welcoming the fall

as the summer comes to a close i find myself in the kitchen more, relishing in the tastes of this year's local harvest. from tomatoes to apples i can't help but celebrate with yummy recipes. our new favorite (well the grown-ups) is a simple pico de gallo that can be whipped up in no time. every thursday, i head to the farmer's market (or i try to run into my garden guru neighbor for some extras) for a bag full of red and yellow tomatoes, a small bunch of cilantro and a red onion. the only things i need to buy somewhere else are 2 limes. then, as the kids play on the back porch, i chop chop away while listening to them laughing and pretend cooking themselves (and please let me be honest, bickering, too but then i just turn up wfuv...) this recipe need not be precise. these 4 ingredients just work. i start by chopping and seeding the tomatoes - pretty small pieces - and placing in a large mixing bowl. 

then, comes the chopped red onion and cilantro. i mix these together to blend the flavors and add salt & pepper o taste. then about 10 minutes later i squeeze the juice of 2 limes into the bowl, mix and let sit until dinner. of course, a mexican meal would be the best route with the pico de gallo but it really can be added to so many things. i'm thinking eggs, small pasta or even just pita chips. the last few times i made it, i just served with plain old rice and beans. always a winner and so easy. 

my secret mission is to somehow find or emulate the recipe for 'green cactus grill's' (my hometown fav) salsa. i've been trying for years. no success yet...


the end of our summer was a busy one yet we still found some simple moments and for the girls, simple play - which always warms my soul :) the simplest of objects seem to be the most intriguing, especially for my two year old. she will play for hours with shells, driftwood, acorns, beach glass, dried beans, pom poms, pieces of moss, wood chips, flower petals..... 

i love watching her arrange these objects, put in and take out, stack, pretend cook, draw on... inspiring. what was even more magical was my eight year old's fairy village that she created and set up in our side yard. it makes me smile when her playing does not involve a nickelodeon pop star or batteries. it's like i want to take her imagination and protect it in a box so that she never loses it.


eden, my older girlie, has taken an interest in fairies and building fairy villages. she spent a lot of the summer creating her very own in our yard. one day i joined her in her efforts. so fun! ah, to be eight again! here are some pics of the tiny village.

the season has changed and with that always comes yet another home project... shall i say more. it's exciting and grueling all at the same time. i'm in the midst of making over our bedroom. that's right, my college dormlike, shoebox sized master suite (i know, i'm the one who insisted on the 100 year old house with "character" - over it). my hand me down ikea 'messer' has been broken for over a year so i figured it was time to get it together and get organized like a grownup. the plaster ceiling that was sagging was also a good reason to get this project going. so far the ceiling is replaced and the next step is painting. i wish i had taken a photo of this room before it was emptied into the rest of the house (it's actually fun having our bed in the livingroom though - it's like camping!). it was a sight for sure. but a shot of the empty room 'before' will have to do.

i am thinking very light and airy yet comfortable for our new room. cream or very light neutral with white trim. white curtains, pull shade. the previous curtains were very, very dark, a dark quilt, dark wood dresser, stuff everywhere. i want this new space to be a breathe of fresh air and a blank palette for the beginning and the end of each day. a book shelf would be nice. well, the 'after' pic, i am sure will not be posted for months as we piece together our new room but i will be posting updates and items worth sharing. can't wait to open and close my dresser drawers!

