After the storm.....

Whew, we made it through the wrath of Irene, unscathed.  We have a not yet confirmed microburst or tornado that may have gone through the property behind us (only feet away from us!). The trickle stream that runs next to us is a raging river!  No electricity for 3 days.  But, nonetheless, we are safe and unharmed, damage can be repaired, things can be replaced.  We were lucky.  A few of our neighbors were not so lucky.  Whole towns have been devastated and they are saying it may be months before things are back to normal in these towns.  One of the towns lost their bridge and cannot find it.  No seriously, they think it is in one of the reservoirs.   I'll admit I chuckled when I heard that!

The stream on the side of our house

We however lost all of our perishables.  The fridge and freezer were full of leftovers, meals and the like.  I hurt so bad to throw out all that food.  I just couldn't feed it to my family though.

Yes, it's a mess but everything was still good

Three days without electric makes food no good!

Sorry no before picture of the freezer, but just picture it full!

Seriously this was so full I couldn't fit another thing in it!

Because we turned down the temperature beforehand a lot of the fruits and veggies froze. The freezer under the fridge is way more convenient except if the freezer gets too cold it freezes stuff in the fridge!

I am predicting food shopping in my near future....By myself with the kids.....This should be a hoot!

Please pray for me!!

If you were effected, how did you weather the storm?

Hurricane Irene

Hi everyone....I may not able to post for a few days. I am actually scheduling this post, it is only Friday.

Irene made her way up the coast line.  I am praying we don't lose power.  We are being told we could be without power for more than 96 hours. Which, in all reality, isn't very long but it seems like an eternity when you are without.

vault9.net
 Isn't she a massive beauty?

I also want to thank all of the out of state and local emergency personnel and electric company personnel who left their families to aid in the aftermath of this storm. Your kindness will not be forgotten.  Our thoughts and prayers go out to everyone effected by Hurricane Irene.

We will be making the best of our time home and praying the Hubs will not have to go into work until after the storm has passed!  Enjoy!

An idiots guide.......

WARNING: This post may be offensive, I just want everyone to know how most people generally feel when going through infertility treatments. I know everyone's experiences are different, this is what my experience has been like.  Feel free to add anything I missed.

I have Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS), learn more about PCOS here.  In a nutshell, my body makes more male hormones than usual, everyone makes them some more than others. I do not ovulate every month, sometimes I don't ovulate for many months, which makes it very hard for me to conceive. 

Just so you know.......

This is how my typical month of Intrauterine Insemination (IUI) treatments go (this is the last cycle, bear with me here), get my monthly (I know, TMI), day 3 get a scan and a blood test, wait for the results, get results, start taking the medication concoction du jour for this cycle, wait another 3-4 days, get another scan and blood test, wait for results, find out my follicles (aka eggs) are not big enough yet and I need to come back for yet another scan, wait two days, get another scan and blood test, get results find out I didn't produce enough estrogen this time around and now there is a bigger chance the IUI will not work but we are going ahead with the IUI anyway (hey you never know unless you try, right?), make appointment for the IUI, 36 hours before the scheduled IUI inject more hormones into your body at the specified time, go to the RE, the Hubs goes first (again TMI but obviously it takes two, just saying), wait an hour and a half for them to separate the semen from the sperm, now it is my turn, sit on the table wait for the doctor to come in, we verify everyone is who they say they are and then we sign some paperwork to the effect of we are who we say we are, the procedure is somewhat like a internal exam, it doesn't hurt and it is fairly quick, DONE, doctor says "good luck", shakes hands and he is out the door, lay there for 10-15 minutes (put your legs up for good luck), leave, wait for two weeks.  The two longest weeks of your life, so excruciating that you make yourself believe that every little symptom means you are pregnant, when in reality it is a side effect of the hormone you take after your IUI because your progesterone levels are low too, become borderline neurotic, buy at least 2 early pregnancy tests hoping this is "the month", only to be crushed that it came back negative both times, 2 weeks after the IUI go have a blood test that actually confirms you are not pregnant.  Cry, A LOT, become very angry and hate most of the world, get your monthly and start all over again......Whew, did you get all of that?  It is crazy

I don't want to even know what IVF patients go through, I have heard stories and I choose not to put myself through it at this point.  But it is still an option.

P.S. My doctors, Dr. Leondires and Dr. Richlin, are awesome and not cold or uncaring in anyway.  During the procedure we talk about other things besides what is going on. It helps keep your mind off of it for a little while.  This past time we talked about the book "The Omnivore's Dilemma", great book, he already read it, I was reading it.  Had a conversation about drinking raw milk too.

