Fair Hills

I know I've posted about Fair Hills before......this is our cabin - I love that they always give you the same cabin (it's like your own little cabin at the lake)...

...so first things first - Scout and his Papa have to go out on the lake...
...I must say that in the 4 years we've been coming to Fair Hills - this is the best weather we've had yet...
...then we get wet...
...and climb up onto the diving stand - it's starting to look pretty rickety - I'm afraid this may be it's last year - see how it's tilting...
...then we see how far out we can push the diving platform before it's chain stops it...
...then we bounce...
...and bounce some more...
...get ready...
...and jump...

The Tooth Fairy again...

So...
...Scout lost that pesky baby tooth that was keeping him from getting his braces...
...he was already dressed for school when he remembered to rush back to his room and check under the pillow - so cute...

..I've scheduled an appointment - update later...

...and it was picture day - hence the white polo...

...and so it begins...

...fall I mean...
...I love the early autumn - the brisk air - the trees with just a hint of gold - the new sound of the rustling of crisp leaves...

Scout Shoot

Can you guess what this is?
...well if you read the title you probably can...
...Remember - it's very very flat up here - so there aren't many banks or hillsides that you can shoot into - so they've created some earthen mounds for that purpose...
...Scout went to his first ever 'Scout Shoot' and he had a blast (literally hehe) - he got to shoot skeet for the very first time - and he shot a clean set of three - pretty awesome...
...then he went down range for some target plinking with the .22...

...I really should have taken a picture of his target...

Homecoming Parade

After the Monkey Bread for breakfast - we needed to get really sugared up for the afternoon...
...so we headed uptown to the small town Homecoming Parade...
...we saw all the usual parade sights and acquired the usual bag on candy...

Vegan Monkey-Bread

Scout had a sleepover so I made Monkey Bread for breakfast...

Mom used to make Monkey Bread for family get together mornings - but I don't have her recipe - I just used a basic bread dough from my no-knead-bread post:

2 cups of bread flour
2 T sugar
1 T powdered soy milk
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp yeast
1 cup warm water
1 T canola oil

Mix and let rest 20 - 30 minutes.
...then I mixed about 1/2 cup of turbinado sugar with about 1 teaspoon of cinnamon and melted some Earth Balance - then I scooped off a spoonful of dough and dredged it first in the Earth Balance and then in the Sugar/Cinnamon and laid it in the beautiful Pound Cake Pan that Karen gave me (I greased it with some Earth Balance first) - Let rise about 20 - 30 minutes and bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 - 40 minutes.
This is what it looked like before it went into the oven...
...and after it came out all gorgeous and bubbly...
...Just invert the hot pan onto a plate...
...to reveal the gooey yumminess...
...and be very careful that your 'monkeys' don't burn their fingers trying to pull the bread apart...

Another Boy Birthday...

Scout had another friend birthday and he chose one of his favorite games as the gift...

...such a simple game - but it can give literally hours of enjoyment...

...I can remember playing Mancala for the first time with my nephew E when he was even younger than Scout...

...so if you're looking for a boy birthday gift - Mancala is a great choice...

PS - it was my first time - not his and he won every game...

The Garden is still bountiful...

I know I haven't posted much about the ol' garden lately...
...but it's still going strong...
...I was so surprised at the weeds when we got back from our 3 week vacation - but we pulled them all and found that we still had loads of lettuce, tomatos, squash and cucumbers...
...so it's easy to make lunch fresh from the garden...

...sadly our potatoes got the early blight this year - but the ones we've dug have been small to medium size and still delicious - I just don't think we'll be saving (m)any...

New Workspace

We recently moved Scout into the larger of the two smaller bedrooms upstairs - it's your typical 3 bedroom ranch and for some reason when we moved in he chose the smaller bedroom - I'll post about his new room shortly - we're going to paint it (some green colour) we've got lots of samples and we'll let him decide......anyway...I moved my computer into the cabinet that used to house the old 486 that Scout played educational games on (we donated that to a local charity 2nd hand shop) and I'm now in the corner of his old bedroom - with the Man's workstation diagonally opposite. The smaller room quite easily accommodates the 2 workstations and Scout is quite happy with his new larger room and so far he's managed to keep it nice and clean...

