Thank god it's 5:00 here...

As you probably surmised, something was seriously wrong with Em-i-lis today. Server problems. Again.Enormously frustrating, T managed to migrate my site remotely from our failed home server to a host. We still have total control but cannot restore the past week's posts until we return to DC on Monday night. So, my heartiest apologies if you were planning to make radish fritters, pistachio yogurt or any of the other yummies I've written about and posted lately.

Today was another hot one on the bayou. Tons of extended family came over, and the little cousins all had a blast: water balloons, water guns, spy games, watermelon, burgers, lemonade and so on. I made a blackberry pie, sweet potato fries, and a huge green salad and enjoyed seeing everyone. Having not made up for all the sleep lost during last night's attempted camp-out, the boys were, by 3p, full-scale, on-the-edge, I-don't-like-them-right-now whiner heads.

Despite the crushing heat of mid-afternoon, I dragged the kids out for a walk with my dad. Jack turned back, but Ol, Dad and I persevered. Here are just a couple shots- a magnolia in bloom, and Poppy and Ol in front of some Spanish moss. When 5:30p struck, I opened some wine, and thankfully, my parents took over through bedtime. Amen!

Appetizers and drinks, camp-out in the works

Due to a deal made of staying up late, eating by a campfire and camping out under the stars, the boys acquiesced and napped today. It was much needed, and they have been darling ever since. As promised, we lit a fire in my parents’ fire pit and cooked beans and hot dogs over it. I made a cactus paddle/tomatillo salad, and both J and O swear that they now ”loooove cactus.” They were in hogs’ heaven and made up cowboy names for everyone: Jack= Texas Fire; Mom= Maxine; Dad= Pardner; Oliver= Jake; T= Slim John; me= Priscilla/Prissy.  Following dinner, we made s’mores, and really it’s true: everything tasted good when cooked over a fire! We’d made Aperol Spritzes and poured wine, and all just seemed good in the world. Unfortunately, the tree house in which they’d so diligently set up camp had about 2000 bees living on its exterior walls, so that situation is TBD. In any case, they’re running circles in the yard under the stars and having a grand time.

Corn, avocado and lime salad

It is definitely summer here in Louisiana; blue skies, humid, hotter than Hades and oh, the produce. A cursory glance around Mom’s kitchen showed tons of corn, a fresh anaheim pepper, tomatoes, avocados, limes and the prettiest little red onion. Mint in the garden and a fire-orange habanero I’d bought yesterday. I wanted to use it all for lunch. My parents’ grill seems to be totally out-of-service. It reminds me of an old-timey gas pump that still stands as a pillar to what once was, but you’d never have luck using it. As I’d initially intended to grill the corn and anaheim, I moved on to plan B and pan-roasted them, the corn with a bit of the habanero, diced, and butter. I tossed the warm corn with lime zest, the roasted, slivered and seeded anaheim, slivered red onion, halved grape tomatoes, chopped cucumbers, cubed avocados, chopped mint, some crumbled feta and a lime vinaigrette. Yummy- A perfect lunchtime entree when paired with some thick-sliced multigrain bread.