Roasted Belly

So I am not one to wear a bikini often. This year though, I was excited to find an option that has an actual fitted cup size.  I love this.  It truly fits my tata's.  Allows them to be locked in and lifted to boot.  Yesterday while attempting to get Sophia to put her head under water at the local public pool I had on my bikini.  I think I was in denial that my tummy was out for all the world to see because I neglected to put sunblock on that swath of very tender white skin.  Ow.

Land's End has some really cute 2 piece options that you can purchase in cup size.

I think this polka dot skirt number is so cute!

The Dishes get Saucier!

Rhubarb!!! You are such an easy plant to grow.  I love your bright magenta stem and your big luscious leaves.

I am not a complicated cook.  I thrive on dishes with 5 ingredients and 5 or less steps preferably in 1 pot. Rhubarb makes an easy tasty treat.

Pick the stems.  maybe 10 to 15.  dice the stems into 1 inch or so chucks.  put in pot with a little water and a little sugar or often I add maple syrup.  low boil for 30 or so minutes, enough to break down the fibers.

I love it. serve as a side or desert.  And the color is pretty on any table.

My neighbor's rhubarb plant is over 30 years old, so gardener's of little faith, there is hope with this plant!

Elk like Hot Peppers

Hanging out in the house last Thursday evening, we heard Sophia from the backyard yelling, "The dogs have the elks! The dogs have the elks!".  I went to the yard only to find Sophia about 20 feet from a very large bull elk with a huge rack and our naughty 6 month old blue heeler pup trying to herd the elk.  There were 2 other large bull elk in our garden devouring the hot peppers.  Elk love hot peppers.  They will actually pick the peppers off the bushes one by one.  Strange.

Here are some other interesting elk facts.

The Smell of deFEET

Overheard at a liquor store in Winter Park, CO.  Young boy speaking to dad standing next to me in beer aisle "What is that smell?! It is giving me a headache.".  Dad replies, "Me too!".  Extremely self conscious that perhaps that smell was emanating from me and my unwashed, working out, camping with 2 dogs and a kiddo in a dirt pile possible body odor.  If the smell was from me, the father seemed to forgive me when I grabbed a six pack of Oskar Blues "Mama's Little Yellow Pils". and he solemnly nodded and said I had made a good choice.

When did camping become stressful and dirty instead of a good reason not to wash and being completely unplugged and stress free?  No doubt camping with kids is stressful.  There is the unrelenting Colorado sun beating down with little shade to hide from it due to the pine beetle infestation killing off trees.  It is freezing at night (literally) so little ones wake up several times a night shivering.  There are no tv's or toys to keep kids occupied.

But then again there are no tv's or toys to keep kids occupied.  I must say when we were mixing at a playground at a local ski resort with clean smelling kids and my little one had dirty hair, face and clothes including pitch black feet from walking barefoot all weekend, I was not embarrassed.  I was proud that my kiddo had embraced the feel of being footloose and fancy free.  No doubt, coming home tired, bug bitten and dirty is tough and a lot of work for the adults but truly in the end that feeling of not needing to meet all of societies cleanliness requirements is liberating.  And there is always the wonderful and refreshing wash off in the creek that awakens all of the senses in one icy snap.

And no amount of trouble will ever make me want to give up my nightly midnight star gazing moment when I wake up and need to pee.  I never mind getting out of the tent in the freezing Colorado night air because that view of Orion on countless camping nights is a precious grounding reminder to me that there is a much bigger beautiful world out there for us to explore with Sophia, dirty and smelly or not.

Missoni at my local store?!

Cool.

No Name Leather

The art of home crafted goods.  Yes Etsy is a great way to find hand hewn treasures now but what about fairs? I loved going to art fairs as a kid.  The Art Fair at Queeny Park in St. Louis always being top of the list.  Now it seems like so often the goods are all imported or just too expensive.  This summer I happened upon 2 great folks selling nice hand crafted goods.

One was at the The Colorado Renaissance Festival. "No Name Leathers" is the name of the shop.  Really lovely pieces. I asked if the owner had a website.  His response was the only web he had was in the corner from the spider.  A bit of a crusty soul but a great artisan.  I bought my sister a beautiful belt for her birthday, a wallet for my husband and a hair piece for my daughter.  His dyes were so vibrant especially the reds and greens.  It was great to see him actually crafting handbags while we watched.  Oh how I wish he would sell other than the 6 weeks the fair goes on.  Wow he makes his living 6 weekends out of the year.  Can you imagine?!

The second place was in the Indian Village at Cheyenne's Frontier Days.  There was a tent set up with some really amazing leather and beaded items such as shoes, handbags and jewelry.  The folks there were not the artisans but the pieces were still very cool.  They hand these hand made leather satchels mixed with hounds tooth. Great design and you are not paying for any body's logo!

Armed and Dangerous

I just armed my 4 year old.  I told her words were no longer working.  She needed to act and act decisively and quickly.  Our 6 month old blue heeler puppy was/is full on acting like a 6 month old, very smart, very active, and very naughty blue puppy. I gave Sophia the hose and told her to shoot when approached.  Low and behold it worked.  Two birds, one stone.  Sophia loved having power and control and Pickles thought this was a lovely game, made up of chase the water spray.

Alas, the one problem was the student turned on the teacher.  I am now soaking wet.

The best summer days are full of free fun.  Nothing beats a sprinkler or hose on a hot sunny day.

What are your free finds in the summer to beat the heat and have fun?

Nice cool splash in a city fountain is always a good option!