Sunday Happy

Because sometime you leave the gym and get stuck in traffic because hundreds of Santas are running down the street. 

The week started off with Sophia's unicorn themed birthday party. I made the cake which was devoted because chocolate chococate chocolate covered in chocolate is a very desirable cake. Sure it was great to celebrate So and all, but the greatest part about her party was the inspiration. Shannon and I have decided that we are gong to make a magical life guide / nose to tale cookbook of unicorns. Life advice of how to live with and eat a mythical creature. And of course sell it at Urban Outfitters because were else to you sell shit like that . HA ha. 

After that party things were pretty basic. Some work here and there, more paperwork, talking to accountants, health insurance bullshit. (BULLSHIT!!!!) The end of the year is creeping up fast and I am trying not to think to hard about it and get overwhelmed. There are more important things like cookies and present making that I need to focus on first. The littles came over for dinner as usual, which is now becoming more of a challenge because every time they come over they no longer like a food that they actually really like. I think they are just trying to drive me crazy but we still all like black beans and green beans so if that is what we eat foe every dinner, then so be it.  Then there was the windy night where the mr's soccer ball was swept away. He has been walking around the neighborhood(we both have)  searching for it, looking under cars, in bushes, asking neighbors, posting on front porch forum. There is suspicion that a kid down the street stole it, ( the mr thinks the kid is jealous of his skills) but we have no proof. I decided that I will wait for a few more day and then it's time, we just need to get a new soccer ball. Little Judah was nice enough to bring over his  ball for them to kick around for the day but the mr needs one right outside the front door at all times. See he had pretty much perfected the rainbow trick and was on his way to being a soccer star, but now the ball is gone. And he is sad and losing his new soccer trick skills by the day so we need to get the guy a new ball fast. It has been a high drama week without it. 

Friday night we had a little birthday party for the mr. It was a grilled cheese and soup  with chocolate chip cookie and strawberry ice cream sandwich party which turned out to be fantastic. I am really starting appreciate simple, easy food to serve people that require little prep time and no oven. People came, people ate, people were mostly happy, and the mr had fun and got new sock. And that was just the kick off of his birthday weekend. Yesterday we went for a drive to where we used to live long ago, went for a little hike. Had some lunch,got some coffee, and just took it easy for the day.

Now today is his actual birthday. No plans yet other then an a really good americano and the traditional lasagna birthday dinner. It's his birthday so we will do as he wishes.  

Happy Birthday my love!!!🎂🎈🎉

Stuff that I read on the internet this week .

-So many good books! I use this list all year to find goo reads. NPR’s Book Concierge. Guide To 2017’s Great Reads

-Can Science Teach Us Something About How To Live? of course it can. 

Scientists Discover Grass Species With Intriguing 'Salt And Vinegar' Chip Flavor

-Yes, It’s Your Parents’ Fault. Validation.

-So yeah, lead is not good so watch out. . Can Your Ceramic Cookware Give You Lead Poisoning?

-What! This is a freaking amazing houseboat. A Dreamy Modern Amsterdam Houseboat

-All the pretty trees.  REAL CHRISTMAS TREES

-Massive Black Hole Reveals When The First Stars Blinked On

- Origami Paper Crane Daily for 1,000 Days These reminded me of the toy fly's the mr ties. 

- I really want this Honeycomb Pan

Pictures from the week

Have a great day!

-C

Sunday Happy

Its December again, and again I find my self being shocked at the fact. But Christmas yeh! I am into it this year, with lots of decorations and xmas music, and baking, and all the fun things that the holiday brings. The one thing that is really getting my goat though is the absence of snow. Where the heck is all the snow! It's been way to warm out and that in itself is diving me crazy so I am just gonna wait, hope for the best, and again fantasize about living in Alaska. (the mr would never have it) 

Not a lot happened this week. Looked at some land, cleaned up the yard some more, but It feels like we have spent more time dealing with people over phone calls and tons of paper work then anything. Shit that needed to be done and did, but now I am starting to think about and dread tax season....It's going to mother f-ing suck. So I am trying  not to think too much about it yet, especially with this new tax plan shit. I mean, what the hell does this mean? I am so confused already.. Blah, stupid taxes.. Other then that, Barb came over for an afternoon of picture taking for her senior picture, which was really funny. I have never experienced senior pictures before (I didn't get mine done) and before our photo shoot, I googled senior photos and what the? Why does everyone want to hug a tree or sit on a railroad track? I wasn't really into that look, but if that was what she wanted (it wasn't what she wanted) We did do a little tree hugging, tall grass squatting, (no rail road tracks though), but in the end I got a good Barb one, one without tree hugging or anything to cheesy, just a big ass smile. A real picture and I love it and hope she loves it too.  Then after that we had tacos with Miley and Judah and went for a small Christmas light drive. We sure d know how to have some good times. 

