Category: My Life

This weekend was wildly crazy and I will write all about it in the morning, but for now I will leave you with this picture of me with my three cousins! We had such a great time together yesterday and I really think we should do this more often.

When you get up from your beds, I shall be on my way to a family event in Massachusetts. It requires me to drive 100 miles south to my cousin’s church and then to her house.

I must get up at the horrible hour of 6AM (I’m not a morning person!), dress, do my hair and make-up and get out the door by 6:30 at the latest.

I plan to make myself a Weight Watchers peanut butter and jelly sandwich to eat in the car, and I will bring with me some coffee, and some lemonade, but I will try not to drink a lot, as certain parts of my body aren’t as young as they once were!

I plan to take a lot of pictures, and I will deliver a full report on Monday when I recap the weekend.

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I’ve really been working the garden this year, and I have to say, it’s showing the tender loving care I have been giving it.

I started by talking to my seeds, even before they sprouted. Then once they did sprout, I talked to them every day while they grew. Once I planted them in the big garden, I talked to the whole garden, praising it’s ability to grow.

Yes, these are well loved plants!

Since getting my sinus infection I have been so tired. I’ve been fighting it now for several weeks and part of me still feels like the sinus infection is winning. I want to sleep more, want to sit cuddled with my dackels more and have no real taste for food.

Friday morning, after breakfast, Hubby suggested that we go shopping. We needed things like, bread, milks, eggs, well you get the idea. So I dressed myself, watered the garden while Hubby got ready, and we left the house at 10:30.

We went to the dry cleaner and did the paper work to have their insurance buy Hubby a new pair of trousers. They LOST his pants! Then we went to the post office, getting our mail, and by then it was close to midday, so we went to Hubby’s favorite Chinese restaurant. I put the things on my plate I usually eat, but it just didn’t taste right. So I didn’t eat too much, mostly fruit.

We visited three stores and shopped like crazy in the crowed stores, gathering all we will need for the next ten days. Then we drove back home, with me nearly falling asleep in the passenger seat.

After getting it all put away, I sat down at my neighbors to visit with them. Then I came home and started our dinner. I could only eat half of it again. I put things away, did the dishes and just as I am thinking I can relax, Hubby comes in and tells me that it’s time to make cherry jam!

Oh no! This can take several hours to do, and I was so tired, but he insisted that we must do it, as tomorrow he must go to a fruit growers meeting and on Sunday I am going to see my cousin.

So we printed out the recipe, prepared the cherries (I have got to get a cherry pitter), and then set about cooking up the cherry jam. The recipe said it would take 35 minutes. It took us two hours!

However, the jam tastes great, and we used them up before they went bad. I have 5 half pints of lovely cherry jam, and that is definitely a win, win!

I sure hope I did this correctly!

We’re going to do things a bit differently this week. A blog friend of Janet’s, Jen, wrote a post called I Am From . . . A Meme Worth Doing, using this template (it’s worth checking out Fred’s and Jen’s writing to get an idea of what to do). I thought it would be fun to do the fill-ins on this template. We’ll do 5 this week and 5 next, plus the regular last fill-in we always do. Let me know what you think, have fun, and…here we go!

1. I am from Liquid Tide, from Downy fabric softener and Dawn dish soap.

2. I am from the Lakes the mountains and the forests.

3. I am from the Lilacs, the tomato plants, and the cherry trees.

4. I am from Sauer Braten and great cooks, from the Prussmann Family and the Stevens Family and the Daniel Family.

5. I am from the emotional ones and loving.

6. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to cook a great meal, tomorrow my plans include doing some shopping and Sunday, I want to have a great time visiting my cousins and sister!

It’s summer! Here are some miscellaneous thoughts on this hot Thursday. It seems I’ve been busy with this and that, and so I will share with you what I’m up to.

