Howdy-Do

The fair is next week, but I thought I'd pop in with a quick "No I'm not dead" hello.

Hello. 

And:

It feels like fall, my garden has pretty much gone to ruin (stupid weather. And weeds), I'm sewing like crazy (fair stuffs), school will be starting in a few weeks, canning/freezing is omni-present, we butchered the roosters last night, we got 2 Delaware and 2 Silver-laced Wyandot hens (did I tell you that?), and then the Buckeye hen we had, the dishwasher just beeped, Sprouts asleep, the kitchen's a wreck and I must go.

Later Gators.

Hay~

             B. cut about 1/3 of the hill yesterday before he had to quit or run out of diesel.

I'm guesstimating that it's about a 25x90 foot field. 

But math and I aren't real close friends, so I could be WAY off.

I picked a good hot morning (79 degrees by 9:30 with 82% humidity!) and raked it into rows.

Biscuit helped.

Pretty darn proud

hay (noun): grass grown and dried for fodder. (Or in this case to mulch our fodder, the garden. Close enough.)

The tomatoes are mulched and rain came an hour later.

Guess B. won't be cutting the rest this evening, which is kinda good because I'm pooped.

One thing about backyard farming: being too small for actual equipment, it's all man (uh woman and boy) powered.

Playing In the Dirt and Dealing With An "F" Word

That last part freak anybody out? Good.

Well, today is the first day of spring-yippee!

It's also snowing.

We planted seeds to celebrate.  And thumbed our noses at school to do so.

They way I've got it figured though, since we've been doubling up every day that we can, we'll still finish around Memorial Day. I hope.

Rebecca had the most wonderful seed starting post this morning, that I read while nursing Sprout.

(which is what I'm doing now too, if you were wondering.)

And so I got out *MY* enamel bowl because that is what Rebecca used and it was a good idea to steal.

Muffin jumped right in. She can be a little wary of things so this made me quite happy.

We surprisingly got more dirt in the cow-pots than we did on the table and floor.

And then we planted

Lots of things

With a good bit still left to do

"Take a picture of me hugging the bowl of dirt!"

                                 

AND THEN! I set them under the grow-lights! The ones that I was going to build with PVC pipe and shop-lights and that B. said "NO! I will buy you the set up for your birthday!"

And I said "Are you sure? That's a lot of money if I still kill everything..."

 And he said "Nonsense!" And here they are. I'm really excited about them!

Which brings me to: "The "F" Word.

F.A.I.L.U.R.E

I was wondering why I'm so afraid of doing things. New recipes, new projects, etc., etc. 

And then I realized I'm not afraid of *doing* them. I'm afraid of *failing* at them.

Of wasting precious time or B.'s hard earned money and having nothing to show for it.

I'm trying to change. But it ain't easy. Failure shows its ugly head everywhere: the bathrooms still waiting to be cleaned, the laundry that never got folded, supper last night which I've made plenty of times but yesterday just wasn't that good, the frustrated scoldings, memories of past gardens and projects that have bombed. Going to the store for much needed new clothes and coming home empty handed. Homeschooling and never feeling like I actually *taught* something. Things that others seem to breeze through and then give you a funny look about it when you can't.

 Because *I* wasn't good enough and *I* failed. 

Failed at being the right size, remembering an ingredient, understanding directions, failing at being a calm mama and counting to 3 before opening my mouth, getting started when I had the chance, trying to teach and wondering why b and d and p and q and g are still confusing Biscuit. Failing as a homemaking wife by not having clean socks and underwear for B. in the drawer, or remembering to stow a few rolls of t.p. under his sink for when he needs it.

But I'm trying, a little at a time, eating my elephant in lots of small bites instead of a few big gulps. I have to. I have 10 little eyes watching and taking it all in. And goodness knows I don't want to pass this on to them.

Thumb Twiddling

I really thought last Saturday was it. I woke up feeling pretty good, but by 9:30 am, I was nauseated and having lots of contractions and cramps. I called and put my mom on stand-by. And about 8pm, they fizzled out. I still thought we could be having a baby early this week. But here I am, twiddling my thumbs. Waiting. So to fill the time, I'll shoot some goings-on bullets.

