Happy Memorial Day!

snowballs
We hope you all had a wonderful weekend!

Our weekend was spent preparing for a little road trip to Mount Shasta, California. We are so excited to have a vacation away from home. It's always nice... isn't it? To have a change of scenery. Is it equally as nice to drive for 9hr 11min with two young children? HMMM, I'll let you know when we get back. =) It's been a long while since we've had a family getaway, so I'm sure it will all be worth it.


Constantly working in the garden has given me the opportunity to meet several of my neighbors that I otherwise would probably have never met. Noah has even made two new friends, just from hanging out in the yard! One very sweet neighbor, the mother of Noah's newest playmate, surprised me with snowball flowers! They are so cool!! I love them. Another neighbor offered me some of her delicious rhubarb. I have never cooked with it before, and have eaten it only a handful of times in the past. This afternoon I made a little Rhubarb Crunch for the car ride. It's so delicious! Half of it is nearly gone. I'm grateful for the kindness and generosity of all those around me.

Shiso

Have you ever tasted Shiso? Me neither, until about 3yrs ago in a tiny sushi restaurant in West Seattle. Weird,... I thought, but interesting. I couldn't decide if I liked it or not. I still can't decide. A few weekends ago at our local farmers market, the apple cider guy had this cute little plant on a side table. It was being completely ignored, so I made my move. I snuck in, picked it up and sniffed it. HMMM, this is it! It's that strange herb? that I had tasted a few years back... I think. I sniffed some more. Caught in action, the apple cider guy walked on over and suggested I pinch off a leaf and taste it. Man!!! It makes me so nervous when they offer me taste tests! Really it does, couldn't tell you why. So... I declined. I quickly tried to walk away. Sometimes I get a bit shy, but I was still so curious. So I asked... 'what do YOU use this with?' He didn't have any great ideas, but told me he sometimes cooks it with rice. I couldn't resist the temptation of having my very own Shiso plant, which he told me grows into a nice size bush. In the sun it will grow big, in the shade it will be more flavorful.

I have no idea what I'll use it for! The novelty of having something unique and different in my garden got the best of me, as it usually does.

Fragrant

As I walk along the side of our house, entering our backyard, there is a smallish bush/tree with branches sticking out, nearly poking me as I walk by. Lilac. It is so fragrant! I swear I can smell it 15 feet away, before I can even see it. Over the past 3 springs (that's how long we've lived here) it has changed so much. Our first spring... nothing. We thought it was just another part of our overgrown, unkept property. The second spring, it had one blossom, I clipped it and brought it inside to display on our table. It smelled so wonderful in our house. My neighbor was kind enough to bring me several more blossoms. This year, our third spring, we have more blossoms than ever! I love the smell a slight breeze carriers into our kitchen, granted the weather is warm enough to have the windows open. Ahhh... spring!

That's a Garden?

UMMMM, yes. Things haven't really taken off yet, well except for the weeds. I blame the crazy weather this spring. Warm, Cold, Hot, back to warm. Some things sprouted, then froze. Others have been trampled by children (despite the obvious barriers), or dug up by the neighborhood cats. Yes, they think I have the absolute perfect litter box. Can you see my booby trap? It's working to deter cats for now.

On the bright side, lots of things ARE growing, you just can't see them that well, because Momma has been too busy to weed. That will change this week. Potatoes and strawberries are doing very well. Celery and zucchini... where are you??

This past weekend Noah decided to help cut some lettuce for dinner. He planted a few things between the strawberries, and his things are growing very well. While he was cutting greens for us, he called Dad over to show him. 'Look Dad, I growed this Kale!' Thanks to Noah, we actually have some Kale and Pac choi, because mine got eaten by slugs. He loves the fact that he has had more success than me in growing several things. Jaime smiled as he walked away. Noah leans into me and says, 'Did you see that smile? He must be getting hungry for some Kale in his stomach.'

It would be so awesome to have a small farm! Now, if I could just get the rest of the gang on board! Check out these farm blogs for a bit of inspiration.
Hamakua Springs Country Farms
Tiny Farm Blog

Sunshine!!

We actually had an entire weekend of sunshine. It was hot on Saturday, I actually braved it and bared tons of skin in only a tank top and shorts!! WOOOHOOOO Sunday was a bit cooler, but still a nice day, and we headed down to the water. Noah and Jaime enjoyed a nice bike ride while Bella and I hung out on the rocks. She loves to pick through them.

Never A Dull Moment

When the girls are home alone, and the guys are out and about (school & work), there is never, ever a dull moment. Seriously. I mean, how could there be?

There are dishes to wash, floors to sweep, counters to wipe, teeth to brush, dirt to dig in... the list goes on and on. I love how every little thing is fascinating. Even if it has been a thousand times, and will need to be done a thousand times again.