Summer crop

Hello dear friends,

I hope you all enjoyed your weekend. 

We are back home as from last night. Today we cooked spaghetti with a simple tomato sauce and grated parmezan cheese. We also had tomatoes freshly picked from our container garden. They taste different when warm, and more like tomatoes than the store bought ones.

 On our way home yesterday, we also picked some figs. Our dessert, today! 

I love figs and grapes in the summer.

I hope to tell you about our summer over some posts in September. 

My way to keep summer a bit longer... 

Be happy,

Bon weekend!

It is the last weekend of Summer.

 We are heading to the beach, just a few days before schools open again.

I hope you all have a great time!

See you next week!

When in doubt...bake a pie

Here I am...back from our summer holidays. Here, but yet not so here.

School season already? Yes, but only in a couple of weeks. 

It is still Summer. We just hit the upper 90s. We are on water shortage mode. No running a bath or washing dishes from 9 p.m. to 7a.m.

Am I supposed to feel like it is Autumn? No, not until September at least. 

Do I need to define the seasons? Not necessarily. 

So, I made pie. With all kinds of cheese: feta, guda, edam...Home comfort in a plate.

Here, here to the

Summer- Autumn season!

At the book fair

An annual treat...'till next summer!..

All the good things

To get the week started on the right foot!..

Back home!

Hello, dear friends,
We are back home after spending some ten days by the beach.

Thank you so much for your messages. I received some very nice e-mails, too, thank you, thank you, including a brilliant message of self-esteem for women that I shall share with you, so expect to receive an e-mail from yours trully one of these days and expect me to share some meditative moments with you.

A lovely fragrant Thank You for the beautiful card that a very gentle soul sent me; it's right next to my bed and adds a magic tuch to my every day.

We had a nice time during our vacation. It was rather different from previous years. During our summer vacation I am usually very eager to do things that I could not do during "regular time", like painting or writing, or swimming a certain distance every day and so on.

This year we were all very tired, it seems. We first spent a couple of days in beautiful Thessaloniki, up in the North, visiting friends.


Then we headed West to the Ionian Sea. This is the sea between Greece and Italy whose share is called the Adriatic. We spent the first few days simply sleeping in the morning. Then C would take children to the beach and I'd get to do some reading.

We had home made lunch and then slept some more! In the afternoon the girls stayed in, listening to music and reading, while I got to do some cross stitching and C and J went fishing. Sometimes I read both in the morning and the afternoon.

Corfu town was lovely as always. We enjoyed walking around and appreciated the beautiful architecture.



But nothing compares to God's natural beauty...


I hope to post some more about our vacation in the next days. I hope the last days of summer are nice for you. Sending best wishes. See you soon!

Saturday, August 1st

Dear Friends,

It is a Saturday morning over here. It is August. The richest, most succulent month of the year. Traditional holiday time for all Eyropean countries. We were going to go to the sea today. However, we had second thoughts. Our best man and his family (whom we often visit, as you may recall) will be staying with us next week. So we decided to stay at home and give it a shape up. Not an easy task, I can tell you.
They will be staying at the basement (to-be playroom) and we must clear that out. And the kitchen. And the kids' rooms.

Work in the attic continued this week. We had pipes installed for the powder room. We had been thinking of looking for tiles and fixtures when we travel to Thessaloniki in two weeks time, but the workers payments cost SO high, I suggested we look for something cheaper at a local DIY chain. To be honest with you, I would like to have a go at tiling the bathroom myself. How hard can it be, really? A regular month's salary for two day's work in a 9m2 space, sounds like way too much to me.

I owe you a post about our trip to the South. But there is something I need to tell you.

Yeterday C asked me a question. If you were to choose, as in black and white, where would you go to pray: Olympia or our local church?
I think I need to elaborate more about that.

Summer pleasures and tips

Summer is the perfect time for...


Line Drying under the glorious sunshine.



Detoxing with all the booming fruits and vegetables. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients (Serves 3)

• 1/2 cup fresh strawberries, hulls intact
• 1/2 cup fresh or frozen raspberries, defrosted, if frozen
• 1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries, defrosted, if frozen
• Pinch of sea salt
• Dash of raw agave
• 4 to 5 Brazil nuts
• 1 teaspoon coconut oil
• 1 tablespoon bee pollen
• Unsweetened coconut flakes, for garnish

Directions

Place all ingredients except coconut flakes in the jar of a blender. Puree until smooth. Divide evenly between 3 glasses; garnish with coconut flakes.

Watch the video here.
Playing with water.(That is not what Martha says, but it is worth it!)

There are some nisances that go with the season, but they can be dealt with the natural way.

For all spray-on applications, dilute 20 drops of essential oil with 1 cup of grape-seed oil and 1 1/2 cups of purified water; shake well.