~At my appointment this week, my B.P. is down and everything looks good. I have to go in for a U/S next Tuesday to check on his size (measuring 8 lbs. 13 oz. at 37 weeks), and the plan is to induce Thursday/Friday. (From my understanding- because of the OB's who are on call then- since my baby's can be stinkers). So I will hopefully get to spend at least part of Monday (check in day) to part of Thursday at the fair, if baby doesn't decide to come on his own. I'm 40 weeks today. I at least want enough time to eat a gyro.

~ I need to try to fix a pair of maternity jeans, because they will hide my enormous ankles. I have never felt so big and swollen and downright scary before, and the startled stares of random children when I've been out on errands has done nothing to help.

~ I can almost always tell when Kimberly is going to visit, because it's usually right when I'm thinking I should put up a new post. : ) How do you do that?

~ The house has stayed in a relatively clean state. I've been able to keep up with the general cleaning, even when that meant getting up at 10:30 Sunday night because I was wide awake and mopping the kitchen/dining room, and dusting the main floor. Today I'll be doing the bathrooms and vacuuming upstairs. Hopefully that, combined with laundry, grocery shopping and Chinese for supper will bring baby.

~ Sunday was a 1st birthday party for my in the process of being adopted nephew. (my brother and his wife. Bethany is also due with their first bio baby shortly after me.)

Beans was more than happy to spend as much of the party as possible, sitting on my brothers tractor.

~ B. went and filled the gas cans in the big van. One tipped and dumped a good 2-3 gallons in the back. Anyone know how to get the smell out? 

~ One of the best investments we've made: field guides. They are in use by my curious children nearly everyday, especially Biscuit. He loves looking up bugs, and then bringing me the book after he's found the picture, to have me read what it is. They are sitting in an old chamber-pot, if you happen to be admiring the "bowl" (which no-joke, I accidentally added an "e" to and wrote bowel...)

~All the school books have arrived and are neatly stowed away on the school bookcase

~ The garden is still thriving. Note to Self:  I need to make pesto today.

~While making room in the freezer the other day, I found the leftover peaches I'd frozen over the last 2 years. Just enough to make a batch of jam, and clear some space.

~ One of the feature categories this year at the fair is children's canning. Honey did about 90% of it, and is thrilled to enter her jam this year. (I helped her with the rolling boil 1 minute stirring, and put the rack in the water and took the jars out. She's not quite tall enough, and I didn't want to risk her getting burned)

~ And since hopefully I will get to do at least a few days of the fair, we've been busy getting everything ready. All of my canning is labeled and ready. Tomato Soup; apple-sauce; venison; cream of mushroom soup base; and 4 different jams, plus Honey's.

~ The fact that I have done almost no canning this year is still kind of frustrating, but there's nothing I can do about it now, so there you are.

~ Having pretty much everything ready to take to the fair almost a week in advance is kind of a strange feeling. I might actually be in bed before midnight on Sunday!

~ The 3 older kidlets are entering flowers this year. I asked B. to pick up some ginger-ale on his way home last Saturday (nausea day) and being the smart man that he is, (and having picked up on my obsessive label reading ways) he got me the good stuff with real ginger and sugar.  I saved the bottles so we can quickly find their flowers at the fair. (best specimen class)

~ I decided to get a jump start on Muffins birthday gift, so I can enter it. I stayed up way too late last night to finish the outside, hence the crummy lighting. A fold up dollhouse, that will be home to a peg doll Ingalls family. She LOVES the my first Little House books, so I based this (roughly) on the drawings. I think I might be detail crazy. And I'm really excited to hit the publish button so I can start working on the inside while littles are still sleeping.

Rats, they're up. Guess I'll make some pumpkin-chip muffins for breakfast. I've been kind of obsessed with them. And orange juice. I can't get enough.

Talk at ya later! (And thanks for all the prayers!)

July in August

Despite almost no rain this summer, it has been a fantastic year for the blackberries. I picked 3 quarts, and that was what I could easily get to, there were lots just out of reach. Being ginormously pregnant does not lend itself well to blackberry picking, and because I hate being pricked, my crazy get up included: jeans that had to be hiked back up every 2 steps, B.'s old unlined Carhart, and gloves. All to keep thorn stabbing down to a minimum. Kinda helped. We have lots of old canes, and they are savage when it comes to picking. But 3 quarts picked and frozen? I am thrilled, that's the most I've picked ever!

