Mom and me with the really weird squash we bought at the farmers' market

Word of the Day

Tellum - The complete opposite of a mullet; Short in the back, long in the front.

It's been a long and wonderful spring and summer here at The Lake. I've been keeping busy with gardening, cooking, brewing wine, enjoying visits with friends and family, berry picking, jam-making, fishing and canning. I left Arizona, heading to The Lake via Huntsville, Texas and Gretna, Nebraska on April 3rd. I'm leaving The Lake, heading back to Arizona, via Gretna, Nebraska and Huntsville, Texas, on September 29th. My garden needs to hustle because it's time to start thinking about putting The Lake to bed for the winter.

A picture is worth a thousand words so here's a summary of what has happened since the end of March and the last time I blogged.


Welcome Tammy!


Me and Tammy (Picture taken on April 6, 2011)


Celebrating the birth of Tammy


Rocking Out at Home(Picture taken on April 7

My new grand-daughter, Tammy, was born on April 5. I arrived in Lufkin, Texas, checked into my hotel, and headed to the hospital...just in time to see my daughter Sarge before she was rolled into surgery for her c-section delivery. Welcome, Tammy! She weighed in at 7#, 15 oz. and measured 19 and 1/2 inches long/tall. I took a lot of pictures, most of which will be saved until they can be dragged out and shown at some future, really embarrassing moment...for Tammy.


Kylee in Snowy Wisconsin


A Cold Welcome to Wisconsin

I left sunny Texas on April 9th, continuing on my way to The Lake, via Gretna, Nebraska where I enjoyed a short visit with DD Daughter, GI Joe, and grandchildren, Ms. N and Mr. T before continuing on to a not so sunny Wisconsin on April 12th. Thankfully, my road was clear but it was a bit iffy. Lots of snow. Good thing I packed my flannel-lined jeans and had plenty of firewood out in the garage for nightly fireplace fires. Kylee, with her thick coat, loved the cold. Me? Not so much.


Enjoying the Warmth of May


New Garden Support for the Raspberries


Hidden Support for a Rickety Old Split Rail Fence

As soon as the frost was out of the ground, I got busy with getting my flower gardens rejuvenated with a fresh layer of bark mulch, cutting back my raspberry bushes, stabilizing my slit-rail fence by the driveway, and adding some much needed support for raspberry canes near the garage. My Dad was a huge help with the fencing projects. Dad has been a great help this summer. He also helped me fix a torn screen door, adding a screen guard to protect it in the future from little fingers and sharp claws, and helping me fix the door out to my back deck which was de-laminating.


#1 Son and Girlfriend

Although I wasn't able to get the dock and boats in before the opener of fishing season, I did end up getting everything in by the following weekend. My son and his girlfriend have enjoyed using the boat a few times this spring and summer.


Three Sister Garden Experiment


Tomatoes


Deck Garden


Kylee and the Chipmunk


Waiting While May Gardens Grow

I got all my gardens planted by Memorial Day. Unfortunately, we got some late summer frost so I had to drag out sheets to cover things so they wouldn't freeze. this year I decided to experiment in my kennel garden with a Three Sister method of planting. Corn, pole beans and squash. At the ending of this summer, I can say that this experiment wasn't all that successful. The chipmunks kept digging out the corn and bean seed. I ended up trapping and transporting eleven chipmunks. As I couldn't tell if I was trapping the same two chipmunks over and over again, I decided to mark them with fluorescent paint before releasing them. Since I haven't seen and orange fluorescent chipmunks running around my yard, I've decided that there were just a bumper crop of chipmunks this year. My apologies to those poor people who have spotted weirdly marked chipmunks to their yards and have wondered if they might have been drinking too much. Aside from chipmunks, the corn kept toppling over so I ended up having to bring in supports, the pole beans went crazy and tried to choke out the corn, the squash kept producing male blossoms (which I enjoyed eating)and very few squash, and the corn doesn't really look like it will produce viable corn for eating. I also experimented with growing sugar snap peas and okra in my Earthboxes. Again, I don't think I'll repeat this experiment...or...I'll try again but keep Kylee off my deck. I had trouble getting the peas and okra to sprout in the Earthboxes, so I ended up having to replant. And then, Kylee ate the pea plants out of two of my Earthboxes. I ended up replanting yet again with Asian beans...which are producing, finally. The sugar snap peas that did survive in two my Earthboxes produced nicely so...maybe I'll try again next year. As for the okra, only four plants made it out of sixteen and those four haven't produced anything as yet. It definitely wasn't worth the effort or space in an Earthbox. As for my tomato plants. Despite the continuing problems with the dreaded blight, I've been canning V-8 to bring to Sarge for her step-daughter and I'll be canning diced tomatoes to keep here and bring to Arizona.


Father's Day at Carol's Place

We celebrated Father's Day at Sis' place and enjoyed a nice game of 500 Rummy afterwards. This was our first session of dinner and games for the summer. We've really enjoyed these nights with my folks. Sis and I have traded off on hosting our dinner and a game nights. 500 Rummy, Monopoly, and Fan Tan. Lots of fun.


