We’ve Moved

Nope, not to another country. Although you never know when that may happen. But for today we have just moved to a new site. You can now find Kolbwebs at Season’s Worth Savoring.

Kolbwebs has all been transferred, it just has a new name but the same old content and purpose! We started our blog in December 2006, it was ready for a facelift! Hope you enjoy!

An early summer day

Not sure if it’s officially summer yet, I know I should know the exact first day but here I am calling it early summer. It’s hot, we’re in shorts and short sleeves and we are enjoying the pleasures like picnicking, ice cream cones and our zoo membership.

A few months back we decided to buy a membership to the zoo. The boys are free so we just got one adult pass. It’s a 15 min walk from our house and the kids love it so at the time it seemed like a good investment.  It may still prove to be a good investment but I have to be honest that I haven’t gotten as much use out of it as I have wanted.

On Tuesday, the boys and I ventured out for the morning to the zoo and then stopped on the way home to eat a quick picnic and skip a few rocks into the river. It was kind of a little boys dream morning.  I took along the camera and had some fun attempting shots while assisting with climbing and lunching.  I am enjoying capturing these moments that will be gone before we know it! I used to only take the “big camera” when Seth was going to be there so I could focus on taking pictures.   These aren’t as in focus but they are what they are!

(bring your swimsuit dad and Graham, Seth plans on going down the river with you)

It’s hard to see in this not so great pictures but the flamingos were guarding their eggs! I don’t think I have ever seen a flamingo nest!

a little scared without Jackson and sitting up

the highlight of the zoo is really the playground. It’s kind of a lame zoo from an adult perspective, lacking most of the big animals BUT as a parent I will say it is about as much zoo as the kids can do and enjoy and then the park makes up for the missing giraffes and elephants!

pb&j tastes better by the river

Jackson thought it would be nice to eat with shoes off and laying on his tummy watching the people pass by

We’ve gotten busy lately and I am enjoying those days when we decide it’s just going to be the 3 of us!  Sibling rivalry is getting to us these days but it’s these quiet walks and picnics together that I hope the boys will remember!

Pesto

My poor family is slowly turning a pale shade of green…not from seasickness but rather from an abundance of pesto. Not really, don’t worry. They are all just fine. But we are eating tons of the green goodness!

A couple of weeks ago I had thawed some chicken breasts. We were just going to have grilled chicken and some veggies. Blah. About 30 minutes before dinner I decided to get creative. I popped open the pesto jar in the fridge and spread it on the chicken. We grilled it and made the yummiest sandwiches. I used herbs from the garden to make some herb mayo which was super easy! And then threw on some sun-dried tomatoes and mozzarella cheese onto slices of crusty bread. The only thing I would have changed was that I didn’t toast the bread. It may have been yummier with toasted bread.

Telling you about the above thrown together sandwich is really just a distraction before telling you what this post is really about. Tomato Basil Pie. It is our most favorite summer recipe. Seriously, our favorite. It makes a great appetizer or meal. For a meal I normally serve it with a nice green salad.

I got the recipe from my dear friend Annie in Kentucky. She got it from her friend Mary (who I believe got it from Southern Living way back when) but in my cookbook it is now “Annie’s Tomato Pie”. I think of her every time I make it!! I made the first pie of the season last week for a girls lunch. It was a hit. It was an even bigger hit for Seth….I made a double batch so he could have it for dinner. It’s one of those things that he turned his nose up at when I first introduced him but he now requests it.

Last week I tried to take pictures while making the pie….somehow I got to the end and never took a picture of the finished product. It may have something to do with the fact that I was doing it with Jackson and Owen and I had a group showing up for lunch.

you salt the tomatoes after slicing to get out some of the extra water

you can make your own crust but I cheat and buy one…this time I accidentally bought whole wheat. It was actually really good!  You poke the crust with a fork and brush it with dijon mustard.

Pop it into the oven for 8-10 mins.

While it is in the oven mix the cheese topping mixture.

When it comes out of the oven dump the first cup of  cheese on the hot crust. Then top with tomato slices and cheese, pesto mixture.

