I am having a first.  I host 3 of my 4 grandchildren next week for what I am calling “Camp GiGi”. Hubs is wondering where he is in this so called camp and I replied “If you are going to stay home from work and help out, then we will add your name but…um, not unless you make plans to do so.”  This is my time and I am really looking forward to it, and I am owning it. 

I may be exhausted at the end of the week.  I picture myself dusted with concrete and glue, feathers and stone.  I have craft projects and food in mind for the wee folk.  I am so excited. 

I started stock piling snacks this week.  Goldfish crackers, peanut butter, fruit snacks and other kid goodies.   Not all the kids like string cheese, but I do and it’s good for a quick fix.  I may need that…for myself. 

I hope the yard isn’t a muddy mess but if it is, it is.  I looked for some of my transplanted rhododendron over the weekend and can only find two out of seven.  While this kind of bums me out it gave me an idea for an activity.  The deer have eaten my transplanted Japanese maple as well and all that remains is a twig ~ not sure how I can work that in yet.    The grandkids should enjoy trying to locate my missing rhododendron as it will mean time in the woods and a scavenger hunt.  Depending on the weather, it may take them down to the lakeshore.  Hey, that gives me an idea!

Summer Camp GiGi!

  

 

Spring. 

It’s not quite here but so close we can almost taste it.  Fresh asparagus spring.  Delighting in robins, watching for crocus and hearing Sandhill cranes fly overhead.  Spring.

I am in a daydream period as these last brown and grey filled days become less and bright green, yellow and white start to take over.  I am planning what is next for my walking path and bridge, what secrets to plant to bring new color and form to the winter weary woods.  Waiting to see what new patterns of sunlight the fallen trees will leave behind. 

All three of our children and their families were here this past weekend.  We had a great deal of fun, this being the weekend of women.  Saturday was all about the bridal shower and our big extended family.  Love.   

On Sunday, we threw practicality out the window and sent the grandkids outside after breakfast to stomp in mud, swing and run for a couple hours.  Wishing for more chances like this to get together, to let them be. 

I had a “heart sing” moment when my oldest grandchild came up to me sweetly requesting “GiGi, can we take a walk on your bridge?”

Well, of course! This was one of those moments I have waited for! The opportunity to be one-on-one with this sweet girl for just a few minutes while the little boys giggled and screamed and played swords with sticks.  My path isn’t long, my bridge isn’t high, but it holds a mystery and seems secret to a 6-year old.  This is the reason for my bridge. 

We walked to the other side of the house and down the muddy path.  I pointed out the first set of deer tracks and that became our mission for the next fifteen precious minutes.  Where did they go? Where had they crossed the driveway?  What might they have heard?  What might they have seen?  Let’s stand on the bridge to see it differently.  We crossed through the woods and down the driveway, searching out more answers as we approached the yard.  She skipped on ahead, more familiar with this side of the house, more confident and she was anxious to tell of her adventure.  Fifteen minutes seems like so much more to her, and to me. 

Spring. 

In unexpected places, unexpected times

Sometimes I love to cook, and sometimes not so much.  I do enjoy my things, though.  I have Fiesta dishes in a variety of colors and love those.  Love to see them in my cabinets, love to see them on the table.  Love to see how they are going to come out of the dishwasher and get all shuffled around in a wild, joyous stack of color.  It’s silly that plates can bring such joy.

When my mom was downsizing, whether by choice or by necessity, I became the owner of a small platter with a leaf pattern ~ my favorite theme, oak leaves and acorns.  This was my mom’s go to platter.  I am sure if you ever ate at her house, she served you something on this platter as it was at almost every meal, or held pieces of cake, cookies, lunch meat... It’s one of those items that just screams MOM to me, like the black cast iron skillet I wrote of a few months ago screaming my grandmother’s name.  My sister-in-law has been busy these past months organizing and reminiscing over some of her mom’s prized possessions and has mentioned forks, or bowls, or pots that make her think of her mom even that much more.  It’s a heavy task, but such joy to come across some small item that just brings a memory back so fresh, and so fondly. 

