Mediterranean Chop Salad & Strawberry-Mint Lemonade Slushie

Next to the chocolate mint in the garden is a big patch of lemon mint. The leaves are marbled yellow and green and they smell so refreshing. The kids were asking for popsicles since we had one of our first truly hot days, but we didn't have any, so I told them I'd come up with something. That something turned out to be a strawberry-mint lemonade slushies. We have loads of strawberries in the garden right now so I used the berries, lemons, honey, and several bunches of lemon mint, and ice, of course. I predict my craving for this yummy drink will keep the blender humming all summer long.








Evan is a total strawberry swiper. He can eat nearly as fast as I pick. He doesn't waste time with stem removal either. He takes the meaning of  eating "whole foods" to a new level. And yes, he is wearing a pink sequined shirt. He brought it to me from  Nina's laundry basket and I figured well, why not? 


I love a good chopped salad. This one is similar to a greek salad, but with the addition of romaine and garbanzo beans to make it more of a meal. The other ingredients are red pepper, red onion, basil, cucumber, tomatoes, kalamata olives (I prefer Nicoise, but didn't have any), and feta tossed with a 1:1 ratio of red wine vinegar and olive oil plus a little sea salt. Zig and I had this for dinner with some crusty bread with a smear of fresh pesto.Perfect summer fare.

got weeds?

We call them sticky weeds. They grow like crazy, strangle other plants, wrap around the fence, and they are generally just a very big nuisance. They are very easy to pull, though, so I guess that's good. Well, the kids found a new use for the sticky weeds today, and this creative play is the stuff summers are made for. I love it!


It started with petals in the hair.


Then a crown for Nina




And a belt for Sela




Anklets


Bracelets


Earrings

Rollin couldn't resist making himself some accessories

One final shot of the children accessorized in their finest weed creations. Sela would like everyone to take note of her armpit "hair." This was oh so funny to her!! Rollin looks like he is rockin' the belt look, but may have made his crown a bit on the small side. He is staying very still to keep it in place. Good times.

Summer!

I was at the school on the last day when the bell rang and witnessed this really fun tradition between students and staff. Apparently it happens every year, but I'm usually meeting the kids at the bus-stop. All the teachers line up and wave to the buses and the kids go mad with excitement that school is out. The buses were honking, kids were screaming and going crazy, and teachers, principal, and parents were waving. It's FINALLY summer!




Nina's beloved first grade teacher, Mrs. Struthers announced her retirement a couple weeks prior to the end of school. We have loved her and she has loved the kids and nurtured them so well. She is the perfect 1st grade teacher. Nina would always write "I love you" on her homework and Mrs. Struthers would write "I love you, too" back. She is one of a kind and we will miss her! Oh, and yes, she is dressed up like Snow White on the last day of her 40 years of teaching! I think she dressed up as Snow White every year for Halloween. At her "Snow White" themed retirement party, there were pictures of her from early in her career in this costume, so it only seemed fitting that she wear it the last day.

We celebrated the end of school and the first day of summer with a little bonfire on Tuesday afternoon.



Zig was out of town so I had to build the fire, which surprisingly, I had not done before! Well, little fires, yes, but I needed this one to burn for several hours and provide enough heat for the kids and their friends to roast hot dogs and make s'mores as well as burn all their old papers from the school year. I did a trial run with Rollin on Monday when I realized Zig was not going to make it back, but the firewood was too wet (shocking, I know, considering it has rained for 40 years straight!) so we picked up some dry wood. We made a teepee with a smaller teepee underneath and then some kindling. This got it going enough that we could just add logs on the fire as needed. Zig often uses a blow torch to get things started, but I steered clear of that tool. I was pretty proud of my efforts and the fire burned until every last paper was gone. Even though I faked an illness at Girls Camp back in the day(camping in 100 degree heat in Texas is not for me!), I can still make a fire. Yeah!








Looks like Rollin is trying to impress by doing some push-ups.





I am beyond excited to have all my kids home and days and days of nothing on the calendar. It is absolute heaven.

preschool grad

Rollin's preschool graduation was Friday evening at Mrs. Judy's beautiful backyard. He's had a great year and loves his friends and teachers so much. He was very excited to wear his cap and gown, perform for the parents, receive his diploma, and most of all, hit the ice cream bar and chase his friends for one last time in Judy's backyard!

                                                                         Proud Graduate

                                                              Nina handed out programs

 

 The carpool gang: Rollin, Bryson, and Anna. Anna put up with these crazy boys all year long! She is such a sweetie.

The big sisters: Sydney, Grace, and Nina

Brace yourselves Kindergarten teachers,  Mrs. Judy's class of 2011 is on its way!

more garden

There are hundreds of bees buzzing around the raspberry plants. I won't even walk down the pathways right now, but these guys have no fear.





Evan standing in between the raspberry bushes and strawberry patch


The bushes are loaded with strawberries, more than ever before.


Zig got the fencing all ready for the sugar snap peas. They grow so quickly and need something to climb.




I picked a few pints of strawberries, but they disappeared. I think I found my culprit.

Chocolate Mint Truffles

Last year Zig and I went to Poppy for the first time and we had some amazing chocolate mint infused ice cream. Neither of us are huge ice cream people, but the server convinced us to try the ice cream. He was right, it was pretty special. So of course, the next Saturday, I sent Zig out on a chocolate mint run and we planted some in the herb garden. Well, nearly 9 months later and it has spread like crazy, as all mint does, and I decided it was time to start experimenting.


I sent Nina out for 6 big sprigs of chocolate mint.


We brought the cream to a gentle boil, immersed the chocolate mint leaves in the cream, and removed it from the heat to steep.


Then we chopped some dark chocolate.


After about 30 minutes, I removed the mint leaves and reheated the cream and added it to the chocolate.


We let that sit for a minute and then gave it a whirl to make a chocolate ganache.


After the ganache firmed up (about 2 hours), we scooped little balls and rolled them in cocoa. These are what I would call rustic truffles, I didn't fuss about making perfect little balls or even making them the same size. They all taste the same going down, and they are amazing with a very strong mint flavor.

a sunny sunday

When we came home from church this afternoon, the sun was out and the kids went straight to barn to get the bunnies out. I'm sure the bunnies love summer just as much as the kids. They get so much more attention and more frequent opportunities to nibble grass and roam around the yard. We had planned to go on a little hike after lunch, but the kids decided they just wanted to play at home, and maybe do the hike tomorrow. I sat outside and read while the kids played. I took a few pictures and enjoyed watching as they entertained themselves all day. The girls even surprised me by cleaning the kitchen this evening while I was talking to my mom on the phone. The kitchen was spotless and they even mopped the floors. My jaw dropped when they finally allowed me to come to the kitchen.



My favorite little orange poppies are in bloom all over the yard.

After seeing Nina with Oreo, Sela and Evan went to get Spotty.

The bunnies get very nervous when Mr. Evan comes around, and rightly so!

We try to teach Evan the meaning of  "soft."

Oh gosh. This child is a born streaker. I was changing him out of his church clothes and off he went. He jumped a big rock on his escape to freedom. Enjoy it while you can, little guy!

Later they started doing some body art.

If a little is good, a lot is better. Rollin's motto for everything.

The good ole' spider.

At one point, there was a talent show and they all sang to each other and then asked for ratings.