy.

Line drying clothes. One of my favourite topics!

Summer lovin'.

And some more summery goodness. (That post makes me happy in so many ways!) I love Erin's blog, and you should subscribe. Her pictures are gorgeous, and she is just the sweetest person. So there. Go and browse!

And here is what a Mama, thankful for a summer break, looks like!

We're expecting sunny days all weekend, and since tomorrow is Canada Day, there should be some fun to be had around town. Have a wonderful long weekend!

blogging

2011-06-26T10:10:00.000-03:00

I had a few people tell me that they are interested in a post about how I blog, and since I like reading this kind of post on other blogs, here you go! I'll also include some tips on commenting and a couple of other things people often ask about, so let's sit down with our tea and have a chat. And if you have any questions, leave a comment!

Pictures. Way back in the beginning, I used to start with words, and almost no pictures. I've since discovered that I love taking pictures and have taken some pretty decent ones. You can see most of the pictures I've ever posted over on my flickr stream. I use two cameras: a little Kodak that I'm comfortable taking to the beach, tossing in the car, and generally doing anything with, and Adam's old Canon 20D, which I'm a little more careful with, since it's his backup camera. I review my pictures in Adobe Bridge and edit and save them in Photoshop. That said, I do not edit very many pictures at all -maybe one in 40- I usually only resize them. And the ones that I do edit will only typically get brightened up a bit or colour corrected. It's much easier to take the right picture in the first place than to spend time trying to make it what what it should have been, later on. I take all of the pictures on my blog unless the post clearly says that they're someone else's. That doesn't happen often - usually the occasional photo that Adam's taken of the boys. I save my resized pictures in folders organized by month, and post them to flickr after I've posted them on the blog. (I'm just noticing that the edges seem to be cut off of some of my posted pictures. Hmm. Must sort that out.) There. I think that's about it for pictures!

I have a few 'blogging rules' that work for me.

1. Never post that you're sorry it's been so long since you last posted, you're such a bad blogger, etc. If someone cares, they'll unsubscribe. And if not, they probably don't want to hear your apologies.
2. No schedule. I very intentionally don't do 'Wordless Wednesday', 'Meatless Monday', or any other scheduled blogging. That would absolutely not work for me. When life gets crazy, it's okay if I don't post for 6 days, and when I have lots to share and post every day for a few days, that's fine, too.
3. I try to write as I think, as long as it's semi-choerent (that might be up for debate). I don't follow any particular 'format'; I just try to include a pretty picture or two and some text.
4. Absolutely no income or ads - I do this solely for fun, and I can do exactly what I want.

I've been asked about commenting on posts several times. And in the hopes that some of you who I know read along will now be able to comment, here's what to do!
1. Below each post, there's a line that says '__ comments'. It might be '1 comment', '3 comments', whatever. Click on that.
2. Type your comment in the little window underneath where it says 'post a comment'. (Don't forget to sign your comment if you want me to know who you are, and you're choosing anonymous!)
3. Underneath that, it says 'comment as', and there's a drop-down menu to the right of that. Click on it to drop it down, and choose 'anonymous' if you don't want to use a Google account or any of the other options. Then click 'post comment'. Ta-da!

Links in posts: If text in a post is coloured and /or underlined, it's a link to another blog, website, etc. Just click on that word to see more. For example,
Adam took some sweet pictures of the boys while I was away.
Click on 'Adam' above and it will take you to his main site. Click on 'some sweet picture of the boys' above and it will take you to his post of the pictures. And you should look - they're fabulous.

There! I hope that's been helpful. Let me know if you have any more questions - I'd be happy to answer. And don't you love the pottery tray? I bought it at Value Village in Saint John awhile back, and only realized after I brought it home that it was made by someone with the same name (different spelling) as me!

compost bin

2011-06-25T19:55:00.000-03:00

I don't usually share pictures of my compost bin, but by the time I thought of sharing pictures of the peas, it was too late. I ate two one-pound bags of fresh peas from the market this morning, almost single handed. I think sweet fresh peas are my favourite thing to eat.

This beautiful tree (and another identical one) was in bloom in front of our Department of Fisheries and Oceans building not too long ago. I'm not sure what kind of tree it is, but it was gorgeous.

I'm back! I had a great time away, and I'm very happy to be home again. I picked up these little wooden eggs for the boys while in Halifax (Phillip has an ongoing 'store' that I thought they would be great for), and that amazing bowl was picked up at Value Village. I am sure that you'll see many, many more pictures of it.

I must go lay down with a sweet little boy for a few minutes to help him settle down, as promised. I'm hoping to share the 'how I blog' post(s?) this week. Only four more work days until summer holidays! Yipeeeee! Hope you're having a great weekend.

the beach

2011-06-21T07:56:00.000-03:00

The weather finally was suitable for the beach on Sunday. Well, it seemed like it should have been, but the wind was still freezing! The boys had a great time, anyway, and so did we. It was Thomas' first time really playing at the beach and exploring the sand, and he loved it.

