In the Kitchen With....

Tyler!

I remember when my kids were babies.

My saving grace was a front pack.

With baby in the front pack carrier, 

I could cook, clean, do laundry...

just about anything that I needed to do....

with hands free.

It seems so natural to strap Tyler on,

and work around the house.

(With an apron on, of course.  I find that the 

apron adds another bit of support, 

and keeps splatters off of baby.

Tonight we cooked dinner together.

Mexican night.

Cilantro and lime rice

Chipotle chicken and beef

Salsa Fresca

Topped with sharp cheddar cheese and sour cream.

Yummmy!

Look how we've grown in the last 6 weeks!

My Little Buddy

It has been a while since I have posted one of Tyler's pictures.

Most of his pictures are "sleeping" baby pictures.

He still has his days and nights a bit mixed up.

Periods of wakefulness during the day are short lived.

So I took the opportunity to snap a few pictures

while he was wide awake.

Oh, how I look forward to the days when he is toddling around.

What fun adventures we will have.

BlaCKbeRriEs

Every so often I hear a faint call from the second floor.

I climb the stairs and look longingly at the sewing room door.

"Come and play, Bev" I hear faintly.

Unfortunately the only time I have spent in that room lately

has been to whittle away at the pile of ironing that has been accumulating.

Now, I am not complaining,

because the things that are keeping me from playing 

are outdoor activities....gardening, picking berries, harvesting veggies, etc.

But, oh how I miss spending the afternoon humming away on my sewing machine!

Today I headed out to the woods to pick berries.

We have had just enough rain to plump up the blackberries and black raspberries.

That means it is time to make my yearly batch of triple berry jam...

blueberry, blackberry, black raspberry....

yummy, berry goodness to enjoy throughout the coming months.

I donned my purple Wellies,

(boots to help keep the chiggers from crawling up my pants!)

loaded the 4 wheeler with camera equipment and a bowl,

and headed out to the woods.

I picked for an hour or so

and came back with quite a bounty.

Now to get busy in the kitchen!

I use just a small amount of sugar in my jams.

Mmmmmm, what a delicious aroma this gives off as it cooks on the stovetop.

4th of July Party

We had the pleasure of meeting our Amanda's beau (Tim)'s 

parents for a 4th of July celebration on Sunday.

(Amanda and Tim)

Amanda and I fixed lunch...lots of fresh fare from the garden and herb garden.

The menu included

Hamburgers from local grass fed (only) beef

Salad Nicoise

Cucumber Salad with oregano mint vinaigrette

Deviled Eggs

Fresh snow peas and scallions with curry dip

Fruit salad

Homemade tortilla chips with mango salsa

Drinks in patriotic mason jars

Mango salsa 

Salad Nicoise 

Cucumber and fruit salad 

Veggies with fresh curry dip

And my cute photo of the day is baby Tyler

dressed in his swim suit.

Have you ever seen a baby laugh in his sleep?

Tyler does it all the time.....so funny!

Canning

Besides new grandbaby activities,

(oh my, we are both asleep!)

this is what I have been up to lately.

Canning, canning, canning.

This week I made 10 pints of blueberry lime jam.

I turned a few piles of these...

into Dill Pickles.

Yumm!

Oh, how I love preserving summer's bounty

to enjoy the rest of the year.