Big Sky Days

been out having a nice summer

So much time has passed.  

My last post  showed pictures with fresh snow and fast forward to today - we are beginning to say goodbye to summer.  But I am planning to spruce up the place around here and start fresh.  The beginning of the school year has a kind of spring cleaning feeling to me.  My organizational skills kick back in and I feel I can re-commit to things that I have let fall by the wayside.  This space included.  

So, perhaps a little wrap-up of what has been missed and then back to posting.  Sounds good.

9.11.11

Yesterday, we had a birthday celebration for a 39 year-old man.

It is hard on the 10 year anniversary of 9.11.01 to not reflect on what was 10 years ago.  Sure we can think of things nationally or globally and try to consider what has evolved since the hijacked plane attacks, 2 wars, and 2 presidents.  And I think all of that should be considered and thoroughly thought through but what has changed around here?  In our little part of the world so much has changed in the last 10 years.

I remember I had just arrived to Connell Hall for class in my second year of nursing graduate school when I heard the news. Greg just started his first week of medical school.  We were married a year and living in an 800 square foot apartment on Commonwealth Avenue in Boston.  As the days events unfolded, we still felt the need to continue with our plans for a birthday dinner celebration.  I remember walking the side streets toward our favorite Indian Restaurant and just feeling different.  We felt different - people walking in and out of their apartment seemed different, too.  I think the difference was recognition of how one moment can change everything.  And fear of what could possibly be and what was.  

That night we toasted to peace.  We toasted our accomplishments but with uncertainty for our future.  

Ten years later we again had a birthday dinner celebration.  But this time, dinner was at home and it wasn't just the two of us.  This year we had our own little family and some more family to share the meal and a few toasts.  Here we are now in our new town, our degrees complete, our family complete - with our two children - looking toward the future.  We have had many moments in the last 10 years where everything seemed to change in an instant but mostly in good ways.  And we have also had a lot of hope.  

So cheers!  And, around here, you get extra wishes for that!

 

a recap and a recap and a recap

I guess I have been too busy to be in this spot for very long lately.  

I have come by and looked at the same old post from weeks back and thought to myself, "Self.  I should really post something new."  Then I look up and my daughter is about to draw on my wall or my son screams he needs help with some thing downstairs or I realize I should be cooking dinner, paying bills, or picking someone up from something.  That is what has been going on.  And therefore, there have been no recent posts.  

However, the good news is that we have really been up to some dynamite things and I just haven't been sharing.  I need to share.  The quickest way is the recap.  I know, I know I have done a lot of recapping this summer.  But I think maybe that is good...it means we have been out doing.  Doing.  That seems important.  So, I will berate myself no longer and get on with the recap.  

  

Joseph Creek.  A slice of heaven on this beautiful earth.  A place where the indoors is also outdoors.  The bikes were ridden every day.  The kids explored endlessly together.  We played in the river and had milkshakes.  We had delicious dinners outside by candlelight.  The kids rode in old trucks with no seat belts down the rural road to get cinnamon rolls.   The night sky was rich with stars and a waning moon.  A sheepherder's camp was rediscovered.  There were ATVs.  It was heaven for all and I can't wait to go back.

Back to School.  Second grade for Henry and a new start at Montessori for Lila.  The beginning of school is a hopeful and exciting time.  The fresh start and clean slate are welcome.

It has been the summer of the chicken egg and the tomato.  We have little else that we have produced.   Our beans were so-so.  Our chard was so-so.  Our broccoli was all wormed out.  The birds got to our strawberries.  Oh yes, we did have great raspberries!  And we did decide on a spot for the garden next year.  These are the important steps along the way, I guess.  

We did discover that homemade chocolate pudding is worth making (despite what many believe!)    And that it is best consumed outside by a fire pit.  At the end of summer.  With family and friends.

And finally, Yellowstone - our friend and neighbor.   We have sneaked in a few visits this summer to see the sights.   How can we not when we live but an hour and 1/2 away?!  

This last time we found out that if you take a 4- mile-hike to a creek you can see a lot along the way.   I think Edward Abbey talked about this.  He said to get out of the car and you will be rewarded.  It was a tough hike for these kids and, yes, some of them did require carrying and many moans and groans were uttered but in the end it was so worth it.  

Yes, worth it all.  

 

home

Camp is over and we are home.  It was incredible.  Amazing.  Wonderful.  But it is nice to be home.  3 weeks is a long time to be away from loves of your life.   If (I hope) we do it next year, I will have to come up with a different way.  Bring Lila and maybe have Greg visit halfway through, instead of being there in the beginning.  Anyway, here are some highlights of Henry and I from Adirondack.

The days were long and filled.  I love the rituals and routine of camp.  I loved seeing my son experiencing what was such a big part of my childhood.  Sometimes I would walk the gravel road in camp and be flooded with my own nostalgia and then turn around to see my son run down the road to the dining hall.   He'd blaze past me with his friends and turn around with a wave.  It was a perfect feeling - a wash of gratefulness. 

So now we are home, reunited with the rest of our family and set to enjoy summer in Montana. Everything is still green, the sky is so wide, and the mountains encircle us.  It feels good to be back.

Also, we came home to this:

The first egg.  What better symbolism for our next page?  

