Everyday Life for Four Seasons

This is the hornworm (?) that ate some of my tomato plant. Can't see it? Neither could I for a while! I had trouble removing it from the plant, it's feet were so sticky! And this is what it did to the plant...


I'm working at max capacity right now. Life is good, very good, and full, very full. It's just full enough. I have web work to do, volunteer work to do, mothering to my girls, my plants and my cats, and canning and pickling to do. We've been busy these past few days with my niece, visiting the Saratoga Racetrack, taking in the art at The Clark, attending art class, picking up our vegetables at the farm, shucking corn, and making cookies, among other things. She goes home tomorrow, and although it will be nice to slow our pace down, I have enjoyed every moment of having her here. There girls get along wonderfully, and she is so easy-going. I'll see you back here on Friday.

:: 'A' enjoyed theater camp very much... especially the part where she took a bow with the other kids (she's second from the right).


:: Her lizard t-shirt costume was wonderfully done! I love the colors.


:: A tomato harvest for the day. We are soooo fortunate.


:: Local, organic watermelon from our CSA farm.


:: After laying on our backs, looking at the stars for a few nights in a row, Jeff and I decided to get out the tent and sleep in it one night. We haven't done that together since our pre-kid days! It was different. Definitely bearable. Fun? I'm not so sure about that. It felt right, but not glamorous.


:: Turnips from our garden.

I'm here, definitely behind the camera, but not in front of the computer as much as I'd like to be. I've been doing some very important things these past few days such as:

* watching the Perseid meteor shower all evening long, for a few nights in a row

* spending time with one of my longest-standing friends

* clapping loudly at the end of the play that 'A' put on after a few days at theater camp

* enjoying time at the racetrack with my sister and her family

* having my niece here for a few days

* feeling at home with the UU congregation

I'll be back soon!

Today was fun - I took the girls to a bubble activity and they spent an hour making big, beautiful bubbles!

Is it August already? Where has my mind been? It's been full, I'll tell you that. I have a lot going on right now. Some of things I want to tell you about are:

How quickly children grow. They're babies one minute and big kids the next. How does that happen?

Work. I get energized by work so, so much! And at the same time, it throws me off my rhythm, my schedule. I do programming & web work but not much anymore, so when I do some work, it puts me into a different routine.

WordPress. Did you know that it's much more than a blogging site? You can create websites with it and make use of so many of the plugins that people have created! Wow. This is big!

Local nectarines. I bought a big bag at the farm today for $3.00 and we all would be happy to do nothing but sit and watch them soften up over the next few days.

Sewing books, like Seams to Me by Anna Maria Horner and Small Stash Sewing. It makes me want to deviate from my plan of sewing a shirt for myself, some epi-pen cases, and a skirt at my September sewing class (in that order!).

The Perseid meteor shower. It's coming to town in full force (at least for us Northern Hemisphere folks) tonight and tomorrow! Look outside at night and you'll likely see a "shooting star" pass by. I'll be out there, wrapped in blankets to keep the mosquitoes away, laying on my back, facing the northeast.

Weight Watchers. I love it! It's such an easy plan to follow. And it's true that when you (um, let's be honest here - when I...) eat less, I am bound to lose some weight. Before long I'll be back into my pre-pregnancy clothing :)

And last but certainly not least, living with food allergies. Actually this is a whole topic unto itself and I'll post about it soon. I've come to understand that dealing with food allergies is dealing with an invisible disability. It looks like it's simple to live with, and as long as there's no episode (and there usually isn't), it seems to be a non-issue. But for the parent or person dealing with life-threatening allergies, daily life is anything but easy and stress-free. I've thought about this topic this week because 'A' started a half-day camp where snacks would be served. Snacks! Oh my! It's all working out okay, but before the camp started, I was a wreck. Most parents don't start the day wondering if today is the last time they'll ever see their child. Like I said, it's an invisible disability.

Have a great night. Life is good here. Busy, but good.

Mom's okay - whew! The tomato had Early Blight, so into the garbage can she went, along with a second one and three summer squash plants that had squash borer (again).

