Summer Scavenger Hunt for Young Students

At the end of July, I have summer activities and a music scavenger hunt for my younger students (I only have four--Isabel, 13, Kaila, 11, Pranav, 9, and Pippa, five).  We have fun reviewing what we've learned from September through July.  Here are some action shots of Kaila, Pranav and Pippa finding their musical clues outside on a beautiful summer Saturday!

Where to next?

Pippa savoring the moment

Pranav hot on the trail of a clue!

First Dahlias of the Year

Again, the unseasonably warm weather has sped up the flower development in the yard.  Here is my first batch of lovely dahlias!

Family Time

Each Saturday at noon, my granddaughter Kaila and I have a piano lesson together.  Kaila is just finishing up her second year of lessons, and is doing well.  She also studied the violin in school last year, and played with the school orchestra.

Here we all are before Dave and Kai head on out for their Saturday activities!  And Kai just (finally!) got her new braces on.  I passed on the huge and crooked teeth from my father to my son, who passed them down to Kaila.  I love genetics!

Preparing For Our Annual Summer BBQ

Our BBQ is just around the corner, and we have been busy planning the menu!  We decided to try some different things this year, so naturally, that calls for a 'test kitchen' environment.  That means that we have to prepare small portions of what we are serving, cook it, and eat it! (life is tough).

Here are some shots of our initial efforts.  It was fun, and took care of our dinner items for about a week!

Organic Greens for Salad

Grilled Veggies for our Burgers

Bacon Cheddar Burgers

Home-made Sauces for Burgers

The Finished Product!  Yum!

Plum Pie

The plums are early this year, and the yield is 10 times the norm!  We are having a hard time keeping up with them!

Here's our first plum pie of the year, and from the amount of frozen plums in the freezer, it's safe to say that there will be many more of these treats coming out of the oven this summer.

Hot Air Balloons Over Maltby

When Summer arrives, there's a good chance you will see multiple hot air balloons over Maltby!  The other evening, there were three balloons that took off from the church parking lot next door, and ascended right over my pasture!  Here are a few shots of them as they floated away into the beautiful summer evening.

Maltby Piano Studio Mascot Symba

One of my students, Heather, loves to bring her Papillon named Symba to our piano lessons.  He's a very musical dog, and loves to run up my front steps and straight down to the studio, his leash trailing behind him.  He sleeps under the piano bench while Heather is working on her piano technique and recital pieces.

It's nice to have an official mascot, and he's such a charming little animal.