The View From the Top of the World

Are We Having Fun Yet?

We took Daddy camping for Father's Day weekend at Rose Canyon Lake. It was beautiful weather and so picturesque. I have to admit though that I DO NOT ENJOY camping. In fact I have spent most of my married life avoiding it. I finally relented after 29 years and have gone camping twice in the last year. Do I love it? Not really. As we camped this weekend I kept asking the children teasingly with a big smile on my face, "Are we having fun yet?"

Will I go camping again? Absolutely! I have come to realize over the years that as long as I am with my family then the activity I am doing is worthwhile. I can surely spend a day or two roughing it out in the wilderness just to see the looks on their faces. My only regret is that I did not do it years ago with my older children.

This is the view we enjoyed from our campsite.

Putting up the tent.

First one in.

Our campfire bug preparing the fire.



Ready for bed.

We left the windows open for awhile

to listen to the wind whistling

through the trees.

The lightening of the fire.

The log ride.

It isn't hard to tell what Kendrick

enjoys about camping.

Smookies!

It was really dark by now,

but I took these with a flash.

The most adorable outhouse I

have ever seen.

Rise and Shine.

Off to Rose Lake.

What a wonderful weekend!

Better Watch Out!

After getting ready to go out this morning

and run some errands, Brigitta came up to me and said;

"Mom, I need to go to Target

and do some shopping.

Can I borrow your Debit Card?"

The funniest part is that she was totally serious.

Spectacular

I am enjoying the end of my sunflowers in bloom.

They have a way of brightening up my whole day.

The are absolutely stunning!

Some are starting to droop from the
weight of the seeds that are forming.
In a very short time they will be ready to harvest.

Sweet Whole Wheat Quick Bread

Things have been so difficult these past few months that I have not had a lot of time to cook, nor have I felt like doing so. But that has all changed and I am anxious to get back to the kitchen. I am excited to share many wonderful recipes with you this summer. Hope you enjoy!

This is a great treat that is quick, easy and delicious. It does not require any yeast and is practically foolproof. According to Kendrick, it makes a great peanut butter sandwich.

It slices beautifully!

I make my own buttermilk.

The recipe is at the end of this post.

For 2 loaves:

• 4 Cups of buttermilk
• 2 Cups brown sugar, packed
• 1/2 Teaspoon salt
• 2 Teaspoons baking soda
• 6 Cups whole wheat flour

Grease 2 loaf pans thoroughly.

Pour buttermilk into a large mixing bowl.

Add sugar and salt. Mix well

Add flour and baking soda.

Stir just until moistened.

You can see the soda and buttermilk already reacting.

Pour into well-greased loaf pans.

Bake in a preheated oven at 325 degrees

for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Enjoy with whipped butter or cream cheese

with or without jam. It is very sweet on its own

and the brown sugar gives it a wonderful flavor.

Buttermilk

• 1/2 Cup buttermilk (from the store to be used as a starter)
• 1 Cup powdered milk
• 3 Cups warm water

Put warm water and powdered milk into a glass jar. Stir or shake well until mixed. Add buttermilk and mix well. Cover with a lid and let stand on your kitchen counter until mixture clabbers. It usually takes anywhere from 12 to 24 hours. Refrigerate and use within a week. Be sure to save 1/2 cup to replenish your supply. It is as easy as that and beats adding lemon juice or vinegar to milk.

Garden Trials and Success!

Oh what a beautiful morning! My sunflowers have just started to bloom. They are absolutely amazing. One of them has reached 12 feet.

I have been very busy in the garden lately. I harvested my potatoes. carrots, and the rest of my beets. I picked over 50 tomatoes just this past week. Much to my dismay however, I lost 4 of my tomato plants to blight. I salvaged a few dozen green tomatoes and will be making fried green tomatoes this week. I was able to save three of my tomato plants and am in the process of replanting my garden this week.

I also picked bowl after bowl of fresh apricots and will be making apricot jam soon. Watch for my upcoming post. Now to my trial; the vicious vine borer.



I have lost two of my zucchini plants to vine borers. Nasty, nasty bugs. One day I had beautiful looking zucchini plants and then they were gone. It started with wilting zucchini leaves and I knew right away what it was. As I pulled it up this is what I found.


I have recently found out that you can save your plants if you catch them in time, however mine were too far gone to be saved. These pesky insects can also attack your pumpkin plants as well and so I am now on a constant watch to protect my gardens.

Here is what I found:

• First locate the squash vine borer. They are usually at the base of the plant. Night time is a good time to find them. Take the kids out with flashlight in hand and have a borer hunt.
• Once located it is time to perform surgery. Take a knife and carefully cut a slit lengthwise in the vine. Gently open the vine and remove the borer.
• Once the borer is gone, pour a cup of fresh water over the wound and clean it out well. remove any of the orange debris that might be in the affected area.
• Scoop up some nutrient rich compost and cover the wound completely.
• You can wrap the area snugly with a strip of old panty hose to cover the would.
• Water well after completing surgery.
• Water it well daily until it is healed.

This is not a a fail proof method but worth a shot. I have found that in organic gardening there is a lot of trial and error involved, but it is all well worth it to provide nutritious toxic free fruits and vegetables for my family.

If you have any suggestions on vine borers

or organic gardening please share.

Avoid the DIRTY DOZEN

...by growing your own healthful

fruits and vegetables.

This is the end of our broccoli, but the beginning of our tomatoes and zucchini. Our carrots, beets and onions are still going strong. We harvested the last of our artichokes last week and planted our pumpkins for the fall. There is nothing better than being able to go out into the garden and pick your own fruits and vegetables. I feel great comfort in this especially now.

CNN just came out with a report called the "Toxic America". It gives a list of fruits and vegetables that contain the most chemical residue from pesticides used during their growing and harvesting seasons called the:

DIRTY DOZEN

• Celery
• Peaches
• Strawberries
• Apples
• Domestic Blueberries
• Nectarines
• Sweet Bell Peppers
• Spinach, Kale and collard Greens
• Cherries
• Potatoes
• Imported Grapes
• Lettuce

The "Dirty Dozen" contain 47 to 67 different pesticides per serving. This is unbelievable! Even with the high power pressure watering systems the USDA used in their testing, these fruits and vegetables were still contaminated. No wonder we are counseled to plant our own gardens. I hope that this makes you want to go out and immediately grow your own food, or at least purchase organically grown fruits and vegetables to protect your families.

You can find out more information here.