A few months ago I was kicking around some antique shops and almost squealed when I came across a small bowl that matches my mom’s platter.  Of course I bought it and must say the last thing I need in this house is a bowl.  I would like to say I’ve never seen the platter out in our antique stops, but honestly, have to say I haven’t looked for one…or any platters, for that matter.  But to see the bowl, in Kentucky, with my family…well, it had to be mine.  

Keep your eyes open as you will never know what, or when, you will stumble across something that makes you almost squeal.

For the glory of girls!

I am a lucky mom to two beautiful daughters and one beautiful daughter-in-law.   I love these ladies.  I love talking with them, I love being with them, I love listening to them.   They are spectacular people, really.

I am very blessed with many girls in my family. Sisters-in-law, nieces, nieces-in-law, granddaughters and great nieces...  I am a lucky gal and I consider these ladies, each of them, my “go to” team whenever I need something.  There’s a lot of them, we outnumber the men, and each is fabulous in her own way. 

So, next weekend we will be coming together as a group of women to celebrate a niece as she approaches marriage to a great young man.  It will be just us, her family, with her beautiful sister at her side.  You see, their mom passed away almost a year ago ~ we will all feel that pang of deep sorrow, of the absence, next weekend.   But, I will say this, while she isn't with us in body to cheer and applaud this fantastic young woman, her baby girl, we know she is with us in heart and there is no one holding her glass higher,  laughing heartier and showering more love.

Congratulations sweet Staci, from YOUR "go to" team!    

A little gypsy in me...

I have got so many building plans in my head and on various scrap pieces of paper.  Some even on graph paper, like I know what I am doing.  We have had discussions, debates and decisions.  One of those decisions has been, and this is today, let’s do the many small projects first.  Oh, them’s mighty dangerous words, sir. 

I don’t think he knows how many small projects there are…or what I consider small and what he may consider to be small.  But, here’s a few, just to get started: A driveway change, a parking spaces change, a garage, a shed, new porches with overhangs on both the kitchen side and road side of the house, finish landscaping around my bridge and railings for the bridge, and low-voltage landscape lighting.

There is a new project to my ever growing list.  And here it is:

Now, my good friend Carolyn might say here “Hey! I’m the gypsy!” and she’s right, but, I don’t actually want this to GO anywhere.  I just want it in the woods.  I want there to be a desk in there and some opportunity for electricity but I don’t want there to be a toilet or a kitchen.  I don’t want to LIVE in it, for crying out loud. 

I love the idea of a small cottage in our space.  I like the idea of something whimsical.  A fun place to read, or relax, to dream or to plan ~ a get-away without going away.   These small homes can be built on trailer frames and be road worthy, if that’s what you are in to, but, that’s not what I am seeking.  I hear, but haven’t confirmed, that if built on a frame like this it doesn’t require a building permit or can be taxed.  I am checking that out, believe me.

Don’t be surprised if you see this, or something similar, along the way.  It will take some talking but I have lost the gazebo argument, and this is round 2. 

Panic in the snow.

Feeling refreshed after a week in a tropical paradise with some great times, big laughs and good people.  Hubs’ annual business get-away, this year to Playa Del Carmen, Mexico, ended with a big snowstorm and travel bans.  Perfect, I guess.

A few years ago, while driving on an interstate, a big part from the driveshaft of a truck fell into the middle of our driving lane.   There was an attempt to avoid it, but, we hit a corner of this monstrous piece of metal and were relieved we survived the encounter. A few hundred feet later, however, the car was shaking and thumping and we ended with a flat tire, in driving rain, at 70 miles per hour.

Hubs maneuvered to the side of the road where many other vehicles were pulled over after having also encountered the same piece of debris. The fact that there were others didn’t comfort me much as I left the vehicle, umbrella in hand and climbed to the top of the little hillside, away from the traffic.  It was there I felt my first and only panic attack as hubs decided he needed to change the tire on the car, on the driver’s side, as traffic continued to race by. Let’s just say I freaked out.  I broke down, begged him not to go to the side of the car, in the rain.  I cried.  I sobbed…I was outside of myself and my usual demeanor.  I pleaded with him to call emergency service, as for crying out loud, we have road side coverage.  Long story short, he changed the tire and we were on our way within an hour. I remained confused by the anxiety and fears that washed over me for a long time...but, like all memories, that confusion faded and I haven't had a second episode. 

