a few of our favorite things

Now it's July. How did it happen? The heart of summer, the month of my birth. This is the time of stone fruits, chlorinated hair, sweaty children, and other less eternal yet equally delightful things around our house. Read on for some of our new favorites...

Above and below you see (post-croup) Gabriel enduring Frances' soccer camp last week. She loved it! What joy to see my little girl jump right in, running around the chaotic kid mass with gusto.

She didn't seem to notice that she was pretty tiny compared to the rest of the kids, and surprised me with her dribbling skills and ability to run hard without tiring. She also didn't mind a bit when we arrived on the last day of camp to discover she had somehow misheard "crazy hair day" as "freaky friday." And while the other kids had mohawks and triple ponytails, she was wearing plaid pants, a gold skirt, a tie dye shirt overlaid with my old Girl Scouts vest, and her froggie "eyes" from Halloween. But she wasn't fazed a bit. I was relieved, and very proud of her irrepresible Frances-ness. It was a high point in a week of some tough, whiny behavior. And the soccer energy level has persisted; yesterday morning she came running with me (in a pajama shirt, underwear and crocs) and jogged happily on hilly terrain for well over a mile.

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What else? We downloaded the Elizabeth Mitchell & Lisa Loeb album "Catch the Moon" that came out a few years ago. Predictably, we love it. It's more classic, quiet children's music; I think it would make an excellent new baby gift. It seems like the breathy indie girl singers from the 90s have found their true calling and we can't get enough of it.

Mike subscribed to National Geographic magazine and all four of us love it. Have we read a single word? Besides photo captions, no. But the pictures are awesome.

Clafouti! We made a patriotic clafouti with red sour cherries (that we'd picked that morning) and blueberries and a dusting of white powdered sugar for a Fourth of July party last night. It is so easy and so delicious. Here is the recipe I use. (I think I took this from my mom's old copy of Mastering the Art of French Cooking):

Put
1 1/4 cup milk
1/3 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla
1/8 tsp salt
2/3 cup flour (though I used nearly 1 cup since my fruit was so juicy)
in a blender, in the order listed, then whir it all around on high speed for about a minute.
Pour 1/4 inch of the batter in a buttered pyrex pie plate and set over moderate heat until a film sets (about 2 -3 minutes). Remove from heat and spread 3 cups of cherries (or blueberries, or whatever you'd like to use) over top. Sprinkle another 1/3 cup sugar over the berries, then pour the rest of the batter on top. Bake for about an hour in a 350 degree oven, until a knife comes out clean. Yum!

Newest crafting inspiration? Crafting Fun: 101 Things to Make and Do with Kids. I finally put it on hold at the library after seeing it mentioned on various blogs. It is great! I might have to buy a copy. Activities are organized by season, and Summer features things like catching fireflies in a jar, making newspaper hats, and pressing wildflowers. Things you did a long time ago, and would like to do again.

And how can I forget to mention humble agave nectar? It dissolves easily into cold tea and coffee. The bottom of the glass is just as sweet at the first sips. I've been making pots of iced tea brewed with black tea and long sprigs of mint and drinking way too much of it. That, and the addition of a floppy white sunhat to my summer wardrobe, makes me wonder if I'm going native after all, despite my insistence on alienation from nearly all things Annapolitan. 

Frances has been sleeping in a play tent ever since she received it as a birthday gift on June 19th. She loves it. When asked if she will ever return to her bed, she simply replies: I can't answer that question. She began the practice surrounded by all her other birthday gifts. It was a tight fit.