Pop it in the oven and bake for 20-25 mins or until bubbly. This is where I should have a picture of a beautiful golden brown pie that makes you salivate and buy a bag of pesto. You will just have to take my word for it.

Another variation is using a mini cupcake pan and cutting the crust to fit. It makes a great bite-size appetizer. Last year I made the mini version to serve as appetizers for the adults at Jackson’s birthday party. I used cherry tomatoes instead of big tomato slices and they worked out well! This isn’t a great picture but you get the idea!

And here ya go…

“Annie’s Tomato Pie”

originally from Southern Living (although I can’t find it anywhere)

1 15 oz pie crust

1-2 large tomatoes

2 cups shredded mozarella

1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese

1/2 cup mayo (I didn’t say this is healthy)

2 Tablespoons pesto       (On a side note, the beauty of ready-made pesto or even using homemade in this recipe is that you aren’t   having to chop garlic and measure out spices. All of that work is done!)

1/4 teaspoon pepper

small amount of dijon mustard for brushing crust

Slice tomatoes and lay on paper towel. Lightly salt and allow to sit for a few mins so the water can absorb into the paper towel.  Put crust into pie pan. Poke with fork and brush with dijon mustard. Bake at 425 degrees for 8-10 mins. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with 1 cup of cheese. Let cool for 15 mins. Arrange tomatoes on top of the cheese. Mix together remaining ingredients: mayo, parm, mozarella, pesto, and pepper. Spread over top of tomatoes. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes. And while it bakes and the smell begins to fill your home think of my red-headed sister/friend Annie in Kentucky! I always do!

Change is in the air….or in the blog

Sheesh. I happened to glance back at my post yesterday and noticed that not only had I typed it with the boys, I hadn’t reread it to see there were like 10 errors. Ooops. I went back and made changes! The lack of focus is mainly coming from being tired from our other blog project. Seth and I have been hard at work transitioning our blog to something different. Different name and format but same old everyday content!  Stay tuned. It is getting close to going live!

Like my dad

Ever since Owen was born everyone who knows our family has said he looks like my dad. I have seen it here and there but only recently do I think he really reminds me of my dad.

maybe it’s the ken doll hair. Who knows. I just know he’s a handsome guy! Like my dad.

Washed out

A couple of weeks ago I was reading a blog and the blogger was discussing a passage that I really liked and wanted to memorize. I jotted it down and put it in the kitchen because that is really where we spend lots of our time.  I made a point of reading it when I was cooking dinner or cleaning up the dishes. It slowly became less coherent but in the beginning it was still readable with the water drops. Until one day I looked over for the verse and this is what I found.

The passage was  Psalm 92:1-2

It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
2 to declare your steadfast love in the morning,
and your faithfulness by night.

I first read it on Emily Freeman’s blog….here is the post if you are interested. She hashed it out in a series a few weeks ago. Enjoy. I love how she goes through “steadfast love in the morning” and “faithfulness at night”. I can especially relate to the need to declare God’s faithfulness at night. After long days in this season of motherhood with toddlers I need to be reminded that God is faithful to me and will equip me for another day.

Back to my washed out, mangled paper. I feel like sometimes this is an accurate view of my spiritual life at this point in my life. As a wife and a mom I find myself struggling to find time to be quiet, by myself, let alone quiet time to read and think about the truths of the Bible. I remember after getting married I had to shift expectations of what my Christian walk would look like. As individual as it had been before it now included someone else. And likewise with the addition of each of our boys my time has been whittled down and what I am left with is often feels like a washed out version of what I previously clung to.  In the midst of the hustle and bustle I am saying a prayer here and jotting down a verse there.  I am sneaking moments when the house is quiet to read books and trying to equip myself for guiding our children in their faith. I find I have to create a new normal. I can’t be frustrated that I don’t have the time I had before. I need to embrace the new phase.   I want to be aware of God’s presence in our lives and I want to know the peace and patience that only He can bring.

I am thinking next time I will work harder to memorize! That way when the waters come I can remember the promises!

