A Photo A Day: December 19th

A Photo A Day: December 18th

A Photo A Day : December 17th

A photo a Day: December 16th

A Photo A Day : December 15th

A Photo a Day : December 13th

A Photo a Day : December 10

A Photo a Day : December 8th

I'm sharing a photo a day for the month of December- some of my favorites from 2014- if you have a favorite photo you'd like to share please leave a link in the comments- I'd love to see your 2014 faves!

a photo a day : December 7th

I'm sharing a photo a day for the month of December- some of my favorites from 2014- if you have a favorite photo you'd like to share please leave a link in the comments- I'd love to see your 2014 faves!

A Photo A Day : December 6th

I'm sharing a photo a day for the month of December- some of my favorites from 2014- if you have a favorite photo you'd like to share please leave a link in the comments- I'd love to see your 2014 faves!

A Photo a Day: December 5th

I'm sharing a photo a day for the month of December- some of my favorites from 2014- if you have a favorite photo you'd like to share please leave a link in the comments- I'd love to see your 2014 faves!

A photo a day :: December 4th

I'm sharing a photo a day for the month of December- some of my favorites from 2014- if you have a favorite photo you'd like to share please leave a link in the comments- I'd love to see your 2014 faves!

First Day

Oh Man- I can't believe it -N is at school. The weather played along beautifully giving us that first crisp morning- new backpack squeaking, and nerves fluttering away in your stomach. She of course did remarkably well, no tears, only a small anxiety, mostly excitement.   I'm hit by melancholy that is unexpected, huddling a cup of milky decaf with a few drops of rescue remedy lingering under my tongue, not a mess, but not quite hunky dory either.

I was not expecting myself to feel anything but relieved at having more free time, and I can use it, and there will be less of it than I think, the 2 yr old making sure of that- but I feel a sense of loss too, or not quite loss- but nerves, and nostalgia. These years do slip by, and my baby girl is not a baby anymore at all, I can't even hold on to a little bit of her baby ways- she even pronounces the R in her name now- though I know Kindergarten is a slow year, it's the beginning of quicker years, of school buses and field trips, and of her making connections I know nothing of, and of her growing up- which I heartily look forward to, but I think I must also mark it's passing.

And N, my sensitive spirited child- who is so attached to me that she's made special rituals up that she "can remember me by" when I leave, who kisses me goodnight in a special pattern, that MUST happen, is totally fine and at ease in her classroom. The only request she made was that I tell her before I leave the classroom- but really she was trying to say goodbye to Me and Baby A as soon as she got up this morning. When I did say goodbye- she gave me a big hug and quickly checked that the hair elastic was on her wrist (to remember me by- the equivalent of a string tied around a finger, I sometimes wonder if she stops when I'm not there, and fingers it- wondering- "who am I supposed to remember? Oh right, MOM!- like I'm some errand she could forget if she got distracted), then ran off to sit and listen to the story on the carpet, I'm sure she will excel in Kindergarten.

I'm sure too she's in the right place- people know her, she was greeted by her name in the classroom - stopped by another teacher in the hall and asked her name, and congratulated on her hello kitty backpack (it's all about the backpack). It's a small school, just the right size for her- and she will love it there, and be safe, and learn all sorts of lessons.

Lately

::Tomato Sauce, and seed saving (this is how I save tomato seeds- squished out on a paper towel and left to dry- works great- and easy labeling to boot)
:: Birthday cakes were made and eaten, devils food cake for her, chocolate hazelnut tart for me
:: Playmobil birthday gifts- she loves them, they are super cool.
:: Late summer rains- where were you weeks ago?
::Cowboy boots and coffee ( the baby loves coffee- she has sips of my decaf all the time, and sometimes even has her own coffee- milk in a mug with a drop or two of decaf in it- just for the flavour- what a kid)
:: Water park play from weeks ago- squeals of delight
:: Roasted beets for the birthday girl's pink pasta, and 16, half cup size pucks of roasted beet puree frozen for the freezer.
:: A short lived helium birthday balloon, it was much loved, but she put it outside, "I had to do it, Mom" she says "the cats were trying to get it, I had to do it". Now we imagine where it is - bumping into a satellite- reaching the moon, landing on an alien planet.

In the garden August 28

It's high summer here now- and a little fall-ish too- just like that, the mornings are cool, and the breeze is a bit chilly, we're seeking out sweaters. The garden is growing, and ready to harvest- there are rows that we'll to put to bed soon. This is the time to remember all the things that didn't work out- to take notes for next year's garden.

The barley is ready to be harvested, the onions pulled- the potatoes need to be dug- the beets even, are ready to pull. I have to figure out if I care enough about the lentils to pick off the teeny tiny pods and then..oh god...shell them. The beans are drying down and almost ready to pick- I'll have to find the planting sheet (usually scribbled on a random piece of dirt stained paper) so I know what's what out there.

The Eggplant is a no-show again this year- should I give up? Next year I will try Chinese style eggplant the long thin ones- and give up my dreams of the big fat dark purple fruits. At least until the kids are older,(I'm much too stubborn to give up altogether) and I can go to the trouble of hand-pollinating and possibly greenhouse-ing them- I think heat is the problem this year- not enough- or something, It's getting weird with the eggplant not producing three years in a row, I mean, what the F, any ideas?

