Well! An Update!

Shocking, I know, but here I am after 4 months.  I still think about writing very often, but either exhaustion or other priorities trump me getting here.

(This is NOT a complaint as it simply has to be right now, but) my life is not my own these days.  The beautiful mama of the family I'm working for is not doing well with her cancer treatment.  She's been working SO hard - especially on the restrictive diet that the alternative treatment requires - and so it was heart-breaking to hear the results of the most recent scan.  I'm not sure what the next steps will be, but I hope - for her sake - that a new diet plan (should they choose that) will allow her a little more leeway and enjoyment!  She did splurge the morning after receiving the news and had a blueberry muffin that she said "tasted like Heaven and was the best blueberry muffin I've ever had"!  And her not having eaten any sweets, sugar or refined flour in 8 months . . . I can only imagine!!  :)

Bundle of Joy turned five in December, and she's a very mature 5 years old!  She's not on the best of terms with Bopee (yours truly) right now, though, which breaks my heart and has me questioning (in my weak, knee-jerk reaction moments) what I may have done.  But, once my brain kicks in over my heart, I totally understand where she's coming from:  the biggest reason for her seeming resentment of me is, I know, the attention I have to give the twins (and, therefore, not give her).

They are just over 17 months old now and still require 90% of my time.  And, even though I TRY to make time for just her and me (generally when the twins go down for their nap), invariably something comes up that I have to do, and she is - once again - disappointed and frustrated.  And, then, of course, there's the I-can't-imagine-WHAT horrors/fears/whathaveyou going through her little brain about her mama.  She sees Mama weak and sick some times or wearing bandages from surgeries, she hasn't had her normal time with Mama in these past 8 months, she sees her daddy scared and/or frustrated as a result, etc., etc.  It's just awful.  I can only hope with all my heart that, when she's grown up or even an adolescent, these memories (of the bad times and anxiety) will quickly fade.  All that said, she's really doing VERY well.  Considering!

The twins are a hoot, though, and - aside from the recent and occasional tantrums that the Little Man is throwing - doing oh, so well.  He's always been more "sensitive" to what is going on around him and so he, unconsciously, tunes into whatever vibe might be pervasive on any given day or hour.

They both have the majority of their teeth in now - the Little Lady busts 'em through like nobody's business and really handles the pain and discomfort like a champ!  She's just very laid-back - about pretty much everything!  (Unless you have to wake her up early from a nap for some reason!)  Sensitive Little Man seems to struggle through every tooth pushing through - especially those nasty molars.  But, I just think how WE, as adults, would handle such physical torture!  I'm sure we'd all be medicated up the ying-yang and flat on our backs!  ;)

They are both gabbling up a storm now - absolutely sure of what they're saying . . . although WE have no clue what that is!  Little Man started out with "bahh" for ball a couple of months ago and now he's up to "Bapah" for Bopee, and "uh!" for up.  ;)  His auntie, who covered the nights last week when Mama & Daddy were away for the medical appointments, greeted me with the news one morning that he'd strung 3 words together into a sentence!  I don't remember what it was, exactly, but it was something like "I drink milk!" when he'd finished his morning sippy cup.  I'm sure it came out something like "Ah dingh milh!"  :) 

Their mama was brilliant in teaching them sign language early, and I think this is KEY in communicating with babies who don't yet have verbal language skills.  We regularly use "more" (mostly for food), "please", and "all done" (eating).  It helps SO much!

We rather purposefully haven't taught them "no", so we have yet to hear this come out of their wee mouths . . . which is a blessing because, I know that once they DO learn it, we're going to hear a lot of it!

We had little real winter this year, and so, since spring has come early, we're often playing out on the deck in the mid-afternoon sun.  And, they HATE coming back inside!  Especially the Little Lady!  She hangs onto whatever she can and loudly OBJECTS when it's time to head back in.  :)

Speaking of the weather, look at what we're to expect this week:

YUCK!  We *do* need the moisture as we didn't get the regular amount of snow this winter, but . . . ugh.  So much for afternoons on the deck!

Excellent backing-up form!  ;)  This is the Little Man.  It was so warm on the deck on Friday that I was worried he'd get his fair little head burned.  We haven't pulled summer clothes out yet, so he didn't have any sun hats available.  And, since I was folding laundry out there while watching them and happened upon this t-towel . . . I made it into a handkerchief for him to wear!  ;)

They both feed themselves almost completely one their own, and here is a fun shot of the Little Man playing with his soup spoon.  He is absolutely a character and loves to be silly!

Bellied up to the bar:  I gave them popcorn the other day, and they MUCH enjoyed this over their organic mac & cheese with peas.  Note to Bopee:  food first, popcorn AFTER!  Little Man looks bigger here, but they're actually pretty much exactly the same height.  I think he will be stockier like his dad while she will be thin and willowy like her mom's side of the family.

Little Lady, waking up early from nap time, brought all the blankies and soft toys over to their dog and proceeded to (try to) cover her with them. 

Then, she sat down and pulled L's ear up to inspect inside.  :)  L is SUCH a good example of a Pit Bull mix who should help break all the awful stereotypes!

I talked Mama Pea into putting down her garden plans and come out for a visit last week.  Little Lady was very happy about it and passed right out in her arms.

Yogurt kisses / fish mouth!  He is hardly EVER this messy when eating, but I was letting him play with his almost empty bowl.  I couldn't get the camera out in time to snap a photo when he was wearing the bowl on his head!  ;)

Smiley Little Lady.

Tucker, who just turned 9, got his spring haircut a week ago, and now that I can see what size he really was under all that hair, guess who's on a diet?!

I had fun with this recent picture of Bundle of Joy and her little brother.  :)

I love this picture of Mama snuggling with her little man.  :)  She'd been watching something on her DVD player and he - who hardly ever sees TV - was enthralled, as you can see!

Bundle of Joy's daddy's favorite cookies are Peanut Butter, and since she wanted to make them the other day, we suited up and got down to business!  It was a nice treat for him when he got home.

