Monday Garden Club

Get your gardening gloves and knee pads ready. It's time for another installment of Monday Garden Club.

Since last week's post, the weeds have started to take over my garden. I spent all week with my ass in the air (on my hands and knees) pulling weeds in the front garden.

Who in the heck thought it was a good idea to make handheld weeders green? (The guy who wants to sell another one, says my husband) I lost that thing more times than I could count during my weeding. As soon as I get a chance, I'm going to spray paint it bright orange!

I made these "hair balls" (Binny's too small tights cut apart and stuffed with dog hair) in hopes that Oliver's stink will keep away the bunnies and other little pests.

Over the weekend the Gardener and I decided to tackle the rear garden with the rototiller. About half-way down the first row the gardener noticed that the rototiller didn't sound quite right. Kind of a metal on metal screeching/engine knock noise. He quick turned off the tiller, opened the oil plug and sure as shit, it was bone freaking dry, actually smoking out of the hole. He ran up to the shed to get some oil, but the damage was done. We're not sure where all the oil went. There was no puddle on the shed floor. It always smoked a little, but enough to seize up and die? I guess we'll never know why it gave up the ghost. Luckily we have a back-up. A self powered back-up tiller, but it really works quite well considering I was not the one pushing it through the weeds and hard, dry ground. So much for 4 wheel drive gardening.

He did a nice job though. My zucchinis are starting to grow...
and the spinach is delicious.
One of my favorite ways to make spinach aside from my favorite salad is to saute it with garlic (I bought a bag of garlic tops at the farmer's market last week and chopped those up) and add in a tablespoon of sour cream right at the end along with salt and pepper of course. Yumm! Even my kids like it!

Now for all you gardeners out there who wish to participate, either leave a comment on what's growing in your yard, or post a Monday Garden Club update on your blog. Don't forget to drop your link in the comments, I'll add you to this post.

Participating Bloggers

Sidhe from Musings of A Wandering Elf

Tami from The Miller Family Blog

In The Blink Of An Eye

There have been so many blog worthy moments lately, but I haven't really had the time, or more so the words to put them down. Kind of a blogger's block of sorts. Every time I sit down to write a post, the words don't seem to make sense, so I delete. Finally though, I can't hold it in any longer, my need to blog has surpassed my writer's block. So here goes...

We're only 2 weeks into summer vacation and already my kids are getting the best of me. The constant go go go. The slip and slide, the kiddie pool, the beach, the crafts, the endless laundry, the need for daily showers, doc. appointments, the park, the fights and of course the "Mom can I..." that seems to be never ending. Last week was so hot here and usually I am not one to complain about the heat, but the crankiness of my sweaty family was starting to wear on me, plus Wednesday night at the farm was so hot (95 and humid). It seemed like I was running the entire 4 hours I was there. My boss had spent all day out in the sun baling hay and most of the bales were still sitting out in the field with a forecast of rain. So after chores I stayed (because the person she lined up to help unload the hay was a no show) and helped her unload 24 giant bales of hay. I even had the opportunity to drive one of her tractors in from the hay field, a first in the three and a half years of working for her. Not that I couldn't do it, but once I show her that in fact I am capable of doing tasks she only allows the men to do, I know she'll want me to do it more often and I'm certainly not willing to give her more of my time than I already do. Watching her use the fork lift loader and tractor though was quite an amazing sight to see. She gently maneuvered the forks under each giant bale, then lifted and finagled the bales into the shed 4 high with such finesse that only a seasoned pro could accomplish. She is farmer through and through.

I also learned (again and still) that farming is a very dangerous profession. For the second time this summer, a local teenager was killed in a tractor accident. I don't know the families personally but in such a small community everyone knows each other in a round about way. The most recent teen was the grandson of the man who makes the big hay bales for my boss, they are also neighbors of my in-laws and the boy's father has worked with the gardener (my husband) on many construction projects. In fact we saw the boy and his dad at the annual dairy breakfast just last weekend and said a friendly "hello" to them both. The funeral was yesterday and we didn't go but the family was in our thoughts all day. So tragic, so young. What more can I say?