The Bug: Ants
The Remedy: Peppermint essential oil or citronella essential oil
The Technique: Use 3 to 5 drops on windowsills, doorways, and under kitchen sink.

The Bug: Blackflies
The Remedy: Cinnamon oil or turmeric oil
The Technique: Spray or dab on clothing and exposed skin.

The Bug: Cockroaches
The Remedy: Citrus oil, especially kaffir lime oil
The Technique: Spray on problem areas (e.g., under kitchen sink).

The Bug: Mosquitoes
The Remedy: Catnip oil or thyme oil
The Technique: Spray or dab on clothing and exposed skin.

The Bug: Ticks
The Remedy: Lemon-eucalyptus oil
The Technique: Spray or dab on clothing and exposed skin.

Read more here and here.

More ideas at Martha Stewart.

Wordless Wednesday-Ice Cream Anyone?

Hello! Thank you for stopping by my place. Treat yourself, and come back soon!

For more pictures, please visit the WW HQs and 5 minutes for mom.

The week after the holiday.

Oh dear! Is it Wednesday already? Yes. Did I make it to most of my friends? No! So sorry. I had all these plans of sharing with you my holiday diary and showing you pictures of our holiday. But nope! I've got a stomach bug that makes my stomach hurt and I want to cry. I don't stay at home because schools don't start here until mid September and I don't want my children to see me crawl. So I am at work, with my hair tied up in a bunch, drawstring trousers and a t-shirt, sipping chamomile. Not much of a glamorous view, dear customer, I know.

Now, on Friday, the new Sales director will be visiting, but the cleaning lady I hire once in awhile is in Albania (she actually is from Albania) so I'll have to clean up and straighten up the shop's 170 sq.m. myself.

Oh and we still don't have a phone line at home, so I can't even stay late and stop by while you're having breakfast. And we have water shortages which means I get to do the dishes at 1 a.m. or have a shower at 6 a.m. if I want to have one during the day.

Plus, our brand new kitchen is littered with plastic bottles that I fill whenever I can from the tap, so that we may cook or wash our hands. Gee, that's great fun, I tell you.

Oh well, one has to do their best. I may post about summer in the autumn, but will it not be fun?

Wordless Wednesday-Summer Delights

Thank you for stopping by! I hope you've had a refreshing bite today.
The WW Hqs and 5 minutes for mom host more photos I'm sure you'll enjoy.

Menu Plan Monday

Hello Food lovers,
By the time you read this we will hopefully be on a Greek beach, lazing under the sun. As we shall be camping this year, our cooking is going to be quite challenging. Never fear, though. Nature is so abundant, even when people are greedy. So here is what we are planning to feast on this week.

Monday 13 to Wednesday 15
The Greek Orthodox Church has a fast from August 1st to 14th, in honor of The Dormition of Our Lady. We haven't been fasting this year, first because I have been lazy and did not insist enough, and second because of our trip to Thessaloniki, where we indulged ourselves to some local delicacies and to the loving family cooking of our hosts.
Anyway, as of Friday 10th, we are not eating meat, and on the 14th we won't be having dairy so that the kids can receive Holy Communion. I am so moved, because they agreed by their own free will and probably by God's works.

So we will be eating lots of Greek salad, seafood and watermelon.

Then on Wednesday, our daughter D who celebrates her nameday on the 15th, will be offering us brunch after the church service. We usually have a full tourist breakfast which includes bacona nd eggs, orange juice, bread, butter and marmalade and tea or coffee.

Thursday 16th to Monday 20th
Our routine consists of cereal or bread, butter and honey or marmelade for breakfast.
Fruit on the beach.
Sandwiches, Greek salad or tuna salad for lunch.
Spagghetti when I cook. Grill when C cooks. Souvlaki for take away. Mousaka and pastitsio for dinner when eating out.

As an appetizer for our Greek cooking, I am posting some pics from our recent trip to Thessaloniki, Macedonia, Northern Greece.

Come on in, the table is set by the sea.

Mussels, a local delicacy from Thessaloniki. A saganaki with olive oil, onion, peppers and lemon, and a risotto with mussels.

And help yourselves to Greek salad and tzatziki, ouzo and a cold lager!

For more Menues, head over to Laura's at I'm an Organizing Junkie!

Have a lovely week. Keeping you in my thoughts.

Hello, we are back home!

Hello dear everyone! We are back home after our long weekend with our Best Man's family, G, R and M. We left on Friday afternoon. We crossed the mountain range of Pindos which geographically forms the backbone of Greece, as it runs from North to South.It's an alpine landscape, picturesque and enchanting.

There are forests of conifers and stretches of pasture. Cattle are grazing peacefully in the prairies and little farmsteads can be seen here and there along the road.

