WALKING.

The G man has been hinting to us that he might want to begin walking soon.  In fact, the week of his Birthday he fell right into the coffee table because he decided to "let go" moving from the ottoman to the coffee table.  I guess we needed a big hint.  He has continued to show more signs of this 2-legged movement this past week. 

Yesterday was Memorial Day, and a Walters' - Secrest family get together to remember our fallen soldiers (we also got to look through my dad's photo album from Vietnam which was really neat). 

G wearing Papa's army jungle hat

We were sitting around the living room together talking and enjoying some dessert, and G decided to put on a show for us.  He started at the coffee table, and proceeded to walk about 5 or so steps out into the middle of the room.  Obviously we hadn't been giving him enough attention - and those steps sure turned that around really fast!  Time literally stood still (and our mouths stood open) as this little person in our lives walked.  It was an incredible moment.  We are so thankful he decided to put on this little performance in front of his whole family!!!

I know it won't be too much longer until he learns how to RUN, but for right now I am perfectly content with slow, deliberate steps, one at a time.

I love how he's pointing at me.  "I want YOU."

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)

As I said in my first post, we decided to join a CSA this year.  We really love all kinds of produce, but we want to integrate them into each and every meal, and we want to increase the quantity of fruits and veggies we eat each day.  We've talked about joining the past couple of years, but thankfully K reminded me this year right before sign-ups were closed, and we're finally in!  As Kentuckians we're really lucky to have access to so much fresh produce, and there are several local CSA's, but we chose to join with Elmwood Stock Farm.  I always shop with them when I visit our Farmer's Market, and they always have such great variety.  In addition to produce, they offer organic eggs, chicken, and meat. 

So what do we "get" from it?  From Elmwood's website:

"Weekly from mid-May to mid-October, boxes of seasonal produce are delivered to convenient pickup locations in your area. In a time when grocery food travels an average of almost 2,000 miles to reach our tables, a local CSA offers a fresher, more sustainable alternative...These are gourmet quality vegetables freshly harvested to ensure high flavor and nutritional benefit. The variety and bounty depend on the season: at the beginning quantities tend to be smaller, with a focus on salad, greens and spring veggies. Toward the middle of the season, quantities can be bountiful. By fall, the range of vegetables has changed yet again."

Say no more.  I'm there.  Another advantage for me is that I will be "forced" to cook with specific ingredients every week, thus expanding my own personal recipe box.  As I found out after the very first week, it might take some creativity to use all of these ingredients!!  If I happen to make something really interesting, I plan to post a recipe (whether my own or "ganked" from someone else) in my FOOD. secion.

So let's get to the bounty of weeks 1 & 2 (they were the same): Strawberries, black beans, over-wintered spinach, sage, asparagus, and garlic greens.

I want to spend a moment to talk about the garlic greens; they are a completely new ingredient to me.  They look like a cross between a green onion and a leek, and from what I read you typically just use the whites and an inch or two of the greens.  I really didn't know how on earth I was going to use them, so I just thought I'd use them like I might use a leek.  The first week I made an asparagus and garlic greens risotto (recipe here), and this past week I used the greens to impart flavor to chicken on the grill.  Just put the greens down on the grates and then lay the chicken on top.  I used a simple seasoning of s & p and some smoked paprika, and the flavor was incredible.  So if you find yourself in the company of some garlic greens, I hope this will help you think of ways to use them!

Graham is ONE!

My baby is one.  We can't believe it!  What a year it has been.  It's hard to remember life without our little guy, but it really does seem like yesterday that we were at the hospital ready to deliver. 

We started the day with some fun animal pancakes.  I think G had the monkey and the alligator.

I finally got everything together for the party, and we had a great time.  My parents & Keith's parents and brother came over to celebrate with us.  And we were inundated with gifts!  Graham is not going to be bored for a long time. :)  A couple of his favorite items from the day were the lawnmower (which he amazingly is able to push unassisted!)

And a drum from Uncle Eric:

And we had some yummy cake, although Graham wasn't quite as enthused. :) 

One of the best parts of the whole day, though, was when we gave him his birth minute kiss (9:49pm).  This isn't a picture of that, but it's our night night kiss.  We love this boy so much, and are so blessed God was gracious and kind enough to give him to us.  Momma, daddy, & Jesus love you, Graham!

A new Blog, and a LOT of happenings!!

I decided it was time for me to just bite the bullet and start my own blog.  No, people weren't begging me to start a blog; to be honest, I wonder if anyone would even WANT to read a blog I write!  But, this is really for me.  I don't journal - I know I should, but I don't - so this would be a place that I can write things down, not only for myself, but for my darling G, as he grows and changes.  I also want to record some of the food items I make, so that I actually remember what it is I've done!!!  This year we've joined a CSA (community supported agriculture) via Elmwood Stock Farm and I'm so excited about it!  Not only will it force us to eat lots of fruits and veggies every week, but it will be fun trying to find or create new recipes for these items.  More on this in the next few days, but right now all I can think of is THE BIRTHDAY.

My baby G is turning 1 tomorrow!  ONE.  Can it be?  Has he already been with us a year?  It's so hard to believe.  I know everyone says it, but it really just feels like yesterday that we were driving to the hospital for my induction.  Here's a pic of that first night (before any pain!)!

        (We like to hold up numbers on our fingers signifying important things.  # 1 = our first baby!)

Anyways, the presents have been bought, decorations purchased, special hat made, and the cake just came out of the oven.  I'm making him a yellow cake with traditional buttercream icing.  I'm a yellow cake kind of girl.  That has been my birthday cake almost every year (this past year my mommy went to great lengths to make me a red velvet cake!).  I really like this yellow cake recipe that I'm using, from America's Test Kitchen.  It's super easy (a bonus!), and comes out so tasty.

           (Not that I know how it tastes in raw form.  Not that I licked the spatula.  Nope, not me.)

Cannot wait for the party tomorrow!!  I can't wait to celebrate this past year with my little G Bob!