Peace to You at Christmas

Merry Christmas to my blogging friends!

"Fire-side enjoyments, home-born happiness,

And all the comforts that the lowly roof

Of undisturb'd retirement, and the hours

Of long uninterrupted ev'ning, know."

-William Cowper

It's a Marshmallow World

My little guy in his snow fort with a load of snowballs at the ready, waiting for his mom and sister to turn their backs for just a second!

Like much of the country, we were clobbered by a wicked snow storm today. The snow fell fast and furious, the wind whipped all around, and we were snowed in completely. I loved every minute of it! The kids and I baked cookies and had them for lunch with green (food coloring) Christmas milk. Tonight we'll have cocoa and popcorn - the kids will watch The Grinch and my husband and I will watch The Bishop's Wife (heard it's good for Christmas).

The day reminded me of 2 of my wintry quotes from my collection:

Surely everyone is aware of the divine pleasures which attend a wintry fireside, candles at four o'clock, warm hearthrugs, tea, a fair tea-maker, shutters closed, curtains flowing in ample draperies to the floor, whilst the wind and rain are raging audibly out.

- Thomas De Quincey

The smell of buttered toast simply talked to Toad, and with no uncertain voice, talked of warm kitchens, of breakfasts on bright frosty mornings, of cozy parlor firesides on winter evenings, when one's ramble was over and slippered feet were propped on the fender, of the purring of contented cats, the twitter of sleepy canaries.

- Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows

I wish you all a cozy evening!

All That I Want

Wow, it's been so long since I last posted I almost forgot my password! We had a variety of illnesses rip through the house and put me behind in about every area of my life, blog included.


I don't know how to post an actual video clip from youtube, but here is a link to hear my latest favorite Christmas song - All That I Want by the Weepies. Any song that mentions a harbor, pine trees, and the moon all together is wonderful in my book!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0EJbr0rFV4

Out in the harbor
The ships come in, it's Christmastime
The kids all holler
carols 'cross the water
Stars that shine

All that I want,
all that I want
Above the rooftops
The full moon dips its golden spoon
I wait on clip-clops,
deer might fly
Why not? I met you

All that I want,
all that I want

And when the night is falling
Down the sky at midnight
Another year is stalling
Far away a good bye, good night

All that I want,
all that I want all

So small a turning
The world grows older every day
An ache, a yearning
Soften when I hear you say

All that I want,
all that I want
And when the cold wind's blowing
Snow drifts through the pine trees
In houses lights are glowing
Likewise in your eyes that find me here
With all that I want,all that i want

Out in the harbor
The ships come in, it's Christmastime

This week's goal

Rest and be thankful.

-William Wordsworth

Thoughts of November by Gladys Taber

I love this passage from the book Stillmeadow Calendar by Gladys Taber:

In November, there are gay evenings with Wilma and Willie, and Tommy shows me how to work his tape recorder; dinners with Millie and Ed after we watch a thrilling football game; long afternoons with Barbara and Slim, during which we sip coffee and talk about everything from recipes to literature. There are sunset drives with my friend Faith Baldwin; fireside games of Scrabble with Helen Beals; hamburgers and home-baked beans with Helen and Vicky; Joan Baez records with Bobby Gibson, with cheese and crackers and a bowl of fruit at hand. These are simple things, but to me they are most precious. And as I recall each one, November's beaver moon shines brighter than ever and I know that love and friendship, hearth fires, and faith are indeed gifts to be thankful for and to treasure always.

Around the farm

As you know, I am knew to posting photos on my blog and am trying to get comfortable doing so. For practice, I took my camera around the yard last week and took a few shots. I don't know if it's my computer or operator error (probably the latter), but it took me an hour just to get these few from camera to blog! Sheesh! And then when I viewed them on screen they don't even look very good - the color seems off - my husband said it was probably the early morning light, but again it was most likely the screw loose behind the lens!





This is one of my favorite summer spots for tea or cocktails. It's time to put away the tablecloth and take down the "Garden Cafe - Open Daily" sign, I suppose. I'll have to make the shift to toddies!

My daily walking path in the woods. It's interesting to me how some long some of the little trees tucked under the larger ones stay green so late.

My vehicle of choice when I'm feeling lazy to walk to the mailbox, or when I need to find my husband when he's out of hollering range.

The creek that winds through our woods, down through town, and eventually empties into Lake Michigan. The source of many-a-soaker.

Sadly, our nights of campfires and ghost stories are coming to a close. We tried having a fire the other night, but it was just too windy to enjoy it.



The north side of the barn. You can see the "trellises" I made out of the ends of my children's crib (I wrote about this in one of my first posts) propped up against it. I put them out there this summer, and they are weathering nicely.


"Little Red", our current project. It is a little L-shaped cottage that we trailered in from a farmer down the road who was going to burn it. We nestled it in the woods by the creek and think it will be a fun place to camp or hang out it with the kids - if we can ever get it finished!

Remembering the Edmund Fitzgerald

Today we remember the Edmund Fitzgerald, lost with all hands on Lake Superior Novemeber 10, 1975. My late father, who was a ship chandler by trade at the time, knew some of the 29 crew and had boarded the ship regularly.

For an informative website on this fine ship, go to www.ssefo.com.

From "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" by Gordon Lightfoot:

The legend lives on from the chippewa on down


Of the big lake they called gitche gumee


The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead


When the skies of november turn gloomy


With a load of iron ore twenty-six thousand tons more


Than the edmund fitzgerald weighed empty.


That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed


When the gales of november came early.


The ship was the pride of the american side


Coming back from some mill in wisconsin


As the big freighters go,


it was bigger than most


With a crew and good captain well seasoned


Concluding some terms with a couple of steel firms


When they left fully loaded for cleveland


And later that night when the ship's bell rang


Could it be the north wind they'd been feelin?

A New England State of Mind

This painting by Will Moses reminds me of the area where I live in Wisconsin. I love all of his work, and while I know he is painting New England I always feel at home in his scenery.

There's a quote by Mark Van Doren in my Autumn Susan Branch book that reads:
"New England has a way of doing this to people; they can be homesick for it even if they have never seen it."

Boy, does that ever sum me up. For as long as I can remember, I've had an obsession with the area, and I have no idea what started it. I've never been fortunate enough to visit in person, but I love to read books of the area and they have taken me there.

Until I get to visit in person, I'll just have to keep "pretending" I'm there. This isn't too hard to do in my little town - we have an adorable harbor and marina, two lighthouses, a quaint downtown with cafes and friendly little shops, very old cemeteries and churches, and beautiful woodland areas. But for me, there's something missing that I can't quite put my finger on. Maybe someday, either through my reading or an actual visit, I'll figure it out.

Board Game Suggestions, Please!

