• Blog

    T Tuesday: beach edition

    June 24, 2014 - By 

    I’m very late getting to my T stands for Tuesday post.  I really wanted to get a workout in this morning…then there was grocery shopping to do.  After that we had a date with the beach. I, of course, had my trusty water bottle with me…20140624_5413

    Our local beaches had been closed for a few days due to exceptionally high lake levels. All the area lakes are “wake free” zones.  No speed boating, trolling for fish, jet skis or anything that moves enough water to create a wake….that’s the V-shaped pattern in the water behind a boat for those of you without lots of water around. 20140624_5403The sand beach usually goes out to where the kids are playing.  They don’t’ seem to mind though. There were still tons of families out enjoying the day.20140624_5402It was just perfect.

    Now since I’m well hydrated but still a little thirsty…20140624_5412

    I think it’s time for one of these.

  • Blog - Photography

    Photo Scavenger Hunt post #1

    June 19, 2014 - By 

    I had mentioned a little while ago that I’d be playing along with Rinda at Gallo Organico on her 2014 Summer Photo Scavenger Hunt.

    I’ve been out and about with my camera this week…before the deluge of rain. Over 5 inches of rain in 7 hours. And it’s coming down again. JOY.

    In a couple separate adventures, no more than 30 minutes from our home, I found several items on the list…

    #3 Bird on a wirebird on a wire#7 A rural landscaperural landscape 3 rural landscape 2rural landscape 1#8 A tattoo on a persontattoo #17 a lamppostlamppost#18 a waterfallwaterfall 2 waterfall 1My list so far stands as:

    1. A sign welcoming people to your home town (or a nearby town)
    2. A garden gnome
    3. Birds on a wire
    4. A group of tourists
    5. A rack of post cards
    6. An urban street scene
    7. A rural landscape
    8. A tattoo on a person
    9. A bakery
    10. A photo bomb (someone found lurking in the background of photo; the lurker may have intended to disrupt the picture or may be doing it unintentionally, but the background lurker is a surprise to the photographer)
    11. A horn
    12. A mascot
    13. A sunrise
    14. A parade
    15. A juggler
    16. A sign in a language other than English
    17. A lamp post
    18. A water fall
    19. A public garden
    20. A bus (not a car, truck, lorry, camper or RV) with a picture painted on its sides.
    21. A photograph of you with something representing the season (recognizing that the season will be Winter for our friends in the southern hemisphere). Note: you may not use a substitute for this item.
    If you find something on the list too difficult, you may substitute one of the following items for anything on the list, except for Item #21:
    Alternative A: A kite, hot air balloon or blimp
    Alternative B: A bird house

    Are you playing along? Would you like to? It’s not too late…just pop over to Rinda’s blog and check out the details…

  • Blog - Kitchen

    T Tuesday: shrub edition

    June 17, 2014 - By 

    Good morning…welcome to T stands for Tuesday.  shrub mocktail

    Today I’d like to share my new refreshing summer drink with you….in my favorite glass, of course. I love this glass so much.  Recently I had a nightmare that I broke the top off it in a wickedly jagged form…I was very happy to wake and realize it was just a bad dream.

    So what’s in the glass?? It’s a shrub or drinking vinegar.  Ok…not as gross as it sounds. In fact, quite tasty. The first I ever heard of a shrub was from Kim over at art in red wagons.  Recently, I’ve started out the morning drinking a tablespoon or so of raw apple cider vinegar in a glass of water usually with a touch of honey or molasses.  I know…a little wacky but I like tart flavors and the health benefits are great.

    This brought me back to thinking about a shrub…then we got our first CSA box this past Wednesday.  Not a whole lot in it since our growing season has been less than ideal so far. The was rhubarb though. I’m the only one in the family that likes it. I started searching recipes on Pinterest and a shrub recipe appeared. shrubMaking a shrub is not an exact science. Here’s what I did.

    I chopped approx 2 cups rhubarb and a half dozen or so organic strawberries into a glass bowl.  Then sprinkled 1 cup of sugar over top and shook it around to coat. This mixture went in the refrigerator overnight to macerate.

    I poured everything into a clean dry canning jar..it was approx 2/3 full at this point. I then filled the jar to the neck with raw apple cider vinegar. I labeled it and let it sit on the counter, giving it a shake everyday. The recipes I found said to let it sit for a week before draining off the liquid and storing it in the fridge but I was very anxious to try it.

    Making the shrub is very simple. I poured approx 1/4 glass of shrub syrup over ice then filled the glass with club soda. It was slightly tart, slightly sweet and bubbly. Very refreshing.

    What do you think? Would you try this? Does it sound appealing at all?