Tuesday, June 30, 2020

Warm and Wooly

So after last week's washing, we carded our wool today and learned a bit about wool felting. This warm, humid weather isn't the best time for wool I guess, but they all seemed to enjoy it.
While some were hearing a story, others were working with the wool they carded.




 We had felted bunnies, penguins, bumble bees and even a flag.






Bugg's lilly bloomed this week.  I planted a bed of these as she and I enjoyed all things garden and flowers for a time and that is her actual name. Looks like she'll miss the blooming this year. 



 I have no idea where this seed pod came from but I love this picture.
 So happy to see this phlox about to bust out.  I don't have good luck with them.  This a return one, so that is lovely.
 I usually buy bushes on clearance, but this beauty caught my eye and I grabbed her up. She does not disappoint. Makes me happy every time I see her.

Numerous times I have tried and failed to grow any kind of poppy.  When I visited Tasha Tudor's garden I saw exactly one poppy seed pod. I asked if I could have it and they were happy to let me.  
From that two little starts came forth and then finally, it bloomed. 

Color me excited as I could be. 

If you heard a squeal coming from this direction, it was probably me.  I think it looks quite Seussical.  
She turned her face to sun as the morning went on, then straight up.  I hope she will self seed. 


Uncle Jimi is really having a kind of awful time of it.  I feel so brokenhearted for him.  That procedure that saved his life, hasn't given him much of a life.  He is struggling.  I would appreciate prayers for healing for him and wisdom for us to know how to best get him on a right road.

Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Busy as Buzzy Bees

Tomorrow is the last day for a three week tutoring/enrichment session I've done on Monday and Wednesday mornings. I will have a week off and then start another three week session before I head back to school.  Giddy-up is not one to miss anything with kids his age, so he joined my little group.
We've been learning about cleaning and carding wool this week.


Rachel has us over and made Handy Man homemade sour dough beignets.  Yum .  We enjoyed a tour of the their garden and peeked at the hard working bees before we left.


 More sourdough sandwich loaves.

 I brought the new phones we needed to buy as we were warned ours would start dropping calls and what not.  A usual disaster. Poor Rae probably thought we were moving in when I finally told whoever was on the other end of her phone, after two and a half  hours, that I simply could not do this anymore and poor Handy Man would have to track down his contacts. I am old.


The Captain invited us down to his little wee cabin on the river for Father's Day.

  A bit earlier in the week, I was dismayed that Playdate was scheduled to be 90 degrees and severe storms, but the weekend was supposed to be warm and sunny.  Ummm.
We did manage to eat lunch, then it rained for most of the rest of the day. 


 It did not appear to bother the kids one whit.
 They swam, fished, kayaked and had the time of their lives.  Not another soul around but us.


 So, for Playdate today, I did the fleece cleaning and dying with the older girls. It didn't rain a drop.


 It amazes me that you don't aggitate or swish much, and how much dirt comes out. You have to dump the dirty water in the gravel, not down the drain as it is full of lanolin.






 For a few years before she headed south, Aunt SuZQ would come to Playdate and bring iced mint tea.  I made some today and we toasted her with a smile.
 Today was Antebellie's turn to be the reader. The older girls are such a terrific help.

Then they headed to the creek and that was the end of pictures.  Today's supper was kind of involved with tons of grilled chicken, baked potatoes, homemade bread and bread pudding.   Aunt Tish brought pesto and a cilantro dressing, and ramen slaw.
Uncle Jimi came again this week.  He is struggling.  The ammonia very seriously impairs he's thinking.  It seems to me that he knows it does, so he's very quiet, knowing that often what he says is not what he meant.  Joy and heartbreak just walk beside me. 

Friday, June 19, 2020

Opposite of Accumulate

If you are on social media of any kind, you've probably come across the meme that says something like, "I've realized during this quarantine that lack of time is not the reason I don't clean."
For me, lack of time is often a concern, but with all the time in the world, I hate it.
Well, today I couldn't come up with another excuse for not tackling the pantry.  It was about as awful a shape as ever it has been.  I am ever incredulous that I managed to get that much stuff in that little bit of space. I'm just good at creating messes, what can I say.
For years, well five years now, since I spent my whole summer clearing out Mom's things, I've really tried to do better.  Recently, for hosting a friend group, I received the most beautiful cups.  I loved them, but I know the drill. I had to go through and part with some other loved cups, or pass those along.  I did, but as I've said time and again, it is just so challenging for me.
It is past time to part with a lot of things.  Another stage of my life has been unraveling, best cry about it and move on.
Handy Man made this for Rae when she was four I think.  She never really loved it, but interestingly enough nearly every three to four year old boy that darkened our door did   So I kept it as I was ever having friends and family with littles and then the long awaited day came that I was a grandma.  Of course I had to keep it for these gramerlings.  Well, my least ones are 5 and 6, and none of my kids want anything that was theirs, so I finally drug it out to be the fairy house for Playdate, under the tree fort and the mulberry tree where it will just melt away.


