how do you hug your babies?????

How do you hug your babies? Squeeze them? Pat them? Hold them?

I've realized, now that my babies are 20 and 15, that I don't hug them the same anymore. My kid hugs have changed throughout the years.

Those early years - were the best - with hugs that seemed to go on forever. Little arms around your neck, or leg, or wherever... squeezing all that love into you. Man, it doesn't get any better.

Then they become teenagers, and the hugs, while still there in my family, changed. They were no longer squeezing hugs. They were "complimentary" hugs - pats to ensure we were still connected, but shorter. Still great to get any kind of hug, just different.

Then my oldest went to college, and the hugs changed again. Not having her living here anymore, the hugs are less frequent. And I'm not there to protect her and pick her up when she falls. I have a hard time letting go. I hug her, holding on, and giving her as much protection as I can to hold her through until the next time we will be together.

I long for those early hugs. For a child squeezing my heart with all their soul. I may surprise my kids with the next hug...don't warn them!

Don't take anything for granted. Hug like there's no tomorrow.

the state of the drought...survival of the fittest.

I have to say that as far as I can remember, this drought, the drought of 2012, is the worst in my lifetime. And being a full time gardener now, it has brought challenges.

• The radishes were very hot. Something I've been told happens with high growing heat. They were beautiful, but HOT.
• We saved rainwater and water from the sump pumps, but ran out rather early. It's not the norm for us to actually water the garden with the hose.
• Peppers and tomatoes are struggling, even with our every other night soaking. It's just too hot for almost everything.
• So while harvest is not great, we are still able to enjoy the fruits of our labors. Just a little less "fruit", and a lot more labor.

I noticed a few things the other day when walking around the yard and gardens. True signs of the drought. The "state of the yard" so-to-speak:

SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST

While the grass is dead, some weeds are thriving..

so sad... yet we know that it is simply gone dormant,

 and will come back either later this year, or next year. It will be ok!

these little beauties have sprung up everywhere.

I imagine they are normally mown off, but without rain, we haven't mowed in a month.

they are the bright spot in this drought!

and we have a baby...

Do I have your attention? HA!

We have a baby, of sorts. I've decided to start blogging my thoughts on books that I read. But I feel the topic is different enough from this blog, that I've started a new one just for books.

So consider this your invitation to check it out.

missys literary journey

eating dessert first....

Had a rookie day yesterday - with the hubby off to work, and the boy off to the ball game with a friend - which left me, with..

A GIRLFRIEND DAY!

We started with a yummy lunch of red beans and rice with andouille sausage at my house. We relaxed, and then bummed over to see another friend's progress on her kitchen reno, then headed back to my place for movies, and scrapbooking, and girl time.

When dinner came around, we headed into town to the local BBQ place. Mis-communication behind the counter ended up meaning they brought us our shared dessert BEFORE our meal.

What a novel concept.

How often do you splurge and have dessert at a restaurant? Normally, you're too full! This way, we were able to endulge, splurge on that shared dessert, and THEN worry about not finishing our dinner.

And it just felt so WRONG. But yet, SO GOOD.

That warm brownie sundae set the tone for our entire meal. And was the perfect way to start the end of our relaxed rookie girlfriend day.

We need to do it more often. Have dessert BEFORE our meal. And in life, put the fun things first sometimes... cuz life is too short.

The Top Ten Things I've Learned about Gardening....for now!

It's been a long gardening season...

Being my first season without a full time job, I was SO looking forward to it. I had visions of starting every day weeding, and admiring my growing gardens... and thoughts of all of the amazing produce that would fill our fridge for months.

It's been the worst drought in our area in 30 years. Not the greatest year to start!

And then I learned...

it's REALLY not up to me.



So here it is, as of mid-summer, my list of the Top Ten things I've learned about gardening so far!

10. Deer like chard, lettuce, beans, pepper plants, and broccoli leaves. The don't appear to like cucumber plants, tomatoes, or squash (the prickly leaves maybe?).
9. I am not sure HOW people grow those huge heads of broccoli... need to research natural fertilizers.
8. You need a TALL fence to keep out the deer.
7. When it's 91 degrees before 10am, you have to get up pretty early to weed.
6. I am NOT good at starting plants from seeds. I need to do some research.
5. Seeds sown directly need to go in earlier.
4. I need more rain barrels.
3. In drought, animals will move into your garden to find food. Survival of the Fittest.
2. God is in control of the rain.
1. I have a LOT to learn.....

