A new baby

Last Monday evening I finally decided to harvest my plethora of green tomatoes before they were completely obliterated by frost. You can read more about that here.

While I was picking, I noticed a lone cow in the pasture behind me. It was nearly dark, and she was at least 100 yards away, but I could see she had a new baby calf, as she was licking it...

The next morning, before the sun was even up, I went out to feed the dogs (the little beggars were whining at the kitchen window, so I went to feed them so they'd quit bugging me.) I went to make sure they had plenty of water, and the cattle were right at our back fence. Actually, they are usually right at our fence first thing in the morning this fall, so at first I just gave them a glance, felt my typical little bubble of happiness that God blessed me with "my" herd of cattle and headed back to my coffee.

I love having a herd of cattle out my back door. It's really a great scenario. I get to watch them and enjoy their new babies, but I have no responsibility for feeding, vaccinating, or anything...I only have to contend with the flies when they congregate at my fence every evening at 5:30 in the summer. I have no idea why they're on this schedule, but it has made eating on the back deck a virtual impossibility as they bring thousands of flies with them.

However, now it's fall, so they just give me pleasure to watch. As I stood drinking my coffee and looking at them from my kitchen, I noticed some erratic movement. It was the mama cow. She kept chasing a black calf away, and then leading her newborn red calf away...Apparently the little fella had never been weaned before she dropped her next calf.

I wish it would have been light enough to photograph any of this, but I'll give you my personal account....

Mama is calmly grazing amidst the herd. Her newborn calf is doing his funny little leaps that all brand new calves do....I don't know if all of life is just that exciting for them, or if their little legs just aren't quite coordinated, so they occasionally do little hops or what...But it is an adorable sight to see.

Pretty soon a large black calf wanders over and begins to try and get a little smackrel of fresh milk...Imagine the poor little fellas surprise when his nuzzling is met with a sharp kick! Then, to add insult to injury, his mama chases him away!

"Mama? Mama? What's the matter Mama?"

In confusion, he trots after her....Only to be chased away again....

"Mama? I don't understand....Mama, please come back." He is so confused. And so hurt by this seemingly sudden rejection of his overtures...

"Mama?"

With no noticeable concern for her older calf she continues to lead her newborn further away....

*"Mama?"*

And, suddenly seeming to realize that he no longer has a place with his mama, the black calf stands. And watches. And occasionally lets out a small cry....

But he does not approach her. His place is no longer with her....

The weaning of young since I've had my own babies has struck a chord in me. It seemed such a harsh reality the little fella had to face. But, I doubt it would have been any easier for him had the rancher bothered to wean him before the new calf came. The sever still would have been sudden and complete....And of course it is necessary and completely natural.

But it still seems kinda sad.

I guess I'm getting sentimental....


*sigh*


Either that or Aunt Flo is about to drop in again....

Creating more work than is necessary...

A lovely view of the clouds last Monday evening

Studmuffin gave me a little talking to about making my life harder than it needs to be. However, I didn't hear him making those comments as he wolfed down his share of a totally from scratch pumpkin pie, right down to the fresh pumpkin!

So, here's the quick and dirty on my week, but let's skip the quick part because I'm really not so good at that!

It all started with a certain gentleman at our church asking me what committee I'd like to serve on at church...

"I'm already pretty committed on my time..."

"That's what they all say." Okay. I think he was joking...But I wasn't sure, and it took every ounce of my strength not to list every thing I do at the church. I refrained, because here's the deal: when I make a list it sounds really impressive, but the reality is, none of the things I do require huge amounts of time, but they do require faithfulness. So far, I can manage all of the things I do faithfully, but if I add one more thing, I'm not sure how well I could do any of them...

Wait! Let's rewind to last Thursday. I had a message to call the mother's day out director at our church about "something exciting we have going next Thursday." I hesitantly returned her call 2 days later...

"Hi! Sorry I'm slow to call back. I worked Thursday and Friday, and by the time I got around to calling in the evening I thought it was too late."

