About Radishes

Today i ate a tiny radish from my garden. it was about the size of a peanut M&M, it was spicy and i didn't really enjoy it.

In spite of the fact that I do not particularly like radishes, I continue to plant them in my garden every year. The reasons are two-fold. 

The main reason being that they grow in spite of me and the groundhogs. I have a tendency to get busy and distracted, let the garden get covered in weeds and then the groundhogs come and eat off all my peas and beans and i cry and give up and forget to water, weed, OR harvest anything but a few overripe tomatoes from the one or two overgrown plants that miraculously survived me and the groundhogs. BUT groundhogs do not like radishes. and they grow faster than the weeds. so i plant them and eat a few and feel good about myself and my gardening prowess. the overripe tomatoes do not have the fresh victory of the first spicy little radish. Whatever else happens in the garden, at least i had radishes.

Also, for whatever reason, radishes take me back to childhood visits to Gram and Pap's house and picnic lunches on the porch. a very vague and kind of unsettling, yet comforting all at the same time, feeling that radishes and my grandparents are linked. (I never claimed to be normal)

So i plant a square or two of radishes. In spite of deciding not to waste the space on something that i don't' like to eat, somehow i get my hands in the dirt and out come the radish seeds and a few weeks later the first harvest is little spicy red bites of success and nostalgia. 

totally unrelated, i found a recipe to lacto-ferment radishes and i'm gonna try it once they get a little bigger (http://www.culturesforhealth.com/lacto-fermented-radishes-recipe/)

About blogging

in case you haven't noticed. i have not posted here in quite some time. the reason is simply this:

I reached a point where i felt like I could either blog about my life or live it.

I could plant and weed and water my garden or i could blog about how overgrown it had become.

i could take hikes and enjoy lazy afternoons with my husband or i could spend the whole time writing about it in my head and then feeling like a failure when the posts never made it to the internet.

I could have great adventures living my life and savoring the weird stuff that happens (for instance, there was an ORGAN at the farmers market yesterday....playing Phantom of the Opera....complete with a soprano. they were selling CD's but the whole effect was surreal) or i could worry about getting a good photo or to post along with the experience (nothing could really capture my farmers market experience. nothing. come visit me some friday, maybe they'll do an encore). and then fight with the internet connection when i actually DID manage to get the perfect photo or video and it refused. to. upload. (Windstream lies by the way. Highspeed service has been coming to me "next quarter" for the past 3 years!)

So i gave myself permission to stop. i tweeted micro-posts to Facebook (facebook.com/stasigh) when the moment was just too good to keep to myself and savored the rest, or called my mom or my sister or my sister in law and told them the story that was too perfect not to share. I basically let go of feeling guilty about blogging. or NOT blogging as the case may be in my case. I am not and will probably never be a professional blogger (doesn't that sound like a sweet gig though?) so why let a hobby make me feel bad.

I may dip back into it, some events and musings must be recorded for future generations and 140 characters is not enough to capture some of my most bizare experiences and deepest ruminations. and i can post via e-mail. but no promises. no pressure. and no guarantee that there will be a photo, or one that has anyhing to do with the post. we'll see. it seems a shame to abandon a 9 year old blog. 9 years is a long time.

...besides, i have some thoughts to share about radishes.

Thankfull in 2012

1 SNOW!!

2 - smooth visits to the vet (i took all 3 animals at the same time. the dog only peed on the floor twice.... :/ )
3 - making it safe through the storm
4 - internet
5 - heat
6 - when micah comes home early
7 - jobs and the ability to work.
8 - weekends off
9 - nail polish
10 - nail polish remover
11 - traditions
12 - new things.
13 - being able to help my sister
14 - Our Homegroup
15 - naps
16 - Our Sunday School class
17 - my mother
18 - whipped cream in a can
19 - The time i've been able to spend with Micah's grandma the past 2 years.

**this lists is not in any order whatsoever.....i'm going the whole way to 100, so don't worry if I haven't been thankful for you yet. It's probably coming and it doesn't mean I am more thankful for nail polish remover than you, just stream of consciousness thanksgiving up in here....

