Triplets

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

Pre-Kindergarten

I have so many more pictures to share, but I had to get this one up!  They are just too cute in their uniforms!! (and new sneakers and backpacks!).

CSA Week 13

Here is what is in the box for this week:

Full Share:

8 ears of sweet corn
2 lbs zucchini
3 lbs of tomatoes
4 lbs of cucumbers
1 lb beans (yellow or green)
2 sweet peppers
2 hot peppers
2 large eggplant
1 lb small eggplant
2 lbs of potatoes
1 bunch of collards
1 bunch of kale


Another great week!!

College Life

Pictures of my daughter playing mud volleyball, the day before she got sick and diagnosed with Mono......

She is wearing all black.

Interesting isn't it????

Tomatoes

I got a great box from the CSA this weekend.  Lots of tomatoes and cucumbers.  I decided to try to can the tomatoes that I got.  My hubby had bought six plum tomatoes from the grocery store also, so I did all of them.

I ended up with four quarts of canned tomatoes.  I can use them to make sauce or whenever I need canned whole tomatoes.  It was such an easy process.....I think I will be doing more!

Mono

My daughter called me last night that she thought she had "faningitis" - which is what we call getting a cold from having a fan blow on you!

This morning, she was really sick and very upset.  She couldn't swallow and her glands were swollen and she (we) figured it was strep throat.  Down on her campus, there is no nurse on duty on the weekends.  The RA and RD didn't answer their phones and Campus Security told her if she was sick, she could call an ambulance - Idiots!!!!  So, sometimes, you just have to take matters in to your own hands.  It took me a while, but I remembered the CVS in the town about three miles away from campus (thank you, Lisa for the idea!).  I called to see if there was a minute clinic in the CVS.  No such luck, but a nice southern lady told me that there was a regular clinic down town Lillington.  So, my daughter found a senior with a car and asked her for a ride - Thank GOD for Southern Hospitality.  This young woman brought my daughter to the clinic, stayed with her for two and 1/2 hours and then took her to McDonalds for a Smoothie to ease her throat.  It isn't strep throat, but mono.  She must have had it prior to us going down to NC, but she had no symptoms.  There is nothing they can do for her and she has to rest this week - no exercise or exertion.  She can go to class, but if she can't, she has an excused absence.  She has to go back to the clinic in a week for another blood test.

It's pretty hard to be 600 miles away from your kid when she is sick.  You feel pretty helpless.  It really sucks and I knew this would be the hardest part.  I just didn't think it would be less then a week after we dropped her off!

CSA Week 12

I didn't post last week's share because I was away and my sister got the whole thing.  This week, I get the whole thing!  Tomatoes are in season and we are getting a lot and they are selling them by the bushel also.  I'm debating on putting some up (canning) them this year.  I have to see how much time I have this weekend!

Here is this week's share:

Full Share

3 ears of sweet corn
4 lbs of tomatoes
1 pint of grape tomatoes
3 lbs of cucumbers
2 sweet peppers
2 hot peppers
2 Large eggplant
1/2 lb small eggplant
1 bunch of carrots
1 lb of beets with or without tops
2 lbs of potatoes
1 bunch of kale

Canning Pears

After picking all the pears from my tree, which was not a good haul this year, I ended up with four quarts of pear pie filling.  I used the recipe from here.

I hope to make a pear-raspberry pie this week.....

Pears

This is my take from my pear tree this year.  Definitely not as many as last year, but they will do.  We picked them yesterday and I will start to process them tomorrow.  I think I'm just going to can them for pear pie for the winter time.  They are greenish brown with a slight red tinge to them....I have no idea what kind of pears they actually are?

If I get three quarts of pie filling, I'll be lucky!  But it is all good.  The Asian pears from my mom's house should be ready soon also!

Chipotle

We went out for something to eat last night because there were no kids home for supper.  Hubby had tried Chipotle before with friends and a lot of people told me that I would love and after reading about it, I knew I would like it also.

They serve Mexican and it is all antibiotic free, hormone free meats and some locally sourced veggies.

I had a burrito bowl with chicken.  Cilantro-lime rice, corn salsa, mild regular salsa, black beans and chicken with a little bit of spice to it all in a bowl.
Hubby had a double meat burrito with chicken and steak.

Then we took home a bag of chips and mild salsa and finished watching Shark Week (and snacking).

I plan on going back this week for my lunch hour - it was THAT good!!

I didn't think I would cry.....

...but I was an emotional mess dropping my daughter off  six states away and saying goodbye for a couple of months.

I know it will get easier!

I am keeping myself busy today, cleaning her room, cleaning the house, organizing, changing batteries in smoke detectors, laundry.....anything to keep myself from thinking about it too much!

And she is having a blast!!!!  :)

Family Night

It was family night at the Police Academy for my son.  He is there for six months and comes home on the weekends.  They invited family and friends to see what it is like and to see what the recruits are doing.

It was interesting to say the least.  First of all, it is definitely like a boot camp.  Their room has to be perfect.  The blanket and sheets have to be 18 inches from the top of the bed and the sheet can only be folded over for six inches....seriously - they have a ruler and have to measure this!!!  They come in every Monday morning in a suit and bring their recruit uniforms all cleaned and pressed and march or jog into the barracks.  They get changed and begin their day with exercise and then right into classroom for 8 hours. 