Wild Oyster Mushrooms

The wild oyster mushrooms benefited from our June rains. Sis called me and told me to get my butt over to her neck of the woods because they were growing EVERYWHERE! So, I got over there and I picked 20# of these wonderful oyster mushrooms. I fried them up and froze them. They really taste great in chicken marsala. Yummm! I'll be bringing some home with me when I return to Arizona.


Pinot Grigio


Bottling Shiraz


Dad Helped with the Labels

Sis and I decided to leave off making our traditional summer wines in favor of making a couple of kit wines this summer. We made a really nice Pinot Grigio and a VERY nice Shiraz. Very tasty.


Happy Early 4th of July!


Enjoying the Buffet





DD Daughter and Tammy


Mr. T loved the beans Sis made


Sis and her Hubby


#1 Son and His Girlfriend


Sis and Tammy


HTP


Great-Grandma and Tammy


Froggy and Mr. T


Poor Ms. En


Hospital Bear


A Smiling Ms. En, enjoying the fireworks

Tom flew in from Arizona on July 2nd to spend a couple of weeks up here at The Lake. Sarge and Tammy flew in from Texas on July 2nd to spend three weeks with me here at The Lake. #1 Son and his girlfriend helped by picking everyone up at the airport. I drove to The Big City to help transport everyone to The Lake. Meanwhile DD Daughter, GI Joe and Ms. En and Mr. T drove up from Nebraska to spend one week with us here at The Lake. We had a FULL HOUSE! How wonderful to have the entire family here at The Lake! We missed D Buddy but maybe he'll be able to join us next summer.

We celebrated our Nation's birth on July 3rd with friends and family. I set up two additional tables out on our deck with much needed umbrellas to protect from the sun. Even with the additional tables, some of us had to eat inside. I'm glad Sis and her friends were able to help out. The celebration started on July 3rd and finally wound down in the early hours of July 4th with a second meal of leftovers. We had brats, beans, salad, and dessert. Poor Ms. En had a run-in with a sparkler that sent her to the emergency room with some nasty burns. A hospital bear that the nurses gave her made her feel lots better. We all felt so bad for her but she was smiling by the end of day, enjoying the fireworks that #1 Son and his girlfriend, Sarge, and my nephew Luke set off from the dock.


Getting together with HTP's Sis at a Chinese Buffet


Italian Family Reunion in The Big City


HTP and Tammy


Brunch at The Bluehills Supper Club


Eating at The Mall of America


Tammy is Worn out at The Mall of America

With very little time with the entire family, it was hard to fit everything in that we wanted to do, but we tried. All too soon it was time to say goodbye to family. #1 Son and his girlfriend left on July 5th but came back to drive HTP to the airport on the 17th. DD Daughter, GI Joe, Ms. En and Mr. T headed home on July 9th after an Italian family reunion in The Big City. HTP headed home on July 17th after a traditional family brunch at The Bluehills Supper Club. Sarge and Tammy headed home on July 21st but not before we had to make an obligatory trip to The Mall of America. It was sad to see everyone go. So quiet.


Kylee and the Crawfish


Yummm! Crawfish!

Kylee has been fascinated with my crayfish trapping. Here at The Lake, crayfish trapping is bountiful during the hot summer months. Unfortunately, I haven't spent too much time out on the lake doing any fishing so I've run out of bait for my traps. Maybe next time #1 Son and his girlfriend will find the time to come up to spend one more weekend up here before I head on back to Arizona. However, the weather is starting to cool off along with the water temperatures. Crayfish trapping needs warm temperatures.


Beaning Mom with One Weird Squash

In August my folks and I visited the farmers' market in the city. I picked up enough cucumbers and dill to make twelve quarts of dill pickles and one really strange Asian squash that tastes much like zucchini.

One of my best friends, her husband and daughter came to visit for a weekend. My friend wanted me to plan lots of activities for her husband to take care of while they were here....so I did. However, while they were here, her poor husband helped me replace the boards on my dock bench and then he had to go swimming when the drill battery fell into the lake. Yes, he was able to retrieve the battery. He re-nailed in some siding that was drooping and he replaced my kitchen faucet with a brand new one that works far better than my old one. I'll have to see if I can figure out more projects for next summer.

Unfortunately, none of us thought to take pictures during their visit, but, we picked blackberries, enjoyed the last of the summer raspberries, made ratatouille from the first of my eggplant, enjoyed brats on the grill, steaks on the grill, and sampled the Pinot Grigio and Shiraz wine that Sis and I bottled earlier in the summer. Good times.


Marigolds

And so, on this last day of August, I posted a final picture of the marigolds that I planted from seed at the end of June. It's a perfect day for blogging. Last night it rained and it's still drippy and dreary outside. I'd planned to go out berry picking but it's just too wet outside today. Tomorrow is another day.

Tomorrow? In July, Mom had cataract surgery on her left eye. Tomorrow I'll be heading to the city with my folks so my Mom can consult her doctor for getting cataract surgery on her right eye. Summer is winding down but there's much that still needs doing.

Random Thought of the Day

Why are the little styrofoam pieces called peanuts?

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

Do not fear to be eccentric in opinion, for every opinion now accepted was once eccentric.

- Bertrand Russell (1872 - 1970)