Last night it was cold, windy, and rainy here - definitely an evening for putting in a fire and eating vast quantities of Annie's Kettle Corn. I guess I finally surrendered to the fact that more time is going to be spent indoors than out for the next 6 months. Besides stocking my pantry full like a squirrel, I want to have some things ready entertainment-wise, and I'm thinking I'd like to get a new board game or two. We already have all the basics - Scrabble, Boggle, etc. but I'd like to find some new ones to play when we have friends over. Over the years we've really enjoyed Pictionary and Taboo, but there have to be some new fun ones out that we're missing. Do any of you have a suggestion?

Reading, Watching, Listening

Here are some things I've been enjoying lately:

Reading:


All books by Patrick McManus
Have you ever read a book by an author and find yourself only in the mood to read another and another by the same person? That's what happened to me recently when I accidently found a group of Patrick McManus books at the library. He's been compared to Garrison Keillor and Mark Twain with a little Dave Barry thrown in - a lovely combination if you ask me. He mainly writes about his activities in the great outdoors, and as an "outdoorsy" type I can relate to many of his follies. His books also consist of anecdotes that run just 6 pages or so a piece, making it possible to grab a book any old time and enjoy a quick laugh.

Watching: Monster's Inc.

It's unusual for me to find an animated movie that I like, let alone LOVE, but I found it in Monster's Inc. My kids saw it several years ago but it was just the other day that I watched it for myself. I found it to be hilarious, mainly because of the many, many humorous details directed at adults.

Listening: Indigo Girls, Rites of Passage
There's just something about this cd that says "October" to me, and I'm not quite sure why. I love the first 8 songs, especially "Galileo" featuring Jackson Browne and David Crosby. Beautiful lyrics all around, with a song for Virginia Woolf to boot!

Embers, woodsmoke, well house, reading!

Gladys Taber's Stillmeadow Home

Teatime comes early at Stillmeadow now. I hang the kettle over the embers, bring out the toasting fork, and open the sweet-clover honey.
When the air is blue with haze and smells of woodsmoke and the sun is gentle and dreamy, I sit on the terrace by the old well house and read, turning the pages slowly and most of the time just sitting.

-Stillmeadow Calendar

Testing! Testing!

Testing, Testing! My first blog photo!
I've been putting it off & off, but today I sat down in front of the computer and told my hiney it wasn't moving until I got a photo on. It ended up to be quite easy, but I can tell that the hard part is going to be getting my hands on our camera (it's usually riding around in my husband's car).
This is a photo of an abandoned house on a property down our road. The kid's think it's haunted, of course. I think it's beautiful!

Tea Time/Nature does not hurry...

Friday's Quote

"Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished." -Lao Tzu

These are the words I found this afternoon as I opened up my new box of tea. Isn't it a perfect quote for a tea box?

If any of you are tea drinkers, I'd love to know your favorites - I'm always looking for new ones to try. :)

Put a trinket on!

I just love this poem by good old Emily, especially the trinket part - I'm sure many of you have heard before, but here it is again!

Autumn

The morns are meeker than they were,
The nuts are getting brown;
The berry's cheek is plumper,
The rose is out of town.
The maple wears a gayer scarf,
The field a scarlet gown.
Lest I should be old-fashioned,
I'll put a trinket on.

Emily Dickinson

Flannel Sheets

Is there anything more cozy than climbing in to flannel sheets for the first time of the season? That's what I'm in for tonight, and I can't wait! For as long as I can get away with it, I continue to wear my summer pajamas just so I can feel the flannel on my arms.

Just another rite of Autumn!

Friday's Quote - Picasso

If I don't have red, I use blue.

-Pablo Picasso

Happy Birthday Shel Silverstein

Weird-Bird

Birds are flyin' south for winter.
Here's the Weird-Bird headin' north,
Wings a-flappin', beak a-chatterin',
Cold head bobbin' back 'n' forth.
He says, "It's not that I like ice
Or freezin' winds and snowy ground.
It's just sometimes it's kind of nice
To be the only bird in town."

-Shel Silverstein

Tis the Season to Air Out

I awoke to a slightly overcast morning with a crisp, dry wind blowing from the lake and decided it was the perfect day for airing out everything I could drag out the door. Couch cushions, pillows, table cloths, throw rugs, winter coats etc. etc. are draped all over outside to catch some fresh air for the day.

No Febreeze for me! :) I'll take the real thing.

Cranberry-Cider Spiced Tea

California may have passed Wisconsin in dairy production, but we're still the lead grower of cranberries! Cranberry recipes abound around here, and this is one of my favorites.


Cranberry-Cider Spiced Tea

8 orange spice teabags
4 c. boiling water
2 c. unsweetened cranberry juice
2 c. apple cider
1/2 c. brown sugar, packed
4-inch cinnamon stick
4 whole cloves
1/2 t. ground ginger (sometimes I leave this out, depending on my mood!)
Garnish: orange slices

In a large saucepan, place teabags in boiling water; steep for 3 to 5 minutes. Disgard teabags; add cranberry juice, cider, brown sugar and spices. Heat almost to boiling, stir until sugar dissolves. Take a moment to smell "the cozy". Strain tea to remove whole spices. Pour into teacups (I'm more of a "mug" girl, myself!) ; garnish with orange slices. This recipe makes 8 comforting servings.

Happy Autumn!

I was a child not much given to philosophical speculation, but the fact that my family, which doesn't do much traveling, would drive a hundred miles to see trees in autumn foliage made a big impression. I got the message even then that these trees, these colors, these smells and sounds, these ceremonies of passage, were important."
-Ann Zwinger

Summer's loss seems little, dear, on days like these.

- Ernest Dowson

The leaves fall, the wind blows, and the farm country slowly changes from the summer cottons into its winter wools.
- Henry Beston

Two sounds of autumn are unmistakable...the hurrying rustle of crisp leaves blown along the street by a gusty wind, and the gabble of a flock of migrating geese.

- Hal Borland

Gladys Taber Ushers in Autumn

I've really been neglecting my blog lately! This is certainly because of the start of the school year for my children and all that goes with it. We're also just getting over bad colds which always seem to come home with the kids the second week of school.

I've had a little trouble letting go of summer this year, mainly because of the family having to return to our regimented days. As usual, I turn to my dear Gladys for encouragment of the transition to autumn...


- At the end of the swamp, a narrow road turns right to the house. The giant sugar maples that surround it are spreading a deep green canopy above the slant roof and I look up at them and tell them that the first swamp maple is turning. Whether they believe me or not, I do not know. They are inscrutable. They are also very independent. Sometimes the biggest one at the corner of the yard will be summer green while the one back where the barn burned is flaming with glory. Why?
Weather conditions are the same for all of them, one is no more sheltered that another, and they are the same age, judging by their size. I like to think one tree decides to keep summer a bit longer and one impetuously responds to the tide of oncoming autumn. Trees are not remotely like people, but I reflect that I know some people who have never let summer go and others who begin to think winter thoughts in July. Perhaps it is all temperament.
After summer's work is over, there is an interval before autumn chores begin. What better time to follow some winding country road?
-Gladys Taber, Stillmeadow Calendar

This week's quote - Little Women

I felt this with my mother, and I can only hope that my children feel the same way as they go off to school.

