Tired of Gardening and Canning

I'm tired of gardening and canning. I'm ready for a freeze but now it's time to pull up a bunch of stuff and plant veggies for fall!  If I don't, I'll be sad in a month because I'll have to start buying lettuce from the grocery store instead of my own. 

Maybe, I'll just plant a little.  I don't want to feel sad.....Gotta go, I've got work to do!

Now's the time when I savor the last of everything.  I'm still getting okra to fry and a few cukes and tomatoes and eggplants but almost everything else is giving up from our august heat. 

I'll pull out all the dead stuff and plant in it's place a few more cukes, a fall tomato that I've been babying in a pot through this heat (I grow cherries for fall) and lots of greens.  It does make me happy to be picking stuff in november here in Oklahoma!

Naked Ladies in my Yard....

Since we had some rain last week, I now have naked ladies springing up all over my yard!  Now that I've got your attention, some of you may call them suprise lilies.  Those of you who worry what other people think, probably call them that.  That or you didn't have a grandma who called them that because she liked saying it I think! Naked ladies, suprise lilies...you say tomato, I say luscious round red orbs of deliciousness! ha! Calling them naked ladies sounds like some exotic flower.  Well, they kind of are!

One day my husband called me from work and asked me if I knew what naked ladies were.  When I said yes, he then put me on speaker phone for all the ladies in the breakroom.  They had apparently been discussing them and my husband put his two cents in.  They didn't believe he knew what they were and I was there to settle a friendly bet!

These are those plants that you see about now in Oklahoma springing up all over old homestead places and old homes in town.  They don't ever really look like anyone planted them because usually they were planted so long ago that the flowerbed or fence or whatever they were planted beside is long gone.  In the spring, they send up green long leaves that just sit there in the sun soaking up those rays.  Not long around Memorial Day, they just die and everyone forgets they were ever there.  Until now.  When we finally get a good soaking rain about the end of August, they put up a stalk and on that stalk is a cluster of light pink lilies that smell heavenly!  They are so unlike plants of August that it's a relief to see them. 

I love naked ladies (he, he) because I know that the end of summer is almost here.  The next thing that will appear are the chrysanthemums but they aren't a suprise.  I can see them setting the buds so they will be here in a few weeks.

Here's a little southern speak lesson if you aren't from around here:  Do you know that naked can actually be pronounced two ways?  My husband, who has lived here most of his life, didn't either.  This is actually my own rendition but here goes....two pronunciations of naked.

       Naked- naked, without clothes - this is the one you know about. Example, Adam and Eve were naked in the garden.
       Naked - necked pronounced in two syllables, neck-ade; this is without clothes doing something you should not be doing.  Example; Bobby and JohnnySue was neck-ade in the woods!

My little lesson on southern speak for today!

Hope you smiled a little today!

AHHH!

School started last week.  For all of us!  Since I'm starting a new job, I'm training everyday for about four hours online.  It's hectic at our house!  I told my husband that I feel like I'm in a big building with no windows and all the hallways and doors look the same.  I can't find my way around or back where I started again.  That's what I feel like training in the computer school!  I'm sure it will get better, everyday I'm beginning to remember more and more but it sure is difficult at first learning a new system!

My kids are fareing better than I am in their prospective schools.  Both seem to enjoy what they are doing and are learning the ropes of getting around much better than old mom.  This week, we have open house for our daughter's school and next week, a phone call conference with my son's teacher.  We seem to be settling into a routine pretty quickly.  I'm ready to get there!

Yesterday, a cold front moved through Oklahoma bringing us some much needed relief from the hundred degree days! This morning when I stepped outside, it was pretty chilly!  Today will only be about eighty-five so some people will be wearing sweaters! My daughter actually did.  She says it's because the school is pretty cold in some rooms but I think she just was wanting to wear some new fall clothes....

I'm resorting to easy options for dinners these next two weeks.  Quick things that I can make ahead in the afternoon and get out fast before we rush off to whatever event is on my kids calendar.  Tonight, it's asian chicken salad.  I've made it before and posted the recipe.  The grilled chicken is in the fridge thawing and I can just throw it all together and serve it in big bowls so clean-up is also a breeze.  Which is a good thing because my kids have youth group at six tonight about the same time my husband gets home from work.  Afterwards, they have a swim party until nine. 

