My Zen & MORE JUICE

If there were no bugs in the world I would sleep on my porch.  I love the sound of my waterfall.  This week we somehow sprung a leak.. in a major way.  For this reason, I am glad I built the entire pond myself.  I know where everything is and how it is all laid out.  Problem was that it basically emptied all of the water from the pond.  The entire time I was scrambling to fix the problem I was apologizing to both my frogs & fish.  I'm sure that I looked pathetic.  Nonetheless, I got everything solved in about 30 minutes and I left everything open so that I could see that the problem was fixed for good.  Today I sealed everything up again.  There is peace in the world and I can go back to listening to my Zen.

So I am on day 6 of juice. STILL LOVING IT.  I did have one day that I had a headache but who knows what that was from.  Saturday I went to the market and got an overload of fresh organic veggies.  Its always a wonderful feeling to buy directly from the grower.  I am fortunate that I get much from my BIL the organic farmer, but I still purchase a lot.  I just wish I could grow everything.  It has really made me want to expand our garden for next year.  I got fresh beets, kale, cucumbers, a loaf of sourdough, some cheese, baby summer squash, green apples, and a ton of basil.  I went right home and conjured up a new recipe.  Its my favorite to date.


1 carrot
1 beet
6 stalks Kale
1 golden delicious apple
1/2" slice of ginger
1 cucumber


I am now doing 2 juices a day and a reasonable dinner.  Reasonable to me means that I have an average portion and its not fried or smothered in cheese.  Yesterday I made Chicken Enchiladas and tonight was spaghetti.  I had to find something to do with the boat load of basil I had so I figured that some pesto would go PERFECTLY with the sourdough.  ITS HEAVENLY.  I swear I could eat the whole loaf along with the entire bowl of pesto.  Oink oink. This, my friends, is why I will NEVER be skinny!


I was talking to a friend tonight and it has kinda stuck with me throughout the night.  I think if I am going to be AWESOME to my body and give it a ton of vitamins and minerals all day.. I am not going to completely throw the day out of whack for dinner.  I LOVE to cook... but it has given me more clarify about what I want to make for my meal of the day.  I now look forward to making a great meal.  I have made AWESOMELY good choices so far.  I know that I don't want to 'blow my day' on PB&J or some crappy cheesesteak.  I'd rather enjoy a fresh bowl of pesto and some great pasta.  Makes sense, right?

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan-Reggiano or Romano cheese
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup pine nuts or walnuts (I USE WALNUTS)
• 3 medium sized garlic cloves, minced
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

METHOD

1 Combine the basil in with the pine nuts, pulse a few times in a food processor. (If you are using walnuts instead of pine nuts and they are not already chopped, pulse them a few times first, before adding the basil.) Add the garlic, pulse a few times more.

2 Slowly add the olive oil in a constant stream while the food processor is on. Stop to scrape down the sides of the food processor with a rubber spatula. Add the grated cheese and pulse again until blended. Add a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

NOTE.... if you are going to freeze this (as I do) do NOT add cheese.... wait until you are ready to use it. 

Green Juice & Aquarium

So today marks 4 days of green juice.  Monday was lunch then I switched it up Tuesday and Wednesday and did breakfast as we were traveling on Tuesday and Hubby and I saw the Warped Tour on Wednesday.  Today I did breakfast and lunch.  These are the recipes I have tried:

Mean Green Juice (original)

This is the official recipe used by Joe Cross and Phil Staples according to the Reboot Program.

6 Kale Leaves
1 Cucumber
4 Celery Stalks
2 Green Apples
1/2 Lemon
1 piece of ginger

Mean Green Juice #2

handful spinach
3 stalks of kale
2 golden delicious apples
small handful parsley
1 lemon
1 cucumber

I like juice #2 better but Hubby likes #1.  So I modify it a bit each time. I like the ginger taste a lot.  I did get some different apples at the grocery tonight to add variation.  I feel like I can do this.  I'm not snacking half as much and I know that I can get 1.5 juices out of each batch.  Right now I share with hubby.  When I do the total cleanse I will make larger batches so that I am full and Hubby still has his share.  I plan to hit my BIL's farmers market on Saturday and load up on kale, cucumbers & celery.  My garden is coming along but I have definite plans to make it larger next year.  I can really tell you that I feel GREAT.  2 people have already asked me about juicing this week.  I'm very excited to go full throttle and see how I feel.  Can't wait to get started... but I have to be realistic and plan around the obligations I already have.  Soon enough!  GO JUICE!