They always looked back before turning the corner, for their mother was always at the window to nod and smile, and wave her hand at them. Somehow it seemed as if they couldn't have got through the day without that, for whatever their mood might be, the last glimpse of that motherly face was sure to affect them like sunshine.

Louisa May Alcott, from Little Women

lovely little swooping swallows

We always have had an abundant barn swallow population around here, but man, they've been wild as of late. I truly appreciate the enormous amount of insects they eat, and I shudder to think what it'd be like around here without them. However, lately they come swooping down so low by my head that I panic that they're actually AFTER ME (or is it just my ridiculous floral pony tail holder?)! I've never heard of anyone getting beaned accidently by a swallow, so I guess I'll just go about my business and hope they use their finely-tuned navigational instincts to steer clear of my noggin!


Here's a little interesting info. I found about them on birds.com:


A familiar inhabitant of barns and other outbuildings, the Barn Swallow is easily recognized by its long forked tail. It was originally a cave breeder, but now the swallow nests almost exclusively on man-made structures.


Description
Small slender songbird.
Tail long and forked.
Upperparts steely iridescent blue.
Underparts rufous.
Size: 15-19 cm (6-7 in)
Wingspan: 29-32 cm (11-13 in)

Song: a twittery series of squeaky notes, often with dry rattle in the middle.



Cool Facts
-The Barn Swallow is the most abundant and widely distributed swallow species in the world. It breeds throughout the northern hemisphere and winters in much of the southern hemisphere.
-The long tail of a Barn Swallow may indicate the quality of the individual bird. Females prefer to mate with males that have the longest and most symmetrical tails.
-An unmated male Barn Swallow may kill the nestlings of a nesting pair. His actions often succeed in breaking up the pair and afford him the opportunity to mate with the female.


That last part sounds like it belongs on a talk show! Naughty males!


This post wouldn't be complete without me mentioning one of my favorite Wailin' Jennys songs, Swallow, from their beautiful Firecracker album:

Oh swallow
What did you swallow?
You swoop so low
You come and you go

Dance by the Light of the Moon

From the Farmer's Almanac:

Full Sturgeon Moon - August
The fishing tribes are given credit for the naming of this Moon, since sturgeon, a large fish of the Great Lakes and other major bodies of water, were most readily caught during this month. A few tribes knew it as the Full Red Moon because, as the Moon rises, it appears reddish through any sultry haze. It was also called the Green Corn Moon or Grain Moon.

Friday's Quote

How I wish that somewhere there existed an island for those that
are wise and of good will.

-Albert Einstein

What I'm Reading, Watching, Listening to

Reading: The Beach House by Jane Green and Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder (a chapter each night to the kids). The Little House reading is going at an extremely slow pace because I have to keep pausing to answer various questions like "Why would Laura and Mary be so happy to play with a blown-up pig's bladder for a ball?"


Watching: Not much time for TV lately but still catching up on Discovery's Deadliest Catch series. Most recent Netflix movie was The Bank Job, which I didn't care for and stopped watching about 10 minutes in. I'm actually thinking of stopping Netflix for awhile - I feel like I struggle to find new things to put in my queue. I figure I can get any older movies I want from the good old library. The next movie I'll watch (or rather re-watch for the 5th time) will be the 50 cent copy of The Princess Bride I found last week at the thrift shop. Score! And what will really make it fun is that my husband's never seen it before.


Listening: Prince Edward Island Fiddlers, which I received as an iTunes gift from dear Nan over at Letters from a Hill Farm, Alison Krauss Lonely Runs Both Ways, and Thicker Than Water by Jack Johnson and Friends.

Spying Jupiter

Fly me to the moon
And let me play among the stars
Let me see what spring is like
On Jupiter and Mars
In other words hold my hand
In other words darling kiss me

This is the song I have stuck in my head today, surely from my viewing of Jupiter last night in the southern sky. Have you seen it? It's easy to spot around dusk - it is the largest yellow dot in the sky that's not twinkling :)

Happy Birthday to My Dad

Today my mom and sisters are coming up for a visit. I've made a strawberry jello poke cake topped fresh strawberries, as it's my late father's birthday. He would have been 82 today. If we start to feel sad, we have to shake it right off, because that's the last way he'd want us to feel. Be happy, be together, I hear him saying in my mind. And that's exactly what we'll do. :)

Going Weekly

Now that we've FINALLY gotten high-speed Internet out here, I'm experiencing what it's really like to surf the web. I can blast through Amazon.com listmanias, scroll through 100s of pieces on Art.com, and go from email to email without needing a magazine on my lap to make the time between screens bearable. And now I have time to read more blogs and leave a comment if I wish without it taking 10 minutes to sign in. Because of this, I've decided to "go weekly" with my own blog and use my new found time for reading, not writing, more. I think my mundane life can only support one post a week anyway!

Friday's Quote

In dwelling, live close to the ground.
In thinking, keep it to the simple.
In conflict, be fair and generous.
In governing, don't try to control.
In work, do what you enjoy.
In family life, be completely present.

-Tao Te Ching

Song of Summer

Every summer, usually unintentionally, one song emerges as my "theme song" for the season. This summer there is no doubt that my song is "Constellations" by Jack Johnson. I play it every day after dinner, and it transports me from my hectic day to the calm of evening. It soothes me, makes me feel a breeze even if the air is still, and lets me savor the word "moonrise".
Ahhhhhh.

Constellations

The light was leaving
In the west it was blue
The children's laughter sang
And skipping just like the stones they threw
Their voices echoed across the way
Its getting late

It was just another night
With a sunset
And a moonrise not so far behind
To give us just enough light
To lay down
underneath the stars
Listen to papas translations
Of the stories across the sky
We drew our own constellations

The west winds often last too long
The wind may calm down
Nothing ever feels the same
Sheltered under the Kamani tree
Waiting for the passing rain
Clouds keep moving to uncover the scene
Stars above us chasing the day away
To find the stories that we sometimes need
Listen close enough
All else fades
Fades away

It was just another night
With a sunset
And a moonrise not so far behind
To give us just enough light
To lay down
underneath the stars
Listen to all the translations
Of the stories across the sky
We drew our own constellations

Friday's Poem

Midsummer Night
by Elizabeth Gould

The sun goes down,
The stars peep out,
And long slim shadows
Flit about.

In velvet shoes
The quiet dark
Comes stepping soft
O'er wood and park.

And now the world
Is fast asleep;
And fays and elves
Their revels keep.

They fly on the backs of the grey-winged moths,
They skim on the dragonflies green and gold
On shimmering dew-wet grass they alight,
Tiny petal-skirts whirl, gauzy wings unfold.

The fairies are dancing beneath the moon
Hush! See the shimmer of their twinkling shoon!

