We got the attic all hauled out in the house this week. Scott demo-ed the shelves in there, and started working on the electrical. So far, (no 911 calls), so good!
I got in there with measuring tape yesterday. Had to dust off all of the interior design crap-er-knowledge still floating around in my brain somewhere circa 1990 college course. It is a small space, but fairly straight forward from a design standpoint. On paper it turned out kind of classy. I have a feeling that once it is done, there will be some serious coveting going on, and maybe not just from the kids!
The design includes a loft/built in bed with a large storage drawer underneath, a play nook, built in bookshelf and a closet/storage space that reaches under the eaves. Scott is warming up to all of my built-ins, but I think in the long run it will add to the long term usability of the space.
Food: Susie and I made pizza dough and fresh sauce all from scratch yesterday. The kids, of course, had plain cheese pizza, but Scott and I made a pizza with onions and hot pickled peppers from our garden. My mouth is still burning! Today I made the green syrup for the icicle pickles. The kids deemed it tasty, but creepy. Funny, that was the same reaction I always got from it when I was a kid.... We picked (I am guessing) about 30-40 pounds of tomatoes last night. We finally decided to make a giant pot of sauce for canning. They should be ripe and ready for that tomorrow. Scott's mom is due in Tuesday, so I also have to make a massive grocery run at some point as we have run out of everything (except vegetables). Tax free week starts tomorrow, so the kids are itching to get school shopping done. (Not that that has anything to do with food, but there is a Ben and Jerry's store at the shopping center.....)
Mundane things to do this weekend: A dump run is getting over due. Not my favorite thing, but rather necessary especially since we hauled out the attic this week. (What possesses us to keep some things? HONESTLY)
I realized this morning that Dan has been wearing the same pair of pajamas since...Wednesday night. Maybe it is time for him to take a bath and put some real clothes on? (Oh well! He seems happy!!!!)
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Monday, August 9, 2010
Tttttt-tomatoes!
Time to go down into the basement and pull up the food mill attachment for the mixer..... Yeee hawww!
Have enough cherry/slicing tomatoes getting way too ripe, ready for about 2 gallons of juice and about 2 gallons of sauce tomatoes that I am debating: sauce or just can whole.... hmmm.... Maybe just can whole and see what that does. The juice I will freeze, reserving a cup or two for Bloody Mary's with brunch this weekend! (oo la la!)
This weekend I made three quarts of hamburger dill chips. They turned out really delicious. I am getting brave and not following the pickle recipes to the letter. I took a couple kinds of pickles to the bible school picnic Friday night, and had many compliments on my sour garlic dills and bread and butter pickles. Alannah was remembering Grandma G.G.'s icicle pickles, so we found the recipe and got a gallon of them going. They take two weeks to make--it is quite an event, but will be worth the effort: A very syrupy sweet, impossibly green and strangely iridescent pickle.
We ate our first sweet corn last night for dinner. Inadvertently, as I was merely cleaning off stalks that were knocked over by the skunks. (or whatever) I realized that there were really ears that were ready to eat! They were SO GOOD.
Scott built planter boxes for under/along the deck. There appears to be enough Summer left to start some late crops of onions and lettuce at least, maybe some more peas. Maybe we will get ambitious this week and fill them. I think there were still seeds for sale at Stop and Shop--Otherwise I will have to go digging in the junk drawer because I think I ran across some left over ones there a couple weeks ago. (scary junk drawer!)
VBS was last week, and I have a feeling anything that comes along this week (errr...or doesn't) will be seriously anti-climatic. The kids are BORED. I keep trying to give them jobs every time they say they are bored, but they actually like having the jobs--that is how bored they are!!!!! (I don't know what their problem is--we were never bored!?!)
Hey......!!!!!!!
I'm not bored--I WISH I could risk being just a little bit bored!!!!
We are way over due for a Six Flags trip, so hopefully the last of the hoodies can be shipped this week, and we can get up there again within a couple of days. It is going to be HOT for most of the week, with at least three days predicted to be close to 90. (yuck!) Not much better place to be than the water park.
Have enough cherry/slicing tomatoes getting way too ripe, ready for about 2 gallons of juice and about 2 gallons of sauce tomatoes that I am debating: sauce or just can whole.... hmmm.... Maybe just can whole and see what that does. The juice I will freeze, reserving a cup or two for Bloody Mary's with brunch this weekend! (oo la la!)
