CSA 11 and pets

Changing up the format here a bit, mostly because I didn't post the last box, but also because it's easier this way.

Yesterday's box included green beans, carrots, zucchini (the yellow lemon like things in the front), avocadoes, limes, strawberries, lettuce and yellow watermelon. We traded basil for an orange because we have tons of basil growing in our garden, and we love her oranges. We actually also traded boxes... the first one that we opened (which is usually the one we take, we only open it for trading purposes) had a small head of lettuce mostly mushed under the watermelon. We love the fresh lettuce, I planned a meal around this lettuce, and a small crushed head was not going to cut it if at all possible. So we looked at the box under it, and sure enough there was a lovely large head of red lettuce (even better than the green to us!) on top of the watermelon in that box. So we took it.


Obviously the watermelon isn't yellow on the outside... its yellow on the inside. I think it tastes better than regular watermelon, Blake thought they tasted the same.

Blake has made a valid point on the CSA boxes... they are not really saving us money. In fact... they are probably costing us extra considering that if I bought all of the produce at the store, it would definitely not be 35 dollars this week. Some weeks it might be closer, especially when you consider it is all organic, but it probably never pencils out financially.

BUT... I still am glad to be doing it. It hurts knowing that I am not cutting costs in an area where I could, but there are many reasons that I still enjoy the boxes, even though they are not saving money.

1- I love that its supporting a local farm. Sprouts tries to buy local whenever possible, which is part of the reason that we go there for other things, but I know that that money every week goes to a specific farm about an hour away, and that it is helping her keep her farm.

2- I love that its all organic. There is an organic section of Sprouts, but they don't have all of the same things that she has organic. Also, for some reason, it is easier for me to see a big chunk disappear at the beginning of a quarter for my organic produce than it is for me to buy a 2 dollar bunch of cilantro when I see the 50 cent bunch of (non organic) cilantro just a few steps to the right. (sometimes I still do it, sometimes I cave and get the cheap one).

3- I love that its fresh. There are some things that aren't a huge difference, like zucchini... but there are other things, like lettuce, where it is night and day getting it fresh from a farm versus sitting in a store for a few days/a week etc. I have been spoiled by fresh produce since I was little and my dad had a garden in the backyard. I learned what tomatoes tasted like by tasting ones that had been on a plant a few minutes earlier. There is no turning back from that! Honestly, even when our tomato plant is not in season, I can only buy tomatoes that have ripened on the vine in the store. All other tomatoes are not even worth it. I know... I am a tomato snob.

4- I love the forced variety each week. There is no chance of us getting set with a few meals that I make every week because the boxes are different each week. So far, no two boxes have been exactly the same. And I have tried vegetables that I had never had before like kale, swiss chard, beets, etc. because of these boxes, and as the seasons change, I know there will be more. I have liked every thing that I have tried... well... radishes are still a tough one... but I liked them in some forms...

5- It forces us to eat fruits and vegetables. We are good at this now, even without the box, but before Blake decided to change his life and get healthy, there would be many meals in the week that wouldn't have a fruit or a vegetable. I don't think we would go back to this, but getting all the fresh produce keeps us from this potential fate.

Anyways, we decided that while it might not be worth it financially to do the CSA boxes, it is still worth it to us because of the other benefits of it. It doesn't get any more green either, buying local, seasonal produce, supporting an organic farmer etc.

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I also wanted to steal a moment on here and talk about my pets, because they haven't gotten to be on my blog in a long time. The main reason for this is that I like having pictures of them when I talk about them, and although amazing photo opportunities happen all the time... by the time I get my camera, they move. Sigh.



So here is a recent picture of Roxie, laying on one of her favorite spots in the house... the top of the couch. It never gets fluffed back up to its proper height because this one thinks its a great place to lay. She really is a happy dog... though she doesn't look like it in the picture. Hanging out with her this summer I have seen that she is really quite content spending the majority of the day napping in various locations.



Here is a picture of Argon. He really no longer looks like a kitten (which is good, since he is a year and a half now), but he has beautiful coloring. I took a bunch of him last night, but this one is my favorite.



And here is a picture of the two of them. One of the activities that I love to watch them do is chase bugs (like flies) that get in the house. They work together, running around, watching the insect, and sometimes even chattering to each other. If the bug is unfortunate enough to land in a spot where they can get to, they even will catch it and eat it. Maybe that's too much information for you... but I think that its really cool that they get to do some hunting in the house, and they save me the trouble of taking care of the insect myself. :-)

They also spend a lot of the morning chattering about the birds that are outside near our windows. Actually, we think that some birds are making a nest in our front door wreath... not sure what to do about that lol.