Winged Book Passage

The chorus of bird song diminishes now, and Hal Borland says the bird parents are too busy to spend time singing. But my song sparrow still begins at dawn outside my bedroom window and is caroling away after sunset. And the quail keep up an endless bobwhite at the yard's edge.
A special sound now comes at night when the lights are on. I never draw the curtains, since the moonlight view of Mill pond through the picture windows is like poetry remembered. A soft tapping begins first on the glass and suddenly it looks like a tapestry with the embroidery of moth-wings pressed on the darkling panes. I stop everything to watch, for this is a rare sight. I would not try to guess how many shapes and sizes of maoths are there from big bumbling ones to tiny heart-shaped creatures.

- Gladys Taber, My Own Cape Cod

So cool Coolibar

Have you heard of Coolibar brand protective sunwear? It's the best, and right now they're having a big end-of-summer sale. I always buy several of their sunhats for the whole family, as we are all ghastly pale, fry easily, and need all the protection we can get. Coolibar seems like a very nice company with quality products, and I've had nothing but excellent customer service. The site is coolibar.com, if you're interested.

Happy Birthday, Cat Stevens

Just heard on NPR that it's Cat Steven's (Yusuf Islam) birthday today. I'll be playing his Greatest Hits cd tonight and since it's a clear night and the moon's just shy of full, I'll be watching for a moonshadow of my own.

I'm being followed by a moonshadow,
moonshadow,
moonshadow!

foggy little bonfire night

Around 4:00 yesterday the wind shifted and we experienced a rapid drop in temperature. When this happens around here so close to the lake, a thick fog usually rolls in, and that's exactly what happened last night. Although it prevented my moon gazing, it did offer an opportunity to make a cozy bonfire - the day before the thought of a fire would have been ridiculous, it was so sweltering. It was the first time we used our new bonfire ring made from stacked lannon stones. My husband retrieved them from a recently razed farmhouse down the road - they originally encircled a little pond. We replaced our little ring of fieldstones with the stacked lannons, and besides looking nicer I feel the height is a little safer when kids (or imbibing adults) are around.

It was dinner time when we started the fire, and laziness rolled over me like the fog, and I sure as heck didn't feel like leaving my chair to cook. We considered ordering a pizza, but I was worried about the limited visibility and didn't want some poor kid driving it out to us or my husband on the roads. The kids were whining for smores, which I really didn't want to serve as supper and didn't have the makings for anyway. Then I remembered I had a couple cans of biscuit dough in the fridge and some apples in the crisper, so we got some roasting sticks and made....

Brown Bears
Stretch biscuit dough and wrap around your stick. Roast over fire until brown. Carefully remove biscuit from stick, spray with spray butter or margarine, and roll in a cinnamon/sugar mixture.

AND

Singing Apples
Spear an apple (we used Macintosh) on your stick. Cook over hot coals until skin is burned and the apple "sings." Remove from fire and carefully peel off the cooked skin. Roll apple in cinnamon sugar and eat - careful, it stays quite hot.

The kids loved both of these recipes, but I'm the one who's really wishing we could have the same exact thing tonight!

eBay surprise

Through the years, I've bought many, many things on eBay - jackets for the kids, one-of-a-kind handmade windchimes, antique ice skates, etc. plus probably way too many books. Most recently I ordered a copy of Potluck at Midnight, a cookbook featuring recipes of Martha's Vineyard. Today I received it and planned on sitting down with it later tonight with my pack of post-it notes. As I unwrapped the book from it's packaging, out fell the most beautiful bookmark I've ever seen. It was handmade with bits of pressed violets, ferns, and other white lacey flowers and had a rich, smooth ribbon attached. With it was a note from the friendly eBayer telling me to enjoy the book and to try the "Blue Moon Granola" recipe. The bookmark and personal note were such a nice surprise and made my day. I plan to do the same the next time I sell a book!

What I'm reading, watching, listening to

Reading:
Summertime by Raffaella Barker (recommended by dear Nan of Letters from a Hillfarm) . Love it, love it, LOVE IT and don't want it to end.
Also in the on-deck reading basket: the latest issue of Living the Country Life magazine (a very nice little magazine that's absolutely free - visit livingthecountrylife.com to sign up), and Vineyard Seasons by Susan Branch, which I've owned for years but is due for a revisit.

Watching:
Flight of the Conchords Season 1 - a somewhat unsavory but hilarious series I was introduced to over the weekend by my very hip brother-in-law, who couldn't believe I hadn't seen it, let alone heard of it.

Listening:
Trouble by Ray LaMontange, Catch the Moon by Lisa Loeb & Elizabeth Mitchell, Wyndam Hill's Summer Solstice, Neil Young Unplugged

How I'd Love to be a Wilderness Guide

Here's a little passage I found in a magazine that's from a book I hope to get my hands on soon - Ely Echoes:The Portages Grow Longer by wilderness guide Bob Cary.

My thoughts go back to summers spent at the river cottage owned by my maiden aunt, Nell Patterson...What glorious summers those were. There was kindling to split on a wood block in the shade of huge elms. Countless gallons of icy cold, clear water had to be pumped by hand from the well. A fresh layer of green enamel was applied to the flat-bottom rowboat and to the sleek eighteen-foot Old Town canoe, a watercraft that did as much to shape my life as the nine months spent at school.

I just love this!

Belated Friday's Quote

I have great faith in a seed. Convince me that you have a seed there, and I am prepared to expect wonders.
-Henry David Thoreau

Gone for a bit

I've been away from the computer for awhile because my daughter has been having an awful time with her asthma. The doctor said there's just something in the air right now that is triggering it, and we've had to stay inside with the air conditioning on. No car rides with the window down, no golf-cart rides in the woods, no bonfires at dusk. The same thing happened around this time last year, so at least we know it will pass in a week or so after the mystery culprit finishes blooming. In the meantime, it's been all about inhalers, books, and boardgames around here, and lots of extra attention to my little dear to ease her sadness as big brother goes out to catch frogs.

Thoughts on a Screen Porch - Book Passage

"My idea of bliss is a screen-in porch from which you can watch the sun go down, or come up. You can sit in temperate shade and not fry your brains while you eat. You are protected from flying critters, sandstorms and rain and you can still enjoy a nice cool breeze.
One year my husband and I rented a lake cottage - a rustic cabin set in a pine grove just a stroll from a weed-choked lake. With it came a war canoe and a screened-in porch. The motto of the owners seemed to have been: "It's broken! Let's take it to the lake!"
We ate on the screened-in porch all the time and with great success. Friends with beautiful houses came to our broken-down lake cottage to eat on that crummy porch and watch the sun set over the lake."
- Laurie Colwin in Home Cooking


This sounds heavenly to me! Wish I had a screen porch.

