15 | July | 2008 | Smith Family Weblog

Archive for July 15th, 2008

15 Jul

Sweets for the sweet

Posted by Rebecca in Ava, Family, In the kitchen. Leave a comment

While we were visiting Mom, I told her that I was in the mood to bake something. She simply pointed me toward the cherry tree outside.

This is truly baking from scratch…as long as you don’t count the crust!

My mom, who picks and freezes quarts and quarts of cherries each summer, has a handy little pitting tool. Still, this chore took about three times as long as the picking.

I followed a recipe for fresh cherry pie from a vintage Better Homes and Gardens cookbook–remember the one with the picnic-plaid cover? It simply called for three cups of cherries, a cup and a half of sugar and a quarter cup of flower. I added a bit of salt and vanilla.

Lattice tops are my favorite, usually because it makes rolling the top crust less stressful as there’s no need for a perfectly smooth round. Recent time crunches have pushed me to turn to Pillsbury, but I still love a pretty lattice.

Eighteen hours of pitting and picking later, here’s the finished product!

It was totally worth it.

15 Jul

Olivia’s tree

Posted by Rebecca in Ava, Family, Olivia. Leave a comment

I’m running about a week and a half behind on the blog, and I’m starting to get my posts out of order. Please know that I’m not chronologically challenged, just poorly organized.

With that, step back in time with me to the Fourth of July weekend for just a bit.

When Ava was born, Mom and Dave planted a tree that would bloom around her birthday. Three years later, it’s taller than she is:

While we were visiting, they planted Olivia’s tree, a variety of hibiscus called Rose of Sharon.

Of course, they had some help.

15 Jul

Down on the farm

Posted by Rebecca in Ava, Family, Olivia, Outdoor life. Leave a comment

We stopped by my grandpa’s farm last weekend while we were in Nebraska. It was a gorgeous day, and I was reminded how much I loved this place as a child.

This sweet pea is visible from Grandpa’s living room, and Grandma always loved it. It grows along the pasture fence, though, and the calves seem to love it, too. Grandpa rigged up a fence from old window screens along the ground below to protect it.

I recall playing under this incredible old pine tree when we were little. It was always shady and cool among the Lily of the Valley and periwinkle flowers.