D1 is in love with fish.  She loves going to the Cleveland Aquarium... she loves going to the zoo to see the 'fishes'.  Yesterday I threw out an idea to get her an aquarium of her own.  She wants a nightlight... and so I mentioned it to Hubby and of course he said "sure"!  I went today alone (great idea!) so I could scope everything out and decide without her wanting everything in the store.  I got some 17 year old kid that knew EVERYTHING about fish.  Score!  Problem was that he said that I should not buy the fish today.  Grrrrr.  I knew he was right but I KNEW D1 would not see it that way.  I went in with the intension of getting a 10 gallon starter tank.  When I was told that I would have to clean it every other week I easily increased the tank size to 20 gallons.  The larger the tank, the less maintenance.  I'm ALLLLLLL about lesser maintenance.  Hubby, D1, D2 and I got everything washed, rinsed, and filled.  The filter set up, the gravel and plants in place and we are golden.  Tomorrow (as long as we are a good girl) we will be getting some fish.  17 Year old suggested tetras.  We can fit more fish in the tank (and therefore if one goes belly up... she won't notice) and they are friendly and stay small.  WISH US LUCK!!

Challenge & My Water Garden

Today I pose a challenge to anyone who reads this. Watch a movie.  Yes, a certain movie in particular.... Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead.

My husband and I like to think that we live a fairly healthy lifestyle.  We eat 90% of our meals at home, we eat organic when appropriate and available, don't drink soda regularly and we have cut out the majority of red meat.  We are FAR from perfect but we try.  We try for our kids.  I have always had a weight issue and therefore I don't want to pass these body-ism's onto my kids.  D1 & D2 have rarely eaten fast food and have never had soda touch their lips.  Again, not prefect but we try.  We have watched movies like Food, Inc, King Corn and Supersize Me.  After each one we have taken something additional out of our diets.  Not that we ate bad before, but there is just too much to consider when eating.  If you look at food as fuel (which it technically is) then you tend to eat better.  Todays movie struck home.

It was a fluke. Hubby and I sat down after putting the kiddos to nap for a 5 minute rest before heading outside to do chores (which never got done).  I bought a Roku and Hubby wanted to check it out.  He was perusing Netflix and happened to stumble on this particular movie.  After watching the first 5 minutes we were both hooked.  I don't want to give away any parts of the movie.... but all I can say is that its just amazing how the human body works.  The documentary inspired us to try a fast.  We have my BIL the organic farmer to help us with produce (and he is an AVID kale smoothie-er), its summer and I have my own garden as well, and we already own the same juicer as Joe has.  We are in business.

The challenge is to do a 10 day juice fast as in the movie (sorry had to give a tad away).  We have now been discussing the option to chew SOMETHING.  Hubby suggested that we would be allowed to eat any raw food, i.e. carrot sticks, celery, even a salad but no dressing and I think its acceptable.  I will be just doing juice, but whatever helps him!  Tonight I had already planned a grocery store run so I added some of the ingredients to make their green machine juice..... found this site: http://myjuicecleanse.com/juicer-recipes/mean-green-juice-recipes/  I plan to do lunch juices starting tomorrow.  Our official start date is July 28th.  I will blog about it as we go and I hope it does us well.  I have a feeling it will!!

  My water garden is in full bloom.  I had had several lilies pop up in all colors, white, red and pink.  Yesterday my lotus bulb decided to open.  All I can say is AMAZING!!!!!!!  I am enamored by it. The best part is that its a hardy plant and will continue to return every year.  Once our lake is excavated I plan to put some in it as well.  I just love summer with all of its floral beauty!!!

Long Time & Garlic Scapes

So its been awhile since my last post.  Sorry.  Just a TON of stuff going on here.  Mainly it was my father moving in and the kiddos birthday bash.  It required me to do all sorts of cleaning, reorganizing and outdoor work.  This left little time for much else; including blogging.

Dad has easily moved into the guest bedroom and basement.  Pretty uneventful to tell the truth.  He has his bedroom upstairs and his 'shop' set up downstairs.  He deals in antique toys and sells on ebay.  Mostly Tonka and old cars & trucks.  My future basement bathroom is filled with inventory and my exercise room now holds his computer/desk and tables of stuff to photograph, wrap, and ship.  My treadmill is in the midst of all of it and as long as it doesn't get buried, we are ok.   We are settling into a routine which is music to my ears.  Its nice to have someone here at night so that if I/we want to go out, its fair game!

