too many stokes, too many fires, too many everything

ah! today is a day where i feel like i/we have too many stokes in the fire, too many fires to put out, and too many. . .everything. so, instead of dealing with it, i'm blogging. how do people with more than one child do anything? i know how people with no children get it done. i used to be one of those people and i was highly productive. how do people get it all done, sleep, eat, and clean their house?
today i am trying to do the following:

1. be a good mother

2. paint the trim in my kitchen white

3. clean the house so we can have guests this weekend

4. get crafts together for craft night

5. work on expanding the produce part of our farming operation

6. spray paint chairs

7. try not to lose my mind.

instead, i think that i will cut myself a break, drink more coffee, and get what i can done. at least, i have my dinner planned.

i've been dying to tell you

i feel like i've been gone from this blog posting business way too long. my apologies. turns out, raising a child is time consuming. so here are all things i wanted to tell you. . .
1. a beetle infestation killed my eggplants. assholes. thus, there are no more eggplants.
2. there are PLENTY of cherokee purple tomatoes, roma tomatoes, cucumbers, jalapenos, yellow squashes, acorn squashes, red potatoes, serrano peppers, & herbs. email me to purchase.
3. my friend summer writes a blog about life as a mother. she recently wrote a piece about those incredibly wasteful kleenex hand towels. you know, because your reusable, washable cloth hand towel may get you sick. (hear that sarcasm?) check her blog out.
4. summer also sent me a great idea about keeping prepared beans & rice in the fridge for the days when you can't possibly find anything to eat. this would be great for mike. i can go to the grocery store, spend a $100, come home. . .and he will ask me if there is anything to eat. but, that's not the point, her friend michael b. gave her this idea and including ideas for "dressing up" the rice & beans. one of those ideas, was black beans, rice, and SLICED MANGO. i just ate it. so friggin' delicious.
5. sweet corn from our farmer friend down the road is the best thing that ever happened to me. like my friend, meggan, said. . ."i like summer because it's like your meals are planned for you". meaning, ideally, we all should be eating what is fresh & available. like sweet corn, tomatoes, & cucumbers. running out of ideas? how about sweet corn panna cotta or corn & basil cakes or mix your cucumbers, tomatoes, a little red onion, olive oil, S&P, lemon juice, and day old bread to make a delicious salad. once again, a summer contribution. from my friend summer, not the season. well, kind of the season. oh, jesus. you know what i mean!
6. speaking of basil. . . if you have not made pesto yet this is the time. freeze it into ice cube trays and use throughout the year.
7. cashew butter is amazing, my friend, kalle, and i ate at daily grub last week and elle did an awesome job with cashew butter. i had a sope & quesadilla that both had it in there. i could bathe in that stuff.
8. mike and i got a dog named rufus on saturday. he is not very good with cats, however, so we had to give him back. if anyone you know would like a very sweet, docile, big, smart lover dog named rufus let me know. he is great with children & other dogs. he stays on the property and understands simple commands. he is a two year old golden retriever, rottweiler mix.
9. too much squash in your garden? or people keep leaving it at your door? check out this wonderful soup recipe. i think it would be good with some good, old-fashioned blt's on the side.
10. it's back to school time, so look forward to a back to school special of our provision subscription and a community craft night.

you're all amazing and i hope you survive the heat wave. remember the popsicles.

kids make you. . .

1. eat better. this morning i wanted to have a piece of cake for breakfast, but hendrix was there so i didn't. i ate scrambled eggs, blueberries, and whole wheat toast instead. you see, if hendrix sees you eating or drinking something. . .he wants it. has to have it. so, in an effort to not allow hendrix to eat unfilling junk food i have to always think twice before i pour myself a coke. or munch on baked goods.
2. wear a swimsuit. lucky for me, they make you want to eat better, too. prior to having hendrix i had not worn a swimsuit for something like 8 years. mostly, because i am see through and i didn't want to scare children at the public pool. and because i thought i was fat. now hendrix wants to go to the pool. and the city requires everyone who enters to be wearing a swimsuit. weird rule, but forces me to step outside of my comfort zone.
3. appreciate your body. prior to having hendrix i thought i was fat. then i got pregnant and experienced what fat really is. not that we're fat when we are pregnant, but we are large and in charge. our body can't do what it could do before. like tie our own shoes, for instance. but most importantly, pregnancy allows you to see what you can really do. for me, i could handle being sick for weeks, constant anxiety when i was diagnosed with preeclampsia, a thirty hour labor, a c-section, and sleep deprivation. before pregnancy i could barely handle being hungover. post pregnancy i realized i could grow a HUMAN. and not just any human. a HENDRIX! i look at my body with such appreciation now. i no longer think i am fat. i think i am highly functioning, efficient MILF.
4. want to have more kids.
i realize this is not a solely food related post, but i am feeling a bit nostalgic today. so thanks for indulging me.

