I’ve been absent so long that I’m not even sure where to start. Should I tell you about my crazy summer, full of long work hours and busy projects. Should I mention that we had a hog barn burn down just a few weeks ago. Or that school started way before I was ready for it to. All of it adds up to my absence. But I’m back. And ready to show you what we’ve been up to!

It’s taken me sometime, but I’ve finally started making recipes from the Gooseberry Patch readers said they wanted me to cook from for our Real Farmwives of America partnership! So I’ll be sharing my new fave recipes from 101 Homestyle Favorites over the next few weeks.

My first recipe is called Summer Sparkle.  My kids and I enjoyed this on one of our recent 90+ degree days.  We were sweating faster than we could replenish ourselves so we decided to cool down with a nice beverage.

This recipe was beyond simple to make.  Take a 48 ox bottle of red grapefruit juice, 12 oz frozen can of orange juice, 6 oz frozen can of lemonade, and a bottle of lemon-lime soda (I used diet to cut back on the calories).  Let the orange juice and lemonade thaw and the simply pour all of this in a big pitcher and mix.

My kids loved it!

For something special, pour this drink into ice cube trays and freeze.  Then pop the ice cubes into a glass of tap water to make a flavored water.  I used ice cube trays that have popsicle sticks in them so the kids could then eat the juice like a popsicle!  Those didn’t even last long enough for me to taste them. 

Special thanks to Gooseberry Patch for providing me with this great cookbook to try and share with you. If you would like to purchase this or other cookbooks, please visit their store. If you would like to see other great recipes, check out http://www.realfarmwivesofamerica.com

I have hit the perverbial writer’s block. I have nothing interesting to write about. Or I don’t think I do. 

I have plenty of pictures on my camera of recipes waiting to be shared, the first day of school for Panda and Monkey needing to be posted, and pictures of vacation with the family.  And yet I can’t find the desire to post them.

Anyone want to give me a swift kick in gear?

Congrats to SoLDuky for winning my giveaway to the Indianapolis Indians game! Please send me your contact info so I can get the tickets to you.

I’m a full time, working mom with a 90 minute commute to work. Mornings can be chaotic. There are some mornings I would never get out of the house on time if it weren’t for the help my Panda and Monkey provide. On one recent morning, Monkey said she would give her brother his bottle.  They really are great kids.

My kids love bubbles.  I will walk throughout the house and yard and find bottles of bubbles laying around. I try to keep the half-empty bubbles containers in one place, but they still end up everywhere. That’s why I was happy to get a small, galvanized bucket from Red Hill General Store. It is the perfect size to keep by our front door so the girls can grab a bottle of bubbles when they head out to play. And hopefully the bubbles will return to this bucket for the next playtime!
 

In looking for other uses for my bucket, I thought it would make a great storage container for fruit. I always have fresh fruit available for the kids. If I leave it on the counter, they are much more likely to grab a piece instead of asking for candy. I think these apples look great in here!

And I’m a sucker for pretty flowers. You can always find a floral arrangement in my house. I love flowers and think they brighten up a room. Sunflowers are one of my favorites! And this bunch looks great in my bucket.

While Red Hill General Store did provide me with a bucket to blog about for this post the pictures, ideas and opinions shared here are my own.  Thanks Red Hill General Store for the bucket. It has plenty of uses around my house!