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After reading for the billionth time about how healthy sprouts are (the Magick of the Seed is Released!), I finally decided to sprout some lentils, which took only 2 days, and I threw together this really tasty salad. Other sprouts I want to experiment with include alfalfa, buckwheat, onion, radish, quinoa, sunflower, peas, and bok choi. Where’s a good place to buy seeds in bulk?
Sprouted Lentil Salad with Garden Veggies
Dijon vinaigrette (like this, except I used balsamic vinegar)
Fresh chopped herbs (oregano, dill, chives, whatever)
Shredded zucchini
Chopped tomatoes
Sprouted lentils ("how to" directions)
Mix equal parts zucchini, tomatoes, and lentils. Add some herbs. Add vinaigrette to taste.
Total Jog: 8
Total Swim: 6
Total Tennis: 3
Well, it appears that tennis, like many sports, take more effort to arrange than, say, jogging by yourself. Even swimming has its limitations, as the pool is only open hours that are less than convenient by my standards.
It was a revelation to me, many years ago, when I realized it wasn’t so much that I didn’t like exercising; it was more that I hate team sports, especially ones with balls. Which is most of them. This summer did start as an experiment, and I did leave out one of my long-term loves, biking, on purpose. I wanted to see whether I could expand my horizons. The answer is mostly “no” as we see here.
But my swimming has improved. I’m up to full-on breaststroke, which (in my head) resembles closely what you would see in any televised swimming event. I wear goggles, and my head goes under water on every stroke. Yep, I’m a professional. Let’s gloss over the bits where I gasp for air at the edge after most laps. Let us not talk of my freestyle and backstroke. And future bikini shots can be ruled out entirely, never mind what the comments said the other week. You crazy kids!
The session was called "Planning for Preschool and School Age Transitions for Children with CAS." Sounds bland enough, no? Yet a huge number of participants were crying throughout the presentation, and the presenter also struggled to keep her emotions in check. Here’s the slide that probably signaled the start of the waterworks:
Common Fears of Parents- Loss of close relationship with EI (Early Intervention, which is birth to age 3)
- Inability to “see” what is happening with child
- Fears that no one will understand child; child won’t be able to say what happened; will be left out, picked on
- Concerns whether staff will really care
- Self-doubt – “I have no idea what is appropriate!”
Can I tell you how VALIDATING that is? That other parents are also having minor nervous breakdowns going from home-based, family-centered EI to the school system? And then from the preschool setting to actual kindergarten? I hear the next most-awful step is aging out of the system entirely at 21. I will continue to hope that Nea’s problems are resolved by then. It came up in her IEP meeting, though. Because IEP meetings aren’t gut wrenching enough. Let’s definitely bring up another bombshell point.
Gardening is usually a good news/bad news situation at any given point. The good news in this cold summer is the zucchini, which have not succumbed to vine stem borers (yet), the first time in several years. It’s my first year with pole beans, and they are huge and producing nicely. I really enjoyed our first foray into lettuce. I tried some different peas, which are 6 feet tall and lovely for snacking. Much more productive than the other kinds I’ve tried. The potatoes are looking good. We’ve eaten two.
It’s been the best raspberry year ever. What’s even funnier is that they started out on the neighbor’s side of the fence. Those people moved, and the new people chopped theirs down. Luckily they were already established on our side. Then the “new new” neighbors pruned my canes down and I was pissed, but it turns out that helps make them more productive. Guess I should have read up on that.
Due mostly to the weather, I’m guessing, the tomatoes are pathetic. We’ve eaten a handful of cherry tomatoes, but that’s it. Cucumbers aren’t getting any bigger, either. The damn bunny continues to eat my soybeans and bush beans. Earwigs have taken up shop in the bok choy, ewww. And the eggplants are roughly the same size as they were in May.
Still, plenty of time before the frost. I should start another round of lettuce and baby bok choy, which doesn’t have the infestation problem.
I learned this year that a common weed, Lamb's Quarters, is very nutritious and can be cooked like spinach. Since my spinach is pretty pathetic, I’m definitely going to continue experimenting with the weed. Why not, right? It’s the edible version of garbage picking.
Total Jog: 6Total Swim: 4Total Tennis: 3Nothing to see here. Move along, move along.
When I went to college, my parents gave me some parting advice. Mom said, “If you need money, just let us know. We don’t want you to go hungry.” Dad said, “If you break an egg and whisk it into your soup, it’ll keep you full longer.”
