Water in the River

Leif took a haircut the other day while Daddy was out on errands. He cried and wailed the whole time, "I want my Daddy!" which is precisely what he was moaning in this picture in between the sobs (see the tears?) Eventually, when Daddy DID come home, Leif ran to him to proudly show off his haircut. :)

Life has been busy here of late. We spend a good deal of time brainstorming (for new job ideas), applying for jobs (a job in itself!) and wondering what we should do next.

Lately, we've decided to change gears a bit, and that has launched us in to a new adventure. While it is really too much to go in to here, suffice to say that we're revamping resumes and re-tooling in the hopes of landing where we want to be. After a year of this, I would think that we're a bit smarter at this by now. But there are no guarantees in life, are there? That is a phrase, by the by, that has come to have a new and very strong meaning to us.

Anyway, we're hopeful that our luck will soon be turning, and in the meantime, we're happy as little fat bugs in a rug.

In other news, the garden has taken the worst of this summer heat, and the squash all withered away into nothingness. I never got to harvest any of the pattypan squash, much to my chagrin, but the yellow squash were great. But the garden has been, as we knew it would be, a late experiment and learning experience in gardening in this um, interesting climate. I'm armed with a bit of knowledge I didn't have earlier this year, and next year, I'll be starting a wee bit earlier (as in months!) to get my garden growing.

The tomatoes are still producing - in fact, I'd say they just hit their peak this past week. I harvested some 20 tomatoes, although all were very small in stature. Their flesh is bright red and MmmMmm yummalicious!

The onions all died (from heat) and the cabbages are still there, but they won't come to much...they haven't really gotten around to forming proper heads. Their growth seems to have been severely stunted by the heat (and by the attack of the cabbage worms!) Next year, though, I have some tricks up my sleeve for those cabbage worms.

The Basil has done wonderfully, and is still producing mightily. So has the lemon balm, although I've yet to really use it. The mint went well, and I used most of it to make batches of mint tea. If there is any left by the time the cold comes, I'll make some mint jelly. If there isn't, I'll raid DaMomma's stash ;)

The eggplant has produced some sweet little baby eggplants that I can hardly stand to eat they're so cute. So far I have two fully grown and harvested, and one still growing on the plant. These are my first harvested eggplants! Last year, my little eggplant rotted on the vine while growing. It was ver' sad. So, I'm looking up recipes that use a little bit of eggplant for my three this year.

In between all the applications, doctors (yay! I finally went - nearly two and a half years since my last visit!) and general living, I've been decluttering the house like a fiend. I threw out a trash bag full of stained and worn out clothes, have another to go to Goodwill, and yet another to consign. I've gone through nearly two heaping laundry baskets full of magazines, cutting out the articles I wanted, and taking the rest to recycling. I've gone through Leif's books and toys and am sending them off to where they might be used. I went through three big kitchen drawer cabinets (essentially, three junk drawers) and decluttered them, putting them back together all wonderfully organized. I've gone through boxes of old paperwork, saving some but shredding the rest. I've gone through our library, purging out the books that I bought once intending to read, but every time I try to start them, I'm disenchanted and put them down. I'm trading 'em in for something I'll use. I've been working on cleaning off my old computer and transferring files, but that has been a bit of a stickler - I need a cable that I don't have (and can't easily come by round these here parts). In short, there are few places in my house that haven't been touched by my decluttering hand. I've learned to declutter when I feel the urge...if I delay, I generally get hit with a cloud of sentimentality that doesn't let me let go of anything.

How did I manage all that, you ask? Well, some long nights working late were part of it, when I couldn't sleep. And Leif taking longer naps also played a large part. And oddly, I'm still on a roll. I've been doing this for weeks now, and while I'd normally fizz out after a day or two, I'm still in high gear. I can't wait for the next time we head to town (and who knows when that will be - aside from my Dr.'s appointment this past Thursday, we haven't left since Father's Day, and before that, who knows?) so that I can trade it my books, take my bags of clothes to donate, and finally get rid of all the clutter!

After all that is taken care of, it is on to photographs and ephemera. Joy. And then cameras, too. Happy Happy Joy Joy.

Leif has been good through all of this, generally not undoing too much of what I do (thank goodness). Jason and Leif found a ball at the playground the other day, and so now we play kickball in the yard, which is fun.

Anyway, I'm yammering on and on, and everyone is snoring for sure by now, so I'm going to bid adieu and go snore myself. (Just kidding, I'm not a snorer).

Happy Nights and Happy Day of Independence.