The Little Lady LOVED her first-ever sip of apple juice that big sister Bundle of Joy shared with her!

My days off - which are generally the weekends although that also changes week to week depending on what's going on - are usually spent in a cocoon of as much isolation as I can get in plus work around my (as usual) disaster of a wee cabin.  I house and dog/cat-sat about a week ago, and it was SO much easier to eat properly just having, especially, the space to prepare food and work . . . but running water also made it nice.  I'm usually flat-out exhausted each work night and have no oomph to get anything DONE around here, so - since today is a rainy, inside day - I'm going to continue to work on getting things more organized and useable.

Yesterday was GORGEOUS, and I got quite a bit of outside work done - primarily cleaning out the chicken coop and doing a good bit of chainsawing, wood stacking, and cleaning up the yard.  (I sure can feel that chainsawing in the ol' bod' today!)

I'll leave you with this picture - I only tapped one birch tree this year, but it's started producing NICELY!  This is a half-gallon jar pictured below that I empty each night.  I was hoping to start boiling the sap today, but - since that needs to be done outside and today's weather is NOT conducive - it ain't gonna happen. 

May your sap flow sweetly!

Thanks for hangin' in there with me!

:)  XO - Chicken Mama

Nuthin' Much

Good morning!  I feel like I should post, but I ain't got much (of interest) to write about!  

I'm doing a bit more nannying this month than usual (cash in the pocket & kiddo time for me - double bonus!).  I was at Bundle of Joy's house for 13 hours on Saturday and had a really wonderful time.  Matter of fact, at the end of the night, I told her mama that I thought it was the most enjoyable visit I'd EVER had there!  :)

That morning, My Girl (Bundle of Joy's auntie) came out and we had a much-overdue, great visit.  Then, once she'd left to get on with her day, I got all the (Papa Pea's birthday) dinner prep done during the rest of Bundle of Joy's long, 3-hour nap.  Made four pounds of bison into two DELISH "buffaloafs" (ha!) with all the added, good fixins.  Got my recipe for Deluxe Mashed Potatoes all made up, too:  the entirety of one all ready in a casserole dish and the potatoes cooked and ready for me to throw in the last ingredients when I was back at home for the other.


I love nannying in homes in which I feel comfortable enough to and am invited to cook or bake or putz.  It's a joy to have the mama come home after a hard day working outside the home to discover dinner ready to go into the oven!  :)  And, that's just what Bundle of Joy's family and I did that night, plus one dinner guest who'd come to work on the daddy's dump truck with him.  It felt like a real "midwinter" meal:  buffaloaf with gravy (the mama made that, thank you!), deluxe mashed potatoes, and al dente broccoli with lots of butter.  After dinner, while the dad & visiting mechanic were outside working until it got too dark to see (suddenly SO early in the evening - 8:30 and it's pretty much dark out already!), the mama and I got Bundle of Joy to bed and then just sat and visited.  No pressures to speak until something popped into mind . . . so relaxing . . . the BEST kind of friendship!

Here's Bundle of Joy when she woke up from her nap.  We were outside with the doggies (her one and my two).  There's a white raspberry bush just off the deck, and she LOVES to stand there and eat!  :)

At 20 months old, she's FINALLY getting a little hair . . . but she's also getting LONG & TALL, I noticed!

Even though she can't talk yet more than single words (no stringing them together yet), she IS very excited about potty training!  I'm very proud of her:  she and Bopee shared a lot of quality time - and EACH visit successful! - in the bathroom that day.  ;)

Bundle of Joy's daddy is making the long driveway to their new house-to-be site his focus of the summer.  He took the little one and me all the way to the top on the 4-wheeler earlier in the day, but I didn't have my camera with me.  But, WHAT a view of the lake - even in the summertime with the leaves in full flush!  That is gonna be an AMAZING spot to build a house!  Before dinner, I took the dogs about halfway up the driveway on a walk.  Pretty nice, eh?

Of course, Maisy wanted me to throw her a rock.  I'm trying to train her to only ask for tennis balls to be thrown, but when we're away from home, that's hard to do.

On the way home that night, I came up over a small rise in the road to see something gross, black and shiny, and . . . bloated? . . . on the road that I had to swerve around.  There was a little trail, too, where you could tell it had rolled across the road.  I immediately put on the brakes to go back to investigate . . . but then the 10 PM black night plus my current murder mystery audio book and my imagination got the better of me and I quickly continued on home!  ;)

I was looking forward to checking it out on Sunday morning when I drove out, but, of course, there was no sign of it.  In retrospect, I'm sure it was something from the Master Baiters.  Yup, they're back:  bear hunters.  I've said it each year, and I'll say it again:  hunting an animal that you have to LURE to a site and then wait for it there so you can shoot 'em like fish in a barrel (except EASIER) ain't hunting.  Whatever happened to TRACKING like you do for deer?  It bugs the *#@! out of me.  So, I call these "hunters" Master Baiters.  Get it?  ;)  Baiting starts in August and then the season opens in September.  Baiting usually consists of hundreds of pounds of sweet stuff.  Literally, jelly donuts and gummy bears are favorites of these Master Baiters . . . and, apparently, it works for the bears, too.  So, I think the bigger-than-a-breadbox GLOB I saw in the dark of the night was probably something from the baiting that critters had gotten to and hauled off.

I took this picture of the full moon the week before when I was driving home.  LOTS of people were pulling over to the side of the road to look - which is always something nice to see:  that people still appreciate the beauty of nature once in a while.  :)

Sunday night, Mama and Papa Pea and I celebrated his birthday.  When we all sat down to dinner, I joked to Mom, "Aren't you going to photograph all this for the blog?"  We were all so tired and looked so exhausted that, uh, NO, that wasn't gonna happen.  ;)  Here's the weird thing, tho:  I was SO disappointed in my portion of the birthday meal!  The buffaloaf and potatoes that we'd had the night before at Bundle of Joy's were FANTASTIC, and the mama and I even called Papa Pea afterwards to tell him how good his birthday dinner had been (too bad he'd missed it - ha ha) and how much we'd enjoyed it!  But, on Sunday, after the same amount of time in Mama Pea's oven, the buffaloaf wasn't as hot or cooked as I'd have liked it (I only eat meat if it's W-E-L-L done), and the potatoes had escaped their casserole dish and flowed all over the oven . . . and still were runny and NOT hot!  What the . . . ?!!!  I was very disappointed.  Still, the gravy, spinach with cheese, and Freshy's Blueberry Pie that Mom had made were DELISH.  But, neither the working-too-hard Mama Pea nor Papa Pea seemed to mind.  I just hate it, though, when meals - especially special ones - don't turn out!  Grrrrr.

