Just in time for the weekend

Summer arrived just in time. We had a great weekend with my Dad and Pat. The iffy looking sky made it difficult to make outdoor plans on Saturday and Sunday (thus no flea market). We did a few of our usual things though... JoAnn's and Costco. I picked up a new quilting book, Material Obsession, at JoAnn's. When it comes to sewing books I often find that the best idea was the one on the cover, but this one is great all the way through. It is always a bonus to find patterns you like using fabric you love, and a 40% off coupon makes it that much sweeter.

The weather wasn't the only thing that cooperated. A few weeks ago in the clearance section of TJ Maxx I picked up Cat Cora's cookbook, Cooking From The Hip, and decided to put it to the test. I tried two recipes, the greek lamb and olive burgers and the Pork skewers with avocado tzatziki, and they were so good. I did switch a few ingredients... used 2 parts beef to 1 part lamb for the burgers, and threw some veggies on with the pork skewers, but as for the seasoning I didn't change a thing. The recipes were both easy and delicious, and I look forward to trying some more of them.

We spent Monday at Kill Kare State Park while poor Eric slaved away at work. The weather was perfect. Lots of wind = lots of waves, and Corie and Dad had a great time flopping in them. Corie's a real fish, and would be happy to spend every day swimming. Zakary didn't like water up until this summer, but now he is the first one in. Luckily the beach was empty when he gave a howl and announced that his "winky" got wet. In his defense the water was chilly. Pat and I spent the day collecting rocks. Why? Why not!

Tuesday was the usual cooking, cleaning and laundry. Yuck! We did get Coraline from Netlix though. I enjoyed it once while Corie enjoyed it three times in a row. I picked some wild black raspberries with the intention of making jam, but the combination of heat, humidity and chores left me feeling pretty crappy. Hopefully they will survive in the 'frige until Saturday.

SuMmERtiMe???

All I know is that it was barely over 50 degrees last night. Yikes! Despite the cool wet weather we are having a great summer. Corie and Zakary are getting spoiled rotten by all the grandparents. Three weeks ago Zakary spent a week with Grandma White and came home with new Hot Wheels and lots of stories. At the same time Corie was with Dennis' family getting the royal treatment. Two weeks ago we went down for a long weekend visit to Nana and Grandpa Sprague's. We had a great time hanging out and relaxing. Pat cooked some amazing food (I'm sure she is partially responsible for at least two of the pounds I gained). We finally got to meet the Amber's dog, Bear. He is so cute. Despite the fact that he digs up the yard, chews on everything and is still in the process of being house broken he has won the heart of my anti-dog Dad. Needless to say both of the kids want a dog now. Thanks Amber!We saw fireworks for the first time in years. It was a small but well done show. Dad and Eric got to do man things with power tools. I think that qualifies as fun for them. While on the road we stopped in Albany and did some shopping. We hit JoAnn's, Target, Lee's Market, Kim's Oriental Shoppe, and Harbor Freight. We topped off the shopping with a Chinese buffett. I mean, does it get any better?
Last weekend Grandma and Grandpa Smith took the kids. I can tell by the amount of wet clothes returning home that they had a blast. Zakary was a little disappointed though. He had planned to stay with them until it snowed, because as he put it "I don't get to see Ryan (his best friend and neighbor) much in the summer". Apparently Ryan is the only reason to come home. It is always interesting to see where you rate as a parent. It's a good thing he is so cute. Eric spent the child free weekend putting up lattice, and I spent it sewing a softie that was in the new Stuffed magazine. Oh yeah, we know how to have fun!

No grilling tonight

This is what Eric found when he opened the grill last night. Two parents, 3 babies (one of them still blind) and one in between (sizewise). Luckily I have a husband who prefered to let them grow up before displacing them.

Summertime

new garden fence from hubby

Maybe it's because I'm getting older or maybe it's because I live five miles from the North Pole, but summer seems to be passing very quickly this year. Corie finished school the second week of June. She is officially a fifth grader. The class got to vote and pick a different theme for each day of the last week of school. No matter what the theme was she felt it required lots and lots of tattoos, so every morning she applied a few more. While Corie is excited to be going into middle school next year Zakary who does not like change was protesting. He did not want to go to Kindergarten, or get a new teacher or leave his best friend , Ryan (who is one year younger), behind. Luckily for us our school has a Kindergarten Step-up day. He got to meet his teacher, and more importantly he got to see his new classroom which was full of new things to play with. I'm sure he will renew his protests this September, but for now he is excited.
We spent Father's Day up at Eric's parents. Although the rain kept intruding we had a great time. The kids got to swim, and I got to take lots of frog pictures.
Eric brought his new remote control submarine, but couldn't get it working. Poor Eric. The pictures says it all. My Mom and I went to the Vermont Quilt Festival, and I have posted the pictures in an Picasa album. We had a great time, and found some new fabric to add to our stash. Here is my favorite.