Weekend in pics

Hank repaired my screened in porch this weekend. It was busted through in four places. It was such a cheap fix I accidentally got some new plants and chairs while I was out. We put in some serious porch time this weekend.

 I made herbed butter with fresh herbs from my garden: sweet basil, Thai basil, chives, parsley, and thyme.

 I slathered it all over grilled corn and topped it off with parmesan. Best corn ever.

 I did a little baking...cinnamon streusel muffins

Here's the afternoon light I promised my new plants that they would get. Now I have to remember to water these too!

last week-skirts and stuff

 I love my cone flowers. They came from a $1 wildflower seed packet from Target. Four years later they look like they are here to stay! They remind me of Boston!

 Here's cute Montana sporting my first shirt dress of the summer. It's open in the back, but looks like a dress in the front.

 I whipped up this skirt for a quick graduation gift. It has one side pocket.

 I found some seersucker at Joann and trimmed this skirt with some red rick rack. I used the selvedge to add a little interest.

 This is another mini with two pockets. It's made for teeny high school students or 'tweens.

We made these strawberry cupcakes for my mom's 60th. They were super good!

cooking and stuff

 On Monday night I made the Pioneer Woman's shrimp scampi. This lady is serious business! She makes cooking easy, simple, and yummy. This is one of her sixteen minute meals. It might be one of the easiest, best dinners I have ever made. Ever.

 The herb planter is thriving. I've managed to toss them in almost every dinner I've cooked this week.

 I don't know where cake mix cookies have been all my life. I found out about these a couple months ago, but didn't try them until saturday. Easiest cookies ever. 
1 box cake mix (any flavor, I used devil's food)
2 eggs
1/2 cup oil
1 cup of whatever chips or nuts ( I used butterscotch chips)


When you stir the ingredients it turns to dough immediately. Use a tablespoon size and round them in to balls and bake on parchment paper at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Cool on cookie sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a rack. They are so soft even after three days.

 I also learned a new method of hard cooking eggs. I used to boil them for about 10 minutes, but this time tried Everyday Food's method. Bring to a boil (eggs in the water) and remove from heat immediately and cover for 12 minutes. The yoke is a perfect yellow and the whites aren't rubbery at all. I have never cared about the texture of my boiled egg, but now I see what they mean!

 I did some yard work on Saturday and rewarded myself with some perennials for my skinny flower bed by my walk. I already have Mums (that bloom in spring, they're confused), some Austin transplant Agave, and some Purple Heart/Wandering Jew. Hopefully they will fill in and come back every year like the rest of the bed.

I had two empty pots so I planted some shady color and some sweet basil (not pictured).


I hope you had a fun, productive weekend! I only have 21 days of work left until summer!

a weekend

 I made a skirt for a little friend of mine, I hope to make some more before Saturday's market.

 I had Brussels Sprouts for the first time. YUM. Hank roasted these and tossed them in a little Parmesan. It's the way to go.

When I returned from Austin, I planted some herbs (parsley, thyme, basil, and chives. It's my goal to not kill them. I got a smallish planter that I can move around to find the good light. Fortunately and unfortunately, my house is mostly shaded, not good for plants. So please remind me to water.