Hopeful Gardening

This weekend we took a leap of faith and decided to try to grow some garden plants from seeds. I wanted the kids to see first hand how plants are grown and what it takes to produce vegetables. I have to admit that instead of a green thumb, mine is mostly brown. But I have the heart of a gardener, just not the skill set yet. I am going to keep trying until I get it right. I grew up helping my dad plant and care for a garden. Many a summer mornings were spent picking beans and tomatoes. I am determined to expose Maddison and Mason to that same experience. So far, they love it. We had some small success last year with vegetable boxes and blueberry bushes. I will try to post more pictures when the seeds start sprouting. . . which I hope is soon!

The Tea Party That Wasn't

All dressed up and nowhere to go! On Saturday, Maddison and I thought that we were registered for a Grandmother/Mother and Daughter tea party. When we got there, we found out that there had been a mix up and we weren't registered. What could have been a sad day turned into a happy event. We ended up visiting a new bakery in our town and bought treats for some of our favorite people. Then we visited her mom's school (and delivered a yummy looking brownie bite) and Maddie got her nails polished with sparkles. Later we delivered more of our goodies and enjoyed the company of family. All in all, it turned out to be a very enjoyable afternoon. I guess you could say that we make lemonade out of lemons.

Weekend

What a weekend this has been. Snow, wind, rain and cold weather. The weekend was unusually full for me. I rarely have any plans, but I fit quite a bit into this one. On Sunday I had lunch with some cousins. It was so nice to catch up with them and spend some quality time just talking. Most of the time when I see extended family it is at large gatherings and it is hard to talk with so much going on. The weekend ended with our son-in-law in the hospital for tests. He checked out fine, so all is well that ends well.

A Boy and His Tractor!

Mason is a John Deere man. A cousin brought his big John Deere over last weekend to blade our driveway after the winter's damage. Mason wanted to "pose" by the tractor. As soon as the tractor came down the drive, Mason went into the garage and got his John Deere front end loader and parked it close by. A man and his toys. . . .

Say It Ain't So!

Yes, it is true. There is snow covering the ground at our house this morning. And there is more in the forecast (up to 2 inches) tomorrow. I certainly hope that this is winter's last hurrah! Yesterday was mostly nice, but much colder than what we have been having. And this wonderful weather is just in time for the weekend. Sigh! It should be a great weekend, though. On Saturday I am going to a Parks and Rec sponsored "Tea Party" with Maddison. I am supposed to dress "festive". I am not sure yet how I will pull that off! On Sunday some of my cousins are getting together for lunch and laughs. This is a great group of women. I will probably be the oldest one there, but they won't make me feel that old. It is so nice to surround yourself with family and friends. The girls don't get together often enough, so I am really looking forward to this. Weekend here we come. . . snow or not!

E-Gads!

My goodness people. It has been one hit after the other lately with the checkbook. First our homeowners insurance was due. I wrote out one big check (double what it was 15 years ago when we moved here). Then there was the check for our automobile deductible (Randy hit 2 deer with his truck). And today, over lunch, I picked up our taxes from the tax lady. Yikes! Lets just say we have underpaid Uncle Sam all year. And now he wants his due. My financial goals have taken a hit with all of these huge expenses. It is so incredibly hard to get ahead and we have no children at home, we both work full time and have good benefits. I cannot imagine how young families and people starting out do it. The only consolation I got today was after I picked up the taxes, I went to Subway for lunch (who could afford more?) I was sharing our tax news with a friend who works there, and she told me that a few years ago her husband ran his own business. She wasn't working at all. When they had their taxes done, they owed $10,000 to the IRS. Well, my check might be large, but it is not that big. I guess it could always be worse.

Hannibal

Sunday we visited Hannibal and took a walking tour. Maddison "painted" Tom Sawyer's fence. Amanda took a picture of the kids behind Mark Twain's boyhood home. It was a fun day with beautiful weather. My favorite part was walking by the Mississippi and watching the fishing boats.