I'm going to be away for work for a few days - try not to miss me too much. Hope you have a great week!

In the meantime, check out this fantastic vintage-theme shoot Adam did! The couple looks amazing, and his photos showed them off beautifully.

Thursday links

2011-06-16T18:25:00.000-03:00

On becoming a mama and letting go.

On being a mama. These are the kinds of posts I write in my head. But mine aren't quite as beautifully said.

Doesn't this look like the best place to visit?

LOVE this. People doing what they believe in - there's nothing like it.

I'm thinking about making these refrigerator dills. Anyone tried a similar recipe? How did you like it?

The most beautifully presented recipe I think I've ever seen. (Worth the couple minutes, I promise!)

Love Rachel's post on keeping it real.

Happy Thursday!

tabula and hawthorns

2011-06-15T20:26:00.000-03:00

These beautiful mushrooms were in our CSA a few weeks ago and were promptly devoured. Phillip and I ate that giant one like it was an English muffin, and the others I sliced and put in a small cast iron pan with a blop of butter, salt, pepper, and green onions. Adam tossed the pan on the barbecue, and they were delicious. Speaking of delicious, River Cottage Everyday finally came in at the library for me yesterday, and I am swooning over the gorgeous pictures and delicious-looking recipes. I made tabula kisir, a bulgur salad, from it to go with tonight's dinner, and it was delicious. (I secretly call it tabula rasa. Ahh, takes me back to university.) I did some serious substitutions and omissions, but the dressing was almost the same. I used chili powder in place of paprika, and some dried herbs in place of fresh. (Yes, I know what my step looks like, but I don't have any parsley yet!) And some toasted almonds instead of walnuts (which I think was a definite win - crunchier). And I left out the peppers. So maybe it wasn't really much like the original recipe. But it was delicious.

Thanks for your sweet comments on Phillip's guest post! He's pretty excited to do another one. See that tree he's taking a picture of? It's a hawthorn, and it's the tree I asked about earlier in the week (thanks, J!) Here are a few of my pictures from our walk:

I loved how Phillip's guest post fell into place yesterday. Here on the blog, I try to make it look as though I have endless hours to take pictures, putter around the house, and do everything I love. In reality, this is how I make things like this happen: I was driving home from work yesterday afternoon, thought "I need to take some pictures and tell people what those trees are before they're done blooming", and entered the house, planning to grab a camera and scoot back out for five minutes. Phillip was at the door when I walked in, so I invited him along, and it was lovely. We didn't go for a long walk; just around half a block. Came back home, went through his pictures together and had his post done before supper. (A delicious supper that Adam made with Thomas while we were gone.)It's all about making time where you can.

As I've been writing this, I've been thinking about how I approach blogging. Is anyone interested at all in any posts about how I blog? I totally understand if you're not, but I kind of like reading those sorts of posts on other blogs. Let me know what you think!

There's sun in tomorrow's forecast! Happy Wednesday.

Phillip

2011-06-14T17:16:00.001-03:00

(This is a guest post by Phillip. We went for a photo walk, and he took all of the pictures, on his camera, and we worked together to type the text except this sentence. He likes caps lock.)

Knock knock! Who's there? Tank. Tank who? You're welcome! That's the joke I want to tell to Natalie's kid (Lauren).

Knock knock! Who's there? Phillip. Phillip who? Phillip the gas tank!

WAS

lOVE I THOUGHT our PICTURE WALK WAS BEAUTIFUL. THIS PICTURE IS FOR NATALIE (WHO CUTS OUR HAIR).

I love to use caps lock. I LOVE TOUCHING BABY SPIDERS AND WATCHING THEM GO ALL OUT OF PLACE.

-FROM PHILLIP

*Edited to add: I forgot to say that I love to jump!*

sunday banana bread and a mystery tree

2011-06-12T18:28:00.003-03:00

Today was one of those lovely days when everything just... worked. Does anyone know what these little white flowers are? They're in bloom here right now (shhh, I picked this tip of a branch this morning when I was out for my run). They're on trees, and are beautifully fragrant - kind of a licorice-y scent, and the branches are kind of rough and angular, like a flowering crab, and the branches are completely covered. They seem to grow anywhere. Anyone?

And any day that includes banana bread is just fine with me. This is the recipe I used, and it is delicious.

Banana Bread

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.
Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

more green

2011-06-10T20:47:00.000-03:00

It seems as though a disproportionate number of things in my house are green. It's just such a lovely colour, I can't help myself. I picked up this sweet candle holder at Frenchy's the other day for 75 cents. Specifically to match my little bird on the kitchen windowsill. And it fits my locally made beeswax votives perfectly.

