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Day 4. Recipe 4.

Not all granola bars are created equal. Some are crunchy, and some are chewy. Most, however, won't power us through our morning meetings or afternoon slump. Pre-packaged bars often give a sugar boost bigger than any candy bar and induce a crash that sends us right into the land of the grumpy.

But this recipe, The Ultimate Snack Bar, should keep us running throughout our day.

The recipe is dairy and tree nut free too.

And my kids gave them two thumbs up.

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The Ultimate Snack Bar

(adapted from 100% Real By Sam Talbot) {affiliate link}

• 12 pitted Medjool dates
• ½ cup dried pineapple
• 1½ cups uncooked rolled oats
• ¾ cup unsweetened flaked coconut
• ½ cup sunflower seeds roasted and salted
• ¼ cup sunflower butter
• ¼ cup raw honey
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil

Step 1: Line the bottom of an 8x8 inch baking dish with parchment paper, allowing a few excess inches of parchment to extend past the sides of the dish.

Step 2: Process the dates and pineapple in a food processor and process until finely chopped and they begin to form a ball. Transfer to a medium bowl; add the oats, flaked coconut and sunflower seeds, stir to combine.

Step 3: Combine the sunflower butter, honey, and coconut oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until smooth, about 2-3 minutes.

Step 4: Pour the sunflower butter mixture over the date mixture and stir well. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish. Top with a piece of plastic wrap, and press onto the surface of the mixture. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes.

Step 5: Using parchment paper, remove the frozen mixture from the baking dish, cut into 12 bars. Wrap each bar in plastic wrap, place in an airtight container and freeze for up to 1 month.

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Let the ultimate snacking begin!

Until tomorrow friends.

Day 3. Recipe 3.

There might be doubts about this recipe. At first glance, it looks labor intensive, complicated and downright hard to whip up. Yes, the shredded chicken takes 8-10 hours to steam. The many vegetables require so much chopping; we will want to give in and call for pizza delivery. When my husband found this recipe on the kitchen counter, his words were "You aren't going to attempt this recipe, are you? This will be a disaster."

Challenge accepted the love of my life.

He had to eat his words.

This soup isn't good. 

It's great.

You will want to make it every day.

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Thai Chicken Soup

(Adapted from Joyful Healthy Eats)

Serves 6

Cook time 8-10 hours for the shredded chicken.

15 min prep.

25 min cooking time for the soup.

• 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breast
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil
• 1 cup red onion, thinly sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
• 3 tablespoons red curry paste
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 2 carrots, sliced
• ½ cup halved snow peas
• 1 red pepper, julienned
• 14 oz. lite coconut milk (canned)
• 2 tablespoons of fresh lime juice
• 10 oz. cooked brown rice
• ⅓ cup fresh cilantro diced
• Optional: top with sliced avocado 

1. In a crockpot, add chicken. Mix the water, salt, pepper, and garlic powder and pour over the chicken. Turn the crockpot on low and let simmer for 8-10 hours or until the chicken falls apart easily. Place the chicken on a large plate and use two forks to shred the chicken. Set aside or refrigerate until needed.
2.  Heat a large dutch oven or soup pot over medium-high heat.
3. Add the coconut oil. Once melted add red onions, saute until translucent, about 3-4 minutes. Next, add the garlic and ginger. Saute for 30 seconds, until fragrant, stirring the entire time.
4. Add the red curry paste, stir the paste into the aromatics (onion, garlic, and ginger) until it thickens, about 2-3 minutes.
5. Next, add the chicken broth. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer. Add the shredded chicken.
6. Add noodles, carrots, red pepper and snow peas to the chicken broth pot.
7. Wisk a can of coconut milk into the broth. Blend until the mixture looks creamy and the broth and milk no longer separate. Stir and simmer for 5 minutes.
8. Right before serving, finish with fresh lime juice, rice, and fresh cilantro. Optional: top with sliced avocado

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The recipe this soup was so delicious; my family was fighting over the last bowl. It was an instant classic. 

