Thyroid Update

Had my doctor's appointment yesterday for my yearly exam and to talk about my thyroid plan for the next year. The doc said she will go with my wants, so now after we get my current thyroid levels back, she will prescribe a dosage that will get my level around 1 and I will have a recheck every 3 months for the next year to see that it stabilizes. If in 6 months it doesn't then I will see an endocrinologist.

SKEETERS BE GONE!!

Even I have to admit, nature lover, everything has a purpose, they are food for birds, koombuyah..........that, THE SKEETERS ARE REALLY BAD THIS YEAR!!!! worse than they have been in years, and in our property it is even more difficult to enjoy nature since we have a mosquito nursery in the back woods (bottomland woods, standing, quiet water all the time this year)

it makes it hard to even enjoy the out of doors. They follow us and the dogs around like a thick dark cloud of doom. There are many, they are hungry and they are fast. I usually don't even notice their presence, but right now I have to say SKEETERS BE GONE!!!

I explained a little about the mosquito's life history to the girls awhile back and now they keep saying something to the effect of "I don't want them sucking my blood" me either girls, me either!!!!!

Bursting at the seams

When I was growing up we practically raised all of our food. Our garden was easily a 1/4 of an acre, and yeah, we preserved most of what was grown. The rest we ate fresh. My sister and I helped my Mom all summer long (this was in addition to the farm work we had on a daily basis) with the weeding, picking, cutting, canning and freezing. My Mom actually had most of our basement converted into preservative central. A huge table occupied the middle of the basement and it was surround by a stove and oven, freezers, sink and of course a washer and dryer. The crock sat in the corner just waiting for the cabbage to be turned into saucer kraut.

Once I was grown I forgot all about the preservative process. One of my brothers and sister continued to garden, but not me. I was was too busy traveling the world and working with wildlife. BUT, now that I am raising a family AND have a big productive garden, I feel the need to preserve all we can. So this summer I started my safe route, froze all I could, then I still had extra, so I made refrigerator items. Problem is my refrigerator isn't big enough to hold it all, so now the last few days I have pushed myself to learn to can again. I have been calling my brother, sister, step-mom and sometimes Kiki for answers and recipes. I feel proud to be able to say that in the last 3 days I have canned 5 quarts of peach sauce and six quarts of pickles (this isn't counting the 5 huge jars of refrigerator pickles occupying space in the....fridge.) Thankfully so far my girls love the pickles that I am making and will continue to make since the vines are still loaded with wee cukes. I have attached pictures of my finished products so far. Oh yeah, if you are wondering if they sealed. I will tell you happily YES!!! I heard the POPS!!!!!!

How many more photos can I show you of the great strides I have taken to preserve fresh food for my family...sorry for the glow and smile in my words. I am quite excited about all this new learning. My only regret is that my Mom & I didn't have the time for her to pass on her age ole' recipes and techniques before she passed on.

The day after fun & games

Today we harvested:
a sink full of cucumbers
broccoli
peas
beans
summer squash

Yesterday my friend brought over a bushel of peaches

So today we:
cut up 1/2 bushel of peaches
two huge bowls full of cucumbers
8 summer squash
broccoli
beans

and then we made:
1 container of refrigerator pickles
1 container of refrigerator dill pickles
peach sauce
froze broccoli
froze beans
cooked down the summer squash to puree for homemade spaghetti sauce and soup

and we ate a salad for lunch with the lettuce from the garden

and washed all the clothes from this week's adventure up north

It sure is a good thing we are early risers!!!

Camping at Clear lake

Just returned from our 2nd vaca this summer. We spent a week camping at Clear Lake, two hours north of where we live. Amidst a few naughty episodes, a few bed wettings and sibling bickering, it was a real wonderful time. I feel it helped in solidifying our family bonds. We were questioned as to our family status by a few naive and rude individuals while there. The girls and I talked in depth how we look different, people will notice and some will ask questions. So we practiced how to answer questions regarding the making of our family and also different possible ways to answer the questions, depending how they wanted to answer at the time they were asked. It brought up a topic that I have been waiting to talk about, but really didn't see the need for it until this week.

It was Mim's first time camping and she loved it as much as the other two and I do.

The furred and feathered ones left at home were VERY HAPPY to see us return after a week gone....
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Two beautiful conversations from this week.

First between Tuki & Mim
They were playing together a great deal this week and while they were swimming, I overheard Tuki say:
Tuki: I love you Mim
Mim; I love you too.
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Second while we were all sitting around the picnic table playing the card game "Garbage"
Mim: are we a happy family?
Me: I think that we are even tho we bicker allot, we are happy
Mim: Yes, we bicker allot, but I think we are happy too.

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Now for a picture overload
purchased a new 8 man tent this spring in anticipation of the trips we will be having as a family of 4
campsite busyness

mushroom photography

girls on one of our many hikes

more 'schrooms

Mim & Ve wading a small channel of water

Mim & Tuks

swimming & playing on the beach

eating camp food

sleeping

smores mess

campsite maintenance

more hiking

picture time

and even more, a hike in some wetland, I must say the girls were real troopers

visit to a wildlife rehabilitation center

barred owls in the back while the girls listen to their vocalization on a recorder