We then crossed the fertile plain of Macedonia, with its deep rivers and lovely orchards of apricot trees and cherry trees. Towards the end of the trip we listened to the Paraclesis to the Theotokos (God's Mother) on the radio. I felt so blessed for being able to listen to it, and sing along! You may listen to a sample here.

Towards the evening we saw the first lights of Thessaloniki. The kids were very excited as after the long trip along the mountains, they could finally see the sea. Our friends made us feel comfortable immediately. We sat for a traditional welcoming dinner of roast lamb and Greek salad, accompanied by excellent red wine, and shared our news.
On Saturday I woke up at 7 a.m. I turned the alarm off and slept until 10. J woke me up crying because he was dreaming that we were going to leave, and he wanted to stay some more. I assured him we are going to stay for a few more days, and he went back to bed.
C and G went to the village to buy milk. I love seeing local products and packages everywhere we go. There are 3 or 4 large milk companies in Greece, but they bought local, as C told G about my quirky taste. G then had a wonderful idea: He bought me a bottle of milk from The American Farm School in Thessaloniki! A little gesture showing people's appreciation and care. I am grateful for that bottle of milk and for our friends.

I think I am going to treasure this bottle forever! It’s clear glass and the lettering is in relief. Gorgeous. I had a glass of milk, which is totally not me. I loved it.

We then went to the zoo. I don’t know who was more excited, the children or myself. But I kept my act together, providing everyone with cold water bottles, holding hands along the sloppy pavements and explaining what every animal does. We saw ducks and hens, wolves and bears, eagles and falcons, sheep and goat, hen and cockerel.

The kids wanted to play a little so we let them do one round on an electric train.

It was well past midday when we went for lunch at a little restaurant by the sea. As it turned out, it was established in 1916, that is four years after the city was liberated from the Turkish occupation. Thessaloniki is famous for it seafood. We had mussels and fish, salad and ouzo.

Then it was time to go back home.We took a rest at the veranda, watching the sun setting gloriously over the Thermaicos gulf. There was a light breeze and the fields around spread a wonderful scent.

On Sunday we went to the city center. We walked along the leafy streets with beautiful art deco and neo classical buildings, relaxing cafes and boutique shops of some of the best known international designers.

We had coffee and the kids took to feeding the pigeons.

Then it began raining. The temperature dropped from 35C to 15C, and we had to splish splash along the streams of water in the pavements to get to our cars.

In the afternoon we had coffee and sweets at a lovely cafe.

Then on Monday the men cooked us lunch, a lovely spagghetti with seafood. We also went shopping at one of the largest malls I've been to. The sales are on here, so F and I bought a pair of shoes, I bought a light jacket and a rain hat, C got a bag, J some Playmobils and D a CD of her favorite Greek singer. We had a lunch of salad and sandwiches at the mall's restaurant and spent the rest of the day at home, talking and sipping fine red wine.
Then on Tuesday it was time to take the road back home.
The kids were sad, as we waved good bye to our friends. I think I cried, too. But as I said, I am grateful for the wonderful trip and the good company. A bientot.

10 Ways to summerize your home

1.Eliminate excess. Pack away many of your nicknacks. Clear away anything that feels cluttered or “hot.” Favor simplicity and lightness. Consider taking down some of your pictures for the season. It will be fun putting them back up for the winter months.

2.Remove dark colored pillows from the bed and sofa and pack them away for now. Or if you prefer, replace them with cool colors or cover them with slipcovers.

3.Take the “fire” out of your house. Pack away the candles for use next season. Consider putting away everything on the hearth for an open, light feeling.

4.Roll up any area rugs or throw rugs that you can live without to open up and lighten the room.

5.Pack away your winter comforters and replace them with lighter weight comforters in cooler colors.

6.If you have an excessive number of plants, take them outside for the season to open up your spaces and cool them off. You don’t want your house to feel like a tropical jungle.

7.Take a look at your curtains and drapes. Do they feel too warm and heavy? Consider taking them down and leaving the windows bare. If that’s too shocking for you, put up some lace curtains, sheers, or other lighter material.

8.Wash your windows or have them washed. Bye bye grime and grit, hello clean. There’s something quite pleasing about sparkling windows on a sunny day.

9.Consider giving your house a face lift with new interior paint. Paint is relatively inexpensive and can dramatically improve the look of a room. Home decorating trends favor using color instead of the conventional off-white.

10.Determine where you will store the off-season items you have taken down. You can store them in containers under beds, in available cabinets and closets, or in an off-season storage area in your basement. Large trunk-style plastic containers with lids work well. Label them with the contents (e.g., Winter accessories). If you use clear containers, you can even see what’s inside.

This uncluttered summer look will be easier to keep clean. I think you’ll find that summerizing will put a bounce in your step. And when the winter rolls around again, you’ll enjoy warming up your home with the accessories you packed away for the summer.

From Cheryl Miller.