Rural Life

 

After visiting the neighborhood farm 3 times on Saturday, I am getting an appreciate for rural life. The first 2 trips were to get the veggies. And the third was taking Carter and Mamie over there to say hi to Farmer Peggy – and see the cats.

Sassy Elspeth looks a lot like their kitty Benny (and the Jets) from their college house.

This afternoon, after the kids headed back to Dubuque, I returned to the farm to return the little paper bags she uses for the produce. Might as well save her a little work since she's the hardest working woman in the tri-county area – no doubt! I stopped to take a picture of one of the many flower areas she manages to keep alive while feeding cattle and chickens and picking vegetables. Uff da. Hard work I am not cut out for.

On the way back, I'm like, but wait, look at this pompas ass grass we planted this spring! I mean it IS growing. Was it supposed to be knee-high by the forth or hip-high? Not sure. But anything green that comes from my two black thumbs is a victory!

Sunday Non-Day

I can see why this weekend would be the one we don't acknowledge Sunday is really a Sunday. And for most of us working folk, we're pretty glad the Monday is not a typical back-to-work Monday.

So I don't feel 100% guilty that I didn't get too far with my goal to organize my "oh my god room" office. 

I also don't feel bad for taking a nice nap in the sun with Mr. Deck Chair.

Or relaxing when my BFF was in town and had time to visit.

While I have plenty on my to-do list, I'm guessing my Monday (that extra day I've been wishing for) will take care of that. If I have the ambition.

Today would've been our dear Sylvester's 20th human years birthday. We miss her so! And can definitely adopt her "naps win every time" attitude.

Enjoy your extra time this weekend!

For Your Enjoy-Mint

So it turns out my sun-seeking sister Sylvester is also my Shamrock Shake sister! I couldn't eat all of it on Valentine's Day, so I put it in the freezer and we both enjoyed the slightly thawed version Friday night.

Which served as my inspiration Saturday morning when I made a Thin Mint Magic trifle! As usual, I never make a trifle the same as previously. I just FIND the ingredients. In this case, the cake layers didn't involve me baking. I happened to see a big frosted mint brownie pan at Festival Foods and grabbed it. Next layer is white chocolate pudding with a bit of mint extract and green food coloring. Then comes a layer of crushed Thin Mints. Repeat and add Cool Whip to the top and sprinkle Andes Mint chips on top. 

And yes, it was as tasty as it sounds!

I brought it to Rudolph for the pot luck after church – featuring the guitar choir – last night.

Besides great music and fun with friends, we were treated to this gorgeous sunset out the back door of the Welcome Center.

Today I sang in my own church choir and was treated to an early moon view this afternoon during a short walk. It was finally above freezing again after a few days of cold, "normal" winter. 

And our brain-washed Wisconsin minds are thinking... it's 36 degrees. Maybe we should grill out for supper! The brats in our fridge are yelling, "Yes, please!"

Hope you found some sources of enjoy-MINT this weekend!

That Fat Tuesday Thing

I'll have to defer to my late mother-in-law's favorite cat to observe Fat Tuesday (aka Mardi Gras). She loved Garfield and we can identify. In fact, Jim had lasagna for supper! And I just enjoyed Fat Tuesday treats at work!

They did have a Mardi Gras theme in the cafeteria and I honestly did not have to do anything to earn my purple and gold beads. I swear!

But someone brought in Fannie May chocolate bars and someone else made fruit pizza and still someone else had mini-cupcakes with the "good" frosting. So yep, I was full by the time I got home from work.

And even now, after a fun night shooting hockey pictures for Rapids, I'm still full.

But I have that little space for popcorn, as always.

As for tomorrow... are YOU dieting? I may give up some caloric things but I haven't committed quite yet. Sorry, Garfield, it's still Fat Tuesday in my books!

Sun Day

What a glorious sunny day today! We don't often say that in the winter, but when it means temps above 40 degrees, we celebrate!

Mr. SKOL Man was the first to admit that even though our team wasn't in the Super Bowl, we could enjoy the sun!

And our yard enjoyed it, too. I went for a walk with my friend across the street and we just enjoyed warm weather. Didtn't realize we were setting a warm temp record.

And kitty just relaxed in the sun and wondered when we'd open the screen door. Not today, princess, but hopefully soon!  

Enjoy the mild weather!

Monday Surprises

When the first sight to greet you on a Monday morning is cat puke on your office carpet, you know it's going to be a great day. I mean after that, how can it not go up?

And it did! You'll never guess who finally came to visit. Mr. Sun! About time, dude! I almost didn't recognize you.

I knew temps were suppose to rise this week, but it certainly was a nice surprise to have to squint outside!

