Baskets and a challenge

Around here we are blessed with a program called Bountiful Baskets.  We are not blessed with overly abundant farmers' markets, so this sort of takes that place for us.  Bountiful Baskets is in several states and growing! To friends and family in IOWA....there are now 2 sites open!

Not all states and sites have lots of location options. Some don't currently have the added benefit of the "extras". For us, we order our bread through this program, every other week organic 9 grain bread, very yummy and at the most affordable price I can find. Each week we have a variety of extras we can buy, but we don't always take advantage of those items. Some of our favorites though are cases of apples, strawberries, black berries, blueberries, sour dough bread, granola, olive oil, honey, as a very small sampling. During special holidays, there are even cookies and quick breads!

I know I have shared about this program before, but as it continues to open in new states and with new sites, I do have friends and family around the United States wishing it was near them, or excited that it finally is and have lots of questions.

The most important one, is it worth it?

I wondered that too before we got started, and hooked!  I like to pick out the produce we're going to actually use so that I'm not wasting my money.  While we get to choose our extras, our basic basket is always a surprise as to what we'll get. We know it will be a variety with a goal of 6 different veggies and 6 different fruits. I was hesitant at first.

Our least favorite and just no idea what to do with was Jerusalem Artichokes.

I still don't know what to do with these things and cringe when we receive them and I do my best to "share" with someone else.

However, more often than not, we get a pretty good sampling of things we do like and have even gotten to try new things that have become new favorites, like bok choy, butter lettuce, and red sweet corn.

So the easy and quick answer is YES! YES, it is worth it.  Take a look at this week's basket. It was one I wish I had gotten 2 baskets, it was just that perfect for us. Some seasons, the baskets are even more overflowing and one basket is more than enough.

The breakdown:
1 Butter lettuce
A huge bunch of broccoli
5 Summer Squash
4 ears of Red Sweet corn
2 English cucumbers
1 bag of carrots
5 large plumbs
1lb of strawberries
1 container of red raspberries
2 bags of red seedless grapes
1 cantaloupe

This is no extras, just the basic ordered basket. Amounts of each and the variety may vary from site to site a bit and the contents are affected by the seasons. But this is a really good idea of what you'll get.

The Challenge:
Take the above list to your local grocery store and price it out. See how much you would have spent. Did it come out to more than $15? That is all I spent on this basket. Our family is eating well and loves to sort through our produce each Saturday morning to see what we got.  last week this is a meal I made with much of it coming from baskets.

The guacamole used the on the vine tomatoes we got. A bowl of red sweet corn, sliced up summer squash and a fresh fruit salad, much coming from baskets.  The kids can often be found munching on bell pepper sticks and various other produce they pull out from the fridge.  Watching our kids make great eating choices is another benefit! We've even gotten Eric away from hiding his veggies in creams and cheese sauces and truly enjoying the taste of fresh good food.


The second challenge:
How can you share this program and bless others?
What I am suggesting is there is an opportunity for those of us who have access to such a program to share it. Share it with a family who have welcomed home a new baby, instead of more balloons or flowers. Share a basket with a new neighbor. Purchase extras and share those, or the jam you make with a note stating where the produce came from.  For $15 maybe you can bless 2 families, or shut ins with good food that brightens their day. Nourishing our souls, both with the giving and the healthy food. Purchase a basket and have friends over to come up with new recipes or have a new food tasting party.

Order times start Mondays Noon local til Tuesdays 8:30pm local -I think.

Want to see a site near you? That is super easy...just come visit us for a few weeks, I think 3 to be exact, we'll have a great time and get you trained up and then you can have one locally to bless your community.

Also....does anyone have a fail proof recipe for the Jerusalem Artichokes? I need to be prepared to be brave the next time they come around, but crossing my fingers it's a long time from now.

Week one

Okay...I have a ton of pictures to sort thru and share, but first let me tell you how week one went.

On Monday the girls gave great reports from school and were excited to go back. Sort of. Sweetness was not so sure about going every day.  I took the van in for a potential slow leak in a tire. There was a nail, but not in a patchable place so I bought a new tire, despite the tires themselves being pretty new. The boys did a trip to Phoenix. John to the airport. On the way home, while passing a semi truck, it threw a rock onto the rear passenger window. Eric said it sounded like a gun shot! SO SCARY! Our little guy was thankfully sitting on the other side and even more grateful that we had gotten the windows tinted, that is what prevent it from shattering and sending the millions of pieces INTO the car.