We got out Christmas tree!!! A drive to the ranger station to get our tag then a drive into the mountains for the hunt. We parked, got out of a car and within 5 minutes found a really good looking tree. Way to easy, we hiked around for an hour, checked out a sweet beaver damn, and got all sorts of scratched up before we went back to the tree we first saw.It really was a nice looking tree. The mr cut it down, threw it on the car, and off we went. Now the tree is in it's stand, covered in lights, and last night we did our traditional popcorn stringing while watching Elf.  I dehydrated some orange and apple slice to hang and dug out the box of ornaments. I told the littles that they could help decorate so I am eating until they come over to finish which is fine with me because honestly I don't mind a very minimally decorated tree. And it's less shit for the cat to kick off. 

Today is little So's birthday! 5 years old already. Her party is tonight and I made the cake but I need to finish frosting and decorating it this afternoon. Chocolate cake with chocolate frosting covered in chocolate chips and chocolate sprinkles with one pink sprinkle on top. The girl knows what  she wants. Other then that, I think I need to spend a little time  getting  myself organized , get my secret Santa present ordered, figure out what to do for the mr, and start planning for the mr's birthday next weekend. And take a nap. What is a Sunday without a nap?

Internet from the week.

-Tonights the night. Dance By The Light Of The 2017 Supermoon: The How And When It was super bright last night too

-The Hardest Bakery Possible': Reinventing The Meaning Of 'Whole Grain 100% whole grain everything. 

-Its that time of year when we need melted chocolate fast. How To Perfectly Melt Chocolate in the Microwave

-This Modern Home has a Climbable, Ladder-less Bookshelf. I would love a book shelf I could climb all over. That just sounds all sorts of fantastic.

-This had better be excellent, but I am sure it will be. Making it. 

-Being a Vegan With Ham-Loving In-laws Is Harder Than It Sounds. Just worry about yourself, not what I am eating.

-These are so amazing. I can't believe they are not photos. Towering Hyperrealistic Cactus Paintings by Lee Kwang-ho

-This is what Miley was looking up when she was suppose to be picking out Christmas music. Shittens Disposable Mitten-shaped Moist Wipes That is my niece. 

-How To Make A Basic Geometric Himmeli Ornament.  These will look good on he tree (spray painted gold of course) . 

-Twitter really doesn't like the White House Christmas decorations. Because they are scary. 

Pictures from the week

Have a great day!

-C

Sunday Happy

I woke up this morning from a dream that I was in process of making those gummy toy things, Creepy Crawlers, but instead of them being made of rubber, I was making then out of cake. And in the dream the theme song for the commercial was playing while I was making these little insect cakes and now I have this weird dream feeling and have the stupid, but catchy theme song stuck in my head. What does this mean? Am I suppose to make a bunch of tiny little insect cakes? Or is it a cry from my child self craving bugs? I don't know, but what I do know is that they should start selling those machines again. Bring back the creepy crawlers!

Feels like the past week was one long day. The mr and I spent a good amount of time outside doing all the outside work that needed to be done. More tree cutting, raking, picking up trash, getting rid of everything. Over the course of doing all this, I cut the shit out of my hands. All my fingers and my palms have cuts and scrapes and gashes and fuck do my hands hurt. Even worse is that after doing and getting all that, we started tiling that bathroom (!!!!) and tiling with cuts all over your hands sucks ass. The mortar just eats away at your skin. Plus I sliced my finger open on a razor while tiling so my hands are garbage and swollen and I will stop bitching now. But back to tile, the bathroom is so close to done. This time next week I will be able to pee downstairs again. It's going to be fantastic. 

