The Great Preying Mantis Release 2011

On the last day of school, my good friend SweetDani* and I ended the school year with an outing to a local garden store while the girls were at school. We found quite a few lovely plants, and I'm pretty sure we'll both be going back...but I digress. While we were checking out, SD found some preying mantis pods at the cash register. They came in a pouch of 2 and asked if I wanted to split it with her. Not being a huge fan (but I'm not a killer though either) of insects I was a bit hesitant but agreed to it as she said her lovely daughter had such a great time with it last year.

Well, today while having my coffee I noticed that there was something crawling around it the container...THEY HATCHED!!! Oh my goodness, there were SO many crawling around in there! I retained my composure as I didn't want to alert CiBaby to the goings-on until I was prepared with my camera. Once I was ready I told her to come and see something really cool.

After looking outside at them, in their container, I was ready to release them...BUT WAIT! CiBaby really wanted her bestie to be there too...another bug lover. So we called up J and told her the pod had hatched and that we would wait until she got to our house to release them.



It was so neat to do, we will most likely do it again next year.

*Did you know there was a lemon basil named Sweet Dani? Me either!

Note: A quick word of caution, next time I will put them in a mason jar with a screen...some lost their lives in the tape. :(

"Well...that wasn't very nice."

Those are the words CiBaby said to me after our entire, funny, interaction.

CiBaby: "Mama, I'm hungry."
Me: "What would you like for breakfast?"
CiBaby: "I don't quite know yet."
Me: "Okay. Well, I'm going to quick go to the bathroom and you think about it."
CiBaby: "Okay Mama."

I head off to the bathroom.
10 seconds later, the door flies open.

CiBaby: "Mama, I know what I want for breffas."
Me: "Can't this wait until I'm done?"
CiBaby (clearly not listening to me): "I want cinnamon toast and salsa toast and a half a cup of orange juice."
Me: "Salsa toast?"
CiBaby: "The kind we had last night."
Me: "Honey, that was dill bread."
CiBaby: "Oh! Right! I want cinnamon toast and dill toast, wif buddah and a half a cup of orange juice."
Me: "Okay, I'll get it for you when I'm done. Go pick out your cup and plate. Now could you let me finish?"

CiBaby walks alway and slams the door.
10 seconds later...the door flies open.

CiBaby: "Mama, is this right?" (holding a straw to a straw cup)
Me: "Yes, dear, but I'm not going to get you anything until I'm finished."
CiBaby, sitting on the edge of the tub chitchatting away...
Me: "Honey, really...could I please have some privacy?"
CiBaby: "Oh! Right! I forgot."

Out she goes...door slams again.
10 seconds later I hear her hand hit the doorknob...the door starting to open.

Me: "Honey! Leave me alone!"
CiBaby: "Well...that wasn't very nice."

Sigh.

A Sherpa without a Map

I feel like a Sherpa leading my charge up a great mountain...without a map. Which path to take? Either path will lead to spectacular views...but completely different.

I know I should go with my gut, but right now I can't tell if the tightness in my belly is intuition telling me which way to go...or if it's just plain hunger pains.

A Spring Delicacy

Most people associate asparagus with Spring. Here in the CzaMama house, while we love asparagus, CiBaby goes crazy when these lovely little lawn ornaments start blooming!

I believe her eyes rolled back in her head when I showed her today's harvest...1/3 lb dandelion blossoms! Dandelion fritters for dinner!

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Happy Easter!

Our little Easter egg...

Egg Dying

This year I decided to try my hand at making natural egg dyes,

 just for fun.

(pickled beet juice, grape juice, pomegranate tea, passion tea, green tea, chili powder, and red cabbage)

Here is how they turned out... 

(from top left:  red cabbage, grape juice, green tea, passion tea, pomegranate tea, and pickled beet juice. The chili powder is pictured in the center of the bowl...a golden brown)

And a very excited little girl! She insisted on eating the pink egg first...it was quite tasty!

It was definitely a fun experiment.

Loveliness

Fluffy Rain

Spring snow? No...it's just...

1. fluffy rain
2. bloated water...maybe it had a lot of salty and greasy food yesterday
3. a new slow-release watering system
4. rain with an inflated ego

You choose.

Thought of the day - 4/15/11

Choices...you always have them.

While you don't always get to choose what happened in your history, you have a choice in how you react and how you live your future.

While this isn't a new thought, it is one that I believe is good to sit and ponder.

Spring

Don't forget the ahhhh

So does the "ahhhh" come before or after you trip?

 

And next up on Comedy Central...

Mother Nature!

(*applause*)

She's witty, she's zany, she's sweet...and she can slap you in the face and all you can do is laugh!