Answers to some commonly given advice.........

It will happen, just relax.......No, it won't just happen if I relax, drink this, eat this, avoid this, put my feet up, have sex in this position.  I have asked my Reproductive Endocrinologist a lot of questions about my condition and he has indicated there was something wrong that diminishes my chance of conceiving easily.  He is the only one I trust at this point.

Maybe you just shouldn't try anymore, I mean you already have children......We feel our family just isn't complete yet.  And if you get cancer, go into remission then get it again should you just give up hope?  I mean you already survived it once.  Duh...

Invites to baby showers and the like.......If I do not feel like attending "baby" related things, even if I RSVP yes, please don't get upset with me.  I am aware you took the time to plan this and asked for me to let you know but sometimes I feel like I can face it, then right before I just can't do it. It is a constant reminder to me that I do not have another child that I so badly want.

It "just happened" for us.....Really?  To me that's just insensitive.  Nonetheless, I don't want to hear how it just happened for you, the condom broke, you never intended to become, you used the pull out method.... Apparently none of that has worked for me.

You should just adopt or have a surrogate.......Adopting and surrogates too expensive.  I am lucky my insurance pays for a lot of the costs.  They do not pay for surrogates or adoption.  Plus with adoption you have to worry about the birth parents coming back to take the child, it can get a little messy.  There is nothing wrong with adoption, it is just not something we are ready to explore right now.

Boy you sure are moody.......Yup I am.  Realize that I am going to have good days when I am happy and things are right with the world.  As well as bad days were I would rather hide in my house and become a hermit.  This can also vary hour by hour. Also, I take a lot of medications and hormones, a lot of them, so if I am a royal you-know-what to you, please chalk it up to this and walk away.  My emotions get the best of me.  I have noticed that even as I sit here and type I become angry, stop writing and have to come back to it.  It is not you, it is me......no really.

"I am curious about ______?"or "What about______?".......Feel free to ask but please don't be offended if I tell you I don't want to talk about it. 

You should be grateful..........Yes, you are right I should be grateful, and I am grateful I have three beautiful children.  But again we feel our family is just not complete yet.  This was a decision between my husband and I.  In fact, we discuss this ad nauseum for over a year now.  Thanks for your opinion but please feel free to keep it to yourself.

Don't take this the wrong way.......I probably will so please, don't even go there.  Plus that is never a good way to start any conversation.

Are you pregnant yet?..........No, if I was most of my close friends and family would know pretty much right away.  Again don't ask.

Well you are getting older.....Heck, I'm not that old. I am only 32. It is not uncommon nowadays for women to have children in their 40's.  Age plays a small role in it but not until you are much older.

Know that eventually I will want to talk about things, please be there for me and be sure to bring tissues and a sturdy shoulder (and chocolate, cause chocolate makes everything better!).  I need a shoulder to cry on not an answer or your opinion/advice.

Thousands of couples go through infertility treatment each year and  I do not think infertility is something people should keep quiet about. But I realize it is a very personal and for some people a very shameful thing to go through. I feel if we talked about it a little more maybe everyone who has or will go through it wouldn't feel a little less alone and scared.

So please take this guide and remember sometimes the best advice is none at all.

Update....Family Room project

The Family Room has become a really slow moving project but we are seeing the light!

So I changed my mind on the wall color.  We painted the swatches in different spots just to get an idea of what it would look like in different lighting.  (Which is a smart move because the color can look fabulous on the wall that gets all the sun but horrible in a darker area.) Well it ended up I did not like the color as much as I thought. 

We decided to try a yellow.  I didn't want too bright or too dark.  I once painted a kitchen yellow and it screamed at me even in the middle of the night.  I also had a yellow that was too dark and ended up looking like I painted my hallway orange, pair it with a green staircase and it looked like a pumpkin. No words could ever describe how ugly it was.....But I digress.

So I picked a color called Filoli Honey by Valspar, I LOVE IT!  It is not too bright and not too dark!  It looks like a rich buttery, almost mustard color. We are almost done painting the walls. Then we will rip out the bottom part of the stairs, wrap them around (to kind of like this), paint the stairs, put up the bead board, then put down the flooring!  And then phase one will be done!

Filoli Honey

Phase two will be A LOT slower than phase one.  We want to put up trim, wainscoting and replace all the doors but we just don't have it in the budget to do it right now. 

The first phase of this project was massive.  We ripped down all the ugly paneling and put up new drywall.  We had to replace a whole wall that had some really bad closet space one of the previous owners installed going down the hallway.  I seriously do not know what they were trying to do but it was quite the mess they had going on.  Not that we are experts or anything, but they really did not kow what they were doing!  We also ripped out another closet (I have eight huge closets in my basement, the ones on the first floor are tiny, go figure) to make a nice little alcove for the entertainment center.

