
The proud gardener showing off her garden.
I had a lovely visit with Mom yesterday. We had a nice chat. She proudly showed me her garden. We visited with my brother-in-law to snip some fresh herbs and lettuce from his garden. We went for a walk around the park. We had a nice dinner and Mom even let me use her grill. This is a big deal, and a big honor, you see, because Mom is of the school of thought that women do not grill. She firmly believes that grilling is a man’s duty. Well, it was a girl’s only night, so be default I got to grill.
Our walk …

Neighbor's Ice Plant

Neighbor's sculpture

We couldn't quite shake that feeling that we were being watched ...

Sometimes it's important to stop and smell the flowers.

Not sure what this was, but I liked the light reflections.

Cactus flowers

Marigolds

Neighbor's pomegranate tree

Hmm ... still feeling like we're being watched ...
Our menu …

We started with freshly cut artichokes from Mom's garden.

Then a nice, light salad with some garden fresh lettuce.

Farm fresh lightly steamed corn on the cob.

Grilled boneless, skinless chicken breast marinated in olive oil, Meyer lemon, and lemon balm.
We marinated the chicken breasts for about an hour with a Meyer lemon, some olive oil, and fresh lemon balm. I started grilling it on high, turned it once to get the grill marks, then turned the temperature down to medium-low. I cooked it to 170 (a little high for me, but this is what Mom likes).

Dessert
Mom had promised her special apple cake for my visit, but didn’t have time to make it, so for dessert we had Spumoni and a homemade mincemeat cookie.