“McMissile, Finn McMissile.”

I have always been a huge Pixar fan.  I can remember the very first time we saw “Toy Story;” we rented the video and our family of five all sat together and watched it.  Dad marveled over the technology, mom worried about the scary parts, Andrew laughed at all the jokes (he always had a mature sense of humor), Matthew giggled and smiled more than he ever did watching a movie, and I loved the whole thing!  Since then we have eagerly awaited all the new additions to the Pixar collection, and this newest gem certainly did not disappoint. 

Mom and dad went Sunday night and yesterday the girls and I went to see “Cars 2!”  Trips to the movies are a rare treat for us, and even amidst all the popcorn crunching, wrapper crinkling, cell phones glowing, and parents asking their kids for the fifteenth time if they needed to use the bathroom, it was well worth it!  Within the first fifteen minutes, I had one more Pixar crush.  My top crush has always been Flick from “A Bug’s Life;” then there came “Wall-E,” I dare anyone not love that sweet little robot!  But now Finn McMissile has roared onto the scene; a suave vehicle inspired by James Bond’s 1964 silver Aston Martin and voiced by the delightfully accented Michael Caine, *sigh* what’s a girl to do?  Now that we have seen the film, we eagerly await the DVD release so we can watch it again!!!  Until then, “A Bug’s Life” anyone?

A tale of two mice and twelve tomatoes.

Today I decreed that all tomatoes must be in the ground by sundown, regardless of the fact that the largest one barely reaches two inches high.  So while I watered the garden this evening I mentally planned out the tomato plot.  Suddenly Bingo sprung out of the weeds and began dashing around the melons while he chased, caught, and tossed a small grey mouse around.  Then he began rolling over and over my melons!!!  I chased him off with a loud “No rolling on the melon plants!!!"  (As if he cared.)  He returned, prancing on top of one particularly small melon, to which I responded with a slosh from my watering can.  In his haste, Bingo left the mouse, which lay there rather wet not trying to escape, I told him not to leave his stuff in my garden.  After I finished watering, Bingo turned the toy into a snack.


Tidying up after mouse #1.

Just a short time later, while Rachel and I gathered tools to plant our twelve tomato seedling, Bingo intently stared at this overgrown plastic frog which houses the garden hose.  Out of curiosity I lifted the thing up only to have one gray mouse shoot out and under the potting shed while Bingo snatched a second very large mouse and ran away, right into my squash patch!!!  After consuming mouse number two, Bingo plopped down amidst the squash and watched some noisy birds, contemplating dessert no doubt; at least now I know why he has not been eating much cat food lately.

Mouse #2.

Checking out dessert.

Amidst all the excitement, Rachel and I managed to plant the twelve tiny tomatoes.  Now I just have to water, pray, and chase the whirling dervish cat away!  There is never a dull moment around here.


Hurray for 12 tiny tomatoes and 1 fabulous helper! 



Family Fun Night!

For many years now we have made Friday nights a night of special food, loud music, fun activities, movies, yummy deserts, and just an all around exciting and great time!  Tonight I made homemade pizza, which is my magnum opus of culinary creations, while mom whipped up some homemade ice cream for root beer floats, yummmmmm.  While we feasted on pizza we puzzled our minds with an adaptation of Agatha Christie’s “Murder on the Orient Express,” starring David Suchet as the great detective Hercule Poirot.  It proved to be an exciting, albeit a bit gruesome, mystery which had my mind clicking and my heart pumping (and all the while my mouth munching).  

Black Olive & Feta (Secret ingredient: Herbs De Provence)

Classic Pepperoni

Margarita Pizza, sliced and ready to eat.

Pesto & Goat cheese alongside a bottle of the best root beer ever.

Heavenly homemade vanilla ice cream.

One of my very favorite detectives.

One of the great advantages to having such a fun Friday, it sets the tone for a fabulous weekend to follow!

Lazy Little Rooster.

On the last day of May, mama hen hatched six little balls of fluff.  We all sighed and cooed over their obvious cuteness as they pecked at crumbs, stretched their tiny wings, and peeped from between mama hen’s soft feathers.  On day three I watched them intently, not for fun, but to try and figure out who was a “she” and who was a “not.”  After several minutes of staring and attempting to distinguish between features, I figured we had five girls and one rooster (Yes! Perfect!)  At twenty days old I am sure we have four girls, one rooster, and the last one undecided; I think it is a girl (please, please, please), and Rachel thinks it is a boy.  The next few weeks will reveal all, until then, this is Roy.

