#24 - Red, White, and New

Memorial day was an interesting one. Mum and I made a bunch of food and had some neighbors, friends, and family over to relax. JD got to enjoy the yard that we recently had fenced in for him, too. Unfortunately, I got incredibly sick after eating some bruschetta, so I didn't enjoy much of the day. I snapped a few photos, but didn't get any of myself with my family because I only stayed out with them for a bit before my stomach decided to wage war on itself. Jeremy thinks I may be lactose intolerant since this happened once before after I ate dairy. Looks like I will be avoiding it from now on!

But here are the few photos I did manage to snap:


JD and his grandma in the new Bruins hat that she designed for our line


JD and Jeremy - my two wonderful boys!



JD enjoying his new yard




And he also enjoyed some of our tasty cookout treats.

And here is the awesome Boston Bruins hat that my mom came up with over the weekend:



JD just has to show his Boston pride :]

And I must share the recipe for the beautiful red, white, and blue trifle that I made yesterday for desert!

Fruit for Freedom Trifle



Ingredients:
1 box of Pillsbury Funfetti Cake Mix
2 Bananas
8 Large Strawberries
A bag of frozen organic blueberries- thawed
3 Containers of L ight Cool-whip
2 Boxes of Instant JELL-O Banana Pudding

(This is for a large trifle to serve 12-18 people)

1. Bake the Pillsbury cake following the directions on the box. To make the cake light and more figure-friendly, use 4 egg whites instead of 3 whole eggs, and instead of oil use a cup of applesauce.
2. Make the two boxes of instant JELL-O pudding.
3. Once the cake is cooled, take 1/3 of it and break it up into small chunks and place them in the bottom of the bowl that you will be using to put the trifle in. 4. 4. Slice 6 of the strawberries into small pieces and distribute them throughout the bowl on top of the cake.
5. Use 1/3 of the pudding and distribute it in dollops around the bowl.
6. Add a layer of cool-whip.
7. Repeat steps 3-6, but instead of strawberries, add a layer of blueberries and leave a handful to the side to embellish the trifle at the end.
8. Repeat steps 3-6, but instead of strawberries, thinly slice the bananas and use them in the final layer.
9. Once your trifle is topped with a smoothed layer of cool-whip, use the two remaining strawberries and the handful of blueberries to embellish the top of the trifle.
10. Serve and enjoy!




JD enjoys this, too, but since this treat is particularly sugary and sweet, I only let him have a little bit just to satisfy his sweet tooth!

On an entirely different note, today I am celebrating my 4 year anniversary with my boyfriend, Jeremy. On June 1, 2006 we met at a train station and went to a Dashboard Confessional concert at City Hall Plaza in Boston. Since that day we have been inseparable and I wouldn't be able to achieve all that I do without his love and support.



"forever & ever, babe"

I can't wait to celebrate this weekend. Jer has planned a weekend away, but the whole trip is a surprise, so I won't know anything until Friday when we are leaving. JD will be spending the weekend with his Grandma, so I am sure he will have a lot of fun and be spoiled with treats while I am gone!

I am also planning a day out for Jer. Unfortunately, I had to tell him to make sure he could get the night off, but I got us tickets to go see RAIN The Beatles Tribute and Cover Band for the second time on June 23. It should be a lot of fun! I also got him a gift from a lovely Etsy-er, but that's a surprise, so I will share that once I've given it to him.

Now that I have made a very long post, I am off to play with JD and watch I Love Lucy before work. Have a lovely day, everyone!

x's and o's