Come, Be Still

Saturday, September 16, 2023

Lake Time - August 2023

While we didn't get to the lake many times this summer, we did camp out there for 4 nights at the end of August. Our stay contained the whole range from wool-sweater weather... to cold tile floor turning into a lake from heavy humidity on days in the 90's!

It also contained some "firsts" for my neice.

Canoeing...

And her first watercolor!

Meanwhile her 3 year old brother learned a couple new brush handling skills (not shown in this photo!)

They enjoyed the lower water providing extra beach for play.

And riding the pontoon!

Books are a "must" in every day!

Making memories!

Elsa and I found the perfect way to make S'mores with our runny, homemade, honey marshmallows! Delicious!

Friday, September 15, 2023

3 Tips to Stretch Safely

1: Always warm up muscles before deep stretches. The simplest way is taking a 10 minute walk.

2. Keep muscles activated (strong) around the joints to protect them.

3. Stretch only as far as is comfortable. Activating muscles also signals to your brain that it is safe to stretch further.

Thanks to my sister Elsa for these tips from her certification courses with WholyFit Wellness! See Elsa's beautiful blog here: https://reachingtotheskies.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, September 12, 2023

How to Freeze Peppers

Have you ever wished you could enjoy more of this season's abundance of peppers throughout the year? Wish no longer!

Peppers are one of the easiest types of produce to freeze. Simply chop (removing seeds), scoop into freezer bags, and tuck away to wait for a winter meal needing peppers!

Some ways we use frozen peppers include:
• Omelets
• Soups
• Hot-dishes (aka "Casseroles")
• Fried along with onions for burritos and burgers
• Chicken a-la King (which also used our frozen, homegrown celery!)

What is your favorite use for sweet peppers?

~ Hannah

Saturday, September 9, 2023

Back at Work

[See post from 8.11.2023 for more about this project.]

A week later, I spent another afternoon under one of the three trees Grandpa helped us three girls plant when we were little. Even a light rain couldn't reach me there as I trimmed and sawed with a trusty "Saws-All".

Thankfully Dad came to my aid with a chainsaw to greatly speed up the project.

There is still a bit more to trim out of this tree and then two more to tackle sometime. Plus after my first afternoon of hard work with the shovel we decided that the volunteer forest of deciduous trees needs to be clawed out with the backhoe.

But for now we are enjoying a new little clearing!

Tuesday, September 5, 2023

Colorful Fresh Veggie Salad "Recipe"

After several months of enjoying Dad's homegrown lettuce, my salads are currently much more colorful!

These Colorful Fresh Veggie Salads always start with a base of chopped Cucumber and Tomato...

...and are dressed with Olive Oil, Balsamic Vinegar, and Salt.

But as you can see from the first photo, you can get as colorful as you wish. That salad included Red Cabbage and Yellow Crookneck Summer Squash. Yum!

What would you add to a fresh veggie salad? I'd love to hear!

Saturday, September 2, 2023

Flowers, Fruit and Birds

Mom wants to plant more lilies, as they bloom later than most flowers and keep her perennial gardens bright! Even this plant has nearly finished now, but the hydrangeas are still beautiful!

If anyone tries to make you think that bird and butterfly populations are hurting... send them to our place. We are seeing more monarchs this year than ever before (other than during a couple of migrations), and our bird population has exploded! We regularly see 6-10 big Robins and Northern Flickers hopping about on just one part of the lawn all at once. Many of the robins are obviously babies from the second batch of the season, with their speckled feathers.

The problem with all these birds (including exponential growth in our Blue-Jay population) is that we lost our big harvest of grapes - each berry being pecked out just as it ripened.