Life on the farm

While my folks are visiting my brother and his family in Japan, I am queen of the hill. I have the added responsibilities of chickens and cat, as well as taking the garbage and recycling down our very long driveway. There are also other little spendid jobs that I take for granted that my dad and mom so discretely attend to, such as, removing dismembered bunny parts from the front porch (thanks alot Jasmine), disposing of dead mice and cleaning up spilled food and broken glass because the raccoon got on the side porch again. (Note to self: close side porch door completely at night.) I was blessed by the fact that I did not have to learn how to operate the tractor to mow the lawns. Dad found a friend to manage that, but I did need to pick up all the "outside" toys from the lawn first (another job I often take for granted that dad attends to). The chickens are laying about a dozen eggs a day, and so far I've sold two dozen and given one dozen away. That leaves eight dozen in my folks fridge and two in mine. Eggs anyone? They are only $1.75 (but because of supply and demand, I may just give them to ya).

So far there haven't been any problems other than the raccoon getting in and breaking a jar of thistle seeds and the dismembered bunny (that was pretty nasty, but as mom always says in an event like that, "That's life on the farm"). We had a tornado warning during a storm last week, but only a few branches were lost up here, but on the church property below us, a tree or two went down.

The kids and I have been enjoying the kiddie pool, shade provided by glorious trees and the sound of the cicadas and crickets in the evenings. The noise is rather loud for cityfolk, but to me it sounds like home. I've lived here most of my life...in fact of my 32 years, I've only spent 7 or 8 years of it elsewhere.

Blogademic

Since I started this blog last August (wow, it's almost my one-year blogiversary) three friends and two family members have started their own blogs. I was the one who introduced them to blogging, so it's kind of cool that I am doing something that at least five other people consider a worthwhile endeavor. But since I have no idea if they want to be affiliated to me *kidding* I won't advertise them here unless given specific permission to do so....

I got bit by the blog bug by reading this one: Honest to Blog, it was the first blog I had ever read, or even heard of. Since then there have been many others that I have visited from time to time, but it really is fun for me to have some living, flesh and bone friends expressing themselves in blog form.

Why Must I Be Sad?

Why Must I Be Sad?

I suppose that now since the intial shock and devastation of my impending divorce have worn off, my psyche is now allowing me to process more of the "stuff" I need to deal with. I am definitely in better spirits, but the sadness continues on a slightly deeper plane. I am beginning to understand where it is all coming from, some of it is so old, I can barely remember where it originates. Most of it is traceable to some event or other, and so I am feeling old losses and new ones and figuring out what I need to do to heal from them. It is a lot of work and it makes me tired, even though I have suffered some minor insomnia the past couple of nights.

Madame Blueberry

I am so blue-hoohooh-blue-hoohooh-blue-hoohooh....

(If you are familiar with Veggie Tales, you'll understand my reference, otherwise....too bad for you-hoohoo.)

For no particular-put-my-finger-on-in-it kind of reason, I have been rather sad the past ten or so days. Not that I lack for things to be sad about, but it is more of a general sadness than a specific one. I guess my grieving has caught up with me once again. I can run, but I can't hide. I better just let the waves of sorrow wash over me once again. Perhaps it will be a cleansing of sorts.

Happy 4th!

Last year this time I was "resting" miserably due to a very bad case of mononucleuosis....so glad that season has passed! A whole year without any relapse is amazing, especially under the extreme stress I have had this year. God has been strengthening me in body, mind, soul and spirit, for all that I have needed, He has provided.

Independence Day takes on new meaning for me now...now that I am learning what it means to be independent myself. So I will patriotically celebrate my country, my freedom, and my own personal growth today. Let the fireworks commence!

In other news....

Got to see my old buddy, Sandy, from highschool. She was in town on business and tacked on a few extra days to see Dave Matthews Band (and her family of course). I lucked out and was able to go with her to one of the shows, since hubby was home with the dog. I could not get over the traffic! I knew it would be bad, but we spent a total of about 6 1/2 hours in traffic that night! (Normally it would take about an hour and 15 min one way.) But it was a fun show, and it has been nearly ten years since I've been to a concert. Although I like DMB's music, I am not a die hard fanatic. I felt more like an observer than a participant, this due largely to the fact that I didn't know most of the new material they played. I did however develop a bit of a crush on the bass player, whom Sandy informed me he has a live-in girlfriend and children :( Well, it was just a crush anyway.

