swinging sisters

once in a blue moon, these sisters can be the best of friends.

even in matching pajamas.

and here's a jem - my little climber

strawberry days 2012

strawberry days... what can i say... kate looks forward to this summer evening ritual more than christmas, i think.  and just like christmas, it comes and goes in one day.  then she starts the loop - "when is it going to be strawberry days again?"

we took the kids to the park and bought about $10 worth of tickets.  kate got to take advantage of being the only one who could really ride anything and got the lion's share of the tickets.  beth still had a great time ;)

 presh...

 tickets!

 i promise, they had way more fun than this picture would suggest!

 cute chubby baby face

 kate had this idea that she wanted to go on this "ride" - it was more of an obstacle course for kids.  it was 2-3 stories tall at the highest point and she had to go in alone... it was going to be interesting for this timid girl.  she surprised us all and went all the way through!  it took her quite awhile, but she made it :)

 family portrait at the rodeo 

best baby cheeks, mesmerized by fireworks

say it with me!!

"when is it going to be strawberry days again?"

the garden

i planted quite a variety this year, variety for me anyway..  we had peas, corn, green beans, potatoes, beets, lettuce, green onion, and asparagus.  i had big, ambitious plans..

i harvested only a few times and pretty much let the rest go to seed and wither and die... not a great gardener here.  maybe i'll try again next year??

we were really off to a great start - doesn't she look promising and beautiful?  how exciting! 

scout, the security cat, keeps our garden free from the birds

peas

corn

this was my first harvest - lettuce!  

it was delicious and totally fun to go out to the backyard, pull up a head, and chop it up for my dinner.  the rest i added from the fridge and pantry, but i had big plans to do this frequently...

then i got tired.

first peas!!  can i tell you how much i love fresh, raw, garden peas??

i ended up with a couple of these containers full of peas and my mom helped me process them

i got 6 or 7 of these bags and they promptly went into the freezer.  we've cracked one open and enjoyed - maybe next year i'll be geared up for the job again!