“Cantaloupe….Got a Date” Salad
As a part of our ongoing healthy dieting, (we did a week of raw…that’s all we could handle!) I came up with this fabulous salad. You think it’s going to be sweet but then you get a little bite of the red onion with the avocado and cantaloupe and it’s fabulous.
Heirloom Tomato Stack
Phew. What a week! I know I fell off of the radar for a while. A week ago today, my parents sent me a video of their house showing no less than four feet of snow. With blue skies and the flexibility in my schedule to pack the kids in the car with our “snow clothes crate” and go enjoy a few days in the snow – I jumped on it (ha!). Unfortunately I was also sick as dog. No voice, totally congested, achy…YUCK! I warned my mom and dad that I was SICK. They didn’t care. And neither did I. I just knew I had to do it because it would be my only chance this season to play in the snow with the girls. So, I picked up Pixie from school, loaded up the car and off we went! The girls were so stinkin’ excited.
A few hours later, the girls ripped themselves out of the car as quick as they could and dove face first into the snow. Snow bibs? Who needs ’em! Gloves? Naw! They played for about an hour and when the jeans were too wet and the fingers bright red, we retired inside for some cozy clothes and movies.
The next morning my mom had to head back to Los Angeles to work so my dad gave her a ride down the mountain to the main center in their community. As he was walking her to her car to make sure she could get out….he fell. On black ice. HARD. He came back up to the house limping and barely able to sit down in a chair. CRAP. (Side note- it occurred to me that had I still been nursing, a Boppy would make a wonderful “donut” to cushion one’s bruised tailbone)
Raspberry and Goat Cheese Salad with Cilantro Vinaigrette
My hubby is awesome. Sometimes, he really plans out thoughtful and fun presents for me. My absolute favorite musical instrument is the cello. I love the deep, passionate, resonating sound it makes. When we got married, I walked down the aisle to Jeux D’eau which is a song from the Cirque de Soleil show, “O.” About thirty seconds in, a cello starts and it’s one of the most beautiful songs I’ve ever heard.
Back when we still lived in Sherman Oaks, he rented a cello for me and got me private cello lessons. I LOVED IT! It was so much fun to learn – it was a LOT of work. I never realized how difficult it was. The funny part is, I guessed what he had planned for me. I wrote it down, brought it with us and showed it to him when we pulled up at my first cello lesson. He was gobbsmacked. Totally speechless. Honestly could not believe that I had guessed it.
Caprese Salad
Everyone has made or probably has a Caprese Salad recipe, right? So, I’m not going to say this is the end all be all recipe on my site. But it’s so tasty. And perfect for summer. If you have a farmer’s market in your town, go there. Get fresh locally grown tomatoes. Or even better heirloom tomatoes (my favorite!). But if you can’t get to a farmer’s market, I get the Trader Joe’s pack of mini heirloom tomatoes. They’re fabulous. 😉