Progression

We have progessed from "Boo" to "Buh-boo". Luke takes language learning very seriously. This morning was the first day since the arrival of Buh boo that his first word upon waking was NOT "Buh-boo" (as you can see this has dominated Luke's life for several days). This morning when I went to get Luke up he sat looking at me disappointedly, then looked behind me into the hallway and said, "Dadd-n! Dadd-n? Boo!" (the boo of course was referring to the love of his life, not an attempt to surprise his Dad).

I have also progressed in the last few days. From seven jars of tomato sauce to thirty-four! I know, I'm just blown away by myself. How did I do that?! The answer is: Luke took a four hour nap yesterday afternoon. Hurray on both counts! Check out my lovely pantry. I had to kick the recycling off my pantry shelves to make way for the canning. Pickles, jam, salsa, tomato sauce, and the token jar of caramel (which I didn't make, but I have a GREAT recipe for - you just cover a can of sweetened condensed milk with water in your dutch oven and bake it all day...that's it!). This seems very appropriate for Thanksgiving weekend.


The rest of my day will be spent making party potatoes, chocolate pumpkin cheesecake, and pumpkin pie, Lord willing. Luke is on nap hour number three, so there's hope for much productivity.

While I am sorting through what it means to say good-bye to Summer, and by default then my garden, it helps that Thanksgiving is just around the corner. I am trying to be grateful for what I've had instead of moping about not having it anymore.

Just a summary of my sadness: Last night we had a hard frost that finished off my garden, and this afternoon I witnessed the first flakeage. I have never been so depressed to see snow. Normally I love it, but this year snow means the end of my garden and I have become very VERY attached to my garden. I am even a little fearful of the Winter this year - because it means staying indoors more, and not working in the dirt. It means no more fresh fruit and vegetables. It means long, dark days.

So, here's my thankful list: I am thankful for thirty-four jars of tomato sauce to remind me of warm, red tomatoes on the vine when it is dark and cold and I am wearing a gigantic sweater while hovering over the stove making dinner in the dark at 4:30pm in January. I am thankful for sunshine that will blind me as it glares off the snow and remind me of light on the lake in August and being so hot that the glacier water felt good on my feet. I am thankful for african violets that live on my windowsill and keep me cheery on days when the sun doesn't shine. I am thankful for raspberry jam that glows a summery jewel in my pantry when I reach in for flour, sugar, or something much less dull than raspberry jam. I am thankful for the popping in my kitchen signalling my jars are sealing. I am thankful for eleven shiny pumpkins sitting on my ledge, eleven orange and green pumpkins that will wait patiently until I get around to cooking them into warm delicious bread, pie, cake, scones. I am thankful for a husband who comes home each evening with a smile and a hug for the enjoyably chubby little munchkin I feed and clean up after all day. I am thankful that even though my family gets sick, we always seem to recover better than before. I am thankful for lightbulbs and slippers and honey and people who carve beautiful things out of wood. I am thankful for pictures that remind me of the joyful times I've forgotten. I am thankful for the magic of the telephone so I can hear my Mom's voice whenever I want. I am thankful to have somewhere to put my socks. Which I go now to fold.

Happiness Can Be Bought

At your local Co-op Grocery Store.

Instead of Posting

while Luke napped  I finished the pictures from the Autism Walk-a-Thon last weekend. To to to my website and see my work click HERE, then click on Galleries, and then Special Events.  The first 35 or so pictures in that file are from the Walk-a-Thon.  It was a cold and rainy day, as you'll see, but  kids, dogs and adults alike all had fun and pictures filled with people having fun are always the best!  I even had my face painted....so take a look :)

Segregated Sauces

This afternoon while Luke was napping I napped too, and then when he kept sleeping and sleeping (three and a half hours!) I got up and worked in the garden for a while.  As you can see Luke is wearing his flannel shirt and boots which means the person who dresses him has finally accepted the fact that Summer is over.  I looked at the forecast for the week and saw frost from Friday to Sunday and I decided it's time to embrace Fall.  I picked all the tomatoes and squash and bell peppers and took out the tomato cages in preparation for tilling the garden.  This evening if it's nice Derek will mow the lawn and I will get out to the garden to move the perennials around to their permanent homes so that as soon as the pumpkins are ripe we can till the rest of the garden.  The sauces you see here are most likely my very last batch of sauce.  They're so beautiful because Katie let me pick some of her tomatoes last week, so I have yellow from her and red from my own garden!  Picking squash and pumpkins really makes it feel like Fall.  And I think I can get happy about that - especially with pumpkin pies to bake for Thanksgiving this weekend.

You can't hide these tired eyes

We are still getting over the flu.  Luke's turned into croup and his barking cough is awful to hear.  This morning we had leftover pancakes and Luke couldn't decide between "Wa-wa" and "Joosh", so we just had both.  Here he is living up to his middle name, "Stanley", stacking things just like his granddad does.

Luke is pretty much a genius by now.  He helps me convert measurements to metric.  No, not really.  But when he was squishing his face up against the window and I recited a poem about pigs he went over and, out of a stack of books, pulled the book containing the poem which I had recited and brought it to me.  Later, when Derek was reading him "One Gray Mouse", Luke grabbed the book, opened it randomly to "Five pink pigs in yellow pig wigs" and said, "Five".   Luke also answers the question, "What sound does a monkey make?" by going, "Oh, oh oh!".  He answers the question, "What sound does a dog make?" with a, "Woo, woo, woo, woo!"  And that one is entirely too cute for words, which is why I decided last night that he is going to be a puppy for Halloween.  He's got the act down.

Down for the Count

Luke and I are both down for the count with colds this morning. It's really too bad because we were going to have some company for dinner! Oh well, who can predict these things? The Bible says, "Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth."

Last night, before either of us got really sick, Luke and I had a lot of fun. To see pictures, click here: DRESS UP. Today we are taking everything nice and slow, starting the day off with a story and a pumpkin scone with Grandma. You know something's a little off when Luke zones out, staring out the window when there's food on the table! Poor little fella.

Days Like Today

I assume there will be more days like today in my future - which is why I'm preparing myself for them with COLOR. Today is dark, grey and rainy outside. A tribute to Fall. But inside we are searching out the color to create our own cheerful tribute to Fall, starting with a yellow themed dinner (just following my mother's example!): macaroni and cheese with carrots mixed in, and a side of buttercup squash. I harvested my first buttercup squash today. I didn't know when to harvest so I waited and waited, and turns out I could have harvested a while ago. But it was nice to have something to pick in my garden on such a dreary day. Later in the evening I plan on making pumpkin scones (from my own pumpkins!) and potato salad for a BBQ tomorrow evening. I think I am coming to terms with the idea of Fall. My pumpkins and squash are sure helping. What a beautiful harvest!
Click the collage to see it enlarged
Thanks to Katie for adding all those yellow tomatoes to my counter. They are sure brightening my day! That round green squash next to the zucchini is apparently filled with bright yellow/orange meat. I'm excited to cut into it.