Independent America

I'm hoping to make it to a free screening tomorrow of a documentary called "Independent America: The Two-Lane Search for Mom & Pop." Have any of you seen it? It sounds interesting to me - it's about a husband and wife reporter team who set out to find towns where small, local retailers are winning the fight against the big chains of the world. During their journey, they stick to state highways and secondary roads - no interstates - which I'm sure makes for very interesting characters and stories along the way. My town, which despite it's small population has a Target, Walmart, and Home Depot nearby, still has a local hardware store, butcher, pharmacy, florist, and appliance store, but I always worry that at some point we are going to lose them. I always wonder: What if all of us townsfolk were a little more careful with our purchases - for example, if besides going to the hardware store just for that chainsaw part we need and are grateful they carry, we also bought our garbage bags, paper towel, and other day-to-day needs instead of automatically throwing that stuff in our cart at Walmart? Or if we didn't use the pharmacy only for prescriptions, but also our vitamins and shampoo, on a regular basis? These little changes in shopping habits just might help keep the Mom & Pop stores we love around. :)

Friday's Quote

You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness. You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism.
~Erma Bombeck

Floating Flowers

Early this morning I took a walk around the yard in search of blooms to make a little arrangement in my favorite vase for the kitchen table. I don't have much to choose from yet - the coneflowers, beebalm etc. are on the brink of bloom but not quite there. My blanket flowers have started, but were covered with too many busy bees for me to dare reach in and pluck even one. I had to turn to my containers of annuals, and cut a few scarlet zinnias while under attack of wretched mosquitoes. My daughter insisted on "helping" by bringing them to the house in her bike basket, and I didn't notice when she folded, actually more like snapped, the stems to make them fit inside for transport. I exchanged my tall vase for a glass bowl filled with water, snipped the flower heads from their fractured bodies, and let my daughter set them afloat. Lovely!

"Arranging a bowl of flowers in the morning
can give a sense of quiet in a crowded day."
-Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Song of the Screen Door

I must have told the kids to "either go out or stay in" 20 times today. This poem came to mind!

Song of the Screen Door

The screen door sings a homey song
Of cozy creaks and crangs
That kids just love to punctuate
With nerve exploding bangs...
They wait until you're nodding off...
(As grownups often do)
Or better, 'til your coffee cup
Is full of scalding brew.
And then, just as if shot from guns
At deadly point blank range...
Wham! They're in!... Or, slam! They're out!
And splash!...
You have to change.

by Tom Hegg from "Up to the Lake"

Luau Music?

My brother and sister-in-law are having a luau-themed party at their farm next week, and they have asked me to supply the music. I'm pleased that they view me as having an eclectic music collection, but unfortunately I don't own any Hawaiian music. Unless you count my dear Jack Johnson, which I was told was not "luau-ish" enough. Do any of you have any suggestions?

Friday's Quote

Life is short and we never have time for gladdening
the hearts of those who travel the way with us.
Oh, be swift to love! Make haste to be kind.
-Henri Frederic Amiel

The Lemonade Stand

On my way home from the grocery store today I saw a little boy and girl selling lemonade in their front yard. Although I was in a little bit of a hurry because I had ice cream in the trunk, I pulled over to buy a glass. I never, ever pass up a child selling lemonade - I think I'm emotionally scarred from my own unsuccessful childhood entrepreneurial attempts on my very quiet street (no customers until Dad pulled around the corner from work). The two kids were so excited as I walked up the drive, the girl quickly getting a cup unstuck off the stack and the boy trying to catch a slippery ice cube with his bare little hand to plunk in the cup. I told them my usual lemonade line - "Boy, am I glad to see you guys. It's such a hot day, and I'm SO THIRSTY, and I would just love a glass of your lemonade - it looks so refreshing!" I didn't have any change with me but I dug out a dollar, gave it to them and told them to keep the change for a tip. You'd have thought it was a hundred dollar bill, they looked so pleased. It wasn't until I was leaving that I looked closely at the little sign they had tied to a tree. It said:

Ice Cold Lemonade

10 cents a glass

or

2 for 75 cents

Needless to say, I smiled all the way home!

We'll drink to Summertime!

Tonight one of my big sisters is coming over for dinner. She is fresh off her daughter's wedding last week and HAS HAD IT, so I'm cooking her favorite fish taco dish. Last time she visited me I got in trouble because my beverage selection was limited to milk and apple juice. I've planned ahead this time, and tonight she won't be able to give me any grief - not to mention I think she REALLY deserves a drink!

I made these 2 concoctions yesterday, and she can pick her poison(s) -

Almond Tea

4 Tbsp. instant tea
1/2 c. sugar
2 cups warm water
1 cup pineapple juice
1 12 oz. can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
2 tsps. vanilla extract
1 tsp. almond extract
5 cups water and ice

Adult version: Add 1 cup or more vodka

Dissolve tea & sugar in warm water. Add remaining ingredients. Chill & enjoy! Makes 2-1/2 quarts. A fine drink with or without the booze.


Drink # 2 (because I had pineapple juice left)

Sneaky Pete Slush

2 16 oz. cans frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
2 c. cranberry juice cocktail
2 12 oz. cans frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
2 c. pineapple juice
1 fifth vodka
2 liters 7-UP

Mix together all ingredients except 7-Up. Freeze overnight. To serve, scoop into cups and pour 7-up over the frozen mixture.

We'll sit on the deck, I'll plug in my sparkly white lights for ambience, and I'll play my best of Harry Belafonte cd. And all her wedding stress will be left behind.

Easy Brownie Shortcake Dessert

Every once in a while, a true keeper-of-a-recipe is found- one that is delicious, easy, and eventually made so many times it is made by memory and is forever requested by family and friends. This is one such recipe of mine.


Easy Brownie Shortcake

1 pkg. (19.5 oz). brownie mix (I think using a DARK chocolate mix works best - Duncan Hines has a great one)

1 container (16 oz.) sour cream, divided

1 cup thawed cool whip

1 Tbsp. powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

3 cups cut up strawberries (also mix in peeled kiwi, if you like)

Preheat oven to 350. Prepare brownie batter as directed on package; stir in 1/2 cup sour cream. Spoon into greased and floured 9 inch round cake pan.

Bake 45 minutes, then cool in pan 10 minutes. Remove from pan to wire rack and cool completely.

Mix remaining sour cream, cool whip, powdered sugar and vanilla. Cut brownie horizontally in half. Place bottom half on plate; spread with half of the sour cream mixture. Cover with top of brownie, remaining sour cream mixture and fruit. Store in refrigerator - tastes best cold.

If you make this for company, it is a good idea to make two and hide one in the back of the fridge. You won't have any left of the one you serve, and you'll be so happy to cut yourself off a another big slab late after your guests leave. I learned this lesson the hard way one night, and when the craving hit and the cake was gone I had to settle for a handful of chocolate chips, the only chocolate in the house!

A Summer Visit to Stillmeadow

Under my bedside table, kept in a reverent stack, are my beloved Gladys Taber books. Each month, one by one, I read her monthly chapter (most of her books are arranged this way) and relish in her stories and descriptions of the current season. Last night I was finishing up the "Junes" and found myself cheating a bit into the "Julys".