The outside work has been busy.  The garden is in full growth pattern and I pretty much weed on a daily basis to keep everything under control.  I also planted grass around the patio where it got ripped up from the build and watering it every day has been painstaking.  My routine of starting the sprinkler, walking around the house and pulling a weed here and there, moving the sprinkler, deadheading my flowers, moving the sprinkler, skimming the pool, and moving the sprinkler is tedious.  My routine pretty much takes the entire nap time depending on what I do.  I do this EVERY day.  I do bonus self and get into the pool most days until I hear a wailing baby.  I also decided that instead of spreading weed killer (ie. chemicals) on the lawn that I would try to pull most of the broadleaf weeds.  This has taken HOURS.  My compost pile has LOVED it, my back has NOT.  I am going to do an organic fertilizer here in the next week or so, and we will see how that goes.

The birthday party weekend has come and gone.  SO much planning went into it.  I had said about a dozen times that I am not sure why I do it to myself, yet I am sure that I will be doing it again next year.  The main issue is the D1 ASKED for the princess party.  This was the 1st time that she has been into it.  Hubby has also always wanted to have a pig roast.  We joined these two events into one.  We had a princess party with a pig roast and rounded out the evening huddled around a fire watching fireworks.  It was great.  One of my brothers (I am the oldest and only female of 3) brews his own beer and brought a mix of 6.5 cases.  Mark my words, he is the next Sam Adams.  The stuff is amazing!  I also had our Mom's club's bounce houses set up so the kiddos were nice and tired by sunset.  It was awesome to have my whole family here under our roof.  My niece and nephew did amazing.  You always have to worry with 4 kids under the age of 3 in one house but it was great.  They all behaved and the 3 year old girls just love each other dearly.  They ate together, slept together and bathed together.  They were each others babysitter which was amazing!  Now I am taking the week off before assuming the role of President of our Mom's Club.  That is sure to be a blog entry!

raw garlic scapes

Trim and add to the food processor

chop 'em up with some walnuts, salt and EVOO

BAM!  Garlic Scape Pesto!
(from the above you must add some parmesan cheese)

and into the silicone mold to freeze!

Garlic scapes.  What are they?  Well.  When you grow garlic, as my brother in law does... it is planted so long (you plant in fall for a summer harvest) and then goes to seed.  This seed pod at the top of the garlic plant is called a scape.  They have many uses.  You can steam them, fry them and add them to soup.  If you cook them the garlic stinginess goes away.  I decided to try my hand at scape pesto.  Let me tell you how awesome it was!  Now, I usually make a TON of pesto in the food processor and freeze it into cubes before I add cheese (cheese does not freeze well in pesto) with the over abundance of basil and garlic from the farm.  Making scape pesto was simple.  Olive Oil, scapes and walnuts (you can also use pine nuts- but they are expensive).  No need for garlic because a raw scape is VERY garlicy and no need for basil.  Now, you have to LOVE garlic as we do.  We can't use enough of it so it suits us well.  I then freeze the balls and take them out and add a bit more olive oil and parmesan cheese and add it to pasta, soups, or just as a dip.  I actually put a thin layer on top of my turkey burger tonight for dinner!  YUMMO!!!

We steamed and then sautéed a few with mushrooms!

GARLIC SCAPE PESTO
Garlic scapes
EVOO
Salt
Parmesan
Walnuts

Mix in food processor to taste.
***If you are freezing do NOT add cheese.  Defrost and add some EVOO and the Parmesan

DirectTV & Pasta Amatriciana

Ok.... I choose to rant.  Our satellite contract has been up with Dish Network since February, but you know how it goes, and we JUST decided to work on it.  With dad moving in and the fact that we still do not have the TV's hooked up in the basement yet, it was time.  Hubby called Dish at the end of last year to hook up the basement but they wanted a new 2 year contract and that wasn't happening.  So we have the playstation down there and are only able to do movies.  I did give Dish the benefit of the doubt and called them 1st to see what they could offer us.  They have this 'hopper' system that allows up to 4 TV's to 'talk' to each other and see DVR'd programs on all of the TV's.... but we have 6 TV's and want a whole house system. Not available yet.  BOO.  We had ATT U-verse at our old house and were VERY spoiled.  Alas, no U-verse availability where we live.  ALSO... we initially tied to get cable 3 years ago when we built our home but Time Warner quoted us $3000 to put a line back to our house.  Needless to say, I told them to shove it!