After more than tripling our flock of chickens, I figured we should keep a second rooster so as not to give Bob a heart attack.  When the chicks hatched it became clear that the little runt was a rooster, a rather loud, pushy, and lazy little rooster.  He was given the pre-decided name Roy and I think he will live up to it. 

If you don’t know who Roy is, here is a good first impression of his personality . . .  U.S. Acres 

Roy’s wing feathers are coming in striped meaning he is one of the two mixed chicks.  He is ½ Australorp, ¼ Welsummer, and ¼ Maran, along with a dash of laziness and a great big heap of self centeredness; well, he is a rooster after all!     

Rake, Dig, Plant, Water, Repeat.

During the last few glorious evenings I have been popping plants and seeds into the ground.  After living for several months in the greenhouse, the various melons and a few pumpkins were finally settled into real dirt; they seem to like their new home.  I also planted a bunch more zucchini and summer squash since more than half the ones I planted on the other side of the yard have been ravaged by some unseen enemy.  I also planted three new rows of corn since not one of my original planting came up (I believe the chickens are to blame for this one, I put a barrier around the corn but they managed to get in once or twice). 

Melons!!!  (and pumpkins)

Rows of corn and mounds of squash.

Speaking of chickens, in the merry month of May I purchased five Red Sex Link chicks and five Maran chicks.  Our local feed store has this strange policy of sticking all different types of chicks together, and since black and yellow/white spotted chicks can belong to several breeds, I had to rely on their expertise to pick out the right ones; I did insist on putting one back since “she” was definitely not a “she.”  Anyways, over the last month it has become quite clear my five “Marans” are in fact one Maran and four Barred Rocks.  Mom really likes the appearance of the Barred Rocks; they are beautiful and good layers, but (grrrrrrrrrr!!!) I wanted Marans!  One more lesson learned, when life gives you Barred Rocks . . . take Pictures!

Maran                                                Barred Rock

My beautiful birds.

Fun & Friendship

Summertime means hot days, warm nights, and water balloon adventures with friends.  Twelve really is the perfect age; old enough to have responsibilities and do things on your own, yet still young enough to have silly fun!

Water Balloons!!!

They were excellent models

Tennis anyone?

En Garde!

Beautiful Rachel . . .

. . . and beautiful Ashley

Ready . . . Pull!!!

Summer has arrived!

Oh happy days!  Summer has finally arrived with clear skies, hot days, blooming flowers, sprouting plants . . . and my annual case of poison oak.  Two days ago I felt the tell-tale tenderness and itchiness on my right arm, which by the next morning appeared as a red and bumpy rash on my arms, jaw-line, chin, and neck; always the same places.  A walk around the garden revealed a cute little patch right where I had been weedwacking.  There are only two exceptions to our organic pesticide free garden, poison oak and blackberry bushes. 

Unlike poison oak, which generally grows in small, easy to eliminate patches, blackberry bushes have proven to be a formidable and unconquerable nemesis.  Countless hours have gone to cutting, pulling, poisoning (I have found a special place in my heart for round-up due to its blackberry fighting properties), and also yelling and calling names at this evil plant.  In addition to poison oak, my arms currently bear many battle scars from my blackberry conquests.  Maybe I should invest in a suit of armor?  Mom suggests I wear long sleeves, but it gets so hot! And I find that clinging blackberries are harder to extract from sleeves than skin.

This summer I resigned myself to the fact that I would never fully eradicate the blackberries.  My new battle plan is to stay ahead of the game and attack each small sprout that pops up before it grows into a behemoth.  Once my poison oak subsides (until then, thank you Daniel Bovet for discovering antihistamines), I intend to sharpen my sheers and wage war again.      

How do you eat an elephant?

My ever growing “To Do” list has me ready to throw my hands up and run screaming.  May proved to be such a soggy month that my outdoor projects gathered dust on my priority list.  Now June has burst forth bright and sunny, and I have attempted to start at least half a dozen separate projects all at once.  I reached a rather frustrating point after my weed wacker broke down for the sixth or seventh time, then I discovered the power washer needed repairing before I could use it, and finally the waterfall reconstructed plans were proving to be a very difficult thing to hammer out; I felt ready to implode.  Then a wise women (my mother, of course!) reminded of the old saying about eating an elephant one bite at a time.  From this moment I shall strive to eat my elephants in manageable morsels; I just wish the weeds I need to pull were not the size of elephants! 

Animal Kingdom in Disneyworld