My Little Loves

Enjoying....

fresh cut flowers from my garden...

a homemade grapefruit vinaigrette salad dinner...

and serving a special brownie dessert to my family...

Here is the recipe for the Grapefruit Vinaigrette Salad.  It's really refreshing and yummy!

Grapefruit Vinaigrette Salad

8oz chicken breasts (boneless, skinless - cooked and shredded or sliced)

4 cups mixed greens

1/4 c. red onion (sliced)

1 T. slivered almonds (toasted)

1/2 c. mandarin oranges

1 red pepper chopped

1/3 c. jicama (optional)

vinaigrette:

1 ruby red grapefruit (juiced)

1 T. lemon juice

2 T. honey

1/2 tsp fresh thyme (chopped)

1/4 tsp salt and pepper (each)

1/4 c. olive oil

Heat grapefruit juice in a saucepan to boiling.  Boil 1 minute and remove from heat.  Add remaining vinaigrette ingredients except oil.  Mix well and let cool.  Gradually add oil, whisking for 2 minutes.  Toss shredded or sliced chicken with 2 tablespoons of vinaigrette.  Combine greens, onions, peppers, chicken, oranges, almonds and jicama in a bowl.  Drizzle with remaining vinaigrette. (serves 6)

A tiny house...

for a tiny guest.  A look at our fairy garden this year...

The fairy garden is alive and active with our little fairy friend named "Annabelle."  This year Nissa wanted to meet her and wrote her a note asking her to come visit.  Annabelle wrote her back letting her know that she could come to visit but there is one rule in the land of fairies.....anytime there is a human in their presence, the fairy turns into a statue.

The next day after Nissa's request, the fairy (a small barbie fairy doll I picked up that day at Target while she was in school) appeared in front of her little house.  Nissa couldn't be more excited!  What is so neat to see is the wonderment a child has for magical things like that.  I wish I believed a little more in magic....had a more childlike spirit about things....saw the good in everything.  When does that start to fade in a person?  Some people may wonder why I even let her believe in fairies....well, I guess I just want her to have her innocence as long as possible.

Want to make your own fairy garden?  Please visit my friend Jill's shop called The Wee Garden.  She gave me this house....(thanks again Jill!)....and we just adore it.  There are so many things I want the fairy garden to become....it has been evolving over the years into something so magical for Nissa and the neighborhood kids who also love to visit. 

Early morning......

In the summer months, I love to get up early and run.  This morning was gorgeous.  We have had cool weather for the better part of a week and it almost tricks you into believing that fall has arrived.  But we are not fooled for the sun rises early....a true sign of summer.  It was foggy as I set out this morning and I could feel the moist air on my skin.  It felt refreshing.  When I got back, the kids were still in bed so I went outside to take some pictures of the garden.  The spiders have been busy here....

I didn't know that my styrax tree bore fruit...as if the flowers weren't beautiful enough...this tree amazes me.....

bunny grass....

my new garden bench courtesy of craigslist.....perfect for viewing the fairy garden and watching the kids play.....

butterfly bush and coneflowers....

heirloom tomatoes ready to pick...

 

sunflowers ready for the birds, if I don't beat them too it....

can you ever have too many daylilies....planted in Mae's memory....

On another note, I am going to be making my bi-annual donation of hand-made items to Riley Children's Hospital in Mae's memory around August 22nd.  Again, I am looking for more help from you, my beautiful blog friends, in making this the largest donation so far.  If you are new to my blog, you can read what this is all about here and see pictures here and here.  The hospital is currently looking for tote bags, pinafores, quilts and fleece tie blankets.  If you are interested in helping....please leave a comment and I'll get you more information.

First crops...

We are finally able to pick some of our spring crops.   The strawberries are ripening like crazy so we are enjoying those everyday.  We have been eating lots of spinach and strawberry salads....nothing is better than vine ripened strawberries....especially warm and sweet ones picked in the hottest part of the day.  We also picked lots of radishes.  The lettuces and greens are being eaten a bit by bugs so we'll have to figure out what we can do to save them.  They look good though!

The girl loves her strawberries....

Boden loose in the garden....

Fairy gardening.....

The fairy garden has made it's way out of the small rusty bucket and into the woods behind the house where it's beginning it's new life....

This fairy house was gifted to me by Jill from her amazing shop The Wee Garden.  You can visit her site to see how to begin your own garden.....or just admire her beautiful photography!  Isn't it amazing and so generous of her....thank you Jill!!!  It's from seeing her wee garden that I began my love of fairy gardening...

I will be adding to it little by little over time.   So far I have moved in some moss that I had found in the backyard to put by the stone house.  I also planted some irish moss to hopefully provide a little lawn or stepping/sitting area for visitors.  I've been eyeing some mini fencing and garden furniture as well.  Can't wait to enjoy the process with Nissa!