1. We went to a splendid wedding last week. You know, where the bride and groom look at each other and you can see the love? It was beautiful!
2. French cut baby lamb chops! Is there anything better?
3. The first summer squash from my garden, sauteed with vidalia onions, my own green pepper and my own fresh basil!
4. T-bone steaks and home made potato salad for the 4th of July!
5. My first Ichiban Eggplant of the season!
6. 3 European Cucumbers picked yesterday.
7. Friends. I go to Weight Watchers each week, not only for the meeting, but for the friendships I have made in the last three years.
8. We had quite a cold front pass through here. 41 mile an hour winds, and tremendous down drafts on the lake.
9. There were stupid silly  boaters on our lake who didn’t leave the lake when the thunder started. I could not believe it!
10. We got some much needed rain after the front moved through.
11. I have a busy weekend coming up. I’ll be going to visit with my cousin and her family on Sunday. It’s been so long since I have seen them and I am looking forward to the visit.
12. Hopefully my sister and cousin Janet will also make the party!
13. Our cherries are in and we’ve already sold some to the local farm stand.

1. What is the most useful book in your house?

I hate to say this, but the instruction guide to our new TV’s remote control. I am still trying to figure out all the bells and whistles of this new TV.

2. What’s worse-being too hot or too cold?

Too hot. Being too cold requires that you just add a layer of clothing. Being too hot is a whole other story. You simply have no where to go after removing your under wear!

3. Share something that made you smile this past weekend.

The return of my neighbor’s grandchildren! We’ve known them since they were little and they both love the dogs! They came right down as soon as they arrived! I cannot believe how they have grown and how the dogs recognized them right away!

4. How do you like your hamburgers? Or don’t you?

I love hamburgers! I like mine on a nice roll, with cheddar cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomatoes, mayonnaise, ketchup and sweet pepper relish!

5. What’s your summer beach read? If it’s not summer in your part of the world then tell us what book you’re reading in front of the fire while sipping hot cocoa.

I need to get a book and start reading. I have been far too lazy this summer with reading, but with my vision so compromised, I just haven’t been able to get into a book. Perhaps I should do something like assign myself 10 pages a day and see how it goes!

6. How was your birthday celebrated when you were a kid?

I don’t recall my birthdays much as a kid.  It is a week before Thanksgiving, and a month before Christmas, so I don’t think much was made of it. As a teen I had a few slumber parties. Always, I had chocolate cake with white frosting. Sometimes butter cream, but my favorite is a simple white decorator’s frosting.

7. What’s something that is totally uncool that you love anyway?

Romantic stories. I used to read them, “Penny Dreadfuls” as Hubby called them. But I loved losing myself in romance! Now  I watch romantic movies and I love them! Yeah, that is totally uncool! LOL

8. Insert your own random thought here.

A few of you had questions about my spiny, spiky, cucumber. This morning I had three of them ready to pick, so I stopped and photographed the spikes once I got into the house.

You can see the little spikes on the cucumber. Let me assure you, that it really hurts when they pierce your skin, very much like a cactus.

Here are the three cucumbers I picked on Tuesday morning.  They are about 12 inches long. I told Hubby he should make his cucumber salad with these as I will have two or three more tomorrow.

Also Happy Birthday to Gattina over at Writers Cramps! Go on over and wish her a Happy Birthday!

A cold front moved through here overnight on Wednesday  bringing cool, dry air to New Hampshire on Thursday morning. This is the sort of summer weather that I really enjoy, especially when I am sick.

Yes, I have the dreaded summer sinusitis. I finally got myself in to see my doctor (it took me two weeks to decide that I was actually sick enough to go) and three prescriptions later I was home, sipping lemonade and tea trying to rinse this thing from my system.

But I have to say, it is very stubborn, and although I have been on medication since since Monday, I still feel really lousy.

Now I have to tell you that the dackels are in Heaven. They can lie around with me, next to me, over me and think they are doing their part to help me recover. They make me laugh.

Should this thing not be better by Monday I will be calling my doctor for a consultation. But I am praying to the Lord above and the health fairy to please restore me by Friday. I have a lovely wedding to attend and I want to be feeling tip top for some dancing with my Hubby!