rediscovering a super food, and the onset of chilly weather

i've been having a hard time posting lately...my days have been very busy lately, and in the evenings i don't have any desire to be in front of a computer. not to mention that i am usually pooped by 9:00pm as it is.

so.

doings around these parts: slowly making progress with house improvement. aubrey is taking more steps every day, though she is not quite 100% bipedal. the garden is starting to wind down, though we have been blessed with a glut of zucchini. we've had it in one form or another every day for the past week: on the grill; baked in bread; sauteed and incorporated into barley "risotto."

speaking of barley...i think it is my new favorite grain. i love it's earthy flavor and chewy bite. it seems to go well with so many savory ingredients, and yet is perfectly lovely cooked up with a little milk, maple syrup and raisins.

it is also CHEAP. in fact, it's cheaper than rice at the moment. so i am loving that, and am envisioning more barley dishes in the future.

i think fall is starting to show itself around here. this am the thermometer registered 33 degrees Fahrenheit. we didn't get a frost, but i am glad we decided to cover up our tender arugula, lettuce and chard over night!

back to work! i sure am glad i brought a sweater today....

productive holiday weekend

greetings! i'm back at work after a gloriously sunny and productive labor day weekend. on the list of accomplishments:

• we made four quarts of tomato sauce using our own tomatoes, peppers and herbs, and local organic garlic


• we canned said tomato sauce, my first canning adventure as an adult (i used to watch my mom can peaches, pears and homemade applesauce as a kid)
  
• we painted yet another wall in the kitchen...only one more to go!
  
• i made a fantastic homemade pesto, roasted pepper and tomatoe pie, using a slightly modified version of this excellent recipe.

this, in addition to all of the usual weekend chores. with time for several lovely walks in the sunshine with cabot and boopers. and dinner with friends.

i am so very much enjoying all of the homegrown food we've been fortunate to savor, too. in addition to the tomato sauce we enjoyed with locally raised beef over pasta, and the pesto pie with VT mozarella, we also had our own grilled zucchini and lots and lots of cucumber salad. mmmmmm.

i can't believe how fast the summer flew by. this month is going to be busy, as we button up outdoor and indoor projects. we have two weddings this month, one local and the other in maine, and also my grandparent's 50th wedding anniversary celebration. busy times for sure. hopefully there will also be apple picking in the forecast for september, more bbq-ing with friends, and early evening family walks around the village.

i'll leave you with a few pictures of aubrey, who is busily perfecting her balancing so that she can cruise around the house unaided. don't you love the outfit? a classic example of the "layering" necessitated by early fall weather in VT!

beautiful weekend

some pictures from our hike last weekend. a stunningly beautiful late summer day. here's boopers and pete, shortly after she nodded off in the backpack.












here are the "kids," taking a snack break on the "summit." aubrey WORSHIPS cabot, and it is a rare day when he lets her pet him.





and again. so cute. can you tell that i gave aubrey her first haircut? it was a bit of a challenge, and i'm sure it's not very even, but i got the job done, and it turned out alright.


back to work!

five steps!

i am having a proud mommy moment!

today aubrey took five steps. the most she's taken yet. of course, i wasn't there to see it, but. still. i'm so proud!

blushing. heeee!

old mcdonald...

funny story!

last night, while in the bath (which is the time of day where aubrey sits still long enough to play games and sing with us), we were going through our usual rotation of singing songs, playing with toys, splashing water, and pointing at body parts, when aubrey said, quite clearly, "eee iy, eee iy, oooooh."

pete and i looked at each other. surely, that wasn't a coincidence. but, had we ever sang "old mcdonald had a farm" with her? not that we could recall. this prompted us to sing through a couple of verses of "old mcdonald," during which aubrey happily swayed back in forth.

apparently, on the ride to "school" this morning, she blurted out "eee iy, eee iy, ooooooh" again. so pete asked aubrey's "teachers" whether they had sung old mcdonald recently. it turns out that old mcdonald is the purple room's FAVORITE SONG. so funny!

it is amazing to see aubrey make connections and to get a glimpse at what her thought processes are. heee!

howdy

sorry for the lull in posting. i really have no excuse except that, well, it's summer.

and it's been a very rainy summer. cucumbers are out of controll in the garden, so clearly they are thriving in all of the wet weather. the tomatoes, unfortunately, have taken a beating. we are finally seeing small broccoli heads form on some of the broccoli plants, though. and i think this weekend we will be making a big batch of pesto. and probably pickles.

we are in the middle of some big painting projects: pete took this week off to paint the framed section of the house. and we are about 40% finished painting the kitchen, too. (a bright yellow. goes well with the cherry cabinets and soapstone countertops. at least i think so.) hopefully those projects will get wrapped up in the next week or so.

aubrey is so! close! to full-on walking. you should see her speed along with her cheapie plastic walker! it's one of the cutest things i've ever seen! she's really good at steering, too. so the first independent steps could come any day now.

she is also rapidly expanding her vocabulary, and impressing us daily with her discoveries. the other night, while in the bath, she successfully pointed to her: ears, nose, eyes, mouth, and head. wow! i was floored! we are also very good at identifying animals and making their corresponding sounds. she is especially good at woofing and panting like a dog. she can also squawk like a monkey and mooooo like a cow. ; )

now if i could only get her to grasp the concept behind the word "no." hmmmm....

mmmm...bubbles.

who knew that bathtub bubbles could be so delectible? here's miss a, having just taken a big refreshing (?) gulp of bubbly goodness.