Until tomorrow friends.

Day 2. Recipe 2.

Let's be honest. This muffin recipe is not going to free anyone's energy. These muffins, however, could be considered magical because they contain a decent amount of protein, no grains, no refined sugar and have some vegetables thrown in for good measure. Oh, and they taste, pretty good.

One learning from this recipe is coconut flour is weirdly absorbent. If a recipe calls for regular grain flour, a lot less coconut flour is needed to make the recipe. It isn't a 1:1 exchange.

The taste and texture verdict is still pending on this culinary beauties, but if a healthy breakfast option is required, this muffin recipe rises to the task.

Coconut Flour Carrot Zucchini Muffins
(Adapted from Detoxinista)

3/4 cup coconut flour
6 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup raw honey or maple syrup
1/4 cup melted coconut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1-1/2 cups shredded zucchini
1/4 cup carrot juice

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350.

Step 2: Set up a muffin tin paper with liners. 

Step 3: In a large bowl, mix everything except the zucchini and carrot juice until smooth.

Step 4: Stir in the zucchini and carrot juice, then scoop the batter into the loaf pan or divide the batter into the muffin cups.

Step 5: For muffins: bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.

They will be golden brown on top.

Cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Well, let me know how these muffins bake up for you. My team gave the recipe a "No Barf" pass.

If you have a recipe, you want me to whip up in the next 28 days, send it over.

Until tomorrow friends.

Tucked and folded gently away in our kitchen cabinets, thoughtfully pinned to social media accounts, passed in emails between good friends, we save new recipes like a new pair of white socks that we don't want to get dirty.

We save them for the day we throw a party.

We save them for the day we really learn to cook.

We save them for the day we have time to explore.

We save them for the day we don't want mac n' cheese.

We save them because the photo looks delightful.

We save them because we save them.

The truth? We are not going make these recipes. Nope, never. It's a cycle of lies. The beer chicken recipe from Uncle John, the paleo perfect breakfast bars recipe from the fabulous blogging site or the roasted miso carrots recipe that beckons us in the too cool cooking magazine are only feeding something other than our bellies, our intentions.

But, friends, what if we turned our intentions into action?

What if we made the recipes tucked around us?

And what if I stopped jabbering my pie hole and starting cooking for 30 days? What would happen if I created "A New Recipe Each Day," challenge?

Will I become a better cook? Will I gain a deeper understanding of culture's influence on what and how we eat? Will this trial make a connection with the people around me?

More importantly, will my children stop saying "Oh, barf!" when I serve them meals?

Well, for the next 30 days, I'll be making a new recipe each and every day. It doesn't matter if it's delicious, the prep time is insane or my family hates what is served. The only rule: make a new recipe each and every day for 30 days.

Since this idea seems pretty granola, today's recipe is:

Homemade Granola

(adapted from the Basic Granola Recipe at Chow Hound)

• 3 cups rolled oats (not instant)
• 3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 cup roasted and salted sunflower seeds
• 1 cup dried pitted tart Montmorency cherries
• 1/3 cup mountain forest light amber honey
• 1/4 cup sunflower oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips

1. Heat the oven to 300°F and arrange a rack in the middle.
2. Place the oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, sunflower seeds and cherries in a large bowl and stir to combine; set aside. 
3. Place the honey, oil, and vanilla in a small bowl and stir to combine. Pour over the oat mixture and mix until the oats are thoroughly coated. 
4. Spread the mixture in a thin, even layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes, then stir and continue baking until the granola is very light golden brown, about 5 to 10 minutes more. 
5. Place the baking sheet on a wire rack and cool the granola to room temperature, stirring occasionally about 20 minutes. (Note: It will harden as it cools.) 
6. Add the chocolate chips to the baking sheet and toss to combine.
7. Store the granola in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

Come on! Follow along with your voyeuristic intentions, send me a copy of a recipe that is calling to you and let's sit down and cook something up together.

