Another Day at the Office

 

DAY 1

In preparation for Sissy's half-day camp in the morning, we discussed what she would like to take for a snack.

 

Sissy: All the other kids get to take JUNK FOOD! I am NOT taking anything that we have here!

 

Me: I'm not buying junk food. And I'm sure the kids don't take junk food to this particular camp.

 

Sissy (tearfully): Yes, they DO! They ALWAYS have junk food!

 

Dad: Well, we have some leftover Zebra Cakes from the camping trip...

 

Sissy: Okay! I'll take those!

 

Me: Okay, but don't advertise that you have a Zebra Cake because I am SO EMBARRASSED to be sending you with junk food for a snack.

 

DAY 2

Since it turned out that someone (Sissy) had eaten all but one of the Zebra Cakes so that there was only one to take but four days of camp, we are at the co-op looking for camp snacks that we can agree on that she can take for the rest of the week.

 

Sissy: Oooooh! Nectarines! I'll take those for my snack!

 

Me: Okay, what else do you want?

 

Sissy: That's it. Just the nectarines. All the other kids had just berries for their snack today.

 

Me: What?!? You told me that they ALL would have junk food!!

 

Sissy: Yeah. They all had berries, so I just looked at my Zebra Cake like I didn't know what it was and said, "What? What is this THING that my MOM sent?!!

 

*sigh*

 



Today was full, but wonderful. Perfect sunny weather. The kids had fresh milk and melon for breakfast while John and I had oatmeal and fresh eggs from our new CSA.

John played Go Fish with Snacks, picked more flowers with Sissy, and went to check on his truck, while I started the Weekly Home Blessing, hauled the tomato and basil seedlings outside, baked two loaves of sourdough bread, soaked cashews and almonds for crispy nuts, and made lunch for the kids.

Sissy "peed on the potty" for the first time ever today--a very big deal!

Late this afternoon we all went to Dowling to clean up our garden plot and pull a few weeds before grilling local, organic brats for dinner and finishing up the last of the cream on some more organic strawberries we found at the co-op. Yum!

John and the kids picked a huge bouquet of lilacs for me today. John calls it "Extreme Lilacs"...and for good reason. I love that I can smell them from the next room.

Sissy also picked a bouquet of lily-of-the-valley to put next to her bed.

John and I had a rare date night tonight. We walked to Craftsman where their food is 99% local and sustainable. It's a little pricey, but worth it to feel good about what we're eating and to support a local business whose philosophy we strongly believe in.

I started reading Jenna Woginrich's Made from Scratch last night and I love it.

Homemade pizza for dinner tonight. We finally got the pizza stone to work without the crust sticking to it. The only "missing piece" for me now is the black olives. (I finally found pastured cheese and pastured pepperoni!) Now I just need to find black olives I feel really good about, instead of the ones I'm "settling" for from Wh*le Foods.

Organic strawberries and cream for dessert.

The kids and I spent the afternoon enjoying the back yard.

They picked dandelions and played in the dirt while I pulled weeds, trimmed and bagged branches, tended the pansies and the strawberries and, finally, got to relax in my favorite lawn chair under the sun umbrella with one of my new cookbooks.

I tried cooking beans in the crock pot all day today (I think it worked!), and I'll try rhubarb in the crock pot tomorrow.

We are still enjoying the lilacs that John cut for me from the yard a few nights ago--there is no better heavenly scent!