Now we're cooking. Dinner. Really.

Say goodbye to the Coleman camp stove and welcome a new addition to our outdoor kitchen - the CampChef Oven with 2-Burner Range (with griddle, oh yeah).

I had pinned this very appliance when I first discovered them and then last month when I saw Costco was carrying them at nearly half the retail price - oh we wanted one BAD. It was painful waiting to be able to afford it and hoping there would still be at least one in stock on payday.

It's got a temporary slightly unstable milk crate base. Repeat: temporary.

We've all seen burners work before, so we christened it with a batch of delicious black bean and taco TVP nachos. The temperature regulation's going to be a bit of a learning curve because the thermometer is separate from the LO-HI knob. However, we are extremely stoked to have upped our self-sufficiency in meal prep.

The second night we had Nature's Burgers and diced zucchini. A friend sent me a small herd of boxes of this veggie patty mix and we are loving it - great, thick texture and great taste - definitely an easy fix as I'm single parenting it this summer while Keith works out of state.

What good are dogs for if not the pre-wash cycle? Mia's the smart one, she stops the plate from scooting by stepping on it. Street smarts, yo.

My mom was in the hospital for a couple of emergency surgeries last month and it threw our whole family out of whack for a bit. She's recovering but we lost most of May and it appears no one is growing a garden this year.

I had planned on doing a 3x3 plot after reading a book on square foot gardening and I even wrote out the order form for seeds, but just never could find the extra lump sum for seeds. I procrastinated. And now it's too late. Maybe not for a summer plot. I still have a compost pile going. Possibilities are open.

We're in a rainy patch of weather and last night a big hail storm went through. Of course Keith thought that was a good time to be fiddling with the rain barrel. No damage, just a good lightning show.

Hoping to hit a hot springs this weekend in celebration of our 11th anniversary. Nothing as involved as our 10th anniversary road trip, but I am planning on enjoying it, rain or no rain. In the hot springs who cares about rain? Also, I have a pack of Impossible Project film to run through the SX-70. Good times are happening now.