Sparkling Strawberry Lemonade

This is my most absolute FAVORITE drink in the whole world. It's refreshing, sweet, sour, carbonated and all around, delicious. Now, I can't take credit for this sweet, sweet drink. All credit goes to my Young Woman's teacher, Sister Rich. For mutual, occasionally she would have us over for cooking lessons. I wish I would have paid more attention because she is an amazing cook...from what I can remember. Anyways, she gave us a packet of recipes and this was in it. And I've been hooked ever since I first tried it, and you will be too, I promise.

Sparkling Strawberry Lemonade

2 lbs fresh (or frozen if out of season) hulled strawberries
1 1/2 - 2 cups fresh lemon juice (about 6 lemons)
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
2 bottles of sparkling water (you'll need about a liter a half)

Directions:Slice strawberries and place in blender. Add 1/2 cup sugar. If you want a more sour lemonade, use 2 cups, for a little more subtle taste use 1 1/2 cups. Pour lemon juice into blender. Next, make a simple syrup. To do so, boil last 1/2 cup of sugar to 1 cup of water. Boil until sugar has dissolved. Remove from stove and let cool for 5-10 min. Add simple syrup to blender. Blend until smooth.
Pour mixture into a pitcher and add sparkling water slowly. Stir with a large spoon. Chill for about 2 hours or serve over ice immediately because really, it's just too good to wait for.