The Pie Feast

Thanksgiving and pies just go hand-in-hand so why not host a celebration dedicated to this humble food?

 Years ago we attended a weekly co-op that held a Pie Feast the week before Thanksgiving.  It was simple:  bring your own lunch and a pie to share.

It was always fun to participate, and it's one of those things we've missed.  So after reading a reference to another Pie Feast last week, I decided it was time to host our own.

A simple message out to our church small group, a trip to the grocery store, and the baking began: savory (tomato pie featuring the last of our vine-ripened crop and a cottage pie) and sweet (apple, coconut cream, and chocolate whoopie pies).  Others brought chicken pot pie, pumpkin, pie and sweet potato pie.

And it was a roaring success!  Our little house was a full-to-bursting with some of our favorite people, feasting on good food and catching up on life.  Yet another time of gratitude in this Thanksgiving season!

And Now It's Official!

The party was a day early, but who minds an extra celebration?

After taking this picture, I realized that I really should have bought her new pajamas for the occasion. 

There were gifts and cards and balloons. 

And while she has talked about "cupcakes with sprinkles" for months, she happily enjoyed a birthday sundae with a cherry and candles.  It was a wonderful day to be 3!

In Which Katherine Turns Three

How did this happen?!

 

This delightful little bundle of laughs and giggles is three and toddlerhood is coming to an end.

And in honor of the day, we had a little party with friends.

I love this expression, but she really was enjoying herself...it's just very hard to wait for lunch when you are hungry.

The girls ate everything and then squealed in delight as sorbet was served (our ears were literally ringing from the decibel level of those squeals!).

Kat-too took hers and retreated to the floor to visit with the baby.

Everyone else quickly followed suit.

This seems really sweet...only the reality was that things quickly turned sour with too much loving.  But all in all, it was a darling party for a darling little girl.

National Ice Cream Day

Sometimes you are handed the perfect excuse for ice cream, like a random day that is dedicated to the cool treat.

It was hot, they were hungry, we were out-and-about, and cones were 1/2 price: the perfect recipe for summer!

Good Little Bunnies

I took Flopsy and Mopsy with me to gather blackberries while Peter and his gang scoured the dumpsters for spent pyrotechnics.

There weren't many berries, just enough for the girls to snack on on the way home.  The boys, however, had some great finds (if you're in to that sort of thing - they explained, "Fireworks have some really cool pictures on their packaging.").

At bedtime Katherine chose Peter Rabbit for me to read.  Part way through the story she said, "I want to be a rabbit so I can be naughty!"

Overnight Transformation

This little guy apparently thought he was big enough to graduate from the pickle jar to kitchen counter.  I'm not really thrilled with frogs by my muffins.

In Which We Celebrate Josie's 5th Birthday

She chose a rainbow theme months ago, and I was happy to oblige.

True to form, I took on one (or two) too many projects and party plans were pushed to the last minute.  But with the help of my parents, we pulled off a party to please the birthday girl.

Activities were planned (Pin-the-Cloud-on-the-Rainbow, ball toss, etc.) but mostly the girls used their imagination to make up their own games.

And the highlight, of course, was the food: a smorgasbord of rainbow delights!

Doug tried to dissuade me from making rainbow jello, but there was no stopping - it was a must - and also rainbow-colored Goldfish and fruit skewers.

After staying up until almost 1 am the morning of the party, I was dissatisfied with the birthday cake and launched into Plans B & C with the sunrise.  I'm so glad I did!

Sadly I had no pretty cupcake liners (why didn't I pick up the cute ones I saw on clearance the day before?), but the tops were what mattered.  Hands down, using candy is the easiest way to decorate cakes - from bland or beautiful in the wink of an eye!

It was so fun to celebrate this girl's special day!

Josie is Five

photo courtesy of my neighbor

Five years ago we were surprised by this sweet girl!  She is an absolute joy and we can't wait to see what this next year holds!

A New Neighbor

Two weeks ago our neighbors welcomed a newborn into their family.  Today, the first steps of the adoption were finalized and a celebration was in order.

Grilled pizza, veggies and fruit, s'more cupcakes and a bonfire.

And in a nod to their British heritage, I made this quilt as both gift and party decoration.

We prayed for nice boys to move to the neighborhood, and while a newborn wasn't what we had in mind, we are all smitten with this little guy. 

Free Cone Day 2016

The sweetest day of the year!

Happy Birthday to Me

Seeing as yesterday was my birthday (and my parent's anniversary), I baked myself a delectable cake.

It's called Lemon Berry Mascarpone Cake, and it might just possibly be the best cake ever (and my neighbor's agree).  Don't be intimidated by the several steps it takes; it's really pretty easy.  I subbed a gluten free flour mix for the regular and served it with fresh whipped cream and spring berries.  I would highly recommend it for birthdays, Easter, Mother's Day, just because!

Citrus Salad in the Sun

Berry season is not too far away, but the last of the citrus is still delightful to mouth and eyes.

Tri-Pi Day

It just so happens that not only is March 14 Pi Day, but it also happens to be the adoption day of our beloved fish Cordon Bleu.  So there were many things to celebrate!

First off, we read The Tale of the Pie and the Patty-Pan, a dear Beatrix Potter story that I had somehow missed along the way.  I'm not sure if the little girls caught all the nuances but they enjoyed it just the same.

Then for dinner I prepared Cottage Pie (the beef version of Shepherd's Pie since the official versions are made with lamb.

And finally, I made a Strawberry-Rhubarb Pie for dessert.  Things seemed a bit dicey at first: I only had frozen strawberries (they were nearly 2 years old but grown without pesticides by a Mennonite lady across the hills and lovingly washed and cut my moi!).  But I preserved and managed to make it while simultaneously carrying on a conversation with my sister.  I slid it in the oven to bake while we ate dinner, planning to serve it once the boys returned from scouts.

They headed out, and the rest of us went for a walk.  Only when we were coming back inside and I wondered about the smell that I remembered The Pie.

I.  Was.  Sick.  I almost gave up all hope of salvaging it, but the top scraped off nicely and we ate every single bit that was left.