We have some work ahead and we need to get off our butts and get it done!  But like everyone else we are so tired when we get home from work!  I need some motivation!

Can you picture it?  Sitting in a beautiful family room, with rich yellow walls and warm hardwood floors, chocolate colored couches and rug for the Hubs to lay on and watch TV, the girls playing their playroom once again, happy to see the toys they haven't been able to play with since January......This is my motivation!  

Wait, who am I kidding!  I am just praying we will be done before Christmas.....

My garden at dusk....Kindergarden Week 17

A little off the subject for just a moment....I just wanted to say that last weeks Kindergarden post was not to make anyone feel bad about the way they eat.  This way of eating did not happen for us overnight and in no way was I saying that my way of eating is the best way.  Everyone needs to do what is right for their family and I truely believe this is what is best for me and my family.  So I want to apologize if I came off as pushy, that was not the intent of the post. The intent was to make people think a little more about where their food is coming from. 

Whew, glad I got that off my chest!!  Kindergardens is my favorite post of the week!  It is post that I get to show off my garden and see others show theirs off as well!!  If you like my Kindergarden (and I sincerely hope you do!!) please check out the other fabulous Kindergardens over at The Inadvertent Farmer!

We had an assignment this week to take pictures of our gardens at either dawn or dusk.

So without further ado.......My garden at dusk.

There is fruits and veggies just hanging out!

Hidden tomato

Strawberries (yes they are still going strong!)

Eggplant- almost ready to pick!



Looking over the tomato plants, yes they are pretty tall!

 We did not intend to have pumpkins this year but I guess this is what I get for throwing my pumpkins down off the deck to the embankment! Can you find the hidden pumpkin in the second picture? 



Green pumpkin

Did you spot the pumpkin?



In last weeks Kindergarden post I used an old photo of my garden. Someone asked what my garden looks like now.....

Five raised beds

The two you cannot see because of my tomato jungle

Looks like a wild jungle of tomatoes!

Lately I have been really into taking pictures of bees. I am fascinated by these very necessary but oh-so-cute little pollinators.  Yesterday they were happily pollinating my Autumn Sedums!

Honey bee on an Autumn Sedum

Bumble bee flying away

Honey bee on an Autumn Sedum

Does anyone know what this is?  The hummingbirds love it. The Hubs called it a weed!  I think it is just beautiful and the Hubs agreed not to cut it down because it attracts the hummingbirds.  It has little orange flowers that remind me of those little goldfish crackers.  But I have no idea what it is.....

????

Chicken Update!  No eggs yet....That is all.....Wait you thought the status changed?  Silly!
Well I am now off to prepare for Irene.....Can you believe it?  An earthquake and a hurricane all in one week, I can hardly stand the excitement!  We will be getting our emergency supplies ready and trying to figure out what to do with the chickens.

What is your favorite time of day to enjoy your garden? 

Tomatoes....

I love this time of the year, all of the hard work of spring is finally paying off! 

This also means tomatoes!  That's not to say that other veggies get put on the back burner, I love corn and zucchini and just about every other vegetable on my plate.  But tomatoes are my favorite veggie and I could eat them all day!  I also have a special kind of love for tomatoes because they were the first vegetable I learned how to grow.  My grandfather taught me how to plant and take care of tomatoes during the summer he spent with us.  Yes he spent the summer with us while he was working in New York, I will never forget that summer! 

I sometimes feel my inner Bubba coming out as I think of all the delicious foods that contain these little red globes of sweet goodness......Tomato sandwiches, tomato soup, tomato sauce, chili, goulash, oh I could go on and on!! 

Fresh from the garden

I planted three different varieties this year, Black Krim, Amish Paste and a cherry variety I can never seemed to remember!  I have a TON of green tomatoes sitting on the vines and I also have picked a pretty good bounty over the past two weeks.  I have a feeling I will be rewarded very shortly!

I also love tomato salad and it is a very quick and easy recipe:

SUMMER TOMATO SALAD

4-5 ripe tomatoes chunked or a pint of Cherry tomatoes halved
1/2 red onion sliced
2 roasted red peppers
1 lb of mozzarella (I use the small mozzarella balls but a 1 lb round chunked works too!)
1-2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
1 tbls Olive Oil
Basil
1/4 tsp Salt & Pepper

In a large bowl combine salt, pepper, olive oil and garlic let sit while preparing the rest of the salad.  Cut up tomatoes, onion, red peppers and mozzarella.  Combine tomatoes, onion, red peppers and mozzarella with the dressing and mix. Add basil right before serving.

