5:00 Fridays

Bird, Deal, and I spent the afternoon at our farmers' market. It's been a favorite adventure of ours since the boys were babies and immobile. I certainly don't miss navigating that mess with a stroller. Believe it or not, it's easier with ambulatory preschoolers. Luckily they are willing to hold my hand, and Bird is old enough to actually help carry the goods. Based on my aching shoulder this afternoon, I remembered what the stroller was good for...carrying the bounty.

The market is a great opportunity to talk about food, nutrition, the hard working farmers who grow our food, and where our food comes from. When the boys were little the farmers' market was a great way to quiz them on colors and shapes. They were wide eyed at the piles of fruits and vegetables, and I suppose my orgasmic reaction was contagious. Just seeing the variety made us all excited to try everything and even pushed the boys to be the amazingly adventurous eaters they are.

The gorgeous displays of fruits and veggies inspire me to cook. I've even been tempted to try my hand at canning all the stuff that's fresh this time of year so we can enjoy summer veggies in January. I'm no domestic goddess, though I love to cook and keep a pretty clean home. Canning is pretty much out of my comfort zone. I've waited to give it a try lest I give my family botulism or something. If I'm to be inflicted with botulism I at least expect my forehead wrinkles to disappear in the process.

The bounty today included yellow squash, tiny, perfect cukes, deep green zucchini, red, green, yellow, orange, and purple (purple!) peppers, crimson tomatoes, treacly sweet white corn (so much sweeter than the yellow kind!), yellowish green tomatoes, fat heads of garlic, purple onions, white eggplants, drippingly sweet canteloupe, juicy watermelons, supple purple eggplants, deep blue blueberries, magenta raspberries, tied dyed red and orange peaches, honeydewish sprite melons (love the name and the taste!), and curly leafy greens. There were the also the requisite freshly baked bread and German bakery staples like apfelkuchen and kolaches and homemade goat cheese, honey, and fresh eggs that actually have yellow yolks.

We tasted just about everything that anyone was offering on a toothpick. The boys' chins were dripping with fruit juice, and I'm not talkin' the high fructose corn syrup shit that riddle kids' juice boxes. In honor of what both Bird and Deal named their favorite sampling of the day, I present to you the Bellini.

Get yourself a champagne glass. Go for the real crystal that you got for a wedding gift. Go on, dig it out and dust it off. We actually still have some Waterford with the labels still attached...Mac Daddy and I have been married for eight years. We do, however, break out the good Waterford and Tiffany flutes from time to time. The problem is that we usually only break out two, and we have enough for all of my readers to toast with us (sadly more a testament to my paltry few readers than my trunk full of barware).

Now find a fresh peach. Juicy, juicy, juicy. On the verge of over ripe. Pick it off the tree of you can. Crappy bottom shelf peach liqueur that will eventually go rancid in your liquor cabinet simply will not do. Now puree that fresh peach and add it to your champagne glass.

Pour good quality champagne over the peach puree. This is not an Andre moment (You should have outgrown any Andre moments from your past by now anyway.) You also need not pull out the Veuve or Dom. Korbel is your friend for this cocktail.

DO NOT STIR, lest you lose the bubbles. And what is the point of champagne without the bubbles?

Bask in the glory of the weekend. Toast life's little pleasures like secrets untold, your children laughing at your jokes, promises kept, shoes found on sale, a pound lost, wisdom gained, afternoon delight, and smiles from strangers. You're worth a champagne toast every single day; don't horde it for special occasions.

Cheers and here's to a peachy keen weekend!