Let the rest of summer begin.

 

fort william henry

camp

We made it!

 

 

beginning of something good

We kicked off the weekend with Strawberry-Rhubarb pie.  You can almost guarantee a good weekend after that move.  I used a pie mold to create the beautiful, leaf design on top.  So purty.  I always use Fannie Farmer's pie crust recipe - it is what I am comfortable with and I like it because it is not sweet.  And for the strawberry-rhubarb filling, I mixed a carton of strawberries, 5 rhubarb stalks chopped, 1/2 cup of brown sugar and 1/2 cup white sugar, 1 tsp of cinnamon, and a 1 tsp of cornstarch. It was sweet and sour and lovely.

Next up, the official dance performance.  She did very well and it was long day since the school will not release any of the dancers until everyone performs.  But we congratulated her with her own fresh bouquet of flowers, which she found much delight in. 

 

We also had a special out-to-dinner in her honor and she stayed in her ballet outfit and kept her bouquet of flowers close by (or in her hands) the entire time.

And it turns out the performance reignited her dancer's flame and she can only talk ballet now.  She is such a little girl.

Our lilac bushes are alive and plentiful all around our home.  (Or "lilocks" as they are called in these parts.)  It is fun to move in a new home and watch what was previously planted and see it all come up.  It is such a surprise.  We can't resist bringing some inside...

 
Last evening we had a nice supper with our relatives and tried to have the season's first s'mores outside by the campfire.

(Yes, that is a hand cranked marshmellow toaster.  For the s'mores lover who has it all...I know you are impressed.)

And in a quick twist in the weather, a rain and hail storm took over the evening plans and drove us indoors but then a rainbow arrived and stole the whole show.

This looks like the beginning of summer in Montana.

 

playing catch-up

Catching-up on this space in my life.  I have been busy with all kinds of "otherness" and so unable to come around these parts lately.  Here are some updates so we can get back on track:

*loving* artichoke season

*savoring* some post rain hikes

*relishing* conversations between siblings

Henry: "That is why I want to be president."

 And Lila: "That is why I want to be a ladybug."

*creating* a chicken coop

*dancing* at a, first of the season, outdoor summer concert

*making* homemade ricotta cheese from this recipe

*indulging*

*sharing* with old friends

*catching up* on some things for sale in catalogs.  Outdoors.  In the sun.

*watching* the local creeks and rivers overflow from the rain

And *grateful* for loving and supportive family and friends, for health and recovery, and for a safe home to gather some pinecones in a bowl and admire. 

 

 

 

 

 

photo booth

As I was in the kitchen tending to the repair man who came this morning to fix our oven, Miss Lila Rae was upstairs enjoying a grand ole time with the Photo Booth on my MacBook.  Unbeknownst to me.  

Today I was going to use this space to talk about my garden, some new plantings, and the way my dog rolled in some yucka-ducka 4 days after she had a professional bath (still really irked by that!) But when I finally got a moment to collect my thoughts and download some photos, I saw the Photo Booth photo shoot.  96 photos.  96 different poses.  And although she is not supposed to use the computer without one of her parents' help -  the sweet, sly, secretive pictures only made me smile. Or laugh out loud.

Here's the condensed version:

She's a spitfire.  







 

interview with a 7-year-old

Not just any 7-year-old of course, I interviewed that one lounging below.  My 7-year-old.  

He had a big day yesterday - a class trip to the museum, soccer practice and a guitar lesson.  So although he was exhausted, he still had the time to fit in some inquisitive questions from dear old Mom.  

What is your favorite word? what 

What is your favorite number? 10

What is your favorite animal? African hunting dog

What is your favorite book? The Fellowship of the Ring

What is your favorite subject at school?  Science and Math

What is your favorite food?  Tacos

What is your favorite sport? Baseball, soccer, and swimming

Who do you  like better Batman or Superman? Superman

Luke or Hans Solo? Luke

What do you like to do when you are sad and you want to be happy? Play outside

What country would you like to visit? France 

What is the biggest difference between girls and boys? Girls don't like Legos as much.

What are you looking forward to about the summer?  Going to Camp

What is the best present you have ever received? Arc 170-  Star Wars Lego Ship

What is the best present you have ever given? A squirt ring

What is something your parents always say? I love you

What is something your sister always says? I want ____.

What quality makes a real friend?  Not lying

What would be the best way to spend a Saturday? With a friend

This serious biker took the questions seriously.  I think he didn't want to get any wrong... he even shed some tears.  I tried to get him to not think too hard and just say the first thing that came to his mind and eventually he seemed to get the hang of that.  But these days he is a perfectionist and "shooting from the hip" may not be his strong suit.  

This brings me to an interesting book I am reading called Unconditional Parenting by Alfie Kohn.  I am no where near done with it but it has a very different angle on parental discipline.  At least, different from what I am doing.  It is largely looking at the problems associated with parenting using rewards and punishments and kid's needing to earn our approval.  I am not sure about it yet but it is making me think.  A lot.  And I am pretty sure thinking can only bring good things.  Sometimes I think parenting is so difficult and sometimes I think it is made out to be more difficult than necessary.   You know?  

Anyway, below is one way we unwind around here.  But fiction seems to work a wee bit better for me.