Why it's good to be a mom...

So, tonight as I was putting Lizzy in her jammies, she put a hand on either side of my face, looked into my eyes and said, "I'm very happy at you, mommy!" It was so sweet. This is why it's good to be a mom.

Cute Stuff

Here is a dress and hat that my sister in law (hat) made and her friend Amy (dress). I ordered them off their etsy sites, which are listed in my links on the left - check them out - SO adorable!

1 Year Stats; CSA week 9

Rachel had her 1 year checkup yesterday. She is as healthy as can be. She weighs 18 pounds exactly, and is 29 inches long. In comparison, Lizzy at age 1 weighed 18 pounds 2 ounces, and was 30 inches long. Pretty darn close, as always. When I was 12 months old, I weighed 15 pounds 4 ounces, and was 28 inches long. I don't know any stats on Jason - he was the 7th child in his family!!

In unrelated news, we had Jason's sister Carrie, her husband Raymond, and their daughter, Nadia (who is 2 months older than Rachel) over for dinner on Sunday. We had smoked BBQ baby back ribs, grilled chicken (I grilled a whole chicken, butterflied, on the grill!), grilled corn on the cob, some fruit, ciabatta bread, and homemade orange sherbet. It was a lot of fun. Carrie makes these absolutely adorable crochet toys and hats... check out her store at etsy: Nadia's Place

Also, it is week 9 of the CSA. The vegetables just keep getting bigger and bigger! The first week we got carrots they were these teeny tiny baby things, and same with beets, and potatoes. This week we got these enormous carrots, potatoes, and beets, and also a ton of corn on the cob, some more green onions, and some cucumbers. I had fun last week making some homemade fresh pickles. (They're fresh because they're not canned - you have to eat them within 2 weeks of making them.)

To get the right sweet-tart balance, use a white wine vinegar with 6% acidity. The pickles will keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Ingredients

1	cup rice vinegar
1	cup water
1/3	cup white wine vinegar
3	tablespoons granulated sugar
2	teaspoons kosher salt

Instructions

1. Mix ingredients and additional flavorings (such as 1 tsp dill seed) together in medium non-reactive saucepan; bring to simmer. Pour over 1 - 1 1/2 pound of peeled, sliced cucumbers held in a large non-reactive bowl. Cool to room temperature and refrigerate overnight before serving.

CSA week 8

Just when I planned on us having a couple of meals involving zucchini and summer squash... we didn't get any from the CSA! Although, I'm very excited for what we did get... potatoes, corn on the cob, carrots, cucumbers, beets, and green onions. Luckily, I have found a great recipe for grilled corn on the cob:

If you are using a gas rather than a charcoal grill, turn all burners to high, close the lid, heat the grill until hot, 10 to 15 minutes, and follow steps 2 and 3 below. If you are certain that you have a supersweet variety of corn, remove the husks entirely, then follow instructions below, grilling until kernels are light caramel brown, about 5 to 7 minutes.

Ingredients

8	ears fresh yellow corn , husks on
	table salt and fresh ground black pepper
	butter

Instructions

1. Ignite about 6 quarts charcoal and burn until coals are completely covered with thin coating of light-gray ash. Spread coals evenly over grill bottom; heat to medium-high (you can hold your hand 5 inches above grill surface for 3 seconds); position grill rack.

2. Meanwhile, following illustration 1 below, remove all but innermost layer of husk from each ear of corn (kernels will be covered by, but visible through, last husk layer). Use scissors to snip off long silk ends at tips of ears (see illustration 2).

3. Grill corn, turning ears every 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, until kernels have left dark outlines in the husk and husks are charred and beginning to peel away at tip to expose some kernels (see illustration 3), 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer ears to platter; remove and discard charred husks and silk. Season corn with salt and pepper and butter to taste, if desired; serve immediately.

4. 
   

Birthday Fun

Well, Rachel had a REALLY fun birthday! Grandma and Grandpa Gale, Grandma Sue, Aunt Angela, Aunt Katrina, Aunt Barbara, and Uncle Sam (I'm not kidding on that name... it's true!) all came for a birthday dinner of baked ziti, grilled zucchini and red onions, ciabatta bread, salad, and 3 layer lemon cake with raspberry filling, and homemade ice cream. Then, Rachel opened presents, and we all had a fun time playing with the toys. Once it got dark outside, we all went outside and set off some fireworks in the driveway. It was a blast!