Swimsational

This week was about swimming. We had two meets and practice every morning. Tuesday night Anna swam her 1st 100 IM and got first! It was very exciting for us. The boys continue to improve and gain confidence—they work really hard and I am so proud of them. Even though they give me a bit of grief when I get them up for practice. David even got a bee sting in practice the other day and just kept going with the workout. Johnny cranks through the water when he races. I asked him last night what he thinks about when he swims and he said, “Michael Phelps, and being the fastest swimmer in the world.” Of course that is what Johnny is thinking. My biggest goal for him last night was to not look around at all the other swimmers during his race. David continues to get tough events, he is improving a ton as well. The kids are growing up and pushing through and it is very cool to watch. However, Johnny did loose about 4 pairs of goggles this week. Things seem to really be coming together for Anna though. Last night I watched her race her heart out in her 2nd go at the 100 IM. This time the competition was a little tougher and she came in fourth place. 13 seconds off of her Tuesday’s time!!!! Holy Smokes—I was a little bit teary. I need to get a grip. This time together working on the same things has been so sweet to me. Can’t wait for Hudson to join us!

What to Do with Radishes

Roast them! Or make a radish dip... Our radishes are ready and I am determined to eat them until they are gone. I love them roasted in mojo (I posted about that a few days ago), but I decided to take it in another direction and make a dip for an appetizer at Hailey and David's birthday party this weekend. It was super easy, a little garlic, a little radish, a little sea salt and some cream cheese. I served it with crackers and veggies. I'm not exactly sure how it tasted since I can’t do the cream cheese, but I heard that it was "good" as well as “interesting”. I will have to have Adam try it when he gets home so I can really know how it is. My deviled eggs went over really well though. I sure made a mess making them and they were SO ugly. I guess they tasted good though because they were gone in the first half hour. 

Adam and the boys come home in a bit and Anna and I made a raspberry pound cake with our berries. Bugeye was staring me down a bit while I was picking them so I had to go in intervals. After our early morning incident a few days ago we havent been so close. I wish I could just go talk to him and work it out.

Oh and I raced the Twin Lakes Triathlon this morning. My dad even got up super early to come out and watch! I LOVE racing on the bike. Results were good. I didn't finish as well as last year, 6 OA female and 2nd AG. But hey, all things considered, I’m super happy with that.

Princess Leia Wig, Collapsible Garbage, Blue Chicken...

If I were in a psych analysis and they said to say the first things that come to mind when you hear "garage sale", it would be warm cheddar, red vinyl and black and white sunglasses. Warm cheddar because when we were young we would go garage saling for the long haul and my mom would pack us snacks. I remember a favorite was cheese and crackers, but I would just eat my crackers and the cheese would get all hot and greasy. Red vinyl because at the time we had a car with red vinyl seats, actually they were more of a burgundy. They are burned into my memory because they were so hot when we jumped in and out of the car. Black and white sunglasses were used in my moms secret garage sale language signaling whether or not we were interested in an item. With an adjustment of her shades we were notified if we were to put it back or bring it for further review.

Today we went out—Anna, myself and Mom. We had gummy flowers for snack and stopped for a yummy lunch after collecting a random assortment of finds that delighted us, like vintage foods, fun shaped tupperwares, a purple Bible cover, an American girl wheelchair, a large coffee maker for hosting. The list goes on. We actually did have a list, but not too many things were acquired from it. (Reason to keep going out) We ended our trip by maxing out the car's capacity so Anna was forced to sit on my lap. It makes me wonder what is being imprinted into Anna's memory for her psych analysis...

Mommy and Me

Hi Anna here me and my mom are sitting by ourselves eating popcorn in the kitchen.the boys are on their fishing trip while me and my mom woke up at 4:00in the morning to go work out,( and by work out I mean swimming).this morning while me and my mom were going to open the coop Bugeye started chasing mom it was quite a show when I was sitting in the car. It was sad,dramatic,funny,and crazy all mixed together!after the show and our workout we had a lovely breakfast with my grandpa at burnt toast we talked, we laughed, and mostly ate, me and my mom were starving.later in the afternoon we went to go see the caterers, well half of them.we had fun. Well we've had an awesome day!i can't wait for the rest of the week that's ahead of me!!!!!

I Forgot to Write About Garlic Scapes

A couple weeks ago I noticed that the garlic had these cute little curls. I mentioned it to Stef and she said that they were good to eat. I looked it up online and pulled up a fun pesto recipe which we tried on some gluten free pasta that had been given to me. I hardly ever eat pasta so it was such a fun treat. I spread it on bagels for kids and used it on a couple other things before it was gone. Just a fun thing to look forward to in early June. Here is the recipe I found:


Garlic Scape Pesto
Ingredients for about two cups:

9-10 garlic scapes, seed-pods removed
1/4 cup walnuts
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and Pepper to taste

Rinse scapes in cold water, then roughly chop into half-inch pieces.
Blend in a food processor for 30 seconds, or until a fairly smooth texture is achieved. Scrape down sides of bowl with your rubber spatula.
With the machine running, slowly add olive oil, and process until thoroughly incorporated, about 15 seconds. Then add the Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper, and blend for another 5 seconds. Add salt and pepper to taste. (Or you can chop the scapes very small and use a mortar and pestle to grind down the walnuts and put it all together that way.)