Okay, that's enough for now.  Gotta brush my teeth and jump in the shower and get on with my day.  There are meetings scheduled for me in town today, and one of the thumb drives I have my main file on (for said meeting) is missing.  I think it's at work.  I HOPE it's at work.  Too many files, too many computers, too many thumb drives.  I need to condense and ORGANIZE!  In my spare time.  ;)

Sleep's Over-Rated. Really.

Sleep's overrated.  Really.  At least, that's what I've been trying to tell myself!  I got in about 4 1/2 hours last night, thanks to the weather.  And, speaking of the weather, does any part of the country / world have normal weather anymore?  Is this just the 48 contiguous states?  Or North America?  Or is it more widespread?  The weather now is just a series of extremes.

Case in point, that break in the weather I wrote about a couple of days ago (oh, to think I was wearing a SWEATER!) lasted somewhere more in the vicinity of hours than days.  And then, the outdoor sauna of heat and humidity returned.  With a vengeance.  I'm HOPING we've seen the worst (i.e. hottest) of the summer weather now and that it's behind us:  it's been in the 90s with humidity readings in the 70, 80, 90 percentiles.  And, remember, BECAUSE we live in northern Minnesota, no one has air conditioning.

For some strange reason, I was smacked upside the head by a massive tear-everything-apart cleaning bug over the weekend and tore into the master bath upstairs and the library (of course, nearly giving myself heat stroke in the process).  Neither are finished, but I've made good progress - especially in the bathroom.  Because the walls surrounding the tub & shower are still 2x4s with insulation, the walls are covered in top-of-the-line / super-classy clear plastic.  Over time, the plastic gets all gunky and gross near the bottom.  So, this particular cleaning even included cutting the bottom 1/3 of "the walls" off and re-plastic-ing them.  Nuthin' but class around here, nuthin' but class!  ;)

The heat was so bad on Saturday, the day the guys made all the progress on P-Diddy & C's cabin, that I couldn't even hug her brother B when he came for dinner that night.  NO ONE wanted to be touched, and we all had sweat running down our faces.  And, me not hugging him was HUGE since it was the first real time I'd had with him since he and his bride had returned from their home in (are you ready?) Honduras!  (Actually, an insanely beautiful island off the northern coast in the Caribbean.)  But, my point is . . . wait, what was it?!  Oh, I guess that it was . . . hot.

So, yesterday about noon, I got a call from Bundle of Joy's mama.  It was so miserable out (or, to her, "fantastically beautiful" - weirdo!) that they were going to head up to the big lake north of me for a couple of hours.  Did I want to meet them?  Now, normally (and this is not a good thing - I need to learn to relax more) I'd beg off, citing my To Do list.  Yesterday, I replied, "Well, I have taxes to work on and finishing the deep cleaning of the bathroom . . . but twist my arm."  She did, and I started throwing things together.

On a day so hot, we couldn't be so lucky as to have the small beach to ourselves, but, after a few groups left after the first hour or so, we had the place to just ourselves and the family of one of our chiropractors in town.


I have such fond memories of that lake from being a wee lass.  ;)  This is the same infamous lake over which Mama and Papa Pea and I and the family we shared so many holidays with skied over that one bitterly cold Thanksgiving . . . when I fell out of the sled and was unknowingly left on the lake for the polar bears.  (Okay, okay, no polar bears.)  Here's the link to that story.

Then, in the summers, a particular local ('local' in the perspective of the few, widely-dispersed families living in the area at the time) mom would bring us kids (her two plus the two from the family mentioned above and me) up to this lake to go swimming.  It probably only happened a handful of times, but those lake visits really stuck for me . . . in no small amount thanks to Dr. Pepper!  Yep, Dr. Pepper.  And a little Sunkist.  All in the ice-cold, condensation-covered glass bottles of yore (geez, I wish pop was still bottled that way!).  


See, I wasn't allowed pop growing up.  Only on the most very special of occasions.  And Mrs. H ALWAYS had pop in their cooler:  and plenty to share!  And, it was almost always Dr. Pepper.  So, I can't remember this lake without thinking of those wonderful wintertime getaways to S's cabin nor the summertime visits with Dr. Pepper, courtesy of Mrs. H!

But, now here's the funny part (and Mom, can you confirm this?):  I remember the lake being shallow at the beach until a VERY serious drop-off, not too far out, that we were all (of course) warned of.  Here's the other funny thing (although I'm almost embarrassed to admit it):  I hadn't been back to swim in that lake until . . . yesterday!  25?  30 years?!  And not once in the 10 1/2 years of living back here!  And the shallow water?  Oh, my gosh:  it extends out for MILES!!!!  Okay, not miles, but WAY out!!!  It couldn't be more perfect for families and kids!  Case in point, it's shallow enough far enough out that pontoon boats were coming in, anchoring, and then 18-month olds getting into water that was only chest-high on them (knee-high on the rest of us)!  Could it BE a more perfect swimming beach??  (But, shhhh, it's a WELL-KEPT secret!!)

Anyway, it was a GLORIOUS afternoon, and I was hard-pressed to leave the comfort of lolling on the bottom on the lake with only my head and shoulders above water . . . half a football field's distance from shore!  Granted, having great friends with their 19-month old Bundle of Joy to play with made it 100% more appealing than had I been by myself.  ;)  I'd left the dogs at home because it WAS so hot, and I figured there'd be people there that I didn't want wet dogs bothering, but the next hot day (ha - today!) that I think it will be empty, the dogs and I will head on up:  it's fewer than 10 miles from the house (closer than my nearest year-round neighbor)!!