Yum!  Can I eat my screen?

Now here is the thing, I never measure anything, I am a totally by taste person.  If you find you do not like something then omit it.  If you feel there is too much/too little of something reduce/add it.  I never make the same exact thing twice.  I am not a chef, I just love making fresh food for my family. 

What are your favorite tomato varieties or recipes? 

The changing of the seasons

Wow, I can't believe summer is almost over.  It will be Labor Day in two weeks and that is the unofficial end to summer.  Much to their dismay, the kids will go back to school.  The air will quickly turn crisp and autumn will be here before we know it.  It always feels like summer is the shortest season, at least here in New York!

BBQ's on the deck will be traded for apple and pumpkin picking.

Pumpkin Picking 2010

Tank tops will be traded for sweaters, flip flops for boots.

Little Bug

The leaves will put on a spectacular show to rival any other time of the year. This is my favorite part of autumn.

Shawangunk Ridge, New Paltz, NY

I love autumn but I will definitely miss the summer.  I learned a lot this summer about patience.  I am well aware patience is not my strong suit but nature makes you patient.  You cannot hurry her, she will bloom when she is good and ready. We also have learned to slow down and take things one step at a time. This has taught me how to enjoy my family more and live in the moment. How to hug my kids tighter ever night and what they mean to me.  And how grateful I am for my husband.

This was a great summer!  I cannot wait to see what fall has in store for us this year!!  

New York Locavore Challenge

I don't normally blog on the weekends but this was just too exciting to wait until Monday!!

What have I gotten myself into now, you ask?  I have taken two pledges.....

I have taken the NOFA-NY Locavore Challenge. I am pledging to eat locally, organically and sustainably for the entire month of September!  I am so excited!  I just emailed NOFA to express interest in becoming a captain! I am keeping my fingers (and toes) crossed!

I have also taken the Slow Food USA $5 Challenge! "Because slow food shouldn't cost more than fast food".  Slow Food USA is asking people to make a slow meal for under $5 per person on September 17th.   What is a slow meal you may ask?  It really is any meal that is homemade from start to finish.  Some great $5 slow meals are homemade pizzas, salads and pasta. And did you know that in most cities in the US it is easier to find a box of Fruit Loops than it is to buy fresh fruit?  This is really quite sad. Fresh, unprocessed food is not a privilege, it is necessity.  Fruit Loops are not nutritious in any way shape or form (sorry no matter what the packaging says, they are not). And by having fresh, organic, local fruits and veggies available to everyone (young, old, rich, poor), I really do believe we can get rid of a lot of these epidemics, like obesity and diabetes.

So join my family as we say no thank you to the supermarket and big box stores for the month to eat locally. And also as we challenge ourselves to eat for $5 a person on September 17th.  I cannot wait to blog about this adventure to you guys starting the first Monday and every Monday after that for the entire month of September. It's going to be a great (and busy) month of September!  I wonder if we can do it?  Or will we flop?  Stay tuned and see!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

I know where my food comes from! Kindergardens Week 16

Yes it is true, I know where my food comes from.  So should you......

It comes from here.......

Old picture I know, but it is the only picture I could find where you can see all five beds! This is where most of my food comes from.

The other night we sat down for dinner.  We had free range beef and organic corn from a farm in the next town, tomato salad and zucchini from our garden.  We knew exactly where all of our food came from right down to the raw milk we drink.  I was really proud of us!

I think more people should know where their food comes from, don't you?

Just on a side note....I may have made a bit of a mistake with our hens.  They are only 19 weeks, I miscounted on the calendar.  Really they should be laying any day now, I still cannot wait for fresh eggs!

Are you loving this Kindergardens series as much as I am?  If so check out the other gardens over at The Inadvertent Farmer!

10 things I have learned about raising chickens...

Here are 10 things I learned about raising chickens.....

1.  It's okay to name your chickens but only if you do not intend to consume said chickens.

2. Chickens do make wonderful pets, Little Bird is our little chicken whisperer, Little Bug has started petting them but only if they don't peck her.

3. They will peck you no matter how nice you are to them

4.  They will run over into the neighbors yard no matter what.  Now if I can just convince my neighbors that the chickens are good for their yard.

5.  "Why did the chicken cross the road" jokes never get old because they cross the road almost everyday!

6.  A chicken can pick off a moth or butterfly right in the air.

7.  Chickens can fly.....This is true and not true.  They can fly very short distances and normally my gals only "fly" when they are coming out of their coop and it looks more like a guided fall.