I had a few tractors left from Drummer Boy, and then we got Ol' Henry- aka Tractor Boy.  Never in my life have I known of a child so smitten with a tractor.  I have some school friends who are into yard sales and would always keep an eye out for me.  That littlest bit is now driving a tractor for real. The collection of tractors  saw a lot of playtime, but I no longer have a wee one with tractor love. 


 This, the sturdiest piece of plastic EVER.  I bought it when Bean was two and Bugg was brand new. It has housed potions, and critters and orbeez and boats and kids who climb in to sit.





The Davy Crockett hats have all been outgrown.

 Back to the pantry clean out. Finally I am going to part ways with most of the candy molds and the cookie cutters, like the princess and the carriage. 

Along with tractors, I provided all the accoutrements for princesses, fairies and brides. 
I've dwindled dress-up clothes down to just a few.

 Accumulating for every new interest, whether Civil War, Davy Crockett, princess or fairy has been my joy these past 15 summers.  It was just so fun. Though it was a lot of work and a lot of mess, I must say it was a wonderful feeling for Gramerly and this ol' tumble down farm to be the place to be. Each year, for another gramerling it seems, the magic is gone.  I am not nearly as gifted relating in this tech driven world as they grow up and move on.
I wonder now, how many more summers of Playdate will there be.
I'm trying to come to grips with that as I let go of all these things that hold such precious memories.  Each year I'm moving my flowers in closer, as each summer there are less feet running through the yard.
I will say, the Good Lord certainly gave me the desire of my heart in being able to cultivate big imaginations, explore many ideas and periods of history and make-believe, and allow running and playing  like a wild thing.  For that, I am thankful.
Alas, I must return to the pantry. Almost done.



Tuesday, June 16, 2020

Flowers, Flowers Everywhere

The little school garden is busting out all over. I just can't believe so many clearance plants lived through that drought and came roaring back.
A couple of friends love the dirt and plants as much as me and there is a bit of a mystery in the garden, so I invited them to meet me in the garden for lunch yesterday after tutoring.
One little item that popped up was a little tuft of leaves, very neon green, but shaped just like the greenery of a lilly.  Only they seemed to just appear and not do anything, no getting bigger, no putting out a stem. I didn't remember planting anything that looked like that and I just left them, to see what would happen.
Well, what happened is a lilly on a very short stem. I've never seen anything like it. Have you? There are probably a couple of dozen scattered about, but this is the only tuft with a bloom.




I remember  the pot of these little yellow flowers was marked down to a dollar. I bought it even though it was an annual because it was so cheery. Well I guess, due to our mild winter, it self seeded.  and those little yellow gems are scattered all around. 


 I'm thinking through the quarantine, some sweet kiddos hid painted rocks and stones.  The boys were thrilled. They redid most of the ones they found and  were anxious to try and make some themselves.

It was just a perfect day for a picnic and a garden stroll.

 I had a busy morning preparing for Playdate.  I try to get as much of the cooking done as possible.  Because this was the last cooler day with low humidity, I decided to do a cook out.  I got a couple of loaves of bread made with the rye flour I've been searching for months.  I had everyone looking and Rae won the prize.  I had a couple of errands to run before picking up Jimi, so thankfully I headed out early, only to find my car battery was dead as a doornail. Michael came and saved me!
It was Veterenarian Playdate.
All our babies got tender loving care-


Mr. Smiley needed to saw logs for the fire.

We had a surprise visitor.  Perhaps he/she noticed that the Vet's office was open and needed, umm, I don't know, what do snakes need. You can click on this picture to make it bigger if you can't see the visitor. 



After so very many hospital visits and blood still lower than normal, Uncle Jimi hasn't done much besides dialysis.  They made it out tonight.

 I think he might look a little better than he feels.  He is going to start physical therapy at home, so hoping for some "feeling better"  days for him.
 Oh my, I so love these cooler days and am not looking forward to a return to the nineties.