Water Fun

I do realize that posting pictures of my daughter in her "natural state" is probably a faux-pas but I promise that all you will see is cuteness and nothing of an obscene nature.

As for this weeks CSA, everything was pretty much the same. I didn't get Greens this week because I have serious doubts as to whether or not I will ever develop a taste for them. The berries were fantastic, again, and we were also able to mix in a few red raspberries that had come in early. From our backyard garden this week we were able to harvest our first cucumbers and even more zucchini. Summer is wonderful!

Ever wonder what to do with fresh mint? It grows like a weed and yet, other than garnish, what do you do with it? My friend Shannon gave me a great recipe for a refreshing summer drink: heat a gallon of water to nearly boiling, throw in a heaping handful of fresh mint, remove from heat and let steep for at least 10 minutes (I did it for 30). Strain and refrigerate. You can add honey or sugar to sweeten. This reminds me of a mint julip so I will probably try to add some lime next time I drink it.

Here is a challenge: send me your favorite summer recipes using ONLY seasonal ingredients. It shouldn't be too hard but it will get you thinking about what produce is best to buy now.

Kutztown Folk Festival

This picture says it all! Today we went to a celebration of all things Pennsylvania Dutch at the Kutztown Folk Festival in Kutztown, PA. I am not sure what I was expecting, but it definitely was not struggling to maneuver a stroller through the huge masses of crowds that descended on Kutztown. The weather was decent and there seemed to be plenty to see, but the PEOPLE! There must have been something in the air today because it seemed like everyone was in a bad mood (except Nettie, of course). I actually saw strangers getting into shouting matches with each other on two separate occasions, and on our way to Kutztown Nettie got road-raged by some crazy lady.

On a happier note, though the food was expensive it was pretty tasty. Ravenna got her first taste of sasparilla and funnel cake, Andrew and Nettie sampled the Ox sand which, while Jon dug into a fresh apple dumpling. I also found some yummy maple sugar covered peanuts.

This is my souvenir from the day. There were lots of traditional crafts and really unique pieces, but those definitely exceeded my price range. I fell in love with this hand hammered recycled aluminum plate of the "Tree of Life." Pretty folksy don't you think?

Before I forget...

Today was a crazy day. I got lost taking Ravenna to her appointment for her birthday portraits (better late than never, right?) which I arrived 20 minutes late for so what was supposed to take an hour ended up taking twice that. Darn you Lancaster with your weird street names and illogical city planning!

When I arrived home with my grumpy toddler who refused to nap, I remembered that I was making the evening meal, and it was something that required a significant amount of prep time. Needless to say the rest of my afternoon and evening was spent in meal preparation. The food was good, but next time I will skip the lettuce wraps and just put it over brown rice. I also made a Napa Cabbage salad and a side of fresh pineapple.

The rest of the evening was a bit more relaxed. For Family Home Evening, Ravenna had the lesson, but was asleep, so I showed everyone the Baby Signing Time video so that we can all be on board with helping her learn signs. I really like the program; Jeff thinks that the narrators cheerfulness put Nettie to shame, if that is even possible. We finished with caramel popcorn and a game of 10,000.

Without further ado...CSA Week 4:

1 head of Napa Cabbage
1 head of green leaf lettuce
1/2 pint blueberries (oh so super delicious!)
1/2 pint black raspberries (ditto the above)
1 box of winter peas
1/3 lb. mix of collard greens and colorful swiss chard
2 red beets
3 HUGE green onions (these were like 3 feet tall, no joke)
1 head of bok choi
3 garlic scapes
1 beautiful head of broccoli

Quite a plentiful harvest this week and we have already gone through the onions, cabbage, lettuce, broccoli and the berries! Oh, and this last weekend we started our first harvest from our backyard garden: zucchini, and soon some cucumbers and in a few more weeks TOMATOES!!! I just love the summer.

Happy Fathers Day!

Andrew loves being a daddy

Yay for Father's Day! I can't believe that we are already working our way to the end of June and we have been in Pennsylvania for almost two weeks. Two rainy weeks, but they have still been full of fun. For Father's Day Andrew talked me into getting him a Nintendo Wii. "But why get a Wii when you have no job?" you might rightly be wondering. Well, all I can say for myself is that Andrew is so wonderful and has worked really hard so I think that he deserved to get something special.

Lest you think I have forgotten, CSA Week 3:

1 head of Green Leaf Lettuce (gorgeous!)
1 head of Red Bok Choi
1/2 lb. miscellaneous Greens (collard, kale etc.)
1 box of winter peas (these are so yummy!)
1 box strawberries
1 bunch of radishes
2 scallions
1/4 leaf lettuce mix
2 red beets

I may be forgetting something, but that seems to be all. We had an enjoyable time on the farm picking stawberries and peas and even made a friend. I tried out a recipe for greens this last week and it turned out nasty. Anyone have any suggestions?

We have arrived!

Actually, we arrived on VERY early in the morning on the 9th and we have been enjoying the spring here enormously. On Tuesday we went to the Central Market where we were able to pick up some lovely produce and some Whoopie pies! On our way back we stumbled upon an Amish farm where they were selling milk and free-range eggs. The prices were great, the farmers kind, and since it is just around the corner, we will be going back soon. I also got to inspect my the first harvest from my CSA and actually go to the farm to pick up my second order yesterday.

CSA Week 1:
1 lb. Lettuce mix
1 lb. spinach
2 garlic scapes
1 bunch of cilantro
2 boxes of strawberries

CSA Week 2:
1/2 lb. Lettuce mix
1/4 lb. Kale & Asian greens
2 beets
3 garlic scapes
1 bunch of cilantro
1 head of bok choi
2 boxes of strawberries
1 bunch of mint from the "pick your own" patch (we could also get chives)

We are rolling in strawberries right now both with the CSA and Nettie and Jeff's patch. We have 3 boxes in the fridge and a couple pounds in the freezer, plus I made strawberry pie and we had a strawberry spinach salad yesterday. I think I will make jam! The bok choi is already gone. I was so curious to try it that I sauteed some with peanut butter. Yum! Anyone have some great recipes for strawberries or greens?

We're On Our Way!

Adios, Gillette! As you read this we are probably on our way across to U.S. all the way to Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It is a journey of faith and determination (we are traveling with a 13 month old, after all!). We are grateful for the time that we had in Gillette and the wonderful people that we met there, but we are looking forward to a different life on the East Coast.

Here is a fact that I found interesting: Andrew's grandparents also had a brief stint in Gillette over 50 years ago. They, too, were there for less than a year and were not sad to say goodbye. Perhaps not settling in Gillette is in the genes?

Gotta love the Elders!

Our church calling here in Gillette has been as Ward Missionaries and consequently we get to have the Elders over pretty often. Sunday evening Elders Finn and Morrell decided to have a little fun with my sword and bow. Oh, and they threw in my birthday gag-gift sun glasses for good measure. Pretty awesome, eh?