We're home and so very happy to be here. Travel can be really exhausting and we three are still finding our footing since landing in Colorado yesterday. We need a vacation from that "vacation".
We will happily be at home - resting, recovering and cuddling and going to bed early until further notice.
Life is busy. My man is working way more than his fair-share lately. Such is the life (from time to time) of a geek. Zinnia and I were lucky enough to get him away from the computer monitors for a couple of hours this weekend and we soaked up our Dada-loving, the best we could - with a little family walk. We all needed that.
Tomorrow brings a too-early trip to the airport but it also means vacation. We're heading back to Dada's old stomping grounds for a few days.
See you back here soon! Until then, I hope you have a lovely week with friends and family.
in her words... {this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, {extra}ordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.
If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your moment in the comments below.
No? Great! Thank you for indulging me as I go on and on each week about our favorite green, leafy crop. The chard is still producing. We've had temps in the 50's this week so the plants have had a nice break from the cold and have come out from under their tarp.
I dug up most of what's left of our carrots during nap time a few days ago. We still have a small row that I planted in August, and the green caps still look bright and happy so I left those carrots for another day. So far though, we've harvested about 20 pounds.
We're been eating squash frequently these days from the 15 or so butternuts we harvested in September. I've mostly been making a purred squash soup from them, that is until I found this recipe. I've made this black bean and butternut stew twice in the last two weeks, and it has already become one of our favorites. I used the original recipe as more of an inspiration point. Here's the scoop on how I made it into more of a chili.
In a large soup pot, saute in olive oil 1 large onion, 2 stalks of celery, several cloves of garlic, diced and a healthy pinch of cumin seeds.
Add one butternut, skinned and cubed and continue to cook for a few minutes. Pour in a quart of stock (vegetable or chicken).
Add powdered garlic, onion, celery and cumin (roughly 1-2tsp of each, but taste as you go and adjust) and 1 bay leaf. And if you want some heat, throw in a few chiles. We used 3 diced serranos for a nice warm finish.
Pour in a 1/2 cup of tomato sauce (not spaghetti sauce) or diced fresh tomatoes.
Add about 3 cups of black beans - either canned, pressure cooked or left over.
Add 1/2 cup of frozen corn.
Cover and let everything simmer together on low for anywhere between 20 minutes to a few hours. I bet this would be great in a crock-pot as well.
The stew can be served with an array of toppings: sour cream or yogurt, scallions or chives, cilantro or fresh parsley, grated cheese or avocado. I paired ours with a homemade chile corn bread and served the stew over a bed of quinoa topped with grated sharp cheddar. Delish!
It's been more than a month since we returned from Maui. Our tans are fading and I'm feeling a little nostalgic about our second "home", way out there in the Pacific ocean. Last night I was looking through some old photos and videos and felt drawn to share with you one of my favorite places on earth.
This beach is a 15 minute hike through the jungle, just below our house-swap house. When I feel stressed or anxious this is one of the spots that I conjure up. The video doesn't capture the awesomeness - the sound of the water receding through the rocks is a full body sensory experience. It's hard to articulate that, but it is pure magic.
Here's a glimpse ::
I hope you enjoy this little one minute trip to Maui.
"Daw? Daw. Daw!" (the r is silent, didn't you know?)
Draw?, she asks. Or, maybe that was an order. Draw!
Zinnia loves to draw. She finds the perfect place on the floor to lie down then eagerly pats the spot next to her, inviting us to join. Once we're settled with crayon in hand, she begins making her requests. She speaks, signs or makes animal calls to make her wishes known. Dog! Cat! Gecko! Duck!
This girl has inspired many a DIY project and the latest is no exception. I wanted to create a place where she could draw whenever she wanted, without having to wait for Mama or Dada. Chalk art can go unsupervised, but those crayons and colored pencils are another story.
Around here there aren't many truly spontaneous projects. Steve and I try to do our research before any project begins (even though I tend to be the impatient one). If we can keep our dollars in the local market and if we can make it ourselves, it's all the better. And constructing from used materials is something that we both find value in - Yay for the environment, and Yay for our wallet.
Craig's List is a gimme. We buy and sell stuff on CL all.the.time. We're also lucky to have ReSource, which is a great place here in Boulder that collects and sells used building materials. They have just about everything you could want although maybe not all that you need (Tile? Yes. Enough to do your whole bathroom? ...Umm, maybe.).
We took a familly trip to ReSource recently looking for materials for the chalkboard of our upcycling dreams. Within 10 minutes of wandering the lumber yard I found an old dry-erase board, backed with a nice piece of particle board. It was easy-peasy to paint the wood trim white and spray paint the particle board with chalkboard paint. (A funny piece of this story is that we drove the car that day, instead of the van, and we could not get the board to fit in the back of the Golf. A nice man, noticing our struggle, offered to put it in his truck and follow us home. We payed him in kind with a few IPA's. Don't you just love that?)
Total coast: used dry-erase board + paint + bucket of chalk that will last 3 years = $20. Yes! And just in case you're wondering, new chalkboards this size retail for about $60.
I have more plans for this chalkboard wall. Check out my inspiration, here on Pinterest.
The next step is to find picture frames at the thrift store that I can paint and hang above our chalkboard. I love the idea of having this wall feature a rotating collection of family artwork.
Speaking of loving... I love the late afternoon light in my living room, just before the sun drops below the Flatirons. Good stuff.
I'm leaving you with a little ditty that you're sure to be singing for the rest of the day
in her words... {this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, {extra}ordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.
If you're inspired to do the same leave a link to you "moment" in the comments below.
When I start to feel a bit melancholic about the bareness of the garden I have to remind myself of how hard that little plot works for us. I have to remind myself of how much it gives us. Of how much we take from it. I suppose it needs a few months of rest, too.
There is still beauty to be found in this fall (winter?) garden, it just requires a closer look.
The Hearty Award goes to the chard, hands down. We covered our chard rows two weeks ago before the first big snow storm came and they are still doing lovely under those tarps, even after being buried (twice) by a foot of snow, and while enduring night time temperatures in the teens. Quite truthfully, we have all but totally ignored them these last weeks. We lift the tarps and harvest what we need, and then we turn our backs to them with a quiet thank you. They seem to be quite happy under their winter covers, with minimal water and sunlight. It's amazing, really.
The winter garden may be tired but it is still giving. And we are still thankful.
You know, "They" say that the bigger the mess at meal time, the more cognitive connections are being made. The more experimenting and independent play with food, the healthier a child's attitude toward it. "They" say that throwing food is a natural process for the toddler and it helps them learn about all sorts of scientific things - like gravity and cause & effect. "They" say that we parents (and caretakers) should just go right along eating, ducking as the food goes flying by.
I'm down with this philosophy. Really, I am.
But maybe "They" would like to come help me clean my floors.
