Here ends a full week of busy events. We started the week with a birthday party and ended the week with a wonderful celebration of life for our cousin Norman Webster that lasted two days. In between I spent time at our little club on the lake with grand daughter Edie and doing some kitten duty down the lake. It was a full, busy week that has left me feeling very satisfied with life and very content.

Margot’s birthday is the 4th of July and is always a fun celebration especially when it is on the porch in North Hatley. We had wonderful food and birthday cake that took two tries to get right. We even had our first fire pit of the summer.

Margot had offered to help a friend with feeding her 12 kittens while the friend went away for a couple of days but then Margot left and I took over. Their house is only accessible by lake so we had to go down in the boat. I was actually very proud of myself as I was able to get the boat out of the lift and down the lake, docked, took care of kittens and then got myself back home again and the boat back into the lift. A new experience for me but I am getting used to it. The kittens were very cute and quite happy on the outside porch but the raccoon came to visit so we asked permission to move them inside for the overnight which entailed quite a bit of negotiation with the cages and the food etc. However it worked out fine and despite a bit of cleaning the next day all kittens and the two mothers were just fine when we returned. No, I am not getting a kitten. Cute as they are we are quite happy with the fur babies we have now.

I am blessed to have many cousins thanks to my mother and her six siblings. Three of them came with their husbands for the memorial service and two of them stayed with me along with my sister and her husband. It was such fun to catch up after a number of years. We don’t live near each other so it is an effort to get together. There is never a shortage of things to talk about or to laugh about and there were lots and lots of laughs. The kind that make your side hurt. Lots of reminiscences about growing up with our mothers and aunts. The weather was perfect during the day and lovely and cool in the evening so perfect for sleeping. It was so wonderful to have the house full again it’s the way it should be here.

Update on Jenny Lane

It was actually a big week at Jenny Lane. The tile work was done in our shower and some more cabinets were built in the laundry room and some more counter added. This project has really been slow to get going so I am glad we are not there. Next up is the glass enclosure and the plumbing to be installed. And did anyone mention a door? That really would be nice. Then maybe some trim work. It’s never ending. I believe the painting of the outside of the house has been completed. It’s probably time for us to make a quick trip back to check on things although it is very hard to leave the lake.

We ate well over the weekend with everyone contributing to the food. Ottawa cousin brought pies and breads, Toronto/Metis cousin brought an incredible cake, Nova Scotia cousin brought bread and hamburger buns and made her famous hamburgers for us on Friday night. I need a really long walk to get back in balance but my goodness it has been wonderful. After a super busy weekend it is nice to have a simple meal and one of our favorites happens to be chicken fajitas. Here is a recipe from Half-Baked Harvest that might be fun.

Chicken Fajita Tortillas

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken breasts or thighs, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons smoked paprika
• 2 teaspoons chili powder or Tajin
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 yellow onion, sliced
• 3 bell peppers, sliced
• 3-4 cups cooked rice
• 3 cups grilled corn kernels
• 1/2 cup crumbled cotija cheese
• shredded lettuce, mashed/whipped avocado, jalapeños, and cilantro, for serving
• tortillas, for serving

Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette

• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup salsa verde
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 2 teaspoons spicy honey
• 1/3 cup cilantro, chopped

Instructions

• 1. In a large skillet, combine the olive oil, chicken, paprika, chili powder (or Tajin), cumin, salt, and pepper. Toss to coat. Set the skillet over high heat. Cook until seared all over and cooked through, 8-10 minutes. During the last 2 minutes of cooking, add the garlic. Cook 1 minute, then remove everything from the skillet.
  2. In the same skillet, add the onions and cook until fragrant, about 5 minutes. Toss in the bell peppers. Season with salt and pepper. Cook until the peppers are tender, another 5 minutes.
  3. Add the chicken to the peppers and toss to combine.
  4. To make the vinaigrette, combine all ingredients in a glass jar. Season with salt.
  5. Spoon the chicken and peppers over the bowls of rice. Top with lettuce and grilled corn. Sprinkle the corn with chili powder or Tajin, then pour over the vinaigrette. Crumble the cheese over each bowl. Top with avocado, jalapeños, and cilantro. Serve with tortillas. Enjoy!