Will the next 30 days be a recipe for disaster or a recipe for happiness?

By the way, the verdict on the Homemade Granola recipe is a resounding thumbs-up but I did get a thumbs-down for using stale sunflower seeds. 

"Oh, barf."

Until tomorrow friends.

What is better? Mental Challenge or Mental Boredom? Sometimes it's hard to decide between the two. It's like seeing the glass half full or half empty. It all depends on other things circling in our lives and where our mind and emotions sit within a day. Mental chaos tends to bring the need for boredom while a quite mind begs for a big challenge. 

In short, knowing what we need is not all black and white.

That's why we have friends.

Last week a friend challenged me to post seven days of black and white photographs on Facebook. As there is always a catch, the photos could not contain humans or explanations. To me, the whole trial seemed like a piece of cake! All I needed to do was snap a few pictures, upload to social media and the week would be complete. 

But then I snapped the first photo.

Confronted with the fact I needed to create seven thrilling images to amuse and interest an audience was unnerving, complicated and thought-provoking. It was a reminder that often things seem simple but are complex.

And therein lies the challenge.

It turns out black and white photos don't always translate into deeply, textured images. Subject matter matters when there is no explanation or context. Lighting and perspective is a key to telling a respectable narrative and comfort zones are an exciting threshold to challenge.

Here are a few images that didn't make the cut:

Looking around at our world and seeing past humans was a fascinating study of life. It begged the question, is happiness is born from filtering our lives in a new way?

Try it and see if happiness follows for you too.

"Seven days. Seven black and white photos of your life. No humans. No explanation. Challenge someone on the last day."

Until tomorrow friends.

Here we are at the start of a new year. It can feel daunting to begin something fresh. A blank sheet waits for us to make the next chapter to take shape. In the pressure, we make resolutions. We are going lose weight, read more books, get a new job, organize our lives, travel the world, and live life to the fullest. We set goals and start our checklist.

However, what if happiness comes from making only one resolution?

What if we ask ourselves "Does this fill me up?" 

Does this food fill me up?

Does this relationship fill me up?

Does this travel fill me up?

Does this exercise fill me up?

Does this kind of thinking fill me up?

Does this feeling fill me up?

If the answer is no, then let's move on to something that does. If we are lucky, happiness might just follow, and the next chapter might fill with a narrative filled with joy.

Until tomorrow friends.

It's the time of year again when we sift through our memories and reflect on people that bring joy to our lives. Some of them are gone. However, they left parts of themselves for us to carry forward such as a good old-fashioned recipe or a holiday tradition. We sometimes feel compelled to make these recipes and bring traditions forward.

Growing up in the Midwest we had many recipes that are near and dear to my heart. The Cracker Dip, my grandma, use to whip up every Thanksgiving was such a hit that I couldn't imagine ever having a Thanksgiving without it. Then I realized what she put in the Cracker Dip.

What is Budding Beef anyway?

The older I get, the more I understand some of the things left for me from my ancestors are snapshots in time and can be left for a bygone era, like the Cool Whip salad or giblet gravy.

That is why this year, I created and picked a new tradition for my family. I searched high and low, far and wide for the best cranberry sauce recipe. After some trial an error, here is a tradition which I hope will carry on far after I'm gone or at least until next year.

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The Best Cranberry Sauce (For Now)

Servings: Approximately 4-6 

• 12 oz of fresh organic cranberries
• 2 teaspoons freshly grated Satsuma Mandarin rind
• 1 whole cinnamon stick
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 3/4 cup and 2 tablespoons organic sugar
• 1 tablespoon butter
• a pinch of salt

In a large saucepan add the cranberries, mandarin rind, cinnamon, nutmeg sugar and mix well. On medium heat cook the mixture for 10-15 minutes stirring every few minutes. Let the cranberries pop, remove the cinnamon sticks and let cool. Store in an airtight container for up to a week.

