Dirty Diet Dr. Pepper Recipe

 

Learned about this little recipe yesterday and had to try it.  

It did not disappoint.  

It was frothy, creamy, fizzy and filled with flavor. 

I'm already craving another one. 

Think about the possibilities:

Root-beer + cream = Root-beer float

Sprite + cherry + vanilla + cream = Cherry Italian Soda

Orange Fanta + cream = Creamcicle

Diet Coke + Lime + Cream = Yum

My friend told me she calls it a "French DDP".

I think I like that name better. 

What flavor would you make?

Jump

Happy July!
What we like to do around here to stay cool when it hits 122 degrees.

How to Keep Your Potted Plants Alive in the Heat of the Summer.

 I adore plants.  Hence the name Gardenview Cottage.  Plants make everything prettier.  Potted plants are my favorite right now because you..can..put..them..anywhere!  Here in Arizona where the summer sun will burn a hole in your eye you need to be able to move your pots to a shady spot to keep them alive. Plus we get 360 days of pure sun.  I kid you not.  It's a sunny day here everyday!

 

I like to group my pots together for two reasons.

1. They look better grouped together and it's always nice to be near a friend (wink)

2.  It's easier to water them so you aren't going all over the yard multiple times with the hose.

Speaking of watering.  Potted plants here in the Desert need a lot of water.  Even though my pots are in partial sun I still water them deeply every day to every other day.  There is no moisture in our air - like 0% humitity - so the plants need all the water they can get.  I don't think you can over water your pots in the summer.  I take that back....you can if there isn't a drainage hole in your pot.  Drainage holes are a must or you will get root rot, plant fungus and a wide range of other problems.  When I water the plants I fill the pot until water starts to come out the bottom. 

 

I have chickens that free range in my yard.  Chickens like to eat plants.  I had to be very careful when planting my pots this spring.  I didn't want to spend all my plant money on the Chickens lunch and I also didn't want to plant anything that would be harmful if they did nibble on them. 

 What I came up with was that chickens don't eat herbs.  They like to sit in the potted herbs but not eat them.  The picture above is filled with mint, thyme, globe basil and a little succulent I got in Cali. It also has a homemade wire dome that I made out of our marshmallow roasting sticks so the chickens wouldn't nest in my pot.  I have to say it worked great!

Chickens also don't eat potato vine which grows like a weed here in AZ.  It grows in full sun all the way to full shade.  It comes in dark purple (above) and a chartreuse green)  It's a great pot filler, is cheap and can be cut off, put in a cup of water and can be re-potted in less than a week.  I call it the "make a new friend plant" because it's so easy to share with your friends.

 

I fill my pots with 2-3 perennial plants and some annuals so they will be full.

I will do a post in the future on what plants chickens don't eat and what has worked for me.

 My little dwarf Meyer lemon tree got pretty frozen this winter and I thought it was dead for awhile.  It has come back nicely and I will have to take better care of it this winter. This pot would be in full sun all day so I have moved it under the umbrella I keep up to shade the chicken coop on the other side of our pool fence.  It is filled with the dwarf Meyer lemon tree, a chartreuse potato vine, zinnias, and climbing verbena.

Remember:  You don't have to have a green thumb, you just need to pay attention.

Summer Vacation #2

 Amberly jumping for joy to be in the ocean.

This summer we tried something new.  Maybe not new to other people but, very new to us.  Camping. We've only been on one overnighter as a family and it rained.  It wasn't bad, but it wasn't the best either.  This year we wanted to try camping at the beach.  We had heard for years how fun it was and I was desperate to get to the beach this summer so I signed us up.  Yes, me.  The non-camper signed us up.

And guess what?  We LOVED it with a capitol L!  Seriously one of the best vacations we've done.  in fact we were already planning our next camping adventure as we were driving home from this one.

 This girl (Miss Cassidy) would not get out of the water.  