I came home with a sunburn and sand in my belly-button.  And, today I'm gonna go online to actually find a (gasp!) swimsuit:  I haven't owned one in YEARS!  So, see?  I can take summer just fine:  if I'm wallowing in warm water with minnows skittering around my toes!


And . . . hours later . . . I can't seem to upload photos this morning, so I will give up and post this much.  Photos to come later, I guess.

Bah Humbug. Again.

Good morning.  It's another bah humbug day, post, whatever.  Actually, after several days of wet, wet, soaking wet, the sun is out, and I don't see a single cloud in the sky . . . just a lightweight pall of grey-blue hanging over the valley from the wildfire north of Swamp River Ridge in Ontario.  But, there's just SO MUCH to do this time of year, and it seems like no matter how much you get done in any single day, it's not enough to feel any satisfaction.  That's my grump, grumble, bah-humbug perspective.  Helpful, huh?  ;)

I had a nice dinner last night with My Girl although neither of us had much to share, catch-up on . . . even though we hadn't seen each other for about a week.  Or more.  After I got gas and headed out of town, I stopped at Bundle of Joy's house for a quick visit (organized earlier in the day) with her mama (B of J was already in bed) and then her daddy, too, when he returned from his volunteer firefighter meeting.  Didn't see any critters on the way home (except deer which are so common as to not "count") save one little baby bunny I had to smartly swerve to avoid.  But, I did see an adorable little bear yesterday AM on my way to work.

Anyway, when I finally got home last night - around 11:00 (I think?) - I just WASN'T tired.  So, I added the final amounts of water to the laundry detergent in-the-making and set it to simmer, made myself a cup of tea, and sat down with the new ULINE catalog.  Went to bed a bit after midnight and COULD NOT FALL ASLEEP.  I lay there listening to the police scanner (yeah, I am a bit odd) telling of a caller who was reporting, from a bar, that a fellow in his party had pulled a gun on him earlier.  But, the gun was left at their cabin before they went to the bar.  Could a cop come and talk to him?  A little later, the dispatcher said that the caller had left the group and was waiting to speak to the cop in a parking lot because now he thought the guy DID have the gun with him!  The last dispatch I remember hearing was at 1:17 AM before I finally conked out.  (See what "excitement" I might have missed w/o the scanner on to "lull" me to sleep?!  Ha!)

My weekdays in at the office (when I can't put out my sandwich board to attract walk-in gallery customers) continue to be aggravating.  Due to interruptions and the day-to-day stuff of owning a business like paying the bills, etc., I seem to get NOTHING done when I'm there.  But, I feel like I need to have that in-town presence established, so I don't feel I can work from home yet two MORE days a week.  Today I will close my door in an effort to get more work on this big website & brochure project done.  On one of my days working from home earlier this week, I spent all my business hours that day putting together the products page of this website.  And, it being a lumber company, you can imagine that that was a BIG, involved page.  Lots of links, etc.  At the end of the day, after having saved and published to the Internet at regular intervals ALL day, I fat-fingered something and LOST THE WHOLE DAMN THING!  Aaaaaaagh!!!!!!!!  I could not have been more frustrated!  So, I spent the business hours of the next day recreating the entire thing.  Non-billable hours, of course, since the error was mine.



My non business hours of Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday were profitable, though.  After having spent the previous couple of weeks on outside stuff, the house had fallen into an abysmal state of ill grace, and so I focused on that.  Made some real progress, and the house is much nicer to come home to at night, but why does it never seem to be ENOUGH?  Again, I say, "Bah HUMBUG!"  And ppppbbbbbbttt!


I think I'm buying a piano today.  One was advertised yesterday on our local eBulletin board, and I corresponded with the seller for much of the day.  (Maybe THAT'S why I didn't get much done in the office!  Duh.)  I've wanted one for quite some time.  Do I play?  Of course not.  But, I've always wanted to learn.  I'll just add that to my short list of Things I Want To Do.  (Insert hysterical laughter).  I've arranged for Bundle of Joy's daddy and his hired hands to move it for me, and that's really the biggest hurdle.  The seller only wants $50 for it.  Just to get it out of her house, I think.  I'll look at it today and then make my decision.


The local two-day arts festival is next weekend, and I'm participating this year.  Only on an abbreviated scale, and I'll share the table with an author friend.  Wonderfully, she'll (wo)man the table all of Saturday and Sunday morning so I can be in my gallery in town to, hopefully, grab some 4th of July tourists.  Then, I'll relieve her on Sunday afternoon.  I have great, unrealistic expectations of everything I'll have ready to display and sell there.  Ha.  When will I fit that in??


Tonight I'm picking up (now 2 1/2 years old) Baby Girl from daycare and bringing her to her house.  Her mom will be home a couple of hours later.  Her daddy is a highly-skilled hotshot (the actual term) firefighter and has unexpectedly been sent out to Texas for two weeks.  The Texas Forest Service reports that the period from October of last year to April of this year was the driest seven-month period in recorded Texas history.  They're fighting a massive amount of fires right now.  And, Baby Girl's mom is the wedding coordinator for the most-used wedding location on the North Shore, and she has a rehearsal tonight.  Hence the need for a little help.  I haven't seen this little one in a couple of weeks, and so it will be a real treat!

And, with that, I've procrastinated enough.  Time to get out of my housecoat and ON WITH IT!  I hope YOU have a wonderfully productive day!  May I have the same!

Monday Morning

Yep, "Monday" morning . . . did I getcha?  Well, it's MY Monday morning.  :)  An annoying mosquito woke me at 6:00 this AM, one full hour before the alarm, but I decided to go with it and get something done.  Turns out, I've been spending most of the time unsuccesfully trying to ID a bee (?) I saw yesterday.

