national chocolate eclair day

Ooooh, yummmmm. Today is National Chocolate Eclair Day. I LOVE chocolate eclairs, craved them when I was pregnant with V. MMMmmmmmmmm. Eat one today!

awwwww

We were treated this morning to the sight of a fawn nursing from it's mother. Given how wobbly it was on it's feet I think it must be very young. It was tiny, spotted and very sweet.

back to the farm

Yes folks, the CSA has started up again. Our first yummy share was broccoli rabe, bok choy, arugula, three kinds of lettuce, the most fragrant and delicious strawberries and snap peas. Yummmmm. Tonight was are having stir fry for dinner. I'm so happy to be going back to the farm, it's really wonderful.

too funny...

and too true!

this is not to be missed.

funniest phrase of the day

Overheard:

"Don't make me kung fu your dupaw."

gimpy weeding

In spite of my still-bum-knee I was able to get outside and get a little weeding done today. Mostly in the front yard. The weather was wonderful and I blessed each and every yoga class that allowed me to have the flexibility to bend in half to snag those darn weeds.

Steve bought some new fencing for the raspberry beds. The deer have been romping through the tender shoots in the absense of the fence but it should be completed soon and I think the raspberries and elderberries will survive. While the fence was down was a prime opportunity to get rid of all the unlovely weeds that manage to inveigle themselves in amongst the greenery; mostly bittersweet, Rose of Sharon (from the tree nearby) and multiflora roses). I pointed out all the weedy stuff for him to dig up, trimmed what needed to be trimmed and then went to rest my knee while he put up the fencing. It's looking good; he always does great work.

Hopefully this weekend I'll be able to get some more weending done in there. I'm thinking about borrowing V's skateboard and skootching along, leg outstretched, on it as I weed. Standing up again may be a problem but I'll figure that out later.

wfmw - whole grain breakfast

Time to get back into Works for Me Wednesday; don't forget to check out Rocks In My Dryer for other WFMW tips.

Everyone knows we're supposed to add more whole grains to our diet. Especially in the morning to give us a good boost and fuel the furnace in the morning. This is not always easy. Whole wheat on one cereal package, multi-grain on another. But truthfully neither of them is whole grain.

I've started making my own breakfast cereal by making sure that when I cook whole grains (such as wheat for chili) I make enough to have the leftovers with breakfast. Then I assemble this easy muesli-style cereal that can be served hot or cold. It's a quick and easy way to nourish your body before heading out the door to enjoy summer activities.

1 C. cooked whole grain (such as wheat)
1 C. rolled cereal flakes (barley or oatmeal)
1/4 C. chopped nuts (such as almonds)
1/4 C. diced dried fruit (such as apricots)
1 t. dried cinnamon
soy or almond milk to taste (how gloppy do you like it)

mix together, heat or serve cold

makes two very hearty servings

idea for deer

Steve came up with a marvelous idea for the deer in our back yard. Well, more for the ticks that accompany the deer. Set out a salt lick, hit the deer with something to knock them out, apply tick repellant solution, let the deer wake up. The only problems? Adult deer can weigh up to 400 pounds. This could get tedious on a monthly basis (not to mention expensive). You'd think that the deer would figure it out after a while.

On a similar but related idea one of our neighbors had expressed interest in the idea of a salt lick laced with birth control. Apparently this is not a new idea as the following information from Deer Facts shows:

Fertility agents

• They are experimental
  
• They don't affect the current population size
  
• Have potential impacts on the gene pool
  
• Costly and impractical ($150-$500 per deer)
  
• Have problems with dosage control and ingestion of anti-fertility agents by non-targeted animals and humans.
  
  According to a study conducted by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, the cost of administering contraceptives exceeds $500 per deer treated. This study assumed:
  
• No deer left or entered the herd being treated.
  
• The contraceptive was administered with a single shot and was 100% effective.
  
• The efficiency of autumn darting was similar to winter sharpshooting over bait with a high-power rifle.
  
• All deer were infertile with a single treatment. (Not possible with contraceptives available today).
  
• No deer were accidentally darted twice.
  
• It was possible to distinguish between male and female fawns before darting.
  
  Since it is doubtful that any of these assumptions would hold true, the actual cost would far exceed the estimate of $500 per deer treated.
  

