Pets

"The difference between friends and pets 

is that friends we allow into our company, 

pets we allow into our solitude."  

~Robert Brault

Moseying in the Mornings

One of my favorite things to do during the summertime

is to mosey around outside in the early morning

before it gets too hot.

Oftentimes, even before the rest of the house is awake,

Miss Daisy and I will head out to check on the gardens and the animals.
The little eggs I found last month have hatched
and the baby birds are a week old now.
I check on them every day and I love when I 
sometimes see the momma bird feeding them. 

The green bean plants are coming up that I planted last week

We put them in the garden where the onions were. 

I usually water my herbs first thing in the morning.

And again in the evening.

My basil is doing really well.

I use cilantro a lot in my cooking

and I've been picking it just as fast as it grows!

The fresh mint is so delicious in my ice tea.

I planted some sunflowers in my cutting garden

and they started to come up last week.

The garden is really doing well this year.

Our tomato plants are covered with all varieties of tomatoes.

We pick them at the first hint of pink and let them ripen

on the widow sill.  It only takes a day or two and they're perfect.

Linked to Farmgirl Friday Blog Hop #62. 

Strawberry Banana Muffins

~Strawberry Banana Muffins~

makes one dozen

2 very ripe bananas, mashed

3/4 cup brown sugar, plus extra for topping

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup butter, melted

2 1/4 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup fresh strawberries, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Melt butter; set aside.  Combine bananas, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla.  Add butter.  In a separate bowl combine flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and baking soda.  Toss strawberries in flour mixture until well coated.  Add flour mixture to wet ingredients and mix just until combined.  Fill muffin tin and top muffins with a sprinkle of brown sugar.  Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until muffins test done and start to brown.  Enjoy!

I really liked these muffins.  
They smelled SO good baking and they were very tasty! :-)

Peach Shortcake Cookies

Peach Shortcake Cookies

makes 2 dozen

 Ingredients

4 peaches, pitted, peeled and chopped

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar

2 cups flour

2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

6 tablespoons butter

2/3 cup milk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Stir chopped peaches together with 2 tablespoons sugar; set aside. Combine flour, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon. Cut butter into flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. Gradually add milk. Fold in peaches. Drop by tablespoons onto parchment lined cookie sheets. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until edges of cookies start to brown. Enjoy!

Summertime Pickles

The garden is producing cucumbers seemingly overnight!

That means lots of pickles in the fridge this summer. :-)

~bunnies~

A baby bunny Mr. H. found while mowing last week.

It was smaller than my hand!

I really want a bunny rabbit!

The only problem is, no one else in my family 

has any interest in raising a rabbit. :-(

One person in my family

(she will remain nameless)

actually dislikes bunnies!

Can you imagine?!

They had mini rexes at the feed store a few weeks ago

and I wanted to bring one home so badly.

They were so soft and velvety

and looked just like stuffed animals. 

I resisted though, and I am trying to be content with 

the bunnies around me.  I see them all the time...

I just can't hold them!

A bunny I found in the cabin yard 

at my family's ranch this week.

I'm sold...

Last week, I made some fresh pasta sauce.

The tomatoes came from the grocery,

but everything else was from the garden,

including fresh herbs.

Oh boy!

It was the best sauce - so flavorful.

I was sold.

Fresh herbs really do make 

a world of difference.

So, tonight as I was topping homemade pizzas,

I made a three meat pizza for the family.

Pepperoni, Italian sausage and bacon - their favorite.

But the other pizza,

I topped with basil, oregano, and rosemary

snipped fresh from the herb garden.

It was delish! :-) 

So sweet!

The baby birds are hatching!

Four out of five of the eggs in my hanging basket 

were hatched as of this afternoon. :-)

School's Out for Summer!

And so begins that wonderful season of summertime!

The time where I wake up each morning and lay in bed

for a few minutes, just to give myself a chance

 to remember if my kids are home or not...

and if they are home, 

I stop to try to recall

if I have any extra kids in my home. 

It's also the time when I do load after load of laundry

 and as I am taking clothes out of the dryer 

there will more likely than not 

be an item or two of clothing that I totally 

don't recognize and wonder how on earth they got there. 

It's the time that my back door 
magically turns into a revolving door 

with kids constanly coming in and out.

Kids that are  

constantly hungry

constantly thirsty

but, thankfully, rarely bored...

It's the time that no matter how hard I try 
I can't seem to ever have enough clean towels in the house.

It's the time when I remember just how loud 

multiple children, barking dogs, and the TV can be!

And, it's the time...that I treasure and love with all my heart. 
Happy summer - may you and your family make many wonderful memories!