Other then work all week, we have had the littles a lot again. Speaking of having songs stuck in my head, I have been letting the kids listen to whatever they want when they are here which is all the newest coolest music(and it's driving me crazy). All week I have been haunted by the new Taylor Swift song. If I hear it for even a second, I get it stuck in my brain and there is will repeat over and over, especially while I am trying to sleep or relax. It has made me slightly crazy. I have now banned the listening of that song in my presence because it is just to much for me to a handle. But other then driving me crazy with crappy music, we have had some pretty good times. We saw a rainbow, talked about what to hand out to trick or treaters (there was talk of ketchup packets, back hair, and painted rocks) and the mr built  death swing in the tree. When we are not busy, they sure do keep us busy. After having them over so much over the past few weeks, I found myself fantasizing about having a Rumba vacuum, which is crazy because I really do not want one. But maybe I do? I don't know.(don't tell the mr because he thinks he wants one)  What I do know is that those kids are messy as shit and that every weekend my cleaning time has gotten a little longer because of the trail of Emerson drool and dirty feet has gotten worse. Maybe I should just wrap the baby in mop heads and have him crawl/clean. But wait, that won't work either because just this past week we got that little gorilla to walk! 10 steps all on his very own, going after an Oreo cookie like a champ.

And then the farm.  This past farm share was the last summer farm share pick up of the year. We got so much good goodies (sweet potatoes that are as big as my head and so much spinach) and I also realized that wearing my overalls down to the farm that people will mistake me as one of the framers (not the first time people mistake me as a farmer... these are life goals) But now the summer share is done and I am a little sad, but not really cause winter share starts in two weeks and I will be munching away on squash, roots, and greens for the months to come. 

Then on Friday we had our pumpkin carving party.. The mr, Megan, Barb, Miley, Sophia, and Judah all carving away. I pre gutted by pumpkin make a cinnamon sugar seed snack and had it all nice and ready to carve. I got a single cut into it when I had to  abandoned it to help all the littles carve theirs. Now the mr has his all nicely carved pumpkin on the porch and mine is just  siting there, waiting to be carved. But carve I did. Then we made pizza, did cartwheels around the block at night, and watched Hocus Pocus while eating/ getting popcorn ALL OVER the house. (Rumba would have been great here) 

I am excited for today. There is no way that I can bare tiling any more today (my hands hurt so much right now) so we are going to wait and finish tomorrow. No, today I am going to plant the trees we bought this week in the front yard. Two little eastern redbuds and then I am going to sit back and watch them grow.  That and maybe repot some house plants. I think I just want to play in dirt all day. And finally carve my pumpkin. Sounds like a good plan to me. 

Internet I looked at this week.

-Currently reading Nomadland and in it one of the woman talks about building her own Earthship. I started looking them up after that because I feel like I should be building one too. 

-To Complain Is to Truly Be Alive. I know so very alive people!

-I don't think it's gonna happen in this house, but someday I want to have cool ass wall paper wall.  DUTCH MASTERS WALLPAPERS

-Is This the Best Way to Wash an Apple? 

-We are shopping for toilets again (How many times in my life am I going to have to say that). What do you think of a black toilet? Definitely not happening in my house, but just thought it was interesting that there are so many choices.

- I bet they listen to more rock and roll too.Frequent Pot Smokers Also Have More Sex, Says Extremely Chill Study

-Wake Up, Sleepy Ikea Shoppers! But I thought that Ikea WANTED people to take naps on the beds. Huh. 

-I initially was ll, this is awesome and I want it, but after thinking about it fora little while, I don't think I would feel comfortable sleeping on it. But it's still cool. This Floating Tent Turns Bodies of Water Into a Campground

-Rooffee,’ the First Coffee for Dogs, Raises Plenty of Questions. My question  is WHY THE FUCK?

-Burn, Mummify, Compost—Different Ways to Treat the Dead. The mr and I just head an interview with the author on NPR and found it very interesting. Now I am trying to figure out what I want to happen to my dead body..... 

Pictures from the week.

Have a great week.

