5.28.2013

Reclaiming The Weekend (And A Lazy Recipe)...









My first instinct is to brand my holiday weekend as, "lazy," slothful even. But then after lamenting my lack of productivity to Janet last night, commenting that all I'd done for the past three days was cook, watch movies on Netflicks (three to be exact), and read in my PJs, she calmly responded, wait for it...

"Sounds like a weekend to me."

I'm not sure when, exactly, the word "weekend" became synonymous with "get crap done/be creative/ensure that the girls embark on ample enrichment activities?" It used to be that hitting Friday meant some sanctioned laziness was just around the corner -- the sleeping in, the brunching, the all-day donning of yoga pants. And then something happened, and in this swirl of Pinterest and Instagram and blogs, weekends became content creation opportunities. Don't get me wrong, even if I weren't blogging or pinning or instagramming, I'd still be making crafts with my kids and doing projects and making things, but when I decided to, well, not do those things, when I decided to just be "lazy," I think I would feel less guilty about it.

So I think it's officially time for a weekend reset. My entire family is walking around like zombies... There are head colds and bad moods and general malaise. We've been overbooked, over scheduled, just over. We need to rethink this action. My crew needs a recharge. So we're going to go with the lazy weekends for a while and see what happens. We're clearing the docket, lowering the expectations, aiming low. Wish us luck.

In the meantime, I will share with you a rather fantastic (if I do say so myself) totally lazy recipe. (It's all lazy all the time, friends). It's for that "frozen yogurt" in the first photo, and it's pretty darn tasty (not to mention really healthy). Here goes...

Really Yummy Lazy Frozen Yogurt
  • 1 quart vanilla Greek yogurt
  • 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
  • ½ tsp cinnamon
  • ½ cups fresh cherries

Combine yogurt, almond milk, and cinnamon in a blender until smooth.

Pour into an ice cream maker and follow manufacturers instructions (I use this ice cream maker and let it mix for about 25 minutes.)

Pit cherries and cut in half.

In the last 5 minutes or so of mixing, add cherries to yogurt, gently squeezing them so some of the juice blends with the yogurt. Use a wooden spoon to further incorporate cherries as the ice cream maker is turning.

Serve on its own or topped with shaved dark chocolate, chopped almonds, or granola (you can't go wrong, trust me), and serve immediately.

10 comments:

SuchSmallSteps said...

The busier we are with work and school, the more we all seem to need our weekends for rest and relaxation. I try not to schedule more than one social event or activity a day so we have plenty of downtime to ride bikes at the park, read, take naps, cook at home, etc. I was just revisiting an old blog post I wrote last summer on "soul fever" inspired by Simplicity Parenting, and I remembered how accurate that is- that my kids act "feverish" and out of sorts if they're overstimulated. (As I suspect I do, too :))

Mary said...

Yep. Downtime is so necessary. It's not being lazy. It's recharging. Enjoying the little things - like movies and books and conversation and cooking.

The yogurt sounds awesome and I've been wondering for forever how it is I don't own an ice cream maker. Add it to the wish list...

Sarge in Charge said...

Totally know what you mean- I felt so guilty and just lame after lounging around all Sunday morning reading and drinking coffee. Then I realized, what else are Sundays FOR?

Unknown said...

This looks delicious. What percent fat Greek yogurt did you use?

UrbanChiqueNess said...

I hear you...lazy is good. We were so lazy we were in our jammies all day Monday..rainy and cold here.
Ice cream maker is on my list..don't have one, but that recipe sounds delicious!
xo
E

Joslyn said...

Donielle
I used fat free, but I think any % of fat would work ;-)

dacy said...

I completely commiserate with this, I don't even have kids but with a full time job and side projects, there just doesn't seem to be time to fit it all in the week..but then i break down. this is a good reminder...

caitlin said...

that recipe is delish!

Unknown said...

Fat free - even better! Thanks so much for the recipe and the info. I am a big fan of your blog, Pinterest feed...

Joslyn said...

thanks for the kind words Donielle! you made my day!