Picnics on the porch

Cheering on the motorcyclists.

Snacking on popcorn and cheese.


Water play outside. Who knew some Tupperware could provide hours of entertainment?


Shirt is wet. Let's get naked. Taking care of new baby doll "Violet".


Long days of playing outside = long, hard naps. :)

Picnicking in the summertime. Eating outside has become one of my favorite things to do as an adult. Especially in Colorado where you're not competing with bugs while doing it-trying to enjoy yourself while swatting away flies or mosquitos is a childhood memory I'm happy to leave behind. So naturally this has me thinking about food. I've been a big carb freak while pregnant. I've had many days of many pieces of bread or bowls of cereal (ugh - corn syrup) when nothing else has appealed to me. Has it caught up with me? Sure, but that's okay for now. I just don't really have the energy to cook these days as much as I like good food. Nevertheless, it hasn't stopped my interest in reading about food. One of the books I read last month, that I enjoyed very much is called Plenty: Eating Locally on the 100-Mile Diet. Along with Omnivore's Dilemma and many of the other popular titles that are making it to mainstream audiences, Plenty is a non-fiction account of a Vancouver couple who embarks on a year long adventure of scouting, canning, and growing their own food. Not surprisingly they talk a lot about how the average American meal travels over 1500 miles to make it to your dinnertable. But more than pointing fingers at the cost of petroleum (which remains cheap - cheap enough to keep our food costs artificially low ironically), Alisa and J.B. show that the average, urbanite can eat local - and it's worth it. They don't sugarcoat the effort needed to stick to their plan, but they also inspire and show that its doable - and tastes better! Paul and I can even attest to this. We subscribed to a vegetable/fruit delivery service this winter that was hand-picked, Colorado grown organic food. It was such a difference from the crappy, waxy produce that is available in our local markets. The flavor was impressive and it got us eating in season. I encourage everyone to explore what Farmer's Markets and delivery services are available in your areas. It is worth it to support American, local grown food, and small farms/markets. This is the main way to keep them around. I know your tummys will appreciate it too. In the meantime, Paul and I are toying with the idea of doing a "Colorado" food challenge in this next year. We are willing to make one exception to the challenge, possibly two - coffee & chocolate would be allowed. I think that is reasonable.