late August...

 August is just zipping by, as it usually does...my garden is waning, many flowers are now turning to interesting seed pods, and I'm still a little mesmerized by these silly little violets, still going strong, that decided to grow not only in the rocks but also in the wood pile.  My mini fairy gardens did so-so...the moss mostly died but the hen & chicks thrived!  And ohh our pretty pipestone plums!!!  The plum tree that we planted a few years ago, mainly for its beautiful spring blossoms, grew plums for the first time this year.  We never really intended to ever get plums since we didn't have another tree to cross-pollinate it with (or whatever its called?)  but something did pollinate it this spring and we've just been starting to enjoy these sweet juicy plums!  A nice late summer surprise!

berry season

Summer seems to be marked and measured, at least in part for me, by the passing of various berry seasons.  Strawberries, gooseberries, raspberries, blueberries, and finally blackberries.  Blackberries being picked the latest near the end of August along the dirt road by the cabin.  The each have their moment.  Their associated memories.  And new memories made each year.  Like the first time Hub and I went strawberry picking together.  Or when I discovered currants and gooseberries on our property.  Various trips hunting for wild blueberries (like the first time we took our brand new baby) and blueberry picking at a nearby farm in the country...this one we just did as a family on Saturday.  The morning was gorgeous, the light beautiful.  We picked the plentiful blueberries with ease and even little Bub got out of the stroller for awhile and began picking and eating too.

And just recently too, a favorite "berry memory" in the making has been afternoons spent picking wild raspberries around our yard with my little Bub.  I hold a tiny bowl, as there is only a handful ripe at a time each day.  My little boy follows closely behind me with baby steps that are getting surer every day.  I'm reminded then of a mama duck with her little ducklings following closely behind.  Every once in awhile he catches up and I grab onto one of his little hands and we walk together, my heart soaring, my mind memorizing this new milestone.  Being able to hold just one hand and walk together, side by side, now that he is more stable on his feet.  He babbles for the tiny red gems in my bowl as I pick them.  I give him one, still soft and warm from the sun.  He walks away from me just a step or two to enjoy it, and then just as quickly he toddles after me calling out "mmm, mummum, mmm, mammma, mmmum!"  Is he calling for more, for mama?  Probably for both as I hand him another and he rewards me with his sweet baby grin.  Pure delight to both of us.  Oh sweet summery, berry days...stay awhile!

on summer lately...

Black raspberry tart, whip cream on anything we can find to put it on (with the iSi whip cream maker, a delicious birthday gift I got a few months back), new gooseberry plants discovered, garden blueberries starting to ripen, my "garden in the woods" flowers blooming, a profusion of pink flowers (this Stonecrop) that I'm really loving, and a sweet little baby boy hanging out with my garden gnomes...that is a little of my summer, lately.

what summer tastes like...

...fresh basil pesto...Saturday smoothies...and later in the summer, if all goes (grows) well...plums!

I made the first batch of pesto this weekend with basil from the garden and it was wonderful smeared across warm, crusty ciabatta slices.  And I thought, this is what summer tastes like to me.  What does summer taste like to you?  Then, I often make smoothies but they taste even better now with a little bit of my fresh strawberry jam for some sweetness.  Little Bub loooves smoothies too so its a great way to get him to eat yogurt and bananas and whatever else I put in them.  And finally, Hub discovered plums growing on our plum tree that we planted a few years ago.  We're so excited!  :)

lazy deer...

I sort of wish I could be a little bit lazy like this deer that was lounging leisurely under the birdhouse this morning.  It's such a rainy, stormy day here and curling up with a book and some tea sounds really nice.  But we have a little baby who is turning one (ONE already, I can't believe it!) and there is SO very much to do.  We're having a big party for him this weekend and I've been having fun planning and making things for it...it's just that actual execution of it all that makes me fret a little bit!  Hopefully the weather will be sunny & lovely and I'll be back with a few photos from the party to share next week!

wild asparagus hunting

I get a little crazy this time of year about finding things to eat in the wild.  I don't know what it is?  So I took little Bub on his first "wild asparagus hunt" to my secret spot that I found a few years back.  We had some success...if you consider 2 stalks success. Not very much to sustain us but still exciting anyhow.  There were more coming up...just too little to pick yet...and some that were just past their picking prime.  Maybe in a few days we'll check back for more!

to catch a butterfly...

