My obsession with lavender continues! I’ve made lavender lemonade milkshakes in the past, but I decided I wanted to try to come up with a recipe that featured only lavender, and this fits the bill…it’s bright and refreshing!
Combine all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.
Today is my 46th birthday!
I started the day by receiving a truly amazing gift from my family…I can’t wait to find the perfect place on the wall to hang it!
I decided that taking a “Hit the Bricks” tour on historic Main Street in St. Charles, MO, would be the perfect way to spend the day, because I would get to see something beautiful and interesting AND learn something, and I wasn’t disappointed!
I finally got to try the lavender Frappuccino using my Starbucks birthday reward…it was just as delicious as I imagined!
We had my favorite dinner, Reuben casserole, and since we also have Starbucks at home, I made a lavender matcha to go with it:
And Bunny made me an amazing tiramisu for my birthday dessert…I’ve come a long way since the years I used to make myself a tiramisu layer cake for my birthday!
It was unbelievably delicious!!!
Roald didn’t come to my birthday party this year, which was the cause of great sadness, but I set up a photo shoot so we could still get a birthday picture together…it’s tradition!
I also got to watch a few of my favorite movies today (one of them might have been a Christmas movie, and another might have starred Donald Duck), and generally feel very special…it was a great day!
This week’s mani is inspired by the return of my all-time favorite drink from Starbucks, the lavender matcha! I went with a pale purple and green color scheme, featuring Holo Taco’s aptly named “Lavender Syrup” plus “Mint Mojito.”
Ladybug continued reading Jane Eyre this week. She also started Murder on the Orient Express. In psychology she learned about IQ tests and the difference between general intelligence and emotional intelligence as well as the difference between fluid intelligence and crystallized intelligence. In writing she practiced writing different forms of parallelism. We read about John Knox and John Wesley in religion.
Chickadee continued to work with systems of equations and also converted between celsius and fahrenheit in pre-algebra. We read about the Zulu in Africa in history. In science, she finished the chapter on the superstructures of the human body. We continued The Bronze Bow. We also began our Lenten Jesus Tree readings and Amon’s Adventure. We stopped by the library to see the baby chicks once more before they move on…they’ve gotten so big!
Speaking of birds, we’ve been on pip watch and absolutely obsessed with Jackie and Shadow’s adorable babies…the Big Bear Bald Eagle Live Nest cam has been on pretty much all day all week here!
We celebrated making it to March and the return of our very favorite Starbucks drink, too!
One more week of school, and then it’s time for spring break!
I am on a major lavender kick, so of course I had to buy the lavender-lemonade whipped cream at Target the first time I saw it…but then I had to figure out what I was going to do with it! Since we love lavender-lemonade to begin with, I thought why not make lavender-lemonade milkshakes, and use the whipped cream to top them? It was just as delicious as I hoped…perfect for spring! I’m sure they would be good with regular whipped cream, too, since the special variety is a seasonal item.
Add all ingredients to blender and blend until combined. Top with whipped cream and additional dried lavender, if desired.
I always figured that if I was going to have a full-on Starbucks addiction, it was going to be because of some kind of new coffee creation. Imagine my surprise, then, when I discovered that the best drink I’ve ever had there is actually tea based!
The Iced Lavender Cream Oatmilk Matcha is my new favorite. I’ve always been kind of obsessed with lavender as a flavor (I’ve made lavender lemonade and lavender shortbread, and I’ve been considering adding it to a rub for meat), and I love matcha, so I’m kind of ashamed I never though of pairing them before. As soon as I saw this item on the menu, I knew I had to try it, and I’m embarrassed to think of how many of them I’ve had since. It’s a bright, floral, (and yes, possibly even grassy) beverage that’s absolutely perfect for spring! I love it so much, I don’t even mind the oatmilk (although I have gotten it with plain old whole milk, too), and I was inspired to recreate the flavor at home with matcha milk boba tea topped with lavender lemonade whipped cream from Target:
I know Starbucks seasonal flavors don’t stay around forever, and I’m already dreading the day this one leaves the menu, but maybe it will come back next spring!
Last week we did something new…we went and picked lavender at Tenderloin Farms in Edwardsville, IL! (I know…you wouldn’t guess they grow lavender there based on their name, but it used to be a hog farm before The Stahlhut “Girls” started growing lavender.)
Like asparagus picking, I really had no idea how it works. It’s super easy, though…they give you a pair of (safety) scissors, and you cut the stems from the blooming plants, making sure to stay “in the green.” The field (and the store) smelled amazing!
We also learned a lot about how lavender likes to grow (warm temperatures and not too much water), and the various kinds (there are over 450 varieties, but of course, Tenderloin Farms doesn’t grow them all…they do have about 20, though, including a pink variety!).
We even learned how to make lavender lemonade…and got to sample some, too!
We couldn’t have asked for a nicer June day to be out…it wasn’t too hot, it was only partly sunny, and there were three kinds of lavender blooming…we picked some of each.
This was a really fun thing to try, and I love that we brought home an amazing-smelling souvenir…we’ve already made a few recipes with it (lemon-lavender shortbread and the previously mentioned lavender lemonade), and we’re looking forward to using the rest to make lavender wands!