Next week, starts dance for the daughter and Oklahoma State football games for all of us! Bring on fall! I'm ready, I'm ready, I'm ready!

Charlie, my little green snake

Ok, ok, I tend to name almost anything that lives in my yard or I own.  Hence, my van, Suzi Q who gets treated like a member of the family and Sarah, the wild turkey (she is a bird, not a drink!).  Actually, my neighbor named her, we're quite a bit a like.  I also have a green snake named Charlie.

Now, you know that I don't like snakes by now if you've read any of my posts.  I am terrified of them because they are just so sneaky and since I'm usually wandering around not paying attention to anything, the snake seems to jump out of nowhere and startle me out of my wits.

Except Charlie.  I kind of like Charlie.  He's been here for at least five years and he lives over in the east side in a flowerbed.  He likes irises because that is usually where I see him.  The first few years, I swear he would try to scare me.  I would be up to my eyebrows weeding the irises and suddenly, there he would be, staring at me eyeball to eyeball.  I think one reason that I don't like snakes is that they don't have eyelashes.  Staring into an eye that is naked is kind of weird.  If God had given snakes eyelashes, they would seem so much sweeter.  Take a snake and put big cow eyes on it and suddenly, that old snake becomes cuddly. 

Since Charlie is only about a foot long and bright green, I've simply grown accustomed to him.  I expect to see him draped over the iris leaves.  I think he knew that, so he's moved to the lilac beds to keep me on my toes!  I was watering tonight and almost reached in to pull a bright green weed when it suddenly moved.  I imagined that Charlie yelled out 'Gotcha!'  It's good to have friends in the yard!

I survived!

My husband and I in a moment of pure insanity took our two kids and two of their friends to Branson, Missouri over the weekend to go to Silver Dollar City.  If you've never been to SDC or as the locals call it, Steal Your Dollar City, you're missing out.  This is the only theme park my husband can be talked into that is within a two days drive.  He liked Disney World but who can run over there in a weekend?

Silver Dollar City is like an old town set in the 1800's.  It is clean, shady and full of people that love their jobs and love people.  It is a Christian based theme park that is not overt in it's Christianity but you know that morals and values are important to the people who own and run the park.  It has lots of rides for all ages but it also has music and variety shows and arts and crafts buildings.  My husband calls it arts and crap but that's not what they carry.  They have local artisians doing painting, metalwork, woodwork, pottery and other real crafts.  It's interesting to go and watch these artists make beautiful objects and speak directly to them. 

We took four kids and set them free in Silver Dollar City for the day.  This is the first year that they have been able to go off on their own.  Of course, all four had their cell phones with them so they could call at any minute but it still was a little unnerving to let them out of my sight!  The kids had a ball, riding rides until they were sick and buying the snacks and drinks that they wanted not what I thought they should have.  When they wandered off my husband turned to me and said, 'they really are growing up aren't they?' We hadn't been alone in Silver Dollar City since we had traveled there twenty-two years ago on our honeymoon! Sure hasn't seemed like that long ago!

The kids survived, we survived and I think we all had a good time.  We only had to stop once on the way home to break up a fist fight in the back of Suzy Q.  Our own lovely adorable children were punching away on each other so my husband had to remove them from the vehicle and have a 'little talk' to the two of them.  We were all tired from having too much fun in the sun and were a bit cranky at that time. 

But we survived! I had a friend once that would say of any experience that you'd either have a good time or a great story, I think we have both from this trip!

Flip flop!

No, I'm not talking about those sandals I love so much this time of year.  I call them thongs and it embarasses my kids to death!  We had an entire discussion one night at the dinner table about what is a thong?  It is something that slides between two things!  My take on the Webster defination.  It's not my fault this generation has completely given that simple word a very graphic meaning! 

I remember when I first started teaching high school in Oklahoma in 2002.  This was the very height of thong wearing season.  Almost every girl in the school wore those awful underwear and it was also right in the middle of those hideous low slung jeans that looked good on almost no one!  Imagine for one moment what my computer typing class looked like to me since I only saw the backs of people and no one would ever push their chair up to the computer.  I loudly explained one day that if I saw another slot I was going to put a penny in it, just as the principal walked into my room.  Just as quickly, he turned and walked out!  He always teased me that observing for me was 'unique' because he never quite knew what we'd be discussing that day!