sick and tired

the babe is sick. sick babes are the worst for a number of reasons. as a mother, it is heartbreaking when your kid is sick and you can't do anything but wait for it all to pass. also, as a mother, it is incredibly tiring to be the only thing that will make it all better. i don't think this makes me a terrible mother. i think it makes me an honest one. however, since this is a blog about food. . .here are some summer cold busters. . .
watermelon!
berry minty popsicles
graham crackers
blueberries
quinoa with parmesan
water!
watermelon!
these are the only things hendrix will eat. keep this in mind when your kids are sick. or you are. he really does seem to be energized for a short period after eating them. and then he sneezes.

popsicles and smores!

important editor's note: orange poppy baking co. is throwing in a free bag of their artisan handcrafted apple cider marshmallows to the first ten people to place an order with clementine's. this is for produce orders and provision subscriptions! isn't that great!

this weekend & next week are supposed to be HOT! real hot. i'm not looking forward to it. so i got to quick get all my housework done while it is still cool. now, i want everyone to go buy popsicle molds at at target this weekend. or make your own out of yogurt containers and those cute sticks. side note, if i was getting married in the summer i would totally serve popsicles at my wedding. with cute messages of love printed on the sticks. which is where smores come in. . .i am having smores at my wedding. and my friend, summer of orange poppy baking company, makes handcrafted artisan marshmallows that are going to go into smore kits for everyone. so there's another thing i want everyone to do. buy some marshmallows from her and make a smore*. the apple pie marshmallow changed my life. now here are some popsicle recipes!

minty berry pop:
1/2 bag frozen berries
1/2 c. lowfat plain yogurt
1 1/4 c. lemonade
1/3 c. chopped mint
generous squirt of honey

blend together, pour in molds, wait a few hours, and enjoy!

watermelon mint pops:
2 c. watermelon
1/2 c. chopped mint
1 T. sugar
juice from 1/2 lime

blend together, pour in molds, wait a few hours, and enjoy!

coco loco*
1 13.5 ounce can unsweetened coconut milk
1 c. chopped pineapple-1 ripe banana, lightly chopped
1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
A few grinds of fresh black pepper
A few fresh mint leaves

blend together, pour in molds, wait a few hours, and enjoy!

* this is from designsponge online. best design blog ever. check them out! http://www.designspongeonline.com/2010/06/small-measures-with-ashley-diy-popsicles.html#ixzz0tr1bIbyG
*email me at clementinespandp@gmail.com for information on how to get marshmallows from orange poppy baking company. or how to buy some of our produce. or how to have us help you save time, money, and your sanity with our provision subscription.

rantin' (and ravin')

it's been a whole week since i last posted. i feel like i have been playing hooky. except everyone knew. i am going to be doing a bit of ranting on this fine tuesday.

1. where do people think their food comes from? if you like farm fresh, local produce then surely you must know it comes from farms. and farms are made up of land. so if there is no land. . .there is no farm. no farm. . .no local produce. or local meat. or local dairy. so development of subdivisions and strip malls has to stop sometime. right? because the more you push the farmer out, the farther the food has to travel. and that is not local.
i bring this subject up because we were recently talking to some fellow farmers about new developments happening on our road. developments that include more housing. aren't we in a recession? aren't homes being foreclosed on? how are people going to buy a home? and what are these people going to eat?
2. i asked the lady at big lots today if they sold sun tea jars. she told me those were outdated. she told me this while she wore black, leather high tops and had a scrunchie in her hair.
3. do you think americans have health problems and weight issues because they can't do simple math? a woman came to buvette last night and asked me what we had that was lowfat on the menu. this is my least favorite question that women ask of all time. i directed her to some salads and a summer vegetable soup. she ordered a bowl of the soup, a plate of hummus, and a salad. she ate it all, including the bread plate that is served with the hummus. now i am no rocket scientist, but i am pretty sure she could of gotten an entree and consumed less calories and fat. portion control, healthy fats, lots of produce. . . that's all i'm saying.
4. quinoa is the best thing that ever happened to me. i got mike to eat it and he liked it . after i told him it was a full protein and how much it cost, he asked why all starving countries and poor people didn't eat it. touche', mike, touche'.
5. i love my job at buvette because i get to meet great, interesting people almost every time i work. ( i also get to meet some not so great people, but that is another story that all servers have to tell) this weekend i met the chef of the bread and cup in lincoln. (www.breadandcup.com) the restaurant sources almost all of it's food locally during the spring and summer season. it was so great to meet people who love food and love nebraska and what it has to offer as much as i do. go to their restaurant sooner than later. my friend, shannon, is a server there and is awesome.

well, that was a nice even mix of ranting and raving.
off to garden now. . .

when you gotta eat. . .you gotta eat

my aunt t. went to a hospice home today to visit an old family friend that is dying. my uncle, cousin, and pseudo aunt p. were up there as well. aunt p. is lovely, but nuts. as everyone is visiting and making small talk during this very somber moment, aunt p. goes into her purse (actually it was a men's shaving kit that she had repurposed to be her purse) and begins to fish around. she pulls out a fast food hamberger wrapper and asks where her hamburger is. continues to fish around. then finds the hamburger among her chapstick and snot rags. takes a few bites and continues to visit with those around her. aunt t. told me that aunt p. was taking bites of it the whole visit. i think aunt p. could really use clementine's provision services.