"Oh! I didn't realized you worked! I was wondering if you could help with our Thanksgiving feast for our MDO program next Thursday."

"No, I'll be at work that day...."

"Well, that's too bad, it's going to be lots of fun. Could you maybe bring a few pumpkin pies?"

And thus, the madness of my week began....

Self-inflicted madness as I could easily have said "no" and she would have been perfectly okay...But the truth is I love to bake. And I have a sin of pride about baking....

I refuse to take short cuts. No break apart cookies or ready made crusts will come out of this house!!! You see, those don't taste as good as from scratch because they are missing a very important ingredient: Love. Of course, I LOVE to bake, so if you HATE to bake, maybe you better stick to convenience...I'd hate to be responsible for baking such a strong emotion right into your cookies!

The problem is, once I get started baking I have a hard time stopping. I made a total of 8 pies totally from scratch this week. That just got my ball rolling faster and faster...

Monday evening's sunset.

I assembled the ingredients for Christmas cappuccino this afternoon, which only takes 5 minutes, but the sugar and caffeine rush sent me on a mad jelly spree....

My darn tomato plants went crazy in October. They barely produced enough for us to eat all summer, and then they decided to produce late in the season when they had no hope of maturing. My mom was here a few weeks ago and took home 2 brown paper sacks of green tomatoes. I told her to take them all. I refused to even look at them....

Then Monday came along, and the evening was beautiful and I made the mistake of wandering to the garden....

Where I saw thousands of green tomatoes waiting to be harvested....

One of my now dying tomato plants after we have already harvest 4 brown bags full of green tomatoes.

So I picked 2 brown paper sacks full....

While Holly kept growling at something in the pasture behind me......

I would hear something walking in the grass. She would growl. I'd stand up to look and I would see nothing....Except the momma cow a hundred yards away licking her brand new baby calf clean....Too, too precious. I have a whole different post on that little scene.

I would resume picking tomatoes (sidebar: we actually had a freeze last week, but apparently not weeding the garden was advantageous in that the grass that grew up around the tomatoes kept the vines along the ground from getting frost...) Pretty soon I'd hear the rustling in the grass, the dog would start to growl, every hair on my body would stand up...I'd stand up and look around. I could see nothing. Of course, you can tell by the pictures I took that evening it was nearly dark when I decided to begin this venture....


Anyway fast forward again to today after I drank 2 cups of cappuccino...

I did a google search on raspberry jelly made from green tomatoes (Mom had told me I could do this.) I looked through some recipes and sort of combined/tweaked them, and decided to plunge in today...




I actually used strawberry jello, as that is what I had in my pantry. I gotta say, it turned out pretty tasty! So, here's my quick and easy recipe for strawberry jam!

Strawberry Jam

5 cups pureed green tomatoes
4 cups granulated sugar
6 oz strawberry gelatin

Combine tomatoes and sugar in a large saucepan. Bring to boil over medium high heat. Cook for about 10 minutes. Stir in gelatin. Let simmer for 20 minutes longer and place in sterilized jars.

This recipe made about 3 pints for me. I expected it to make more .... Not sure why I had less unless the tomatoes cooked down more than I expected...

Here's another tip for you. Instead of using a hot water bath to seal your jars, you can keep your jars hot in the oven on a cookie sheet. Place the lids in a small pan and bring to a boil. Ladle the jam into your jar, place lid, making sure the rim is clean, screw on band and invert jar. You will soon hear a *ping.* This is your lid sealing! Turn jars right side up, and store until you are ready to eat, or share with your friends for Christmas gifts! If some of the jars don't seal, simply store them in your refrigerator and eat them first.

What's for lunch?

I don't know why, but I have not been very organized with my grocery shopping lately. As most of you know, I pride myself on going to the store every 2 weeks. I hit our local Braum's for additional stock ups like milk, bread, fruit, etc. However, lately, I seem to be shortchanging myself on my 2 week plan. I've been running out of even basic food.

For pity sake, I even ran out of popcorn, which is practically a sacrilege in a house where the expected supper for Sunday night is a bowl of popcorn (made in a pan on the stove) cheese slices and apples. I thought the whole family was going to have a meltdown last night!

