Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Me and My Avocados

Coffee and avocados.
This is a common snack for me.
When we have avocados. We went on vacation and emptied our house of all fresh produce before we left, so nothing would go to waste. And then we didn't go grocery shopping for like a week after we got back.

Torture.

But alas, I got some avocados on Monday evening (today is Wednesday) and all of them at the store were hard and bright green. A few days yet until they would be ripe. No matter- they were a good price so I loaded up. Me and baby boy love them.



I put about 5 in a lunch bag so they'd ripen faster, and the other 5 I set on top the bananas in the fruit hammock. I had heard that you should put a banana in the brown bag with the avocados to get them to ripen up, but I was afraid the banana would turn brown and be wasted, so usually it's just avocados alone in the brown bag. This normally works fine. When I'm a normal-amount of patient, and not avocado deprived, and starving.



I kept testing them, off and on throughout the day whenever I'd get hungry. I would even squeeze them through the bag so as not to let any of the precious ethylene gas slip out. We need all of it so those avocados would hurry up already. They're still hard. Still another day or two at least.

On a whim, however, I tested one from the bananas.

This one was ripe!

Happy dance!

So. All that to say they ripen even faster outside the brown bag and sitting friendly with the bananas. So I will be ripening them in the fruit hammock from now on. Good thing too, because my brown bag has really seen better days. An avocado a day since the boy was born (14 months ago) and me in and out of the bag... you can just imagine what kind of shape it's in.

And just because I had a friend ask me hows the best way to get the pit out of the avocado, and I'd spent the first 6 months or better of my daily avocado-eating just eating around it til it popped out until I learned this trick, I'll share it with you as I did him.

Slice around the avocado. Hold each side and twist them in opposite directions. If your avocado is ripe, it should just pop right apart, with pit attached to one side.



Then gently but firmly press the knife into the pit. I have tried firmly smacking it, but have often ended up with an unsightly slice where I missed. I'm too OCD for that, so I just press it in.



Then rotate the knife, mimicking the motion you made when you opened the avocado. The pit should pop right out.



There you go! Grab a spoon and the salt-shaker and enjoy.
Or top your salad or sandwich or whatever with it.
Or feed it to your baby.
Or whatever.
Key word: enjoy.


Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Counting 1000 Blessings - October 2013

1          823 Tiny furrowed brow as Daddy reads
            824 vine ripened tomatoes

            825 Almost all of my mugs have a sweet face attached to them. This one came from my sweet friend Auburn. So it makes coffee time all the more precious.

2          826 Chatter on baby monitor
            827 Text from friend
            828 Laundry basket and socks
3          829 Clouds race across predawn sky
            830 Serving with hands

            831 goodbyes
4          832 Sister good-mornings

            833 Flock of birds rise in unison
            834 Cookies for my men (and the new Scentsy warmer I scored at a garage sale today!!!)

5          835 French vanilla coffee

            836 Secrets
            837 Barbie sighting
6          838 Curls, coffee and online church

            839Work completed
            840 Wrestling on the floor
7          841 Pink jeans
            842 The daddy who teaches his girls how to be girly is the best kind of daddy. Thanks to my daddy who taught me how to paint my nails.

            843 Amber glow of sunset on neatly cut harvest rows
8          844 Homemade applesauce! No sugar added, just the way we like it... only wish it would've made more. This was a whole bag of apples

            845 Mr. Boy thought he was pretty big stuff at the Library. He got himself out of the stroller and helped himself to the books.

            846 God makes such pretty things. Another #nofilter sky.

9          847 Little boy footprints in sand
            848 Boy with red balloon
            849 “chance” meetings at the park
10        850 Boy hair static from playground slide
            851 Baby chatter and belly laughs
            852 Ivan and daddy make pizza together

11        853 Passing baby off to mom – love being the mom in this situation finally
            854 Cleaned pantry
            855 Grocery shopping with my guys. I actually do love this
12        856 Russian tea and Beth Moore. Perfect morning.

            857 Tiny hands in prayer
            858 Legacy & news
13        859 lovely leaves

            860 sigh of sleeping baby
            861 knock of wind
14        862 Baby steps
            863 Scent of fireplace
            864 French toast
15        865 my Beth Moore lesson from yesterday... there was so much info I decided to go back over it today before I jump in on this weeks homework. (And a sadly unmarked page in my Bible- guess I'll need to spend some more time in 1 Kings)

            866 Isaac’s Storm – a favorite that was recommended to me years ago by an old friend. Picked it up again this summer. I *will* get it finished before it goes back to the library!
           867 Jesus Storybook Bible
16        868 happy sounds coming from the baby room
            869 thank you cards
            870 spaghetti and small group
17        871 golden sun on scarlet leaves
            872 moon large
            873 one thousand birds
18        874 blond hair poking out from under hat
            875 Pumpkin spice chai latte!

            876 I love this weather! Sky and droplets

19        877 Sharing Bible books
            878 family
            879 laughter
20        880 new words
            881 birds on the roof
            882 row of geese
21        883 cilantro
            884 Guess who had lots of coupons!

            885 splash of late evening sun
22        886 Making pickles and drinking my refresher. Yummm

            887 family dinner
            888 news
23        889 gathering
            890 Woke up this morning to ten beautifully sealed jars!

            891 opening our home
24        892 breathtaking autumn
            893fluttering flag
            894 harvest
25        895 Good morning! Ruby Red grapefruit

            896 Antique store and garage sales
            897 Baby boy and rocking horse present

26        898 Saturday adjustment
            899 groceries
            900 home
27        901 sunrise over frost
            902 granola and yogurt

            903 Bible and Beth Moore with the sunrise out the window.
28        904 cows at twilight
            905 drops of rain
            906 sky last night

29        907 eating crackers on the floor
            908 soup picnic
            909 lazy Tuesday morning
30        910 happy birthday to a friend
            911 new words and rain
            912 red leaves in autumn

31        913 washing tables
            914canopy of rain
            915 my herbs are loving all the rain!