We were told that they will come out of this experience as different people.  They will no longer be civilians!  (scary!).  We saw a video of what they do every day - exercise, classroom work, work.  My son's job is cleaning the kitchen at night!  I am so happy he is learning this job - maybe it will transfer over to his home life!

This is him in the kitchen...

At his desk in the classroom

The squad that takes down and folds all the flags.

He is in this picture in the second row, I think the sixth person!

The Nametag at his desk

With his girlfriend who came also and who kindly took all these pictures for me!!

We are packing!

We leave in a few days for a trip to NC to move my daughter to college.  The house is a disaster!

The dining room is filled with all her new "stuff", that needs to go into the car.  Her bedroom is filled with two suitcases full of clothes, plus other bags of clothes she will be taking with her.  She is cleaning out drawers of dolls and toys that should have gone away a long time ago and so there are things everywhere!  Piles for goodwill, piles for her cousins, piles for the garbage...just lots of piles!  She promises by Thursday, it will be all done!! 

I just pray that everything we need to take down south fits in to the car!  That should be fun!

It's Shark Week!

I'm not sure if I should be embarrassed to say that I have watched every Shark Week since it started many years ago.  I was watching it before it became the phenomena that it is today!  Shark Technology/Information/Life have come a long, long way!!!

I think I have been fascinated since I actually went to see the movie JAWS in the theatre in 1975 and then my family went to Cape Cod for two weeks.....Scared the bejesus out of my entire family.  It was tough to get in the water that year! 

I actually get annoyed when they are doing a new episode and they show people going into the cold water at 6:30 in the morning and these idiots are going surfing and they actually think they can outswim the sharks.....Really people!  Have you not watched any episodes of Shark Week.  It's feeding time at dawn and dusk!! 

Anyway, my hubby is deathly afraid of sharks and he knows more information than I do!!  He likes to know everything about them, so he can be assured he will never come face to face with one.  However, he is so afraid, that he won't even go in the water past his knees, so I think the point is moot! 

But it is so funny when I go in the water in the Gulf and hubby patrols from shore (just in case!).

Enjoy Shark Week - Discovery Channel this week!!!

It was a canning day

Saturday was spent working all morning, but then, in the afternoon Deb and Cara came over to learn how to can.

And we canned!!

8 pints of strawberry jam
13 pints of peach jam
1-1/2 quarts of salsa

I should have taken pictures of us, but I forgot......

Cara is only in 6th grade and was a very willing participant - unlike my daughter who has watched me for years and never helped once! LOL

Anyway, it was fun and we got a lot accomplished and everything gelled beautifully and tasted even better!!

Thank you, both, for a wonderful afternoon!!!

CSA Week 10

Here is what is in the CSA Box this week:

Full Share


3 ears of corn

1 head of cabbage

1 bunch of kale (curly or toscano)

2 bunches of collard greens

1 bunch of beets

2 bunches of carrots

1 pint grape tomatoes (red or yellow)

3 lbs of cucumbers

2 lbs squash & zucchini

4 sweet peppers

2 hot peppers (anaheim, jalapeno, hot cherry, or hungarian hot wax)

2 large eggplant (either dark purple or lavender)

1/2 lb Asian eggplant

3/4 lb broccoli

Last week, I got extra beets but it was my sisters turn for them!  This week, I get the cabbage, cukes and broccoli!

Thanksgiving....

I know it is early to even be thinking about Thanksgiving, so I wasn't thinking about it!

But because I wasn't thinking about it, I missed my chance to sign up the race that I have done on Thanksgiving day for over 10 years!!  At first I was really, really pissed off about it.  But then I thought about it more.  And I think it is actually a blessing.  I have been wanting to go to the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade my entire life.  Time and Life and Family were just always reasons why I couldn't go......But this year, I can go!  Hubby has no desire to go, so let me know if anyone is interested in heading into NYC for the morning of Thanksgiving.  I think we leave on an early train (3 or 4 am).  Then after the parade is over, we take the train back to CT.  I can still make it home for the second course (or dessert at least!).

I know it's early, but think about it.

Salsa

I received tomatoes and bell peppers and jalapenos this week in my CSA box.  I bought some extra "seconds" tomatoes at $1/lb at the farm and a few extra bell peppers, so it was time for this year's salsa attempt.  Last year was a really good year for it, so I was hoping for another!

The jalapeno's were big an spicy, because this batch turned out nice and hot.

I got all this:

 I had a little extra, so we didn't can this amount and just waited until it cooled and enjoyed it immediately.

Next up....Pico de gallo.

CSA Week 9

Our share this week:

Full Share


3 ears of corn
1 head of cabbage
2 bunches of kale (curly & toscano)
1 bunch of beets
2 bunches of carrots
2 lbs of new red potatoes
2 lbs of cucumbers
3 lbs squash & zucchini
1 lb tomatoes
2 sweet peppers
2 hot peppers (anaheim, jalapeno, hot cherry, or hungarian hot wax)
2 large eggplant (either dark purple or lavender)

I think it's a SALSA weekend!

Freebies for July

Curamin pain reliever (2 samples)
Jovial Pasta (2 4-oz Samples)
BioTrue Contact Lens cleaner-trial size
Bodycology Body Lotion - wild poppy

I didn't get many freebies this past month, mostly because I haven't had time to actually REQUEST them.  Once the summer is through and the youngest is off to college, I think I'll have more time to devote to the blog and other things that have been put on the back burner!