I'm.
So.
Tired.
So.
So.
Tired.
I think it's all catching up with me.
The picking, the paring, the preserving.
The family, the friends, the fun.
The heat, the humidity, the summer.
I just want to float down a lazy river.
Meanwhile, here are a few of the non-lazy-river things that have been happening in my life this week.
On Wednesday I rewarded myself for actually going to my dental appointment, staying in the chair, and not biting the dentist.
On the way home I stopped at a new (to me) thrift store to browse.
I was unimpressed with their prices, and was on my way out of the store when I spied this sweet little dress.
I rarely see clothing at a thrift store as anything but raw material waiting to be transformed into something else.
But...
We are expecting that Baby Girl.
And I do love sailor dresses.
This one was linen, in perfect condition, 9 months size, and 50% off.
Sweet.
For $1.25.
Works for me.
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Thursday, I spent the day with Miss Helping Hands shopping for dresses, browsing at the book store, talking over the coming school year.
Thursday evening our young friend from D.C. came over to make good on his promise to make creme brulee for us.
He'd never made it before, and we'd never eaten it before, but I'd jokingly mentioned it earlier in the week and he'd decided he was going to make it happen.
He started by printing the recipe.
Then he wrote the grocery list on his arm and went off to the store.
When he returned, he grabbed my paper chain and crowned himself King of the Kitchen.
When he and Miss Mary Mack separated those ten eggs, it looked like too many hands and not enough bowl.
They got the job done, though, and Mr. Dan got the custard into the oven.
While it was baking (much, much longer than the recipe called for...but that's another story), we got to talking about my 'found grocery list' collection.
I pulled a few of them out to show him, but he quickly turned away, grabbed a knife, laid his arm on the counter, bowed his head and said, "Okay. Go ahead. Just make it quick."
He's crazy...
He's going to need that list of ingredients for next time.
Now, I admit to feeling a bit of trepidation when he got out the little blow torch he'd just purchased, but he kindly kept the flame aimed at the sugar and didn't start any (other) fires.
And at the end of it all, we did get to use the back of our spoons to crack! the sugar and test his first ever creme brulee.
It was a lot better than my photographs.
Yum.
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Friday, Miss Helping Hands and I picked up Me Darlin' Mither at 7:30 a.m. and headed out to pick peaches with my Chicken-Raisin' Seester.
I got this shot of her casting a long shadow...which looked like it was toting our box of peaches.
Last week when we picked peaches, we brought home Lorings and Cresthavens, which are both yellow-flesh peaches.
This time the Summer Pearls, which are white-flesh peaches, were ripe.
Omigersh.
They are my absolute favorite so far.
So doggone sweet.
Oh, I want you to have one!
Some of these were turned into peach freezer jam, which I made using this recipe, minus some of the sugar.
This was my first attempt at making freezer jam, and the first batch set up nicely and is tucked away in the deep freezer.
The second batch is also in the freezer, but it's labeled "Peach Syrup".
I'm sure it will be wonderful over waffles, baked pancakes, or vanilla ice cream.