When the cranberry sauce is needed, heat the butter in a large saucepan and let melt completely on low add the sauce and a pinch of salt and warm for 5 minutes. Serve warm.

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When you try this recipe, let me know if it made you happy!

Until tomorrow friends.

This post contains affiliate links.

Friends make us better people. They challenge us, support us and introduce new things to our lives. When we start to feel like there isn't much joy in the world, our dreams stall, people hurt other people, anxiety reigns, and things seem murky, its friends on which we lean. They talk us through the tough stuff and help us answer: 

Is there a light in the world? 

Is there joy?

Has humankind lost its ability to be kind?

And then we remember we have amazing, loving and rock solid friends that carry us forward and teach us new things. 

Speaking of beautiful friends and new things, a lovely someone introduced me the German holiday, Laternelaufen, which is today. It means "walk with lanterns." You can read the legend of the holiday here "Laternelaufen - The Story of Saint Martin." This holiday is vital. It brings kindness and friendship forward. Let's create a potent symbol, the lantern, to show the goodness that exists around us.

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Laternelaufen Paper Lanterns

• 1 - 12.5" x 9" piece Canson Opalux Paper {affiliate link} or found here at Blick.com. 
• 2 pieces of cardstock with the bottom template, cuff and celestial pattern printed here
• Aleene's Fast Grab Tacky Glue{affiliate link}
• 2 rubber bands
• 25 gauge garden wire
• 1/4" wooden dowel rod about 14" long
• craft knife{affiliate link}
• ruler
• scissors
• a hole punch
• pliers
• 1 battery powdered tea light

1. With the craft knife score .5 inch of the Opalux paper on the right side from top to bottom. The tab will be the connector to the left side. Now, score every 2" from top to bottom. Fold the paper on each score.

2. Cut out the bottom and shapes. Fold the tabs on the bottom. Using scissors cut out the cuff and shapes. Glue the two pieces of cuff together and let dry. Score the cuff by half lengthwise and fold over. Score the width of the cuff every two inches.  

3. Glue the star and moon shapes to the inside of the Opalux paper. Let dry for approximately 5 min. Now glue the right .5 tab to the left side. You will have a 3-dimensional hexagon shape. Continue to let dry.

4. Slide the base tabs into the inside of the hexagon and glue to the inside. Glue the cuff to the top and let dry completely

5. Punch two holes at the top of the hexagon. With the pliers, cut an 8-inch piece of garden wire. Twist in the middle to create a loop. Thread the other two ends of the wire into the two holes on the hexagon and bend the wire to secure.

6. Slide and loop on rubber band on the end of the dowel rod. Slide the dowel rod through the loop in the lantern wire. Tie the rubber band on the side opposite of the first rubber band so the lantern wire is sandwiched between the two rubber bands.

Place a battery operated tea light the bottom of the lantern.

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Watch as our lanterns bring joy to the world as they shine their light on the places the world needs to see.

Until tomorrow friends.

This post contains affiliate links.

Sometimes we get stuck. Sometimes we don't even know we are stuck. It becomes days of the same routine. Our days break down to widgets and checkmarks. We eat the same foods. Drive the same way to work. Wear the same clothes. We forget that our brains need to stretch and we need to try something new to reinvigorate the old grey matter.

It's times like these we need good old shove like the day I received an email from someone who asked me if I had ever tried my hand at Chinese calligraphy. 

Well no, I have never tried Chinese calligraphy but it sounds interesting. It was just the push I needed to create something that made my synapses fire! The good people at Invaluable created a thoughtful and well-developed tutorial to help even the most reluctant try their hand at something new.

Here is what Invaluable has to say about Chinese calligraphy. They have included a terrific video to help us along our brain growing journey.

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Invaluable - As an artistic expression of the written word, what makes Chinese calligraphy so distinctive is its visual form. Calligraphy has been revered as a fine art for centuries and was even prized above all others in traditional China. Over the centuries, different styles have evolved, and today, modern artists continue to fuse traditional techniques with new practices creating a distinctive take on the art of calligraphy. Have you ever considered trying your hand at Chinese calligraphy?