June recap

This month has been all about trips to the dentist (6 in all) and tadpoles (and the froglet). It is funny how sometimes there is a theme to a month....not that tadpoles have anything to do with the dentist, mind you, they don't even have teeth, but if I was asked to sum up what had happened in June 2005, that would be my answer.

We have approximately (I say approximately because they are so hard to count) 12 tadpoles now, and now that I know they eat algae, they are very well fed, no strange disappearances or cannibalism as of yet. Our froglet is getting on well too. Today we just changed his environment from mostly water with a little bit of land, to mostly land with a little bit of water. He loves catching the miniscule bugs that are living in the dirt. The Artist/Naturalist spends long stretches of time watching him and gives me a play by play of the froggie's doings while I prepare meals.

Thanks to the gracious generousity of my dentist, I have now been restored to oral health. Eleven fillings and a cleaning later, my mouth is happy once again--all except the place on my lower lip where Prettiness' hard little head smashed it, but even now that is almost healed. Sigh, my boys also had a dentist visit this month, and I discovered that not all dentists are as wonderful and professional as mine. I will continue to search for a better dentist for the children, one whom there insurance will cover. This will be a challenge I'm sure. I spent hours on the phone just trying to find one who is taking new patients and has offices near by, and he was sort of a nutball. The office was cluttered and his assistant looked like she should still be in highschool. He took a phone call in the middle of K's exam and when he came back didn't remember what he was doing! No xrays, no toothbrushes, no instruction on toothcare, no frills, all the boys walked away with was a little sticker and slightly cleaner teeth. I spent more time filling out their paper work than they did in "the chair". Oh, well.

Loch Raven

Loch Raven

Triple threat

Prettiness

Prettiness and the "bok boks"

Froglet

Our little tadpole finally blossomed into a fully formed frog....he's so cute at only a half inch from head to vent...although we are still trying to figure out what he likes to eat (other than other tadpoles). I added mosquito larvae tonight, and haven't witnessed him eat any, but that has got to be tempting, right?

On Sunday we collected more pollywogs, this time we think are a different species, since we also saw a grown frog in the same fountain. This was the most beautifully intricate frog I've ever seen. Granted the frogs of the tropical rainforests are exquisite, but this one was so ornate. It had a bright green head and face with a bright yellow throat which puffed out when he croaked a twangy sort of sound, his eyelids were gold, (like the precious metal not the color), and his hind legs blended to a spotted brown and black. This was also the most tame little frog I have ever seen. The Stuntman actually petted it several different times before it got so fed up and disappeared under the bushes. Prettiness was tickled to watch it hop and she almost touched it, but each time she got close enough, she would change her mind about it. The Artist (or I should call him the Naturalist now?) has been so thrilled to have some "real" pets in the home, it will be sad when we have to finally set them free again.

UPDATE: I visited the Library today (6/22) and learned that the frog I saw is called a "Green Frog", yes, real original name isn't it? (that picture link doesn't do the beauty of this frog justice, but I did read that their colors are more pronounced on the males during mating season, which is now)

Another one bites the dust

I awoke to find a dead little pseudo-froggie in the bowl, his tail mostly eaten off. These are certainly the little carnivores! So, one remaining tadpole, this one only had two hind legs, so we will get to witness the transformation again, unless he eats himself. LOL!

Four legs good, two legs bad OR A tadpole update

Last night the tadpoles both only had their rear legs, but this morning the slightly larger of the two and sprung a foreleg. By afternoon, both of his forelegs were out and moving. The transformation is phenomenal, like watching inside a womb. He looks very much like a tiny black frog now, only he has a long tail. We expect that this one ate the smaller one. I read today on frogland that if not fed enough, tadpoles will get nutty and go after each other...hmmmm. Perhaps that one had a hearty appetite? We also learned that tadpoles with legs like to "perch" so we have added a small twig and a lilypad to the jar. They seem happy enough.

