Photo Friday - Violet

Garden Fiorillo May 05, originally uploaded by gfiorillo.

Lilacs from my mom's garden this spring. Ah, if only pictures could give off scent...my favorite spring smell.

Planning a vacation...

As August is halfway over, I realize I need a vacation. It's been over two years since J and I went on a trip longer than 4 days (and although I love his family, our weekends to his parents just don't count as a vacation). Last summer he had just switched jobs so time was limited. This winter we kept putting it off and with weddings and my mom's surgery we figured the summer would be a bust. But of course, we realized that we haven't made plans for fall and time is growing short if we're going to squeeze some fun in before winter holidays arrive.

So here's the question - where do we go? Saving for the wedding and a house, we're thinking somewhere close that we can drive to. Not against camping for a few days, in fact love the vacations that involve a few days in the woods and a few days in a city. We like wineries and breweries, can't tear me away from a good craft or agricultural fair, and love finding fun little things like the Scottish Festival in Maine. Any suggestions from anyone out there?

G

It's a Game...

Jersey and karchamb posted a new game on their blogs - it seememd like fun so here's the rules - leave me a comment with your name, and I will answer the following questions for you.

* tell you what song/movie reminds me of you
* pick a color/flavor of jello to wrestle with you
* say something that only makes sense to you and me
* tell you my first memory of you
* tell you what animal you remind me of
* ask something that I've always wondered

Anyone game?

Eat Local Update:

So, I really thought this was going to be a bit easier, but I've found that eating 100% (or sometimes even just 75%) local is not all that easy.

I've had some highs this week, including the Zucchini & Corn Timbale made with local produce, eggs from Griggstown, and even NJ produced cream. There was also more yummy ravioli with vodka sauce made in Flemington (if I remember, or was it Newark).

But I think my favorite meal so far (besides the Perfect Summer Meal) was Chicken with Lavender, Honey & Citrus. While I haven't been able to find lemons and limes locally, everything else was. Here's a quick summary of the recipe in interested:

Juice of 3 lemons
Zest of 1 lemon
Juice of 2 limes
1/4 cup honey
1/3 cup olive oil
1 - 2 tbs (your preference) of fresh lavender, ground in a spice grinder
salt & pepper to taste

Mix all together, pour over chicken and marinade at least 4 hours, periodically flipping as the marinade will not immerse the chicken. Grill (or broil if like me you have no outdoors of your own) for about 20 minutes each side until juices run clear. Serve with corn and salad for yumminess!

Tonight I think I'll head down to the Dutch Farm Market to get some beef, and maybe some pork. Definitly need to restock up on some cheese and breads. And although it's not Jersey, I did check and Lancaster falls in the 100 mile mark.

Photo Friday - Somber

Somber, originally uploaded by gfiorillo.

I took this picture on my "girls spa weekend" I took with CP before Carter was born. This was the b&b/organic farm we stayed on. I think it feels pretty somber - and I love this photo.