etiquette et bricolage

,

the girl was invited to a special tea party play-date recently.

 



 

it was hostessed by one of her favourite friends,

so she took her preparations very seriously

and even posed for a quick souvenir photoshoot.

 

we offered to entertain the tea party hostesses' brother at our place,

which tuned out to be a very good plan. 

the young ladies would certainly have been distracted by the building of Hamster Haven. 



fire pit passion

the cottage is the perfect place to try out less conventional cooking methods:

 

 

 

the manly art of digging a fire pit.

there was much debate on how deep, how wide, how much fire, depth of coals...

but it doesn't seem to be an exact science in any case.

 

fire pretty.

 





 we eventually threw in the foil/newspaper/foil wrapped chickens,

laid down some lovely sweet fern for additional protection, and buried the lot.



six hours later, we dug for our supper.

 

proud cave man bringing home the chickens, trailer park boys' style.

the-non exact science outcome?

the poultry still had to finish on the bbq...but it was very fun endeavour.

 

next time, deeper pit, more coals, longer time cookin'.

'cause the WILL be a next time.

 



Garden community part one

it is allotment garden time again...

my plot last year was challenged by drought and weeds,

this year seems to be rain and flea beetles.

so far.

ok, let's face it. 

the wisdom of regularly driving 15 minutes one way, in order to dig around in the dirt, seems questionable most days. 

the tools, seeds and baby plants rattle around in an already chock-full vehicle,

and the hot sticky van interior is not the most inspiring start to a gardening adventure.

we also live in an area of town that has plenty of green space close by.  parks and small lawns, sports fields and large planter boxes dot our area with greenery.  we also have a small back garden with some herbs and hostas, and always plant a container or two of little tomatoes to savour.

downtown, even the cracks in the paving sprout life.

~

why, then, did I decide to tackle a 25x25 foot plot of clay and weeds so far away?

I can easily buy local organic veggies, either at a market, or through a CSA.

even the local big box grocers have a selection of Ontario produce this time of year.

~

well, I knocked the dirt off of a couple of this year's tiny flea beetle bitten radishes,

and found my answer.

~

it is simple. seeds are a bit of magic. 

 I never quite believe that those tiny little things contain a whole plant inside...every time I place a few in the ground, I fully expect them to fail.  and yet, without smoke or mirrors, a little green shoot pops up almost before my eyes.

so, those spicy little globes, pushing forth in spite of my inadequate ministrations,

the bugs and heavy soil,  encourage my feelings of hope and pride, and my belief in magic.

~

 if all other of my crops fall prey to hydration issues, weed competition or become bug snacks,

I have had my money's worth of magic already, as well as

a tasty little salad!

lemonade redux

it was summer-enough to break out the entrepreneurial spirit this weekend...

the kids had so much fun with last year's lemonade stand,

that at 8:00 a.m. of the second warm-enough day, the poster paints were out.

 

 



edgar filled-in the bubble letters, and disagreed with me about the price.

he figured a glass should cost $5.00, not 50 cents.

 



 

i figure no lemonade stand should ever offer the canned stuff, so we squeezed and squeezed!

i made up a simple syrup and mixed the juice up with that, plenty of ice, and cool H2O.

 

the resulting beverage drew good-sport neighbours and passer-by;

we met at least a dozen people from up and down the street,

and one couple who had just happened to take a wrong turn...

we were soon offering up our small kiddie ikea stools

 for rest and conversation while the sippers sipped.

the whole project took up a lovely portion of the day;

the street was reclaimed for commerce and camaraderie,

esther sang out her lemonade hawking song, even when there was not a soul in sight, and

edgar decided we should do this EVERY weekend.

 



permission impossible?

 

a friday evening, a stray ball of yarn and two

inspired and conspiring  kittens resulted in this obstacle course...

how could i possibly discourage someting so outrageously fun?

i just sat back, and enjoyed the mayhem.

constructing the thing seemed to be painstaking and exhilarating team work,

and clambering through?  priceless.

days later, i am still finding wool knotted around chair-legs and posts...

i think i might leave one or two tied on, as furniture friendship bracelets.

sew what now?

i should have taken a 'before' photo,

as i imagine this still looks chaotic to the untrained eye,

but many hours of committment

have turned my sewing/etc. nook from stash-pile to comfort zone once again.

i'm now prepared for my next project;

 i just need to find the next block of 'hours of committment'.

2013 magic

Esther and the cousins started the new year by turning blank paper and

 mandarine orange wrappers into snow.

x-mas decor

esther brought this lovely ornament home from school last year...

i was amazed at how cute it was, wondered how well it kept, and how many mini marshmallows

 were inside my girl for each one on the ball!

i unpacked it this year, and found it just as cute and intact,

so i decided to make them at home

to count marshmallows 'in' versus 'on'.  the answer, a 2:1 ratio.

all you need:

small foam craft balls

straight pins

spangles and sequins

a bit of ribbon

and lots and lots and lots of marshmallows.

red dwarf

edgar was so very proud of his most recent drawing of a rocket in space...

and equally delighted to find enough thumbtacks to securely affix it to the wall...



Joy jar

We have started an outdoor-fun-and-activities jar...

(which was a fun indoor activity!)

