Forrest brought home these lovelies from the All Local Farmer’s Market on Wednesday evening.
Aren’t they gorgeous? They’re from Windy Hill Orchard in York, SC and they are SO delicious. Beats the pants off anything you’d find in the produce aisle.
happy cooler weather/almost fall!
The weather is so much cooler than it has been. Yesterday when I hopped in my car, the thermostat said it was 62 degrees! Now, I’m sure there are more stifling days still to come, but fall is coming to South Carolina!
Of course, you know college football began last weekend (Go Gamecocks!) and the internet is filled with game-day snacks, tailgating plans, and good old-fashioned team spirit. I love the fall.
Mostly I just love boots and thick sweaters.
We had a great visit with my family on Sunday evening- complete with a birthday party for my uncle. My grandmother made my week by sending us home with not one, but two jars of her fig preserves. Oh, hello wonderful. I’m thinking another fig and prosciutto pizza may be on the menu for us soon.
Is the beginning of September too early to decorate for fall/Halloween? Forrest thinks yes. I argue that no, it is never too early and I WILL find a way to get those boxes out of the attic in the next week or so. I need my creepy witch on the buffet stat.
<3, Liz
au naturale
My roommates (husband and brother) are still teasing me for mixing up my own dry shampoo. It was a good plan, but it convinced me I had lice every day made my head itch like whoa.
But my days of mixing up natural cleaning stuff aren’t over yet! I saw this recipe for a natural dishwasher detergent on Pinterest. We were out of soap for the d-washer, so I gathered materials and made a batch.
Mix 1 cup Borax, 1 cup washing soda, 1/2 cup kosher salt, and 1/2 cup citric acid to make the detergent. I couldn’t find citric acid, so I substituted Lemi-Shine. All of these ingredients are available at grocery stores. Do yourself a favor and add a little scoop of rice into this stuff. It gets pretty clumpy, especially in the SC humidity.
When you’re ready to wash, put 1 tablespoon into your detergent spot. Oh, and add white vinegar in the rinse agent part of your dishwasher.
I’ve run the dishwasher four times with this concoction so far. And so far, I’ve rewashed two glasses and a fork that didn’t seem quite clean. Honestly our dishwasher isn’t the best, so I’m not sure whose fault it was.
The run down: it cost me about as much to all of these ingredients as it costs to buy those little “action pac” jelly things and this stuff will make a ton of all-natural dishwasher detergent. My one batch barely made a dent in those boxes.
So now I’m exploring the possibility of mixing up other cleaning products. Next on my list are this recipe for Ghetto Febreeze and this one for laundry detergent. Pinterest and the blog world are busting at the seams with recipes for this kind of thing right now, so there are ideas everywhere.
Have you ever made your own cleaners? Have any success with it? Or do you think I’ve lost my marbles?
<3, Liz
a match.
I found a dead cicada on the deck the other day. So naturally I brought it inside. And just after I perched it on the cake plate in the kitchen, Forrest walked in with the shell of a grasshopper he found in the garden.
Perfect.
<3, Liz
one minute flat.
Do you remember that old college trick for cooking an egg in a dorm room? It’s embarrassing to admit, but microwaved egg sandwiches were a staple of my diet all summer. Don’t judge me- it’s kind of funny when you think about it, right? No? Okay.
Start with an egg, a flat bottomed coffee mug, cooking spray, and salt. If you like an egg sandwich, go ahead and pop your bread into the toaster before you even look at the egg.
Spray the inside of your mug! Then add your egg and a pinch of salt. Stir with a fork. Microwave for 35 seconds.
Grab that toast, scoop out your (perfectly shaped) egg, and make a sandwich!I like cheddar with mine.
Voila!
Is it best practice for cooking an egg? No way.
Do you have a ready-to-eat meal in less than a minute? Heck yes. Pretty tasty, too.
<3, Liz
you are like the hurricane.
I’m worried about New York. It’s probably the least hurricane-ready city on the east coast and all of this Irene nonsense scares me. Please evacuate, people. It isn’t worth the risk of trying to stay.
Fingers crossed for a sudden shift in the winds.
<3, Liz
wowzah.
Earlier I wrote a crazy, ranting post.
Then I took a long nap and deleted it. I was a little too exhausted and it was just a little too crazy.
Instead of a crazy rant, here’s my version of our week.
Last night, I decided that I wanted to hang with the boys. That is, I didn’t want to be the first to bed like usual. I needed to stay downstairs with Marty and Forrest. Even if they just wanted to talk fantasy football with each other. Okay, so that was a mistake. In fact, I canNOT hang with the boys. Hence the nap. And the many cups of coffee this morning.
OH, and we have two dinner dates planned for this weekend and I am super jazzed!
<3, Liz
wild week.
It was a big week.
I started my fourth year of teaching. It seems ridiculous. I feel like I just got started and yet, the district trained me this summer to mentor first year teachers. Yep, I’m a veteran.
Forrest officially left his job on Friday and began his new one Saturday morning (he’ll write more on that soon!).
My little bro Marty decided to start grad school at the last minute and moved in with us until he finds a place to live.
Lots of big changes in our lives and all of them good. We’ve been spinning in circles for days, but it’s hard to complain.
Enjoy this unseasonable photo of us.
hipsters and reading.
The Evolution of the Hipster. You’re welcome.
hehe.
On another note, I started reading The Help over the weekend and listening to The Secret Life of Bees in my car. I’m loving them both, but they’re both set in the south at the dawn of the Civil Rights movement and I’m getting my story lines mixed up!
I know, I know, I’m late hopping on the bandwagon for both of these books. Between grad school articles and professional books for work, I haven’t had much time for fun reading lately. Any suggestions for great new reads I need to check out?
<3, Liz
growing up.
Big changes are scary.
When I started college, I had an overbearing boyfriend, a super critical roommate, no idea what to do with my life, and lived in a dorm in which I was (practically) the only gal who opted out of Greek life. You can imagine how popular that made me with my neighbors.
The roommate made things really hard. She bragged about never having had a zit while simultaneously mocking my hair (neither straight nor blonde) and my car (as I gave her rides to the airport). Magical. If nothing else, I learned a lot about people.
I was anxious so much of the time that first year away from home. Worried about what others thought. Worried about fitting in. In hindsight, it was ridiculous.
The beauty of undergrad is that during those four years, you grow up. At least mostly. I was lucky enough to find my best friends, discover the perfect career, and meet my fantastic husband. The older I get, the more I’m grateful for those yucky experiences. Also grateful they were short-lived.
Thanks for letting me get that off my chest.
My cousins Alex and Conner are heading off for their freshman years of college this week and my mind keeps flitting back to my first few months of college. Alex will be in Columbia at USC, so he’ll be nearby and he will be hearing from his annoying cousin Liz. Maybe he needs a giant tin of cookies to start the year off right.
<3, Liz
Domesticated Artists 