Then I called DirectTV and spoke with Brooke.  She promised me everything I wanted.  A whole house system that was capable of handling up to 8 TV's.  They system would allow me to record in ANY room and go to another room and watch it.  It also allows 500 hours of record time.  I never make a decision on the 1st call but the woman talked me into a 'no obligation order' which was basically an account setup and credit check for qualification and you could cancel at any time.  Against my better judgement I did it.  I must have asked 500 questions during that call.  I clarified 5 times that we had 6 TV's and that our dish was a tad over 100 feet from our home and that is where we would like the new one to be placed.  We kept asking about channels (ones that we frequent) and all was 'in there'.  We were elated.  We only had to pay $99 out of pocket and they tried setting up the install for 3 days from then.  I pushed it back a week just to be able to continue my research.  I asked the lady if the monthly price quoted would be for the entire 24 month contract and she confirmed that if there were no changes that the price would stay the same.  I hung up happy and that night I watched DirectTV's videos on this whole house system.  I was excited.... it was basically Uverse.

So the next morning I received the confirmation email that stated that I had the whole house system, DVR and 4 receivers, that there was one monthly price for months 1-12 but a $19 higher price for 3-24.... it also spelled my hubby's name wrong.  I called.  I had an irritating feeling in my stomach which should have told me something.  I got his name changed and clarified that we had 6 TV's.  They confirmed and stated that the whole house system counts as 1, the DVR as another plus 4 additional which would equal 6.  I asked about the price increase after the 1st year and he explained that I was getting some sort of rebate for the 1st year.  Not sure why but I went with it.  He seemed like a nice guy that was 'fixing' my account.  On hold I heard that they bundled with Windstream, our telephone company so I asked for more information.  They said that they did and that I would get a $15 credit/month and this made the deal even sweeter.  When Frank returned to my call he said that I would have to call and cancel Windstream and re-sign up via them.  This made no sense but after I hung up I called Windstream.  They said that they do not bundle with DirectTV but that DirectTV gives a credit to Windstream customers.  GggggggRRRRrrrrr.  You know that feeling that you get when you are getting a run around????  I had it.

I called DirectTV back AGAIN.  Spoke with a Christina who said that I didn't need to cancel and that they could just 'put it on my bill'.  She applied the credit after I gave her our Windstream account number.  I was happy once again but RECONFIRMED the 6 TV whole house deal and she verified it again.  Now all we had to do is wait for Tuesday 12-4pm.

This morning hubby and I got into a tiff about TV.  He CONSTANTLY has one (or more) on.  Every room if he had his way.  I don't watch TV.  I DVR one show and most of the time I watch it on my iPad. He, is ADDICTED... and I feel like the girls are getting that way.  If the TV is on D1 doesn't hear a word you say.  I NEVER turn it in before breakfast as she will not eat.  Today Hubby did just that.... turned it on and then expected D1 to listen.  Total joke.  So I went silent & got snippy.  I think he started to understand after asking D1 what she wanted for breakfast for the 5th time.  He then asked if we could head out for a hike at the lake.  I happily complied.  We went on a small hike and the took a dip in the lake.  I had planned to get up ready to go by 11:30 so we would be home well in time for our noon appointment.

My phone rang at 11:40.  It was the installer.  In his broken English he said that he was at my house.  I explained that the appointment was 12-4 and that we were 5 minutes away. He said that he would go and get gas and head back.  We live 3 minutes from the lake and headed right there.  He was in front of us in the driveway.  Stupid dude even called when he got to our house as we sat there behind him unable to get into the garage because he was parked in front of it.  Remember that feeling in my stomach???  It was back. Hubby got out and asked him to move the truck.

I got out of the car and introduced myself.  He did the same stating again that he had been here before.  DUH!  EARLY!  So we walked to the back of the house and I showed him where the dish currently is.  He said that it was 'far'.  I explained that when we made the order I had specifically told them how far it was.  He said that he had to call his supervisor.  He then made a call and came back to me saying that this was now a 'custom install' and there would be a $50-70 charge.  I said that I would cancel if this were the case as I specifically explained this in my order.  He said again that he would have to 'call his supervisor'.   I walked into the house and he followed me.  Hubby was in the kitchen feeding D1 & D2 and he proceeded to make the call from my kitchen.  REALLY?!?!???!  Hubby kept giving me the 'WTF' look.  I was NOT going to pay this charge.  He then ended the call and said that he didn't like doing it but that his supervisor approved it.

