Limeade

I went searching for a simple limeade recipe, well, because I still had limes from my centerpiece that were about to be past using. I'm going to keep this one short and sweet because there isn't much to it! If any of you decided to try the fruity floral arrangement (link) and you're like me, then you'll want to get the most bang for your buck and use all of those limes. I used them my salsa, in my mint mojito smoothies, and this is my final post using that particular bag of fruit. (I must say, they were well worth $2.99!) So here you go:

2 cup water
1 cup sugar
1 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
Boil water and sugar. Stir in lime juice. Chill. Garnish with mint or lime wedge and serve!

Aahh...instant summer refreshment. Wait, I shouldn't say instant...I should warn you that you will spend quite a bit of time squeezing limes to get a cup of juice! (I had no idea!) And this recipe only makes 4 servings. So if you want to make a large pitcher...you'll be doing even more squeezing. Maybe easier if you have a juicer, but I did it by hand. I think it would have been super cute to garnish with limes or to throw some in the pitcher, but alas, I used every last one for my drink and they were not pretty after I was done with them. Enjoy! Maybe I won't post about limes for a while...

Memorials

Happy Memorial Day! I wanted to take a moment to post in honor of those who have fought and died while serving in our military. It is all to easy to take freedom and our American way of life for granted but today we should pause to remember the sacrifices that have brought us here. I want to say thank you to any reading this who may currently be serving in our armed forces and to those who have loved ones who are doing so. Actually...thank you doesn't even seem strong enough. I feel deep gratitude. I also want to give tribute to three men in my own life who served in the military. 

On the left is my Dad, Tim Totten, who served for four years in the United States Air Force. I have always been so proud of his service and I love to hear him talk about the things he did and places he saw! In the center is my Grandpa, Bob Totten, who served in the army and fought in World War II. My Grandpa passed away with cancer in 2004 and he is greatly missed. On the right you see my Papaw, Charles Taylor who was also in the army. He fought in the Korean War when he was only 19 years old. I am so grateful for their service and for the service of so many others who make have helped to make America great! 

Here are a couple of treasures of mine passed down from my Dad and my Grandpa... 

One of my Dad's uniform shirts.

A medal that my Grandpa received for operating a machine gun during WWII.

Watermelon Days

May is nearly over (Wow!)...that means school is out and summer is near. This marks the beginning of wonderfully long days. Watermelon days. You know the ones...hot, sunny, blue skies, pool time, and backyard barbecues. On these days there isn't much that tastes better than a nice cold piece of fresh watermelon.

On these days we pull out the pool and splash to our hearts content. After all, there's no easier way to clean up stick watermelon hands and faces!

On these days everybody hangs out on the deck . Even our dog, Sadie (who is hoping a piece of watermelon might be dropped, but if not she will be happy to lick up the sweet drips on the deck.)

And on these days we don't worry quite as much about schedules or routines. We take life at a slower pace. Don't we all need days like that! I may not be in school anymore but being married to a teacher I still mark my calendar by school days so, to me, it feels like summer has arrived and I look forward to many more watermelon days.

Salsa-licious

I love salsa. I really love fresh salsa! I have been getting a lot of positive feedback on my recipe posts, (I will try to keep them coming) so I wanted to share an awesome salsa recipe with you. I got this recipe from my sister, Meghan, who got it from a friend...You know its a good recipe when it gets passed around! I made it for the first time yesterday and its simple...you'll see I like to keep it that way in the kitchen. So here is what you will need:

32 oz canned diced tomatoes
1/4 onion chopped (use any kind you like!)

2 cloves garlic minced
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro chopped

2 jalapeño peppers (I seeded one and kept the seeds in the other for medium heat.)

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp oregano

(Pinch sugar - to taste )

Squeeze of fresh lime (I added this because, well, I still have limes...)

Now throw it all into your blender and use the pulse button until all of the ingredients are well-mixed and you're done! It literally only took 15 minutes. I love using the canned tomatoes - what a time saver! I also used onions that were already chopped from the produce section at Walmart. (I hate chopping onions! Who doesn't?!) This recipe made enough for three small canning jars. I dressed a couple of them up to share with friends and then enjoyed the rest!

One man's trash...