 You need to do this for BLTs or what my Omama called Cheese Dreams. Slice your tomatoes, drizzle lightly with olive oil, a whisper of fresh ground sea salt, and a few sprigs of fresh thyme if you have it. Bake at about 250-300 for a few hours, until somewhat shriveled. For Cheese Dreams, toast a slice of bread, spread with mayo, add tomatoes, bacon strips and either Muenster of M. Jack cheese. Broil until cheese melts.

 You'd look like that too if you had just finished chocolate cake for breakfast

We did VBS at my in-laws church, this year they "visited" Daniel in Babylon. The Kidlets loved it as usual.

This has by far and away been our best garden. Except for these peas. Pretty blooms, tasted terrible. It may have been the heat, though that's never really affected peas for me before. I'm going to pull them out, have B. till up their spot, and replant with a different type for a fall crop. I hope so anyway.

 These pictures are from about 2 weeks ago, right after B. tilled.

 Pumpkins on the far right, one of them seems to have died. They are those gorgeous blue-green kind that I forget what the are called. They had some heirloom pumpkins at the grocery store last fall, and when they were reduced to a dollar apiece ( I almost spent the $8, just because I wanted it so much. Glad I waited!), I bought 2, just to save the seeds. Hard to see, but there are sad little zinnias (that seems to be the only thing that's flopped this year), peppers, peas. tomatoes and basil which have nearly tripled in size since I took this picture.

I have to look up the kind, but these bush beans are amazing. Nearly 2 foot tall plants, and I should have supported them somehow because they are falling over with beans. Less what we've eaten, I've frozen 18 quarts out of 2 pickings, and need to go back out to pick more today.

Zucchini, more peppers, yellow squash, cukes, watermelon, cantaloupe, and cosmos.

I haven't gotten a whole lot of zucchini, squash or cucumbers, which is fine because we are able to eat it without wasting. I have to fight Honey and Biscuit for sauteed zucchini.

First of the harvest

Chef Salad on a hot day

I took the first big haul of beans out to snap on the back steps while watching the kidlets play, but who wants to play while Mom is snapping beans? Not they!

"Look, I have a mustache"

Muffin cuteness

Beans was hilarious. He would grab a bean, and with elbows out try his darnedest to rip it apart, his whole little chunky self shaking in effort. Then he'd give up and try another. 

It occurred to me as I was sitting and snapping (right before the work crew came to help), that I am living out exactly what I've always wanted to do. With decidedly less land and no livestock, but still, a-right-down-to-sitting-and-watching-my-children-play-while-I-snapped-beans-dream-come-true.

It's been so dry, that there are actually black-burned patches in the yard.

We went for a Sunday drive a week ago, and stopped to look at some chicken coops, which brings me that much closer to the live stock part : ) Though they probably won't happen until spring.

 Can't quite get used to Honey reading to the littles. When? How?

 ...Clean clothes on the line...

 Tomatoes growing out of my compost bin. Honey found a rat in there yesterday. Woo-Hoo.

Jewels recipe for fresh tomato sauce, with my homemade sausage. Divine.

I've done almost NO canning, and that's making me kind of crazy. Maybe I'll hit up the flea-market Monday. Anyone wanna come along?

 I'm still trying to figure out where the heck July went. Didn't we just celebrate the 4th, and now all of the sudden, it's August. I'm due in 2 weeks. Say what? Yeah, 2 weeks, though I go in for a U/S tomorrow, where I'm pretty sure they will say "Nope, the little monkey is NOT head down, we're going to turn and induce next week." Which is fine. I'm used to it, and actually, it's kinda nice knowing "I will have baby on such and such a day." because I can get all the last minute stuff done. Unlike the last 3 though, I have had a LOT of contractions. Hopefully that will mean things move along a little faster.
Well, a certain oldest son is awake and has set up a game of memory for he and I to play, so I must go.

Hopefully tomorrow will bring some sort of baby news!