I admit it, I still haven't gone out to the garden to do chores! I had everything weeded, ripped out, replanted and looking pretty good - then I got sick and the caterpillars took over the broccoli and cauliflower beds, followed by a week of 10 inches of rain which just destroyed my lettuce seedlings and made a mess of everything! I kept meaning to go out and start over again, but haven't had the motivation. Too many things happening last week not leaving me the long block of time I need for a do-over.
This past weekend I decided yet again to shirk my garden duties and took the kids out to enjoy the nice weather:
Saturday we got our pumpkins...
and made our way through the maze...
and finished off with fresh strawberry ice cream!
Sunday was unbelievably warm, temps in the 80's, so we spent most of the day outside, kids riding their bikes and me knitting in the driveway watching them!
I let Loch practice his violin outside and he got the first glimpse of how "the nerdy kids win out in the end" LOL.... some girls were hanging around him saying "wow", "you know how to play that?" and "cool!" A nice confidence booster for him, I noticed the bully down the street didn't have his own groupies that day!
Not to be outdone, Finn asked the girls if they would like to hear him play the piano!
His selections were "Old MacDonald" and "Jolly ol' Saint Nicholas" LOL
The kids have been begging me to get down the Halloween decorations for 2 weeks now so I went over the proper protocol for what to do if they hear a "thud" followed by mommy's legs sticking through the ceiling and braved the attic!
Success! (This is usually DADDY's responsibility!)
We spent the rest of the afternoon making a scarecrow guy and assorted spooky stuff
The nighttime shot!
Today I was sidetracked by having to go to the post office to mail a care package to hubby (which was closed, duh) and then it was "school lunch with your child" day - so basically I'm not out in the garden today, either!
I have every intention of going back to the post office early tomorrow and getting back in time to spend 3 good hours doing garden chores tomorrow.
Do any of you get overwhelmed in the fall or is it just me? Even though the temps are perfect for doing chores, I am preoccupied with the holidays, deployment stuff, kids and their school-stuff, wanting to get back into knitting and learning to sew, etc, etc, etc!
Forget the garden! You're doing the very most important things right now . . . having fun with the kids. I marvel at the decorating you do outside which must give the kids a really great sense of the holidays. Lots of fun and joy. You're such a good mama, Erin m'dear!
ReplyDeleteDo we feel overwhelmed in the fall? Do you know I've COMPLETELY forgotten about Halloween decorations until you mentioned it? Gak. (Maybe I should just go for Thanksgiving decorations right now so I'm ready for that!)
Great pictures, as usual. What is that gorgeous colored knitting project on your lap?
We all seem to be going flat-out until winter. Well, winter up here in the hinterlands. Then there is that first glow of getting to stay inside with your knitting/quilting by the fire. Then the novelty wears off and you're waiting for spring with your teeth clenched. I say, to heck with the garden - go have fun!
ReplyDeleteOh, Garden, Schmarden. It will still be there. Spending time with your kids- priceless.
ReplyDeleteGreat decorations!!
I had to laugh at the "nerdy kids win out in the end". That is such a great line!
Judy
Mama Pea, I usually just decorate "harvest-y" in the front yard and save all the scary stuff for the "haunted garden" because I normally host a big party with all the neighborhood kids and parents and friends but honestly this year I just had to say NO! I feel guilty every time someone asks if I'm having it, but it's just too stressful with hubby not here to help and it gets pretty expensive, too. Loch & Finn were disappointed but I let them put the scary stuff out front this year, and we'll be going to a friend's house for trick or treating, her hubby is deployed too so we'll put together a makeshift "haunted car-port" at her place LOL! I think it's important for the kids to know that tradition goes on even when daddy's away, I don't want my kids to ever think that mommy and tradition go out the window during deployment. (Sadly, for many wives this happens)
ReplyDeleteSusan, that sounds so nice! And you are right, when the seed catalogs start coming in after the holidays, I'll be ready for spring again!
Judy, I know that other kids' opinions matter SO much when you're a kid, but don't you just wish they could see 20 years into the future and bank that knowledge that what your classmates think of you now is SO unimportant when you become an adult?! Easier said than done, we've all been there!
ReplyDeleteMama Pea, forgot - that is a horribly crappy yarn that I added a strand of wool to for strength, I'm making a shawl thing, really I'm just using up the yarn since I can't bear to throw it away but it's a cheapie yucky yarn, whatcha gonna do? LOL
ReplyDeleteWell, right now is probably the busiest time of year for me, mainly because of all that has been put off since summer arrived. Very nice pumpkins!
ReplyDeleteYeah, fall is crazy time here too. Seems like I don't catch my breath until after the holidays.
ReplyDeleteI flat out refuse to post any current pics of my garden! Y'all would be mortified! So yup, been slacking here too and just sorta doing what I want to do!
ReplyDeleteDon't knock yourself...the kids probably love that you are having fun with them!
Sometimes ya just gotta unwind! Not your yarn though, just you! :)
SCARY Decorations! I, too, get overwhelmed - but that's nothing new for me! And now I have to confess. I have stepped through the ceiling. Ryan had put plywood down in the attic, but there was a 2'x2' hole near the venting to the bathroom - I stepped right through it. All the way up to my bottom - One leg hanging completely down into the bathroom. He was very sweet about it - fixed the hole and added more plywood. All that was left was a 1' x 1' hole...yep, I stepped through it again. This time scraping my leg quite badly on the metal venting. (poor me!) He said if I did it again he would divorce me. ;-) He may have really meant it, though! That was in the old house. We don't use the attic for storage in the new place!
ReplyDelete