Sunday Happy

Did any of you get a chance to see any of the meteor shower yesterday morning? I did. I woke up at 430, shook the mr awake only for him to fall back asleep, grabbed a blanket and went out to the back yard. (our yard is pitch black at night)  I spent a good forty five minutes with my head tilted up just watching.  I saw a least a dozen if not more meteorites  and wow, it was pretty amazing. I think that from now on I need to start my day with watching the stars, it centered me in a very real way and gave me all sorts of feelings. Just me and the sky. I like the sound of that.

We had a few littles all week long. Miley, Judah, and the baby, Coco. Everyday after school we picked them all up, came home and did the homework, ate all the peanut butter and cinnamon apples and carrots, kept trying to spell dick out of the nick refrigerator magnets, then played in the trees.  One of the days while I was inside getting dinner together, the mr and the two bigger littles were out back in th e giant cedar tree cutting down branches to get ready for the tree house that they are going to build. (No one asked me to help OR whether I thought cutting any of my tree was ok, but you know) So littles all week, Sunday through Friday. But that was just that. We also had a planned birthday party lunch here for Barb and her friends. Chill, bread, ice cream cake, and tandem bike riding. A bunch of 18 year old ladies and their very fancy high heeled shoes. The mr was a little scared and stayed out back playing with his tools while I got to feel like an old lady trying to decipher the language of the cool kids. (I think I did ok) Then that night we took the littles to Barbs field hockey game and watched them play a game that I have to grasp for. All I know was that even though they didn't win, they still played pretty good. That was her actual birthday.The next day the littles didn't have school so we woke them up,  I made the best pancakes ever, grabbed Barb again, and headed to the pumpkin patch. This year the pumpkins at the farm got flooded early in the season so no pumpkin day for this year (so sad) We were left to find a replacement farm to tide us over. We found a cute little farm stand with a good selection of pumpkins (no hay rides) where we each picked out our carving pumpkins for next weeks Hocus Pocus watching and pumpkin carving party . I forgot how difficult is is to pick a pumpkin. You have to consider the size, stem, color, and over all feel. But which one is best? Life decisions right there. We got the pumpkins, feed the littles, and sent them back home to their mother. Wiped out and reeling, we spent the rest of the day running around feeding Megan's cat, cleaning up the house, and restocking the fridge ( the kids ate all the food) 

On the work front, I didn't get much done, It was hard starting any projects because we only could work mornings due to  the children infestation. We did get all the tile for the bathroom which is nice and stacked in a pile on the front porch. No it's not on the floor or the walls where it is suppose to be, but at least we got it so there is that. The mr was out most days (until the littles came over) doing work for a few other people. I got to spend a day one the phone trying to figure out how I had a almost $1800 phone bill then only to figure out after a very frustrating day  that I accidentally paid one of the mortgages to the phone company and that they owed me money. That set me off and I spent another day trying to get my money back so I could actually pay the mortgage (once a place has your money, they do not want to give it back) I also had an eye appointment one morning were I had my eye dilated and was freaking blind for like four hours and was told I am suppose to wear glasses all the time, which I figured, but dang. And now I need to shop for glasses for the eyes on my face and I don't like things on my face and I don't like shopping so suck. But I am going to do it because being able to see better will be kinda nice I think, but I'll let you know.  

Then last night another party. Barb had her birthday party at my house on her birthday, but I guess my mom was feeling extra special toward her youngest of nine  now being an adult and threw her a surprise party. All her family and friends at the old man Eagles Club with a DJ, tons of food and a cash bar (for the adults) Barb though she was on her way to go out to dinner (which she was really excited about) and how she ended up going into the VFW without knowing something was up I have yet to ask, but she was surprised, and happy, and it was all really cute. I got to dance my dance moves (the mr took a video and now has material for blackmail) and got to play ballon chase with all the littles that were there, and snack on the broccoli that no one else was eating. It was all a lot of fun and then I came home and assed  the f out. 

That was one heck of a week. 

Today, oh today is all about the river. The mr and I are packing up food and coffee, a blanket, me a book, him his fishing pole, and off we are going. A calm and quite day outside, away from people is exactly what we need. I love my family but I need a day away from them all. 

Interneting from the week

-Why We Should Be Cooking Like Our Grandmas From scratch and all. 

