cleanin' house

I'm leaving for the summer (!) tomorrow at 9:00am... so excited! But also super nervous and anxiously trying to close down shop here for a whole three months! Whew. So today I scrambled to pack, spot clean my apartment, mentally prepare Mr. B for the 12 hour airport experience tomorrow, and basically tried to tie up any loose ends.


First though I stopped to "smell" the rhododendron growing around my porch outside. Aren't they pretty? They reach alllll the way up to the second floor of the house! 

Next on my list was to pick up some summer (and airport!) reading at the local used bookstore. I love this little place. I scored four books for only $9! Most of them were like new, too! I picked up:

• Runaway, Alice Munro
• What the What, Dave Eggers
• Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit, Winterson
• A Yellow Raft in Blue Water, Dorris

Next I was off to tame my scraggly mane and decided to get myself a haircut. The stylist I see is not the friendliest person around, but I do like the way my hair turns out when she's all finished. This time she left conditioner in my ear (eew), visually chastised me for waiting two months to get a haircut, and eye rolled me when I told her I used a box dye about a year ago. Hah. But I would still see her again 'cause I like the final result.   


I was starving after all that loving attention, so I whipped up some French Toast, ala summer style:

Strawberry Nut French Toast Sandwich

• 2 pieces of bread 
• 5 or 6 mashed up strawberries
• 1/3c. almond milk
• 1 egg
• 1/4c. walnuts (or nut of choice)
• 1T almond or peanut butter

In a small bowl, whip the egg and almond milk together and set aside. On a separate plate, spread the almond or peanut butter on one slice of bread and layer the mashed strawberries on top. Dip the other slice of bread in the egg batter and gently set into a greased skillet. Then carefully place the strawberry nutty slice on top of the battered slice. Next spoon the remaining egg batter on top of the whole sandwich. Cook on medium-low heat on both sides until toasted. 

And of course, I dolloped mine with whipped cream and sprinkled with flax seed, for a good healthy measure. 


I'm off to bed! Here's hoping tomorrow is stress-free!