Everyday Life for Four Seasons

:: the view on the way to the farm makes the short trip worth it ::

Hi there,

I'm always so aware that there are ups and downs throughout the day and throughout life. There are times when I can sense more energy around me, and times when there is less. Lately, I'm overwhelmed by all the energy around me. It's mostly stirred up by me. I've got a lot on my plate and I'm seeking some solid ground. Craving routine, easy peace and some quiet. It's going to be a while before I find it on a daily basis, but for now I'll continue to look for it any chance I get.


:: the dog at the farm is always so friendly and welcoming, just the kind of animal we love to see! ::

This week I'm thinking about:

...the website project I'm working on. There was supposed to be a small change that would affect almost nothing, but it ended up being a big change that affected so much. So, so much work has gone into this project, and I've seen far more midnights than I want to remember.

...homeschooling my girls. Public school has started up here (for the other kids) and the activities for my girls have started at full speed too. I've been rethinking what we're doing this fall and [I think] have decided upon: 4-H, gymnastics, swimming and art class. Dance and Girl Scouts aren't going to make the cut. We just have too much going on, between the evening activities for 'A' (once or twice a week, depending on the week) and evening meetings for me and Jeff (again, once or twice a week). There's no room for more. In addition to the scheduled activities, we do a number of other things that fall under the "schooling" umbrella, such as trips to art, science and history museums (we're going to the Schenectady Museum this week, Old Sturbridge Village next week, and the Hyde Collection the week after), trips to the farm to pick up our veggies and see the goats, penmanship practice, reading, math lessons, nature walks, and lots and lots of play time.


:: our vegetable share this week ::

...Erma, my ailing, aging cat. Her arthritis is so bad that she can hardly move. When she gets to the litter box (and she still does get there, thank goodness), she's too sore to bend and squat, so she ends up urinating all over, not just in the box. It's an issue for us because it means we are constantly cleaning up cat urine. She's already on a medication called Duralactin, which is a milk protein, and so far it's helped her to stay mobile. It's time for some more help. Acupuncture will ease her pain and increase her flexibility, but the price tag is out of our range. I looked up information on herbs for arthritis and learned that Devil's Claw and Spirulina are both good for it, then found that the Manataka American Indian Council sells supplements for cats containing both of those ingredients. I do hope we can help Erma find some relief from her pain. She's 17 years old and aside from the arthritis, she's in wonderful health. She deserves better.

...my garden. I've got tomatoes and peppers that are still ripening, basil that is begging to be made into pesto, lettuce mix that is sprouting, eggplant on the vine, nasturtium and marigold blooming everywhere, brussels sprouts that I hope to eat before the cabbage bug does, and herbs, plentiful herbs. All in all, it was a success this year.


:: 'A' and the dog ::

...natural healing. We've been self-medicating with herbs more and more. I recently found out that a tincture made of cornsilk will help stop bed-wetting in children. Since I have two bed-wetters, I thought, "why not?" I've been letting the tincture stew and it'll be ready in a few weeks. To make it, I put corn silk in a clean jar and cover it with vodka. Every day I shake it up, and in a month or so I should be able to strain the liquid and add little bit to a juice drink as medicine. Or if I want to make the alcohol evaporate first, I'll add it to some boiling water. Tinctures are one of the oldest ways of making medicine and yield shelf-stable products that we can use throughout the winter when our access to fresh herbs is cut off.

...volunteer work. I love to volunteer. A lot of us do. Funny how it works though - I love to volunteer when I have the time to do it. And lately, I don't have much time. Or energy. But still, the work is there.



...balance. What does it mean?

...waking up tomorrow morning to the sound of, "Mommy, are you awake?"... rolling my head to my right and finding Grace snuggled up next to my neck and shoulder... seeing my girls standing next to the bed, waiting for me to get up... and starting a new day, full of new possibilies.


:: cooking dinner ::

What are you thinking about?

We're back and settled in. 'A' LOVED "nature camp" (as she calls it). She ended up missing the last day because we fled the Cape as Hurricane Earl approached. Turns out, we didn't need to go so quickly because Earl was nothing but a strong storm. Better safe than sorry though, I say.

As 'A' plays outside now with her sister, it does not escape me that if she were to be entering kindergarten this fall, she would be readying her things for her first day tomorrow. I always knew that homeschooling her was the right choice for our family, but I wondered how I would actually feel when the first day of school rolled around. Now I know: I feel good. I feel comfortable and relaxed. I feel as though our decisions are the right ones for us. I feel as though this is going to work well.

This long weekend has been nothing short of fun for our family. We went kayaking on Saturday, to church and to the Southern Vermont Garlic & Herb Festival yesterday, and today, in addition to doing some much-needed cleaning and organizing, we went for a hike along some new paths near our home. We're all happily worn out.


Fall is coming whether I want it to or not. I see signs of it everywhere. Fallen leaves, cooler weather, fewer ripe tomatoes in the garden. I'm not ready. I'm never ready, and this time of year always finds me heading kicking and screaming toward the change of season. It'll be the same this year. Maybe I'll learn to find some peace as the autumnal equinox arrives this year. Maybe.