"The moonlight is whiter than pearl over the meadow these July nights. The small businesses of the day and the worries are magicked away by the soft glow. You can step from the door of the little white house into a white foam of moonlight on the dark crest of the wave of night."
-Gladys Taber The Book of Stillmeadow

I hadn't seen the word "magicked" before, and I couldn't find it in my dictionary. Maybe it's not truly a word, but I like it anyway, and I certainly know what she meant by it. :)

Friday's Quote

The Mississippi River will always have its own way; no engineering skill can persuade it to do otherwise...
- Mark Twain


My thoughts and prayers are with those along the Mississippi River where the levees have given way and the many other flooded areas.

What I'm Reading, Watching, Listening to

Currently, I am

reading: The $64 Tomato, the July issue of Real Simple, and an interesting book about haunted places in Wisconsin (just saw it on display at the library & grabbed it!)

watching: The first two dvds of the Discovery Channel series Deadliest Catch

listening: Been in the mood for Pink Martini and Pottery Barn's Margarita Mix Cd (somewhat of a theme, me thinks!)

Remembering My Dad

Today, just like every other day, I think of my wonderful father who passed away almost 3 years ago. He is dearly loved, dearly missed, and dearly remembered.

-There's something like a line of gold thread running through a man's words when he talks to his daughter, and gradually over the years it gets to be long enough for you to pick up in your hands and weave into a cloth that feels like love itself. ~John Gregory Brown

Warm-weather CD Favorite - Dan Zanes - Nightime!

One of my absolute favorite cds that gets me in a summer mood is Nighttime! by Dan Zanes and Friends. I first purchased this cd for the kids, and I soon found myself playing it in the car and the kitchen even if they weren't around. He sings all kinds of evening - themed songs with titles such as Firefly, Linger for Awhile, and my favorite - Night Owl.

Here are Night Owl's lyrics - read them and you'll see why I love it so...

see the shadows as they creep like vines
the sun is sinking and i love this time
i guess i'm just - whoo whoo
a night owl

the stars are winking and the hillside glows
the moons inviting us out so let's go
i guess we're just- whoo whoo
night owls

so we'll fly over the rooftops
and down by the trees
throwing our cares out into the breeze
and we'll sleep when we please

now it's time to say hello to some friends
follow the singing and the laughing and then
we'll find a tree
filled with night owls

and we'll fly over the rooftops
and down by the trees
throwing our cares out into the breeze
and we'll sleep when we please

well the night seems as endless as the ocean is deep
and even night owls need a little sleep
and i guess it's time - whoo whoo
for this night owl

This cd also has beautiful version of Wild Mountain Thyme which Dan sings with the lovely Dar Williams.
He has a wonderful website - danzanes.com if you'd like to check him out. If you do, be sure you look at the artwork on his cds - whimsically beautiful!

The Moonflower Project

For the last couple years, I've kept a pretty paisley binder full of magazine & newspaper articles ripped out because they took my fancy for one reason or another. Every once in awhile I take a moment and flip through it, and today I've decided to try making a moonflower screen I read about in Cottage Living magazine. All you do is plant moonflowers in a oblong metal container and train 6 or so vines vertically on string all the way up to an overhang or porch roof, and you get a lovely privacy screen that will put on a blossoming show for you each night. I'm not trying to block anything out here in the middle of the farm field, but I think I'll like the cozy feeling of being a little more enclosed on the porch. I really do need to figure out how to put photos on here, don't I?!

Friday's Quote

"It's spring fever. That's what the name of it is. And when you've got it, you want - oh, you don't quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!" ~ Mark Twain

Somebody Has To

Today my son brought home this poem printed on pretty paper as a kind of end-of-year gift from his teacher. I remember reading it a long time ago and liking it then, so I was pleased to be reminded of it.

Somebody Has To
Shel Silverstein

Somebody has to go polish the stars,
They're looking a little bit dull.
Somebody has to go polish the stars,
For the eagles and starlings and gulls
Have all been complaining they're tarnished and worn,
They say they want new ones we cannot afford.
So please get your rags
And your polishing jars,
Somebody has to go polish the stars.

Shucks! No shucks!

A few weeks ago the fields surrounding our house were planted, and I've been waiting impatiently to see the first signs of growth. Usually I see the farmers when they are planting and ask them what the crop will be, since we will be living on our island (yard) in a sea of it for 5 months or more, but this year I missed them. On my way to the mailbox today I bent down to inspect the green that had popped up and was SO DISAPPOINTED to see little soybeans and not the corn I was hoping for. I know the farmers have to rotate their crops, and I don't have anything against the soybean (with their shiny leaves, they do make for a pretty crop) but I really wanted my "wall" of corn this year. For the past three years it surrounded us, made us feel secluded and safe, lured deer within our sight, made beautiful rustling music, and danced for us in the fall. Shucks, I say, no shucks!:(

What I'm reading, watching, & listening to

I have a friend who lives in Door County (what a DREAM!) and we speak every couple months or so. I always get a kick out of her because every conversation she asks "Whatcha reading, watching, listening to lately?" just like that, all in one sentence. This is one of those questions that's especially fun to answer! I thought I'd answer it here occasionally on the blog.

Reading: Green Mountain Farm by Elliott Merrick (just about to start), June's issue of This Old House Magazine, and Susan Branch's Summer Book (which I re-read and treasure every Spring)
Watching: Just got 3:10 to Yuma on Netflix (husband's choice), recently watched the story of Jesse James with Brad Pitt and didn't care for it
Listening: Chris Isaak's Baja Sessions - one of my absolute favorite warm weather cds

Friday's Quote

If I had my life to live over, I would start barefoot earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall. ~Nadine Stair

My mondegreen

Last night I had the radio on while I was sweeping the porch, and the song "I'd Really Like to See You Tonight" by England Dan & John Ford Coley came on. I've always liked this song, with my main reason being the beautiful line "there's a warm wind blowing the stars around." As I was singing along, I heard my husband chuckle. "It's not blowing the stars around," he laughed, it's the stars are out - how could stars blow around?" So I dropped my broom, went on a lyrics website and sure enough he was right. Much to my dismay, that warm wind was not swirling the stars above me. The stars were simply "out". The website went on to explain that this was a commonly misheard lyric, also known as a mondegreen. So now I don't feel quite so embarassed to have gotten it wrong, but I must say I like my version better and will continue to sing it that way!