This weekend I made three quarts of hamburger dill chips. They turned out really delicious. I am getting brave and not following the pickle recipes to the letter. I took a couple kinds of pickles to the bible school picnic Friday night, and had many compliments on my sour garlic dills and bread and butter pickles. Alannah was remembering Grandma G.G.'s icicle pickles, so we found the recipe and got a gallon of them going. They take two weeks to make--it is quite an event, but will be worth the effort: A very syrupy sweet, impossibly green and strangely iridescent pickle.
We ate our first sweet corn last night for dinner. Inadvertently, as I was merely cleaning off stalks that were knocked over by the skunks. (or whatever) I realized that there were really ears that were ready to eat! They were SO GOOD.
Scott built planter boxes for under/along the deck. There appears to be enough Summer left to start some late crops of onions and lettuce at least, maybe some more peas. Maybe we will get ambitious this week and fill them. I think there were still seeds for sale at Stop and Shop--Otherwise I will have to go digging in the junk drawer because I think I ran across some left over ones there a couple weeks ago. (scary junk drawer!)
VBS was last week, and I have a feeling anything that comes along this week (errr...or doesn't) will be seriously anti-climatic. The kids are BORED. I keep trying to give them jobs every time they say they are bored, but they actually like having the jobs--that is how bored they are!!!!! (I don't know what their problem is--we were never bored!?!)
Hey......!!!!!!!
I'm not bored--I WISH I could risk being just a little bit bored!!!!
We are way over due for a Six Flags trip, so hopefully the last of the hoodies can be shipped this week, and we can get up there again within a couple of days. It is going to be HOT for most of the week, with at least three days predicted to be close to 90. (yuck!) Not much better place to be than the water park.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
Major blog hiatus: living it up on the fam-plation
Hi everybody! Didn't want you to think that I gave up on here... ha ha.
We have had a busy and eventful Summer, and I will give you the very briefest of highlights since the furnace guy is coming and then I need to hit the studio:
1. Studio, you ask? I am in the throes of a major Steelers Hoodie production--8 orders due the end of this week. They were supposed to be done and shipped by the end of JUNE, but....
2. Our Summer was majorly interrupted by Susie getting acute appendicitis at Summer Camp in NY. We zoomed down there June 30th to find out Susie's appendix had burst--one of the worst abdominal traumas the surgeon had ever seen. She was in the hospital in Northern PA for ten days. I was basically a refugee for two weeks--thank goodness my parents live near there so the girls could stay there and come back and forth to visit. (I did not, would not, COULD not leave Susie!) Scott ran back and forth taking care of work, the house, the dog and the kids. Mom and Dad provided food, clothing, shelter and cheerleading. And....FRAPPE'S. Yes, there are restorative powers in McDonald's caramel frappes. I've proven it.
Susie was very scary sick, and even needed a second operation to clear up a secondary infection, but now she is ok and doing better each day. (AMEN!) Thank you so much for all of your prayers, cards and words of support.
3. We were given Dr.'s blessing to return to CT the middle of July where we have been whooping it up, Winsted style, ever since.
4. Season tickets to Six Flags have proven a very worthy Christmas present. Susie can't swim or ride the worst, er, best, rides, but she is a good sport and finds many things she can do there. We attended the Mitchell Musso concert there last week--(he is a co-star of Hannah Montanna...cute teeny bopper dude) it was cute. Scott and I embarrassed Susie and Dan by showing them how to act at a concert. Alannah and Aidan were very glad they were at their Dad's for ten days and missed that!
5. Our home life has kept us very busy in our garden which is 4 times bigger than it was last year. Our garden is churning out a king's bounty on a daily basis. We are having fun keeping up with canning pickles and freezing beans and squash. The kids are master bean pickers. Tomatoes are just starting to overwhelm us (never a problem). The corn is probably going to be ready in a few weeks if we can keep the skunks from knocking it over when they dig for grubs. I guess that is better than Dad's problems with racoons who eat the corn.... ours is just growing lying down on the ground. Other fun things in there: peas, beets, summer squash, winter squash, lima beans, collard greens, hot peppers, sweet peppers and cabbage, rhubarb, onions, leeks and horseradish. The Dr. at my annual appointment said I should take a daily vitamin.... yeah, right! I will eat a fresh tomato every day, thank you!
6. We are still enjoying the fire pit with weekly cookouts and neighborhood s'mores. Neighborhood firework displays are dazzling. The kids have no end of things to do.
7. Vacation Bible School is this week and all four kids are either attending or helping there. I remember loving that as a kid, so I am glad that my kids seem to love it just as much. Susie loves the music, crafts and bible stories. Dan loves the games and snacks. Aidan loves....the counselors. (SIGH!) Alannah has had appointments all week, so today is her first day and she is helping with the 3 and 4 year olds. I bet she will need a nap this afternoon.
