New house

The last three weeks we have slowly been arranging and unpacking our things in the house across the street from where we once lived.  This was the grandparents home and it is now ours.  We sold our house as is and got enough to pay off the mortgage and just a tiny bit more.  The week our house sold, I got laid off from my wonderful paying full time job with a major company.  I did receive a good severance package and great references to a couple of agencies.  One has already called me, but I explained that the house had sold and I needed some time to get myself together.  She understood completely.  Looks like it may take one more week to get myself arranged and then I will to in for an appointment.  Erin and I have talked about opening an Etsy shop as well.  We have bounced a few ideas back and forth and I imagine it will be a sewing centered shop.  Napkins, tablecloths, some simple dresses and aprons to start.  Since I used to sew professionally, I already own a serger and two sewing machines.  I sill have bolts of fabric that can be used.  I am going to teach Ashlee and Erin to sew and we will be on our way.  Technically I could retire at this point, but my social security would be reduced forever if I did.  So, I will continue doing at least something.

Today we planted tomatoes in large pots.  I have laid out my plan for the new garden and I have seeds.

quote.

It is easier to raise strong children than it is to repair broken men.

hmm

There is no going back......you can only move forward.  A phrase from a movie I watched tonight but relevant.

In the last 10 years I have evolved.  A more colorful and vibrant in your face me I guess.

November

It is November and it is snowing in Tulsa.  They say we will not get much and we will be having a warm up next week finally.  You can tell it is November in another way.  The city is once again starting to dig up people's yards and replace pipe for new water lines and I think AT&T cable.  I just can't  understand why they always do it in the winter.  Mud for the holidays once again.

Built a house for the outdoor cat to stay warm in this winter and a couple of weeks later I made one out of a tote and some Styrofoam for the stray cat.  My cat can't make up his mind which one he likes best.

stuff

Have been meaning to get back on here and write about a couple of things recently.

First off, I understand that the past election had one of the smallest turnouts in history......tsk,,,tsk...shame on those of you that did not vote.  I went through the grocery check out line Tuesday evening with my daughter and asked the clerk if she had voted..she is a older lady like me and she quite truthfully replied that no, she did not vote because she did not see any point in it, she knew her side would lose.  Of course this is the state of Oklahoma, idiot conservative, not climate change believing twits but I understood how she felt.  The point is that if all of those people that think there is really no point in voting were to actually go and vote we might change some things.  Think about it.

Second, I just read a facebook post about the Air Force using a training manual from DOD that says that farmers and people that grow their own food are considered as undesirable, terrorist almost from what I was reading.  Now I descend from a very long line of farmers that I can actually trace back to the 1600's so this is not going to sit well at my house.  When they come to raze my garden I will meet them with a broom and claim witches right to my magical garden because it is part of my religion......thank you Hobby Lobby for something at least.

Most likely will be moving in the spring to the house across the street, a grand adventure for all.

Most of my off time is spent in the garden or doing yard work these days.  During the summer my housework suffers severely.  But I think I will have time to make peasant bread today.  It is a wonderful no knead bread that I found at "Alexandria's kitchen" blog.

Mowed the backyard and filled up the dog pool for Molly this morning.  Found my first ripe tomato....  one of the Goliath's.  I have half a dozen cucumbers ready to pick as well, and there are new potatoes under the volunteer potato vines.  I finally pulled the lettuce, spinach and broccoli out as it is finally too hot for them anymore.  Planted carrots to begin the summer season.  I am over whelmed with green beans also.  I may have to start canning them.

I have the materials to make a great trellis if I can just decide where I want it and I have started using wood chips as mulch this year.

Tomatoes

Looks like this one will be ripe in about a week.  I planted 5 kinds of tomatoes this year.  The one pictured is a Super Fantastic which is a hybrid variety.  I also planted Goliath (heirloom) and Red Beefsteak (heirloom) Sweet Cherry 100  (garden favorite for me) and Celebrity, which is a bush tomato which I will never grow again regardless of how well it does.  I found out Monsanto owns the rights to it, so no matter how good it does or is, this will be it's one and only year.  It has been a fantastic year so far for gardening in Oklahoma.  Have not had to water for the last 3 weeks and things are just shooting up.  Need to mow more than once a week at this point.  The bugs are off schedule too.

Sunday

It's raining again.  At least it is not a downpour like most of our recent rain has been.  Molly is asleep on the floor behind me.  She occasionally makes a dog noise and rolls over.  We brought her in the house this last fall and I don't think the house has been the same since.  Our 4 cats put up with her and  it seems that she has adopted them.  I think I will turn today into a cooking day.  Can't make bread in this kind of weather but macaroons and shortbread cookies would work just fine.

OK, so I was watching Braveheart again tonight.......duh, on my favorites list.  Makes sense now since I joined Ancestry .com.  I did the dna test.  75% from the British Isles, 5% Native American, 2% Irish, we won't talk about the rest.......jewish/oriental.  I have traced my direct maternal line back to 900 AD.....of course my mom is a genealogist so I had a head start but....Adair is Scot/Irish/Cherokee....Starr is British...Childers is British...Fitzgerald is Scot (think Geraldine uprising)  Damn I actually found a Bruce, a Kennedy, an Agnew and a Stuart.

