Here come the peas!

After a week of dancing with the IRS, Sunday mornings are for the homestead.  There is much to do, and a span of hours to get it all done.

During the week, my husband cares for the kids, animals, and house, so indoors, it is only the once weekly necessities that draw us in.  Bathrooms, ironing, vaccuuming - all tackled before 7 am.

Glad to have that behide me.

Once the kids, and the sun, was up, it was onwards and outdoors.  Cleaning chicken coops, hauling wagons full of composted hay to the garden, continuing the annual spring extravanga of raking gravel off of the front yard.  Oh, yeah.  That's the fun stuff.

And lets not forget about those guinea pigs - who need their giant condo of an adobe cleaned out every Sunday...  Not the fun stuff.  But, they are soft, and randomly cute as they beg for carrots everything single time I walk by them on the way to the fridge....

Wonder if that means I am walking by the fridge too often....

Today was also the day to rack the 4 half gallon containers of soon-to-be hard cider.

Or, at least, I hope they will be hard cider....

Really hope.

The seedlings started last weekend are popping up - broccoli, kale, onions.  Tomatoes, however...well, I don't know.  Hidden, they are.  But hidden, I hope they do not stay.  This is the first summer that our garden's bounty will be feeding more than our own family. 

Those tomatoes have a job to do.

And now it is 8am.  And I will probably continue the morning by begging my kids to get dressed, and heading back outside again.  High temps are in our future, and I was to get my share before it is back to the office this afternoon. 

'Cause, that's just how we roll ;)

A busily peaceful weekend...

The weekend is nearly through with us...and what a weekend it has been.

The husband retreated to the side of a mountain in celebration of the hunting seasons so the children and I were left to our own devices.  While I missed him, as always, we found so much to keep us busy.

Friday night was spent in a celebration of community as the kids and I (and a friend of my daughter as well) gathered at the local elementary school for a movie night.  It was such a wonderful experience, seeing families gathered together, kids, clad in pajamas, relishing in the joy of being let loose in the gymnasium after hours.  I can't think of why we hadn't gone previously.  This will definitely be a repeat event for our family.

And, as a side note, this experience was made all that much sweeter by the vote earlier in the week not to merger our little school with a neighboring one.  I know that this might sound dramatic, but I fear that a vote to merge school would be just one step from closing ours...  I can understand how such a move could be a great cost cutting measure for the town, but I would hate to lose our small school with its safe and comfortable feel...it is such a treasure...

But, to get back on topic...after an evening out at the "movies" it was back home for a late tuck in for the kids.  And once all was quiet, I found it hard to go to sleep.  I loved the quiet of the house and spent way too long that evening reading by the dim living room lamp.

Saturday was spent at home, cooking and cleaning, enjoying the moments with my children.  Even the cats were at peace, both curling up on corners of the couch, strangely resembling throw pillows with an occasional wide mouthed yawn.

And now, the children are gathered upstair, watching a movie and building their lego creations.  I have prepped the crock pot with chops and sweet potatoes that were grown from our own soil.  NPR is playing on the radio, and shortly I will pull out my nearly finished emerald green shawl in hopes of releasing it from its hook later in the day.

What a busily peaceful weekend...

Home early...

A cold and wet November afternoon on the homestead....  and I am actually home.  It is kind of surreal being here, having left the office early to pick the kids up from school....

Usually it is the husband who pulls the evening shift, but today, we mixed things up.  Having left for "deer" camp around mid-day, the husband is gone for the weekend. 

And knowing that the afternoon pickup duties would come to me, I fled the homestead early to squeeze a few extra hours in at the office...therefore leaving early on the other end.

And, now we are here. 

I would love to brew a cup of espresso, cuddle under the blankets and just indulge for an hour or two.  Watch the ice-edged rain drops descend from the sky, only to create uneven patterns upon the porch.

I might just do that.



Back home...

So, the trip to Maine was a success!

But I am so happy to be home.

The kids were with their grandparents this weekend, and they had a blast. But the son, in a short-lived burst of sadness (before he was excited by something and dropped the phone) wanted to know WHY we had to be gone for TWO nights. And right then, I was ready to get home.

But we had a great time. We were foot loose and fancy free, with no solid plans - which was a great change from our normally crazy scheduled life. And this lack of plans were handy when we “indulged” a bit too much on Friday, and were less than ready for the Saturday ahead. But, we got our act in gear and managed to head north to Freeport for some happy times at LL Beans, and I personally went a bit crazy at Bass Shoes (as much as I try to simply and minimize my consumerisms….I have such a weak spot for boots…)

Lunch was spent at a great pub, where I was able to get an 802 WoodChuck (something I never get when I am actually in 802...Amber is my standby….), and then we were off to Kittery. There, we set up shop at the Kittery Trading Post.

There, practical matters were tended it. I finally got a Gerber for my keychain, so that next time I am stuck in the hay shed tackling tangles of twine, I will be able to cut myself out. And then we also looked at their fierce selection of guns…a sticky point for me.

I have been able to get through my whole life so far without ever shooting a gun. I hate to even be near them….but I live with an avid hunter. And we have recently learned that our property on the other side of town is home to bear, moose, lynx, and coyote.

None of these bother me over much, as we are ideally seeing their property to be somewhat of a wildlife preserve - but we found out that the coyote are packing up during the day, right by our access road. And we regularly bring the kids with us when we are working on the land.

As anyone familiar with coyotes knows, those beasts think nothing of approaching people once they are packed up. And they aren’t exactly friendly.
And so, I am operating from a place of fear, thinking that it would be the most responsible thing if I were to learn to handle firepower, should it be needed to protect my children, but still breaking out in the cold sweat at the thought of actually doing it…

So, the trading post was a great place to immerse myself in the atmosphere of these uncomfortable objects…but I am still at a bit of a cross roads as far as how to move forwards.

Once that shopping venture was complete, it was time to drive into something a bit more fitting for my soul…and wasn’t I lucky to spot a local yarn haven! In I went, while the husband hid in the van, and in there I stayed for a long, long time….So many choices, I just could not decide. I ended up leaving with a large skein of emerald dyed highland wool, and I can’t wait to start working with it! But self restraint must be practiced until my daughter’s blanket is finished….must not be sidetracked….well, not too much.

I am realizing that I could go on and on…but that will do nothing to start getting dinner ready for the table. And that should be the next point of business. But I am quite pleased to say that I actually know what I will be cooking. Some veggies with garlic sausage send down from a friend’s farm. Completely delicious!

But first, I think I will need to start of the coffee for some liquid energy…It just may be an early night ;)