Autumn Olives

I have an on-going love affair with the lowly Autumn Olive.

My passions rise twice a year.

First in the spring, when the trees are in bloom.....

they have the sweetest-spicy-est scent

that simply tantalizes my olfactory bulbs.

I wish I could capture their essence and wear it as perfume!

The flowers are small and barely mentionable,

until you get up close and personal.

Sensual in scent, they are.

The rest of the year the plant is very un-mentionable,

closely resembling the Russian Olive.

Most would call it a weed, a nuisance.

Not me!

I know what's coming:

These are the berries which fully ripen in October.

They bring my love to fruition.

They are sweet and tart and very delicious.

(If you can beat the birds to them!)

They make delicious jam. I use the same recipe I would

for elderberries, currants or other wild berries,

(although you may want to adjust the sweetner to your taste.)

I don't know if I will get to make jam from them this year,

but I wanted to introduce you to them so you can.

Go for a nature walk in your neighborhood

and see if you can befriend my friend,

Autumn Olive.

I'm happy to share.

Our Next Home

Here's a quickie post---

just wanted to throw up a photo of our next home.

We are packing up (and moving) our 1200+ sq. ft. home,

and basement, detached garage, two outbuildings...

plus the contents The-Man has collected about our 3+ acres...

and this 5th wheel will be our next place of abode.

We bought it very inexpensively,

and it was very lived in before we acquired it.

There are a few things we will be doing to it

to utilize the tiny space more efficiently.

It measures 7 feet wide by 38 feet long

and includes two bedrooms, full bath with washer and dryer,

living area with slide out sofa, kitchen,

and a small room with a table and two chairs

which the previous owner called the "dining room"

but will not accomodate our family,

so it will become our office/homeschool resource center

and we will have a folding table that we bring out for mealtimes.

Truthfully, I'm having a hard time downsizing enough

so that all our possessions will fit in it.

So, though I'm getting rid of a lot,

the rest I'm packing and we are placing in a storage unit,

and we will finish sorting it out when we get relocated.

(They have donate-stores there too!)

We had hoped to be in a more permanent shelter before winter

in our new location on the farm,

but it is looking as if that will not be the reality,

so I am doing research on living through the winter in the 5th wheel.

 Now, THAT will give me much material for future posts I'm sure!

We have gleaned some good tips from the internet

and we have a couple of ideas of our own for coping,

so with a can-do pioneer spirit we will be learning a lot as we go.

If you have any winter-living-in-a-5th-wheel experience--

we are all ears so please share!

Carob Mint Smoothies

Here's a quick fix I often turn to when I'm craving
something that I know isn't good for me!

Carob-Mint Smoothies

1 1/2 cups soymilk

1/4 tsp. white stevia powder

2 sprigs chocolate mint, leaves only

(could substitute other types of mint, or flavoring)

1/4 cup carob powder

1/3 cup natural peanut butter

6 frozen bananas, chunked up

Place first 4 ingredients in blender and whiz well.

Add peanut butter, and then start adding chunks of banana.

This gets very thick like soft-serve ice cream,

so you may have to carefully "help" the bananas get down

into the blender blades with a pusher of some sort.

Pour into 3-4 good size mugs,

grab a spoon and enjoy!

Bringing Momma Home

First kiss.....in a long while!

My momma has been separated from my daddy

by circumstances for 5 years and 9 months,

but today we brought her "home."

"Home" being a care center located about 15 minutes drive from

where daddy lives, and "home" meaning it is the same

care facility that my momma worked in for

the best 10 years of her nursing career (according to her.)

We didn't arrive until after 10pm,

but I have to brag on the staff--they were incredibly kind.

The nurse who was expecting her was scheduled to leave

 in 10 minutes, but she stayed an extra hour and completed the paperwork.

The oncoming nurse, and one of the assistants had worked with momma

years ago, and momma remembered them.....

so, even though she's not really at home in her house,

it still feels like home.

When I called daddy to let him know we'd made it in ok,

the joy and excitement in his voice.....

just filled my heart.

Made all the planning and waiting and work worth it.

A long-time goal, finally accomplished.

It was late when we got to daddy's house and finally to sleep,

so we slept in quite a while next day.

Finally got ourselved around,

and daddy got all spiffied up,

and we took him in to see mom.

I wish you could have been a mouse in the corner...

yup, that was a satisfying moment!

Celebrating 20 Years

Twenty years ago today.....

The-Man-of-the-Place and I were wed.

In the midst of a local park,

under a ginormous oak tree,

in front of God and everybody.

After the celebrating was over,

he and I set out in an old Model T

to begin the adventure of our lifetime.....

and what an interesting road trip it has been!

(Read: Up and Down, Up and Down.....  :)

A lot of couples dream and plan and save to take

a luxurious island cruise vacation

to celebrate such an occasion as this...

but us?

No, I guess we're too simple.

(Besides, I watched Titanic and The Perfect Storm--

I have absolutely NO desire to take a cruise!)

We ARE in the midst of starting a new adventure in our lives.

And we ARE going to take a little trip today.

We are going to drive "Old Blue" a little piece down the road

and spend about the same as some would on that luxurious escape...

but we are investing in a different kind of vacation,

something we consider a lasting luxury

because it will give us a new kind of freedom...

Here's a little You Tube video of someone else

who took the trip before we did...

Here's Our Dream

Hope you enjoyed that video as much as we did.

Did you guess what our Anniversary Gift will be today?

(Hint: it's not the tractors, nor the cabin.....

although the cabin could certainly be on our wish list!)

Hope you have as blessed and celebrated a day as we will!

And to my Man--

Happy Anniversary!

You make ALL my dreams come true!

I <heart> U!