Garden update....

I wanted to share a few pictures from the garden...I can't keep myself away from it's beauty....

A thin layer....

We have a bit of a cold spell here and everything is covered in a thin layer of shimmering ice.  I just had to go out and see my garden......

It looks as beautiful as ever out there.  I love how a garden changes with the seasons and winter is no exception.  I don't cut back many plants because I like the shapes they take now....some still stand tall while others bend and sway with the slightest breeze.  It's a different kind of landscape to enjoy.

Oh....and here is a little bundle of color coming to join me...

In the garden...

We had a vegetable garden this year hoping to yield lots of fresh produce but for some reason it didn't do too well.  We got a few peppers and barely any tomatoes.  We did get some lettuce for salads, parsley for tabbouleah and some really yummy snap peas.  If I could, I would devote an entire garden to those things....mmm.

For fall plantings, I threw some more lettuce, chard, kale, and sunflower seeds in.  The sunflowers are just starting to bloom....

I sow the short varieties of sunflowers so I can use them as cut flowers.  Here is one of the autumn colored ones....

Here's my husband checking out the harvest.  He says he never makes it into my blog so I have to tease him about it and come up with ways for him to be included...yet in a way so he still remains mysterious...haha!  I'm terrible I know!  Let's just call him Mr. Wilson.

Here comes the little helper...

As I'm taking pictures I hear "Look what I found mama!" so I come running over...well not running.....I have a baby in a carrier you know....

Here's what she found....

Boy would Grandpa Jim be proud!  She holding this caterpillar telling me it's pooping on her...nice.  All I can think is can this really be my kid.  I'm a total wimp about bugs but it's nice that she isn't.  I need another pair of hands that aren't scared to squash the bugs I find in the house!

Beautiful weekend.....

Don't you just feel giddy when you go outside and it's perfect.  I'm talking a slight breeze, sunshine with puffy white clouds floating by on a bright blue background and a perfect temperature in the air.  I am in awe of days like those and I just want to soak it all in and hope that it never ends.  I want to run, skip, walk, garden, and laugh.  Our weekend was like that here. 

Perfect weather to accompany our family that came to town for a short visit.  It's always nice to have people here so the kids gets lots of extra love.  And the nice part is we don't have to really provide any entertainment since the kids antics are pretty much all you could ever want to keep entertained anyways.  We also had a neighborhood block party with all the usual suspects.....though I wish the unknowns would come out to say hello.....but perhaps we scare them off a bit with our boisterous kids and our loud laughs.  I brought my usual white trash appetizers of pigs in a blanket.  Those are always the first to go so making those is my thing. 

One reason I love having people over is that it gives me a chance to make lots of fun food that I normally wouldn't make...mainly because I have no self control when it comes to sweets.  I made these chocolate chip cookies.  TRY this recipe.....it is probably the best chocolate chip cookie I've ever made.  I also made some blueberry buttermilk sherbet that is incredible.  My ice cream maker has been used more this summer than ever before!  I also made a batch of cornmeal sandies to go with it.  A perfect blend of blueberry sweetness and a saltier cookie.  Here is the results...

Blueberry-Buttermilk Sherbet

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries 
1 cup sugar
2 cups buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Garnishes: fresh blueberries, lemon rind strips

Process blueberries in a food processor or blender until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides. Press blueberry puree through a fine wire-mesh strainer into a large bowl, discarding solids. Add sugar, buttermilk, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract to bowl, and stir until well blended.

Pour blueberry mixture into freezer container of a 4-quart ice-cream maker, and freeze according to manufacturer's instructions. Garnish each serving, if desired.

Yield:  Makes about 4 cups

Things have been really busy here.  I feel like I can't catch up with anything......balancing time between the two kids (most important I know), cleaning, general appearance upkeep (my daughter asks why I wear ponytails everyday - which I don't - but it's a bit funny)...so it's been challenging.  Yesterday morning, I looked out the window at my garden.  I love my garden.  It really is a bit of a solace to me when I feel overwhelmed.  I just 'peruse the grounds' as I call it....many times a day....this keeps me sane.

Side of the front porch....

Cleome....

Little stone pathway.....

Lady's Mantle (my favorite) and violas....

Echinachea starting to bloom....

For Nissa's birthday, she received a book of 500 tattoos.  This is a great present.  I'm not a parent opposed at all to these temporary things.  I think they are fun!!  As long as  they aren't pictures with blood and bones it's all good to me.  So yesterday she wanted to fill her arms with a bunch of them....and convinced me to have some as well.  She cut mine out of the book.....which meant many of them were missing parts....all the better I say!