Studmuffin opened the fridge and said, "We have no food." To which I replied, "Sure we do! It just all requires cooking!" And I promptly proved my Super Mom abilities and made egg on toast sandwiches...Why 3? Well, I only had enough bread for 3 sandwiches, so I settled for chips and salsa. The sacrifices I make for this family... Anyway, I refused to even let anyone have a glass of milk because that would mean I wouldn't have enough for breakfast and I didn't want to go to the store...

Wondering what the strange green substance is in the baggy? It's slime that Bookworm made in GT, and it has to be kept refrigerated to prevent mold growth. So, I have green slime in my refrigerator...

Anyway, this morning nobody had made the sacrifice to go to the store. I had determined to get up and whip up some home made waffles this morning, but I overslept. Consequently, my girls each got one frozen waffle with peanut butter and maple syrup, and a container of yogurt.

I took them to school, came home and did a little housework then headed to my ladies Bible Study group. On the way, I decided I needed a cup of cappuccino. I swung into Sonic, but ended up pulling out because I wasn't sure if their hot flavored coffees were good. You see, I'm gun shy now because I made the error of ordering a latte at McDonald's. I don't know if I ordered my hot caramel latte wrong or what, but it was the most disgusting cup of coffee I ever paid money for in my life. And I was very bitter because I was in a hurry, so I couldn't even turn around, complain and demand a refund. It was like a cup of coffee that simply had steamed milk dumped in, and no sweetness whatsoever, but there was an essence of burnt caramel. Blech. You see, I typically drink coffee black. However, if you put cream in coffee, it simply must have sugar with it. I can't explain it, it just is....

Well, I turned out of Sonic, and headed to the quick stop a block up the street. Don't you just love the cappuccino that comes out of the machines at quick stops? I particularly love the toffee ones... The entire parking lot was full, including every single pump... I pulled right back out, and by this time I was pushing making it to church in time to beat my early bird members. Sadly, I ended up forgoing the cappuccino altogether.

I showed up at church and brewed my standard pot of coffee, no frills added, and explained my tale of woes... My friend Roni said, "Well, that cappuccino just wasn't meant to be."

Excuse me?

It's COLD outside! That means it is time to start treating myself to random cups of cappuccino. The only problem was that I should have brought my homemade cappuccino mix when I left the house so I could share it with my entire group. THAT was the mistake....Not that the coffee was never "meant to be...."

Sheesh....

Does this girl know me AT ALL???? Coffee is always meant to be.

So, I returned to my Mother Hubbard home to prepare a more complete shopping list that will hopefully last me until we get home from Thanksgiving....

Guess what? My refrigerator was still empty. My pantry still only contained cream soups, dry beans and such, and I refused to eat another lunch of banana & peanut butter which is what I eat at least 4 times a week for lunch, or even a bowl of oatmeal...

I decided to get creative and I came up with this:



I had 2 slices of thin sliced turkey breast and about 1/4 c of shredded cheddar in my fridge. Plus, I had a box of whole wheat crackers. I placed the turkey and cheese on a cracker and popped them in the oven to warm it through. Then, I went to my garage where I have a stash of tomatoes I'm ripening (yellow, obviously) and sliced them to place on the cracker.

The result was so delicious, satisfying, and special tasting I had to share it with you!

Now, in hindsight some fresh basil added to it would have made it, even more special. And placing the delightful entree on one of my multiple lovely plates would have made it more appealing. But that would have required me to stop shoving my face full of them, and that would have required dirtying another plate, and I decided this was a blog worthy meal after I had already started... So, the photo you see is on a white scratched up plate...

And, can anyone PLEASE, PLEASE tell me why white plates get such terrible etching?

MY Mop Bucket: A Rant

The mop bucket is MY mop bucket. If you actually use the mop or ever get the random impulse to clean a floor I would be more than happy to share my mop bucket with you. However, as I am the only one in this house who mops the floor 99% of the time, I will continue to claim the mop bucket as mine.