They're cute it's true. Just destructive, overbreeding, and carry ticks. We're looking into making some changes in the yard to try to reduce the conditions for ticks (such as possibly putting in a tick barrier between the lawn and the woods) but given where we live we'll just have to continue to live with it like everyone else does.

star stitchin'

There was a previously planned function at the church so we had to move to another location for tonights Stitch Sisters meeting. We chose *buck$ so that we could get ourselves some of those frothy, frivolous drinks and lounge around on their comfy couches. We were serenaded by their latest CD-for-sale, Paul McCartney, all evening while we laughed, knit, ate, chatted and knit some more. It was a really fun evening and a nice change of pace.

Several people seemed very intriged by the fact that we were sitting there in public knitting but although there were many sidelong glances no one came over to enquire. Of course if they had we probably would have pressed needles and yarn into their hands to encourage them to give it a try for themselves.

One of the sisters gave me a ride since I am still not able to drive with my bum knee. She got a brandy-new car; an Impala. It's very cool, has it's own phone number (I didn't know cars could do that), and under the passenger seats has a yarn stash space. What more does one need in a car? It could be the emergency stash for when the drive doesn't want to stop at passing yarn shops to resupply your need. Of course if there are passengers in the car this might present a problem at highway speeds but I'm sure the resourceful knitter could figure out how to deal with that minor inconvenience. It was a nice ride and I got a snootful of that lovely new car smell, hard to believe they still haven't figured out how to manufacture that.

project list

Just writing about falling off the yarn wagon made me really think about the projects I still have on the needles. No pictures, sorry I'm really bad about that, but they are:

stripey sweater - almost done - working on the last sleeve now

blue striped hat - a stash busting project

purple crochet blanket - coming along slowly

red, orange, yellow granny square blanket - also slow

charity blanket square for Stitch Sisters

ipod/cellphone purses for Knitting Ministry Bazaar at church

Better than it used to be but still a lot.

The "I want to knit this pattern" list? Too long to bear documenting. At least I'll never run out of things to knit.

off diet

I'm still on a self-imposed yarn diet but today managed to fall off the wagon in a spectacular fashion.

Giving in to momentary weakness I was wandering through ebay and stumbled across this



and this



over 3,000 yards of yarny goodness. Do I have room for it in the stash closet? ummmmmmm no. Do I know what I'm going to do with it? Not really. I am hoping to turn the sari silk into a sweater which I think would be really cool, hopefully that's what the yarn wants to be. The Jojoland Bloom I am thinking of turning into a blanket, we'll see how it knits up.

My stash has been considerably reduced, I am down to ahem six projects on the needles and haven't bought yarn in far too long so I suppose I was overdue.

garden-no-more

The crew showed up at 7:30 this a.m. and started by removing the cotoneaster from the front yard. I've never really liked it. When I tried to dig it out I couldn't...took them 30 minutes to get all 5 bushes out.

Then they moved to the back yard. The hill has been denuded (which, as someone pointed out to me seems to be an oxymoron, shouldn't it be nuded?) of all but trees and large foundation grasses. I'm looking at a bare pile of dirt and rocks! It three people 10 hours to undo what probably took the previous owner years to put in.

The funny thing is that I am not sad about this at all and I had thought I would be. I have given away so many plants to so many people (11 to be exact) and am reducing my garden to a more manageable size. Plus I believe that the beds I am keeping will stand out much better against a lawn than against a tangled weed thicket. It's all good.

stitch sisters

It was a lovely evening at Stitch Sisters; we started by knitting on the steps of the church so that we could admire the lovely country view, the sunshine and pleasing temperature. As the light dimmed and the bugs came out we moved inside.

It being so close to my birthday my wonderful stitch sisters had a cake for me made by G. A heavenly confection of thin layers of the most decadent buttery cake, whipped cream, fresh raspberries and thin layers of meringue. One could become quite zaftig enjoying such delicious decadence. It was absolutely heavenly and as birthday girl I not only got the biggest piece I also got to bring home the leftovers.

I was gifted with a sweet card full of loving thoughts, a pair of handmade socks (like hugs for the feet!) and cilantro. An ecclectic collection you may think but one that makes perfect sense to us.

We ate, we crafted, we laughed, and I came home to discover that Miss D had vacuumed the downstairs and cleaned the bathroom! Wow! What a night!

gratitude

Having injured my knee I am currently left unable to drive a car. Given how far out we live and that there is no public transportation this presents a problem. Luckily for me there is an organization in our town that drives people to doctor visits if they are unable to do so for themselves. Usually they drive the elderly but sometimes they get people like me.

