Happy Memorial Day!

A visit to the cemetary

Handsome son who caught a HUGE northern that got away right as we got it out of the water...

Cute little stinker who learned how to cast this weekend with his Snoopy fishing pole that broke and was replaced with his choice of new fishing pole - Tinkerbell :).

Handsome Hubby

Hope it was a peaceful and fun weekend. Above are just a few shots from our weekend up north having fun fishing and visiting Gimma and Papa.

A History Field Trip

This past weekend my mom and I took my oldest son and my niece on a little field trip. We went to the historical society museum in the town where my mom and dad grew up. It is a tiny town in central Minnesota that was settled by Swedish immigrants. The museum was having an open house and we decided it would be a great way to introduce the two kids to a little of their own histories. They toured 3 school houses - one room log, one room clap board and a two room clapboard.

The saw an old police car and sat in an old fire truck. They watched a man bake bread in an outdoor oven and saw a blacksmith shop. And this was just the outside :)! Inside they learned a little about logging and that they had great, great grandfathers who were loggers right there in that county. They also learned about the Native Americans who first populated our great state as well as the maple syrup and wild rice that they harvested. It is really a very nice little museum and the perfect size for kids to continue learning about their past.

I also had a good time exploring the quilt exhibit, talking to a spinner and knitter and picking up a few more plants for my garden at the garden club's plant sale.

It was a great day and I look forward to many more like it this summer!

Our Garden In May - Two Words - HOT and HUMID

Following a rare mild early spring we are now faced with a rare hot and humid late spring. Our digital thermometer read 104 today. The weather station says the day had a high of 94 - whichever it was, it doesn't matter - both are HOT and I don't do HOT. Yuck.... Oh well... the gardens seem to be liking it. Below is are spring garden of lettuce, onions, radishes, beats, peas and kohlrabi.
We even tasted some of the fruits of our labors and my youngest liked these "spicy" "apples". They did taste oh so good and oh so fresh!

Else where in the yard are tomatoes, eggplants, pumpkins, squash, cauliflower, broccoli, beans, potatoes, cucumbers, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, rhubarb plus my herbs. We are off to a good start! I think the only thing left to get in the ground are peppers and a few more tomatoes all of which are sitting in my kitchen window looking ready to make the move outside.

Above is are lone squash plant (I do have seeds planted too). I got 4 from my grandmother and this is the only one that made it and it has fought to live!

With all this planting I needed markers for the seeds we had put in. I have always struggled with marking things - I seem to be a free-spirit gardener - but this time I decided we needed markers. So, I took some recycled lids from cottage cheese and the like that I had saved, wrote the plant name, put in a couple holes, used a stick as the pole and tah-dah, a recycled plant marker.

Mommy Made - Two From One

My mom pointed out to me a while ago that I have never explained the name of the blog. I think it is finally time. I love to make things and if I have the time, skill and materials I would rather make something than buy it. So, in that spirit, the other day I noticed that my youngest had holes in the knees of his pants. Instead of throwing them away I decided to repurpose them and ended up with two things out of one.

I first cut the legs of the pants off just above the holes and hemmed around each leg making my little guy a "new" pair of shorts.

I then took the legs that I had cut off and sewed them into a bag using what were the cargo pockets of the pants as the front of the bag. I sewed in a liner using some stone fabric I already had. All I had to buy was a strap which I could have made but I wanted it sturdy enough to stand up to all the rocks it most likely will be carrying from our nature walks. An unplanned surprise came when the bag was all complete and we looked hard at the bag and realized it looked just like my little birdwatchers favorite bird - an owl - so was born the Owl Bag :)!

Weekend Glimpses- Good Food and Good Help

Good Help - This weekend my littlest helped me with dishes - he is at that age where work is fun (especially when water is involved :)!).

Good Food - My husband is just starting to explore all that he can do with his new Weber smoker. This weekend he smoked a chicken and it was WONDERFUL!!!

Three Weeks To Go...

...until this cutie enters our family.

Mother's Day Abelskiver

I had a wonderful Mother's Day. I greeted the day with breakfast in bed (at 6:45am) prepared and served by my amazing 9 year old. I then spent the morning at church in the company of good friends serving good homemade food. We then made the short trip to my parents house to have Abelskiver. I have been eating Abelskiver (or baseball pancakes as the kids call them) since before I can remember - my grandma made them for her grandchildren and now my mom makes them for hers and some day I hope to make them for mine.

They are a Danish recipe (my mom's mom is Danish) and made in a special pan (above). We serve them with homemade raspberry jelly, maple syrup or brown sugar - the eater chooses their favorite topping. The grandchildren have a running contest as to who has the record for eating the most. My nephew (who just turned 18) currently holds his generation's record (his dad - my brother - holds our generations) although my 9 year old is starting to hold his own - he ate 10 on Sunday! He also had his first lesson in the preparation of them as he helped his grandma mix the better and put them in the pan. He was there to help her with the test run of her new electric pan which will let her make them when a stove is not available. He had a good time and I hope that there are more cooking lessons in his future!

A Spring Stroll and A Library Trip

Today my youngest and I took my sewing machine in for a tune up and then took a nice stroll on one of the paths behind our library. What a wonderful way to start the morning. There were a few wildflowers in bloom, we listened to the birds singing (and smelled a skunk :)) and picked up a couple rocks - just a nice peaceful stroll. All our senses were touched.




After our walk we visited our wonderful library. Someday I will take a picture of it as you approach it from the road. It is a beautiful example of a building being specifically designed to fit it's exact location. Every time I drive up to it I smile and feel peace.

A Minnesota Spring

Spring in Minnesota is usually a mix of snow and rain and, of course, our fair share of mud. This spring, however has been amazing - sunny, mild and early. We have been enjoying every second of it that we can. Bubbles have been blown, tire swing spun, blanket spread in the grass, basketball games plaid and gardens worked in. Here are just a few pics of my boys enjoying this amazing spring...