Pizza Art

Our family project this weekend was making pizza with the kids. This is a shot of Pepperoni Man, if you look closely the nose is made of dough and complete with at least two nostrils of its very own.

School started, where did the summer go?

Wow, the last half of summer went far to quickly! A short rundown of the 2nd half. We visited the Washington County Fair with our neighbors in August. The kids had a riot! We visited the 4H exhibits and saw more animals than imaginable. I was unable to get Quentin to be still long enough for a photo, there was too much to see! Lars however was facinated with the creatures he could touch.

Quentin used his allowance one week to purchase a monarch caterpillar from the local farmers market. He did a great job keeping it fed from milkweed we had in the garden. His efforts were rewarded, I think this was the largest monarch butterfly I've ever seen. The kids released it once the wings were dry.

We spent a few days getting ready for Kindergarten also. Thankfully Quentin is pretty easy to please in the shopping department these days, in fact he would rather that all clothing and necessary items magically appear. Shopping is one of his least favorite errands to help with. (If you haven't read the childrens book "Llama Llama, Mad at Mama" it would be great insight into what shopping with little ones can be like.) Quentin has a walk of only three blocks to school. He has enjoyed visiting with the neighborhood kids each morning as we stroll.

The tooth fairy has also been frequenting our house lately. Quentin lost his first tooth in church a week ago, his brother pulled it out for him. The second tooth came out on his second day of Kindergarten.

Over the Labor Day weekend, we had a small bbq with some neighbors. It was nice to have the time to visit with our friends. The kids all played well together and ran for hours nonstop, other than a break for an icecream cone or to cruise by the table of food for a handful of something yummy.

A few shots of garden bounty....

Pesto
4 cups packed fresh basil leaves, washed well

1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted until golden, cooled, and chopped fine

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan (about 1 1/2 ounces)

2 large garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

In a food processor purée basil with remaining ingredients until smooth and season with salt and pepper.
(ps- Kids really like peeling garlic and pressing the buttons for food processors, with supervision)

Lars has named affectionately, or not so affectionately... pesto poop.... enjoy!