She was in it from sun up to sun down.  I kid you not people.  

She was in heaven.

 I sat next to this handsome guy everyday.  We shared an umbrella and had matching beach chairs. 

 We brought a picnic to the beach everyday with snacks, drinks and lunch. 

 We didn't move from our post.  It was wonderful!

 Amberly didn't love boogie boarding as much as her sister but she spent her fair share of time in the water. 

 I didn't get in because it was too darn cold! 

 But I did get my feet wet, chased the waves, went for long walks, gathered smooth flat stones and shells, took a long nap, got really really tan and filled my heart with being at the beach.

 Amberly has the best Daddy.  He took her out in the water and didn't come in for hours. 

 Just him and her.

More beach pictures to come and a big thanks to our friends that made the trip so much fun!

Service with Smiles

Abby and her friend Britley did a little service for our neighbors.  At Activity Days (for our church) they gave them some ideas on how to show service to their neighbors.  The girls made cupcakes at Britley's house and took some over to her neighbors then came over to our house and made cookies.  I love how they ran all the way there and back excitement bursting from their little bodies. 

I got the free printable for the neighbor from HERE - Joy Ever After

Summer Trip #1

We hadn't planned on going anywhere this summer. 

 Pool time and summer movies was the only thing on our agenda.  

The closer it got to the 4th of July the more we wanted to get out of the hot desert air and go somewhere cool and with a parade.  We didn't see either but we did have a great time!

Cousin Mischa age 5

We went on long walks down country roads, had long talks with friends of old.  

Grandma came and played games for hours.  It was a heat wave, so glad we had power! 

We loved being away from real life.  The country is so peaceful and quiet.  

These pictures are all on Tom's brothers farm.  What a beautiful place to live♥

I love the history of the Midwest.  Everything in Arizona is new, new, new.   

I love that too.  

But there is something about seeing these old buildings and barns that have been around for 

100+ years that melt my heart.

The favorite thing from our trip was swimming in the pond out back.  

My kids loved it and I loved watching them.

Other things we did:

 

 We went through Oklahoma which Cassidy was thrilled about - since she was born there.

 My Dad's mothers maiden name was Hooker.  

I had to take a picture of this as we went through Kansas for two reasons: Why? And Why?

 We stopped in OZ in Liberal KS.  

They have Dorthy's house, a museum and if you blink as you are driving through the town you'll miss it. 

 (It's a very, very small town)

 

We met a biker guy named Jingles at a gas station and he gave Tom this bobcat hat.  

Yes,  Tom can make friends anywhere!

 

We played socks with Grandma and the cousins.  

She does "socks" so no little hands get hit with 'spoons".

We also, watched fireworks, lit fireworks, BBQ'd, went to dinner with friends, stayed up way too late, melted in the humility, went swimming in ponds and pools, antique shopped, grocery shopped, went to an Amish auction, ate ice cream, organized, and overall had a lot of fun.

Summer is Here

Today was the last day of school.  7th and 3rd grade DONE!  I don't know who was more excited......me or the girls.  I am ready for a relaxing no demand schedule.  Don't get me wrong.  I have things planned for us to do but there is NO homework involved and that is what makes me happy.  The girls have been saving their money for these snorkel sets they saw at Costco.  After school today we went to lunch, then to buy their new summer toy.  They swam all day happy as mermaids.

This year flew by.  I seems like the girls just started school.   My nephew Garrett's birthday was last week and I completely forgot.  When my brother texted me a reminder I thought to myself......."it's his birthday?  But he already had it this year."  I promise that's what when through my head.  It has been an entire year since he tured eight and it feels like it's been a few months.  What???

I took a break from blogging.  I wasn't happy about it but I just couldn't seem to find the time in our busy life.  It makes me sad that I missed so many little moments and I vow to try and catch up on some of them (the ones I can remember) and keep track in the future.  Since time is moving so quickly I need to make sure and keep track of what's going on around here even if my pictures are from my phone or I just pop in to write a little blurb.

