So, this is a little late, but I wanted to share some pictures from Strawberry Days back in June. Strawberry Days is the weekend when we celebrate the city of Pleasant Grove (I guess they grew a lot of strawberries here once upon a time) with a parade, art shows, a carnival, and a rodeo. We didn’t go to the rodeo this year, but we had a lot of fun at all the other activities.

Amelie loved loved loved the carnival. She's definitely a ride junkie.

See what I mean? Total glee on this roller coaster. She went on it several times.

Riding carousels is serious business.

Enjoying the sights and sounds of the parade. Brad and Michelle brought Hayley, too, so that was lots of fun.

Happy face.

Amelie really enjoyed the parade, too. She's a fan of floats, especially if they have princesses on them.

So, happy Strawberry Days everybody!

Whenever Calder eats, it seems like some (or most) of his meal ends up on his face or in his hair–or both, if we’re lucky.

Exhibit A:

Look at that innocent grin.

Exhibit B:

Pointing as if I'm the one with yogurt all over me!

This last one has nothing to do with eating, but doesn’t he look like a swimmer from the 1920s? Thanks Aunt Angela for the cute outfit!

Bobbing along...

Well, the time has come! We’re now receiving our weekly share of produce from our CSA farm, Jacob’s Cove in Orem. On Monday, we drove about 2 minutes down the road to our pick-up spot and got our box of goodies. Wanna see?

Ta da!

We got tons of greens, many of which I’m still trying to identify. There’s kale, swiss chard, arugula and other mixed greens. The squash looks lonely, doesn’t it? The guy that packed our box must have been new on the job because we we’re supposed to get a couple more squash and/or zucchini. I contacted the farmer and we’ll get them added to next week’s share. Aren’t the radishes cute? When I washed them off, they looked like little jewels. And then there’s a bunch of peas.

Our recipe plans for this week include omelette-style eggs with greens added in, kale hash (hashbrowns, kale, and other yummy stuff), fresh pesto for our pasta, sauteed peas, fried squash, and lots of good salad (I’m about to have one for lunch, actually). I’d love to try making green smoothies, but our blender is kind of lame and I don’t think it would do a very good job. We’ll see.

Next week, we should see some great heirloom tomatoes and as the season goes on we’ll get things like cucumbers and melons, too. I think Dale (the farmer) has plans to contract with some local orchards in the fall for fruit, so that should be fun.

I’m just so excited about our locally grown organic produce. We got to go tour the farm a couple weeks ago with the kids and it was fun to talk to the Allreds (the farm family) and taste some recipes made from the produce they grow. I’m hoping to take Amelie down to the farm in the next little while so we can help out and lend a hand. They’ve repeatedly told us that we’re welcome any time and I think that would be a great experience for both of us–to see exactly where our food comes from and have a hand in getting it to our table.

Anyway, just wanted to share! Wish us luck in our produce consuming adventures!

By that I mean that Amelie now loves (and I mean LOVES) cats and dogs! This is quite a breakthrough for this little one. Up until recently, any dog or cat in her vicinity elicited high-pitched screams and cries to be picked up. Seriously. So, I was, understandably, a bit worried about our recent trip to North Carolina where we would be sharing a house with two cats and a dog. But she did great! In fact, she couldn’t get enough of them and even let them lick her and snuggle her. I think we have Pepper (Tony and Sarah’s dog in Seattle) to thank for the miracle. When we were there at Christmas, she just wooed Amelie and showed her how sweet animals can be. Thanks, Pepper!

In other news…

Here's our leftie, up to bat.

Tower building is a favorite pastime in our house. Gotta love the cheesy grin.

Teaching Calder how to wipe the table clean. I'm constantly amazed by the joy children find in helping out around the house. Well, unless it's cleaning up their toys.

My baby got beaten up at Church today. By a pew. I was finishing up with the ward choir (I'm the director) and heard her screaming. When I got to her, she was lying on the floor just sobbing. I think she was running up the aisle, tripped, and smashed her face against the side of the pew. Poor thing--a bleeding lip, a scratched up nose, a big goose egg accompanied by several scratches on her forehead. No fun.

Amelie’s excited for summer. She can’t stop talking about going to fairs (each city in our valley has its own day of celebration that includes a parade and carnival), going swimming, and playing at the playground. It’s going to be great.

This little boy is just growing up right before my eyes! He says something new every day and is just loving life right now. This morning, he was playing with Bryce on the iPhone and said, “Can I hold it, Daddy?” and one of his favorite things to do is help me sweep our floors with his pint size broom and dustpan–such a sweetheart. We recently returned from a 2.5 week stay in North Carolina where he had a fantastic time playing with various cats and dogs, eating popsicles, and going on walks with Grandma and Grandpa Austin. Pictures from NC to come shortly.

A bit of what he’s been up to recently:

This one definitely has a love for his toy tractor, trains, and trucks. I love the sounds he makes to accompany them.

This picture makes me laugh. On the one hand, he looks so grown up--almost like he's delivering a speech. On the other hand, he's wearing a diaper and has stickers all over his naked belly.

This is what happens when you share a room with your sister and she decides you need a toy or two during nap time.

Sour Cream. That's all I have to say about this picture.

Well, we already knew that he loved his blankie. And, yes, those are pink sheets.

See? I told he was all grown up. Not too grown up for lots of hugs and kisses, though, much to the delight of this mother.

Should be a fun and active summer with Calderoo in tow. I’m planning lots of time at the playground, the pool, and in the canyons. Yay for summer!