My flip flop is actually that I will be working this fall after all.  I had come to terms with God that if He wanted me to stay home, He wouldn't give me a job.  I had a peace that staying home was fine.  God had provided extra income and our stress level as a family was greatly reduced since I was home all day. I got a job offer this week from the virtual school my son is attending.  I'll be working part-time teaching their high school sciences.  This job will allow me to be home all day, help my son when he needs it and supervise all his work, pick up/drop off my daughter; pretty much everything I was doing as a full-time stay-at-home mom except for a few hours a day I'll be teaching!  God was in control all along.  He just needed me to stop running around like a chicken with her head cut off and let him lead.  I have seen a chicken with it's head cut off, more than one actually, and it's really a funny but grotesque sight!  I'm sure I looked just like that too! No direction, no plan, just run, run, run! 

I'll keep you posted this fall on how this is working!

First Day of School!

This is it! The first day of school! So exciting, new school for the daughter, new program for the son.  Finally getting back to a schedule for me!  I took pictures by the flowerbed that I've always do.  It is amazing how much bigger both of the kids have grown and the how the flowerbed has changed over the years. 

Different hairstyles, different styles of clothes, bigger and bigger shoes!  It's always amazing what outfits my kids choose for the first day of school.  My daughter, who is in her own right a self-proclaimed fashionista, makes her choice weeks in advance and changes it every other day until the night before.  She wants to show everybody how nice she can dress.  My son, who would still be letting me choose his clothes if I would, simply reaches into his closet or floor for something that would pass for clean. 

Yesterday, my daughter was still agonizing over which jeans to wear, looked at my son and said, 'you're lucky you're doing homeschool this year, you don't have to choose what to wear on the first day of school!'  My son, never one to miss an opportunity to be sarcastic to his sister, I think he got that from dad...never from me, said, 'I never chose what I was going to wear to the first day of school when I went to school! I just grabbed whatever!'  She audibly gasped in horror.  To think that he didn't even plan his wardrobe!

Hopefully, she'll have a great day! We went and got the schedule well in advance and took a tour of the school.  She already has many friends that will be there to help her and she even got to meet a few of her teachers.  I dropped her off this morning with a smile and a wave and DID NOT walk her in! I have great faith that she'll do well.  Middle school is tough but my daughter is better than most!

Needing Rain and Armadillos!

We really, really, really need rain right now in Oklahoma! Did I mention we really need rain! Oh we do!  I am so tired of dragging around hoses and setting up and taking down watering systems.  The birds are so very happy when I set up the sprinkling system around the yard so they can get a much needed bath.  It hasn't helped that the average temperature for the past fifteen or so days has been over 100 degrees!
Yesterday, we finally got that good soaking that we have so desperately needed and boy I am glad!  Now I won't have to water for a few days at least.

My hummingbirds are not faring well either.  It seems they are in the middle of congregating here in Oklahoma until they leave in October or so.  They are draining my two feeders about every other day.  I usually don't have that many hummingbirds, I have about six normally.  Today, I counted between twelve and fifteen.  Those poor little guys are hot, tired and drinking up a storm!

Last night, as I was making my rounds in the garden, I had quite a start.  My big, black german shephard, Kate, and I heard a snort in the woods behind the garden.  We had apparently spooked a deer and it was giving us a warning not to come any closer!  Suddenly, my dog, who had been poking around in the gourds looking for bugs was standing in front of me guarding me from the snorting!  I started to calmly talk to the unseen deer and it eventually snorted off deeper into the woods.  Kate was really excited that she had scared that mean, old deer away from her mistress!

As I picked tomatoes and okra, I noticed that my garden had been visited by a pesky armadillo! This creature had dug up my eggplant, my baby swiss chard and several peppers!  Luckily, it was cooler today, only  91d egrees, I think the plants survived.  I rewatered them and spoke quite firmly to my dear dog, Kate about guarding the garden all the time, not just when I was in it!  Time will tell if she really heard me or if she was just looking at me with those big, brown eyes!

Growing up....