To help you get started, Invaluable created a video tutorial of Chinese calligraphy in action. The guide demonstrates two techniques for you to try using both the traditional tools of brush and inkstone as well as the modern pen.

After watching the video and printing out the Invaluable Caligraphy Worksheet it was apparent Chinese Caligraphy takes tremendous amounts of skill and patience. Although it would have been great to have the traditional tools, I opted for the following materials:

Yasutomo Sumi Ink {affiliate link}

Pentel Watercolor Pen {affiliate link}

You might try sipping a warm mug of Matcha Green Tea {affiliate link} while you feel your brain expand.

Until tomorrow brainiac friends.

It's been a while. We haven't talked in a few weeks. It is, however, vital to talk about how perfection shouldn't be a part of a plan. We are going to miss a few days, take the wrong job, make some crappy art, say a stupid thing at the right time, walk away when we should have stood our ground and given up when giving in to being ourselves would have been very wise. We are going to tumble, fall, run off the road and lose control of it all. We might find ourselves lost in the middle of failure and hope for the map that marks an x for the destination called perfection.

However, where is the adventure in perfection? 

It's nowhere. It's failure that marks the spot and is the buried treasure that will build a better tomorrow.

So, let's celebrate the wrong turns, stomach churns and getting lost in all that failure provides. Let's keep creating stuff, failing a bunch and see what kind of adventure is around the corner.

Until tomorrow friends.

It's another busy day like any other day. Most of us rush, rush, rush off to the next meeting, event or school drop off. It can feel like there isn't time to do anything including the most important thing, take care of ourselves. 

We start cutting corners regarding our health. It's the first thing to go. We begin to feel tired, edgy and grumpy. One of the immediate things we do is hurry through times like lunch.

I am the first to be guilty of eating fast. I don't pay attention to the taste, texture or the kind of food I'm putting in my body. I just eat to wash away stress and keep moving. My mind is in such a rush. It's just saying just eat and go!

Today, I took a 10- minute creative break to slow and calm down. This pause included taking time to enjoy a perfect, crisp fall apple that was picked for me by two little fall critters this weekend. I decided to sketch the apple devoured and thought about the taste of each bite.

It felt good to pause. Taking a creative break helped me focus.

How does it feel to take time to care about yourself today when you take a creative break?

Until tomorrow friends.

This post contains affiliate links.

With the longer days of fall ahead and the colder months of winter looming, it is a great time to think about creating something for our homes that will bring nature inside our space. This Kokedama String Garden from ProFlowers is just the answer to making something lovely, alive and modern as our time outdoors shortens.

ProFlowers is providing an easy step-by-step tutorial to show us how to create our very own Kokedama string garden. They want us to know:

"Creating something meaningful for our home is the perfect way to add a natural decor element that makes a big impact.

Whether you’re looking to add some interest to space or create something unique, a kokedama string garden might be just what you need. Kokedama is a Japanese gardening method where a plant’s roots are wrapped in moss and suspended. As a centuries old art form, the kokedama string garden has been around for a while and is making its way back into homes as a unique decor element. And the best part? Creating your own is probably easier than you’d expect. To help you get started on your own, ProFlowers put together a DIY string garden tutorial. So let’s get started making something one-of-a-kind!"

Check out this video as I use the ProFlowers tutorial to make one of these delightful kokedama balls of wonder.

After doing this project based on the ProFlowers tutorial, the kokedama is an easy way to add nature back into any indoor setting. While I opted not to hang my creation, letting it dangle at a window would be equally interesting. 

It is important to know, gathering the supplies was the hardest part. There was a lot of work searching online and in stores to find all the right goodies. However, there were oodles of dirt and moss left over after making just one kokedama. So many supplies, we could make a ton of these delightful, green gems for gifts for the holidays or invite friends over for a fun kokedama creating party.