I got another surprise, too. Not as good... at least to start with. As my team Birthday Fairy, I pride myself in keeping track of this special occasion so I can decorate the person's desk and... of course, make them a treat (a.k.a. trifle). When one of my co-workers inquired what I was making for the other co-worker's birthday tomorrow, I was speechless. Ope! Missed that one. 

But even though I don't have an oven to bake the cake part, I managed to cobble one together thanks to the bakery section at the store! It's some sort of peanut butter and chocolate vibe. Hope the random mix of things taste OK together. (That would not be a good surprise.) So far, though, I think I'm batting a thousand. I'll let you know.

Now, at day's end, I think there's one more surprise that may be coming. After cleaning up that Princess Pukes-A-Lot mess this morning, I also found a singular "turd" (for lack of a better word). Where is the rest of Princess Poops-A-Lot's gift? 

Question is: Do we look for it or perhaps count on Tuesday having a day break surprise that means the day will just keep getting better?

Hope you get some nice surprises this week! But, per usual, be careful out there!

Goodbye 2023 (and Our Playoff Hopes)

Today felt more like a typical no-plans Sunday than New Year's Eve. We continued our DE- mode. As in DE-clutter and DE-spose of junk (or add it to the spring garage sale pile, which is growing to the point I'm already dreading pricing things).

For our New Year's Eve excitement, we ordered a DE-licious pizza from Italia's down the road. We hoped the Vikings would look as good as this pie, but that was not to be.

It doesn't help when our DE-fense doesn't show up and the Packers quickly took advantage of that. It was DE-sgusting! Glad Jim and I played some cards to DE-stract ourselves. 

Of course, normal people in the other 48 states are probably partying it up and not worried about two teams trying to make it to .500 and keep their playoff hopes alive. At least the game kept us up until after 10 p.m. We're not making it to midnight, that's for sure. 

Sylvester told us not to be too DE-stressed about it. We'll still have the prettiest kitty on the block when the clock strikes 12. That we do, Princess. We DE-finitely do!

Hope you were able to say goodbye to 2023 with some fun. Be careful out there!

Un-seasonable Season's Greetings

When I was heading home from book club this morning, I noticed it was unseasonably warm for the day before Christmas Eve. So I stopped at Kwik Trip and got my car washed. Who wouldn't? I have friends in Minnesota who even golfed today. Jealous but glad we both took advantage of the unseasonable season's greetings!

And so did hubby. Here he is grilling some brats outside on Christmas Eve eve at the same time he's testing out the snowblower, of course. It's being finicky. In the months to come, we'll need that a heckuva lot more than the grill.

While he was doing that I made the third version in 10 days of a peppermint bark trifle.

I also got the ham going. But based on the party in our front yard, I could've gone with turkey!

We had a good meal and great time with the Austin clan. My father-in-law appreciated the humor in his personally autographed (via my PhotoShop skills) picture of a certain celebrity he does not like. She takes too much focus off of football!

He did enjoy seeing his great-grandkids – as we all did.

The annual cousins picture is missing two of the tall ones – Casey and Carter – but still looks pretty cute because Colin and Clay certainly are! It was fun having little Mya and Eli here, too.

Pretty sure Sylvester wasn't a fan, but I give them props for trying! At least she didn't hiss, just ran away and hid under our bed a bit.

It was just nice. And we have leftovers for tomorrow night when we feed 2/3 of our offspring after our afternoon church choir "gigs". I just say gigs so the kiddos think we're popular. 

Enjoy your Christmas Eve eve and Eve!!

Plunged into Darkness. Again.

There's a false celebration that we are ending Daylight Saving Time – and getting an extra hour of sleep (or something). But then it gets to be 5 p.m. on that first day. And we're plunged into darkness. Much too soon.

A few faves...

This is funny because most of us got up when our bodies told us to get up. And based on the full parking lot at church this morning, I'm guessing it was EARLY.

And this is 100% dramatic me. As I told my mom today, I realize I've lived in Wisconsin for decades and this happens every single stinkin' year. But still... I hate it. I want jammies on by 6 p.m. And this won't change for at least 4 month. Uff da.

On the "light" side literally, we honored loved ones we've lost for All Saints Day. I lit a candle to pay tribute to those we've lost in the past year – Jim's mom, my Aunt Gwen, his Uncle Lyle, and my friend Cindy. To name a few. As I said the other day, grief can sneak up on you. But it was a good reminder today that they are in a better place. 

Also on the much brighter side, with our QB Cousins out for the season and the backup QB getting a concussion in the first quarter, the Vikings had to rely on their 3rd-stringer, so to speak, to step up today – just days after the Purple People Eaters acquired him. And he did that job!

This is fascinating. I don't care what team you cheer for! And we didn't get to watch the game until the last few minutes. Just followed the drama on our phone apps. And then bit our nails at the end. Whew. SKOL, Vikes! Well done!