This sunday was promotion sunday at our church.  My daughter was especially excited about this because it marked her first sunday as a youth!  This had several meanings for her; she got to start going to the youth building for sunday school and she no longer was expected to sit near a parent, either us or another one during church but she was expected to sit with the youth group.  She has been planning this moment all summer!

Promotion sunday is not such a big deal in the adult departments.  We really don't move, the class just reclassifies itself as an older one and we keep going.  Occasionally, a couple will 'move' on to an older class but most of us just keep going, and going, and going to the same class.  When we first started going to this church about eleven years ago, we went to a young married class.  We were between the ages of 25-35 so we fit right in.  We are still classified as a new married class but most of us have youth and some even have college kids!  We all laugh that we are the oldest young married class in the history of Baptist churches! 

Growing up means different things to different people at different stages of life.  To my daughter, growing up means sitting apart from us at church.  To each of us though, it means more responsibilities and higher expectations.  Sitting apart from your parents means you have to take it upon yourself to not talk, pass notes and generally act like a kids.  To an adult, growing up means getting a job and making grown-up decisions about your life; where to live, who to marry, etc. 

I think back to when I was a new youth.  I was so excited to pull away from my parents and become someone different.  Now, looking back, I see that I've pretty much come full circle.  I pulled away, but like a  june bug on a string, I circled around and am now back in the same spot that I left my parents years ago.  Except this time, I am the one standing still while my own children are pulling away.  Makes me look at my own parents with new eyes.  Eyes that have new appreciation for what they have done......

PMS!!!!!

This post is not for men today, sorry.  If you're a man that normally reads this either; a) turn your computer off and walk away or b) read and try to learn something about the innerworkings of a madwoman since most of you know someone close to you who goes through this status once a month!

I hate PMS! I've always suffered some form of PMS from moodiness and insomnia to migraines and periodic bouts of insanity!  Each month, when my little friend, George, that's what we called it in middle school, showed up, I'd have a really crappy couple of days and then I was back to normal.  Nowadays, many, many months will go by with pretty much nothing and then WHAM!!! all of George's pent up frustrations would be taken out on me in a couple of days.  This month was a WHAM!! month.  The days leading up to greeting George makes you want get the M in PMS started already!

I've always told my husband that I needed a little dot in the center of my forehead, kind of like Hindu women have, so he could gauge my mood swings from afar.  You see, he comes in and before he gets too close, he sees that the dot is green so he kisses me and asks, 'what's for dinner?' If the dot is red, he sits down, out of arms range and says, 'what say, I take you out for dinner?'.  It would be so much easier on him if I had one of those dots.  Instead the poor man and now the poor children are left to wonder who is standing in the kitchen; normal mom who can take just about anything and laugh and joke about while making up silly songs and dancing kind of like Paula Abdul or psychomom who either cries at the drop of a hat, or ice cube, or sock or is screaming and yelling like one of those congressmen up in Washington when they aren't getting their way!

I usually don't realize that I'm in that mood for at least a couple of hours when it hits.  I know that it's a few days before George is supposed to hit but since this doesn't happen each month, it always sneaks up on me.  After a few episodes, I realize I am in full PMS mode.  Doesn't matter though, even though I know that I am being meaner than a snake, I really don't care!  That's where the crazy comes in! I sometimes like it! 

Then, just as suddenly as it came on, the pendulum swings the other way and I'm weepy and sad.  Oh hormones, why do you mess with me so?

Now days, my daughter is experiencing the joys of womanhood too.  The last time she had an episode, she almost killed her older brother.  He was horrified because she's normally a very mild-mannered child and puts up with almost anything her older bro can dish out.  I stepped in and led her to my bedroom and calmly explained the situation.  I made her lay down, propped her feet up with a pillow and handed her the remote.  I then brought her a piece of good dark chocolate and a dr. pepper.  When she emerged from the bedroom a few hours later, she was a new creature.  Her brother, however, began to understand that she could be a formidable opponent when she wanted to be.  I think he looks at her with new respect!

Oh the joys of womanhood! I just can't wait until menopause!