 We've been noticing lots of pretty butterflies around lately...like this big Monarch one that's been frequenting our plum tree blossoms.  On Saturday, the sky was so blue, the clouds sparse, and I hopped and danced my way around the tree to catch this one on my camera...it was so lightning fast, flitting around...and I'm sure the neighbors were wondering about me...just a bit.

leap day blizzard...

Yesterday we had a big snowstorm here. The wind was rattling the house and swirling up drifts of snow everywhere...one of our upstairs windows is almost completely covered by a snowdrift now. Hub worked from home which was nice yet a little bit of a tease...I so wanted to ask him to help change some diapers but I knew I shouldn't. ;) I did wait until 5:00 pm to ask him and I did perhaps maybe save one diaper that had been verging on quite wet for just a bit...no harm done to baby, I assure you! My orchids (above) are crying out to be re-potted and I'm wishing I could drop them off at the greenhouse for them to properly do this for me...oh well! I will get around to it one of these days I'm sure.
So long February!

sunny spot

Yesterday morning, on the last morning of January, the sun was coming in so warm and lovely through my kitchen window...the tiny shadows cast from my Baby Tears plant caught my eye...and it felt good to know that we're on to February. This winter hasn't been as brutal up North here as it has been in recent past winters. And I'm excited about the random assortment of bulbs (grape hyacinths, tulips, narcissus) I planted along the side of my house last fall...something I've never done before so I hope they work! I know that it'll still be quite awhile before they will (hopefully!) start to poke through the ground. But on this late winter day, its just a tiny little something I'm looking forward to seeing in the coming months.

winter walk...

On Christmas Day, mum and I set out for a very mild winter walk together...there was no snow to be seen which felt a little odd since our recent past Christmases have been very white. But I don't mind this break from winter. We spotted birds' nests more easily and the low winter sun shimmered off of pinecone laden trees.

baking and other thoughts...

For some reason, I've been doing a lot of baking lately...more than usual, especially with the new baby. Recently I made Chocolate Chip cookies, Ciabatta bread, Apple Pie, Pecan Mandelbrot, and Cinnamon Rolls from scratch. Perhaps its the weather which has been downright chilly, almost wintry at times. Last week we spotted our first snowflakes gathering slightly on the deck. The deer are starting to show their faces again in our woods. And last weekend we caught a glimpse of the long white feet of a snowshoe hare. (Their furry coats turn from brown to all white in the winter.) I did some baking too partly because my mom was up for a visit last week. She came bearing a big bag of freshly picked Haralson apples. We did some tag-team baking which is best when there is a little baby around. I made the crust and streusel topping, she made the apple filling. And perhaps I've been baking more because I'd been reading the latest Amish novel by Beverly Lewis. She is always writing about delicious sounding things they are baking up and I think it soaks into my fiber a little as well. The characters are often sharing these baked goodies with their neighbors and extended family too...which makes me want to do this more often with my neighbors. So banana bread is up next on the baking agenda. (The aging bananas on my counter are dictating this one.)Lately I've been thinking how much I love being a mom too. I think I love it even more than I thought I would. I remember the day I felt thoroughly like I was a real true "mom". It was the Saturday morning that Hub and I took little Bub to get his 3 month photos taken at JCPenney because we had a coupon and then afterwards ran some errands. I picked up some bags of frozen vegetables...something I never used to buy (except for frozen peas because they're best that way) but now I thought they'd be nice to have on hand in a pinch. I don't know...photos at JCPenney and frozen vegetables sounded and felt very "mommy-ish" to me at the time.

Although my baking may have increased lately, my cooking quality sure has fallen a bit...hence the frozen veggies. It's a give and take I guess...where one thing exceeds, something else must give a little!

All for now ~ there's a baby crying!