8. It will be my (big, scary 40th) birthday in a few weeks, and so far Scott's mom is coming to visit. Scott and I are going to see Tom Petty in concert in Hartford. I think we are going to have some kind of cook out or something... there is a lot of whispering and wheeling and dealing going on.... The big town fireman's field days are that week--a seriously big deal around here. Dan saw the signs with all the pictures of the carnival and events and Scott told him that was my birthday party. It was pretty funny--he has Dan believing that the whole town is invited to my party!
9. I guess that is the most of what is going on. The Summer goes way too fast, even though school here is starting "late" this year--September 1st. It still has flown way by too soon. Alannah starts band camp the week before that--she is joining the color guard. I think that is a great idea!
Hope you are all well and enjoying Summer as much as we are! Stay cool!
We have had a busy and eventful Summer, and I will give you the very briefest of highlights since the furnace guy is coming and then I need to hit the studio:
1. Studio, you ask? I am in the throes of a major Steelers Hoodie production--8 orders due the end of this week. They were supposed to be done and shipped by the end of JUNE, but....
2. Our Summer was majorly interrupted by Susie getting acute appendicitis at Summer Camp in NY. We zoomed down there June 30th to find out Susie's appendix had burst--one of the worst abdominal traumas the surgeon had ever seen. She was in the hospital in Northern PA for ten days. I was basically a refugee for two weeks--thank goodness my parents live near there so the girls could stay there and come back and forth to visit. (I did not, would not, COULD not leave Susie!) Scott ran back and forth taking care of work, the house, the dog and the kids. Mom and Dad provided food, clothing, shelter and cheerleading. And....FRAPPE'S. Yes, there are restorative powers in McDonald's caramel frappes. I've proven it.
Susie was very scary sick, and even needed a second operation to clear up a secondary infection, but now she is ok and doing better each day. (AMEN!) Thank you so much for all of your prayers, cards and words of support.
3. We were given Dr.'s blessing to return to CT the middle of July where we have been whooping it up, Winsted style, ever since.
4. Season tickets to Six Flags have proven a very worthy Christmas present. Susie can't swim or ride the worst, er, best, rides, but she is a good sport and finds many things she can do there. We attended the Mitchell Musso concert there last week--(he is a co-star of Hannah Montanna...cute teeny bopper dude) it was cute. Scott and I embarrassed Susie and Dan by showing them how to act at a concert. Alannah and Aidan were very glad they were at their Dad's for ten days and missed that!
5. Our home life has kept us very busy in our garden which is 4 times bigger than it was last year. Our garden is churning out a king's bounty on a daily basis. We are having fun keeping up with canning pickles and freezing beans and squash. The kids are master bean pickers. Tomatoes are just starting to overwhelm us (never a problem). The corn is probably going to be ready in a few weeks if we can keep the skunks from knocking it over when they dig for grubs. I guess that is better than Dad's problems with racoons who eat the corn.... ours is just growing lying down on the ground. Other fun things in there: peas, beets, summer squash, winter squash, lima beans, collard greens, hot peppers, sweet peppers and cabbage, rhubarb, onions, leeks and horseradish. The Dr. at my annual appointment said I should take a daily vitamin.... yeah, right! I will eat a fresh tomato every day, thank you!
6. We are still enjoying the fire pit with weekly cookouts and neighborhood s'mores. Neighborhood firework displays are dazzling. The kids have no end of things to do.
7. Vacation Bible School is this week and all four kids are either attending or helping there. I remember loving that as a kid, so I am glad that my kids seem to love it just as much. Susie loves the music, crafts and bible stories. Dan loves the games and snacks. Aidan loves....the counselors. (SIGH!) Alannah has had appointments all week, so today is her first day and she is helping with the 3 and 4 year olds. I bet she will need a nap this afternoon.
8. It will be my (big, scary 40th) birthday in a few weeks, and so far Scott's mom is coming to visit. Scott and I are going to see Tom Petty in concert in Hartford. I think we are going to have some kind of cook out or something... there is a lot of whispering and wheeling and dealing going on.... The big town fireman's field days are that week--a seriously big deal around here. Dan saw the signs with all the pictures of the carnival and events and Scott told him that was my birthday party. It was pretty funny--he has Dan believing that the whole town is invited to my party!
9. I guess that is the most of what is going on. The Summer goes way too fast, even though school here is starting "late" this year--September 1st. It still has flown way by too soon. Alannah starts band camp the week before that--she is joining the color guard. I think that is a great idea!
Hope you are all well and enjoying Summer as much as we are! Stay cool!
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