So far we have drawn...

'go to pool'

'arbouretum'

'arts'n'crafts'

(twice)

'walk to chinatown'

And 

'splash pad'.

More fun to come...and with ideas being added every day, it's going to be a short summer!

concentrated effort

edgar has been eagerly demanding to try out any sharp kitchen tool,

so i finally broke down and enlisted his help with the zucchini salad tonight.

(i figure the vegetable peeler is likely the safest choice at this stage.)

at least he seems to be paying very careful attention!

treasure islands

it is impossilble to organize all of the bits and bobs

in this house...so i have quite a few boxes that are just

bits and bobs.  these boxes come in handy on loose-ends sort of days,

days when we might have a little extra pizza dough lying around as a canvas...

(also known as days i forget to add the yeast to the pizza dough.)

on this day, the scraps turned into a beach of  butterflies and basking beauties,

and an island oasis, guarded by fierce beasts!



egg-centric

 we were in toronto for easter, where aunt pat thoughtfully provided some egg-decorating

kits and inspiration for the gang.

watching the colour-pellets dissolve was half the fun!

next, the challenge of converting a perfect ovoid form of creamy white

into a work of art.

edgar's designs leaned toward elegant simplicity,

while esther's sported extra flair

(and often hair!)

the cracked rejects served as daddy's high protein pre-hockey breakfast

of (almost!) champions.



strange bedfellows

the fresh country air really tuckered david out...

he succumbed to an afternoon nap.

the girls then decided that his undulating form was the perfect canvas for

their "masterpiece".

(an installation piece composed of this managerie of stuffies)

yes, he is actually snoozing under all that cuteness.

vegan jam thumbprints

had to try this recipe out...

and so happy i did!

it is chock full of almonds

(so not school lunchbox friendly, but packed with protien)

and oats...the recipe says they can happily be made wheat-free by subbing

oat flour for the wheat flour.

the mix itself is quick and simple to prepare, 

while the rolling, poking and filling is well worth the final product!

the resulting treat is (not too) wholesome and nutty tasting,

and has a lovely tender texture.

i used marg's wild raspberry jam...mmmmm

from the tassajara cookbook by carla oliviera

thumbprints

preheat oven to 350 degrees

mix up in a large bowl:

1 C unbleached flour

2 C ground almonds

4 C ground oats

(whizz rolled oats in the cuisinart until a rough flour)

1/2 t salt

1 C maple syrup

1 C vegetable oil of choice

let dough rest for 15 minutes before using.

then,

roll dough into 3 cm balls, and place closely on baking sheet.

gently poke each ball, and then fill the dents with

drops of:

jam, (you need about 1/4 C) thinned with a little water.

~

bake for 15 minutes, or until lightly browned.

please don't overbake

(although i imagine they will still taste great!)

snow business

after a very long and patient wait, snow has come to town.

snowman sentries were finally raised in the back yard,

and the street (directly in front of our driveway) was transformed overnight into
an himalayan base camp.

 

icicles were served at the canteen,

and our intrepid neighbour was among the first who braved ice-burn

on the swift slide down.

it has started to attract the on-the-way-home-from-school crowd;
daily, at 3:20 p.m., they scramble and chitter over the mound like squirrells.

~

with an estimated 15cm of more snow arriving today, the mountain-of-fun

isn't going anywhere soon!

~
the question is no longer "where to play?" but instead, "where to park??!!"

dressing?

 the combination of two fun projects led to another mesmerizing mixture!

one afternoon, we were decorating cookies.

the next day, we blew off a little steam with a baking soda and vinegar volcano...

the day after that, the sprinkles and vinegar (which happened to still be on the counter)

 plus a glug of oil turned into a kalidoscopic experiment! 

not suitable for a salad, but nourishing, none-the-less.

dill-licious

i have been working with katan kitchens 

to help develop a few healthful, tasty, great-for-you meals...

i can't provide the recipe, but can encourage

the consumption of more millet!

yum. yum. yum.

gooey gunk

Q: what do you get when you mix

white glue, water, colouring and borax?

A: gooey gunk!  and a lot of indoor fun.

if stored in an airtight jar, this gloopy mess continues to be fun for weeks.

it does become more and more solid...much like silly putty.

trust the recipe...

it doesn't seem as though it will work, and yet, mysteriously, it does.

~how to do it~

in two bowls, prepare the following:

solution A

1 cup H2O

1 cup white glue

2 T liquid tempera paint 

(or a few drops of food colouring)

solution B:

1 1/3 cup warm H2O

4 t borax (laundry booster)

stir until borax is completely dissolved.

slowly pour solution A into bowl containing solution B (do not mix!!!)

roll solution A around in solution B 4-5 times.

lift solution A out of solution B and knead for 2-3 minutes.

play with it!  

(a tray underneath play area was very helpful)

store in an airtight container.

thanks again to the ultimate book of kid concoctions 

by john e. thomas and danita pagel !

 p.s.:it came out of clothes after a good soaking and laundering; 

anything stuck on hard surfaces came off with the scrape of a credit card...

but it was better to roll it up before it dried.

esther's photo portfolio

the girl was in charge of the camera for a while yesterday...

here are a few kid's eye view shots.