The Long Awaited....Dilly Bean Recipe!

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Hi Friends,

You may have noticed I've taken a little time away lately. The summer's rolled herself into August and we find that a new school year is just around the corner. Chad skipped a few rodeos and I gave up a little golf playing to spend a few days with our children before they start back to school next week.

I'll be posting more frequently as we settle into a routine. I say that with a little "tongue in cheek" because we never accomplished what remotely resembled a routine last year!

I've had several lovely peeps inquire about my dill bean recipe and so with out further delay, I fired up the ol 'puter today to post it on the blog. ENJOY! It's a favorite 'round these parts! I recently canned 25 pints. That should keep us stocked til....Christmas!

Dilly Beans
2lbs of fresh, tender green beans
cayenne pepper
4 cloves garlic peeled (I had at least two per jar because we all like garlic)
4 heads fresh dill or 2 t. dill weed
2 t. mustard seed
2 1/2 c. white vinegar
2 1/2 c. water
1/4 c. canning salt
*jalapeno or other peppers to give it a lil zing!

Wash tender beans, string if using that kind. Leave benas whole, trimming to fit jar; pack lengthwise into hot sterilzed pint jars. In each jar, add one dash cayenne pepper, one or two cloves garlic, one head of dill, and 1/2 tsp mustard seed. Combine the vinegar, mwater and salt in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Pour thi over the beans, filling to within 1/2" of the top. Seal immediately. Process in hot water bath for 10 minutes. Beans should stand in sealed jars at least 2 weeks before serving.

I also add dried peppers, whatever variety I have on hand.

PS If you know my brother or my cousin, Austin...you may want to hide them! hee hee Just kidding boys! Glad you love them!

I hear you October

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I can taste October. I know she’s coming. It’s one of those inevitable things that you sense before you can see. I hold on to summer with all my might, both hands clinched down, as if my life depends on it. I love every bit of summer, even the heat. I may mention that it feels hot, but you won’t find me complaining about it.

I adore everything from fireflies to birds, moonlight nights, campfires and friends, plush grass (and weeds), a bountiful garden and cool mornings that burn up in the afternoon. There isn’t one that I detest about summer so naturally I never want it to go. Never! I could live eternally in this season and even if I live to be 90, I’m certain that the season will make feel young once again.

Summer’s warmth draws me out of the house and into the natural world more easily, though fall often beckons me in similar ways. Autumn is a transitional season, one that cushions the inevitable adrenaline decline that has built from May to August.

I secretly look forward to hot cider, campfires with a blanket wrapped around me and steaming mug of pumpkin spice coffee. It’s not the same as the passionate love affair I have with all things summer, more like a comfortable companion that I know waits for me year after year. I can gently rock into the red and gold brilliance, breathe in a little George Winston and relax.

This doesn’t mean I’m giving up on summer, not hardly! There’s still plenty of it left for me to savor and make memories with. There’s enough that I can distract my mind into thinking that it’ll last forever, even though my heart is whispering that it won’t. It will come around again, and so I’ll spend the next three months lying in wait, dreaming, planning, praying that it will arrive quickly, while at the same time appreciating what IS in front of me; be it soupy days or snow drifts.

I hear you October. I know you are on your way.

Friendship

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Cowboy Quote of the Day: "When the solution is simple, God is answering." ~Albert Einstein


Is this not the coolest gift?!?! This gorgeous piece is the artistic cre8tion of my friend Ann. Ann is the official Johnston Family photographer and co-owner of Serendiptity Shots. She has an amazing eye for unique, fun pictures that truly captures the energy and essence of her subjects. I should add that she’s also patient and fast, she’s been capturing Ramon’s antics since she was two!)

This was my birthday gift and it truly brought tears to my eyes. Some of the quotes are from the blog, some she added because they were so uniquely ME, all of it from the heart. I LOVE it and I haven’t stopped staring at it!

Do you have a friend that really knows you and (still) loves you for just who you are? Consider yourself blessed! Though there are a lot of challenges that we face right now, the one thing we always have is each other. I don’t get to see my friend as often as I would like, I can’t just run over to her house and spew about my day, I can’t pick her up and share my triumphs over dinner but I know that she’s just a heartbeat away.

We all have challenges to deal with. We all have days that we’re just ready to close the books on and say good bye to. And we all have friends; they are the tickets that gets us through the rough spots and the companions that we share our joys and success along side of.

Here’s to the enduring ties of eternal friendship, may we all celebrate this joyful blessing!

(Thanks Annie, it was sooooo great to see you and Bob this weekend!)

PS Do any of you see the totally cool embedded name??? Bonus points if you do!