Weekly Menu June 23

Source: oneenchantedelephant

This week we have:

Fluffy Pineapple Cookies with Orange Glaze

Finger-Lickin' Braised Short-Rib Tacos

French Silk Brownie Pie

For today, June 23...

Outside my window... The boys are playing in the pool, the wind is rustling through our cherry trees, the veggies are sprouting and everything is soaking up the Colorado summer sunshine! So far I haven't killed any of our plants, but I think our beans are getting too much shade, we've only found four green bean sprouts... Live and learn! We inherited a giant inflatable pool from a neighbor, and the boys are LOVING it!

Source: Pinterest

I am thankful... for ice and pools and playgrounds and sunscreen. For creativity, chocolate, swamp coolers, and carpet. I am thankful that the boys are settling in to this summer thing, and becoming as happy as little brown clams. I'm thankful for cool mornings and evenings, naps, and movie nights. 

In the kitchen... Getting ready for our camping trip! I'm thinking of making some summery fruit hand pies... Not sure how well they'd travel though. Also, Stephen has become really interested in and opinionated about what I bake and cook lately! It's really fun, and he is coming up with a whole list of things we need to make this summer. Rice pudding, marshmallows, meringue cookies, taco salad, popsicles... I think that's the list up to now. Rice pudding, marshmallows, and meringues I'm all for, but taco salad? It's so simple! What do you think, would you guys like our taco salad recipe?

Source: Pinterest

I am going... Camping!! Our first camping trip of the year! Usually we look for a new camping spot, but we're going to go to the last spot we camped in October, because I just LOVED it. We'll leave Thursday afternoon, to hopefully snag a spot before the weekend officially starts. Luckily the mountains around here are just riddled with little campgrounds, so if it's full, we'll go discover a new one! I'm going to set up all my posts to publish while I'm gone. It will be heavenly to get up in the mountains! We've been so busy this Spring that we haven't be as adventurous as we usually are, so it's about time!

I am hoping... I'm hoping it doesn't rain while we're camping! We got completely rained out of a camping trip last year. A few drizzles here and there are fine, lovely even, but we ended up going home a whole day early because we were just drenched. And cold. Bleck. 

Source: le-minte

I am looking forward to... Farmer's Markets!!! Our favorite farmer's market started this month, and I can't wait to go gather up some fresh, in season veggies and fruits! There usually isn't a lot of fruit this early, even strawberries in Colorado ripen much later. In most places they're a Spring fruit, here they're firmly planted in Summer. The one fruit I am looking forward to the most is PEACHES. I know Georgia peaches are supposed to be the tip-top, but Colorado peaches absolutely ROCK! I'm all out of my very favorite Peach Vanilla Bean Jam, definitely making a double batch this year, more for freezing, more for baking, might even can some spiced peaches... I'm talking bushels and bushels of peaches here, people. Counting down the weeks!

I am learning... Oh. My. Jeepers. You guys, I went to an antique mall for the first time in my LIFE last week, and feel head over heels in love. I texted the Geologist: "I'm sorry, I'm spending all of our money and I may never come home. Take care of our children." But seriously, I was there for two hours and only saw about a third of what was there, not to mention all the LOCKED cases full of the really valuable stuff! I'm hooked. As I was looking at old tea sets and china cabinets and books and jars of marbles with my heart racing, I thought, "wait, does this make me an old lady?". Who cares. I adore old things!! Not buying everything in sight was quite the test of self control. I will become an antique hunter, and visit every store I can find!!

Source: blissfulinallthings

Around the house... Now that the windows and doors are in (you'll get pictures when the detailer comes and paints everything!) and the garden is revamped, it's time to take a break from big house projects and save up some money for everything else we want to do! Time to focus on some of the little ones. Bits of decor, organization, and lots of bits and pieces for the Geologist to keep busy. He's quite the handyman! He owes me a spice rack and a pan divider, and wants to re-finish our kitchen dining set, just for fun. Eventually, when my Dad gets here with his jointer, we want to build our own kitchen table, and I want it to look almost exactly like the one above. Long, wide planks dyed deep brown on top, with the bottom frame and legs worn and white-ish. White chairs with matching wooden seats or pretty cushions (I'll need Mom's help with that!), and lots of yellow and light green in my kitchen decor. Honestly, I love just about everything about that picture... Dreamy!

A peek into my day... We discovered the most AWESOME park this weekend! It has two playgrounds, a climbing...thing..., a little wading river, a fountain pad, a sandbox with a water faucet (because you can't build anything with dry sand!), and two skate parks, including a big, deep one with lots of curved walls. The boys LOVE this park, and we've been there for hours for the past two days. The boys wake me up when they do, we eat breakfast, pack some water and snacks, and head off to the park for a few hours to wear them out. Come home, jump in the pool to cool off, eat lunch, and naptime for them. (Blog time for me!) Afternoon is chore time and movie time, or climbing trees time if it isn't scorching. I need to squeeze some study time in there, they both have things to work on before school starts again, and I need to get back on my treadmill! Still ironing out this Summer schedule, but we're having lots of fun!

Source: enchanted-corner

One of my favorite things... Ivy! Ivy makes every garden, every building, every bridge more beautiful, in my opinion. There is some evidence on the east side of our house that something used to be growing all over that wall... not quite sure what... But I'd love to let ivy ramble strategically all over it. No window blocking. But I don't think The Geologist will let me. To a point, he is always very aware of things that would lower the value of our house, because there's always the chance that we could be transferred and have to sell this house. Maybe I can let some grow in the back... :)

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