To make things simple, here is a list of easiest places to find the hardest to find supplies:

Twine - It was important for me the twine blended into the moss. I found a Hemptique Hemp Cord Spool {affiliate link} worked well. It was the perfect weight and strength. For simple cotton twine this worked well and can be used in the kitchen after the project is complete: Librett Durables Butchers Twine {affiliate link}.

Sheet moss, sphagnum moss, peat soil, potting soil - All of these items were found in the garden center at my local home improvement store and were far less expensive than online. 

Bonsai soil - This is the only place I could locate the Bonsai soil. {affilate link}

Well, let me know how your moss balls turn out.

Until tomorrow friends!

Sometimes we only have a few minutes to create in our lives. Sometimes the simplest things make the biggest impact in our day like a highlighter. We often think of a highlighter as the accessory to the printed word. A highlighter, however, is so much more. Pick one up and try writing out your favorite quote, making some scribbles or using it to draw a few characters. Then step back and soak in your creativity.

Was your creative break better than a coffee break? 

Until tomorrow friends.

It got left behind. In between the mundane tasks of summer and making life organized. Maybe it seemed instantly abandoned, but the detachment happened slowly like a piece of warm salt water taffy pulled in half stretching slowly, languishing at the thought of trying to stay together. It was never far but always seemed too much to juggle when the siren song of warm July and August days made their debut. It sat curled up, loved but not unlike an old beloved family pet, left to its own devices.

It would call, and my voice would respond with:

"I'll get to you in a minute." 

Or

"You will need to wait until I have time."

Or 

"I'm too busy right now enjoying this warm summer day."

Isn't that always the case with something that makes us uncomfortable?

We put it on hold. We leave it. We disregard it for later. We stall.

That's where we grow.

This summer I put creativity on hold. I didn't make or do. I went to the beach, played with my kids, ate a bucket of ice cream, traveled to new places, took in sunsets, watched movies and went to bed early. It was a needed respite for the years of thinking, going and doing. Creativity, however, was missing from my life. Like a quarter needed for the car wash that fell between the seats, I realized even more that creativity is the currency to make our lives clean and whole.

First, it gives us direction by providing the possibility of expansion. If we are creating every day, we are working to build something new and grow our lives in a new way. It creates essential building blocks for the future.

Second, it helps us reframe the problems in our lives. Sometimes we think what we think and know what we know. We tell ourselves that's it. Our creativity points us to other options and solutions. 

Third, it challenges us to find compassion for ourselves. Creating isn't easy. Most the time we fail, but creativity helps us to understand there is no right answer, no final product, and beauty in error.

And as we slowly pull ourselves from the hazy days of summer, I am saying hello to my old friend creativity and seeing what meaningful work I can do as fall flirts her falling leaves my way.

How about you old friends?

This Post Contains Affiliate Links.

Life can get messy.

We can find ourselves brimming with opportunities, tasks, and possibilities. Wadding through what is important can seem just as challenging as reaching the finish line at an Iron Man triathlon. Our lives get sticky; we get overwhelmed and distracted. Emotions can start to percolate as things become murky and undefined. Before we know it, we second guess ourselves. The task list and priorities become longer. We shut down and find ourselves firmly planted on a couch, numbing our lives with a can of Pringles as we mindlessly scroll through our social media accounts.

Being human is hard and being organized enough to find what brings meaning to our lives isn't black and white. 

Or is it?

The Panda Planner {affiliate link} is the answer to getting us off the couch and back onto a meaningful life path. This planner is a great way to filter what brings happiness and joy to the everyday. The creator of The Panda Planner, Michael Leip, struggled to find meaning too and has created this planner to help with "the motivation, the inspiration, the system - or whatever it is that you need - to set aside your stress and challenges and start living a fulfilling life and crushing your goals!" More like a meditation tool than a planner, The Panda Planner will clear the mind, ready emotions and get the task list defined. Paired with Meru Meditation beads {affiliate link} these tools will help us create an unstoppable force to add clarity to life.