Surprises around every corner....why we go "cat under tail"

Soon after I met my husband, he used the term "cat under tail" to describe going "bumming".

no destination

just the open road

Going cat under tail is absolutely one of my favorite past times. Often happening on a week night - or even a weekend day - when we find ourselves with time in front of us - "cat under tail" always brings us to new adventures and surprises!

This weekend I had friends in from out of town, and on Friday, we decided to go, you guessed it, "cat under tail". (Of course I had to explain the term).

We headed for Marshfield, with a couple of errands to run there before heading (we planned) to Wisconsin Rapids. On the way to Marshfield, I decided we should visit the Market on Sixth, a specialty wine and cheese shop that I'd been wanting to check out.

So our first stop on our "cat under tail" adventure turned out to be one of the best of the weekend. Not only is the shop a beautiful place, with a great selection of wines, cheeses, and gift items, but we were fortunate enough to be able to meet and talk with the owner of the shop. He was a wealth of information, paired with an outgoing personality and a love of wine and cheese. He gave us a wonderful tour of the grounds, explained some of the events that go on there, and more importantly, told us about all of the farmers that he's met in his quest for opening the store and offering amazing cheese and wine.

We had such an amazing time. I cannot wait to head back, with girlfriends in tow, to one of the events held there. I will return for more cheese (the cheeses we bought Friday morning were paired with antipasti and fruit for dinner that night!), as well as wine (the owner studied in Napa Valley, cannot wait to hear all he knows about the wines!)

Market on Sixth is a WONDERFUL example of why to buy local. A local person, following his dream, opening a store that he is passionate about. Learning all he can about wine and cheese, and then imparting that knowledge to all that want to know. So excited to find such a wonderful gem in Marshfield, so close, we can continue to enjoy!

deer vs gardener...and other lessons of a novice gardener.

It has been a lot of work, but so exciting to watch the garden progress. Love watching for the blossoms, and then the produce. There is something so ridiculously satisfying about helping something grow and providing for your family!

We have had amazing radishes so far, and the rest is coming along really well. But we've got our challenges, and disappointments.

We are in the worst drought in decades. We ran out of the natural water stores (from rain and sump pumps) last week. Note for next year - we need a few more barrels and bins. There were too many days when we had to let the sump pump water run, and we could SO be using it right now. While we don't like to, we've resorted to watering every other day with the sprinklers. We are at a critical point for water right now - with everything heavy with produce. We have no choice. I am thankful we are not on a watering ban!

But much worse right now is what ELSE the drought has done. It has the deer on the move, and they are eating up my garden right before my eyes. I first noticed the damage on Sunday night, and I could have cried. My chard was eaten to the ground, and beans trimmed off completely.

Tonight I went out and found that the deer have also been feasting on my broccoli leaves and jalapeno plants.... so disheartening. But it is nature's way, and I will simply have to be a smarter gardener next year.

I don't want to resort to chemicals, so we are trying it old school - with smelly socks on fence posts and pie plates making noise in the wind...

So while our harvest will not be as big as expected, and I am not getting a chance to eat all of the amazing things I've been growing, there is nothing I can do right now, and I've accepted the fact that these animals are also just trying to survive this drought.

Just wish they didn't have to eat in MY garden!

sigh.





Fun in the kitchen

I am a little behind on blogging.... been SO much going on. Last week, I had the chance to take a cooking class, and I HAVE to tell you about it.

The class was a farm to table class. It was a great class, offering up information on all of the area opportunities for locally grown produce, locally raised meat, etc. I am SO passionate about doing all we can to buy local - and this is the culmination of that. Growing, buying, and eating food all locally!

The class was wonderful - three teams, each making three recipes, using locally purchased products. I found that there were several spice combinations new to me, that I would not have tried had it not been for the class, and that is always a good thing!

So while I found that I am way ahead of some others - in what I grow myself, purchase from local farmers, etc., it was a great chance to share stories, and have some great fun in the kitchen!