OH!  Get OUT!  I just Googled 'hummingbird moth' (after nearly an hour's worth of research in vain) to try to tell you that it looked like a cross between one of those (was looking for the proper name) and a bumblebee, and up popped a picture of the creature in question!  Hang on, let me read about it . . . .

Okay, I was trying to remember the name of the Sphinx Moth (hummingbird moth).  Check.  But, here's their image of what I saw.  It's a Clearwing Hummingbird Moth!

Clearwing Hummingbird moth is a small moth that looks like a hummingbird.  This hummingbird moth flies during the day.  The wingspan is about up to 5 cm.  The wings start out coloured reddish to brownish black, but after the first flight, the scales drop off and the wings become clear coloured.  They are active from May to September.  This moth has a proboscis for gathering nectar.  Honeysuckle is a host plant for this moth.  Info courtesy of www.ontariowildflower.com.

Here's my guy.  You'll have to zoom in on it to get a good look.  Further research seems to point to it being a Snowberry Clearwing.  COOL!  I've never seen such a creature before!

So, there you go, your biology / entomology / phenology lesson for today!  ;)

I had a nice time at the BBQ last night as I knew I would.  Good friends, good food, good times.  :)  Here are a couple o' pics:

(Quick interjection:  GOOD GRIEF!  I turned on the radio while waiting for the following pics to upload, and there Laura Erickson was talking about . . . Clearwing Hummingbird Moths!  Hahahahaha!)

Here are Mrs. Tanglewoods Homestead with Bundle of Joy on her lap and My Girl, fresh from a full day of power sanding and priming.  She's moonlighting with a painter this summer, and they're currently working on the exterior of our pharmacy.

L-R:  Mrs. Tanglewoods Homestead and three of her four kiddos (one very obviously hamming it up), My Girl, and a really bad picture of a really good looking guy!

Most of the guys.  The two in the forefront are hired hands for Bundle of Joy's daddy (in the cap).  He owns his own construction business and needs extra help in the summertime . . . especially since he fell off a two-story roof last year (bouncing off the 1st story garage roof on the way down to the ground!) and really banged himself up!  The other smiley guy (in blue) is Papa Pea's BFF.  ;)

As usual, wild critters came into the conversation.  Apparently, by driving "the back way" to & from home, I'm missing a mama moose and twins that have been spotted pretty frequently on the main road.  I heard heavy equipment down by the river a week or so ago which I think was repair work of the wash-out going on.  I'll have to drive out one of these days to see if the winter driveway is open again.  Bundle of Joy's daddy was about a mile from Swamp River Ridge a few days ago (in that same direction) and saw a BIG sow (black bear).  Let's hope she stays down there and doesn't come up here to give me troubles!  Papa Pea's BFF (hee hee, I get such a kick out of saying that!) and Bundle of Joy's family live right next to each other and, I guess, having been having regular visits from a bear.  While it's great to see them, I sure don't miss the days of having to run out onto the porch in the middle of the night to scare a bear away from the shed storing the sunflower seeds!

And, speaking of seeing them (bears), I saw a cute cub on my way down to the get-together last night AND a yearling moose.  Then, on the way home, a young bull dang near ran right into me!  I mean, we're talkin' brakes-locked-tires-skidding!  I'd already seen the 2nd moose of the night on the drive home and was cruisin' along a straight stretch (luckily) when this young bull came galloping out of the trees at my left, perpendicular to the car!  I've had that happen once before, years ago.  I had the passenger window open all the way because it was so hot that night, and he was SO close to me when he came out of the woods that I could hear his hooves in the grass alongside the car!  But, no harm, no foul either time, and very cool!

And, with that, I'm off for my day.  The clouds (and the radar!) threatened rain last night but we only got barely spit on as we sat around the fire.  No rain.  :(  And, we need it.  There's a forest fire burning in the BWCA that started on Monday, but, last I heard, it was burning towards a lake so, aside from some aerial water drops, they weren't fighting it (on the ground).

Have a great Monday!  I mean . . . Thursday!  ;)

Finally, some PHOTOS!

I know it's been an AGE since I've posted any photos, but I was waiting until I had the two new computers set up enough that I could upload to them instead of the old computers.  So, without further ado . . . .

Back in January, Baby Girl's mama called at the last minute to ask if there was any chance I could pick her up from daycare (remember the little boy asking if I was her GRANDMA?!).  I said that I'd love to but that I had a dinner date at Bundle of Joy's house.  I'd be tickled pink to pick her up and take her there for the evening if that was okay.  (It was.)  So, here they are, two of Bopee's sweeties.  They are exactly 1 year (and 24 hours) apart, so it was fun to see where Bundle of Joy will be, developmentally, in one short year.  I can't remember if they'd ever met each other before (I don't think so), but they hit it off like gangbusters!  :)

Here we are, reading Bundle of Joy's favorite book.

Bundle of Joy's mama was taking the pictures.

Then, completely spontaneously, Bundle of Joy reached over and gave Baby Girl a hug!  Oh, my gawd!  Adorable!!!

Moving on to when both vehicles were stuck at the end of the driveway during The Great Ice Melt.  The truck is, indeed, stuck in these pictures - the car is waiting for me to ash the hill (although it doesn't look like much of a hill in these shots!) so I can drive it all the way in the driveway.

Here we are, a week ago Sunday, when I was ferrying / coordinating / moving vehicles.  Here I'd moved the car and was walking back to the truck.  If you enlarge the picture, you can see two white roofs.  The one at the top left is the house roof, and the other, more hidden at the top center, is the garage.

The view looking to the left off the bridge pictured in the previous shot.

So, remember when I'd written about trying to drive the car in to work following The Great Melt & Re-Freeze?  When I'd gotten stopped on an incline of about 5 degrees?  Taken from the 1-ton, heavy enough to traverse the glare ice covered by light snow, here's a picture of that spot and my tracks, where I'd easily (accidentally) whipped a 180 to head back towards home.

And, lastly, I'll leave you with a poor representation of a beautiful sunset a week ago today.  :)

Whadda BUSY Week It Was!

