Plum Picking and Other Things

A week ago while on a run, Zoe and I spotted a plum tree that was hanging over the fence and onto the sidewalk.  We picked a couple and continued on our run.  A few days later we picked a couple more and then knocked on the door to see if we could pick a basket full.  No one answered ;(  

Yesterday, my friend Jami texted me to let me know that she saw a house advertising "free plums".  I knew exactly the house she was talking about.  I packed my whole family in the car, and Ben drove me over.  I brought a stool with me and grabbed what I could from the street, but only managed to grab maybe 5.  And so.  I knocked on the door, introduced myself, and asked if I could come in their backyard to pick.  He said YES!  He already had a ladder out and everything.  I frolicked back to my car to grab my bucket and was met with anxious and curious eyes from my littles (and Ben, he must've thought I was crazy).  He let me in his yard and I went to town picking plums!  

I was so giddy.  I filled my bucket to the top, and I wished I'd brought another.  I picked around 20-25 lbs worth of plums!  I will be attempting a Honey Plum Preserve recipe later this week.  Here they are:

Later that night I made a quick run to the store for some essentials.  I bought huge bag of "ripe" bananas for $1.49.  Oh, and I forgot, I picked peaches at my friend Trista's house yesterday, too!  I went home, peeled, sliced, and froze the bananas and peaches.  If you ever see those "ripe" bags for super cheap, or if yours just start to go downhill, freeze them for smoothies!

Pictured above are some frozen peaches and bananas.  Lay them flat on wax or parchment.  You can even do a couple layers (with the paper in between each).  Once frozen, you can move them to a bag in the freezer.

This morning I made baked peanut butter oatmeal.  It is a family favorite.  If you like peanut butter, you should definitely give it a try.  The recipe is in the pic below, but you can find it HERE.

While that was in the oven, I sewed 5 more budgeting envelopes and puffy-painted their purpose.

Ben left for work, and the kids and I got started on the front planter area.  It is quite large, but it's mostly in the shade so I've avoided it.  We have a ton of seeds left so we figured we'd just plant a few different things and see what grows.  I was surprised to find that the soil was actually quite nice and moist.  Ellie was excited that there were lots of bugs and worms, and Aaron was excited that he was allowed to sit in the dirt and dig with a mini shovel thing.  Zoe was unknowingly our photographer and had a multitude of unflattering pics of my butt.

We planted some lettuce mixes, zuccini, watermelon, carrots, and basil.  I am hoping that at least a few things will grow.  We'll see soon.

And now it's nap time.  Beautiful nap time.