You've heard the saying "One man's trash is another man's treasure." It is often true when we use our imagination to be just a little bit creative. Recently my cousin, Elizabeth, started a small business venture, La-Tee-Da, making jewelry using antique buttons and old skeleton keys. The jewelry is so pretty and totally unique. She is not mass producing these, but rather spends time hand-making each one using different materials, accents, and antiques. Last weekend I was really excited to get my key necklace in the mail. It is particularly special to me because the key actually belonged to my Papaw Taylor!

I look at it and wonder what it may have opened for him. Was it the key to a trunk where he kept special things...or did it open a door and if so, what did that door lead him to? What memories are associated with these keys for those who owned them? Questions come to my mind when I see the buttons on the bracelets too. They are so beautiful and intricate...were they on a fancy blouse that a young girl wore the night she got engaged? Or perhaps they lined the coat of a sweet elderly lady as she took an autumn walk with her grandchildren... As Elizabeth says about the jewelry, we will never really know the story but "that's the beauty of it." I am posting a link for La-Tee-Da. Please feel free to check out her page and contact her if you are interested in owning a piece of this "trash" turned into a very unique treasure. Link: La-Tee-Da by Elizabeth

Mint Mojito ("Sneaky") Smoothie...

If you're kids are anything like mine, they can be picky at times. Even as an adult who isn't picky, I know I don't get enough green vegetables. So I'm going to share a recipe for a really great smoothie that has spinach as the main ingredient. Now I know half of you are tempted to stop reading right now, but trust me, this recipe is delicious! I first tried this smoothie at my friend, Jennifer Scoles' house. Dr. Jennifer is a chiropractor and she has shared several yummy, healthy recipes with me. She called it a "Hulk" smoothie to interest her little boy. When I looked it up online it was called a "Mint Mojito" smoothie because it has lime and mint in it as does the drink. (Bonus: I have lots of limes from my centerpiece last week!) Here is the recipe:

2 large handfuls spinach (Approximately 4 cups)

1 can white grape juice concentrate

1 whole banana (cut)

1 mint leaf

1 small wedge of lime with skin

4 cups of ice

Blend all ingredients until smooth. Water may need to be added if it is too thick, but these measurements made a perfect smoothie for me! (This makes about 3 to 4 servings.) It is definitely green...

Don't be afraid to try this even if you don't like spinach because, promise, you won't even taste it. If I can't convince you that its yummy, just take a look at these two very happy two-year-olds loving their spinach!

This is Hayden, he is a friend of ours who came over for a play-date today.

Savannah enjoying her smoothie. 

Now everybody is charged up and ready to play! (And have green faces...)

Hope that some of you will try it. If you do please post a comment to let me know what you think! 

We Are Awana Cubbies...

...We're happy all day long, We know that Jesus loves us, That's why we sing this song! We hop and skip for Jesus, and we jump and shout for joy! Cause Jesus is a friend to us, He loves each girl and boy.

You know what's funny? I know that song, not because my son, Landon, just finished up his first year in Cubbies, but because I was in Cubbies and so much of what I learned stuck with me. It is my hope that Landon will retain the things he learned that way. It was so much fun to watch him memorize verses and talk about stories about Jesus. He also got to do it with his Ju-Ju (my mom) which was special for both of them. His program to celebrate the end of the year was Wednesday and he did so great getting up on stage (which I wasn't sure about!) He did, however, refuse to wear his vest one last time. I have never seen a little boy so pick about he is wearing, and that vest was a no-go all year. I did convince him to put it on afterward for a couple quick pictures. Although, you can see that he is smiling the biggest in the one where he is without it. Oh kids...

Well, regardless, I'm so proud of mine! Seeing Landon up on that stage got my wheels turning and I have been thinking a lot about how I only have one more year with him at home... Then it will be kindergarten graduations, then middle school, then high school... It's kind of overwhelming so I'll try to take it one day at a time for now. Speaking of graduations, tonight I will attend graduation at Grace Christian Academy to see a very special group of girls receive their diplomas. Four years ago when we first moved to Knoxville they were freshman and they were "my girls" for a couple of years as I was one of their small group leaders. I am so excited to see them all moving on to college and bigger dreams. Yet another reminder of how time marches on! Proud of them, proud of Landon, and thankful for the moments like these that we have to celebrate.