My sister came for a visit on Friday and we had fun moseying around Saratoga Springs with her. On Saturday, Jeff and I took the girls to Silver Bay on Lake George for some kayaking and swimming fun.





Silver Bay...

The tomato and potato leaf samples are with the county extension agent and I'm waiting to hear if it's late blight.


I can't tell you how many times I've wondered (with exasperation) when my children are going to outgrow their need to talk to me during the exact moments I'm unavailable. If I'm on the phone or trying to do some work (paid or volunteer), they suddenly need me. Meanwhile, the rest of the time when I am available to be with them and when I want to talk to them, they're so busy playing that they sometimes tune me out.

I realized today that they're never going to outgrow this need. And they shouldn't. I'm feeling a little lost at this moment and I would really love to talk to my mother. But she's not available for me because she's having surgery on her ear so she can hear again. It's the exact moment that she wasn't available that I realized I needed her. I'm waiting for word that it was successful and she's okay. Until then, I need a little mothering from my mother. The same way my daughters need mothering from me.

:: on the way to the farm on Wednesday afternoons, I drive through this town. It reminds me of parts of the town where I grew up. ::


:: this friendly cat lives at the farm ::

'H' has pink eye. The Brussels Sprouts have cabbage bug. The summer squash are trying to recuperate from squash borer and now they have powdery mildew. And I suspect the potatoes and the tomatoes are getting late blight. I'm taking some samples to the master gardener tomorrow.

I hope this all passes soon. I hope I'm wrong about the late blight. I hope the horrible eye drops I got for 'H' clear up her eye soon. I took her to the doctor and specifically asked for the non-burning kind but I guess they don't make those. I hope the summer squash are able to make a recovery. I've heard I can spray the squash with a milk & water mixture but I don't want to do that because 'A' is allergic to milk. That would defeat the purpose of growing my own food and having control over what allergens she's exposed to, now wouldn't it?


I finally did something that I've needed to do for a while now. Remember how I wanted to reduce the amount of food we were eating? We need to do that. We don't have a bad diet, we just eat too much good-for-us food. If we ate less, we would be acting in a more respectful way toward the planet and I would be able to lose the last of the weight I gained with both of my pregnancies. And (in theory) we would save a little money on our grocery bill. Sounds like a win-win situation, right? It is, as long as you are committed to doing it!

I felt I needed a little structure to help me with this change, so I signed up for Weight Watchers online and although I'm shocked to see how much little food I'm allotted for the day, I have to admit that it feels like the right amount for my body. So far so good. And can I just say, it is making me feel so thirsty all the time! I've always been a big water drinker but this food-reduction plan has catapulted my thirst into a new league.


If you haven't checked out the short videos on the Pennies for Peace website, take some time to do so. I watched about half of them today with 'A' and 'H' and read Listen to the Wind (see yesterday's post for info about the book). I get inspired when I hear about people making a difference! Way to go!

I'm so thirsy, I gotta get outta here and get a big glass of water...

:: enjoying some water play on this warm summer afternoon ::

I'm drooling over this fabric for the skirt I'm going to make at my sewing class. It's by Laura Gunn (have you read her blog?) and I love the colors and the design. BTW, if you're looking for fabric inspiration, The Quilted Castle has a wonderful online stash.

I'm not sure about the skirt pattern yet. Amy Butler's Barcelona Skirt perhaps?

I've been reading Half the Sky by Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn. It's a collection of oppressed women's painful stories and also the stories of how they have gone on to help other women, or how others are trying to help them and women like them. It's a book full of pain but also full of hope. We can make such a difference by supporting the people who are working on the front lines, by pressuring our elected leaders to pay attention to women around the world, and by educating others about the reality these women face. I knew about the topics covered in the book, but I didn't know how extreme the situations were. I knew that women were raped and treated as a weapon of war, but I didn't know the details until I read Dina's story. I knew that girls were forced into marriage and abused by their husbands, but it was Woinshet Zebene's story that moved me. I knew that women die in childbirth and after a prolonged labor can develop fistulas, but I didn't know what they went through and how horrible it really was until I read Mahabouba Muhammad's story. I knew that girls were sold into sex slavery and forced to become prostitutes, but it wasn't until I read Meena Hasina's story that I saw what goes on. The stories go on and on. And for each one, there is a story of hope, with an outline of how to help.

