Of Hammocks, Hamlet and Hard Lessons - oh, and Baked Beans, too

The kids put me on a hammock quest for a few weeks. They've always had a romantic idea of summer and lounging in a hammock. We kept an eye on them at Target. I liked the rope one because it would not collect leaves or water. Ellie liked the striped cloth one because she loves anything stripy. Ethan wanted one with sticks at the end because it would be more comfortable that way.

At first they were out of our price range. Then they began to go on sale. I watched them when they were at 30% for over a week. Slowly, they were selling. I was hoping for 50% off, but the rope hammocks sold out before that point. I did a bit more research and took the drive even though I had hoped they'd go down. Next was the hunt for "S" hooks that could hold the same weight as the hammock. Once found, we were on. The kids are groovin' in the afternoon. I tried it, but I'm not so taken with them.I much prefer watching the kids have time from the comfort of my rocking chair on the porch.

Another thing that reminds me of summer is the Colorado Shakespeare Festival up at the University of Colorado. Larr and I used to go see all three performances every year. We'd even buy a mug with that year's poster on it. It has been years since I've been but last night I decided to go to the preview (dress rehearsal) night to see Hamlet. It was very cool in a nerdy, academic way. We were just to the part where Hamlet is having a play put on to see if his Uncle/Father emotionally responds. (The play is about a man who kills his brother to marry his wife - just what Hamlet suspects has happened). As Hamlet launched into the famous "To Be or not to be..." speech the thunder clapped and the lightening illuminated the night sky. IT was the very height of drama. But then the rain followed. Very quickly we found ourselves in the hallway while we waited for the rain to pass. It only intensified. After 30 minutes or so they sent us home with promises of being able to use our tickets another night. I was bummed, but that is weather in Colorado in the summer time.

Firecrackers are also a part of summer for us. Ethan is so drawn to them, always has been. Today he cashed a work check and had me deliver him to a firework stand. He was smitten with the heaps of lovely, brightly colored options. He filled his basket with a few of his favorite things - fountains, smoke bombs, spinning flowers and the like. When they rang up his order he found that he had spent much more than he planned. He put a few back, but still felt bad. In the end he spent $42 on fireworks. He felt both excited and buyer's remorse even before we were a block away. There are no returns so it had to become a hard lesson. Next year he will only take as much as he is planning to spend, and no less. He'll just have to take that lump with his tea and try to enjoy the fireworks anyway. I think he'll manage, somehow.

And finally, a recipe. Every 3th of July our city has an AMAZING fireworks display. We get together as an extended family, celebrate my niece's birthday, have a BBQ and watch the fireworks. The menu is always the same. Here are the beans that are out of this world. They are wonderful, but not very diet friendly. We have them every year:

Kathy's Baked Beans

3 cans (16 oz) Baked Beans, drained (we use VandeCamp brand)
1 med. Onion chopped finely (or 1 envelope of Lipton Onion Soup Mix)
1/2 cup Ketchup
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1/2 cup Dark Corn Syrup
1 tea. Paprika
1 tea. Basil
1# Bacon, cut into pieces

Place everything in a crock pot. Stir to mix. Cook on low for 6-8 hours (or overnight). If you are in a rush you can do the crock pot on high for 3-4 hours.

Enjoy!

There is also another wonderful Baked Bean option over on the Kevin and Amanda recipe website. You can view it here.