My best friend Pap

Gus was one lucky kid this weekend...Pap came to visit and tumble and do whatever a 10-month-old heart desires...
Daddy does my hair for church - all sleek and with a part, do you like it?
Aunt Emily plays the Ukulele for Gus.
The birthday boy gets his coconut cake...and gets to eat it too...Happy birthday to my favorite Father-in-Law...

Gus' favorite food

Spinach for Popeye, Black beans for Gus. To each their own. Gus first tasted this Puerto Rican recipe for "Frijoles Negros" at the lakehouse of Heather's mother. He ate every single bean I offered him, so I asked her for the recipe, thinking he might like to have it again - and again - and again - actually, we all like this one and it's so easy and only gets better as it sits in the fridge. Careful, this may be addictive...but the good news is that beans are high in fiber, lower colestrol and are generally considered a good source of protein, so dig in.

You need:
1 lb of dry black beans
8 cups of water
3 teaspoons of olive oil
8 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
2 onions, peeled and minced
2 teaspoons of salt
1/4 teaspoon of pepper
1/2 teaspoon of dried oregano
2 Tablespoons of sugar
2 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon of cumin
3 Tablespoons of dry wine (replace with vinegar, if desired)
1 1/2 Tablespoons of vinegar

This is what you do:
Soak the beans overnight in the water. Bring beans to a boil and cook covered over medium heat for 45 minutes. Saute garlic and onions in olive oil. Add one cup of cooked beans to the skillet and mash it with the onions and garlic, return it to the rest of the beans. Add everything but vinegar and wine and cook over medium heat for another hour. Add wine and vinegar and cook over low heat for another hour. Uncover and let sauce thicken for 10 minutes.

Enjoy (and keep a wetted rag handy).

Holiday continued

The owner of this old beauty, let us "touch it." Gus wanted to "drive it" all day long.

Yup, he can't wait until he is 16 and can get that learner's permit (Mommie can't wait either, I'll have a chauffeur. I'll never drive again).

Stuck in the covered slide. They make 'em for tots not Dads.

Sitting pretty on the slide with my son.

What's the next thing we can climb, slide or swing on?

Holiday!

A sweet moment at the playground.

Finding Mommie a new car (we sold the Suzuki, I'm officially car-less). The size fits, doesn't it?

A first try at riding on Daddy's shoulder...

Gus loves it but doesn't hold on yet.

Happy Fourth!

The Brevard Fire Department lets it all hang out.

Gus discovers bubbles (and attracts a crowd) at the Happy Fourth Festival in town.

I checked. There are tattered flags in there. Amazing Grace.

Fawn Lake

With a name like that - Fawn Lake - you can't help but love this idyllic place in DuPont State Park just about 10 minutes outside of Brevard. Once you park the lake is an easy 20 minute hike up the hill. The water today was mildly refreshing, but definitely not cold.

The other nice thing about Fawn Lake is that it is a free, casual, kid-friendly place to be. It's simply a little lake, a dock, a couple of picnic tables and a lot of happy kiddos.

One very happy (and sandy) kiddo - at least that's sunscreen he is playing with.

It only takes a small truck to ferry along all the stuff it takes to keep two kids happy at the lake (actually, we came in Berne's little Forester).

My little bruiser

Ouch!
The culprit: the back stoop
The price: a bruised nose
and a few tears
The lesson learned: none

Just another day forging ahead.