I'm getting my last cuts for drying in- sage, calendula, dill, savory, oregano. I'm also starting to think about cuttings for next year's garden- looking for an- all natural homemade rooting hormone recipe, a cursory google search suggests saliva...I'm doubtful...). The tomatoes are still coming in- but the problem is we thought that we'd plant less of each type- ten each of saucing varities, five each of drying, which in theory should work well- if all the tomatoes ripened at the same time, but the truth is- they don't, and it's hard to make a batch of dry tomatoes, or sauce for the freezer with four ripe ones. I'm going to try pulling all the large green ones off, and letting them ripen inside to hopefully make it easier to make sauce etc.

The smaller numbers of plants are working well for the fresh eating type ones, we've got enough for a couple every day and we're not feeling the pressure to eat tomatoes at every meal- though sometimes we do anyhow. The only downside is that we won't have a lot to give away, en masse, as we usually do, until the frost comes anyhow.

Five

Dressed up to go to Library, I don't even think the Librarian noticed her clip-on tie...

Oh my goodness, where does the time go? As the five year old herself would say "Wowzers", I'm not going to say that it seems like yesterday that we brought this tiny (or not so tiny Ten pounds! holy heck girl- I was HUGE!) bundle of baby home, or that it 'flew by'- because I remember how long these days sometimes feel, and just how much work it's takes to help a person along in these early years, so. much. work. But there's something magical happening these days as four turns into five...self reliance is blooming.

N is old enough to play outside on her own- reliably keeping out of trouble (mostly). She's got all sorts of skills, skills that I've (mostly) taught her, some days I just boggle that this person is about to go out in the world without me (kindergarten), and she'll be okay (mostly). I've done something right!- even if that thing is as small seeing her wash her hands without being prompted (mostly) after she uses the toilet.

But more than all that she is shaping up to be a wonderful person, kind and generous to her sister, hospitable and friendly to guests, thoughtful in a way that is so grown up I can barely believe it. She can wash dishes, vacuum with the swiffer, dust and set the table, she helps fold laundry, writes the entire alphabet, can spell her name, 'Mom', 'Love', and 'zoo'. She charms the cats of the house- even when she dresses them up, they let her get away with crap no one else would (though she's got a teeny tiny scar on her eyelid courtesy of Nelson- it adds character). She's smart, curious, unique, creative, wild, sweet, funny, and so precious, and precocious. She's a wild one in the best sense of the word.

I love...
... that she is so animated, that you can hardly get a photo of her with her face still.
...that she uses 'Romantic" as an adjective for everything good, as in "Don't you think that tastes romantical?"
...that she doesn't shy away from asking any questions, at all, anytime, and if I don't know the answer she thinks we need to 'ask the computer'.
...that she is honest with her emotions,and feels deeply, sometimes embarrassingly, loudly,over the top dramatically, deeply.
...that she has a creative soul, and a caring soul, and an exuberant soul.

I am so lucky to have this girl in my life, she teaches me all sorts of things, about myself and life and her too. Happy Birthday my girl, I hope you have some of things you wish for, and everything you need.

In the Garden: August 21

The Tomatoes are here! First ripe tomatoes, and I was surprised to find a whole basket full when I checked. The Earliest ripe varieties this year: Arbuznyi, Costoluto Genovese, Principe Borghese, White Currant and Ferris Wheel. So delicious, and so worth the wait!

The Marshmallow is flowering- and tall and lovely, the stone path in the perennial garden is growing, next year the creeping thyme will fill in all those blank spots- or overgrow them if I'm not quick with the scissors. I think I might need a small lawnmower to run over it actually once I get it all done. I'm averaging about 15 feet a year on this walkway- and it's about 40 feet long- longer if you count the side paths- so it'll be a couple of years of work- but I tell myself that gardens are long term pursuits so I think that's okay.

The Galeaux D'Eysines squash are starting to form their little 'sugar warts' I think they'll be tasty. Despite the many seeds we planted only four plants grew- two from each variety- and it actually seems like this will be the right amount of squash for us to realistically consume. I always forget how big they grow. We also put the strawberry runners into pots so that we can replant our patch- we potted up about 100 plants still attached to the parent plants, when they get big enough we'll cut them free and re-plant them. The only tricky thing is keeping them moist in the small pots. We picked a few perfect late season strawberries and raspberries, which we eaten almost as fast as they were dropped into the basket.

A Dahlia bloomed! Just one! - but lots of buds to come. Baby A is eating every edible thing in the garden- Rhubarb is still a favorite- stalks as long as she is- though she usually doesn't eat it all. The carrots are really giant now, and tasty- so she walks around munching on them - teeth full of dirt. The Comfrey is blooming too- so lovely looking and robust- I'm wondering how much room I'll need to give it in the future, I'll maybe have to move more than the rosebush.

The Canola was swathed this week (cut down and laid out in rows to dry out before it gets combined), and the flea beetles are into the garden quick as can be- the Kale that was uncovered will be devoured soon- but not to worry, we've got lots under cover. The Garlic harvest is in, and it's meager, which prompted us to buy seed bulbs for fall planting from Boundary Garlic Farm  yesterday- the first day their shopping cart was open, and holy heck it was like buying concert tickets- having to refresh over and over because their website was overloaded! It made me think maybe we should get into the seed garlic business...