Inspired by this lovely post over at Tend (aren't those jars great?) I made some herb infused water just before supper. It was very mildly minty with our meal (P and I tossed in several types of leaves), and the rest is still steeping in the kitchen. I'll have the hard stuff with breakfast.

There was some beautiful asparagus with this week's CSA share. To be roasted or grilled tomorrow. Yum. Thomas was completely fascinated with it; touching, smelling, grabbing, and otherwise man(or baby)handling it. It really is one of the most humbling things in the world, to watch your child learn about everything.Those sweet little hands have some serious bruises on them now, though; Thomas was standing on a chair, facing backward, tipped over and squished his sweet little fingertips. Everything's moving fine, but they're pretty tender and have dark purple bruises. Poor baby.

I am really pleased that we have a nice, quiet weekend ahead, complete with dinner plans with other adults! And no kids! I'm really looking forward to it. Other than that, a nice, quiet weekend is in store.

a lot of green

2011-06-09T20:46:00.000-03:00

Chive blossoms. Pretty, and deliciously garlicky.

I love, love, love this time of year. School is winding down, the days and evenings are warm and long, and things are happening in the garden. Since we plan on moving as soon as our house sells, I didn't want to plant a bunch of herbs in the ground and need to leave them. So I plunked them all in clay pots on our back step, and I kind of love how they look together. Above are curry flower plants, and below, some new growth on our lavender.

Rachel has a great tutorial for laundry soap up on her blog. For some reason, I seem to have enough detergent to get me through the next decade or so (including some that I made using a similar recipe), but in case you don't, you should definitely try it out. And I'm super excited that I won a giveaway on Rachel's blog! I've sung the praises of her Baby Wipe Juice before (still love it on T's little bum) and I can't wait to try some of her other goodies. I will definitely post about them when they arrive; hopefully the Canada Post strike won't slow them down too much.

Bee balm, lemon balm, oregano, and a little peek of some summer savory. Yum!

This post made my day today. That sense of home - it's such an important, intangible, sometimes elusive thing.

Lettuces!

These are my stevia plants. I've discovered that a couple of torn leaves in cold peppermint tea is lovely.

I tried making mustard awhile back and nearly keeled over, it was so hot. I've since learned that the trick seems to be at least partly in aging it for at least a week to mellow things out. And after seeing this pretty post, I think I just might have to try it again, especially since it's barbeque season once again!

And perhaps we'll get more than two strawberries this year? I'm hoping.

11 artful activities to try this summer. I think Phillip will enjoy these!

Cranberry Orange Rhubarb popsicles? In pretty jars, no less? Yes, yes, yes, please! Three of my favourite things!

I could peruse this blog all day. Every day. I love all of the white with bright pops of colour. I'm thinking of something along those lines for our new place, when we move. Speaking of which, want to buy a house?

And who is that happy Australian farmer, you ask? I don't know, but I do know that one of my pictures (of my sister's spiced crabapples) was published in this issue of Gardening Australia! Tee-hee!

How's that for a scattered assortment? Happy Thursday! How is your garden growing?

the garden this evening

2011-06-08T20:45:00.000-03:00

home dairy

2011-06-05T20:45:00.001-03:00

If I blogged about every book that I borrowed from the library, there would be nothing else here. Mostly, as of late, it's been non-fiction books. I get most of my recommendations from other blogs and friends, and I seldom buy a book without first borrowing it from the library and checking it out (literally and figuratively). I'll often fly through them quickly. Sometimes, by the time I actually get my hands on a book, it's been months since I requested it and I can't remember where I read about it, or why I wanted to borrow it. I've come across a bunch of good ones lately, but this one absolutely deserves its own post.

It's Home Dairy with Ashley English, and it is the perfect reference for making yogourt, cheeses, and butters. It's beautifully laid out, the pages have a lovely texture and smell like Grade 4 (Mmmm!) and the instructions are clear, well-written and logically ordered. I LOVE it, and will be buying my own copy with my next Air Miles redemption. (That's how I keep myself from spending all of my money on books!) If I had some extra cash lying around, I would give you all copies. But since I don't, go to your library's website immediately and put a hold on it. Then you'll read it and decide that you need to buy a copy, too. I promise.

Ashley English is also on Twitter, and she has a great blog, Small Measure. There are also three other books in this series, which I am assuming are just as excellent (and I've read positive reviews, too!): Keeping Bees, Keeping Chickens, and Canning and Preserving. If one of you has a bazillion air miles that you want to redeem for Chapters gift cards for me, please feel free. I will happily accept! Really, this book is worth your time. I promise.

**Edited to add: I was so excited, I forgot to include three of my favourite things about the book! Firstly, it was manufactured in Canada, a rare thing to see these days, and secondly, there is a section of body care recipes! Third, there are instructions for a cheese press, which I don't know if I'll ever make, but I love that it's in the book.**

I hope that you had a great weekend, and happy reading!