In the meantime, check out this tree, which I do believe is a secret, long lost work done by Picasso. This tree is looking at us!

I'm packing for myself and the girls and we're heading to the Cape today. 'A' starts a week of camp at the Audubon Sanctuary tomorrow and we're all looking forward to spending some time at the beach and seeing my mom and my stepfather. Jeff will join us later this week. I'm excited to go, but not happy about leaving my garden and kitchen at this time of year. I had wanted 'A' to go to camp at this time of year because it's good for us to escape the "Back to school" madness that we're (thankfully) not part of. But now that I'm in the full swing of eating and preserving local produce, I see that late August is a prime time to be close to the garden, preserving all the goodness nature has given us.


On the up side, I was notified yesterday by the library that The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo was available and waiting for me. I put my name on the loan list a few months ago and was distressed that I started out at place #314. I can't tell you how pleased I am that it was available for me the day before I was scheduled to leave for a beach vacation. Perfect timing.

I've got my camera battery charged and I'm looking forward to capturing a week on the Cape in pictures! Stay tuned and have a wonderful day.

chopping tomatoes, cilantro, onion, peppers
mixing up some salsa
canning the salsa

soaking cucumbers in brine just like Ma did on the prairie
slicing cucumbers
canning the pickles

browsing the shelves at the library
checking books out
hearing about good books from others
requesting those books on line
heading back to the library to pick up more books

making laundry detergent out of soap, borax, washing soda and baking soda
washing the sheets
hanging them out to dry on a warm sunny day

shredding zucchini
toasting walnuts
mixing up a batch of zucchini burgers
freezing the burgers for an easy dinner in the future

learning all I can about WordPress
making a new website
learning about ASP uploaders
working odd hours of the day
feeling frustrated when things don't work well
feeling happy when it does

jumping in the car to head to art class
quick! let's not be late
leaving art class in a hurry
so we can jump in the car and head across town to story time at the library
and loving every minute of it

making time to go to the gym
dropping the girls off in the child care room
getting on the rowing machine
rowing 7,000 meters
watching my time drop each time I go
watching the numbers on the scale get smaller each time I go
exercise is good

thinking about kayaking tomorrow afternoon
packing lunches to enjoy on the water
feeling excited about hearing the stillness
and seeing the blue herons

This is what I've been up to recently.

We've been picking up our vegetables every week from local farmers for over a year now. We pretty much eat exclusively local, organic produce. The only exceptions are when I want some onion, garlic, carrots, avocado or melon and I can't get them locally that day. Well, avocado is never local around here! For the most part though, we eat what we get every week. I love this way of life. I've gone on about it here before, and I'm happy to say it again: I love knowing the people who grow our food; I love eating produce picked at the height of sweetness; I love knowing that all those food diseases, such as the one affecting eggs now, and the ones affecting lettuce earlier this year, don't affect us at all. I love knowing that I'm supporting the local economy, and that I'm using my dollars to vote for a lifestyle I would like to see everyone adopt.


In addition to all those reasons, the most basic reason of all is that it is so relaxing and refreshing to travel through farmland once a week to pick up our vegetables. It's good for our emotional health.

I would say that I have a pretty fulfilling life. There is definitely far more happiness than pain. My time is spent doing things I truly enjoy, for the most part. I spend a lot of time with my children, and since Jeff and I try to live [ecologically] lightly, I spend a significant amount of time engaged in domestic work - preparing food, making household products (such as the laundry detergent I need to make tomorrow), and using my energy in place of electric energy to finish tasks (such as hanging out the laundry and using the kiddie pool water on the garden). I also volunteer at my church, exercise, sew and read, take my girls to classes and for outings to museums and fun places, and on occasion, I work.

When 'A' was a baby I did much more website application work than I do now, but there are times now when I have some work to do. I love it. Working has the effect of engaging my mind in a completely different way and it fulfills me even more. The only problem I have when I work, and this is a good problem to have, is that I have trouble balancing all of the fulfilling things I like to do each day.

I have a pretty good work ethic, and I used to think that I had to take a job so seriously that it meant shutting out areas of my life that were enjoyable. "Work before play" was my motto. I've aged a bit and changed my perspective. If I only work - and by work I mean do the jobs that either earn me money or that impact other people, such as church volunteer jobs - then I burn out fast. I wind up feeling exhausted and resentful. I've found that I need to keep exercising, keep crafting, keep reading for pleasure, keep canning those pickles and making salsa with the produce that's on my countertop.


With that in mind, I'm going to take the girls to the farm this afternoon to pick up our vegetables, head to the gym to row 7,000 meters, prep the cucumbers for pickling and the tomatoes for salsa-making, and when I can take a break, I'm going to do the work I need to do.

All in moderation.

Rope swings, wading through the river behind my sister's house, canning tomatoes, lots of meals with friends, and some warm, comfortable family time. That's what we've been up to lately. We're going to have a rainy start to the week, and I'm welcoming the rain and a light schedule. I need some time to stay home and organize my life. Laundry needs to be put away, mail needs to be opened, library books need to be enjoyed, and a few computer projects need to be worked on.

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!