Friday, July 29, 2011

red rover, red rover

send berries right over


Bella loves to pick in comfort. Hat - check. Glasses - check,.Chair - check. This is only our second season with these amazing raspberries, but it only takes one time of picking to realize you could be here ALL DAY LONG and feel like you didn't even make a dent.

my Huckleberry Finn

the bounty from this day

Last year we made buckets and buckets of jam and we still have tons of it even though we bestowed it upon everyone we knew for Christmas gifts. So we did the only thing left to do besides just eating them perfectly sweet and whole. We baked them into the most divine muffins - well, Matt did. But the rest of us devour them for breakfast, lunch and dessert! Of course not dinner. Even with all the baking we have done we still have one loaded freezer full, and freshly picked overflowing bowls in the fridge which brings us to our newest purchase... we have fallen victim to the fancy make-and-do-anything blender craze. If you don't want one then watch out for the guy at Costco who has the gall to make rice milk, add agave and spinach and turn it into ice cream in two seconds flat right in front of you, and then he has you taste it. I was a goner. Sooooooo, with this new toy we will be making raspberry syrup, shakes, dressings, smoothies and ice cream. We are also hoping this will help with our tomato infestation - soups and sauces away!

Please come and help us play with our new toy and eat our glorious bounty - xoxo. I mean it!!!

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

swim towards the light

Our old goldfish, Daisy, Spot, Nibbles, and Pumpkin have been lovely fixtures in the freezer for the last few months but their time has finally come (again). And on a side note, we need that space desperately!!! (Our garden has blessed us once again.) So it is time to give these fish what they have coming to them - a proper farewell. Our golden little friends who brought us such joy - even if it was short lived - are loving dumped in the stream at Cascade Springs, to complete their circle of life.


the ever gentle flowing current, true to its own, was eager to help bring them to their final resting places

shimmering, sunny golds - like our fish's scales - lovingly covered everything in our path

along with flowers in full glorious, glamorous bloom

baby moose was out and about making the most of this enchanting evening

a natural beaut!

yellow columbine

cascades a-tumbling

the perfect meadow for picnicking

he knows no wish is complete without blowing every single last seed off

preparing the goods

crumbled falafel wraps

enjoyed by all

Sunday, July 3, 2011

hot july


It seems to be hotter than usual around these parts. Which means my poor honey is suffering, while I dance with delight. Our summers get extremely hot, which in my view makes up for the extremely cold winters. As of late we have we have been loving the few things that we have been able to harvest: round red radishes, gobs of strawberries, multiple lettuces, and cilantro that smells so divine. We have had a few casualties. Our poor bok choy and broccoli have both bolted, gone to seed, and flowered. We were not equipped with the right knowledge at the right time. We will honor them by eating what we can, and saving seeds.


The carnival moved in right down the street, so it could not be avoided. We promised the kids ONE ride which was exactly what our friends the Barbers promised their son Andrew - Bella's good friend and ride partner.

loving the rose colored mountains on our walk downtown

Making our final stop at the rooftop concert. Which just so happened to be Beatles night -- The Abbey Road Show playing Abbey Road in its entirety!! (Guess Sus does not agree with whatever I'm saying, ha.)

it just so happens to be this little girl's favorite band/music


every night ends looking a little something like this


Yesterday we did all the weekend shopping so we could have everything we needed for Sunday and the 4th. The kids have big plans for raking in the dough on the 4th. Matt bought them all the soda and water they would need in a deal that they would pay him back. Provo holds Utah's biggest parade just down the street from us, and every year, for some reason, everyone in the state comes (there are a quarter million people who attend ... seriously). It gets totally insane - which we love (most the time). This year the kids want to take advantage of the heat and crowds by selling drinks and homemade treats.

aaaand since we had everything we thought we would give it a test at the Stadium of Fire fireworks show last night, where thousands of people watch from the temple grounds. Jarom is sooo all over this. It is kind of embarrassing though I can't help but love it, just because Jarom gets such a high from it. We made a tiny sign that said - "Cold pop for 1 dollar or 3 for 2 bucks." We quickly decided the 3-for-2 deal was a bad idea because people loved it and all of our water was gone within minutes.

In the end they only made $23. They are now halfway to earning some money. Matt spent $40.

But after the trial run I'm thinking they just might have some real success tomorrow. Keeping our fingers crossed.

waiting for the show to begin

showed Oey an oldie but a goodie

Jarom was forced to stop and enjoy the show

this one could not be stopped - wonder if it was the "new" trick I showed him with the red vine straw?

real fullblown fireworks

and my little fam


Today Bell and I started on those homemade treats. But, after making both vanilla and chocolate cupcakes from scratch topped with chocolate ganache in the now-suffering heat of my kitchen and they both turned out to be flops in the looks department, I think I will not go on and make any doughnut holes.

Do you think anyone would want to buy these homely cupcakes? The site wasn't lying when it said they were the best-tasting cupcakes ever ...

Friday, July 1, 2011

let yourself be lost

waking up to this

at 6:30 am

running around Provo's 27th Balloon Festival

Bella's favorite is the yellow one with flowers



my favorite

keeping your eyes to the sky

has its rewards

Darth Vader came from Belgium

longing to be free

one by one

they float away

true to the red, white and blue

one last one being inflated

the Coke bottle - tallest hot air balloon in the world at 187 feet

Maybe one day we will get the opportunity to drift along with the clouds, but then I wonder if we would miss the all-you-can-eat-pancakes!!