School Supply Lists

I stopped by my daughter's school yesterday to pick up her school supply list.  What a suprise!  No front page/back page list!  I guess middle school teachers use less than elementary teachers.  I was always dismayed to look at my kids lists each year because I knew that many parents just couldn't afford to purchase everything on the list.  Some teachers even went so far as to write the brand name they wanted you to buy!  I've personally purchased enough pencils and paper to kill a small forest and I know that my child did not use one hundred number two pencils in a 180 day school year! 

It became very clear that I was purchasing not just for my child but for several others who did not bring things.  Now I don't have a problem with helping others, especially kids.  I taught for many years and saw first hand  that many kids just don't have parents that are willing or able to go out and buy them new things to start the school year.  I have given many, many things to kids over the years and spent much out of pocket money of my own to cover expenses for kids who couldn't do it themselves.  I do have a problem with teachers who list three times as much on the school supply list making me think my child will need all the materials listed.  One year after Christmas, my daughter came home saying she needed more pencils.  I asked what happened to the one hundred pencils that I had sent on the first day of school.  She said, 'well the teacher already gave them out to the other students!' I had a problem with that!

I also have a problem with teachers who do not want you to label the things you buy for your child.  This is because they are going to dump it all in a box and give to whoever needs it.  EXCUSE ME! We do not live in a socialistic society! If my daughter picks out a special folder for herself, then let her use it!  One of my favorite memories is getting to pick out my school supplies.  I also learned how to take care of my own things.  I was careful with my crayons and made them last all year so I could use them over the summer at home. This socialist thinking of 'don't worry about your personal things, when something gets broken or destroyed, we'll just replace it with someone else's stuff!' is raising up a generation of children who do not respect property.  Why should they take care of the crayons? They can get new ones by asking the teacher.  I am trying to raise my children with the notion that you must take care of your things.  That we need to reuse from year to year and it is becoming more and more difficult when they don't have anything of their own to take care of at school!

That's my rant for the day.  I do care for others, I just get tired of being forced to! 

Ready for Fall!

I was dragging the hose around last night watering my flowers and I realized that these poor flowers were probably as ready for fall as I was!  They have worked so hard all spring and summer producing beautiful foliage and flowers and now they were tired and worn out and ready to take a long nap. The flowers are beginning to look ragged, the leaves that were so bright and green this spring have taken on a dull green and sometimes yellow cast.  That's the way I feel when I've worked all day and simply need a rest.  Those poor plants need a good long winters rest!

I am beginning to look into my pantry for fall preparations.  My kids and I were discussing all the foods we would begin to eat when it began to get a bit cooler.  Soups, breads, apples, pancake nights were all on the list. I cook seasonally, as you remember from earlier blogging, so those things were kicked out about April as spring and summer fruits and veggies began to appear. Now, we've eaten those things we were so excited about in April enough that our palates are ready to move on into heartier fall fare.  Because of this, I'm peering into the pantry so I can restock with those staples of fall.  I'm beginning to buy up things to make soup and using the last of certain things that we usually only eat in the summer. 

Of course, here in Oklahoma, we still have at least a month of summer weather left but I can begin to see the end.  Just like the plants, I am growing weary of all the sun and fun.  Give me a cloudy, rainy September day so I can rake leaves or a crystal clear October day with the sky that certain October blue that you won't see in July so I can sit around the bonfire and roast a marshmellow.  I'm ready!  I love the different seasons and welcome each one with open arms!

Back to School

We haven't officially started school yet, that starts next week, but my son has started his exercise program (PE) for the fall.  He grumped quite a bit about starting a week early but that's the way the program runs and since I had to pay for a full month, he started!

He's mainly doing cycling at the rec center close to our house.  Once he begins to get in cardiovascular shape, he'll start more weight training.  He's now fourteen so using weights will begin to build muscle mass.  I've also committed to not having as much junk food around.  I and my daughter don't eat it but my husband and son do and they are the ones that are showing it!  My husband is going to be starting working out in the evenings with my son.  He's going to be doing two a days for a while to whip him back into shape!

Our mealtimes are usually healthy things but it seems that between meals and drink choices are what is killing both of them.  Those are going to change because they are both too lazy to go and get bad food choices so if I don't bring it into the house, it won't get eaten. 