What are your plans this summer and did this school year fly for you as it did for me?

A Must For A Summer Swim

Last week the girls and I took a trip to our local CVS (corner drug store).  I had to pick up a prescription and the girls looked for a "prize".  They think every time we go to a store they deserve a "prize".  Pah-leeze.  I normally say no but....they brought their own money so I had no say at all.  I think they picked my favorite kind of "prize" which equals= practical, useful and can be used more than a few times while being a good bargain.

Here's what they chose:

New Goggles!  Not just regular goggles but scuba goggles.  My girls live in the pool all summer and for them goggles are a must to save their eyes from the chlorine.  Once they figured out how to get them on and keep the water out they were happy little mermaids. 

Just Dance

The girls and I got "Just Dance 2" for the Wii today.  Oh my funness!  Seriously, when people talk about having dance parties at their houses and the all kids converging at so-and-so's house to play this game - I now know why!  It's a great workout, the songs are fantastic and.....you can't help but laugh and enjoy yourself while dancing your heart out!  It's the perfect family fun!  Even Tom reluctantly agreed to try a dance with Abby then went for two more rounds!  Come on over and bring your remote.  We can have up to 8 players!

Free Slurpee's

Today was 7/11 which means FREE Slurpee's at 7/11!  

Cassidy is a wiz at remembering dates.  She remembers birthday's anniversary's, when we got our cat, when random events happen.  One year we were traveling on 7/11 and heard on the radio that it was Free Slurpee day.  Every time we stopped for gas or to get a snack we tried to find a 7/11.  We got a lot of Slurpee's that day!  Since then Cassidy is our little reminder and we have made it a summer tradition.

I haven't had a Slurpee since high school and I have to admit it was DE-LISH!  I got pina-colada and it cooled me right off on the way home.  In fact I was freezing and had to turn the A/C off - haha

Did you go get your free Slurpee yesterday?
P.S. you have to go early - when the free cups run out...that's it - no more free Slurpee's.

CTA Summer Kids Camp

This summer Cassidy, Amberly and their friend Tatum did a two day Summer Kids Camp.  

They planned it, shopped for it (using their own money), sent out flyers, 

called the families to follow up and had so much fun! 

Let's not forget to mention that the also made some money (wink)

 These two girls were so excited to play with these kids!

 Amberly was in charge of storytime.  

She did an excellent job and the kids loved "One Monster After Another"

They colored the "longest picture in the world" like on the movie "Ramona and Beezus"

 Cassidy and Tatum did the little girls hair.  

There was one little boy that day so he got to watch a dinosaur movie while the beauty parlor was in session.

 They played with play-dough with beautiful hair-do's

This was by far the activity that held the kids attention the longest.  

I have to admit...play-dough is pretty fun - even for me!

They had water games.  As you can see - Bryce the only boy was in girl heaven and!!!

 We traced each child and made a life sized drawing of them to color.  I had gotten this roll of butcher paper from the Christmas party last year and hadn't used it.  If you need something fun for your kids to do...get butcher paper...there are endless ideas that come from a large sheet of white paper!

Indi is a budding artist for sure!

The little kids had so much fun for two whole days and at the end the girls made $133 and Cassidy has had three babysitting offers.  She's been booked up since♥

My favorite quote from all this was Cassidy saying

"Mom now I know why you get so tired!"

HAHA!  Oh yes dear..taking care of kids is HARD work!

I have to say how proud I was of Cassidy.  She took full control over this project and did a fantastic job.  I am so impressed with how she handled a large bunch of children, stayed calm and never got frustrated with any of them. She hates to talk on the phone but called each family to follow up and even rode around the neighborhood in the hot weather delivering flyers to each family.  She even used this experience to count toward her 10 hour project for Young Women.  It makes me so happy to see her grow and blossom into such an amazing young lady!