Veggie Feast

I just made a salad and and a pan of roasted brussel sprouts, peppers and radishes. The salad greens were from the garden and so were the radishes. Brussels and peppers were store bought, but I am anxious for the day when we will have those too--it won't be long. The garden is doing well, I am really enjoying watching it grow, taking morning and evening walks out there to check the progress and pull some weeds. I have discovered that the trick to enjoying almost any vegetable is to roast them in a bit of Mojo de Ajo and sprinkle sea salt on top. We stumbled upon this recipe over the winter on Rick Bayless's cooking show. Ever since we have kept a large jar in the fridge and use it constantly. We usually make a double batch and I have been buying the peeled cloves from Costco for convenience, but we have our own garlic growing so eventually we will use that.

Garlic Mojo
Mojo de Ajo
From Rick Bayless
Makes about 3 cups mojo de ajo 


INGREDIENTS 
4 large heads garlic OR 10 ounces (about 1 3/4 cups) peeled garlic cloves 
2 cups fruity olive oil 
1 teaspoon salt 
1/2 cup fresh lime juice 


DIRECTIONS 
Heat the oven to 325˚.   
Break the heads of garlic apart, then mash each clove (a fist against the side of a knife is what I do) to release the clove from its papery skin; if using already-peeled garlic, scoop the cloves into a heavy recloseable plastic bag and use a rolling pin to mash them slightly.  
Stir together the garlic, oil and salt in an 8x8-inch pan (make sure all the garlic is submerged), slide it into the oven and bake until the garlic is soft and lightly brown, about 45 to 55 minutes. Add the lime juice and return to the oven for 20 minutes for the garlic to absorb the lime and turn golden brown. Using an old-fashioned potato masher or large fork, mash the garlic into a coarse puree.  
Pour the mixture into a wide-mouth storage container and refrigerate it until you’re ready to enjoy some deliciousness. This mojo will keep for up to three months in the refrigerator as long as there's enough oil to keep the garlic covered. 


The kids have their second swim meet tonight. Our first one was a great success. All the kids worked hard. Johnny surprised all of us with his gorgeous stroke, Anna took 2nd in the 50 fly and David pushed through some difficult races (50 fly, 100 free). I was super proud and am very much looking forward to tonight. Boys leave tomorrow for their fishing trip. I know they are so excited and I hope that it is a SAFE and fun time for all of them.

Tents, Raspberries, Radishes, Salad and Dads

Picture of us snapped on David's camera at Mattheson

We camped this weekend! Tent camped. With kids. I was in high gear again all week trying to accomplish said amount of tasks before we could leave. I had a glitch in a graphic project and I was working super hard to finish it up while Adam packed us all up. Once we were able to leave, it took me about 20 minutes and a coffee before I could chill out. But then I did chill and felt great. Adam is a really good camper, he does it all the time and so he is prepared and has a system. Jeff and Adam had made the plans and all I really did was show up. Hudson was actually surprised I was coming when I got into the truck. Such a simple trip, we had realistic expectations, a great campsite and of course great friends. I loved it! I am inspired to do more things like this. We did get rained out the second night, but that didn't stop us from continuing the Harbeck/Krauklis festivities. We hosted breakfast this morning, took some rests and went to Jeff and Alanna’s for dinner tonight. The kids and I did our first raspberry pick this morning and we ate those with breakfast. Adam and I also roasted our first radishes from the garden. Tonight we brought over our salad greens and I was ready to stick my face in the bowl and lick it clean. This weekend was a great way to celebrate two great dads. Happy Father's Day to Adam and Jeff!

We Did It

Anna and her friend getting into the race day fanfare

Hudson accomplishing the height needed to ride the coaster

In line for the bathroom during the race

The last couple of weeks have kept my head buzzing with details. I am not a super detail girl. I try, I have a degree of organizational ability, but it really isn't my strength. Even last week, I totally forgot a dentist appointment for Hudson. But I tried my BEST to make sure that all of my girls and their running buddies were ready to go this Sunday. We had a wonderful mother/daughter night out before in the city with a couple of other families. We ate at Ed Debevics and stayed in a cute hotel. Unfortunately, two girls ended up sick and couldn't make it, but everyone else, despite a few setbacks made it to the starting line (Which for me was the finish line). I was ready to run Anna’s race—her way. They made the heat alert red right before our wave and cautioned everyone to be extra careful. Anna ran the first bit, but really soon she started to have a cramp and soon after really had to go to the bathroom. Unfortunately for us, there were only 2 port-a-pottys on the course. The lines were crazy long and the pit stop took us about 20 minutes. We regrouped and ran about 3/4 of the last mile. It isn’t how you start, it is how you finish! We had a wonderful time together and I hope she will have great memories. 

Simultaneously, Hudson spent the entire weekend with my Dad in the Dells. We didn’t talk once! I just kept receiving fun pictures of Huds doing cool things. He said it was “the best weekend ever” and I have no doubts about that!

Cheese Balls, Grape Kool-Aid and Bomb Pops

Saturday afternoon David and I went out to the store to shop for our campout. The exciting part for David was that he got to pick the flavor of Kool-Aid. Sometimes I like to just let it go—let my kids have their day, pick the sugary cereal, get the doughnuts, whatever. Because it happens pretty rarely they are pretty pumped when I give the “OK” nod. We had a super fun memorial day campout complete with all the tastes of childhood. I loved watching kids slip, slide and run around like crazy people in the backyard. On this side of eternity, that is about as good as it gets for those little pups.