Cece the Politician?

Two weeks ago we took Cece on her first vacation. We hit the road and headed south to northern Virginia where my bestie (and Cece's fairygodmother) Caitlin and her husband (also a close friend of mine from High School) Jared live. Both Caitlin and Jared work for the federal government and have been tied to Washington, D.C. for several years now. We hope someday they will be able to move closer to home but for now we're happy to visit them every chance we get.

 The car ride took us about 6 hours and Cece slept the entire way, both ways. I knew she would sleep a lot in the car, she always does but I had no idea she would sleep that long! Turns out she was coming down with her first cold. Even with the sniffles she did remarkable well on her first trip away from home. She loves action and didn't want to miss a thing when we were out and about.

We had hoped to hit up a few Smithsonian museums and perhaps a few of the monuents but D.C. was really, really crowded. Apparently the beautiful weather combined with the holiday weekend, the cherry blossom festival and the NCAA men's basketball tournament which was in town made for madness on the Mall. Still, we enjoyed walking around and sightseeing from afar. Cece visited the Capitol building and waved to the protestors out front. I told her about how I once lobbied at the capitol (say no to drilling in ANWR) and how someday she could become president someday if she wanted. Cece the politician? She could change the world!

We stopped in the U.S. Botanic Garden while we were on the Mall. It was beautiful inside. It made up for the fact that we missed the cherry blossoms by a week!

Before we left the city I was able to catch up briefly with my college roommate, Maya. We met as freshman at Gettysburg College and she's the sweetest, most amazing person ever. Love her. I hadn't seen her since our wedding and it was so good to catch up, if only for a short visit. She's one of those friends who no matter how long it's been since you see each other, the conversation is always so easy and everyone has a good time. Maya, you're the best!

It was a fun trip and nice to get away for a long weekend. Everyone was tired out by the end of the trip, even their dog Otis! Cece did great, even with the sniffles and I think it gave James and I got a good taste of what it's like to travel with a little one. Not so bad for the first time around!

A Happy Man

James enjoying his new ride. Can you tell he's having a good time? Let's hope his enthusiasm for mowing the lawn stays like this because we have a lot of lawn to mow. Here's to many, many years of happy mowing!

My DIY Terrarium

Have you noticed that terrariums are making a come back? Flip through the pages of some trendy home decor magazines and you'll see (here and here to name just a few). And the prices at those trendy places seem to be just trending upward - that second example is a "mini" terrarium and it's on sale for $98! But I liked these things so much that I had to have one. So instead of breaking the bank, I made a few myself.

First I went out and bought three glass containers at Home Goods. They ranged in price from $2.99 for the smallest to $7.99 for the big one. On one of our recent Home Depot outings I stopped by the household plant section and found a few good houseplants (and few small outdoor perennials) on sale. I choose plants that like part sun since they won't be getting full sun all of the time indoors. I also picked up some dried moss, pebbles and used some potting soil we already had. The total for all of my materials came to about $35, including the glass containers.

First I put the rocks in on the bottom followed by a layer of moss.

Topped it with potting soil, stuffed in as many plants as possible and covered the soil with another light layer of moss.

I had several extra plants so I filled the left over pots with them.

Turns out $35 goes a long way on house plants if you spend it right!

Garden Goodness

Here are a few snapshots of our young backyard garden. So far we've only harvested lettuce and rhubarb but our tomatoes, onions, peppers, cucumbers, eggplant, squash, herbs and blueberries are coming along nicely and should be maturing in the next few weeks. This year's garden is leaps and bounds better than last year's effort. If you were anywhere near the Northeast last spring I bet all you can remember is week after week of rain. Our sad little garden didn't stand a chance. Thankfully this spring has been darn near perfect. There's nothing better than checking in each day to see how our little plants are growing and eating veggies for dinner that you know you grew all by yourself. Maybe my thumbs are a little green afterall!

Finally, here's a delicious dessert recipe in honor of our first rhubarb cut of the year. This is a MUST try, I promise, you'll love it!!

Rhubarb Streusel Bars

Ingredients

· 1-1/2 cups quick-cooking rolled oats

· 1 cup all-purpose flour

· 3/4 cup packed brown sugar

· 3/4 cup butter

· 1/4 cup granulated sugar

· 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour

· 1/2 tsp. ground ginger

· 2 cups fresh or frozen unsweetened sliced rhubarb

· 1 recipe Ginger Icing (see recipe)

· 1 Tbsp. finely chopped crystallized ginger (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 8x8x2-inch baking pan with heavy foil extended beyond pan edges.

2. In large bowl stir together oats, the 1 cup flour, and brown sugar. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside 1 cup oats mixture. Press remaining on bottom of prepared pan. Bake 25 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, in medium bowl stir together granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons flour, and ground ginger. Add rhubarb; toss to coat. Spread on hot crust. Sprinkle reserved oats mixture; press lightly.

4. Bake 30 to 35 minutes, until top is golden and filling is bubbly. Cool on rack. Drizzle icing, sprinkle crystallized ginger. Lift from pan; cut into bars. Store, covered, in refrigerator up to 2 days. Makes 16 bars.

Ginger Icing: In small bowl stir together 3/4 cup sifted powdered sugar, 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger, and 3 to 4 teaspoons apricot nectar, orange juice, or milk.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

This blog post is titled after one of my favorite books written by one of my favorite authors, Barbara Kingsolver. Part memoir, part journalistic investigation, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle recounts a year spent eating only home-grown or local food. Kingsolver and her family immersed themselves in this task by replanting themselves from Tucson, AZ to a family farm in southern Appalachia, VA. The book follows the family as they fix up the farmstead for their year-long experiment and learn from trial and error how to negotiate all the nuances of the southern Virginia growing season.

This book was not only entertaining but also educational. From learning about the health benefits of growing your own food to exploring Kingsolver's Vegetannual and the many delicious recipes offered throughout, the book offered so much insight into a simple truth: you are what you eat. As James and I prepare our own humble backyard garden for a new season, I have a feeling Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle will continue be a mainstay on my nightstand until well into next fall.

Sauteed Garlic Asparagus

Ingredients:
2 tbsp butter
1 bunch fresh asparagus
3 cloves of garlic, chopped

Melt the butter or margarine in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and asparagus spears; cover and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until asparagus is tender.

Spring Fever

It's officially spring and here in Connecticut, Mother Nature has blessed us with a string of fantastic weather. It has been sunny and in the upper 60's for five days straight. That's almost unheard of for mid-March. Because it's sure to be a teaser, we took full advantage of the beautiful weather this weekend.

There was some time for mountain biking...

Our daffodils indicated that it was time to get to work on our lawn...

And the garden...

Andrew overseeing progress on the garden

Time for family...

Amanda, Aubrey, Mom, Andrew and Dad

Time for bare feet...

Speaking of bare feet...

Running "barefoot" in my Vibram FiveFingers

Summit just had find time to get a swim in...

And a chance to laze around in the sunshine...

And after all that fun, there was even a little time for some spring cleaning!

cleaned out the closet...and must do every spring!

What did you all do on this first weekend of spring?