Personally, I have found both an invaluable instrument for sorting through and setting an intention each day.

Let's put down the Pringles, get off the couch and start working toward our goals. Only then will things become black and white.

Until tomorrow Panda Power friends!

This post contains affiliate links.

The sweltering summer heat brings about many things. We might find can find ourselves looking for comfort in a visit to a local watering hole, sopping up the sunshine as we road trip down a highway or swinging by a park to soak in the last few hours with our families. It's these moments that create the memories that make the juice worth the squeeze.

And then our stomachs rumble, and we realize we didn't plan dinner.

Here is the good news. It is a perfect time of year for something subtle, spicy, hearty, refreshing and bursting with the summer sun. Found at most supermarkets or farmer's markets, it can be big and fleshy or tiny and sweet. It has an identity crisis and often called a vegetable. No matter what, we can make it into a perfect portable dinner and keep pumping love right into our summer.

Every year, about this time, I pull from my kitchen shelf "French Women Don't Get Fat. The secret of Eating For Pleasure" {affiliate link} by Mireille Guiliano. Yes, the title isn't a favorite but the recipes inside are simple and delicious.  A variation on one darling recipe made with a perfectly ripe seasonal tomato is below. When the warm days say goodbye, this recipe will make you miss summer. Let's take tonight and create an outdoor picnic that will fill our bellies and help us continue to soak in the delightfully long summer days.

Picnic Worthy Tomato Salad With Goat Cheese 

• 4 large heirloom tomatoes
• Jacobsen Sea Salt to taste {affiliate link}
• 6 oz fresh sheep's feta or goat cheese
• 2 tablespoons minced shallots
• 1 teaspoon yellow or Dijon or yellow mustard
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 loaf crusty bread

Step 1: Slice the tomatoes to be about 1/2 inch thick. Place in a portable container with a seal- tight lid and sprinkle with salt and goat cheese. Close lid and set aside.

Step 2: Place shallots, mustard, vinegar, and olive oil in a small leak-proof container. Close the lid and shake until combined. Place the tomato, dressing, and bread in a cooler or picnic basket with some ice packs if eating later. Bring everything needed for a picnic. Once ready to eat, pour the dressing on top of tomatoes, serve a few slices to each tomato with dressing, rip off a hunk of bread and dig into the fruit that makes summertime amazing.

Enjoy the summer love and the happiness that comes with each bite.

Until soon friends!

Summertime can bring a slow down to our lives. It's a time when a daytime frisbee game calls to us more than the paper on our desks. Our task list gets longer as we throw water balloons on our hot concrete driveways. The e-mails that need our response sit unattended as we play ball in the park with our kids. The summer light hits the landscape just right, and we forget all about the meetings, obligations and need to keep doing. 

This pause in our commitments could be called a summer slowdown, and it can feel like we aren't moving forward, taking care of business and downright failing at making success happen.

However, when we force ourselves to slow down, do we start to create a sense of what is truly important to us?

I'm going to continue to say "Oh Hey!" to the summer slowdown and see where my summertime failure takes me.

How about you?

Soak up the summer rays, stare at the sunflowers and I'll see you soon friends.

Saturday is a great day to start somewhere on something that means something to us. Meaningful work brings joy and space in our lives, and Saturday can give us the time to build on what we need. Saturday helps provide a space where we can expand and do the things that make us whole. 

It doesn't matter what kind or work we do or it's perceived value to others. It's our contribution to the world, and it is important. What we create this Saturday can have an everlasting impact on our future which in turn changes the people and space around us.

So let's pick the strawberries, gather our supplies, prep the jars, measure the ingredients, make our jam and start filling our cupboards with our meaningful work.

We undoubtedly will need it for later. There will be a morning when we open our pantry and choose to slather something sweet on our toast. 

Enjoy your Saturday and may we use today to create something satisfying for ourselves and the world around us. It's so important.

Until Tomorrow Friends.

