A time flew by round up

If I could have a sneak preview to all the earthly reasons

It takes to make the theme of time then I'd be a girl for all seasons

And I wouldn't have to worry I wouldn't have to worry oh no no no

It just seems kind of funny that there's some things I'll just never
Know
Like where does the time go? Does anyone know?
Where does the time go? Does anyone know?
Where does the time go? Does anyone know?
We were only just saying just the other day
How it's really amazing how the days just seem to slip away
And it's right before my very own eyes

Oh there's some things that we'll never, we'll never know, like

Where does the time go? ~ Fordham Julia - Where Does the Time Go Lyrics

I am as clueless to it's departure as she is...but a quick round up of the past week would go like this....

9/21 woke to this...

A little chilly.  I stayed warm knitting and baking.

9/22 Fall starts and the temperature goes up.  A little back-assward for sure

9/23 Made Rhubarb/Pineapple Jam, took some things up to my cousins shop.  She has dreamed of opening up a shop to sell her alpaca fiber/products from and finally took the leap.  She has her product and also has crafts made by local people.  There is jewlery, quilting, photography...

pottery

and stained glass

9/24 Cleaned/got room ready for Sir T & #1 to arrive.  Canned beef stew so some mornings I can be lazy and instead of making him lunch I can just hand him a jar.  Went with a friend to a farmer's market, Sam's Club, AC Moore and dinner.  We didn't get home until 10 PM.

9/25 Took wheel up to cousin's grand opening.  She had stayed there until 3 AM setting up and was so nervous/excited.  It was a beautiful day and I sat outside in the shade of a tree spinning with two alpaca and plenty of inquisitive people for company.  Left at 1 with just enough time to put two roasts and all the fixings into the oven for dinner and then it was taking #2 daughter to a friends birthday party.  Upon returning from that I was amazed at the amount of wood the man got stacked told him to call it a day.  Then it was time for dinner with all my kids and their significant others.  It was a very enjoyable day.

9/26 After breakfast we all went to the garden and dug up the rest of the potatoes and a cocoon.  All I could think of was Silence of the Lambs.

We picked the squash, the rest of the tomatoes and carried it all in for storage.  #1 and Sir T left and we went to my nephews football game and then his birthday party.  Came home exhausted.  Sat down and rented Robin Hood

9/27 Was one of those days where I should have just sat in a corner.  On Saturday, I had received some apples from a friend.  They left them sitting on the back porch and I left them there....but then the chickens found them....and then the hornets found them.

Since everyone was at work/school I decided to make some apple cinnamon bread.  I forgot to put the baking soda in and the chickens ended up with two loaves.  Since I still had a significant amount of apples left I decided to make apple pie filling and can it.  I washed the jars, made the filling, took the jars out of the hot water, filled them, put them back into the hot water batch.  I wash up the dishes I used and turn around and the lid is up in the air on the canner.  I take the lid off and three....not one or two but three jars have broken.  I get out what I can and let the rest finish processing.  I have never had that happen and I was now disgusted with the day.  Stopped in to see my cousin and found I made some $$ so that made the day some what better.  Grabbed #2 daughter from the bus stop and went to #2 son's football game.  Sat on the bleachers in the pouring rain until the start of the third quarter when I said enough.  We lost but son did a great job with a tackle and a fumble recovery!

9/28  Weather man said a few showers in the AM and then clearing.  It was looking nice so I loaded the line with towels and sheets....it is now pouring down rain.  Today looks like it is turning out like yesterday...I better not risk poisoning the family and just order dinner out!

Endings are new beginnings

"To grow plants from our own seed, to save seeds from our own plants, goes to a deeper level. It is fulfillment and continuity plants and people maintaining each other, nurturing each other, evolving together. It

completes the circle.” Carol Deppe

Slowly the garden is winding down and I have been saving seed for next years garden.  While saving seed your mind is already on next years garden.  For the most part I am very happy with this years.  Next year the garden is getting enlarged so I will have more room.  I will grow less hot peppers...less basil...and will grow corn. 

I am still canning.  Today it is dehydrating parsley

then making quince/apple jelly and bacon jelly. 

Yes it sounds strange but that is why I have got to try it.  I have a lot of tomatoes, peppers and squash still to go.  Tomorrow is pumpkin butter.  When all the canning is done I will post what I actually got out of some seeds and sweat. 

After canning all day I sit down and what do I knit?  I have been knitting and crocheting gourds, squash and pumpkins.  I guess my mind is still in the garden but in my defense they are so quick to do...next knit is indian corn.