The Fix - It - Up - Chappie

Remember the Fix-it-Up Chappie who kept fixing up Sneetches. Off again! On again! In again! Out again! - Oh how I love Dr. Seuss...
...anywhooo - guess how much I spent to fix my camp chair...that's right...18¢
...All I needed was a little nut and bolt...
...to replace a pin that had come out and was lost...
...all fixed and it took about 2 minutes and 18¢ - so there was really no reason NOT to fix it...

The working lunch

I had a lunch-time meeting the other day and I was afraid it would go too long for me to have lunch at a proper time...
...so I whipped up a tray of goodies that I could eat during the meeting and still be able to type and converse...

Clockwise from the top right:
Tea
Whole Wheat Crackers
Spicy Bean Dip from Eat to Live
A simple smoothie of OJ and Strawberries

...it was all so good...

Rally Sunday

It's time to get started with Sunday School again - I think I've mentioned before that they only do Sunday School up here during the school year (strange I know)...

...I'll be teaching the 5th and 6th grade class this year so Scout will be in my class and we're both pretty excited about that...
...each year the kids make a banner to hang in the sanctuary - this year's theme is 'Fishers of Men' - so Scout is putting the final touches on his rainbow fish...
..then we all headed outside for some fun and games - we won the Tug-O-War...
...but we didn't win the sack race - proof that you can't win all the time...

Clandestine Photos

I often 'sneak' pictures of Scout when he has no idea that I'm there...
...he was outside playing with his remote controlled car-thingy - just having fun stirring up some dust - so I snapped a few photos out the kitchen window...

...and I remember you...

...miss you Daddy...

Taste of Summer = Watermelon Smoothie

I think I'm going to freeze some chunks of watermelon so that I can make this summery cooler in the middle of winter...
...so fun and so refreshing...
...I don't know if I'll really want watermelon in the winter...
...but it will be nice to have it if I do want it...

This year's crop of Geese

These were the baby geese from this Spring...
...they're almost as big as their Mama and Papa......I just love watching them strut across the yard...

First Day of 6th Grade

Thanks for going on that vacation adventure with us - we are so glad to be home - and with only one day to spare before school starts...

...I'm constantly astonished by how quickly children change and grow up (I know everyone says that and it's true) so we try to savour every moment we have with our boy...
...we got up early - had a hearty oatmeal breakfast - packed a few last minute items - filled the water bottle - and headed out the door for a brand new adventure in 6th grade...
...After the indoor picture at home Scout requested 'No more pictures please, Mom' - but I couldn't resist a few clandestine shots as he walked into school...
...he's so big and independent - he certainly didn't need any help carrying anything or setting up his desk...

...going...going...gone...

Walker Art Center

On our final day in Minneapolis - we decided that we really couldn't leave without seeing the Cherry on a Spoon...

...so we asked directions once again and followed a gorgeous greenway through the heart of downtown...
...past several water sculptures - we loved this one that looks just like a dandelion...
...and even across a freeway...
...to arrive at the sculpture garden - and there it was the Cherry on a Spoon - by Claes Oldenburg - really it's called 'Spoonbridge and Cherry' - Oh - so it's a bridge - sadly it has a sign saying 'No Climbing'...

Como Zoo and Marjorie McNeely Conservatory

As our vacation in Minneapolis (and I should have been saying Minneapolis/St. Paul all this time) winds down - we head over to St. Paul again to see the free zoo - Como Zoo and Marjorie McNeely Conservatory ...it was so nice and pretty - we had perfect weather for it...
...the animals seemed to be well cared for and happy...
...and old...
...and playful...
...and very non-chalant...
...this Mama and babe headed indoors...
...for some playtime alone - it was so sweet to watch her playing with her baby...
...this sweet bird showing off her pretty feathers...
...a sleek Tiger...
...a Lion and Lioness...
...but I could have used all of my digital film here - don't you just love the 'catipillar' netting...
...the butterflies were beautiful and they happily landed on us all...