it's an acquired taste

Anyone who knows me even a little bit knows that I adore food. I am one of those people who doesn't mind spending money on fine dining, hard to find ingredients, or cook books! I love to eat but I love to talk about food too-how it's made, what's in it, can I make it...etc. Well, there are only a few things that I don't like, won't order and refuse to try. One of these items are/were beets! Yes, beets...does anyone else have a problem with these? I think my aversion to these vegetables came from a diet I went on in high school involving canned beets. Kelly loves them and orders a beet salad any chance he gets. Over the years I have turned down many invitations to share a bite of his salad...but then something happened! I had a salad that was amazing and then I couldn't get enough! I really look forward to eating them and now look for beet salads on menus! My dad has been pestering me for years about how good homegrown beets are and I just laughed at him. Now I stock his garden hoping to snatch a few for dinner! Here is my favorite salad recipe stolen from Biaggi's. It is better there but this comes close! For all you beet lovers, it is a must! This is my dinner tonight! Now if I could just get my kids to eat them!

Arugula

goat cheese broken into bite size pieces (Costco has best $)

coarsely chopped pecans

diced avocado

dried cherries

fresh beets boiled, skinned, chilled, cut into bite size

I drizzle balsamic vinegar and olive oil over the salad and then toss. You can use a citrus vinaigrette or red wine vinegar with olive oil. Fresh ground black pepper to taste.

Kelly was the 70th fastest swimmer out of 1,370 triathlon participants in the "Spudman". Pretty cool! He did a mile swim in the Snake in 15 minutes!

Kelly with Darrion Bowers-They grew up together, swam together, practically family! He and his wife are the reason Kelly and I are together. (We met at their wedding!)

the sign is down...for now?

We pulled out our for sale sign from the lawn a few days ago after our 6 month agreement with our realtor expired. I was actually relieved to take it out! We figure if it didn't sell in those six months, it won't until the economy picks up! So now we can sit back and relax and not worry about last minute white glove clean ups! I went to J & L and bought some perennials and immediately planted them. I have plenty of other projects I am excited about with this house that I'll be starting in the fall. I love home improvement and I have plenty to do! So, my home/architectural design dreams are on hold...but I will be busy and so like all things, it can wait for another time...

peach kuchen

My mom is German. She only made a handful of German recipes in all my life but the ones she did make were really GOOD! One family favorite (and Kelly's favorite) is perfect for a summertime brunch or just something sweet and fresh to snack on during the day. There are different variations of this fruit "cake" but I love the simplicity and soft texture of this one. The peaches are placed in rows and sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar. You can do a crumb topping as well but it is good without it too-and less fat! The other day we had bought peaches at Costco and they were ready to eat that day! I had to use them fast so I made a pan of Peach Kuchen with whipped cream on the side and me and the kids ate 1/2 the pan in one sitting! It is summer in every bite!

3/4 C soft butter

3/4 C sugar

5 eggs

3/4 t vanilla

1 1/2 C flour

4-5 large ripe peaches

Cinnamon and sugar

Cream butter and sugar. Beat in eggs one at a time. Stir in vanilla and flour. Spread in 9x13 greased and floured pan. Lay rows of sliced peaches (or Apples are good too). Sprinkle with 1/2 C sugar to 1/2 t cinnamon. Bake 375 for 30 minutes or until golden. Best served warm with whipped cream.

Trial Lake

After scrubbing off countless layers of "Deet 100" plus three days worth of dirt, smoke, and grime, I'm feeling like myself again... almost. The washing machine is on it's second load of laundry...with only 4 or 5 more to go!!!! There is nothing better than having all the kids CLEAN again! We just got back from Trial Lake in the Uintas. I have fond memories of many many camping trips with my family as a young child. So naturally I want my own children to experience this for themselves. We have NEVER gone camping as an entire family, not ever. After talking it over with our good friends, the Spackmans, we decided it would be fun to go camping in the Kamas area for a few days. We rented canoes, the Spackmans brought their ATV's and we preceded to pack pretty much everything but the kitchen sink into our two vehicles. Let me just say there is more work getting ready for a camping trip than just your average vacation. You HAVE to be prepared or you could be in trouble! So our car was packed to the tippety top! Poor Sam was lodged in the way back with the gear and only had enough room to breath! A note about the Spackmans. We have known them and travelled with them FOREVER! Our kids LOVE each other and are so compatible. We just really feel comfortable with them! So to go on this adventure, it was important to have some fun, laugh off the "choice" toilet facilities, the millions of mosquitoes, the behavior issues that occurred with 7 very active children 10 and under etc. It was alot of work but we did have FUN! Most importantly, the kids had fun and want to go back!

Kelly's favorite thing: fishing from the canoe after the sun set- smooth water, very relaxing and BEAUTIFUL! Caught many enormous (ha ha) fish.

Heather's favorite thing: my new WARM sleeping bag and comfy pad to sleep on! It got cold up there! Seeing the kids all enjoying nature!

Bailey's favorite thing: SOPHIE! making up silly songs, picking giant leaves at Provo River Falls and making an outfit out of them, learning to cast.

Noah's favorite thing which earned him a new nick-name: THE FIRE!!!! He was enthralled, entranced, enamored, therefore, "Pyro Passey." We didn't have a lack of twigs or garbage to burn, Noah and James gladly gathered it all.

Sam's favorite thing: Riding his bike all over camp, eating S'Mores, playing in the woods, hiking at the falls, 4-wheeling!

Jenna's favorite thing: Drinking soda pop non stop, picking wild flowers by the lake, playing with the "pretty" power bait and lures with Sam in the canoe and touching a fish!

It's like riding a bike?