Pretty soon this will end and socks and mittens will be on the needles.

 

Did You Want to Know?

In your thirst for knowledge, be sure not to drown in all the information. ~Anthony J. D'Angelo


#1 daughter sent me an email this morning with this link...http://www.auburn.edu/~vestmon/xmas_cnt.htm
So innocently I follow the link and this is what it says...

Countdown to Christmas

Can't Wait?
How long 'til Christmas?

100 Days
16 Hours
38 Minutes

...But who's counting?

Well that was a case of information overload.  I have been thinking of it but in the far off sense...far... far... far off sense.

As I am talking to her she says there was a Macy's commercial on TV.  Yup definitely information overload!  Think I will go bury my head in the sand...before it turns into snow.

Changing weather

"Lord, it is time. The summer was very big. Lay thy shadow on the sundials, and on the meadows let the winds go loose. Command the last fruits that they shall be full; give them another two more southerly days, press them on to fulfillment and drive the last sweetness into the heavenly wine." - Rainer Maria Rilke

Yesterday there was some wild weather.  Fortunately we only got the winds where around us they had inches of hail that shredded the leaves and runined what was growing in their gardens.  Apples, pears, acorns, hickory nuts and black walnuts were tossed about.  As my garden is far from over I am glad the worst missed us.

I did notice that with the changing weather my mind has gone from the garden being the priority to preparing for winter.  The man and I approach this from different directions.  He starts to split wood and I start going to wool festivals!   And you have to admit that looking at this

is so much better than looking at a stack of oak, birch and hickory!

This past weekend was the Endless Mountain Fiber Festival.  We went on Saturday as it was a beautiful day.  I didn't buy much just a 12 inch ring for doing the rug hooking, a skein of green alpaca sport weight yarn  from Times Remembered and 4 oz. of the lightest gray Finn from Stillmeadow.

Had my eye on a bag of alpaca/finn from Dunn Spun Yarn, but decided to walk around first and when I came back it was gone.  Which was probably for the best since I need to send my own Finn out to get carded. 

We got a little rain Sunday which we really needed.  It is cloudy and coolish (high of 56 degrees).  Perfect day to make use of a magazine I picked up from Taste of Home featuring all soups.  I love soups, stew, chowder whatever Love them all.  We picked the Cheeseburger soup and homemade bread.

It was deliciously filling after a busy weekend of fiber.... and wood splitting....room cleaning.  Yes that is what the kids did on Sunday, fall cleaning in their rooms!!! I know the shock was nearly more than my heart could handle.  The loads of "dirty" (aka laundry mom washed, folded and put on their beds, they kicked it off on to the floor and the dog laid on it)  laundry was almost more than my machine could handle!  This should have happened before all the school clothes were bought but football and canning held that up.  They think I need to follow suit but my fall cleaning usually gets done when all the canning equipment gets packed away for the year and that hasn't happened yet.

So like the changing weather which is 1/2 summer and 1/2 winter I am stuck in the middle with 1/2 gardening and 1/2 preparing.  It was only 45 this morning so I know which is going to end first.

2010 First day of school

T'WAS THE NIGHT BEFORE SCHOOL STARTS  By Ron Yorgason

T’was the night before school starts
And all through the place,
Not a smile was seen
On any kid’s face.
Our bags were all stuffed
With our notebooks brand new,
And rulers and pencils
With erasers to chew.
Mournfully we
All crawled into bed,
Knowing too well
That the ‘good life’ was dead.
Then mom came in whistling
And kissed us goodnight,
With a bright cheery voice
That didn’t seem right.
The night dragged on slowly
I just couldn’t sleep,
For fear that my math teacher
Would be a real creep.
Or maybe a bully
Would give a shove,
Or even more evil things
Than I could think of.
When from in the next room
There arose such a clummer,
My mom yelled,”I’m FREE!”
“I’m free ‘til next summer!”
This must be a plot
By conspiring moms,
Who just want a break
To experience ‘calm.’
Oh, must I go through it?
How can I go on?
I want to escape
Run off to Saigon!
Nine months is too long
To suffer through school
The classes so rough
And teachers who’re cruel.
“Come Donald! Come Conner!
Come Henry VanStation!
Come up to the board,
Do your multiplication!”
“And Julie, stop talking!
And Jimmy, wake up!
And, Mary,right now,
Don’t do your makeup!”
Teachers ever are hounding
They just never quit.
You do something wrong,
They go into a fit.
And so every year
About this same time,
I lie in bed sleepless
And just moan and whine.
Until morning comes,
And I hear my mom say,
“Good luck with your school!
And have a nice day!

