Blueberry Picking Leads to Blueberry Pie

No lemon juice? Try some Lagunitas Maximus.

Yes, I am the worst crust maker in the history of the world.

And now, I get to go eat this!



Update: Yum! Delicious! I did all those freeze-this-freeze-that things, so the crust was very flaky. The problem, I guess, is my ratio, or something. I need more crust! So I end up having to roll what I've got so thin that I can't do anything with it. It just fell apart & laughed when I tried to lattice it. I got the last laugh, though.


Peace.

A Gentle Reminder

Although our town dump does not have a leave/take shed and that makes me sad, it does have a book shed and I am addicted. Recently, I picked up this book (yet another good thing about my groovy town: lots of interesting parenting books in the book shed). I wasn't sure at first if Everyday Blessings meant it was a christian book, but I was feeling the need to be blessed anyway. Then I saw the subtitle: The Inner Work of Mindful Parenting. Ah, yes.

We're back from vacation, jetlagged, hot, and crabby. This is the first year that I've realized that summer hide-from-the-heat cabin fever is way worse than anything winter can bring.

I need to take a deep breath.

Breathe, Ina, breathe.





Peace.

Summer Vacation

Here We Come!

Peace.

Garden Video

Enjoy some unedited footage of the flower garden, then come help me deadhead and weed!


Please?






Peace.

Mojito Scones?

Okay, not really.

I used my old standby recipe, except instead of ginger & lemon, I used mint & lime. And instead of buttermilk or a yogurt/milk blend, I used coconut milk.

* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1/4 cup granulated sugar
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/4 teaspoon salt*
* 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces*
* 1/2 cup crystallized ginger, chopped into small pieces*
* 1 large lemon, zest of*
* 2/3 cup buttermilk*

For the icing, I just used powdered sugar & lime juice. The girls like a little food coloring with their meals, what can I say?




Enjoy.



*I only had salted butter, so I used that & omitted the salt. I used 1 teaspoon peppermint extract (and cursed myself for not going out to the garden to get fresh mint to make a syrup or perhaps try shredded?). I used the zest of 3 limes. I used nearly 2/3 cup coconut milk & made up the rest with the juice of 1 lime.



Update: I just went to get another and the girls had eaten nearly all of them! They are a hit.


Peace.

Crimes Against Nature

Yesterday early morning we were awoken by a fleet of trucks and tractors surrounding our house. Turns out our new(ish) neighbors were having their old driveway scooped up. Oh how the girls and I hoped they were at least going to give part of it over to green, if not all of it to flowers and such.

Alas. By the end of the hot hot day there was a newer blacker hotter driveway in place of the old one with the yellow tape marking the crime scene.







Peace.

A George Bailey Moment

I went to the tax office today, because I don't have enough cash right now to pay my property taxes. They went up by $583.74 this year -- thank you so much override yes voters. I was a bit teary as I thought about George Bailey, and realized I don't even have life insurance, so I'm worth about the same dead or alive. 0.

The ladies at the tax office were very nice about it. They assured me that I'm not alone and told me to pay a little at a time as the money comes in until it's paid off. They said don't let myself get upset about it.

I wish I could refinance -- my 30 year fixed rate is still the 7.25 it was when I got the mortgage in 2001. The local bank I have my mortgage with told me I don't earn enough money to pay less on my mortgage.

It's a wonderful life.






Peace.