Spring Break

We had two great family days during Spring Break.  Our friends the Bossellmans' spent a day here (fun, dogs, chocolate, dirt, noise, chat) and today our friends the Narolskis' visited (fun, beach, barbeque, kids, catch-ups).  Two great families.  Lots of good times.  Ironically, the one day we scheduled as an ACTUAL family day wasn't half as much fun as these thrown together days.  We still haven't been able to get our planting done.  We have 65 trees lying dormant in a box in our driveway, waiting for the "orchard" to dry out enough for us to get them planted.  Our seeds are here too and we may get our garden started next weekend.  On another spring note, I am sharing my laundry room with three baby chicks.  How I love my free range hens laying their wonderful free range eggs.  I love them almost as much as I dislike my little free range chicks laying their not so wonderful free range poo all over their box, which I then have to clean out once a day.  Stinky, smelly things.  Ginny wants to have one so, so, so badly.  She sits, statue-still and watches that box for hours (literally).  Trent dislikes the chicks as much as Ginny loves them.

The next two months until Summer Vacation flies by, I know that from experience!  I am finally feeling better.  Antibiotics are done since last Thursday and if I manage to drag my lazy ass to the gym tomorrow and the next day and the next day, I might actually start to feel 100%.  I missed my appointment at the UW due to a big storm that left us without electricity for a few hours.  By the time the power came back on I had time to get the boys out the door to school but it was way too late for me to make my appointment.  I couldn't help but feel relieved at having a legitimate excuse for missing one (I don't think I ever have before) because it was a nasty, wet, windy, stormy night followed by a nasty, wet, windy, stormy morning and I was not looking forward to the drive.  Lame.  I know.  But in my defense : I really did feel like shite.

Summer... not over yet!

Working out is going well. I've tried all kinds of classes by just showing up when I can and forcing myself to take whatever was on offer. I still favor Step, but yoga is cool and the weights/strength training will give my wimpy arms some definition so I'm there for purely vain reasons. The Summer is almost over and on one hand we've done a lot... on the house... but very little with the kids... It had to be this way but I do feel like I've gypped them somewhat. Fourth of July was such a highpoint for us... the kids loved having all their cousins and still talk about that weekend. Swimming at Jennifer's pool on that hot, hot, hot day was great! We've had at least six days at the lake which even Gene likes and the little boys love (snorkels in hand). I have NO idea what I am doing for birthdays... not a clue.... and I usually have a fairly reasonable idea by now... but not this year. Trent wants to get them TOOL BOXES... (I called HIM a tool for THAT idea and reminded him of how when Gene was little all I'd want to get him was BOOKS and he'd remind me that that was what I wanted him to want... not necessarily something Gene would be ecstatic over...........) Neil needs a new bike, so that's a possibility... but Gene?? All he wants is a Quad and that's NOT going to happen.

My garden has been besieged by weeds. Overtaken. Abused. Overwhelmed. Beaten down. It must have been so much easier back in the day when you went out with your WEED KILLER and sprayed all offending plant life..... I kept up at the beginning, put up a decent fight but lost the war....

We are however harvesting potatoes (which are fabulous) and carrots (which are delicious) and the lettuce is thriving (baby, rocket and red leaf). Hopefully we'll get to eat the corn before the weather turns... cause it's got a long way to go before there are any actual ears visible........ (Corn's NOT my department... take your questions to Trent.)

It has definitely been a learning garden!

Horticulture Corner

Those watermelon we've been all excited to see coming up in the garden??? I think they are potatoes.

We were very busy that week we planted!! Barely anything got marked, which didn't seem like a big deal at the time. We were moving house on Friday... the weather cleared the Wednesday before and we tilled and planted.... It was cold... what can I say... I don't think the potatoes were adversely affected by the mix up... but where the hell are the watermelon?

new thang

I think I've found my new calling... my new addiction.... it's gardening. I cannot believe I like gardening... Gardening is for boring old masochists with no friends and cat hair on their clothes. Well.... I think I like it. I love seeing my little carrots coming up... I get all excited because the onions are sprouting and I feel personally responsible for apparent failure of the potato crop. (Mea culpa). I have not harvested a bloody thing out of the garden yet and I am already making plans for how I will do things differently next year.

and on with the circus...

It's early days yet, but we have had an offer on our house! We are passed excitement... We reached "mutual acceptance" on Monday. I feel such a huge sense of relief. If all goes according to plan we close on May 15th. It seems too surreal (and also a little premature) to celebrate just yet. I think we will feel the reality of it all in a few weeks. For now, we are just relieved. Trent is a little sad too... I forget that at some point we are going to walk out the door of our home for the last time. The house in Buckley is full of "us". It will be hard to walk away from it. But we can finally start work here and make this house "ours". It has never felt ours. We are also ready to plough! I will be taking a LOT of photos!