Oscar Stew

The frost has come, the snow has dumped, and the growing season is over. Good thing we took some pictures! The happiest and saddest time in the garden is the big harvest at the end of the season. Here’s the happy part:

Day after day, week after week, the garden churned out buckets of fruits and veggies. No damaging hail storms this year, thank goodness!

Even sliced up like this, eggplant may not appeal to many, but…

…when you grill it like this, it’s a delicacy!

As much as we want to grow everything in our backyard, time and money simply can’t afford to turn our .15 acres into rolling hills of goodness. Good thing we have the berry patch to back us up. Look at that rookie go!

Self discipline is essential, Eleanor. Pick only the reddest of the red, and don’t eat them yet!

Don’t eat any of them? The very thought is giving her a berry big headache!

Time to recharge before we pick a couple more rows. Chug chug chug chug!

It must be nice for Rowan and Eleanor to be so close to the ground when it comes to picking. Daddy says his back is aching from all the bending over. Take it like a woman Ryan!

Time for another snack. Are we ever going home? Don’t go planting any peanuts in the berry field Ellie!

All of her training has prepared her for this moment. I’m not supervising, I’m just taking pictures! 

This, is what a real strawberry looks like. Do you know what a real strawberry tastes like?

Time for dinner. I sent the braves into the wilderness and this is what they brought home:

I think even they are proud that besides the corn and the egg, everything else on their plate is home grown. I have yet to convince Ryan to build a chicken coop… 

Is anybody tired of having salad with every meal? Too bad!

So tell me Rowan, how excited are you about those carrots? Be honest!

That’s a big beet. I hate to brag, but dang that looks good!

To help you understand how pure (and delicious!) this food really is, Brinley stripped down to her pure self to make her point:

There was no way the boy was going to be outdone by his sister.

Homemade margherita pizza. Num!

For the first time ever we got lucky and successfully grew dill in our garden. It’s very good on egg salad!

These carrots might not look the same, but they taste the same.

Here’s the saddest part. Even though this is quite the haul, this is all of it…until next summer. Waaaaa!!!

Here’s a preview of our next post, where we make all that stuff in to goodness (like roasted tomatillo salsa) that will last…all the way to next summer!

The week before school started we had our final hurrah of the summer. Dan & Kassidy were in town on their way to Missouri, and like us, they were going to be hundreds of miles from any ocean. Na-worries, mahn! We headed on down to the finest beach in Colorado at the Aurora Reservoir and got right to work…

The harbor for our kingdom of sand was constructed first. Eleanor expressed some concern about the tide causing too much erosion. I think we need to worry more about what tide you might bring in Ellie! 

The kingdom took shape quickly. Hey Brinley! Workin’ hard or hardly workin’?!

See?! I told you we’d have to worry about Ele-tide!

Where’d all your sand-slaves go Princess Binnie? Nice sopping wet hat by the way!

Kingdoom of Sand complete! “Kingdoom”? Well look at it! It’s starting to crumble already. And I think these villagers are about to re-purpose the sand for other fun projects. Way to go green!

I’m not so sure that Ellie was entirely thrilled with this re-purposing idea:

She’s got her own shovel! Everybody scoop faster! Don’t let her escape!

Eleanor may not have loved being a pile of sand with a head, but all the rest of the kids enjoyed it…and I mean all the rest. Look at the envy on those girls in the background!

 

The Princess appears to be having some difficulty giving her commands…the sooner we get that hand covered the sooner we can revolt!

The sun was high in the sky when this little sand crab noticed that she was finally bigger than something else: Her own shadow!

Enough with the sweat and chafing, it’s time to take a dip! Our water aerobics teacher seems pretty excited!

Or maybe it’s just that chilly ocean…mountain water!

Looks like the water aerobics teacher also does sand scrub pedicures on the side. She’ll take your cash under the table…

Boy. Shovel. Beach. Nuf. Said.

I thought Rowan did pedicures, not manicures!? How much did that cost Ellie? 2 buckets of lake water and a Dora shovel…deal!

Astronomists are dumfounded: Full moon visible in broad daylight in Denver!

This one’s only a crescent moon, but those kids are still laughing!