For every single driver who has volunteered one day a month to provide transportation for others I am exceedingly grateful. How wonderful to live in a place where people can be that willing to volunteer.

almost birthday

Yes, it's almost my birthday. Since Steve has to work that day we celebrated early.

Went to pick up my present, a fire pit, and dinner from Panera Bread yummmmmm. After dinner and loving presents from Steve and the girls we sat out on the deck and enjoyed the firepit along with a bottle of Steve's homemade wine. Nothing could be better. Crickets and bullfrogs in the background. Lazy conversation and hypnotic flames, it was very relaxing and wonderful. What a great family I have, I am so truly blessed.

memorial day weekend

We spent the weekend with my brother and his family. It was really great to see them. A barbeque on the beach, a lovely Japanese restaurant dinner and lots of conversations. Plus I borrowed two books, how cool.

It's always great to see them and this weekend was no exception. Usually we are busy going places and doing stuff but with my gimpy leg it wasn't an option this time. We still had a great time and hopefully they did too. Happy Memorial Day to all!

The books? Glad you asked, The Historian
and
How to Read a Book (A Touchstone Book)

advice for the day

If you think your life is so busy you can't manage. You're not getting things done the way you want. You feel like things are a bit overwhelming.

Don't trip over the dog.

How do I know...well, as you may have guessed, I did just that. Medial Collateral Ligament torn on the right knee. A brace, a cane, no driving for a bit. I'm tempted to say life just couldn't get anymore interesting, but then again I don't care to tempt fate so I wont say it.

One good thing is that the Manny, the guy who is coming with his crew to rip out half of our garden and replace it with grass came by. They're starting in two weeks. While I have loved this garden it is simply too much to take care of. I will still have the entire front, both side gardens and the top band of the back garden. But the rest will no longer be there. I am giving away plants to whoever comes to get them and looking forward to less physical and mental stress as I will no longer have to watch the back garden be overrun by invasives and weeds.

The rest of life is still a bit chaotic but hopefully it will come under control soon.

sorry sorry

For those who have emailed wondering where I am....

Life has been very hectic here lately. Lots going on, one graduation coming up, allergy season in full swing, one coming home from college (really gotta make her bed before she gets here), the white flag of surrender has already gone up on the garden, and on and on.

I'll write when I can but for now I can't, please understand.

wfmw - magazine recipes

It's Works for Me Wednesday again. Don't forget to check out all the wfmw goodness at Rocks In My Dryer.

I have a rather impressive collection of food magazines. Some of them are Cooking Light from when I had a subscription. Quite a few are Bon Appetit or Gourmet or that ilk collected from my library's Free Magazine basket. If you have magazines you don't want you bring them to the library. Take the ones you want, keep as many as you like. That works for me (hey, this is turning into a twofer).

My biggest problem with the food magazines is remembering which recipe is where. Such as my favorite Texas Chocolate Cake from Cooking Light. I know I could go online and print another copy but the waste of paper really bothers me. So after I've read a food magazine and decided to keep it I write down all of the recipes I like and their page number on an index card and staple the card to the cover of the magazine. The collection has gotten so big that my next step is to organize them by season instead of by magazine and put each season in it's own magazine box. It makes finding favorite recipes quick and easy. It works for me.

books

Speaking of books in the last post I somehow started reading two books at the same time. Given that my reading time has decreased to a painful sluglike pace I'm not sure how this happened.

The first one is Marley & Me I keep snorting with laughter causing my children to believe that I have finally gone round the bend. When I share passages with Steve he laughs too. I think it's laughter of relief. While Tobi is rambunctious and unrestrainedly lovable in his own special way he is not quite as...um....destructive energetic as Marley appears to be. This gives us hope because after all Tobi came to us completely un-housebroken and with no manners. He now IS housebroken and has manners. His only *ahem* challenges are learning that not everyone is dying for big wet sloppy puppy kisses and that compost is not meant to be edible. As you can imagine the book is very humorous, I like the writing style and am enjoying it tremendously.

The other is Not Buying It: My Year Without Shopping I picked it up because I had seen a blurb about the author and thought the premise of the book was interesting. She and her partner decide not to buy anything that is not essential for one year. Of course his idea of what is essential sometimes varies from hers but that just adds to the entertainment. On a more serious note I've only read up to February and it's making me think about how we view ourselves and our spending; not to mention the over consumption going on all around us. Well written and definitely enjoyable.