I am a bit worried about this because I have never worried about my weight.  I pretty much eat what I want and stay around 115 pounds.  That's twenty pounds heavier than when I got married but I figure a pound a year isn't too bad.  Plus, when I drop under about 110 pounds, the doctor looks at me with a frown.  My downfall is salt and Braum's German chocolate ice cream.  My husband has promised me that he'll take me out for ice cream, my daughter calls it broccoli, at Braum's when I need it. 

I'll keep you posted on the two men in my life and their exercise program.  I can be pretty hardheaded about things sometimes and keeping them both healthy is one hill I'm willing to die on!

Confession Time

Ok, so I've not been real motivated the last week or so.  I've had a lot going on with Falls Creek and my dad being in the hospital.  I'm actually ready for school to start back up! I'm ready to get back into a routine. 

My husband and I decided that I wouldn't go back to work this fall.  He finally conceded that he really did like me being at home full-time.  It really relieved the stress from the family.  He's been traveling more with his new position and it makes it much easier when someone is home full-time to look after things.  I have to admit, it suprised me quite a bit how much I am enjoying being at home.  I really thought that I would get bored but so far that hasn't happened.  We've been incredibly blessed by God since we made the decision to make the change.  I haven't noticed a drop in our income, partly because I am a much better steward of the money and partly because my husband's income seemed to go up when I quit.  We do give glory to God for the blessings. 

We will be starting a building/remodeling project in a few weeks that will take a lot of my time to oversee.  We are basically building a new garage and turning the old one into a man/teen cave that will be able to have the kind of parties that we host in the summer.  We'll also be giving each child a larger closet and another bathroom that will be handicap accessible in case, in a few years, we have a parent living with us.  My husband and I figured me not working this year while we are building will go a long way to aleviate the stress!

I am ready for school to start next week.  My daughter is going to start a new school here closer to our home.  She has many friends so it won't be a real shock.  She's so excited to start!  My son is doing a virtual school this year.  Both he and I are excited to begin the program.  I will still be his day-to-day teacher but he will be turning in work online and will be doing state testing. 

I'm ready to know what I'm going to be doing on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.  I get into a routine pretty quickly and this summer, its just been crazy.  Each week, is different, each day, in fact is different.  I'm ready to settle back down into a cozy routine.........

Getting Rid of Zucchini!

As I've said before, I have quite a bit of zuchinni this year.  I've made bread, cookies, grilled it, stir-fried it, battered and fried it, hid it in frittatas, lasagna and spaghetti, just to name a few of the creative ways.  Most of the time, my darling daughter will not let it pass her lips.  She had declared rather loudly that she does not care of zuchinni!  We do declare things rather loudly in our household.  One time the kids told me that dad yells the most.  I almost hit the floor laughing! If anyone in our house yells, it would be me!  But apparently, since I seem to do it almost constantly, the kids regard me as just talking loud all the time.  But when dad yells, well, that is something that doesn't happen often so it is remembered.  Anyway, my daughter will not eat much zuchinni.

I have tried to be really creative this summer with the bounty and I have finally struck upon a recipe that she loves!  Zuchinni fritters are now one of her new favorite foods! I got the recipe from here:  http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Zucchini-Patties/Detail.aspx
and as usual I have adapted it a bit to fit my tastes.

Zuchinni Fritters

2 cups grated zucchini, I do this in advance and squeeze out the water

1/2 cup kernal corn, I've been using fresh but frozen will work if thawed.


2 eggs, beaten, can be egg beaters

1/4 cup chopped onion, I pre-cook these in the microwave until they are translucent so my daughter can't tell they are in there, she also doesn't like onions!

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, I use the real stuff, not the can stuff

1/2 cup shredded any cheese, my favorite, sharp cheddar!

salt to taste

spray oil, like Pam
 
Mix all the ingredients together except the oil and fry by placing 1/2 cup or so into the skillet that you've sprayed with the oil.  Cook on each side until brown.  Serve hot.  Makes 8 fritters.
 
This takes the place of a potato or rice dish so I usually serve grilled chicken or polish sausage, zuchinni fritters and slice tomatoes.  Great summer meal!
 
