Lunch According to Ruth

Summer tends to get chaotic for us when there is no schedule to follow. And, chaos tends to make me cranky. So, in an effort to combat that, I have put together a little summer schedule for us to follow. It's nothing elaborate, and it still leaves plenty of room for all kinds of spontaneous fun, but I need to hold on to all the sanity I can, and I find structure helps with that.

One of the things on the schedule that the big kids are really excited about is that each of them is responsible for planning and preparing (to the best of their ability) one meal a week. Today, Ruth made lunch, in true Ruth fashion. She prepared a vegetarian meal in three courses and pulled out the crystal and china for serving. The finer points of this meal may have been lost on her brothers (the only other diners), but I found it to be a delightful little luncheon. It's fun to have someone around here who appreciates the finer things and enjoys pretty things just because they are pretty. (As opposed to those whose menus call for classy things like canned meat). Ruth did everything herself for this meal, from chopping to serving to hand washing the china.

pretty preparations

Ruth's 1st course: homemade bread and dipping oil

2nd course: cold cucumber soup with tomatoes

3rd course: goat cheese and grapes