Ve & Tuki dancing and singing as entertainment for Mim & me

now Mim joins in the fun while I watch & take photos

more swimming before we break camp and head home before the thunderstorm hits

A Royal Fit

Parenting 3 daughters as a single parent isn't the part I find most difficult, though it is hard some days. It is managing, and organizing and storing the clothes that fit, and those that don't. Keeping the house not only picked up, but cleaned up. I don't check the girl's rooms or their bathroom (shared by all 3) everyday, so when I find the rooms or the bathroom a pig sty I kind of get angry. Especially since the loan appraisers (reason for the ladies comment "you must feel overwhelmed sometimes" it was really code for "boy you sure live in a messy house") came thru the house 4 days ago and the girls bathroom had stuff spilled on the floor (I noticed it today) and the rug was filthy and they all had seen it yet no one thought they should take it upon themselves to clean it up....Cleaning, like really cleaning, this house this time around has been kind of an eye opener for me. I have been preaching everyday about doing things on their own instead of always expecting me to remind them to do their daily chores. They are called daily chores because yeah, they are done daily. In 1 year the people living in this house doubled, and I don't really feel that I have adjusted to the doubling in organization or cleanliness and it really shows sometimes. I must be in a bad place right now. I hate my weight and I hate how out of control I feel over the amount of mess I deal with everyday. There is never no end to it, clean today, start all over tomorrow.....OK, I'm done throwing a fit!!! I think......

Goal check

House: living room, kitchen & bathroom cleaned thoroughly, went thru toys and to use an old cliche, "cleaned house". Ve & Tuks are very messy with their toys. We clean, organise, threaten them and yet, several months later, it is a disaster AGAIN.

Getting back into shape: BEWARE A RANT COMING UP, still biking 10 miles every morning and watching what I eat, running and walking etc.,, BUT I went in to see the Doc about my ribs cage (just bruised intercostals, but ouchy). I naturally had to step on the scale, the very item I have been avoiding for months.. WOWZERE!! I am the heaviest I have been in my ENTIRE LIFE, (yes, I am shouting now) So, I had lost no weight even tho I have increased my activity level easily by double or triple.....

Well come to find out by reading an article about thyroids, it is one of the leading reason women can't lose weight. If your thyroid is above 2 you won't lose weight AT ALL. If you remember I was diagnosed last spring with a faulty one, I was put on meds and my thyroid level was then in the normal range between .45 and 4.45. My level was 3.35. My doctor let me set for a whole year at this level...packing on the pounds. I feel the extra weight plays a part into my feet problem too, specifically in the heels...my feet are screaming get that big fat butt off of us....I am so disgusted, I plan to talk with my doctor in two weeks and I will insist that she puts me on a medicine that will take my level down to around 1, if she won't help me, I will find someone else who will. Excess weight is the leading cause of a whole ton of other problems...yeah I am MAD, at myself by not being more proactive in my health and at the Doc for not giving me information on this issue.

Why

is it that no matter how at peace and settled you feel inside and how content you feel with your life, the occurrence of running into an old boyfriend from 16 years ago and his family (BTW that you never really had much of a connection in the first place) will cause all kinds of unsettling, discontented feelings. The plus was that he is aging as well as I am aging, meaning he looks just as old and out of shape as me. Life, it truly is a puzzle.

Made my day

our home in the winter from the dog/chicken run view

I just returned from an appointment to refinance my home on a 15 year loan with the new low interest rate of 4.0%...if I am diligent and determined I could actually have my home paid for completely in 10 years.. I will be only 57 years old. Part of the plan is to use the tax credit return for 3 years in a row on the house in addition to the monthly payments (of course). OMG I am just so excited thinking about it. AND, this is a big AND since I thought I blew my credit score all to H@@@ thru the adoption process x 3. BUT are you ready for this, I have a great credit score!!!

It's all in the plan, sort of

I tried to teach DaVinci to run along my bike as I was riding it. It didn't work. In addition to it not working I certainly received the short end of the stick. My left rib cage took a beating too. Once again I will state that it is the sh@@@ getting old. I have another plan, hopefully more injury proof. BTW, grass doesn't taste so good!!

I love rain; growing in the garden Wednesdays

I know we need it, but geeze but not this much rain...daily and hard for the last 4 days and it is expected to continue on & off for the next several days...once the sun is out, it does help the garden, but boy or boy it has been wet


speaking of the garden

still harvesting beans
cucumbers
lettuce
soon, like later this week I will be picking my first heads of broccoli and summer squash
the tomato plants are now loaded with flowers
corn in now nearly hip high
cabbage is starting to ball up

but my chant this week is;

"Rain, rain go away, come back some other week or two or three"

Kids and their dogs

Remember 8 months ago, this was the kid who didn't like dogs. DaVinci has been a good dog ambassador for all my kids. They all play with him, and he them, at least some time during the day. Photos are dark, but Mim is playing keep tug with DaVinci. Both are enjoying it greatly.

Happy Independence Day!!!

Summer Goal Check as of today - 23 days in

Check point on My two goals this summer:

1. Clean house top to bottom

Upstairs rooms cleaned, vacuumed and shampooed - done

Now on to the middle floor of the house - kitchen and living room etc., - the big work


2. Get back into shape

slowly getting done on a daily basis

long ways to go, but working out within the confines of my injured foot telling me how much I can do daily. I want to keep moving even tho slowly versus not moving at all due to pushing my foot too far again. It's the sh@@@s getting old. (yeah rambling thoughts but you know what I mean) RIGHT!?

Early Friday morning romp

After I took my morning bike ride, I then fed the chickens, weeded the corn, and then finally I took a walk around the yard snapping photos and collecting morning produce. I love summer photos! Enjoy!!
tomato flowering
broccoli flowering
baby cucumbers
day lily
more day lilies
and even more day lilies

garden from the yellow yarrow advantage

more day lilies

swim suits on the line from daily lessons

this morning's produce

Summer Randomness

summer squash
knee high corn
pole beans and marigolds
DaVinci at 6 1/2 months in the garden
Second clutch of Phoebes
Serama hen Tai with her two day old chicks