Oh, my GAWD, this past week was busy!  Oi vey!  I am SO happy to have a couple of days here at home now, I can't even tell you!

I woke to beautiful blue skies, but now the clouds are moving in - still, it's lovely and mild out (24 degrees last time I looked).  I have so much to do both inside and out that I'm not sure what to tackle first.  One thing is certain, though:  I MUST tend to the refrigerator POST-HASTE!  There is something SO dead in there than it's infecting everything else . . . coming through the milk container, and everything.  Absolutely horrendous.  I thought I'd pulled the offending object during the week, but obviously that one thing wasn't causing the problem.  I may have to put on a HazMat respirator when I "go in".  ;)

Not being with anyone - nor in pursuit of anyone - I keep forgetting that today is Valentine's Day!  And, you know, it's kind of a blessing in disguise!  I don't have to worry about what to get any "him" . . . nor if the day will be made special by "him" or completely forgotten or consciously ignored as a protest against an "invented Hallmark holiday".  And, in thinking about it, I realize that I've NEVER been with a guy who made Valentine's Day be what I think it should be (special)!  So, phooey on THAT!  I think I'll start a list of requirements for the next Chicken Mama Man, and put 'make me feel special on special holidays' on it.  ;)  I remember that the ex would make me a neat, hand-made valentine, once in a while, but "once in a while" out of some 14 years doesn't quite hit the mark, if ya know what I mean.  (And not that I was always perfect, either, but, hey, if we're going for The Ideal here, we may as well aim high, right?!)

I was planning on filling you in about my past week, but it was so downright exhausting that I may just put it behind me and focus on the upcoming.  There was some horrible stuff involving the ex but there were also 5 (!!) separate visits with three of "my" little ones.  First, I got to pick Baby Girl up from daycare* and then take her to dinner at Bundle of Joy's house (at 2 years and 1 year old, respectively, they played and played and played and played until both their eyes glazed over and they started resembling adorable zombies)! Then, The Peanut and her mama and I took in a JV basketball game at the high school early on Friday night, and then it was back to Bundle of Joy's house to help out her and her daddy while mommy was away at work.  And, last night, I got to hang out with The Peanut again while her parents went out for a Valentine's Eve dinner!  Lots of baby time made my busy week all worthwhile.  :)

*  When I picked Baby Girl up from daycare, she was seated in the eating alcove and couldn't see me.  L, the daycare provider, said, "Ooooh, Baby Girl!  Somebody special is here to see you!"  I peeked around the corner and was rewarded with flailing arms and screeches of "Bopee!Bopee!Bopee!" while she scrambled out of the booth.  Once she was up in my arms, a little boy who'd been watching the scene play out asked Baby Girl, "Is that your grandma?!"  

(And then I booted him across the room.)

Little shi . . . shizer.  I explained to him that a bopee was kind of in-between an auntie and a grandma.  He seemed satisfied.  (We should really spell my moniker as Boppee 'cause it's pronounced BAH-pee, but, somewhere along the line the Bopee spelling stuck.  So, it is what it is.)  I also have the honor of being 'Una', to two little ones down in St. Paul, and I love that name, too!  Una = Up North Auntie.  :)

Okay, I think I'll sign off for now, and get going on this disaster of a kitchen.  Then it's outside to get some work DONE!

You'll Never Guess: Snow!

Yup, we got more snow last night.  And, I've started collecting contact information for loggers and contractors - so I can get quotes for opening up my winter driveway.  There are two corners, in particular, that are gettin' AWFULLY tight!  And, the snowbanks are too high on the sides now for the snow to clear (to fall over the other side) when I plow, so much of it falls back into the road behind me.  I'll probably start making some of those preliminary calls today . . . especially once I get out there to plow this morning and see how much (limited?) success I have.  It's down to 3 degrees right now, though, and the clouds are clearing to reveal a blue sky, so I think it will be a nice day!

Mama Pea and I were at the same lunch date yesterday (@ Bundle of Joy's house with her mama), and so I didn't get in to my office until mid-afternoon.  I was fully into my day, designing and printing Valentine's Day cards to sell, when I got a call from Bundle of Joy's mom (who knew that I had driven the little car instead of the truck), warning me that it was really starting to snow there (which is halfway home for me) and the wind was picking up.  Shortly thereafter, I heard mention that the town 50 miles south was in white-out conditions.  So, after only a couple of very short hours at work (2 1/2?!), I picked the dogs up a little bit early and headed home.  Ppppbbbt.  What a waste:  there was just a light dusting when I arrived home (but, yes, we did get another dumping during the night)!  I know, I know:  better safe than sorry, but it was a bit frustrating.  Even though I now had extra hours in the evening at home, I was thrown off course, my schedule being changed.

But, I rallied, and did outside chores and then took the time to make a super-easy, super-quick dinner of a massive buckwheat pancake (probably 3-4 of normal sized-ones, but I went for simple).  Erin, of Garden Now - Think Later, brought the healthy pre-made mix at Christmas:  thank you!!  After that, I spent a luxurious hour working on a new crocheted hat for a customer (who'd bought one that was just a little too bit) while listening to a fun, call-in radio show on the local station.  Then, I did dishes and cleaned up a bit until 10:00 when I toddled up to bed.  In bed on time and up with the alarms this morning:  yayyy, me!  ;)

Now, after a shower and breakfast of two fat, toasted pieces of Mama Pea's Dark Orange Raisin Rye Bread with my first cup of coffee, I need to get dressed and get out there to plow.  On with it!  I know I haven't posted much in the way of pictures lately, but how many pictures of snow do you want?  (I'll try to get some up here soon, tho.)

Happy Saturday!

The Weekend!

Hello, friends!  

Sorry I kept you waiting for the Chicken Mama Designs Christmas sale and open house report, but you'll forgive me if I was a little exhausted and needed a couple days off.  Matter of fact, I hardly opened my computer these past two days.