A Sad Goodbye to Men in Trees

Tonight one of the final episodes of Men in Trees will be aired on ABC. I don't watch a whole lot of television and very seldom watch any program religiously, but MIT was one of my favorites. It was often lovingly compared to Northern Exposure, and I enjoyed all the characters, the music, and the beautiful scenery (it was filmed in Vancouver). I am so sorry to see it go. :(

Memorial Day Flag Etiquette

My husband is very knowledgeable about flag etiquette, and last night he was explaining the proper procedures of Memorial Day flag flying to our son. The flag is to be flown half-staff until noon and at full-staff from noon to sunset. If the flag is being flown particularly for Memorial Day (as opposed to a flag that is up all the time), it should first be hoisted to the peak for an instant and then lowered to the half-staff position.
We have purchased a new flag to fly on Monday, and over the weekend we will deposit our worn flag in the old white "mail box" located outside the Legion Hall. The wonderful Legion members will then burn the collected flags in a beautiful ceremony on our lakefront, and we are thankful.

Friday's Quote

"It is a great art to saunter."

- Henry David Thoreau

My Bittersweet Relationship - Any Advice?

For the past two years I have tried, unsuccessfully, to get Bittersweet vines growing on a section of fence in my yard. I planted both a male and a female, and still haven't had any luck. Maybe I need to try lighting some candles and playing my Romance in Venice cd! I just don't understand why it grows rampantly in the wild along old fences and stiles along the train tracks and not in my yard where it is cared for so tenderly. If anyone has any advice, I'd be so thankful.

Favorite Dinner Music #1- Romance in Venice

One of my favorite things to do is serve a meal to my family or friends with the most appropriate music for accompaniment. Although this can illicit a playful eye-roll by my husband when he enters the kitchen, I know it is appreciated and really can add to the dining experience. There's a French cafe not too far from here, and the food is not the greatest, but we go anyway because the music makes us feel like we're on vacation. Anyway, tonight I'm serving a simple Spinach Lasagne, garlic bread, and wine (grape juice for the kiddos) and I'll be playing my favorite Italian instrumental cd - Romance in Venice. I'm not Italian and have never been to Italy but I sure do love this collections of songs. On Amazon. com, the cd is described: Imagine you are gliding through the moonlight canals of Venice as your gondolier serenades you with an Italian romantic classic such as "Santa Lucia" or "O Sole Mio". That's where this instrumental collection of favorite Italian love songs will take you through strings of the mandolin, chords of the accordion, and sweeping notes of the violin. Romance yourself around the world with this elegant Italian musical tapestry. And so I'm off to Italy tonight, that is until the meal is over and I'm scrubbing the lasagne pan!

Victoria Day & a Flower Moon

According to my Susan Branch calendar, today is known as Victoria Day to our Canadian neighbors. It is the day they celebrate Queen Victoria's birthday, and it sounds like they partake in quite a bit of merrymaking with parades, fireworks, drinking, etc. It is also considered the unofficial start of the Canadian summer season because the threat of frost is over (although we had a frost warning here last night - luckily Lake Michigan acted like a great insulator and kept us above freezing). Sounds like a fun time to be visiting Quebec or Montreal.

The Canadians will get to dance tonight by the light of the full Flower Moon, which acccording to the Farmer's Almanac is the moon of health, romance, love, and wisdom. Here's hoping for a clear night for moongazing.

Salad Bread

Yesterday afternoon we stopped by our neighbors' house to return their log spliter. While my husband hauled it back into the shed and started yapping with the man of the house, I stepped in the kitchen to see what my good friend Jenny was up to. She was making something she called Salad Bread, and I don't think I've ever smelled something so good. We weren't able to stay long enough to sample it, but she emailed me the recipe and I can't wait to make it myself, especially with my own produce this summer. She said she found the recipe in Midwest Living Magazine, and that it could be served as a hors d'oeuvre or side to a meal. I think it could BE the meal!

Salad Bread

1/4 c. butter or margarine, softened
1 8-ounce loaf baguette-style French bread, split in half lengthwise
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese (4 oz.)
2 tomatoes, seeded & chopped
1/2 c. chopped green sweet pepper
1/4 c. thinly sliced green onion tops

1. Spread butter evenly over cut sides of bread. Sprinkle with garlic salt. Top with shredded cheese, tomatoes, sweet peppers and onion tops. Wrap each half loosely in foil. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until heated through.
2. To serve, cut crosswise into 1 1/2 inch thick slices. Makes 24 slices.

Friday's Quote

"My garden will never make me famous,
I'm a horticultural ignoramus,
I can't tell a stringbean from a soybean,
Or even a girl bean from a boy bean."


-Ogden Nash

Repurposing in the Garden

This year I decided I would try to soften the big walls of our barn with some trellises of climbing vines. After a trip to the hardware store, I discovered this project would cost way more than I wanted to spend - I'd need several trellises, and they were $20 and up. Then I got the bright idea to try to make them out of branches and wire, which was fun but only produced one arch (not to mention a big welt on my cheek!) after several hours of effort. What else could I use? How I wished I had a collection of antique ladders or something.

I had gone in the basement to see what I could find when my eyes landed on my children's crib - broken and dusty but impossible to part with. A-hah! Perfect! I took it apart and instantly had 4 lovely trellises, not to mention some new, valuable storage space. Now I can watch the morning glories and clematis climb those spindles that once surrounded my chubby little dreamers.

Today I'm going to call my older sisters and let them know about this idea. They both have cribs in their basements that are still in fine shape but not up to the safety standards of today to be used for the grandchildren. Now they can happily get them out of the house without any sadness and cultivate joyful memories in their gardens.

Tuesday Tea

It was an early springtime affair,
two old friends and the rain were there.

Flickering candles. A pot of hot tea.
Pear blossoms falling from high in the tree.

An impromptu event, to which none could compare.
Any only two friends and the rain were there.

-Author Unknown


I was looking forward to doing some gardening today, but I woke up to a windy morning with enough of a nip in the air to ruin my plans. I don't mind if it's a little bit cold (this is Wisconsin, after all) but I'd like to do my planting without a bulky jacket and having to hold onto my hat. Then I heard it's going to rain this afternoon, and that was the final straw - I decided to call my 93 year-old Grandma and have her over for tea. The day will certainly be salvaged! She's coming over at the proper time of 4:00 (she still drives, and lives across the farm from me), and I have this scone recipe from Susan Branch in the oven right now:

Cream Scones
2 C. flour
1/3 C. sugar
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 c. currents (opt.) (I leave them out and serve raspberry jam instead)
1 C. heavy cream

Preheat oven to 425. Stir together first 5 ingredients. Gradually stir in cream. Gather dough together and knead lightly on a floured board; this will start off seeming impossible, but don't give up. Pat out to 1/2" thick. Cut with a 2" cookie cutter dipped in flour (I use a crescent moon). Arrange on ungreased baking sheet. Bake 10-12 mintues until golden. You can glaze them with a creamy mixture of 1/2 c. powdered sugar, 1 tsp. orange zest & about 1 Tbsp. of orange juice if you like. Serve hot. Makes 10.

I'll just zap them in the microwave right before she arrives. I just might eat 3 or more and call this my supper!

Happy Mother's Day

Quote on the cover of my mother's day card from my husband:

As the flowers have the sunshine,
children have their mothers.