Wardrobe Wednesday

Finally summer has arrived and for the last week we have been treated to HOT, MUGGY weather. Naturally the girls have practically been living in their swim suits. They have enjoyed running through the sprinkler in the yard or having a fun day at the beach.

Today we went shopping and bought Binny a new suit because hers was getting a lot little worn out. Mae is still rocking the pink hearts until I can find a reasonable suit in her size. The only suits that were available in Mae's size were either covered with Hannah Montana's picture, or way too trashy FOR A 6 YEAR OLD!!! We'll have to keep looking.

Check out all of the Wardrobe Wednesday fun at Heathen Family Revival!

Never Trust A Surgeon With A Kool-Aid Mustache

"Binny what are you doing?"
Binny: "I'm doing brain surgery on myself."

Like duh!

Monday Garden Club

Get your gardening gloves and knee pads ready. It's time for another installment of Monday Garden Club.

The garden is growing by leaps and bounds these days. The weather finally warmed up and we've had just enough rain showers that everything is lush and beautiful. Even my Mortgage lifter tomato seems to have perked up!

sugar snap pea plants

And the best part of a garden, the fresh produce! Ready this week were:

Spinach...

Lettuce...

Radishes...

Strawberries...

These strawberries were actually from the pick your own strawberry farm down the road. My garden has only yielded about 3 strawberries so far, not even close to enough for our habit.

I also was the lucky recipient of a grocery bag full of fresh oregano. I separated the stems into bunches, tied them with some twine and hung them up to dry. I should have enough to last me quite a while. Now for all you gardeners out there who wish to participate, either leave a comment on what's growing in your yard, or post a Monday Garden Club update on your blog. Don't forget to drop your link in the comments, I'll add you to this post.

Participating Bloggers

Wild Child at Naked Opinions

Weekend Photos

Here, Irma Irma

If you have been reading my blog for any amount of time, you know about my love affair with our little local newspaper, The Squeak.

This week there were two great ads I couldn't pass up.

Here we go...



Yes, I admit that I feel bad that Irma (the fat, gray cat) is missing, but seriously how do you lose a gas powered lawn trimmer? Perhaps the former owner was using it on a Sunday and the neighbors took action. ...Just a thought.

Wardrobe Wednesday

I found this fabric at the craft store a few years ago and I'm hooked. These adorable dresses are so simple to make that I bet a monkey with a stapler could come up with similar results. The top of the dress is elastic so all you need to do is measure, cut and sew one straight seam. I went the extra mile and added shoulder straps, for a more modest look.

Yes, these photos are from today and yes that is Mae (and Binny) running around outside. She still had a low fever this morning but she says she feels fine. I've been giving her Tylenol to keep her fever down but other than that she seems normal. Mae's doctor called this morning to check on her too which eased my mind.

This afternoon, the girls and I went to the Farmer's Market in town and bought some asparagus and a few cheap perennials. They both wore the black sundresses out and not one person asked me if they were twins. That must be a new record. When will old ladies with nothing better to talk about people get it that just because they happen to be wearing the same dress, that doesn't necessarily mean that they have the same DNA?

And because I'm feeling nostalgic today, here's a photo of my dad and the girls wearing the same style dresses 2 years ago

Short and Sweet

Well, the doctor's office called back and wanted to see Mae this afternoon to check her out. Her doc wasn't there so she ended up having to see someone else. He thought her glands were a bit swollen and said her tonsils looked red and puffy (I also looked in her mouth and thought the same thing). They did the always fun throat swab thingy to check for strep and it came back negative. I'm not surprised by that finding because that was the very bacteria (Strep A) that Mae was being treated for, but doc. wanted to rule it out. Her lab test results from yesterday were excellent so hopefully this was just a fluke. So, for now we'll just wait and see what happens next. Her fever has gone down and she says she feels better so that eases my mind, but still I get nervous when she has a setback like this.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, read my post from earlier today.