It’s not quite the beaches of Mexico for these two honeymooners, butt…we did provide them with quite a show. Hopefully they are brave enough to come back for another visit!

We still have more to post about our summer, but it’s time to take an update break again. Don’t worry, we’ve laid down all 13 chapters of pics and memories from our Tour de Utah…but that doesn’t mean the party ended when we came home! While our life is always like a party (that can be good or bad), consider this an after-party post about getting back into the swing of things…  

Whatcha doin’ Ellie? Are you exfoliating your T-zone?

Looks like the tape is starting to itch. Aaah…AAaahh…AAAHH…

Oh I get it! That device you’re wearing is a new invention: The SneezeStopper 3000!

“Side effects may include drooling while on camera. Contact your doctor immediately if you notice monkey-like tendencies…”

Another new thing Ellie has tried out is brushing her teeth. Apparently she wanted to survey the toothbrush selection before being forced to settle on the one we bought for her!

What’s that Drew? You say you don’t use this toothbrush to brush your teeth anymore? What do you use it for?!

Grandpa & Grandma J spent a few days at our place while on their trek east to attend Uncle Dan’s white coat ceremony. All the men got to work right away on making an insulated utility room in the basement. Drew is very proud that this tape measure doesn’t pull down his shorts:

Drew’s holding the wall up, but is it straight? I think he can feel it in his shoulders!

Brinley approves of her 1st grade desk, and is ready to be assessed. Hiiiiiiyah!!!

See that angry look on Drew’s face? He had to suffer through quite a vicious hazing before becoming a Bobcat. Poor kid…

Grandpa & Grandma J went to Missouri to see Dan receive his white doctor’s coat, but they weren’t the only ones to see it live: 

Someday you two will be telling the story about how you were watching a live video on the internet to your grandkids, and they’re just going to laugh and laugh! Way to go Uncle Doctor Dan!

Oh blessed day! The first day of scourge…I mean skooge has finally arrived!

It had rained the night before, but that didn’t stop Brinley from helping the greater good by cleaning off the slide…with her butt.

No big deal! Brinley’s too ecstatic about being at school again to worry about her soggy seat.

Rowan is excited too, but only because she got to wear a backpack!

Ellie…was not thrilled.

Rowan insists that she wear pajamas, brush her teeth and say her prayers before naptime. I’m not going argue with that! Afterward it was time to crack open her backpack and discover the surprise inside! A lunch just like the big kids have!

Are a handful of raisins for a cheese cube a fair trade? The negotiations continue…

Looks like Eleanor is going to remain deep in thought about this transaction…very deep!

Like a flash of lightning a silent third party has showed up and wanted his fair share. It doesn’t look like he’s interested in what everyone else’s opinions are either!

Ew. Cheddar is a cannibal!

Hey Rowan, do you think Cheddar might be interested in your whole wheat PBJ too?

Roastie and Eleanoo got to enjoy the new play area at the zoo where the old yuck-tastic duck pond used to be. This is Ellie’s interpretation of the Riverdance:

Rowan really is quite proud that she has a lunchbox like the bigs do. And unlike her little sis, she believes in a fair share for everyone.

So Ellie, how good is that unconditional love sandwich?

Don’t you think you ought to share too? Sorry Ellie, that doesn’t work. I’m still here!

Hello, old foe. It’s good to see you…at the zoo.

Wait, is that Hammy?!

The rodent that laid waste to the backyard garden before I was even born? Say it ain’t so!

And Mommy just said hello to him like they were BFFs!!!

You two need to keep the perspective that Hammy lives at the zoo. While there may be an abundance of grub available to him, it’s only a matter of time until WHACK! Hammy = Snow leopard poop. (insert evil chuckle here)

That’s great Mommy, but what do we do about this crazy lookin’ dude over here?!

Hey Rowan! Was your lunch made with all-natural organic Flubber? Because you’re starting to float!

Here’s something else that’s all-natural and organic: Kids and caramel popcorn. Its Friday movie night!

We’re settled into our seats and the snacks are tasty. What sort of flick did we choose? Romantic comedy? Action? Documentary?

According to Rowan, it’s a horror movie! Who knew that Megamind was so terrifying?!