It's a powerful book.

Today at the library I took out Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson for myself and the children's book, Listen to the Wind, the Story of Dr. Greg and Three Cups of Tea. Mortenson has built schools in rural Afghanistan and Pakistan and is one of the people who has worked on the front lines making a difference.

Harper McConnell has lived and worked in the Congo at the HEAL Africa hospital for a few years, going right out of college. She has seen first-hand what happens to women when they are marginalized and their healthcare is neglected. Learn more about her. Teach your children about her. She's doing amazing work.

I don't know about you, but I have a list of a million things I want/have to do at any given moment. I'm guessing I'm pretty normal. Sometimes I ignore my list and live completely in the moment. It's then that I'm happiest. Sometimes I tackle my list and feel like I'm being productive. It's then that I feel energetic and fulfilled. Happy? Yes, but not as happy as I feel when I'm living in the moment. Sometimes, after living in the moment, I come back to "reality" and face my list and it's then that I feel overwhelmed. My list is full of good things, but there are times when it seems too much. It's then that I need to prioritize. Here is my list:

* Get my car inspected

* Bill a client I did some computer work for a while ago

* Write a letter to the manager of our local Ben & Jerry's to tell him/her how wonderful the young man who waited on us was recently. I told him about 'A's dairy allergy and he not only got a new scoop for her sorbet, he also opened a new carton of sorbet; got a cone from a new box; took sprinkles from a new box; and washed his hands thoroughly right after he took the order. I appreciate this more than ever because as she gets older, her reaction to allergens is becoming more extreme. He was amazing.

* Find a skirt pattern and fabric I absolutely LOVE for a sewing class I'm taking in September. I'm looking for a fabulous A-line pattern. And some amazing fall-colored fabric. Any ideas?

* Make nasturtium jelly

* Make unbelievably yummy mustard, like this

* Organize my baby clothes and sign up for the fall consignment sales

* Give away the rest of my baby things that aren't sellable

* Order the math curriculum I want for 'A'

* Dry some more herbs from the garden

* Paint with the girls

* Introduce the girls to the concept of water conservation. I'm going to try to do this without freaking them out. Let's be honest: I get a little freaked out about it. I have a feeling the solution is greater than using rain barrels and letting it mellow when it's yellow in the bathroom. It's more about making purchasing decisions and not funding the companies that pollute the world.

That's it for now. I have lots of other little things on the list too, but those can wait for a rainy day (ha!) - things like cleaning out the junk drawer and organizing my cookbooks.


:: finding inspiration ::

We had a great family weekend, full of some new experiences (family kayaking along Fish Creek, me in one boat with 'A' tucked up front, and Jeff in the other boat with 'H'), and some familiar experiences too (hanging out with friends outside the SPAC gates, listening to Sting perform). The girls loved kayaking and the 3+ hours we were in our boats flew by. I woke up Sunday morning and dug myself some dandelion roots to make a warm decoction before our UU service. It helped with the headache I had from that extra glass - or two - of wine the night before. I washed 3 good sized roots, chopped them up, added them to 1.5 cups of water and simmered for 30 minutes. Dandelion root is excellent for detoxification.


I mapped out the autumn activities for 'A' and 'H' and already I'm feeling the pressure about the summer ending and the activities beginning. Yes, it's true I sign them up for all this stuff, but wow is it a lot! Dance classes, gymnastics, art classes, swimming lessons, Girl Scouts, 4-H and that's on top of our regular trips to the farm, trips to the gym, State Park activities, field trips, and more. I'm savoring days like today when I say, "what should we do today?" and we can decide as we go along. This fall we won't have any days without activities scheduled. No days where we don't get into the car. But on the bright side, the girls love the way they spend their time and that's what is most important to me.

I hope your day is going just the way you want it to.