We returned to the airport Saturday afternoon, anticipating a long bus ride home, only to learn there had been a few inches of snow in our area with whiteout conditions.  A travel ban was in effect, a state of emergency in our county and many traffic accidents on the highways. I began to experience the onset of my second panic attack. I tried hard to fight it down, to not let it gain a foothold.  I walked away from scores of people, I adjusted and readjusted my scarf, I checked my bag for my gloves.  Decisions were being made on what to do, how to proceed with the travel arrangements and the transportation of many people to their homes, at least two hours away, through a driving blizzard.  The buses were already on their way after having driven through the area with the worst conditions and were predicted to be two hours late. The news sites we could access on phones, and reaching out to people at home, were full of stories of accidents, injury and in the case of a small child, loss of life. 

I couldn’t do it.  I had an option as our son and daughter-in-law live in Chicago.  My son came to get me, and I am forever grateful.  Hubs needed to stay with the group.  I can’t really explain why, but I could not.   We have all heard the stories where a person misses a flight or train and there was a horrible crash that spared them. I recognize that my decision is not of that fabric…my decision was what was best for me.  The group arrived home a few hours later and my panic, my fear, might seem to be a bit misplaced in the big picture. There’s a part of me that knew the bus would be fine, that they would get home safe.  There was a bigger part of me that was firmly housed in the “what if” and it rooted me, and it held me in that panic.

Snow appetite

Like a lot of the country, I am not particularly a fan of the National Football League or it’s players.  Oh, there are some good ones, I’m sure, but the greed and the gluttony of professional football has caused some of the luster to tarnish for me.  I love high school sports, and I like college sports but the NFL is not something I appreciate. 

However, I like the Super Bowl in some aspects…the commercials are fun, the half time is usually a top notch performance and well, there’s the commercials.  That’s not really enough to make up for the amount of time you need to invest in actually watching the game so you have to have food, friends and family. 

This weekend we were blasted with mega inches of snow which prevented us from plowing out through our drifted shut driveway to a dear nephew’s home to enjoy the game.  We knew pretty early in the day that we would be hunkered down in our tight little house.  Keep in mind this is me, hubs and the little dog. It was a long day.

When there are long, snowy days like yesterday and there’s no chance I’m going anywhere, I do begin to feel slightly trapped.  Hubs paces, and whistles and as much as I love the guy, and I do, a pacing whistler is not a joy when you feel trapped in a small house already.  It was a beautiful snow but it was raw outside. The little dog wanted nothing to do with going out in it either,  probably feeling a little more on edge than usual, considering she couldn’t figure out what all the whistling was for. 

My usual solution to this kind of day is to eat.  I mean, eat whatever I can find to eat.  I practiced quite a lot of restraint but found myself planning what I would eat next ALL day.  I had gathered ingredients to make mini Rueben sandwiches for the party we would not attend so I knew those would be making an appearance.  But, a quick perusal of the fridge also revealed the ingredients for biscuits and gravy, popcorn, cheese and crackers, humus, fruit, vegetables, Girl Scout Cookies, potato soup, beer, wine, bread.  An all-diggity-dang-dong-day eating fest was about to unfold. 

I fought, and somewhat won, and did not empty the pantry and fridge.  I calmed myself down, ate somewhat reasonably and occupied my day with HGTV and house remodeling plans. I did make biscuits and gravy for a nice breakfast and was able to prepare just popcorn for an afternoon snack.  The mini sandwiches appeared at dinner alongside some delicious potato soup.  Cooking smells hung heavy in the closed up house all day and into the night and I cannot wait to open a window!

Snow days are great but I am glad this storm appears to be short lived.  While I don’t think I’ll get out today, hubs was able to drive to work and reported the road crews had done a fantastic job.  In a few days we will leave for our warm weather vacation.  I’ll spend a bit of time today with the handsome twins of HGTV and think paint colors for my bathroom refresh, and put another sketch down on paper to present to hubs when he gets home as to a new kitchen layout.  Nothing can make a man whistle like listening to remodeling ideas and paint colors.