Misc. Scenes from Our Week

 The nights have gone from little to no reprieve from the scorching hot of the day to almost chilly. When did fall get here? Dema has been sleeping in and the other morning Josie came downstairs to tell me I just had to go upstairs to see how cute Dema looked. She was right. I love how he is all cuddled up in his favorite orange organic cotton sheet that was too hot to put over him at night just a week or so ago.

 Look at that cute little face. Josie couldn't take it anymore and had to kiss Dema until he woke up. The love of a little sister can be sweet and slightly sadistic at the same time.

 One of Parker's friends was over this week (well several, but not on the same day). Parker was dismayed because the friend wasn't eating the snacks they were enjoying (cherries, strawberries, pb and j mini sandwiches, nectarines, plums, pluots, cashews and dried cherries) I looked in the bare refrigerator and decided no one can turn down vegan hot dogs in puff pastry with unsweetened ketchup and mustard for dipping. I was correct. Two batches disappeared and then I made a third with baked tofu instead of vegan hot dogs.

 Saturday the kids and Rob went to a nearby lake with the local "ski club" (thanks to our neighbors, Vicky and Greg who are members and encouraged us to try out some of their events). I stayed home with Persephone, cleaned the house, organized our homeschooling books, and listened to The Mockingjay again as I cleaned. Persephone usually follows me everywhere during the day and if I stay up at night she stays with me until I go to bed. Yet, Saturday she stayed on "her couch" (we were going to give this couch away so we put in the dining room next to the door to take to the curb, but Sephe doesn't get up on any of the other furniture and she took this couch over as her own) the entire day. She barked at every single person that walked by (which happened to be a lot since it was a beautiful day). I don't know if she was out of sorts because the kids were gone or bored with my cleaning/organizing. The kids had a lovely time at the lake and the boys even tried their hand (or legs really) at water skiing for the first time. Rob didn't take any pictures since he was also swimming and skiing.

 Our awesome neighbor, Margie, is so incredibly kind to Dema that I just want to hug her each time I see her. They read together almost every week day and lately she has created little scavenger hunts after he accomplishes a certain task. This time there was a box of Strawberry Fields vegan peanut butter brownies at the end of the hunt. Enough to share with his siblings. Yum!

 Josie had her last day of summer ballet. She can't wait for the fall semester to begin.

 More tomato sauce. Red, orange, heirloom, and grape tomatoes, garlic, carrots, spicy olives, cashews, white wine, red onions, various peppers, thyme, rosemary, oregano, raw pumpkin seeds, golden raisins,  nutritional yeast, tahini, and I'm sure some other stuff I can't remember. I love making sauce with veggies from our garden.

 Rob made some awesome black bean and tofu burritos for dinner this week, but I didn't snap a picture. We had some leftovers so I made burritos for lunch. Homemade black beans (Rob works some magic on them after I cook them), artichoke hearts, salsa, baked tofu, brown rice, avocado, a bit of Lisanatti vegan cheese, and a dab of vegan sour cream on a whole wheat tortilla.

 Peaches and nectarines.

 The pasta sauce above all pureed and served over whole wheat spaghetti and topped with black pepper and walnuts.

 We never tire of hibiscus tea. Isn't it pretty?

 A typical homeschooling day lunch. They need to keep up their strength for all the fun we have.

 Today was a snugly day. It was little thunderstorm after little thunderstorm. So nice after the three months of draught! Persephone isn't scared of storms, although she does seem to hate water, but she even felt the need to snuggle in today. The kids might have helped arrange the pillows, but she stayed like this for a very long time. Rainy days are really nice days with Persephone because there are no people and dogs to bark at and save us from 

Look at that cute little face. Often she reminds me of Dema.