Happy Birthday to Prairie P!

Never fear, we didn't forget to celebrate Prairie's first birthday on the 27th. We had to stop at the pet store for nail clippers and food and while we were in the store, Prairie got to pick out a toy. She went straight for this Mallard. Maybe she is a hunting dog after all!

Breakfast of Champions

Home made Muesli!

Easier, cheaper and healthier than granola. The recipe came from my friend AK. The main ratio is about 10 parts oats to 1 part wheat germ. I did about 3 cups oats and 1/4 c wheat germ in this batch. I used pecans, cranberries and blueberries.

3 c oats
1/4 c wheat germ
1/4 c nuts chopped or sliced
1/4 c dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, blueberries, cherries are all good)
1 t cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400. Spread oats on a cookie sheet and toast for 10 minutes. Check halfway through and stir if needed. After 10 minutes, sprinkle wheat germ and nuts on top and toast for 5 more minutes. I add the fruit for the last 5 minutes because I like it chewier, but if you like your fruit soft, then add it after everything is toasted. This is also when you would want to add any heat sensitive ingredients, like ground flax seed. Let cool and store in an airtight container. Enjoy with milk, yogurt, hot or cold.

Being a bad blogger

Difficult to keep up with blogging when you are out doing things! We have been spending a lot of time at the dog park, hiking, several dinners with friends, hanging out with AK who came to visit from NYC, & Prairie and I had our first visit to the beach.

Here is a photo from a fun hike last Saturday - we kept Prairie on the long lead and she did really well. We were all crawling with ticks though when we were done - Tom found a couple on his pants, I had one bite and Prairie had 8! She had several teeny tiny ones between her toes that were so hard to get, so we may be on a hiking hiatus until we can get her some new flea and tick prevention (we are using Advantix but it doesn't seem to be doing much for ticks).

We've also had some fun meals - here is Mahi mahi with caramelized tomatoes, new potatoes and kohlrabi. Yum.

Spring break!

We had a great time with TD's sister and her family. We were so happy that they were able to visit,see our new house and visit Prairie. Can't wait to see them again in May!

AND...

We got our Christmas Card Photo (or at least a good family photo). Thanks to TD's thoughtful sister.

Best ever banana bread!

I have been making the best ever banana bread. The recipe is from the sadly extinct Gourmet Magazine - I substitute coconut milk for the creme fraiche, pecans for walnuts and make it with 100% whole wheat flour. Its SO good!

She's a keeper!

TD is visiting for several weeks and we are both in LOVE with Prairie!! She is the BEST dog and we are so happy to have her.

Prairie goes for a hike

We had some friends visit last weekend and checked out a local state park. We saw some wild horses and a male turkey showing off for a hen. Prairie even got to wear her backpack.

TD went out with his buddy the next day and saw a large gopher tortoise and a bald eagle nest with chicks.

Confession: I am a procrastinator

I am a very bad procrastinator - in all aspects - but particularly in terms of household stuff. Sure, I clean and do laundry like clockwork - but those irregular things that need to be done are what get me.

Case in point, leaves needed to be cleaned off our roof before we moved in - however, we didn't have a ladder and it took 3 months and the insistence of my visiting family to actually get me to purchase a ladder and go do it. The sad part? I had probably been to Lowes and Home Depot 20 times since we moved in.

Another embarrassing example? When I moved to Boston in 2008, one of the thing the terrible, terrible movers did was lose one of the casters from my bed. I stacked some shims under the leg, slept on it for 2 years, moved the bed into the guest room here, stacked more shims under it. Not only did it look bad, but one of the shims slipped out while my parents were sleeping on it. Oops.

So I did what I should have done 2.5 years ago, and spent less than $10 and bought some replacement casters on Ebay. Problem solved, and now I have 4 extra if I ever lose one again. Maybe I will learn something here?

Oops...

On Prairie's and my way to a hike on Thursday evening, I dropped and perhaps ran over (??) my small point and shoot camera. Boo! The camera was an older one, and a hand-me-down from TD, but I enjoyed having it and using it to take photos for the blog. I have a very nice digital SLR that I mostly use for work (read never) but I really liked having a small, easy to grab camera. But I guess I need to bring home the dslr from the office, and start using it. Maybe I will even start taking better photos :)

Oh the absurdity

We ordered lots of stuff for Prairie from Amazon. I love their prices and their fast shipping, but I was horrified to see how they shipped this leash. It could have easily fit into a padded envelope - and instead it was the only thing in this giant box.

Ouch, I can feel my carbon foot print growing...