It is not the pool chemical bucket, and should not be used as such. There are at least 4 empty chlorine buckets that can be used quite handily for mixing pool chemicals. Therefore, I should not have to go searching for MY mop bucket and find it next to the baking soda and chemical strips in the shop. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.

MY mop bucket is not a bucket to wash your car with. Please refer to earlier references to empty chlorine buckets, or better yet, you can even use the lovely lime green bucket that blew into our yard a few months ago. It is a very cute, lightweight lime green bucket, complete with a handy dandy carrying handle...But alas, it is too small for my mop to fit into. Hence, it is not, nor will it ever be MY mop bucket. It will make a lovely car wash bucket for your use. Since there is an adequate supply of buckets for washing your pickup I should not find the mop bucket next to the jug of Nu Finish car cleaner at the back of the garage on the bottom shelf covered by towels and sponges and various other car care paraphernalia. Thank you for your cooperation in this manner.

MY mop bucket is not to be used to haul your toys around the yard with. You have numerous cutesy bags that have been given to you for the sole purpose of carting your treasures around our little corner of the world. Therefore there is no reason for my to find the mop bucket under your swing set. Please understand, it is MY mop bucket, as I am the sole person who mops in the family. Should you wish to take over mopping, I would be glad to share the use of it with you. However, until that time arrives, which will probably about the same time that you start to hang your towels on the rod without being told, or put your dirty socks somewhere besides the middle of the floor, aka when cows jump over the moon, I appreciate your cooperation in keeping MY mop bucket by the back door of the garage where I can easily find it.

MY mop bucket has ONE purpose. It's pretty amazing actually. It serves as a bucket for filling with hot water and a splash of bleach or vinegar...Or if I'm feeling really adventurous and extravagant it may even get a splash of Simple Green. Amazing, I know. Then, after it is filled with hot water and the desired cleaning agent, it is carried to a hard floor that has just been swept. Then, now hold on, because this is pretty exciting....I put a MOP into MY mop BUCKET and I MOP THE FLOORS!!!

Genius!

Sheer, and utter genius!

So. There you have it. The mop bucket is MY mop bucket.

End of story.

Just when they were about to get broken in...

As I told you yesterday, I ripped the crotch out on my scrub pants. Unfortunately, this was one of only 2 pairs of scrubs I wear to work. We are required to wear navy blue, and the hospital provided 2 pairs, plus I had a pair before I started working there, but they are too big for me, and they sag all over. Consequently, I have worn each of my scrubs a minimum of once a week for over a year, and many weeks I've worn them twice in one week. I had been considering breaking loose and buying a few extra pairs, but yesterday's debacle has pushed that into a must-do tomorrow since I work Thursday and Friday, and I have no desire to wash laundry Thursday night.

I have always kept my pants until they are completely worn out. I had a pair of acid washed jeans in high school that I L-O-V-E-D. I wore them every chance I got. Eventually, they started to wear out, so I changed them to "every day" jeans. I wore them to help Dad build fence, work cattle, etc.

Well, one bright morning we were planning to gather cattle. A family that lived nearby was helping us. We loaded our horses into the trailer and headed out. We arrived at the pasture, checked our cinches and began to mount up. I lifted my left knee and it ripped out. "Well darn," I thought to myself, "I hope I don't rub a sore on my knee." (I never wore chaps in my life.) I continued to mount, and just as I swung my right leg over the saddle. A horrible ripping sound filled the air, and I felt a distinct cool sensation across my backside. I had ripped the entire seat out of my pants!

Talk about embarrassed! I was horrified. I remember everyone got a huge laugh at my expense. Well, to say the least, I was no longer concerned about rubbing a raw spot on my knee!

Oops!

I'm sure this will astound all of you...

But I very seldom back down from a challenge, and that has led me into a few pickles.

