Summer Fare

I have determined that I need to make more of an effort to expose the kids to the fundamentals of food. I want to show them the building blocks. I want to sit around a bowl shelling peas with them. I want to shuck fresh ears of corn with them. I want them to know the smell of the cornsilk. I also want them to get to know the heros of the food world; the farmers. So, the best I think I can do is weekly trips to the local Farmer's Market.

At the Farmer's Market we can also do our part to help out our local farmers. In my lifetime the landscape of Northern Virginia has radically changed. I moved in and out of the area my whole childhood and everytime I returned there were fewer farms. I mean drastically fewer farms. Whole communities sprouted up where a farm once had been. Whole cities, a.k.a. planned communities, have literally sprung out of the forests. McMansions and real mansions have replaced cows and corn.

I feel really good about this and I hope the kids will have fun. I think it's good to slow down a bit. They need to know that food doesn't have to come from a box or a can or a microwave.