Pomponio State Beach

Goats and Giggles

Our first discovery this "vacation weekend" was Harley goat farm in Pescadero. It is such a special place. They have a petting area for the kids and a tasting area for the adults. Great goat cheese and goat milk products like lotions, soaps, and creams. We loved this place so much and will try to stop by any chance we get. They also have special dinners in their dining hall upstairs. We had just missed the mother's day brunch. Our favorite part was when they gave the kids fresh goat milk from a bucket with nipples and they all gathered around in a feeding frenzy and wagged their tails in delight. Our cheeks hurt from smiling so much!

More to come.....

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!! We're At The Beach...

for a few days. Ryan is working 24/7 so while he has a break in the research we are going to kidnap him for a little family vacation. Actually, he is kidnapping me for Mother's Day too. It is a perfect way to celebrate the most precious of holidays for me. There is nothing better than being a mama. And Gracie is kidnapping both of us as the beach is her favorite place on earth. Guess it runs in the family! 

This morning Gracie hands me my mother's day card and says

"I drew my hand on it and lines! I didn't draw a heart but I knew I love you."

My heart melted and is still on the floor.

Happy Birthday Max!

Refrigerator Roundup

We live in a small house. Very small. We love it though and it is fun getting creative with storage solutions.  I had Ryan build this lazy susan for the top of the fridge to hold my Le Parfait jars full of our most used dried goods. It is SO useful and also quite pretty. Much better than gathering dust bunnies.

My largest jars are for the items we use the most: pinto beans, brown rice, quinoa. The medium jars are for other legumes and grains. I recently added the adorable small jars to hold bulk teas: Rooibos, earl grey, chamomile, herbal chai and hibiscus. 

I started using mostly loose leaf tea from the health food store because it is so much less expensive and I was sick of all of the waste from the numerous tea bags we were consuming. Not to mention that loose tea tastes better as it is only the top quality leaves, not sticks and twigs.

Belly Love

You can probably guess we are just a little bit excited!

I had a dream last night and met the baby...hair, eyes, name, everything. It was amazing! 

Hurray for Hijiki - Tofu Hijiki Saute and Summer Hijiki Salad

We are trying a new recipe tonight from Moosewood's Simple Suppers for a Tofu Hijiki Saute.

Cook:
1 1/2 cups brown rice in 2 1/2 cups water for 30-40 minutes

Soak:
1/2 cup hijiki in warm water for 15 minutes

Toast:
2 Tsp sesame seeds and reserve
Saute:
1 Tsp sesame oil
1 cake firm tofu cut into small cubes
remove tofu and add to pan
1 Tsp sesame oil
3 cups carrot marchsticks
1 onion in slices
cook for 5 minutes until tender
ass tofu, hijiki and 2 Tsp soy sauce


On the back of the Emerald Cove Hijiki bag I found this recipe which has all of Gracie's favorite foods.

Summer Hijiki Salad:
1/2 cup hijiki
water to cover
1 Tsp soy sauce
1/2 cup frozen corn
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup bean sprouts
1/2 grated carrots
 (we'll try it for lunch today with TJ's soycatash: edamame, corn and bell peppers)
Dressing:
4 Tsp mustard
4 Tsp tahini
3 Tsp brown rice vinegar
1/2 cup water

Soak hijiki in water to cover for 10 minutes. Drain, reserving liquid, and rinse. Simmer soaked hijiki , covered, in soaking water to cover for 35 minutes. Add soy sauce and cook 10 minutes. Heat corn and peas for 5 minutes and sprouts for 1 minute then toss with carrot and dressing.

This would be great for a picnic with sauteed tofu cubes.