Tonight the girls had piano lessons. We do lessons at our church, and my dear friend Roni's daughter has lessons just before my kids. Consequently, I try to arrive a few minutes early so we can chat. Not that we don't get to chat it up on Wednesday morning when we help our music pastor get ready for rehearsals and file music for him...Unfortunately, he is constantly asking us to do "stuff" and it totally interferes with our social time. Of course, we have worked out a small solution in the form of lunch out after we're done!

Anyway, back to the topic at hand...Popcorn was doing cartwheels. Endless cartwheels. In fact, she was so wound up, that I said she had to cartwheel all the way to the choir room, in the hopes that she would burn off some of that pent up energy from sitting at a desk all day. Watching her cartwheel led to a discussion of which hand you lead with to cartwheel, and which arm takes the most weight, etc.

Well, I'm not sure how it came about, but Roni had the sheer nerve to suggest that I couldn't do a cartwheel. Can you believe that? I stated that I most certainly can do a cartwheel, to which my beloved friend Roni replied, "But you can't do it in here!" Oh, Dear Reader, she may as well have waved a red flag at a charging bull...

I promptly did the most beautiful cartwheel a 33 year old mother of two can pull off.... Unfortunately, as soon as I had my legs in a perfect arc above my head I heard an ominous sound...

Dear Reader, did you know that polyester scrubs do not give? This is of particular concern when your scrubs are too long in the crotch, and it hangs about halfway down your thighs. Why on earth I thought that my pants would let me do a cartwheel with my legs spread wide I have no idea. Forget that. I wasn't thinking about my pants. I was thinking about thumbing my nose at my friend who dared to say I couldn't do a cartwheel.

However, I think she ended up thumbing her nose at me since I couldn't do anything but hold my fly together when I was done. Luckily I had several safety pins in my purse in case of emergency. Let me tell you, this was an emergency!


Can you believe the length of that rip?

You know it reminded me of a story....

But, I will post that story tomorrow!

Blank

You see, I have nothing to say...

Okay, I have lots to say....

Like the time we nearly sunk our boat...

Or what about the time I told Studmuffin to report me to child protective services because I was an unfit mother?

What about my convictions regarding Halloween and Christianity? That one is not what some of you may expect. Hint: the girls and I were all witches.

Or perhaps I could finally do that post about how to make a perfect egg sandwich. I've only had the pictures for months now....

But, you see the problem is, when I'm sitting down to tell these stories, they're just not flowing...

Who knew I ever had trouble making stories flow?

Anyhoo, please don't give up on me...

I still have lots of great stories for you, I just can't seem to make myself crank them out. Oh! And can you believe I have only turned on my computer twice in the last 2 weeks? Shocking!

Also, I'm battling that sense of overwhelmed lately... I think it's related to the upcoming holidays. The problem is, when I think of cutting things back, I can't let go of any of it. My mom recently asked me if I ever have an entire day at home....Uh, no!

"And do you have a choice about that?"

"No," was my immediate reply.

"You don't?" she asked me.

"Okay! So, I have a choice." And I left for Bible study annoyed at my mother and her voice of reason.... I hate voices of reason.

Consequently, I've had this little voice nagging in my head, "Do I have too many things going on? Do I need to lay off a few activities? Or perhaps, I just need to drink more coffee. After all a measly 2 cups in the morning is not nearly enough. Or perhaps I'm not drinking enough water, and that is affecting my ability to process and see situations clearly. Also, I really need to lay off of the carbs. I've been consuming way too many of those. And, of course, I haven't worked out consistently lately. My initial excuse was illness, but I can no longer play that card...That's it! That will solve all of my problems! More caffeine, but more water too. Less carbs, more protein. More workouts, less naps...*sigh* I feel so much better now that all of my problems are solved."

Then, at Bible study, this statement was made, "God did not call us to do everything, or many things. He called us to do a few things, and to do them well."

Well, piddle.

So. Here I am again, as I am so many seasons, wondering if I'm trying to do too many things. Reality is, I really don't think I'm trying to do too much. I think I just need to quit whining about what I do. After all, everyone is busy... And I want to serve the Lord. I really don't think he called me to a life of leisure.

Although, I always did dream of being a trophy wife...