-It's not gonna happen this year, but a definite for next. KNIT OR TREAT: HOW TO MAKE A (SUPER EASY) GIANT KNIT PUMPKIN FOR HALLOWEEN

-The 36 Questions That Lead to Love Do you believe that answering theses equations brings love? I don't know, but some of the  questions are a little whoa. 

-Sleep Scientist Warns Against Walking Through Life 'In An Underslept State' Heed the warning...get your shut eye!

-This is happening and it's kind of crazy. Should College Professors Give 'Tech Breaks' In Class?

I have used youtube to learn a few things, like knitting and I think that is actually it, but still. But at least young adults are trying to figure out how to do things for themselves, even if it means watching youtube. Without YouTube Videos, Young Adults Now Lack Even Basic Life Skills

-Want to Escape to the Wilderness? This Job Comes With a Colorado CabinTwo years living in the woods, sign me up!

-These Are The 6 Types of Minimalists. Which One Are You?  I am  a sustainable- thrifty minimalist.

-His Dark Materials are without a doubt one of my top two favorite books (I know its a trilogy, but I count them as one) And now a new trilogy!!! The first book came out this week and I am picking up my copy this week. With ‘La Belle Sauvage,’ Philip Pullman Begins a New Trilogy

-BEST OF: COLORFULLY PARISIAN.I love the floors.

Lots of kiddo pictures from the week

Sunday Happy

The other day I went into my closet and spent a few minutes refreshing my mind on all of my sweaters and socks, just so I know what I still have going on for warmth. I have even been wearing a few of those sweaters and socks in the mornings. I grab a sweater, a throw blanket, a book, and go sit on the front porch, with coffee of course, and watch the sun come up. I know it's still summer and all and we always get a hot week or two come September but this cool weather has been just the shit and I am loving every minute of it.

This week has been pretty mellow. My gym closed for the week so my daily routines have been all kinds of fucked up. If you know me well enough you know that if I don't go to the gym or get a really good bought of exercise in my day, I am kind of a crazy ball of crazy. So that has thrown me off a bit but bike rides, kayaking, internet yoga, and just running around has kept me from going completely nuts. Then there was eclipses day. The mr and I spent the afternoon playing by the river, him fishing, me picking up rocks and just soaking up all the crazy vibes coming down on us and casting weird shadows. Very cool and now I am very excited for 2024 (total eclipses right here in VT) We had the little's for a day and we (more me) decided we needed to have a fire in the yard so we could roast marshmallows. I didn't have graham crackers for s'mores but give a kid a bowl of chocolate chips and sprinkles for dipping gooey marshmallows and they are all good. The garden and farm, if you didn't read my previous post, are giving out whatever they got, which is a hole heck of a lot. The goldenrod is in it's prime, and the mosquitoes are only really out at night. Ah, all the good and it's really really good.

And bees. We got a new hive this week from one of the mr's friends. Not a large colony but looking healthy and happy here with us so now we have to get the new ladies ready for winter. 

Today the mr and I are looking to get a few more things done around the house. The mr is making furniture out back, I am attempting to fold an origami type lamp shade situation for the dinning room light fixture (it's the last light fixture we need in the house!) and probably going to spend a good chunk of time with garden and yard work. There are two very lovely little pine trees planted right in the middle of the yard and I have been doing some research and think I might be able to move them more to the back of the yard. So I might start that process today, we shall see

What I spent time looking at on the internet.

-Didn't get to see the eclipse or excited for more? Here is a list of eclipses and all the info you need to see them for the next twelve years.

-Harvesting Salt By Hand Is Making A Comeback In France. Pretty cool.

-A lot can be said in (or on) a cake. This Buttercream Kills Fascists

-To Get Calcium, Navajos Burn Juniper Branches To Eat The Ash. I take calcium supplements, maybe I should try this.

-There is still plenty of summer left. How to Make Ice Cream Without Dairy

-The mr wants a house boat. I could live in this house boat.    

-It's all about balance and enjoying life. How to Have Your Health Food and Love It, Too.

-See the Most Colorful Places on Earth. It's amazing to see so much color in nature.

-“Crown Shyness” Where Trees Avoid Touching

-This could be really good for a lot of people. A New Clinical Trial Shows Potential Long-Term Relief From Peanut Allergies

And pictures from the week.

Bye

-C