Saturday, July 5th

We were home by 8 pm last night, Mazlyn falling asleep on the couch shortly after with fireworks booming in the distance. I carried her upstairs and placed her in her bed. We don’t watch fireworks on July 4th. Our city puts on a huge fireworks display 2 weeks from now, and we much prefer waiting for that one. That’s not to say that as our daughter ages, that may change. For now, it works best as her little body is exhausted from obstacle courses, hanging out with her cousins, and an afternoon in the pool. She happily swam for hours, showing off her newly learned skills. Even though she has only had four lessons, our daughter believes she is a pro at swimming, pretending she isn’t wearing a splash jammer as she swims from one end of the pool to the other.

I brought Oreo Balls, which quickly disappeared, and enjoyed catching up with my husband’s family. It was nearly 100 degrees out, so I was more than happy to get home and cuddle on the couch with the air conditioning blasting. Even though fireworks were going off well past midnight in our area, I was able to fall asleep fast with a true-crime documentary on in the background.

Waking up this morning, I decided to make an Almond Cake with Edible Flowers. It brings a little brightness to a cloudy day (which seems to be most days.) Tomorrow we will go to a park, but today is just our family enjoying some quiet time….until the fireworks start up again.

Tuesday, July 1st

Today is the first day of July, and one of the few days it hasn’t rained here in Minnesota. June was busy with family and house projects. I already have the nagging feeling that the season is quickly passing by, even though the Summer Solstice was a mere 11 days ago. Despite all the rain, our daughter has found many moments of sunshine to splash around in her stock tank pool, which is still a work in progress, and I have managed to leave some open weekends on the calendar for stillness.

I tend to eat lighter in the warmer months. Fresh fruits and veggie-filled salads are staples, as well as light soups. Zucchini and Thai Basil Soup for a rainy evening, accompanied by a crusty baguette. When dusk arrives, my husband and I race our daughter in Mario Kart, letting her win because she insists she’s a pro and we are beginners.

Now, to prepare for a family-filled weekend with red, white, and blue festivities and a very excited 5-year-old.