I am married to a swimmer. If Kelly was reincarnated, he'd be a Marlin! I love that about him. He has been swimming since he was 5! He is fun to watch because he is a power house in the water! Butterfly is my favorite to watch! Well, Kelly is getting ready for his triathlon next weekend and has been busy training. He went on the Antelope Island night bike ride the other night and had a blast! He has been running with his friends at work and his friend John who is now training with him for his first tri. He has been swimming a couple days a week. He is doing great! I have never gone to watch the tri in Burley. I guess it's because I don't think the kids would enjoy standing around for 3 hours to see their dad. Maybe because it's BURLEY, ID-not my idea of a fun hang out or vacation stop. Well, to show my support I went to swim with Kel last night at the Rec Center. I was pretty nervous because it has literally been 15-20 years since I last swam laps! It is a little disconcerting to put your face into deep water and get the rhythm after so long but I made myself do it and it wasn't bad! At first I couldn't get my breathing down but after a few laps I got it. I know I have alot of practice ahead but it was nice and enjoyable and a GOOD WORKOUT! The best part was just being with Kelly. I love our "dates" where we do something active together. We love to play Squash together but don't do it near enough! Those are always our best dates and we feel good afterwords! So, I WILL go swimming again and I WILL go to Burley...one of these days, promise Kel!

If this is wrong, I don't want to be right!!!!

This tastes like Starbucks smells! The chocolate chunks are really dark and creamy! Jenna liturally licked the cup clean after I finished it!



Perfect combo of fruity and chocolaty! You must try! I like it better than a banana split!




When I am feeling ambitious I pull out the Cuisinart. I'm feeling ambitious! Strawberry is a family favorite!

I can't help myself. It's summer. And with summer comes ice cream. It's a must!!! I just do extra time on the treadmill to compensate, lots of extra time...It's got to be one of my favorite desserts! Here are my top three...don't drool!

art

" jelly fish" by Bailey


"indian man" by Sam

Bailey and Sam took their first summer session of art this week with Chris Jacobs. They were so proud of their work and had a wonderful experience! This was Sam's first art class and he thought it was really cool! I love their pictures! One of my favorite things about being a parent is seeing the excitement on my child's face when they are pleased with something that THEY have created! Art in particular is always a special way for children to express themselves. It is a little window into their minds and imagination. Even though Chris chooses their subject and demonstrates how to do it, each artist is different and comes up with something totally unique to them!

hooray, a parade!!!!

Hand over heart.

My Favorite Float!

Saturday morning never looked so fun! We skipped the chores and went straight to charming Farmington for their 4th of July bash! It started with a 5-10K and bike race, then breakfast then a parade!!! The kids were sooooo excited! I have to admit, I hate crowds, traffic jams, and trying to find a spot on the curb but we lucked out all around and it was well worth it! I have never been to a parade where they throw coloring/sticker books, Hannah Montana watches, stuffed animals, tiaras, basketballs etc.! They kids scored big time! They had pockets FULL of candy and each of them had at least two otter pops! We met the Plumleys for the parade which made it even more fun! I love how excited and festive everybody was! It was a perfect 4th celebration!!!! We will definitely be back next year!!!

la rouge tomate!

Finally! What we've all been waiting for, what we've all been watching for... every day-especially Jenna!!!!! A red tomato!!!!!! It is sad that this is such a big event for us. We really envy people with gardens. We wish we had a garden and not just a few planters of tomatoes but that is life. Usually I grow herbs too but not this year. Just tomatoes. Luckily my parents and my brother have wonderful gardens. My brother's is a "family" garden. If we do our part to contribute to it's care, we can partake of the harvest. So far we have enjoyed fresh picked lettuce from his garden and beets from my parents. But to step out in your own yard and grab a few zucchinis or cucumbers...I could live off of fresh garden produce! I did growing up and that's why I long to have one of my own. Not a big one. Just enough so that I don't have to can!!!! Maybe someday....we'll just dream until then!

A glimpse into the future

Today Bailey and her friend Mikkall had a play date-can I still call it a play date when they're this OLD??? Anyway, they were in that imaginary world of theirs down stairs when Bailey comes up the stairs in my bridal veil and her white baptism dress humming the wedding march and holding potted lavender. There was a whitish blanket draped down the stairs for white carpet and Mikkall was the groom? Was giving her away? Then Mikkall had on the veil and came waltzing down the stairs! I just had to smile! It's so fun being a girl their age-dreaming of their future...

A Lake, family, and red white and blue!

For the 4th, we spent 4 days lounging around at beautiful Bear Lake! Three of my sisters and their families joined us up at Kelly's mom's house for a fun filled, relaxing weekend! I was worried about weather issues but we had sunny days, blue skies, puffy clouds and lots of beach time! The thing I love about Bear Lake is the fact that the kids can spend all day in the sand and be happy. We don't even have to go to CA for that (which we plan on doing next month) and it's only two hours away! This was the first of many weekends to come up there and we are already looking forward to going back for a family reunion at the end of the month! Here are the highlights!!!

• Watching the kids, both big and tiny, playing non stop in the sand, finding shells and rocks, and digging waterways!

• Watching Andy take Brendon down in the cold lake water!

• Watching Kelly get into his wet suit for a mile swim in the lake! (Triathlon in 3 weeks!!!!)

• Eating milk shakes from town, a MUST! Finding a new flavor or two: mint, chocolate chip, Oreo, malt shake (Kelly's creation) and Snickers, marshmallow, malt (Em's creation). "Hometown Burgers and Shakes" makes the best shakes! (In case you are troubled by all the choices of shake joints there and can't decide!)

• Singing around the fire pit while roasting marshmallows, playing with sparklers, and watching fireworks go off over the lake.

• Movie marathon until 2:30 A.M.!!!

• Adult time-Scategories, talking, and lots of laughs!