And Happy Mother's Day to my beautiful mom - I love you!

Everything I am, or hope to become, I owe to my angel mother.
Abraham Lincoln

Garage Sale Fever

Today I paid a visit to the huge, annual rummage sale in the next town up from mine. EVERYONE in the town participates, and there are always many treasures to be found. If you are looking for toys and kid clothing, you need to look on the edge of town, which has all the newer homes with young families. But if you want to find a real treasure - something you didn't know you couldn't live without - you need to look down Main Street, where the old brick homes with the crooked stoops and huge lilacs are. I managed to hit both areas, and came home with a couple of things for the kiddos, a big straw hat to be used in Fall for my scarecrow, a copy of James Harriot's All Creatures Great and Small, a CD of harp music, and an old coffee percolator. I probably could have done without the percolator, but it reminded me of doings in my childhood church gathering room (ie Breakfast with Baby Jesus) and I figured I could use it dispensing apple cider or Winter wassail. All in all, it was successful trip!

Friday's Quote

"One can get just as much exultation in losing oneself in a little thing as in a big thing. It is nice to think how one can be recklessly lost in a daisy!"

Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Lime Libations

Last evening, when I was walking the 1/4 mile to my mailbox, the heavy winds we had experienced all day suddenly softened, just like that, in an instant. In came the lightest, warmest air I've felt since our Indian Summer. I've always been one to rush the seasons a bit, so once I got back to the house with my new LL Bean catalog and what I believe is our 3rd June wedding invitation, I pulled the old blender out of the pantry. In went the deliciously dangerous ingredients to concoct one of my favorite summertime drinks:
1 small can of frozen Limeade concentrate
1 cup white rum (I use Bacardi)
3 cups or more of ice (depending on desired potency)
Blend all together until slushy.

Dangerous, I say, because if you are drinking this outside and in good company, and you bring the whole frosty pitcher to the patio table with your favorite floral plastic tumblers, and there's one of those whispering breezes - there's a good chance you will not notice the amount you're consuming. Not that I'd be one to know.....

Lovely Little Garden Book

In the mail today I received a delightful little gardener's idea book compliments of Proven Winners, the plant company that supplies Home Depot and other such stores. While I try to buy the majority of my plants from the friendly local nursery, occasionally I do buy some at Home Depot if they have something not available over at old Gene's place. In the past I've had good luck with Proven Winners, and the fact that they are backed by P. Allen Smith, gardener extroidonaire, makes them trustworthy in my book. Back to the point of my little booklet, which I'm really enjoying because it has many very easy ideas for containers that I'd like to try to reproduce. I like their idea of using just one type of plant in a container to create greater impact instead of always a variety. If you'd like, you can order your own free copy at www.provenwinners.com.

Aldo Leopold Bench

Today's plan includes a trip to the local lumber yard for some Douglas Fir and carriage bolts to attempt to make an Aldo Leopold bench. I first learned about these cute benches a few years ago when a local Boy Scout pack was making and selling them. Mr. Leopold was one of the first true wildlife conservationists and a wonderful author. He designed this simple bench (although I'll probably have some trouble making it :) for people to use in their gardens, under a tree, or as a rest spot along woodland paths. My directions sheet, which I found easily found online, says:

"To spy a Leopold bench in someone's yard is to know something about the family who there resides. Even if you haven't read Leopold's opening lines, 'There are some who can live without wild things, and some who cannot. These essays are the delights and dilemmas of one who cannot," from A Sand County Almanac, you will appreciate this easy-to-build bench."

I'll try making one, and if it goes well, I'd like to make a few for 'round the bonfire pit.

Carly Simon

I just heard that Carly Simon has a new cd out, and I'm very anxious to give it a listen. There's just something about her voice that makes me get in a summertime mood - maybe it's partially because I picture her singing on Martha's Vineyard (where she has a home) under the stars with a soft breeze blowing off the coast. Her last cd, Into White, has one of my favorite songs - Quiet Evening - some of the lyrics:

Quiet evening,
you've been longing for.
Quiet evening,
you've been longing,
take this night
for the sake of your soul.

This song makes me want to put my dear children to bed 20 minutes early, pour myself a cocktail, take it out on my glider swing on the deck and watch the sky in silence, ALONE, for the sake of my soul!
Another cd of Carly's I love is Moonlight Serenade, on which she covers dreamy songs like Moonglow, The More I See You, and Alone Together. This cd is equally great for dining alfresco or lounging in the tub. :)

Amish Cream Pie

Today I made what will probably be my final Amish Cream Pie of the season. Because I associate it's flavor with coziness and the cold weather months, I'm hoping my cravings for it will soon stop and turn to key lime! But today it's dreary outside, and a thick fog rolled in off the lake and surrounded the farm, so this pie is cooling on the counter. The notes with the recipe call it "comfort in a crust", and it is, indeed!

Amish Cream Pie

3/4 c. granulated sugar
1/4 c. cornstarch
1/4 tsp. salt
2 1/2 c. half&half or light cream
1/2 c. butter
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 baked 9-inch pie shell
ground cinnamon for dusting

1. In a medium saucepan, stir together the granulated sugar, cornstarch, & salt. Whisk in the half&half or light cream and cook and stir over medium heat till the mixture is thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat. Stir in butter, brown sugar & vanilla till butter melts. Pour into baked pie shell and sprinkle lightly with cinnamon.
2. Bake the pie in a 325 degree oven for 30 minutes (the center of the pie won't be set). Cool the pie on a wire rack for about 1 hour. Chill for 3-6 hours before serving (pie will set up upon chilling); cover and store in the refrigerator. Serves 8. Yum.

Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots

Last night, in hopes of finding some garden inspiration despite the cold weather we've been having, I got out one of my favorite gardening books - Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots by Sharon Lovejoy. Originally I purchase it as a guide to help me get my children into gardening, but I have found it to contain more of my favorite outdoor ideas than in any of the many "grown-up" gardening books I've read. Some of the ideas I plan to not just read about this year, but actually do, are planting an enchanting moon garden, planning a seed saving party, and, if time allows, creating what Ms. Lovejoy calls a "snacking and sipping garden" full of veggies, fruits, herbs, & edible flowers. If you enjoy the work of Susan Branch like I do, I think you'll enjoy this book's information intermingled with tips & quotes, not to mention the whimsical artwork.

Jumping Right In

Finally! I've gotten around to creating a blog of my very own! Besides using this as an idea journal for myself, I hope to share some of these ideas with those of you with similar interests.

While trying to think of the perfect name for my blog, I came across the poem Crystal Cabinet by William Blake. While not exactly one of my favorite poems, it contains the phrase " a lovely, little moony night" which to me conjures up both an image and a feeling that I absolutely love.

I hope you will find my blog of interest, and will truly appreciate any comments you may have.

I still have to figure out how to post photos with my prehistoric camera, but I'm sure that I'll get around to that soon. I just didn't want another day to go by without getting this going!