It Feels Good To Be Dirty

Get your mind out of the gutter!

I finally got a garden in!!!! It felt so good to play in the dirt. It is a different configuration for me, but I think it will work well. It is mainly peppers and tomatoes with a few herbs. Once the deck gets built and I relocate the herb garden (next spring) I will do some things differently, but for now it works!

Nolan played in the sand/water table (in typical Nolan fashion, he had to taste the sand first-yuck!) while I worked Reagan was asleep so the monitor was playing lullabies while I gardened. My how times have changed. Gardening used to be my quiet time, my therapy. I would think about my Granny Pike and my half-sister Kim and how much they loved their gardens. About how I used to garden with Granny when I was a kid and had no idea she would instill a love of homegrown, simple food in the little time we spent together. Kim and I were never close (long story for another time), but in the last couple of years of her life (died suddenly of a brain aneurysm a couple of years ago) we would IM about our gardens. We finally found a common ground and were building a relationship we had never shared before. Today my thoughts were on them, but they were also on the two little people that are going to help me garden; on how excited I am that I get to teach and pass things on to. It puts things in a whole new perspective.

Nolan, doing what he does best. Putting stuff in his mouth, even sand.
Since it was Father's Day, Bill got to do the things he wanted to do.....well, I guess that is not completely true. He spent the morning cutting down scrub trees and brush in our woods in order to get them off the phone line and in anticipation of the carpet bombing on the poison ivy in the woods that will take place this week. You know me, I don't like chemicals and don't use them on the grass, flowers, or garden, but in this case it is any means necessary to get rid of that nasty stuff. I have a hard enough time wrangling two new walkers without having to worry about them rolling around in weeds that are going to give them a rash.

Daddy's girl stealing his hat this morning!

We made Daddy breakfast, farm fresh eggs w/chives & bacon, hashbrown, leftover bread & cheese from dinner the night before. Yummy
We did get to Bar Cento for dinner with Uncle Sam & Aunt Deb. The kids sure love them. They squeal and get all happy when they see them. Sometimes Reagan will just shout out "Debbbbiiiieee." It is very cute.

On the way we stopped to see my Grandpa who is not looking so good. He will, if the surgeon decides he can handle it, have surgery soon to remove a couple of aneurysms behind his eye. If he doesn't have the surgery he will go blind in that eye. He is pushing 86, so either option is no fun. We also stopped at the cemetery to leave some flowers for my Dad. That is hard for me and I don't like going there. My Dad is not there. He is always with me. I just have to look in my sons eyes and there he is. Nolan is so much like his Grandad. He would have adored them both and it is a hard pill for me to swallow that they don't get to know him.

However, they love their Grammy beyond belief. The scream and squeal when we pull into her driveway and they hear her. That makes my heart happy and I know it does hers too. They will be the reason she recovers from her surgery so quickly. She needs to be with them and they need her too.

We've had some really decent food this weekend. We ended up at Blazin' Bills in Grand River on Friday due to a scheduling miscommunication for a birthday party. It was a good meal and an interesting time. There was a fight in the kitchen. I thought for a moment we had stepped onto the set of Hell's Kitchen, it was that loud. It escalated so much that the kids were getting a little freaked. They do not like raised voices. We were done eating so we quickly packed up and headed to the Headlands to drop of the gifts before a mega storm rolled in.

Kids first trip to the beach. They did not enjoy the sand on them.At Blazin Bills. I just love her expression.

Our funny boy finding a new use for a napkin.

Saturday, Ed, Angie and the kids came over for dinner. Ed humored me with St. Pat's cheese from Cowgirl Creamery and bread from On The Rise, which is THE BEST bread ever. Bill smoked a chicken, some pork ribs, and thai sausage. There is a cute house for sale on the other side of our street and we spent the night trying to convince them that they need to move to our 'hood. After taking a walk by it, I think if Ed would have had the checkbook he'd be moving in next week.

Anyone want to live near us? It is a really, really cute house.

Daddy and Nolan grillin' a burger on Mommy's latest garage sale find.

My dessert on Saturday night: Triple berry & basil in a puff pastry w/vanilla creme. I must say, it was pretty darn tasty. Next time I'll use a biscuit instead of puff pastry.
Sunday's sunset. The colors were just amazing.

To all the men in our lives that love Reagan and Nolan, we wish you a very Happy Father's day!