 

Anniversary

Today, my husband and I have been married twenty-two years.  It sure doesn't seem like that much time has passed until I look in the mirror! It has been a fun, fun ride with few bumps along the way.  I'd like to think that it is because I'm such a joy to live with but I know the real truth.  He puts up with a lot from me and I do the same from him.  We have always tempered our marriage with a lot of humor and a lot of prayer.  It seems to be working!

We've got both kids going places this weekend and we're going to spend some much needed time together alone.  I have to say, I'm looking forward to it a lot.  Some of our friends are beginning to bemoan the empty nest syndrome, I'm not.  It's not that I don't love my kids with all my heart.  I just know that in order for us to be successful parents, they must move on and be on their own someday.  I look forward to that day when my kids are successful adults and I can come and visit them and hopefully, my grandchildren!  I don't want to rush it though, they are only fourteen and twelve!  We have at least eight to twelve more years of actively being parents of kids who live mostly at home.  I'm just looking ahead and seeing a time when my husband and I can have more time for just the two of us.  We like to be together!

Happy anniversary boyfriend! My kids hate it when I call my husband my boyfriend.  He can't be my boyfriend since we're married apparently.  Well, I don't care, he will always be my BF!

Garden Update: TOMATOES!

I'll be canning tomatoes today.  Got lots and lots of them.  I planted several different varieties so I'd have a long season.  Last week, while I was gone to church camp, my wonderful husband and daughter took care of picking the garden for me.  They put the tomatoes in the fridge for me so I could can this week.  I don't normally keep my tomatoes in the fridge as it ruins the flavor but when you can them it doesn't seem to effect the flavor and I can store them longer.

I'll be running the tomatoes through my strainer/mixer.  It will take off the skin and seeds so I'll be left with pulp.  To the pulp, I'll add garlic and minced onion.  I'll cook this down a little and pressure can the jars for storage.  This winter, that basic sauce will be great over hamburger steak.  My husband loves this meal with rice.  His grandma and grandpa would make it when he went to visit.  I like it because it's quick, easy, frugal and healthy for my family! 

I'll also be drying my basil this week and making pesto.  I'll post the pesto recipe I use later in the week when I actually pull it out to use.  I will freeze the pesto into individual serving sizes to serve with cooked noodles.  My pantry and freezer are filling up quickly for winter!  I am ready! This heat is killing me!

Hot, hot, hot....

The weatherman showed the ten day forecast last night and it is supposed to be over 100 degrees for the next ten days.  I really don't like the weatherman during this part of the year!  Extreme heat is not my idea of a good time.  I don't like going outside, dragging the hose all over trying to keep my little plants alive during this heat!

I always look at August in Oklahoma like January in Indiana where we used to live.  In Indiana in January, it was so cold that you couldn't really do much of anything outside.  Even going to the grocery store was a major ordeal, especially with little kids!  That's kind of what it is like now in Oklahoma.  My daughter and I ran out to do a few errands yesterday and all I wanted to do was run from the parking lot to the cool store and back again. 

The major difference between Oklahoma in August and Indiana in January is that tonight, about seven o'clock, I'll be laying around in the pool cooling off from picking garden and watering.  I'll wear my swimming suit and cover-up to do my outside chores and then jump in and float around for awhile while the sunsets. We usually have a really pretty sunset. 

Can't do that in Indiana in January.......

Perspective

I got back from church camp only to travel across the state to check on my dad who was in the hospital.  Long story short, after twelve days in the hospital, he had a stent put into his heart today that we think will make him feel 100 percent better in the days ahead. 

It's amazing how a near death experience with someone you love suddenly puts life into perspective.  You suddenly don't care about how clean the house is or if the garden is picked or the flowers watered.  All you worry about is seeing that person at your nieces birthday party at the end of the month.  Kind of puts everything else on the back burner.

I know some day my dad will die and I know that when he does he knows where he will spend eternity.  I am glad that he has that assurance but I'm just not ready for my parents to leave me.  I still need to ask a lot of advice!

I thank God for the doctors and nurses who spend countless hours helping the helpless.  I was not called to do either of those jobs.  I'm too impatient and am not the most nurturing person, ask my children.  If you're not bleeding profusely or missing a limb, don't complain!  I'm just glad that there are people who are called into that profession.

The next few weeks, I'll be posting on and off because I have real life to contend with. I'll keep you posted!