Blueberries, Blueberries, Blueberries!

Last week Steph and I traveled to Owensburg, Indiana, about 40 minutes away, to go blueberry picking. This is a yearly tradition for me as I have gone every year since we moved to Bloomington 6 years ago. It's the second year that Steph and I have made the trip together.

This year our timing was perfect in more than one way. We didn't realize until we got there that it was the first day for picking. Usually the season starts during the last week in June; however, the season started late this year and when we arrived the first week in July we were delightfully surprised at the abundance of big, super sweet berries.

We planned our picking time perfectly. We left Bloomington at 7am and we finished picking around 9am. As we started our drive home the skies opened up and it poured all the way home. We arrived home untouched by the rain with a bountiful of berries.

Blueberries are one of the easiest fruits to pick. You don't have to bend over and there aren't any thorns on the bushes.

Here's Steph picking the berries and as you can see by what she's wearing, it was a very cool and overcast morning something else that was to our advantage.I picked 10 pounds of blueberries and found it hard not to eat them by the handfuls. However, I did find some other uses for them as well.

I made two fruit tarts to bring to a 4th of July cookout that we were invited to. Also on the tart were freshly picked black raspberries that I bought at the farmer's market.

I also made some blueberry jam. The recipe I used, calls for 4 cups of crushed berries, 4 cups of sugar, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, and a box of fruit pectin.

First you mix the crushed berries with the lemon juice and pectin, and then bring to boil over high heat. Once the mixture comes to a rapid boil you add the sugar all at once and then bring to a boil again. Once it comes to a rapid boil for the second time, you boil it for one minute (which can get sort of messy) and remove from heat. Stir with a metal spoon and remove any foam.

The jam then gets poured into hot jars that you have previously sterilized by boiling. You need to wipe the rims clean and then top with lids and rings that have been sitting in hot water. The jars then get turned upside down for five minutes before turning them back over. As they cool you will hear the seals popping. This lets you know that jam making was a success, and your jars are sealed and can be stored on a shelf up to one year.My last use for the blueberries went into a blueberry pie for Keith. I'm not a big pie fan but blueberry pie is Keith's favorite. I used a recipe from Martha Stewarts Baking Handbook, and I think it turned out really well. Although, Keith will have to be the "true" judge as he will actually eat a piece. The pie even had a 4th of July theme with the cutout stars on top.

A Six Pack of Boys

Left to Right: Mac, Eric, Jeffrey, John, and (in front) Ethan and Bobby

One of the highlights of our Arizona trip was getting to visit with my friend, Eileen and her four boys. I met Eileen several years ago when we were both flight attendants for TWA. We met commuting between St. Louis where we were based, and Phoenix where we lived; we were instant friends.



During our long flights in between the two cities we discovered that we had many things in common, one being our birthday, and others such as baking and crafting.

We started a tradition of going to tea to celebrate our birthdays, and this is how my love for tea and tea parties blossomed. Even though we haven't lived in the same city for eleven years, we still manage to remain close and, yes, go to tea on occasion - even if it's not our birthday.

Although the kids and I visit Arizona frequently, sometimes it's difficult to meet up with Eileen. She lives about 45 minutes away from my parents, and during the school year she's just as busy as any other mother - driving her four boys to and from school and extra curricular activities. I do however, get to see her parents just about every visit because they live across the street from mine.

We introduced our parents several years ago and her parents who were living in New Hampshire at the time, fell in love with my parents' neighborhood. They bought the house across the street and became, what Phoenicians call, "snowbirds." They spend their winters in Arizona and the summers in New Hampshire.

Our parents became fast friends, especially our fathers. Eileen's dad comes over to my parents' house every morning for coffee, along with several other of my parents' neighbors. When my parents are up and the coffee is made, they open their garage door to signal the neighbors that they are up and ready to receive their guests. This tradition happens every morning. Most of my parents' neighbors are "snowbirds" so in the summertime there aren't as many coffee drinkers sitting around the table as there are in the winter months, but even so the sense of community is still present.

Ethan's Birthday

While we were in Arizona my parents and sister hosted a birthday party for Ethan. We invited all of his Arizona cousins, on both sides of the family and Ethan was very excited that most of them could attend.
The theme was a "pool" birthday party and my sister, Kristin hosted the event at her house. It was very hot the entire week that we were in AZ with the temps reaching 112 and above so being able swim helped to keep everyone a little cooler.

Grandma made Ethan a birthday cake according to his specifications - a round chocolate cake and chocolate icing with chocolate chips. And to Ethan's delight, she also added a few of her own embellishments.
Grandma even bought a pinata for the party which was a big hit with all the kids.

Pretty Baby

Yesterday we spent the day with my niece, Madelyn. She's changed quite a bit since we've last seen her, and has developed a cute little personality. She smiles all the time, and was unusually tolerant of having my camera shoved in her face for the better part of the afternoon.

Madelyn 4 Months Old

Reminiscing at a Dance Recital

Last night we attended my niece's dance recital. She looked adorable in her feathery pink costume. Her performance was darling and comical at the same time. One of the little girls lost her tap shoe early on and wasn't sure what to do with it. Although I might be biased, I definitely think Olivia was the best dancer of the group.
Yes the evening did bring back memories of the 9 plus years that I spent taking tap and ballet lessons as a child, and all the recitals and competitions. However, the most nostalgic part was that the recital was preformed in my former high school auditorium.
It felt strange returning to my old high school alma mater, especially after being absent for 20 some years. It looked mostly the same, unchanged by the thousands of students that came after me. The auditorium, the cafeteria, the football field, were all still there, taking me back in time, and making me feel as though I was 16 again.

Birthday Crown of Peanuts

Today is Ethan's 8th birthday and this morning we left for Arizona. On our flight out west the flight attendants made Ethan a crown of peanuts in celebration of his birthday. They made an announcement on the PA and I think that was the first time Ethan's ever had over a hundred people wish him Happy Birthday all at the same time.

The crown is very clever and in the 13 plus years that I've been employed by SWA, I've never seen anyone make one before. I've made birthday cakes out of rolls of toilet paper but never a crown of peanuts. There's only so many resources that you have at 40,000 feet and this was one of the most clever ideas I've seen. The bags of peanuts are held together with stir sticks.

Needless to say, Ethan loved the crown and all the attention that was bestowed upon him.

Happy Birthday, Ethan!