Oh and the other highlight of the day was learning kitty also like Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake ice cream! We're soul sisters forever!

Side note: you can see a sneak peek at our kitchen island here. That lighter stuff is a brushed metal insert. Stay tuned to pics this week after our countertops and sink get installed Tuesday. It's been a long 7 weeks! 

Despite Daylight Saving Time ending, there is light at the end of that particular tunnel!

Friday Eve

Now that the rain and the snow have subsided, it seemed like a normal sub-freezing commute into work today. Normal and beautiful, that is! Like Mother Nature was trying to make up for a few days of miserable failures.

Nothing could quite reflect how gorgeous it was but I did snap a few of my rearview mirror as I exited off the interstate. So nice!

After work I took my final senior portrait shoot. Another reluctant young lad who made his momma happy he agreed to "a few" pictures.

With a free evening, I decided to catch up on some of my streaming series I haven't watched in quite some time. I guess I am behind on The Crown but having an identity crisis since this actress has a major role on Emily in Paris. I obviously need to take advantage of a few weeks off from my side hustle to catch up!

Kitty agrees. And we haven't even embarked on the already released Hallmark Christmas movies this fall. So behind! As I say at work, help us prioritize our RUSHes! 

The Sweetest Thing

You might think the sweetest thing is this Monday Night Football cookie – and the fact the lowly Vikes lead the 5-1 49ers at halftime. But nope.

The sweetest thing is seeing Sylvester enjoy her belated Sweetest Day present – a heated bed from Daddy. Oh her human spoils her! But she deserves it. We've felt guilty since our heated bathroom floor – her favorite place – crapped out on us. We weren't sure she'd take to something different from her corner chair, but so far she's enjoying her spa-like treatment. As she should be.

As for the Vikings, I don't know. Today is Dad's birthday and even though he's in Heaven, I can't imagine he'd project any niceties toward the Vikings. Guess they'll have to do it on their own.

Keep your sweet powers to yourself, Dad. Unless you want to do a favorite for your favorite 7th child! That'd be sweet!

Spooky Sweetest Day :: Redheads, Black Cats, and Witches

I noticed a pop of color in our backyard yesterday before we left town. Sauntered down there this morning to take a picture before the trees got naked.

When I realized it was two redheads back there, I definitely had to take a picture! I told hubby (a redhead fan) that I got these for him for Sweetest Day, but he insists his hands are already full. Ha. I'll keep them that way!

We had company today anyway. 

My sister Rayna came down to visit. She has now officially moved from Arizona to Wisconsin, living in Siren again – close to two sisters and our mom. She was visiting friends the last few days and made our house part of her tour! So great to see her and catch up.

To get some fresh (but crisp) air, we walked over to the neighborhood Pumpkin Shed and checked out their fun decorations and inventory. Lots of neat stuff. Get there if you can – Deer Road and 70th Street.

Decided to take our picture by one of the inflatable decorations. Are there 3 witches or just that 1? No need to answer. But we do have a family joke from when we were young and our dad would say, "Get to bed with yas." And it sounded like "Get to bed, witches." Maybe we were hearing it wrong. Or maybe right?!

I bought a black cat pumpkin that could be Sylvester! Perfect pumpkin – it's cute and I don't have to carve it!

After Jim got home from singing up at Rudolph church, we went to eat nearby at The Ridges. Saw a few friends and had a great meal. Now we're all so stuffed we could fall asleep.

Almost time to get to bed, witches! 

Fall Ball

It got up to 60 degrees today or pretty close to it so I could finally do some things outside. Like discard my incredibly dead hanging basket flowers and take down our Twins and Reds flags. (Insert sad face here.)

Sylvester just wanted to soak up as much of the warm sun as possible. So she hung out by the front patio door for hours. 

I got my outside chores done during halftime of the pathetic Vikings-Bears game. In the end, we did finally get a win. It wasn't pretty but it still counts. After the game, since it was still nice out, we decided that we'd engage in some more fall ball.

My new fox headcover (an adorable tribute to my famous fox picture this summer) made its debut at TriCity. I don't know if it's a Mr. Fox or a Foxy Lady, but I am open to name suggestions besides "What the Fox?!" since that was said a handful of times today. (But not quite so PG.)

We finished out round with our friends Craig and Sara while the last of daylight was hovering over the course. There was no one left golfing so we didn't want to make the clubhouse worker stay late and make pizzas just for us. So the four of us headed over the Ida's. Yup second day in a row, ha. Even though they screwed up the pizza orders – which rarely happens there – it was a fun end to a good day.

Hopefully not the final round of fall ball either. You just never know what Mother Nature has up her flannel sleeve!