S.O.S. - Save Our Strawberries

I have a full garden update in the works, and I need to post about my trip west and my haircut and this hilarious video of Micah and his brother trying mark an angle to cut off a fence post and the giant tomato grandma Henry bought us again this year (you can't argue with that lady) as well as June's wallpaper....but first I need help!  I have a problem (more than one probably but this is the one I'm seeking assistance on).

My strawberry pants are lush green and healthy. But I am not getting to eat any of the fruit!! Seriously, I have harvested SIX berries. They are delicious. I want more but....Something is eating holes in all my berries!  What am i doing wrong? How can I fix this!!?!

IN WYOMING!!

The Cliff Notes Version....

Floated four avocado "boats" down the river with my 6"1' baby brother

Took my mom's garden flamingos to story time

Ate honeycomb

helped my dad clean carpets

made (and helped eat) a double batch of no-bakes

drank tea and read a book or two

experimented with painting my nails (photos of the finished product to come...)

just wait till I blog about THIS: coolest project ever!

Hung out with my MOM!!

found a rock for the rock collection that Micah denies that we have 

rode in the back seat with Al

Climbed a buffalo....

I still have 2 days left......

Yard Sales!!

I love yard sales. I have good memories of going to Grandma's house early on Saturday mornings with a marked newspaper and planning our route.

Fortunately for me, I married a man who also loves yard sales. MICAH is usually the one pushing me out of bed bright and early on Saturday mornings. Unfortunately, we have a difference of opinion about what constitutes a "good" yard sale. His criteria include the presence of tools and the absence of large racks of clothing....I like ones with household goods and vintage glassware. Community sales are the real way to go for us. Last weekend we drove 2 hours to go to a "good" one in Ohio with his parents...

Some of the REALLY GOOD Things We Found Already This Season....

• Cool Vintage Apron - pink and green argyle! Could it be any more me? No. $1
• Cross country skis... With awesome retro boots in our respective sizes!! It was meant to be. $10 for both sets
• Set of 4 vintage Pyrex mixing bowls - $35! (Micah was not sure they were worth it....the next guy had them for $55!)
• Screwdrivers & needle-nosed pliers (soon to be spray-painted pink so that even if Micah "borrows" them I'll be able to tell which are mine) $1 for the 5 screwdrivers, the pliers were part of a batch deal...
• Set of Copper measuring spoons - same $2 batch as the pliers and 2 mini C clamps for Micah...ha, formica....Married 5 years this summer and i still giggle inside when I say this....
• Serving platter that matches my favorite vintage pyrex!  - Micah was nervous when I told him I was buying this platter after his sticker shock over the bowls - you should have heard his sigh of relief when I told him it was only 25 cents! :)

Things I'm Still On the Lookout for This Summer:

• Blender (I'd pay $5 for a good solid one)
• Craftsman socket wrenches (OK, this is more for Micah....giggle)
• 12 oz (or smaller) hammer of solid quality
• pliers, the regular kind, I already have needle-nosed ones
• tool bag or solid yet small tool box I can paint pink are you seeing a theme?
• Any other useful hand tools for my collection
• a Weed Whacker (we may have to give in and buy a cheap one new if we don't find one soon)
• Vintage-y Tablecloths for $2 or less
• Pieces that match my china (Noritake Crest) especially bowls and platters....I'd pay just about whatever they're asking quite honestly

So, what find are you hoping to find at a Yard Sale this summer? I'll keep an eye out for ya....But you'll have to arrange to meet for pick-up.
Consequently, I still have a full-length mirror in the summer kitchen that I found for my sister LAST summer. They've been here a few times and simply need a bigger car or less kids.

May Day!!

I made this about April 13th. I have been dying to share it ever since.
To download the calendar to use as your desktop wallpaper, just click the image to load it in a new window.

Then, right click and choose "set as desktop background."

Well here we are: Welcome to May.  I'm kind of in a state of disbelief. Only one month left until the year is half gone...

My goals for May

• Memorize Psalm 46
• Read Bible every day.
• Wake up with Micah and stay up. (this will start tomorrow :)
• Make masks for the Mother's Day picnic.
• Mend 4 things from that big pile
• Starch the Angel already!
• Spring Clean the WHOLE house
• Do SOME THING with the flower beds 
• Finish Mulberry Hat and Cowl

Ooooh, that list got longer than I was planning on. Looks like I'll be busy. Lets see how it goes... What do you hope to accomplish in May?