Done, Done... Or Not?

Finally, the day we were waiting for came. Well, actually 2 days we were waiting for. Yesterday afternoon Mae's PICC line was removed and today is her last day of school. What a relief it is to not have to pump her full of thick yellow fluid that makes her pee smell funny and the chore of cleaning everything with alcohol wipes and feeding her lots of pro biotic yogurt. Finally Mae can make that playdate with her friend to jump on the trampoline and have a wheel barrow race in the green grass. Her little arm is all red and raw from being under a bandage for 4 weeks, but no more tubes, only a tiny band aid covers the hole that was for 4 weeks the antibiotic super highway that made my child well again.

I am ever thankful to our wonderful no nonsense pediatrician and Mae's great attitude and bravery through all of this. Don't get me wrong, there were days that were not fun for anyone, but we all made it through. Mae will go back to see her doc in 2 weeks to have her blood levels checked to make sure that the infection doesn't come back, but we are hopeful. Later this summer we will make an appointment with the pediatric immunologist down at Children's hospital for some more extensive testing to see if these infections are stemming from a bigger problem. For now we are looking forward to a fun healthy summer, starting this afternoon. I couldn't think of a better way to kick off summer vacation!

One more thing. It can't all be sunshine and roses right? The explanation of Benefits from Mae's hospital stay, ambulance, Children's hospital, home nurse, etc. started rolling in. For the 4 days she spent at Children's hospital, not including any of the doctors or special tests, just the room and board was $17,484.42. Thankfully we have insurance. I don't know what we'd do without it.

UPDATE: I wrote this post this morning while Mae was at school (last day!) and was waiting to hit publish until she got home and I could take a photo of her minus the PICC line and ace wrap. Before the noon release from school, Mae's teacher called and said Mae is running a 102 degree fever. What the fuck!!!! Pardon my foul mouth but seriously I thought I was going to collapse to the floor when I heard this. Binny and I got in the car and drove to school to pick her up. Her teachers sat with her in the office until I got there and looked as sad and heartbroken as I was over this turn of events. I brought her home, gave her some Motrin and called the doc. Now I'm just waiting for a call back. Not over yet...

Monday Garden Club

Get your gardening gloves and knee pads ready. It's time for another installment of Monday Garden Club.

So, the gardener thinks it's great that we live on a busy road because he can put things out on our lawn for sale and they usually sell within a few days. His version of Craigslist, I guess. This weekend he put a crappy old sailboat out that has been taking up valuable space in our shed. A guy comes to buy it, notices our huge garden in the front yard and offers my husband worm castings in exchange for the crappy old boat. We were only asking $250 for the boat so that doesn't sound too unreasonable to me but the gardener declined and said he'd rather have the cash. The guy came back with his wife and made an offer of $175 and the gardener took it but forgot to ask for a bucket of worm castings. Guess who's in the dog house?

Now that I have that out of my system, on with the show!

Gladiolas

Rear garden

(sunflowers, tomatoes, peppers, etc.)

zucchini

Radishes with a big nasty thistle right in the middle

lettuces

Spinach, almost ready to pick and eat!

Pole beans almost ready to start climbing

Sugar snap peas

Kohlrabi in the front and pickling cucumbers in the back. I had to replace several of the cucumber plants due to frost. :(

Foreclosure procedings have begun on my poor Mortgage Lifter tomato.

The other tomatoes are doing well.

First of the ripe strawberries. I hear it was delicious!

Raspberry bushes full of blooms

Now for all you gardeners out there who wish to participate, either leave a comment on what's growing in your yard, or post a Monday Garden Club update on your blog. Don't forget to drop your link in the comments, I'll add you to this post.

Participating Bloggers