Friday, June 3, 2016

5 on Friday

This week has been crazy!  I have been tutoring a bunch in the afternoon and night, and next week, I will be tutoring even more.  But I love teaching, so it's a good crazy.


O     N     E

For Mother's Day, we picked up some fresh herbs at our CSA and the local farmer's market as my gift.  I am growing basil, thyme, rosemary, parsley, and sun gold tomatoes.

I feel a little like Mary from A Secret Garden when she says, "Might I have a bit of earth?"  It's been several years since I grew herbs and I am loving it.  Every morning, I water my little plants and check for any new growth.



See, aren't my little plants nice looking?


T     W     O

You might notice the basil in particular.  That plant is growing like crazy, and I am trying to find creative uses for it.

Yes, I know I can make pesto.  But here's the thing, we are going to get a ton of basil from our CSA this year.  I am going to be making and freezing batches of pesto all summer (I freeze pesto in a silicone mini-muffin pan and then pop the pesto out and store it in a ziplock bag in the freezer).  

Pinterest was somewhat helpful in this department (although at least half of the pins that popped up were pesto related).  Here's what we've eaten this week:


Head's up, this doesn't make a ton (I didn't realize it when I made it).  Plus, it really should be a side to something else.  But it was yummy and a good excuse to buy a cheap spiralizer off of Amazon.


The recipe suggests serving this on a flank steak, which would have been yummy.  I cooked chicken in a cast iron pan, drizzled the chimichurri on top, and served it alongside roasted broccoli.   Bech and I were both fans, although I think it needed a little lemon zest.


This might be my favorite of the three!  I have always been scared of cooking fish.  For a while, I didn't like the taste, and then, even after I started liking the taste, I just was so unsure about my fish cooking skills.  But when I did the Focus T25 5 day fast track plan (just a 5 day meal plan you can use), fish was on the menu so I actually had to cook it.

The past month, I have been cooking fish a couple of times a week, and every time it has turned out really good.  In fact, that's what we are eating tonight.  I used the cooking tips in the recipe and the meal turned out really good!


Any amazing basil recipes to share?  As soon as tomatoes come in season here, I will be making lots of caprese, but I would love some more options!


T     H     R     E     E

The children's church curriculum moves through the bible over the course of 3 years.  Right now, the kids just learned about David and Goliath.  Jack is obsessed with slingshots so Bech made him one.

If you know my husband at all, you know this is just how he is.  If he can build something himself, he will and it will be beautiful.  So Jack is the proud owner of his very own slingshot!



We took it to a nearby park to test it out (and not break any windows!).


F     O     U     R

We had a great Memorial Day weekend here.  We went to several different parks and spent lots of time outdoors.  Our church had a cookout on Saturday at our favorite local park, Oakledge.  We love Oakledge Park because there is so much to do there!  The park has a playground area, lots of trees, an actual tree house, tennis courts (not that we use them), tons of green space, and it's on the water!  Jack even got in Lake Champlain this past weekend.


Gil LOVES music so he didn't stray too far from the guitar player.  

Also, those curls!



This picture just melts me.  I would love to say that it's an anomaly, that Jack really still looks like a little boy.  But, nope, it's pretty accurate.  Jack totally looks like a big kid!  And the older he gets, the more he looks like Bech.


F     I     V     E

I mentioned two weeks ago that I wanted to get some pillows for our couch.  Well my latest ebates check came in so I went for it!  (which is a miracle in and of itself...I can be SO indecisive about purchases!) 


Ignore the bike in the background and the big cardboard box from Target.  What do you think?  

I love the bright colors.  For so long I had everything in brown tones, but I needed some color!  And I think the gray couch keeps it from being too crazy.


Alright, that's what is going on around here.  We have a fairly calm weekend planned--I'm babysitting for a friend tonight (babysit swapping is the way to go), Jack has his last swim lesson tomorrow, and we might hit up the farmer's market.  Nothing too big, but I'm sure we will be outside a bunch.

Have a wonderful weekend!



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