Burger Salsa....

I was driving home from Trader Joe's tonight thinking about what I was going to cook for dinner. I felt like fixing the turkey burgers I'd bought, but I was kicking myself for not buying a big tomato to slice. Despite having a million tomato plants in my garden, not one has produced a tomato worthy of slicing. I do, however, have a million grape and cherry tomatoes, and not much to do with them. The thought occurred to me that I could make a kind of "salsa" to go on the burgers. It wouldn't be that much different than the batches of salsa we made while on vacation.... except with slightly different ingredients and better equipment. Nothing beats your own kitchen!

I used a couple of handfuls of grape tomatoes from our garden, a big slice of Vidalia onion, and several dill pickle slices. I mixed them together in my mini chopper, and in a few minutes, had my salsa!

I thought it was pretty good for a spur of the moment idea! After dinner, my girls ate some with chips as a snack. :) Now I have one more use for the gazillion teeny tomatoes in my garden!

Fun finds!

I fell in love with this vintage broach at a flea market in Myrtle Beach. Love how much it sparkles and that it's my favorite color! After hemming and hawing about it for a few minutes, the booth owner told me it was on sale. It came home with me....

We have been in serious celebration mode of my younger daughter's birthday, which was yesterday... she's now 6. She reminded me this morning: "Now remember, Mom. I'm a BIG girl now!" This was after she systematically re-organized her lip glosses and mirrors to go into her new, purple sequined purse. Happy birthday, baby girl!

We had been neglecting the garden for all of the celebrations... and we just discovered this cantaloupe which was more than ready to be picked!

It smelled just like candy, it was so ripe and sweet. I was afraid it was beyond edible.... but was so happy that it was just fine when we cut it open!

Not too shabby for a bunch of volunteer plants! We have at least 6 more that are almost ready to pick :)

I hope everyone's having a great week!

Two Little Birds.... embroidery!

This is one of the things I've been working on since taking a break. The break really wasn't intentional, but necessary. Sometimes you just need one, you know? Last week, my family and I took a trip to Myrtle Beach. It was nice to get away... very relaxing. And I got to work on some new embroidery projects, including this one! I used lots of chain stitching with this one. I was inspired by a felt figurine I saw on Pinterest. And if you don't know what Pinterest is, then you should check it out! What a fantastic place to find inspiration (i.e., waste time...). Seriously. A huge time hole. But I love it, anyway!

I was prepared to teach my girls some basic embroidery skills just in case they became curious, which they did. I will share their projects later! My older daughter even did some bead work with some of her projects (she's 9), while my younger daughter (almost 6) stuck to the basic backstitch. I'm really impressed with how well they took to needlework and how enthusiastic they were about their projects!

In chicken news, I am sad to report that I've lost a hen. I'm so sad. She just vanished without a trace... no feathers or anything :(. I haven't a clue what got her. So now I'm down to 3 hens and the rooster. It might be time to shop for some new hens :(. 

I hope everyone has been well!