I did use the incident as a reminder as to why we don't throw rocks, or toys, or books, or really anything!

The rest of the mornings while Sweetness was at kindergarten, which is only half day, this guy wasn't really sure what to do. So he mostly laid on the couch, waiting for his sisters to come home.

The only one who could keep him company was Ariel. At one point I offered him the chance to paint, unsupervised while I took a shower, he turned me down. That is how melancholy he was!

CJ has had a blast in second grade. Making new friends and having fun at recess. This year has started off great for her! She even got to walk home in a thunderstorm one day. Okay, maybe she didn't see it as a positive, but now she can tell her kids and grandkids just how tough her walk to and from school was -including storms her mom made her walk in.

She has enjoyed her summer with this snap circuit kit. Sirens, fans, lights and more!  Today her glasses arrived, they got left in a hotel room last week. So she'll be ready for week 2 to start come Monday!

Now last year there were some issues with preschool. While I never got the full story, the short end is, she started to completely shut down. The teachers thought she was a painfully shy student since she refused to talk and would burst into tears when they spoke to her. After a month, we pulled her out and her little body just lifted when we told her she wouldn't have to go back.  So I did touch base with her teacher and mentioned that we like to make sure she uses her words and participates. I mentioned our concern of her shutting down and really withdrawing last year and wanting to stay on top of it this year.  Sweetness LOVED day one. However, she was surprised and really mulled over the idea of returning every day. She enjoys walking with our little neighborhood group but after school I would get mixed reviews and very little verbal out of her.  Honestly, I've been holding my breath.

When I picked her up today, she did tell me all about the fire drill and where they go.  When I turned to her teacher I learned that she had also been selected as student of the week for the kindergartners! WOW!! So proud and excited for her!  Her teacher said she has been participating, raising her hand and answers questions, just doing very well overall. What a relief! Her great teacher has also been reinforcing and giving her positive feedback when she does speak up and take part in activities.

And that is how week one played out.

School

School started today.

 Second Grader

 Kindergarten

 Bags hung in place, seats found, supplies unloaded.

Lining up.

I don't want to hear how cute and grown up they look.  I noticed just how tall CJ was while walking her in and I didn't really like it!  Sweetness was confident and excited to head into school. She announced she would be shy today, but I'm not sure that is what I saw out of her once we got there.  We finally got a quick meet and greet of CJ's teacher and found several friends in her class so I'm sure she'll have a fantastic year too.  Seven weeks is just too SHORT for summer break. Mommy is not happy about all this.

But I know they are, and I am excited for them.  Now I'm off to cry stamp in my short morning break I get today.

Good ol' Red White and Blue

 A small neighborhood parade, complete with a local fire truck!

 On bike

 With dogs

 On scooters

Check out the young man who wouldn't look at Mommy taking a picture due to the distraction of 2 little girls in a pink convertible passing him.

Everyone took a peek, or two, inside the fire truck, asking lots of questions and trying to push buttons or pull knobs when the firefighter wasn't looking.

 No organized lawn chair ladies, and no one owns a lawn mower of any sort, but for our first neighborhood parade, it was nice! The weather was slightly cloudy, humid but cooler than it had been, so really about perfect! Maybe next year I can remember to buy decorations for their bikes and scooters and not have to just find random items we have around the house.

Enjoy your summer, be safe!

VBS

Summer around here is not complete with out Vacation Bible School!  The theme this year was Nazareth.  The kids were a part of tribes and the first day they tie dyed tunics to identify which tribe they belonged to, then wore them the rest of the week.

 Each tribe visited various places within the market place, here they were at a food tent and got to try food that Jesus would have eaten on a regular basis.

 The tribes would meet in a huddle and discuss the day.

 Even the little kids, while they played mostly in the nursery, they went to Mary's house every day to hear stories about Jesus and partook in other activities that the big kids did as well.

 No market place is complete without chickens! The kids loved the chickens!

 There was seed planting at the farmer's field and bead making at the bead tent.

It was HOT! Even for us it was HOT the week of VBS.  Us volunteers and kids were happy that the "tents" were held inside air conditioned classrooms.  The kids had a blast and were worn out from the week!  Songs were sung and still are and the kids can tell you a lot about Nazareth and Jesus.