And then there were two OR The Mysterious Tadpole

Two weeks ago, I took a little time to myself while the children spent some time with their dad, to pray, think, reflect and organize. I spent several hours at one of my favorite places, Ladew Topiary Gardens. I walked through the nature trail, spent some time in prayer on a bench, had lunch, painted a wee bit, reviewed verses, and then walked some more. Afterward I wandered through the gardens, I came to a pond that was swimming with tadpoles. Remembering the empty container in my backpack, I retrieved it and collected four small black pollywogs for my sons to observe and enjoy. That very night the largest tadpole died of unknown causes, but the remaining three have been thriving.....until this morning. We keep them in a large six-sided glass cookie jar on the kitchen table, but when I looked in there this morning, there were only two tadpoles swimming happily around. I checked the table for any signs of a struggle, and the floor too, but no luck. The smallest of our trio has mysteriously disappeared. My only guess is that the remaining two ate it....Although in high school I had a Beta fish, named Rob Lowe, who jumped out of his bowl and it was weeks before I found his dried out little carcass. He was a blue fish and my carpeting was also blue, and I had no idea he could have flopped all the way under my desk, until one fine day when I actually vacuumed under there and discovered his raisin like form. The amazing thing was that he made no foul stench.

At the Dentist

I am suffering still from the three fillings I had done today, but as I think about the experience I had at the dentist I can't help but find it somewhat amusing. Upon entering the building I noticed two very tanned (possibly Latino) men on the roof working. It didn't dawn on me until I was sitting in the waiting area and heard the groanings of a drill--not a dentist drill mind you, some kind of industrial power tool that sounded as if it would bore right into my head from the ceiling above--that this would not be "easy listening" during the procedure. At one point the whole situation just seemed so absurd, I began to laugh (on the inside) and I was thankful that I am not one of those people with a dental phobia. To top it off, after an hour or so, a strange chemical odor resulting from the roof work, much like that of rubber cement, began to permeate the office. The receptionist kindly opened the front and back doors to allow for some fresh air, but it made only a little improvement.

The Truth about Allium

A couple of days ago while playing outside, we noticed how lovely the allium are getting on. (For those of you unfamiliar with this plant, it looks like a giant chive in blossom, about four feet tall with purple pom-pom type flowers the size of a fist.) First the Artist went over to sniff them, and then I and little Prettiness, and while we were admiring the new fish pond arrangement, the Stuntman came over with a purple fist-sized pom-pom flower proudly in hand. When asked, he said he didn't do it...he said it was already broken....hmmm. Well we (Oma and I ) were a little suspicious, but wanted to believe him, so we thought it must have happened accidentally.

A little while later, while preparing the children's lunch, Oma informed me that there was not just one snapped allium, but two....she suggested I get to the bottom of this. And so I had a private little chat with my very physical second born son. I said, "I know you broke the flower."
"How do you know?" he asked.
"I just know..." I replied, "why did you pick it?"
"It was pretty and I wanted to have it, " he said looking very serious with his deep brown eyes.
"It is pretty, but it isn't yours, so it is wrong to take it. Those flowers are special to Oma, and if you ever want to pick her flowers, you need to ask her first. " Then I added, "Oma said two were broken, did you pick two of them?"
He nodded looking rather worried.
"Okay, I am glad you told the truth this time. It is very important you tell the truth. It was wrong to take something that wasn't yours, and it is very wrong to lie about it." Then I proceeded to explain how important it is to be truthful and sent him out to confess his crime and apologize to Oma.

I am not sure how well the four year old conscience and mind process the whole concept of truth and lies...but that isn't really the point. What matters is that he learns the difference and that he needs to choose the truth, or else there will be unpleasant consequences. In this case his unpleasant consequences were confessing and apologizing to Oma. Of course if this kind of incident repeats, the consequence will have to be even more unpleasant, so that he is guided to make better choices.

Karaoke convert

Ever since I saw "Lost in Translation" I have wanted to give karaoke a try...
...and last night that opportunity arose. I was prepared to sing "Tainted Love" by Soft Cell, but had so much fun I also went up two more times with "Brass in Pocket" by the Pretenders and "Would I Lie to You?" by the Eurythmics. Needless to say it was all very theraputic and I am sure entertaining for those watching...Congratulations to Greg who won first prize in the karaoke contest with "Rock this Town" by the Stray Cats (me-ow!).

Requests anyone?

In my garden

This year I have a beautiful new garden. My dad handcrafted a cedar picket fence to keep out the deer and varmits, and also built raised beds to make planting and weeding easier. He even built a little seat into one of the corners as well as an arch for the clematis to climb on. The children have all taken an interest and participated in the cultivating of our little sprouts of spinach, peas, pumpkins, sunflowers, tomatoes, peppers, beans and various herbs. We also have a little strawberry patch and a blueberry bush.....yummy. The weather has been great lately, so we have all been taking advantage and spending long hours out of doors. While the boys romp around the grounds, Prettiness' favorite activity is dropping stones and dirt into a bucket of water and stirring it with a spoon. Mud pies anyone?