Saturday went WELL!  A good, solid "well".  It wasn't fantastic, and I didn't sell any of the big ticket items, but I sold quite a lot of cards . . . enough to cover what I paid My Girl for her FANTASTIC help on Thursday & Friday (thank you, thank you, thank you, my dear!) and then some.  To my disappointment, the calendars did not arrive (by 11:30 on Saturday) as I'd hoped, but I got a lot of pre-orders . . . which strikes me as kind of bizarre since no one's seen them yet!  But, as my oldest girlfriend said when placing her order via e-mail, "I love your photography, so I know I'll like it!"  I'm hoping they'll be waiting for me today when I get to work . . . at which time I'll video it and post that for you all to see!  I'm super, super excited about seeing them!

One of the reasons I probably didn't sell as much as I might have was that I didn't have time to get prices on everything (duh)!  Folks who were very interested in particular prints did ask how much they cost, but I'm sure others who didn't know me didn't ask.  So, putting all the very final touches on the gallery is on my list today.  At least I got it all looking good via "smoke and mirrors", and that was the ultimate with-time-constraints goal.

Thinking about not getting things to look how I ULTIMATELY wanted them to look makes me think about how I normally would have REALLY been stressing about that and the steadying influence My Girl had on me during those 48 hours previous to the sale.  Had she not been there, I certainly wouldn't have taken time for meals.  I wouldn't have worried about keeping my mood up for anyone.  I would have been head-down, nose-to-the-grindstone as I have (always!) been in the past.  And, how has that worked for me?  Ummm, not so well.  So, because I wanted to be "up" for her, because I knew she needed to eat (therefore, I ate, too), because she kept telling me how proud she was of me and asking, "Do you REALIZE what you're doing here?!!" . . . I was kept on an even keel.  While I don't know what I would have done without the truly lovely sidewalk sandwich board she made (to draw people in), I know that the greater assist was her keeping me grounded.  If we all had an (adopted) daughter like that, the world would be a better place!

I know, too, that the sale provided a lot of free advertising.  People who stopped in but didn't buy assured me that they'd spread the word about my little gallery.  And, once news really gets around town about Chicken Mama Designs, that will help.  Out of town friends who didn't know exactly where I'm located (and hadn't grabbed the address) weren't helped much by asking around town.  Since I'm tucked into a set of pre-existing business offices, it wasn't like the locals had seen a changing of the guard at one of the shops in town.  So, more advertising will help that, too.  And, to tell the truth, I purposefully neglected to do a lot of local advertising because I was afraid I was going to be woefully (un)prepared.  And, had the 14 new large pieces & canvases I'd ordered NOT arrived in time, I would have been.  So, six of one, half a dozen of another.  In the end, I feel it was a SOLID START to becoming known as a new business and one of the many galleries in town.  End of story.  :)

(Re-reading this before I post, I've remembered that I also snagged the confirmation of one expected web design job AND two brand new ones at the open house!!!!!)

After a good lie-in and lots of mindless movie time (watched 'Leap Year' and cried - I'm so damn mushy) on Sunday, I went back into town.  Had to put the common area of the office building back to rights and clean up a bit.  Returned the rented coffee carafes to the local coffee shop, etc.  

That night was the annual Christmas concert in town (primarily songs from Handel's 'Messiah'), and I had an unexpected treat taking care of Bundle of Joy for a while before the concert.  Her folks had just driven the 3 1/2 hours up from his maternal family's in north central Minnesota where they'd been celebrating a matriarch's 80th birthday.  Bundle of Joy's mama sings in the choir each year and needed to go right to the church, but Dad had to get the dog home and get the fire going, etc. after having been gone since Friday night.  Talking to them on the phone to plan when to meet up (I'd been planning on sitting with Dad and Bundle of Joy to help keep her entertained - she'll be 1 year old in 8 days), I learned of his rush-rush plans and said, "Oh!  Why don't you leave Bundle of Joy with me?  That way, she won't have to spend another hour in the car and can get a little of her energy out!"  With a huge amount of appreciation and relief, her daddy immediately accepted, and I told her to meet me at Mama & Papa Pea's house (which would be a lot nicer than my office).  So, Mama Pea got some unexpected baby time (which we ALL love, right, ladies?!), and Bundle of Joy and I both got dinner, too!  As Papa Pea returned from the garage with The Yellow Chair and I placed Bundle of Joy in it, Mom said to Dad, "Who would have ever guessed that we'd have such a revolving group of little girls* sitting at our table in this?!"  

(*For no particular reason, all the little ones I've taken care of for long periods of time have been girls, but soon (yayyyy!) there will be a little baby brother arriving to The Peanut - around tax day in the early spring!)


The story of The Yellow Chair is a neat one.  Mama Pea will have to weigh in on where it came from, but, when I was little, they had this chair for me.  It's kind of like a high chair . . . but more like a bar stool in height and without a tray.  The back is low and curved, like a captain's chair, and it slides right up to the table . . . at a perfect height for a little one.  The seat isn't large enough to encompass a tukhus like mine, but a petite, skinny person could probably fit into it.  Anyway, I'm not sure why Dad's always kept it (sentimentality?  again, Mom, please weigh in), but after it was clear that I wouldn't be having children, I'm sure my folks were disappointed that it would never serve a new generation.  But, as the wonderfully silver lining to that particular cloud, I know I'd never be able to be auntie, nanny, and Bopee to so many little ones had I had my own . . . and I thrill at the relationship I have now with all of them.  :)

Yesterday, I was a completely lazy slug for the majority of the day.  Even though I woke thinking, "The world is my oyster!" (or, more accurately, "Swamp River Ridge is my oyster!"), I couldn't quite get myself moving until well into the afternoon.  About all I got done was the kitchen cleaned up from the week's accumulation of stuff dumped, the dishes done, and two pillar candles made for Christmas gifts.  Oh, and a healthy dinner (Taco Appetizer) made for myself.  Too, I got outside and tried to do some clean-up shoveling, but, at 5 degrees, the packed snow wasn't budgin'.  Fed the wild birds and took care of chicken / goose chores (hey, Dad, those chickens haven't laid a single egg yet!!!).  Unloaded the car from the extra stuff I'd emptied from my office prior to the sale, and finally shoveled in front of the garage so I could park the car inside.  Drove the Yaris up and down the driveway to warm it up after sitting in the cold for a 24 hours and before it sat in the garage overnight.  Good way to get the dogs warmed up and out for some exercise, too, as they ran alongside.