The summer can do funny things to us. As we open ourselves up to the possibilities the season can provide, we can find ourselves skinny dipping into our lives. We are making ourselves vulnerable to something new, raw and real. We might travel to a new place to immerse ourselves in a new culture. We might find ourselves in the kitchen brewing up something new and fresh. We might take in an outdoor concert from a beloved band. We might find a canoe and drift lazily down the river.

Or we might take our kids on a summer morning to an Art Museum.

Sandwiched between "Please pick up your Legos!" and "What are we going to do today?" I had an insane plan to take my two small children to BAMPFA. BAMPFA is a real Art Museum filled with lots of interesting galleries, different mediums of art, lots of breakable stuff and complex exhibits. In other words, a great place to take two small kids!

Like an exhibit that contained clowns, lots of very uncomfortable clowns.

I have viewed some art in my lifetime but the UGO RONDINONE: THE WORLD JUST MAKES ME LAUGH exhibit made me unsettled, provoked lots of thought and downright gave me the creeps.

And without prompting the artwork had the same effect on my two little ones.

When we first set foot in the gallery, my daughter took a step back and tried to bolt out of the gallery. My son clung to my pants at the sight of shimmery, colorful, and playful clowns dressed in their clown attire. All of the figures were so realistic in their positioning the kids felt the artwork might "jump up and grab them." I asked each of my children questions. How the art made them feel? They both reported "uncomfortable and creepy." When we moved into the gallery that was also a part of the exhibit called "Rainbow Afternoon: Drawing Workshops for Kids" filled with hundreds and hundreds of children's drawings depicting rainbows the kids reported they felt "happy." 

When I asked them which gallery the preferred, they said "both." They said the clowns made them feel one way but the rainbows drawings made them feel a different way, and they liked having both emotions.

Isn't funny how art and creativity have a way of transforming us into feeling different things?

Until Sometime Soon Friends!

Summertime can roll by so fast. Memorial day pops up and then before we know it, Labor Day seals in and closes out the good times. Sandwiched in the middle is a holiday that just sparkles, the 4th-Of-July.

When I was a kid, there was something magical about the 4th. The red, white and blue banners that glimmered from porches made me happy. The summer humidity of the Midwest rolling down my back forced me to feel alive. The parades that marched brightly down the street were effervescent in their glory.

Then there was the flag cake. 

Wait there wasn't?

Nope. 

We never had flag cake!

Let's make this 4th-Of-July perfect by creating a flag cake or rather a giant flag cookie, because nothing says, "We Love America!" more than one pound of butter and 3 cups sugar. It's America's Super Cookie, and nothing else could celebrate the birth of our nation better!

America's Super Cookie

• 2 cups (4 sticks) butter, softened
• 3 cups granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 5 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon Kosher salt

Frosting

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
• 8 oz cream cheese
• 2-3 cups powdered sugar
• 1-2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup fresh blueberries
• 2 cups fresh strawberries thinly sliced

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a jelly roll half pan (approx 17.25" x 12.25") with baking spray. Line the jelly roll with parchment paper, so the paper overhangs the pan. In a stand-up mixer, whip the butter on medium speed for 3 min. Scrape the sides of the bowl and whip for 1 additional min. Add the sugar and mix for 3 min. Add the eggs one at a time and then add the vanilla. Mix well.

Step 2: In a separate medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the dry mixture to the butter mixture. Combine on a slow speed until smooth. Place the cookie dough on the jelly roll pan and spread until even and smooth. Bake for 15-20 min until the edges are golden and a toothpick comes out clean from the middle of the dough. Let the cookie cool completely.

Step 3: With a hand mixer, cream the butter and cream cheese. Add the salt and lemon and combine until smooth. On the completely cooled cookie spread the frosting evenly. Let chill for 1 hour. Add the blueberries and strawberries in a flag pattern right before serving. 

What could make the 4th-Of-July more perfect?

Until tomorrow Great Americans!