Picnic in Zug

Oops. I thought I posted this weeks ago. It got lost on my post list. Here are some pictures from our visit in Zug a few weeks ago. We drove up for a picnic lunch and then drove back during naps.  Our friends Nick and Kima live right near the lake so we met them there.

Rainy Day Activity

It is a rainy morning here in Bern. Thank goodness! I have been loving the sunny weather but the pollen has almost been unbearable. I hope it rains hard enough and long enough today to wash the pollen away! But along with rainy days comes the need to occupy the kids inside more!

Most of you know that Jackson attends a playgroup 2 mornings a week. They call it a playgroup…it’s basically a Mother’s Day Out. They do crafts and learn about seasonal things, they have playtime and music time. It is more structured than a free for all but not a formal preschool. One of Jackson’s favorite things to do at “school” is play with playdough. We have it at home so it isn’t novel to him but he thinks it’s different there. One day when I picked him up the teacher said “I promise on Friday I will get you the recipe for the playdough”. I thought, “hmmm. Okay, no rush. I had no idea we needed it.”  On Friday the teacher made a beeline to me with the recipe. She explained that while Jackson played with the playdough one day he asked all about where to buy that kind. She explained that she made it and he asked her for the recipe. Such a funny kid.

A couple of weeks ago on a rainy Sunday morning Jackson and Seth made a batch! Jackson and Owen have enjoyed it so much so I thought I would share the recipe with you too.  I added a few of my own little tidbits but all credit goes to the English Speaking Playgroup for this fab recipe.

ESP’s Famous Playdough Recipe

2 tsp of cream of tartar

1 cup plain flour

1/2 cup of salt

1 T. oil

1 cup water

Mix ingredients into a smooth paste. Stir in some drops of food coloring. Cook slowly on the stove over low heat until the dough comes away from the sides of the pan. When it is cool enough, knead for 3-4 mins. Put water in pan to soak to make sure it doesn’t stay forever!

My sweet friend Amy in Bogota made some for Jackson’s second birthday. I don’t know what recipe she used but I bet it was similar! She made 4 colors and put them into little plastic tubs! It was a super cute, cheap birthday gift that Jackson LOVED and enjoyed for months following!

Hope you and your kids enjoy!!

Mother’s Day

We did things a little differently for mother’s day this year. We celebrated on Sat because Seth was worried that so many things would be closed on Sunday. The boys took me downtown to the market that I LOVE! I could spend hours roaming the market, taking in the sights and smells! Now I knew going into it that Jackson didn’t have the same feelings because 10 minutes before leaving the house Seth told him about the plans. He screamed “I don’t like mothers day and I DON’T LIKE THE MARKET”. So, we browsed quickly to keep the troops happy. Jackson actually had a great time and lasted longer than expected. After taking it all in we hopped over to the homemade taco stand and bought tacos and quesadillas to take to the park nearby. We also bought some cherries and blueberries at the market to add to the picnic. We had a fun lunch and the boys got to run around.

Yesterday on Mother’s Day Jackson and Seth made Pioneer Woman’s Lemon Blueberry Pancakes which were amazing!! Jackson gave me the cards he had made at school last week and the boys tried so hard to behave! (It’s Mother’s Day stressful when kids know all you want is for them to be easy-going and on their best behavior) We had a pretty chill day of bike riding and church!

Deeper thoughts on motherhood later…for now, some pictures from our day

I love how they put the bouquets into old cans

Super curious how much the farmer would sell this painting of a tomato for! I *may* have asked Seth to sneak back during a weekday market to ask. I love it!

a proud bride and groom parading through the market.

These days Owen feels so big to me, this picture reminds me in the big picture that he is still my little guy!

these were my favorite flowers of the day. Jackson picked them out with Seth…saying he knew I would love pink!  Truly blessed to have 2 beautiful, healthy boys and a husband that helps me raise them!!  Thanks boys for a special Mother’s Day!

Happy Mother’s Day…

to our moms! And to our friends that are moms! And to all of my dear friends that long to be moms!

Here are some Spring pretties to brighten your Mother’s Day! It is good our moms aren’t in town because I would not have been able to choose flowers for them. I loved everything I saw at the market! Pictures will have to do this year! Wish we were closer!