The installer then asked what equipment we were expecting.  I went on to tell him that I had 6 TV's and that I ordered a whole house system.  He said that was not what was on the order.  HOLD IT.  Now I was getting upset.   He said only 5 TV's were on the order and it was a whole house system but the additional 4 receivers would not work as I described.  I would only be able to record off the whole house DVR box.... not the additionals.  Now I was getting hot.  He explained that he knew there would be problems with our order based on the equipment.  Apparently we got a whole house receiver which is their best piece and the receivers didn't 'match' it.  They weren't even high def.  He again called 'his supervisor' from my kitchen.  I told him that I wanted the order cancelled.  He called customer service and put me on his phone.  The service rep explained that I did not order what I think I had BUT I could pay an additional $200 to get what I want. BULLSHIT.  I hung up on her.

I went into Hubby's office, grabbed my notes from all the phone calls I had made, and called customer service.  I spoke with a Venus who apparently discussed the issues with her supervisor.  They were 'nice' enough to offer putting the $200 on my 1st bill instead of me paying it today.  NO WAY.  She wanted me to make the decision right then.  She said that my case would be reviewed and that she 'escalated' it but what she could do is give me what I want for $200.  Needless to say, I didn't do anything and hung up.

I then wrote a letter to DirectTV, posted on my status about this on Facebook and then also posted on DirectTV's Facebook page.  I started a small riot on FB.  Many comments about people cutting the cord and just going with a service like ROKU and a HD antenna on their house.  I'm all for it.  I called Dish and cancelled my cancellation of now until we decide what we are doing (they gave me a $10 credit/month for staying).  After about 2 hours someone from DirectTV responded to my FB complaint and asked me to message my account number.  I did so and have yet to hear back.  I also received a generic letter from customer service apologizing for my inconvenience and asking me to call in to speak with an account specialist.  I replied stating that someone needs to review the phone calls and they can call ME!  GGGGRRrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!

I spent the next hour looking up ROKU and Apple TV as well as HD antennas.  I called a friend that 'cut the cord' and she couldn't be happier.  I AM REALLY THINKING ABOUT IT.  I just do not understand how companies can get away with this bait-and-switch stuff.  It's INSANE.  I'm still irritated about it!  To be continued!

Ok, on a lighter note.. a fellow foodie friend sent me a new recipe I had to try!  I will tell you it was fabulous.  Very easy and DELISH.  Thank you Noelle!!

Spaghetti Amatriciana 

Serves 4
Ingredients:
olive oil, for brushing
generous 1/2 cup pancetta, diced (I used 4-5 slices EXTRA EXTRA this cut bacon)
1 onion, thinly sliced
28 oz can of Cento SAN MARZANO tomatoes diced & keep juice
1 fresh red chile, seeded and chopped (I just added a tad bit of crushed red pepper as I do not like things spicy)
16 ounces dried spaghetti (if you can get bucatini-use it)
salt and pepper
 
Directions:
Brush a flameproof casserole with oil, add the pancetta/bacon and cook over low heat until the fat runs. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes until lightly browned. Add the tomatoes and chile, season with salt and pepper, cover and cook for about 40 minutes, adding a little warm water if necessary. Cook the spaghetti in a large pan of salted, boiling water until al dente, then drain and toss with the sauce in a warm serving dish.

Been over a week & Fever

Its been over a week since my last blog.  I have been on overtime here getting the outside the way I want it to look.  I have been watering those darn grass seeds every day and Im barely seeing anything.  Hoping in the next wee things will take off.  Fingers are crossed.  I pretty much weed on a daily basis around the house (takes 5 mins) but today I tackled the hill and it is starting to get to where I want it.  I planted a lot of shady plants there and it seems like they are getting to much sun so I am going to hit the nursery this week and get some sun plants to get it up to par.  I am in LOVE with color this year.  I will post some photos.

