Taste of Summer

I know summer is almost over, but this sandwich makes me think of summer.  It's so fresh and clean tasting.  If something can taste clean, that is.

I know what you're thinking, "It's just lettuce!"  And I would tell you no, it's not JUST lettuce.  It's the best sandwich in the world!  I kid you not.  My grandmother, Big Mama (and yes, there's a Big Daddy, too!), would always fix a lettuce sandwich for us when I was at her house.  To me there's nothing better than iceberg lettuce piled high between two slices of homemade bread with mayonnaise, and don't be too stingy with it either.

My mom said that I used to want her to pack this in my lunch all the time when I was young.  But she was so mortified to send me to school with a lettuce sandwich afraid that all the teachers would think we're too poor to afford lunch meat! :)  So funny!  Now, I worry what the teacher's think of me when my daughter only wants a yogurt tube and a couple of grapes in her lunch.   Full circle.

Of course, if you're looking for more "advanced" meal solutions you should stop over at my mom's blog, Eatin' in the Kitchen.  She's a fantastic cook!  Mom really had no choice.  She's been a preacher's wife for over 30 years.   Trust me, whenever there was a covered dinner at church EVERYBODY knew what the preacher's wife brought.  It had to taste good and it better NOT be store-bought! :)  

He's the only one of my kids who appreciate the lettuce sandwich.

Puttin' up Berries

Um, I can't believe it's been over a week since I first mentioned all I was going to do over the weekend, as in LAST weekend!  It feels like it's been so busy around here.  So anyways, I did indeed put up all the food I wanted to and I thought I give a little instruction so y'all can do it, too.  First up are the berries.

Sure, many of you might have trouble still finding berries this late in the season but just think of this as planning ahead for next year.  This is the easiest THING in the world!  All you have to do is take your blueberries, blackberries, or raspberries and give them a good wash, pick out all the debris and stems.  Let them dry thoroughly.   Then simply place them on a single layer on top of a tray ( I use a rimmed cookie sheet) and freeze about 24 hours.  The next day I place 1 cup into a sandwich baggie and then place all the baggies into a freezer bag.  It's so easy to know I have exactly one cup, or two, to put into pies, muffin, or quick breads.  That's all there it to it.  I have read about adding sugar to the baggies, but to me it seems pointless.  I never do that.  This is such a great way to begin preserving food, anyone can do it!

It's such a simple and inexpensive way to have fresh berries year round.  Yes, you can simply pick up some frozen berries at the store, but I like knowing that my berries came from a local farmer.  :)

weekending

As a stay at home mom, I REALLY look forward to weekends when the hubby is home to help all day to help out.   Don't get me wrong, I LOVE being a stay at home mommy, and I love (sometimes) doing the domesticate "stuff", but there are times when it really causes some burn out.

A few weekends ago, I had had it.   The Mister had been out of town for a week and then the there was a sick kid for a week, cabin fever had kicked in BIG TIME.  I decided one Saturday morning after fixing pancakes for breakfast that I was heading to the flea market.  A big woo-hoo to that one.  Somehow I ended up taking the two big kids, I was really worried how they'd handle it considering it was going to be hitting mid-90s later  but they took it like champs and we had a blast.  My favorite find was this little lovely!  Don't you just love the mushrooms?  Love, love, love it!  I have a weakness for mushrooms.  The little basket now houses all my sewing supplies.  Happiness!

This weekend however is NOT for relaxing.  I have these pretty things:

and these

and then some of these

And if I manage to do all that, I get to do this:

I'm super thrilled to tackle it all!  And I say that without a hint of sarcasm, either. :)

Meal Planning

I do love grocery shopping.  I love going and looking through all the produce, seeing the fancy olive oils, sampling whatever is out, discovering new products.  Yes, I can get into A LOT of trouble at the grocery store.   Luckily, I usually have a very antsy 18 month old with me who is only as good as the samples are in the store.  The babe really helps to keep me from blowing our grocery budget.  That and having a good plan.  I'm one of those who writes out the whole month's menu, that way I only have to do one great big huge shopping trip with only a few small ones in between for fresh produce, milk and whatnot.   I want to prep the meals for the whole month by stove is 20 something years old and is on it's last leg, not to mention I only have 2 eyes that work a little bit.  But, that's a-whole-nother sob story for a different day.  Yes, I plan to replace but not until it has completely died out.  I think I have a sick obsession to see just HOW bad it can get.

Towards the end of each month, you will find me sitting on the kitchen floor with recipes, grocery lists, freezer lists, and a monthly menu all sprawled out around me.  My husband told me the other day that I should have everything on the computer and then I just have to import the grocery list each month.  Now, that might work great for some people, but NOT me.  If I got on the computer to do my list, I'd get sidetracked checking out facebook, and then see what new pictures are on flickr, and then I'd get looking at someone's blog, and then it's all over.  I'd be lost out in blogland for the next five hours hour with only "milk" on the grocery list!   I will stick to my old fashioned way of pencil and paper, thank you very much!

In that spirit, I just listed a fabulous menu planning set!  I'm so in love with my little polka dot cherries.  Don't you just love them?!  (Don't answer that one if you disagree with me.)  So if you're trying to get control of your families food, this is a way great way to start.  There's an adorable market list, sweeter than cherry pie weekly menu planner, and cute as a button recipe cards!  Can you tell I love them?  And don't worry if you need a monthly planner or a large size list, I can make that for you.  It's what I use, so it's ready for printing.