We walked for our cute little nephew Westin this past weekend in the annual Boise Buddy Walk. He is such a sweetheart, smiles all the time and full of love. We love you Westin!!!
His Grandma Carol came to town for the walk and taught us girls how to make these adorable little scripture bags. I made this one for Alex to go with the scriptures we got her for her 8th birthday.
Then yesterday Johnny just had to have me come out and see what he could do on the skateboard! He was all decked out in his protective gear and a grin that stretched from ear to ear. He was pretty well pleased with his accomplishments and I could see it in his eyes.
Then, Tuesday I decided it was time to do something with all of the tomatoes, onions and peppers I had harvested from my garden. I took my Mom's and a friend's salsa recipes and married them to come up with a big batch of my own yummy homemade salsa. My only problem was that I have never canned anything before, nor do I own any of the tools needed to do this. So with my Mom on the phone and my sister in law's water bath canner and stove at hand I sealed it up for future enjoyment. I have to say, I was quite well pleased with these little jars of garden salsa. Next year I will have to invest in a food processor and make multiple batches to last us throughout the year.
I don't measure much when I'm cooking but this is pretty close to what I ended up with.8 c. roma tomatoes, diced and drained
1 1/2 c. chopped green onions (because that's what I had in my garden)
1/2 c. chopped red onions (because I had some in the fridge)
1/2 c. bell pepper (I used bell and aneheim w/o seeds)
2 chopped jalapeno peppers (not much heat, add more if you like)
4 cloves garlic, minced
handfull of parsley, minced
1 t. cumin
1 t. pepper
juice of 2 limes
1/8 c. canning salt (I used sea salt, just stay away from iodine)
1/4 c. sugar
1/8 c. vinegar
1 can tomato paste
I simmered all of the ingredients as I was adding them, then boiled it for about 10 mins.
My kids were ready to head to the bus and hour early. I think the bus was a great distraction for Johnny so he didn't have to think much about starting school. All he could think about was riding the bus, without his Mom, on his way to school, that he was going to be attending! To him, it doesn't get much better than that. He has asked at the beginning of each year if he could go on the bus with Alex and now his day had come. To save on funds, our convenient bus stop a block from our house was taken off the route. So the kids couldn't see the bus stop and were convinced everyone else was out there waiting and they were missing out on "all the fun". I could only hold them off for so long so instead of waiting at home we waited on the corner in the front of the subdivision. First ones there of course. A tad too cold to be wearing shorts and standing still. Oh course I followed them over to the school and was there when they got off the bus. Johnny quickly lined up against the wall next to his classroom and Alex took off to find her own. I called out to my independent daughter and asked for a goodbye hug which she willingly handed out before she raced back off to join the crowd. I barely had time to take a few pictures, all of which Johnny was wiggling too much, obviously wanting me to stop taking pictures. So I put the camera away and watched as this monumental event became quite anticlimactic. No puppy dog eyes, no final hug before entering the classroom door, only one big grin through the doorway as I worked to make eye contact. He was excited and knew it was his turn to finally grow up. I wonder if he's always acted so insecure and immature because he thought it was expected of him. But now that people are calling him a Kindergartner there is a feeling of expectation that he can't deny.
Oh and can I say, "sweet sweet freedom".....
