Summer lockdown project

Over the past year, Cassie followed Dylan's lead and really took to climbing. After making regular trips to a climbing gym in Tallahassee, Cass was bummed when going to the gym was ruled out. So she started researching home climbing walls and put together a fancy PowerPoint presentation to convince Mom and me that it was feasible in our house. After we signed off on the project, Mom and Cassie ordered and got in all of the necessary materials. With a huge hand from Adam on the construction parts of the project, we now have a really cool climbing wall in Dylan's old room:

Before

During

Adam doing the heavy lifting on the project

After

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For almost 20 years, Mom brought all you guys every summer to the weekly WMS play group at various pools around town. In addition to you and all the stuff you needed for a few hours at the pool, Mom would haul along our food processor and the ingredients to make these watermelon daiquiris (subbing out the alcohol for orange juice for any kids who wanted to try some). If you like frozen drinks, these are definitely a treat on a hot summer day, like the ones we've been having for the last month.

Frozen Watermelon Daiquiris

Time: 10 minutes to make the daiquiris once the watermelon is prepared and frozen

454 grams/1 pound watermelon flesh, from ~2 pounds with the rind on
30 grams (2 tablespoons) freshly squeezed juice from 1 lime
38 grams (3 tablespoons) granulated white sugar, more to taste
80 grams/ml (⅓ cup) light rum
15 grams/ml (1 tablespoon) triple sec

    1. Cut the watermelon flesh into 1-inch cubes. You should have about 4 cups. Spread the cubes out on a 13-by-18-inch half-sheet pan lined with parchment paper and freeze until solid, at least 1 hour. (If you're not making the daiquiris right away, transfer the frozen watermelon cubes to a ziplock bag for longer storage.)
    2. Stir the lime juice and sugar together in a food processor or blender. (The extra-large cup of a bullet-style blender works well for this job.) When the sugar is dissolved, add the frozen watermelon cubes, rum, and triple sec. Blend until smooth. The mixture will be very thick; add water 1 tablespoon at a time if needed to get the food processor/blender working. Taste for sugar. Pour into 2 glasses and serve.