Then, knowing I wanted some inside fires and needing to cut some large pieces of birch to fit in the woodstoves (vs. the size they're cut to to fit in the huge outside furnace), I argued with the chainsaws for a while.  I just CANNOT get the larger one started.  I'll have to bring that to my technician (Dad) again.  (If you ever want to know how to warm up - and end up sweating and panting - in 5 degree weather, just struggle with starting chainsaws.  It'll heat you RIGHT up!)

After refilling the gas & bar oil and then flooding (that's a negative) the chainsaw, I finally got the small one going.  Ahhh, the satisfaction of that blue smoke FINALLY filling the workshop!  Nothin' like it!  ;)  I didn't cut long - only until my arms and back protested for an end.  Then, I split wood.  I LOVE splitting frozen wood!  SO damn easy and rewarding!  :)  (Just re-read that, and, for someone who doesn't know, that could have sounded like sarcasm.  I'm actually completely serious:  dry, frozen wood splits incredibly cleanly and easily.)


Anyway, after accomplishing all that outside stuff in the time it went from afternoon daylight to completely dark, I headed inside for the night.  I was considering watching my latest Netflix movie, 'The White Countess', before bed but, it being 11:00 already by the time I finished the dishes, I opted for a cup of tea here in the kitchen rocker and a couple more chapters of my latest audio book.


Now, today, back at it in town!  I'll post pictures when I download 'em (at my office).

The Bewitching Hour

Good morning!  I'm in a particularly good mood this day.  Dunno why, particularly since I lost a GOOSE yesterday!  

How much weight can an eagle carry?  Well, apparently the weight of a full-grown goose.  Un-freakin'-believable.  I looked online, and there are videos of eagles going after small mountain goats, wolves, foxes, and fawns.  At a dead stop, they can carry only about half their weight, but, if the wind is right and the prey is on an open hillside . . . they can swoop away with MUCH more.  (How big does this "open hillside" need to be?  Again, apparently my poultry yard - at 60' x 60' and on a bit of a hill - qualifies.)  Mama & Papa Pea are butchering today, and I was going to bring in two of these geese, but now?  Forget it.  I need to hang on to what I can.  And, unless I get just of couple of chickens which will remain INSIDE the chicken house this winter, Chicken Mama ain't getting any more poultry until the (poultry) yard goes through a SEVERE remodel.

The ex and I spent a full day together yesterday, our first since the divorce was finalized.  (Our trips to Duluth to meet with lawyers in the midst of it all don't qualify as 'enjoyable' days, I don't think!)  He came out to do loads of roof work - dangerous roof work.  In the past when he'd worked on the roof (after falling off it and really banging himself up that once), he'd always worn his climbing gear and was roped off, but it was neat watching him do the same yesterday - except in a MUCH more comprehensive manner.  It's amazing what one learns climbing Denali!  ;)  Point being, it was nice to watch him doing the work in a much more . . . what's the word . . . competent . . . fashion.  Cheers to him!

Some of you may remember that, the same day Tom was moving out back in January, we discovered that the roof portion of the Kalamazoo chimney (the stove in the middle room of the house) was G-O-N-E.  A BIG, wet snow load had taken it right off the roof, and the snow was so deep at the side of the house there that the heavy chimney had buried itself when it fell.  Both of us wiping away tears, we'd put a temporary patch over the hole.  For obvious reasons, I had bigger concerns that spring but, as the temps began to drop this fall, I knew I wanted the repair work done.  And, now it is!  Tom replaced and trussed the chimney up with two supports that are screwed through the insulated roof and into the beams of the timberframe house below.  NOW if the chimney goes, it's takin' the entire roof with it!  ;)

That same snow melt last winter also ripped out two of the four screws holding the Yagi (phone) antennae in place, causing in to point right down into the roof.  I'm actually amazed that I kept receiving a signal!  That, too, was repaired in the same fashion (super duper long screws that are over a foot in length), and I should be good to go!

Then, we got the rechargeable battery replaced in the rooftop weather station and, finally, Tom reconnected a portion of the 2nd story zinc gutter downspout and screwed that in place.  It was a full day of much-needed work done, and I'm ever so appreciative!

Oh, and what did I do all day?  I was the go-fer.  And ladder holder.  Until we realized he'd be up there for HOURS.  Then, when I was inside vacuuming once during a length of time when Tom wouldn't be needing anything, I heard a massive crash.  Oops:  a wind gust had gotten the h-e-a-v-y ladder, and DOWN it went!  Amazingly, it didn't take out any windows on the way down nor even seem to damage the deck railing it landed on.  Lucky, lucky!  So, the ladder stayed down until Tom was ready to descend after hours in the cold, biting wind.  (At least it was a sunny, sunny day.)  I was exhausted last night, and I didn't "do" anything!  I can't imagine how HE felt!


Then, the ex and I went to Bundle of Joy's house for dinner.  My folks and I had long-standing plans to be there last night, but Mama Pea's fighting a bit of a bug, and she didn't want to subject Bundle of Joy to it . . . nor have to restrict her baby-time because of it!  But, when Bundle of Joy's mama and daddy heard that Tom was going to be here for the day, they insisted that he and I both come for supper.  And, believe me, that food tasted GOOD after a hard day's work!  It was a lovely end to the day, and both Tom and I are SO glad that we can still enjoy each other's company . . . AND the company of friends . . . when we're together.  Despite a little bit of ugliness during the course of the divorce, one can hardly ask for more.


Because I was here at home yesterday, a normal in-office day for me, I'll spend some time in town today, both helping my folks with their butchering and getting some work done.  That AND welcoming a couple of my most favorite little trick-or-treaters when they stop in at the office.  :)


What are YOUR plans for Halloween?  BOO!