Wednesday, July 21, 2010

what an iPad looks like after flying off the roof of a car


Oops.

This is Clayton's iPad for work, that mysteriously ended up on the side of a busy road. He said he doesn't remember putting it on the roof of the car, but...?

Luckily, the lady who found it was able to find his contact info in it and we were able to pick it up from her house.

Amazingly, it still works just fine. Clayton is working on replacing the glass as we speak.

geocaching

Our first find of the day! A glass bottle hidden in a tree.


Hannah signing the roster.

Trading treasures in and out of the cache.


A tiny geocache with a tiny roster to sign.


I had read about geocaching before in Family Fun magazine and thought it sounded like a fun thing to do with the kids, but I wasn't quite sure how it all worked. Lucky for us, I have a super-duper sister-in-law who invited us and showed us the ropes. Thanks Kerstin!

Basically, it's like going on a treasure hunt. You can find local caches by visiting this site, which gives you clues and coordinates. I was surprised how many caches there were just within a 2 mile radius of my house! The kids really get into it, and they can bring along little treasures to swap in and out of the caches, which are hidden and sealed containers. See, if you find a cache, they are typically filled with small trinkets and toys, and the rule is that if you take something out, you put something back in. Also, you can sign your team's code name on the roster, if there is one. For example, we are "Team T" {sweet, I know, the kids came up with it!}, and Kerstin's family is the "Fab 6."

Some of the geocaches are no bigger than the tip of my pinky finger...Ben found one of these "nanocaches" hanging in the middle of a giant pine tree! Obviously, that one didn't have any treasures inside, but a tiny scroll of paper was rolled inside for us to sign and date. Kerstin said that there are bigger ones up in the mountains filled with frisbees and bigger toys. How fun, huh?

Ben can't wait until we go again, he's completely obsessed.

pizza on the grill


We are going to live on this for the rest of the summer.

BEST pizza ever. And you don't even have to heat up your kitchen.

{And to make it easier, you can mix the dough in a Bosch or Kitchenaid rather than kneading it yourself.}


Basic Grilled Pizza Dough
{from Everyday Food Magazine July/August 2010}


1 tsp. sugar
1 packet yeast (1/4 ounce)
2 tsp. extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for bowl and brushing
coarse salt
2 1/4 c. flour, plus more for work surface

1. Pour 1 cup warm water into a medium bowl; add sugar and sprinkle with yeast. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes.
2. Whisk oil and 1 tsp. salt into yeast mixture. Add flour and stir with a wooden spoon until liquid in incorporated (dough will appear dry). Knead until dough comes together in an elastic ball, 2 minutes. Transfer to an oiled medium bowl; brush lightly with oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap; set in a warm, draft-free place until dough has double in bulk, 45 min. Punch down dough and cover; let rise another 30 minutes.
3. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Divide into 4 equal pieces. (To store, refrigerate dough pieces, covered, up to 2 days, or freeze up to 1 month). Let rest 15 minutes before using. Makes 1 pound dough or 4 10-inch pizzas.

To grill:

Heat up your grill to medium-high heat, clean and lightly oil grates. On a lightly floured surface roll out 1 piece of dough into a 10-inch-long oval. Brush one side with olive oil and season with coarse salt. Place dough oiled side down onto grill. Brush top with olive oil and cook until underside is lightly charred and bubbles form all over top, 1 or 2 minutes. With tongs, flip and top with desired toppings, and cook another 1-2 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bottom is lightly charred.


Simple Tomato Sauce:

Heat 3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil in a medium saucepan over med-high heat. Add 2 minced garlic cloves (or a couple dashes garlic powder--that's what I used) and 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes. Cook about 1 minute. Puree two 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes and add to the pan. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a rapid simmer. Cook, stirring often, until sauce thickens, about 15 min. Stir in 1/2 tsp. dried oregano. Makes 2 1/2 cups.

downtown farmers market












Two weekends ago I picked up Kerstin {my sis-in-law} and Ruth {mom-in-law} bright and early and we zipped downtown to check out the farmers market. Hippies, dogs and musicians everywhere! Haha! It was worth going to at least once though. This bearded guy was jamming out on an antique piano that was rigged up to his bike. I can't imagine how he rides around on that thing!

It's so fun going places with Ruth because she stops at every booth along the way and says, "Look how cute these are! Do you want one?" and buys it for you before you can blink! She bought some basil plants for us, some cute knit hats and hair clippies for our girls, and this adorable elephant {butt} dress for Livi. I bought some artisan bread and cheese {yum} and some honey sticks for the kids, which they thought were very cool. Then it was time to go, because as Ruth said, "I'm all out of money!"

{Thanks Mom!}

Monday, July 19, 2010

4th of July Supplies



I found this in Ben's closet a while back, full of Pop-Its and glow bracelets that he somehow managed to collect. And sure enough, he put the supplies to use on the 4th, with just a few left for this coming weekend.

little cousins



{I just love this picture of Olivia and Imogen.}

Friday, July 9, 2010

world's biggest slip and slide


What do you get when you combine a giant hill, long strips of plastic, and Dad's mini fire truck loaded with water and foam?

Yes, folks, it's the world's biggest slip and slide.

And as my brother said, "This is the best white trash activity ever."

This was how we started our 4th of July weekend. Nothing like a little rash on your butt to get to party started, right?

{p.s. I was kinda glad I had the "I'm pregnant" excuse so nobody threw me on the thing!}