The kids left for school.  Both of them are high schoolers now.  #2 daughter will come home and talk my ear off at least until her brother comes home at 6 PM.  He has football practice after school and takes the late bus.  He never has much to say so you have to question him to get anything out of him.  Of course it is now dinner time and his lunch was at 11:00 so he is starving. Needless to say you get head shakes as he shovels food in.  But it never fails...I will get to a difficult part in a pattern or a vital part in a movie/book and all of a sudden he remembers all this good stuff that happened to him that day.

Ahhhh, I miss them already and I only have a couple of more years of this before they are gone.  All that beig said, I am going to go have my second cup of coffee and enjoy the momentary quiet.

Labor Day Weekend

If a task is once begun,

Never leave it till it's done.
Be the labor great or small,
Do it well or not at all.
~ Anonymous

That sounds like something my mother use to say.  I would walk around telling her  "Well my momma done told me....".  Eventually she would tire of my repeated words of wisdom and tell me that my mother "should have shut her mouth"!  She was a hoot!

But seriously we are recovering from our Labor Day weekend.  As everyone knows the weekend starts on Friday and Friday just happened to be #1 daughters birthday.  Her and Sir T arrived late Friday evening to celebrate.  #1 son and A were here so bedtime came late.

Saturday the man had to go to work and #2 son had football practice.  When everyone got back home the guys gravitated toward yard work while daughters and I started canning.  We canned tomatoes (of course), soup, and rhubarb/orange butter before dinner.

Sunday was Sir T's birthday.  #1 daughter made him a wonderful breakfast in which we all got to indulge.  While the man and I went to help a friend they left to go shopping and have dinner with #1 son and A.  Sir T had requested, from a family friend,  a coconut pound cake to be used as strawberry shortcake for his birthday.  When they got back home she delivered it to the both of them for their birthday's.

Monday arrived (43 degrees!!) and we all went to see #2 son play in this years first game. 

Our varsity team beat our archenemy on Friday evening and our JV and freshman teams beat them on Monday.  I was able to get a little knitting done during the ride and half time. 

While the #1's went out shopping and visiting the rest of us came home to veg a little.....5 minutes....and then the man started putting a new motor in my cars rear window, #2 son started vacuuming my car and #2 daughter and I headed to the bean patch.  The beans ended up in the frig as I dealt with the accumulation of hot peppers.  With the men folk being big on hot stuff, I found a recipe for hot pepper relish and #1 daughter and I made that while everyone else went fishing. 

Today the man had to go to work.  Sir T planned the day off so he and #1 daughter missed the holiday traffic.  They will stop and have dinner with his mom on their way home.  They will not be able to come back until Thanksgiving so we need to send them off with a love from home package to tide them over.  Now I have to go find a box to pack it in.  Tomorrow school starts.....

September First

"The breezes taste
Of apple peel.
The air is full
Of smells to feel-
Ripe fruit, old footballs,
Burning brush,
New books, erasers,
Chalk, and such.
The bee, his hive,
Well-honeyed hum,
And Mother cuts
Chrysanthemums.
Like plates washed clean
With suds, the days
Are polished with
A morning haze."
- John Updike, September

There is something about September that just wants you to slow down.  Your not quite ready for sitting near the wood stove but you are getting ready for it. The leaves are starting to turn and when you drive down the road, the car makes little tornado's from the leaves that have fallen.

I walked out into the garden this morning.  I was very careful not to look in certain directions as I don't want to see how much work still lies ahead.  I take note of the broom corn standing tall in the morning fog. 

The morning glories smile.

The cold bee takes refuge on the sunflower. 

Amidst the weeds non edible plants I found more cushaw squash.

That makes five of them.  The LI cheese squash grew up over the mesh I had up for the green beans.  The green beans toppled but underneath the squash grew on.

# 2 son goes on his first "date" tonight.  They are going for pizza and a movie.  My baby boy!  The doctor has released him and last night he played in his first scrimmage match of the year. We won! 

The canning still continues.  #1 daughter calls it "storing the nuts for winter".  Her and Sir T will be coming up this weekend.  It is their birthdays (9/3 and 9/5).  Since we haven't seen them in a couple of weeks and because it is Labor Day weekend and the last hurrah before school starts on the 8th, it should be a great weekend.