Elm Bank

From time to time we've ventured down to Wellesley to Elm Bank, a 36 acre garden and grounds of the Massachusetts Horticultural Center. It really is a beautiful place when everything is in bloom, and this time it was host to the Massachusetts Marketplace Festival.

Teeming with enough vendors to empty your wallet and tempt every sweettooth, the festival celebrated New England's farmers, specialty food producers & artisans. Our personal favourite was Vision's Sown, bakers of delicious cookies made with minimally processed and ancient grains; I hope they make their way to our local farmer's market or Whole Foods soon!

I was a little disappointed after cheerfully shelling out admission for myself and four kids, that I then had to pay for separate tickets for almost every activity the kids wanted to do--I must have missed this somehow in their online advertising. I understand there was fundraising to be done, but I don't normally carry a lot of cash, even for bouncy houses and face painting.

But really, we couldn't pass up the expertise of the face painter...
























Other activities included glitter tattoos, hayride, & butterfly crafts (which were free, yay!). There were ample shaded picnic tables available for our picnic lunch...






















Butterflies seemed to be the theme of our day, with Maia choosing a butterfly design for her face, and all of the kids colouring a butterfly puppet. Right behind the butterfly table was a purple butterfly bush--and as if on cue, a beautiful one descended to the flowers for the occasion...

The kids were enthralled, and played along with their puppets...






















Much of our time at Elm Bank was spent in Weezie's Children's Garden. We have come here before to meet up with friends--it's a wonderful creatively landscaped children's play area.

If you're in the area, Elm Bank is worth a visit, festival or no!

March recap

March was a long
month. So lots to
cover. Best to stick
all the lunches in
one post.

Stuffed pasta shells,
grapes, carrots,
strawberry, mini
muffin.


English muffin sand-
wiches decorated with
rice cheese "peach
blossoms", pickle,
carrot, mini muffin,
steamed asparagus,
grapes, strawberry.

And for Maia...
carrots, steamed
asparagus, 1/4
sandwich, pickle,
dried apricot, strawberries.


Orange
"Puffle"
english
muffin
pizzas,
carrots,
mini
muffin,
steamed
broccoli,
grapes.












And breakfast for lunch: home fries, steamed broccoli, mini tofu asparagus quiche, whole
wheat bagel with Tofutti cream cheese.

Thermos of leftover
pasta & broccoli
casserole.

Side of honeydew
melon.






Maia's
Hello
Kitty
lunch:
cucu-
mber
slices,
Hello
Kitty
sand-
wich,
straw-
berries,
carrots,
pickle
slices.

I got
out the
old
Hello
Kitty
toaster
for this one. I remember buying it while visiting a friend outside of Chicago, then carrying the big box with me on the train and through the windy city streets in the city. But I was very happy to have it!

Next up: pizza sandwiches (to imitate the school lunch menu of French bread pizza that day), carrots, mini muffin, dried apricots/raisins, cucumber slices.
Below are just simple sandwiches & tater tots w/sides of ketchup.












Maia's lunch: cantaloupe, Terra chip exotic potato chips, snap pea crisps, steamed broccoli, a pickle.

Canta-
loupe,
bagel
chips,
rice &
bean
burrito,
steamed
broccoli,
pickle.













Kid-made lunches:
pbj sandwiches,
carrots & pickles.









St Patrick's Day!
steamed asparagus,
soba noodles, honey-
dew melon, green
banana muffins,
pickles.













Below: honeydew
melon, tater tots w/
ketchup, burrito.













Grilled nutritional yeast cheeze sandwiches, pickle, carrots, green grapes, steamed broccoli.

Brown
rice w/
chik'n
donburi,
cucu-
mber
slices,
carrots,
straw-
berry,
green
grapes.











Leftover vegan
pepperoni pizza
from Peace O' Pie
restaurant, orange
slices, steamed
broccoli, mini
muffins.





Wrap sandwiches,
green grapes, carrots,
steamed broccoli,
pickle.








Maia's lunch: sliced wrap sandwiches w/rice cheese flowers, strawberry, green grapes, pickle, steamed broccoli & asparagus.
Finger food lunches: Green grapes, steamed broccoli, carrots, cucumber slices, peanuts & chocolate chips, spelt bunny pretzels, dried apricots/raisins.

Nate's snack:
cucumber slices,
pickle, carrots,
green grapes,
strawberries.







Rice & chick pea curry, honeydew melon, steamed broccoli.

Carrot
sticks,
cucu-
mber
slices,
raisins/
apricots,
pickle/
straw-
berry,
tofu
salad
sand-
wich
rolls.








Cantaloupe and
honeydew melon
chunks, sour pickles,
carrot sticks, mini
banana blueberry
muffins.






Melon, pickle,
carrots, spelt
bunny pretzels,
mini muffin.








Stuffed pasta shells,
strawberry, steamed
green beans, carrots,
smoked Tofurky slice,
mini banana walnut
muffin.






Maia's lunch: strawberry, steamed green beans, 1/2 english muffin pizza, pickle, smoked Tofurky slice, carrot sticks, cucumber slices.

CSA fluff

I have posted quite a few times about our awesome CSA, recently in July here and here, in 2009 here and here. and a full review in 2008 here. In 2008 I also chronicled every
weekly pickup, listing what
we received with photos,
and including ideas to use
various items, such as this
post about greens.

But Stearns Farm CSA
never ceases to amaze me,
producing such huge
variety on its few acres
of land. Certainly the Loving Local blogathon deserves one more photo fluff post about our favourite local farm!

One
thing
I don't
mention
often
is the
Stearns
Farm
pick-
your-
own
flower
garden.
I'm just
not a
big
flower
person.
But
anyone
can
come
to the
flower garden and pick flowers during the summer for 25 cents per bloom, or $1 per sunflower. You can even purchase weekly flower shares for yourself or as a gift. It is just as important to the environment to purchase organically grown flowers as well as food. And there are many edible varieties of flowers, which can be used to brighten any meal, like I did in my Harry Potter bento here using red & yellow nasturtium petals and blue cornflower.
Here are some more beautiful photos around the farm...





















The resident bee population is kept very busy!