I finished the pond today as well.  Got all the leaks taken care of by moving some of the rocks around and all seems good.  I buttoned up the last of it today and reassembled the pump housing and rocks.  I will take a few photos tomorrow.  I got rid of all the 1/2 full bags of peat moss & potting soil and got the yard completely cleaned (except for the kiddos' toys). I an trying to get the bulk of the dirty work done before the party so all I will have to do is mow and weed whack.

D1 has had a mysterious fever the last 2 days.  She woke up the other night on fire.  We started the Tylenol/Motrin regimen and the fever breaks but returns when she wakes up (from bed or nap).  She doesn't complain of anything and when she is without fever she is a rock star.  She wants to go shopping, play outside, etc.  Not sure what is up.  If it last another day I am gonna bite the bullet and give her pediatrician a call.

We got a sneak peek of our family photos and they are AMAZING.  I will post a few here once we get the 'rights' to them.

Also..... if you have an Intex pool I CAN NOT tell you how much I am loving the saltwater system that they offer.  We got it on sale at Walmart (online) at the end of last year for just over $100 with a $50 gift card.  Basically you dump in salt and since it does not evaporate you never add again (online chlorine).  You just run this copper iode salt system that converts the salt to chorine.  I was so completely against it when Hubby brought it up because I HATE salt water.  But even if you get a mouthful it does NOT taste like salt. The concentration is less than that of a teardrop.  Its AWESOME.  I do not remember the water ever being this clear and sparkly.  HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!!!

We cooked on the grill the last few days and I had to post a few pics of the awesome zucchini and Bourbon salmon kebabs!  YUM!

SWING SET DONE & Garden

We had our family photos done today.  In the last 3 years it has become "our thing" t get our photos done in June/July.  First was the birth pics of D1 in 2009 then the 1 year pics then D2 arrived in 2011 and this year is now D2's 1st birthday.  With the girls' birthdays being so close it just makes sense.  Get their photos done and get a few with mom & dad looking pretty/handsome.  We have died a few things throughout the year but my all time favorite is outdoor photos.  A friend that I worked with in Columbus did both kids birth pics but she is 2 hours away with a busy schedule.  A local friend posted her family photo shoot a few weeks ago and I LOVED them!  I got a referral and set today up.  We met at 11 at a barn/park.  I had been stressing the last 2 weeks about what we would wear and I got everything sorted out about 3 days ago.  OF COURSE I had planned to have everyone in shorts and today was 60 degrees. I rummaged through TONS of clothing at 8 am.  I finally got everyone fed and clothed and was even able to do my own hair.  WHEW.  Hoping that there were some good ones!!!

We visited Grammie and my BIL at the market thereafter and kiddos were getting hungry so we finally after 2 failed attempts (first the two places we went to were CLOSED for lunch!??!?!?) had a nice lunch and got home.  Hubby and I were EXHAUSTED so we ALL had nap time today.  I then headed out to get some of my "to do's" off the list.

I FINALLY finished staining the swing set. 8-10 hours and a cell phone later... it is done!  ITS BEAUTIFUL.  I was a bit premature and  though I was done at one point until I looked up.  I had forgotten about the ceiling in the sand area.  I then finished 45 mins later.  We LOVE this thing and as far as I see it.... it will be here for a LONG time and if this stain survives the next 3 years I will be a happy camper!

Done + a rainbow!

D1 then helped me set up our vegetable garden.  I picked up plants from my BIL and we get everything in the ground.  We planted 6 tomato plants (various types),  2 basil, a Hungarian pepper, a bell pepper, an eggplant, 2 swiss chard and 2 kale.  I saved some room for flying saucer squash, cucumbers and rosemary.  While taking photos today we were in an herb garden and I am REALLY thinking about doing something like that too next year.  It was adorable... a little fenced area with a bench and every herb you could think of.  We use TONS of cilantro and basil so I think it would be awesome to try... NEXT YEAR.

Our raised beds

Topsoil and more seed!

There are still loads of bare spots in the yard from when the patio was installed.  Today I laid some leftover topsoil in the majority of the areas and threw down some new seed.  Hoping it will start filling in in time for the party.  D2 is SO excited.  Last night I went through EACH of the princess and was trying to decide on a food.  This is stressful.  I have the cake and cake-truffle pops ordered.  This is gonna be quite a shindig.  We are having Gridirne Cookery roast a pig half for us and I will be preparing sides.  We'll have the bounce houses and a princess theme so D1 is ECSTATIC!  She asks pretty much daily when 'her party' is.  I have a feeling this is JUST the beginning!