Fun day with Emma

Well we headed out to go the the Children's museum but it was closed on Wednesday (an over site by mom) but the girl's didn't care... they were out and ready to have fun. So since we were down town already we headed to the shops! Emma was teaching the girls first hand how to find the greatest deals!

Emma had to stay quick on her toes... Lola was in a mood to run (especially after the frozen yogurt they enjoyed just minutes before).

These are the coolest toys... the girls just stand on them and they spin (they were located at this modern park downtown) They made the girls a bit dizzy but they couldn't get enough of them!

on a side note.....
Ellie has a new favorite summer food!

Lola won't even try the corn... she sticks to her pears!

raspberry ice cream and a dilemma

The raspberries continue to ripen.

I put some in the ice cream I churned this week.

What goes with raspberry ice cream? Chocolate! Whipped cream!



And a raspberry on top.



In case you find yourself with an overabundance of berries this season, here's the recipe:

Raspberry Ice Cream
1 pint fresh ripe raspberries (or any other berries will work)
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup sugar, divided
1 cup half and half
2 cups whipping cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

In a small bowl, combine the raspberries with the lemon juice and 1/2 cup of the sugar. Stir gently and allow the berries to macerate in the juices for about two hours. Strain the berries, reserving the juices. Mash half of the berries.

In a mixing bowl, combine the half and half, 1/2 cup of sugar with a hand mixer on low speed, until the sugar is dissolved (a minute or two should do it). Stir in the cream, raspberry juice, mashed berries, and vanilla.

Pour the mixture into the freezer bowl of your ice cream maker and mix for about 20-25 minutes, or until it thickens. Five minutes before the mixing is complete, add the whole berries you’ve reserved.



The dilemma...

I bought this ice cream maker a couple years ago.



It worked great during its first season, but now it doesn't freeze the ingredients like it should. I usually end up with a somewhat soupy consistency when it comes out of the maker, and icy crystals form after freezing it. The texture is not ideal.

So this ice cream tasted delicious, but for me 80 percent of a dessert’s appeal is in its texture.



You can see the little ice crystals that have formed. Bad ice crystals!

I want smooth, creamy texture please!

Does anyone have an ice cream maker they love?

Escaping June Gloom

San Diego has a predictable weather pattern called "June Gloom" where the Marine layer last all day long. Therefore the sun has been non-existent. So we headed north-east to the Wild Animal Park where the sun was in full force. The girls were happy to be out and about!

They got to pet "doggies" again!
... then on our walk around the park we stumbled onto this little playground with animal water sprinklers... of course we had to let the girl run wild! It was soooo much fun to watch them figure this out and get all wet. I think this water experience was their favorite yet!

They're soaked and loving it!

" Uh-oh now we have no pants mom!"

Waldorf Cuddle Doll for Elena

This doll will be a one year olds birthday gift and will travel to Ireland soon.

Trained well!

We have trained the girls to clean up after themselves, good thing because I would be scrubbing the floor all day long without their help!

p.s. are their labor laws against this kind of stuff? :)

Just a cute picture of daddy and his girls!

Waldorf Root Child Cuddle Doll for Nora

This Root Child Cuddle Doll is for Nora a little girl we have been together with in our Waldorf parent child group the last months.

Rum Drenched Vanilla Cakes -- Tuesdays with Dorie

Time for Tuesdays with Dorie! Today's treat, Rum Drenched Vanilla Cakes, was picked for us to try by Wendy of Pink Stripes -- thank you, Wendy! I was really excited to get back in the swing of baking with these cakes. These are a treat that really caught my eye in Dorie's book and probably a recipe I would have picked to bake even if they weren't a TWD pick. They just sound so delicious.

The recipe uses two loaf pans and I decided to switch things up a bit by using a silicone mini bundt-ish pan for most of the batter and a mini loaf pan for the remainder.

I thought the mini cakes would be so cute, but after baking, I think this cake is actually prettier as a loaf cake.

Either way, they were delicious! I used vanilla bean paste and doubled the amount, since vanilla is one of my favorite flavors. As for the rum, I used spiced instead of dark, since we only had spiced or light available in our liquor cabinet.

Two out of three kids enjoyed these (sans glaze) and picky husband said they were pretty good. I would have loved to serve these with some sugared strawberries, mmm! Maybe next time...

Sharing our winnings!

Well... we had to share some of our winnings with the girlies....so we took them to Toys R Us yesterday! This among a few other things is what we found for them. They absolutely love this splash table! It occupied these twins for almost an hour straight.

Definitely a must have for the summer!

They were soaked at the end of the hour... but man did they have fun, so many giggles!

Home Sweet Home!

We had a great time in Vegas... Yes, we missed the girls but we took advantage of every second we had to relax and enjoy each other. Happy Birthday Tony!
FLASHING FORTY BABY!

We had a great view of the strip!

I never let Tony forget it was his "Over the Hill Birthday" by decorating our room!

And we came away winners! Vegas paid us to vacation there... that is always NICE!

in my yard

Is it true that birds can hear worms crawling underground? It sure looks to me like our pullets can.







Just after I took this shot, she pulled a big juicy worm out of the grass, but I was too busy watching in amazement to snap a shot. So you’ll just have to believe me.

Okay, maybe she just had her eye on that innocent worm before chowing down on it.



I asked the girls about it, but they turned on their heels without a word and showed me this view. Then they marched off to eat some raspberries.



We’ve picked big bowls full of these beautiful red gems every day this week.



Today I discovered these red lovelies. They were still in plastic containers. Peaking out from amongst the plants still needing to be planted in the yard.

Summer is finally here!

Fun in the Tub!

My girls turn into crazy ladies in the bath tub. they absolutely love bath time! The splash each other, pretend to wash each other's hair, and they love to play with all the bubbles. this time mom was joining in on all the fun and making crazy hair styles with the shampoo. The girls seemed to like that too! They are so fun!

New Member!

Well... I guess you can refer to it as a mommy and me group, but we were all friends before we had kids... the group keeps growing. Our newest addition is Joseph Thomas (the little baby all bundled up). The other night we all got together to celebrate Kathleen's birthday. It's always fun to take time to get together despite our busy schedules!!!

School's out for the summer....

Today was my last official day of teaching! Now I am off for 2 and a half months. I have never been more excited to be off on summer break. I am so looking forward to this summer. We have so many fun things planned, but I think I am most looking forward to just hanging with the girls.

But to start off the summer Tony and I are headed off to VEGAS without the little munchkins.... this will be the first weekend away without the girls, we are very excited to lounge by the pool, stay up late, and sleep in- Thank you Emma and Good Luck :). Next I am taking the girls on their first camping trip. We are going with grandma and poppi in Northern California... that should be a fun adventure! We have beach days and a summer luau with friends planned, as well as many days at the zoo, wild animal park, and children's museum. I am afraid this summer will fly bye, but not will out some great memories.

Cheers to a Great Summer Ahead!

Happy Father's Day!

Lola, Ellie, & I would like to wish this incredible man a Happy Father's Day! Thanks sweetie for being so involved and being the rock in our family. Our girls are so lucky to have you as their daddy, role model, and hero! We Love You!!!

Tony and his girls!

Daddy and Ellie Belle enjoy the sun on this wonderful Sunday!

Lola stealing some bites of daddy's cake, she doesn't miss a beat!

Me and My Dad- Thanks for being the best dad ever and a wonderful Poppi! We love you and hope you had a wonderful father's day. Miss you!