It’s been hot here. It got up to 102° today and yesterday was 99°. I had hoped we could wait until June to use to air conditioning, but we caved, and I am glad we did. It’s hard to find the motivation to do anything when you are covered in sweat.

For mothers day we drank margaritas (with home made margarita mix, the best!), listened to Herb Alpert (our favorite), and got things done around the house.

Today, realizing early that it would be even hotter than yesterday, I decided to make an enormous pitcher of our margarita mix so we can keep it on hand in the fridge for the next few days. I also pulled together a delicious quinoa, black bean, and avocado salad with cilantro and lime (also with chopped tomatoes, red bell pepper, jalapeño, green onions, garlic, salt and pepper. Chop everything, and refrigerate. So, so good, try it!).

Sorry for my unannounced absence around this space, we have had some family issues that have been very emotionally consuming.

Today though, Russ and I dropped Lucy off with grandma and grandpa and we went and got some lunch and margaritas. Cinco de Mayo is a bit of a special day for us. It was exactly nine years ago that I bumped into him in a dark bar, he offered me a sip of his tequila and tonic (gag), and the rest is history.

1. Breakfast bowl. Potatoes, pepperjack cheese, fried egg, parsley, and chipotle cream sauce. It would have been even better with avocado, but we didn’t have any ripe ones.
2. Popcorn, the snack of choice around here. (With butter, herbs, and nutritional yeast)
3. Crusty bread with watercress, kalamata olives, red pepper, artichoke, capers, garlic and olive oil. I served this about a month ago at a knitting night I held.
4. Bread rising, always.
5. Red coconut curry butternut squash soup with chipotle cream sauce and green onions.

Happy weekend to you! The weather here is incredible, it has been in the high 70s/low 80s for the past few days. The clothes on the line dry in about an hour. The days are getting longer. Tomatoes are on the horizon, tomatoes! It is getting harder and harder to stay indoors and clean or work on things that need working on.

This week I was reminded of a favorite poem of mine. I had it as a Little Golden Book as a young girl, and my dad read it to me so many times, I have it memorized. It is originally from Robert Louis Stevenson’s ‘A Child’s Garden of Verses’. It is called ‘Bed in Summer’.

In winter I get up at night
And dress by yellow candle-light.
In summer quite the other way,
I have to go to bed by day.

I have to go to bed and see
The birds still hopping on the tree,
Or hear the grown-up people’s feet
Still going past me in the street.

And does it not seem hard to you,
When all the sky is clear and blue,
And I should like so much to play,
To have to go to bed by day?

I did my first canning of the year, and what better way to start it off than these beautiful pickled radishes. The recipe came from Canning for the New Generation, which I have only used a handful of times but have really enjoyed everything I have made from it. These pickled radishes are perfect, I have been snacking on what didn’t make it into the jars all day.

I turned the tops of the radishes into a delicious radish top soup. I pulled the recipe from our Edible San Diego magazine, but it was originally from this book.

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 leek, white and light green part only, halved lengthwise and thinly slice
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 medium russet potato, peeled and diced
4 cups vegetable broth
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
5 cups lightly packed radish tops (from three bunches)
5 or 6 radishes, trimmed and cut into matchsticks

In a heavy stockpot melt butter. Add leek, onion, carrot, salt and stir briefly. Cover and cook, stirring once or twice until the vegetables are very soft but not brown, about 20 minutes. uncover, add the potato, water, sugar and pepper. Increase heat to medium high and bring to a simmer. Re-cover and cook, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are tender enough to puree. Add the radish tops and stir until wilted, about 1 minute. Puree and top with radish matchsticks.

This weekend had a little hitch in it. We had a beet genocide of sorts happen in our yard. A certain little toddler gleefully pulled up every last one of my month old beet plants in about two seconds flat. The look of joy on her face as she was doing it will be forever engrained in my brain. It’s weird how attached one can get to plants, but I did have a little cry after this incident. At least she had fun doing it!

Today was better. No murdering of plants transpired. Our whole day today seemed to revolve around the food we made. Food days are the best days! Above is the savory crepe we made for breakfast. It had a potato and onion filling, chipotle cream sauce, and feta (served with avocado, tomatoes, and parsley). Though it will have to remain a weekend breakfast, I think this one is going to become a regular.

I hope you and your plants had a happy and safe weekend, I’m off to order some more seeds!

These are the last of the photos I will be posting from our trip.

I am very much looking forward to the weekend at home. As fun as going away is, nothing beats a weekend at home. There is so much to be done around our house, and it really gives me great joy to check things off the never ending to-do list. If I get any down time I may do a little canning (it’s been ages, and I want to pickle some veggies) or start sewing the pants from Gertie’s new Butterick pattern.

Have a lovely weekend friends!

One of my favorite things about the country life is the walks. Sure, we enjoy walking around our neighborhood at home, but it isn’t the same. The air is fresher, the sites more beautiful, and I always get a sense of renewal that I don’t achieve from walks through our residential neighborhood.

The school that my brother and sister-in-law teach at is located on 3000 acres of oak tree covered land. There are farm animals and flowers as far as the eye can see. We walked a lot. Every day, multiple times a day. When we would return to their home Lucy would beg to go out walking again. I, though, wanted to put my legs up and read a book. It was that kind of a trip. We didn’t do anything particularly exciting, but what we did do is all I had wanted; long walks and time to read.

We are back from spending the most lovely, relaxing weekend with my brother and sister-in-law at their home an hour outside of Santa Barbara. It’s a beautiful four and a half hour drive (if we don’t hit traffic in LA) up the coast of Southern California. Unfortunately, with a toddler in tow we drive it at night so she can sleep the whole way up. One of these days we when she is a bit older and can sit for greater lengths of time we will make the trip during the day so we can enjoy the sites off the 101.

We had a wonderful visit, as we always do. I didn’t want to leave the beautiful countryside and return to suburban living. My heart has been aching in a bad way to live in the country again, and if anything, this trip only intensified those feelings. One day we will, but in the mean time I need to remind myself regularly how thankful I am for the beautiful and fun things we have around us.

More finished knitting projects! I finished the turban quite some time ago, here is the information for that project. It was a fast and super easy little project, I have made a few for friends, not taking more than two hours or so per headband. It’s perfect for keeping ears warm in cool weather.

The cardigan though, oh my! This is the Annabel Cardigan, and is my absolute favorite project to date. It seems like such a simple, basic item, but pared with the most lovely undyed wool, and it has become something truly special. I took it off a few days ago, just long enough to block it and sew on buttons. Other than that though, I have been wearing it nonstop. Here is the information on the pattern.

I knitted up these four washcloths last week for my brother and his wife, whom we are spending some time with this weekend. They were super quick, taking about five or so hours a piece. I am a little afraid to say it, but I think I may be slowing the needles down for a little while. It is getting so warm here, and my excitement over making cozy, warm clothing items is waning. I suppose I need to search out some patterns that will keep me interested in knitting during the spring and summer months, maybe a bikini? Maybe not.

Here is the Ravelry link to this knitting pattern.