MRE's made at home

My son and I did some dehydrating a couple weeks ago.  The list so far:

• onions, peppers
• spaghetti sauce, tomato sauce (into leather)
• a variety of beans
• flavored yogurt drops

He went camping and tried out some recipes, (for practise) adding quinoa, angel hair pasta (least liked),  buillion cubes and was very please with the results.  More drying is now required for his weeklong hike and climbing trip into the Enchantments (a wilderness area near Leavenworth, WA).  This will include hamburger, apple slices, to add to the above.  Encouraging his friends to dry food by sharing is on the list also, (they have been impressed).

Very strange weather, a few days ago we had thunder, lightning.  Today, we have had thunder, lightnin, sun, sudden but brief downpours, and snow (not kidding)!   Tonight, we are having the worst outbreak of mosquitos I have ever seen and they are making themselves felt.  In my hair, trying to crawl up my pant legs, it's miserable.

Summer? Here?

Right on schedule, summer starts after July 4th!  Although we did not have the usual rain on the holiday.  We had the first hot day of summer yesterday and enjoyed Sunday dinner outside with family, goats and pickings from the garden (and farmers market).  A cloudless sky, cooling breeze and the hot sun  ....  so perfect.  As the sun was setting (with lavender clouds down in the hills and gold edged, I have never seen the color and wished to capture it but the vibrance never comes thru), we took a short walk and all played with the girls until bedtime.  I say "perfection" !

This morning, I am drinking tea to the sound of the fish tank and gazing at my plants in the little window that get's morning sun, (they are glowing, spectled with shadows and so pretty.  I have taken pictures before and captured how they look).  More perfection! and so peaceful.

Update on the List

Another 100 pieces of clutter,  bye, bye!

Mostly stuff to Goodwill, some to the garage sale pile, some garbage.  My garbage pile is big enough to go to the dump now (I have an unfinished basement and put NO perishable in it),  I keep a designated corner for this because running around the house "looking" for last minute garbage, because the truck isn't full enough, is counter productive.  When I am in the area of the dump the recyclables are a side trip to keep them under control and it's free!  My pile of stuff to sort (can't decide what to do with it) and reassess, is shrinking because I don't really need them.  This is feeling so good that  walking into a room becomes an automatic look for more clutter.  Yes, it is a slow process.  I am trying to see the clutter for what it really is!

My day was busy with sweeping the main floor, clearing another surface (in my bedroom), working on 2 others, clearing the floor of my closet and storing some pantry items, and starting a new sack for donations.  I have let some of toys build up in a corner (the K'nex) so sorting and putting them away took some time.  And of course, some laundry and dishes.

Thank you, darling daughter, for the beautiful header for my blog!!

Stuff and Clutter!

I posted for the year end (2011) my disaster areas, today after counting the surfaces with clutter on them, something must be done.  Ten surfaces (tables, desks, etc.) in the kitchen dining room, living and bedroom.  This doesn't count my sewing room because every time I organize it a bomb goes off and disaster reins again!  After counting the mess I immediately followed up with cleaning off two of the surfaces.  Not only do I not get help but when something is put away, a gremlin comes along and put the stuff right back where I cleared it off of (kitchen)!  Two more surfaces do exist but they belong to another 100%, the ten belong to me or are a community mess.  I also have one more shelf in the kitchen to clean out for better storage.

I have been making Kombucha for 2 months now and have a good balance of brewing now, it is giving me a 2 cup bottle a day to drink without flavoring it.  I like it very much this way and enjoy the hint of apple and sourness, refreshing!

Tilling

Spent the afternoon and evening at my daughter's.  We tilled up a good size garden for summer planting and it was exhausting.  It was too warm to do such heavy work but it must get done.   My shoulders, back and hands ache but it feels good to be out in the soil.  We need to do another pass before taking the tiller back, then out goes the squashes, corn seed, beans!  The raised beds are waiting for warmer nights to happen (soon). The girls made mud pies in a little bucket and had a great (old-fashioned) time.  Must go get ready because after gardening, I must head to the racetrack!

A bit of heaven!

I went to see my parents for a few days and it is so hard to come home (they live on 2 acres of green beauty!)  and watched hummingbirds for hours, they are so fascinating.  What is so interesting is you can stand right by a feeder and they will still come for food!  It's so calm, quiet and slow.  I sometimes question how a city kid became such a country adult?  A morning walk around the properties with my Dad is a great way to start the day (the road goes around a 20 acre area that equals a 1 mile walk) and an afternoon stroll under the canopy of the forest.  My mom cooked a rack of lamb just because she knows how much I like it (the rack was big and too much for 2 people, it seemed melted like butter when chewing and smelled good AND tasted better.  She sent the rest home for my daughter (she loves lamb too).  E and the girls came for one day to spend some quiet time, the girls spent a lot of time wandering the woods, playing and searching for treasures.

Spring has exploded!

The shades of green spreading across the evergreen canvas is amazing.  The young leaves range from grass green to lime green.  I wanted to pull over to the side of the hiway and stare, but my schedule would not allow it.  Our field of grass is about 3 feet tall over the septic and had a lot of wind today.  I watched the grass for a while and it's like watching the ocean waves, waving and serging.  It's elegant like ballet.   Right now, a heavy rain is falling hitting grass and leaves.  Creating a background for the frogs across the street, nature's music!  I love spring the most, even rainy days are beautiful!