a mid summer days stream

the four of us ventured to pennsylvania late july. i have always wanted to visit amish country, so after the thrills of hershey park we headed to lancaster, where the farms were sprawling. there's a lot to be said about these strong people. in most ways, it's a trip back in time. the amish are frozen in time so to speak. their beliefs are simple yet complex and their lifestyle the same. with the rejection of modern convenience, the life they lead consists of constant hard work. they are self sufficient and take pride in their independence from our modern society. i couldn't help but feel calm and serene among the sparse bedrooms or grassroots kitchens and meditative on our buggy ride through the farmland. i have so much respect for their simple ways and focus. even their dress is intriguing. at first, as an artist, i felt there must be very little room for expression, and there is, but it does exist, if you look closely. the quilts are complex and beautiful and their craftsmanship is like no other today. one thing that really hit home was that they limit all education to eighth grade and anyone who pursues further will be shunned from the family. education and knowledge are luxuries to most people of this world and to reject it in a place where it is so openly available and offered is very bold and to me, must feel so utterly and internally frustrating. i cannot imagine knowing that there is so much out there to know and learn but that i cannot tap into this for fear that i will lose my family and community. wow. i found the people to be very pleasant but i couldn't help the feeling i got that they were content and somewhere in the center of happy and sad. that may sound ignorant but i do not mean that in a negative way. i cannot entirely explain it, but what if that is the key to this life - somewhere in the middle...

in contrast to the above (i don't know how else to segway...) some summer indulgences of mine :)

 

my new little pleasures are keri smith's books that pull you in and nudge you to create and collect and observe and mess around and just do something different. i am really enjoying these fun activities such as, document any natural occuring faces you find on your travels. "life is a scavenger hunt" is the theme to how to be an explorer of the world. doing stuff like this reminds me of my childhood. i still find it hard not to collect things on walks (or on shopping trips) but keri smith gives me an excuse to do so. these pages are fun and liberating for those of you that yearn to create or just escape from the monotony of daily life. some of her other books are wreck this journal and living out loud. check them out!

eden and i made tressa some homemade gifts for her second birthday. i made her a rainbow elephant named "bo." eden tried her hand at embroidery and stitched a little rainbow hanging. i think it's divine.

among my other summer indulgences, such as fresh berries, iced lattes, pie, staying up way too late, wearing my pj's way too long, getting to take a shower every day, wine, movies and time with my 3 fav peeps, i do love these these wild flowers from blue hill farm in blauvelt that i get at the nyack farmer's market on thursdays. they make my day :)

victory gardens

to our dismay, we did not get a plot in the nyack community garden this year! at first i was shocked but then realized that we did not reserve a plot last year due to the fact that tressa was on her way and second, there is an influx of people wanting some space to plant a garden largely in part because of the many changes this country has gone through in the past year. the community garden sent us a letter saying that there were so many applicants this year that they actually had to turn a few families down. i am so bummed that they let us go but we are lucky enough to have our own house with a small yard and a patio for container growing. so that is what will will do - plant some veggies and herbs in containers. here is a link to tips for container gardens: http://www.gardenguides.com/how-to/tipstechniques/containerindoor/container2.asp.

so the popularity of small gardens this year reminded me what my grandmother had told me many times about victory gardens. during ww1 and ww2, the united states government asked its citizens to plant gardens in order to support the war effort. millions of people planted gardens. in 1943, americans planted over 20 million victory gardens, and the harvest accounted for nearly a third of all the vegetables consumed in the country that year. emphasis was placed on making gardening a family or community effort - not a drudgery, but a pastime, and a national duty. the economic situation of that time has been compared to that of the present. what a great idea to lighten the load of having to drive to your supermarket to purchase expensive produce that needed to be shipped from who knows where and most times packaged with excessive plastics to survive the lengthy trip. i wonder how much money could be saved if each family just planted their own lettuce or tomatoes? it sounds small but there is a quote which i cannot exactly recall that goes - it is a shame to do nothing because you can only do little...

so i will learn how to plant in different containers. i hope to find funky alternates to terracotta pots. i'd love to find a discarded ceramic bathtub but patrick would surely freak out and we do not really have a place to put anything like that. we'll see.

my other springtime love is the nyack farmer's market - every thursday from may through thanksgiving. i am counting the days until i can walk tres down to the market for some local organic veggies which is just a tiny part of the lovely experience of this weekly ritual. i meet with friends, chat with vendors, go to storytime, listen to the bossy frog band, taste wine... i still believe i will write a children's book about it one day. i can't wait!