Sure, we saw signs of Spring, flowers pushing their little heads up through the earth, the unfurling of tiny leaves...new sandals (aren't they cute?!?)

And this morning...she became an S&M* Mistress

Get out your chains boys, the Mistress is in the house!

*snow and muck...geez, get your minds out of the gutter, people!

There's no doubting...

Spring is sprouting!!!

(sedum, tulips, giant allium, grape hyacinth and iris)

Spring is Sprouting

When life gives you clouds and rain,

make your own rainbow.

Happy Spring!

Happy St. Patty's Day!

This year I veered away from the standard plate of corned beef and cabbage and made reubens! I love reubens. I've never made them myself before, so I thought it was about time.

Several weeks back I started a batch of sauerkraut out of a wayward purple cabbage. Isn't it pretty??

Armed with a Wellshire Farms corned beef brisket, a loaf of freshly baked homemade deli-style rye bread, aged raw milk emmentaler cheese, the purple sauerkraut and a little homemade dressing (consists of good quality mayo, homemade ketchup and finely diced dill pickles)...it was THE BEST DANG REUBEN I'VE EVER EATEN!

I know what your question is and the answer...no, I never do anything half-assed.

Luck O' the Euro As-ish

So...we're not Irish. And CiBaby is definitely not, although it was SUPER cute when she asked me today if she was Irish. "Only on St. Patty's Day, dear."

However, just because we don't have Irish blood running in our veins doesn't me we cannot celebrate! So in honor of the day we made a green snack to share with our friends.

Edamame Hummus

1 large clove of garlic, peeled

1 Tbsp sesame seeds (or tahini if you have it...today I did not...a crime, I know!)

2 tsp finely chopped cilantro

1 tsp lemon grass (I have frozen chopped lemon grass...so handy!)

1 Tbsp tamari or soy sauce

2 Tbsp mirin

1/4 tsp wasabe powder

1/4 tsp tamarind or lime juice

1/2 tsp sesame oil

12 oz bag (or 2 cups) shelled edamame, thawed

1 cup water

Place all ingredients, except 1 cup edamame and 1 cup water, into a food processor. Process until finely chopped, scrapping down the sides of the bowl occasionally. Once finely chopped, add remaining edamame and water and blend until nice and smooth, about 3-4 minutes.

Serve with rice chips or veggie sticks.

May luck find you today, whoever you are!

Goggle Girl

There's a new super hero in town...Goggle Girl!!!

Seriously...I'm not sure if it gets any cuter than this.

Pumpkin Chili with Cilantro Lime Cream

With a snowstorm roaring away outside and some pumpkins begging to be used, I wanted something savory, nutritious and delicious to nourish my little family, so I came up with the following using ingredients I had on hand.

Pumpkin Chili with Cilantro Lime Cream

1 cup (1 small) finely chopped onion

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 red pepper, cored, seeded and diced
1 jalapeño, seeded and finely diced
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cup pureed pumpkin (or 1 can)
2 pints (or 2 small cans) diced tomatoes and their juice
1 1/2 cups (1 small can) hominy, rinsed and drained
1 can beans (white, pinto or garbanzo) rinsed and drained
2 cups water, veg broth or chicken stock
1 cup amber ale
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp oregano
2 tsp cocoa powder
2 cups cubed cooked pumpkin

Cilantro Lime Cream
1/4 cup sour cream
1 tsp finely chopped cilantro*
a squeeze of fresh lime juice
a pinch kosher salt

Mix together ingredients for the cilantro lime cream and set aside.

Cook onions, peppers and garlic in oil over a med-low flame until soft, but not browned, about 5-7 minutes.

Add pumpkin, hominy, beans, tomatoes, water or stock, ale, cumin, chili powder, oregano, cocoa powder, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, turn the heat down and let simmer 30-40 minutes. Add pumpkin chunks, stir and heat through, 5 minutes.

Serve with cilantro lime cream.
 
*If you don't already have some in your freezer, Trader Joe's has frozen herbs in small cubes...perfect for days like this!

Surrounded by love

This year CiBaby had definiate opinions on what she was going to give her friends for Valentine's Day...which of course involved crafting...and specifically, painting.

With only a wee bit of help from me, I think her project turned out beautifully!

le CiBebe

Off to little French picnic at the best preschool on the planet.

The past two weeks have been focused on Claude Monet and his art. Today they celebrated with a little French picnic...which included baguettes and butter, fresh fruit, yummy cheese, some sparkling cider and they brought chocolates home.

Next week they are baking Madeleines...mmmmm Madeleines. I want to go to preschool!

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