Squash 2014

Still here.  Thought I would post some pictures of this years garden.  The squash is really looking good this year.  It is time to finish off the spinach and probably the lettuce as it is getting too hot for it.  There will be an abundance of tomatoes also.

Hopefully I can get some canning done this summer and try out some new recipes I have found online.  Like the Coconut Oil Chocolate one I  found this week.

These squash plants are called lemon squash and they are an heirloom variety that I have planted for the last several years.

The weather has seemed different this year.  With all the polar vortexes putting off planting time until later and also killing off some of the bug populations it seems.  We have seen some different kinds of bugs and birds this year.  We had a Hawk moth in the backyard this week and wild hemlock sprang up in the backyard as well.

The hemlock has been removed  (with gloves and a plastic bag)  I was afraid that Molly would accidentally get into it.

Curly top

I just lost 3 tomato plants to curly top virus, my lovely Cherokee Purples and a Patio.  I had to bite my lip and rip them from the soil.  I will be shopping for more plants next week.  Other than that I think this garden season is going well 

men in kilts

I have decided that men in kilts are very attractive.  I could say "sexy" but that would make me sexist.  It's almost as if putting on the kilt changes their attitude.  Needless to say, I attended a Scottish flavored wedding last weekend.  Not only were the groomsmen all in kilts and the groom but there were other guests in their clan attire as well.  After the ceremony every kilted man pulled a bottle from within their suit jacket as if by magic.
I understand that the dancing lasted well into the night.  The girls and I left around 9 pm.  I think we will attend the Scottish games this year.

Hey there

It's been a long while since I have posted.  Must I say that I have been very busy?  In a nutshell, I joined Facebook and then deleted it completely, talk about addicting.  Put in a completely new garden and am now in the second year for it and taken sewing back up.  I sewed professionally while the kids were little and then for a little while during Erin's high school years.  Relearning how to thread my serger was a real challenge.  To make it even more daunting is the fact that it is a 5 thread quantum lock with differential settings from the late 90's.  It took me 3 days and I had to download the manual from the Singer website but I finally got it right.  All this to sew a flower girl dress for my granddaughter Brigid.  Now Erin wants a dress and has started finding other odd things to fix.  I guess I better think about re doing the spare bedroom into a workspace.

My country

OK I think I have had enough of the bickering and the crap coming down the tube for the last couple of years. I can say this with complete accuracy and mean it. If you guys can't get along then take your toys and go home because this is my country. You got it, mine. I am the Native American and you are just interlopers here. The Cherokee have always had two villages within the nation. The War village and the Peace village. My ancestors came out of the War village but I bet you already guessed that.

Of course I am just kidding about picking up you stuff and going home. That would be a hoot. Hello Europe here is another half billion people for you. Seriously though can't we all just get along?

September at last

I haven't really kept up with my posts this year as well as I should have. I think perhaps I am coming more to terms with myself as a single person. I hope this brave new world is ready for me.

I vacationed last week and got lots of things done. Most of the roof leaks got fixed. It appears that we have one elusive one that will get tracked down soon. Not bad leaks, understand this is where a room was made from an existing patio with a low slanting roof added. I trimmed all the hedges and I trim by hand the old fashioned way. I have exactly 4 holly bushes left to do. Moved the dogs to the other side of the yard and I'm hoping that they will like it on this side of the fence. I will make a new garden with raised beds on the other side over the winter. I promise to take pictures. I will try to transplant my chives and rosemary and also take a stab at moving the asparagus, surely it can be moved. The lavender will also get moved.

Cold front

At last it is beginning to cool off a bit. I call the lower 90's cooler, I don't know about anyone else.
It has been an interesting summer. Some insights into other people, some reconnections, some learning experiences; all in all a good season. It will soon be fall and with it I will turn back to my knitting. Everyone is getting socks for Christmas. This should be fun.

Summer

Excessive heat warning for today. I wonder how long this spell of weather will last.

hoop de hoop

OK 3 weeks in to the hoop spinning. I have lost 2 lbs and 1/2 inch on my waist. I am getting faster at it as well. 10 min. twice a day for me at this. Now I am not a large person but at my age I was getting thicker through the middle and I was not happy about it. You truly have to know me to understand that when I get pissy i take care of things. I refuse to move up another jean size. I will remain a size 8 until I can fit into my size 6 again.

the hoop

I have purchased a fitness hoop. Yes it is a hula hoop, only larger and heavier. I bought it over at Amazing Hoops here in town. I had been looking at hoops online and even tried a couple of times to make my own with the irrigation tubing that they talk about online, which was a total bust but I only spent $12.00 on the venture and still have the tubing. I can make smaller arm hoops with the tubing I think. Later I may even be able to use the tubing for larger hoops (after I get better at this).

milk for the fairies

Yep, tonight is moving night. If you by chance see the little folk wandering by or wonder why your dog is barking more tonight than normal, then you are forewarned. Put out a bowl of milk for them to drink and perhaps they will pass you by this night. They move twice yearly. Walpurgis Neicht and Halloween. They will like it even more if you put a cap full of irish whiskey in it.