8. NO ROOSTERS.....I can hear one someone has over in the other development which is kind of a ways away.  No thank you......

9.  Chickens sing, yes they do, every night my gals sing sweet songs as they roost.

10.  Chicken poop is good but is really, really smelly.....So we muck the coop often to keep it from getting too bad.

So now you know, I never read some of this stuff in any of the chicken books.  We really do enjoy our gals!

As time flies by.......

Where has the time gone........


And how did my Little Bird go from this......

And this.......

To this......

Heidi Gridley Photography

In the blink of an eye?

Who said she could grow up and start Kindergarten in a few weeks?

Heidi Gridley Photography

Next thing I know she'll be going off to college, getting married and having children of her own.....


If I can just figure out how to stop time!

Oh dear Lord will these chickens please lay some eggs......Kindergardens Week 15

If you haven't already check out what is going on in the other Kindergardens by checking out The Inadvertant Farmer!  I totally stalk love this blog!

Unfortunately, Agnes died the other day.  You can read about it here.  The girls of course were devastated but took it a lot better than we thought!  The vet wanted me to bring her in but she was already disposed of by the time the vet called back.  I guess if we have another one drop we will be doing bird autopsies, fun times!

Well we are still on Eggwatch 2011 (yes we gave it one of those fancified titles).  If they don't lay soon I am going to scream!  Patience obviously is not one of my virtues.  I haven't bought any eggs from the farm in two weeks and I am going through egg withdrawal. I just know the minute I purchase them, my gals will start laying and I will be inundated with eggs.

In other garden news, we are now on Tomatowatch 2011 as well.  Any day now I am going to have a tomato explosion in my garden!  So if you don't hear from me for a while I am up to my eyeballs in tomatoes! I try to pick them before they get too red so they don't rot before I get to them!

The corn is still doing it's thing.....Don't worry in a few short weeks we will be on Cornwatch 2011.  Just kidding, I am sure we will only get a few ears of corn because I did not plant that much.

The girls have been loving all these strawberries.  I am not sure if I just mixed up the varieties when planting or if we were just lucky this year.  Anyway they have been enjoying the few we get from the garden each night.

The deer have found the garden and decimated my zucchini plants.  I need to put up a fence but putting in raised beds along with organic soil kind of sucked up a bunch of the garden fund this year. Believe me the beds and organic soil were so worth it especially since my property was an old farm so who knows what they put on the ground! I think I am going to have to deal with it for this season.  But fair warning to all the deer out there, if you eat my tomatoes I will find someone to shoot you and make you into a nice dinner put up a fence to deter you.  You see deer, I know people...who hunt...deer...Get where this is going? 

The Hubs and I are making plans to take our garden a little further by adding some cool weather crops.  We are not sure what we are going to grow and we are still figuring out a storage solution.  In my basement things tend to spoil and mold quickly.  I have been researching root cellars and have found a few we could dig out of the side of the hill.

The hot and humid weather finally broke today so we were able to enjoy time outside!

We are already planning our garden for next year. Noting what has worked and what has not worked for us. Have you started your plans for next summers garden?  Are you planning on adding anything like cold weather crops or perennials? 

Poor Agnes......

It is with a heavy heart that I tell you that we lost Agnes tonight.  This evening the Hubs went out to feed and water them and as always they ran into the neighbors yard.  We are not 100% sure what happened to her we only know the neighbor came over and told us that she thought one had died.  So the Hubs went over and retrieved her.

We are not sure if she ate some type of pesticide, something covered with pesticide or if she was sick.  Chickens are notorious for hiding illnesses until it is too late.

Although I love my chickens they are just chickens and actually the Hubs and I took it quite well.  The girls don't know yet.  I think Little Bug is going to be devastated, this will be a good lesson for her.

So here is a little tribute to you Agnes, your spunky little attitude will be missed.......

Getting to know you......

Getting to know all about you. getting to like you, getting to hope you like me. getting to know you, putting it my way, but nicely, you are precisely, my cup of tea.....I just love The King and I! In all reality I love anything Julie Andrews is in! 

I saw this idea over at Primitive and Proper. If you would like to do the same please feel free to copy and paste to your own blog!  What a great way to get to know each other!

Planning: Out the rest of my week and hoping I can take off on Friday.


Reading: Plant Animal Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver 

Wondering: How we can change our way of eating and if we could also eat locally for a month, 6 months or a whole year.  

Wanting: Nothing more than what I have.

Looking: At the Hubs and being thankful everyday for everything he does for us.  

Wasting: as little as possible.  (I stole this answer it is a great answer and very true!)


Sewing:  Actually wishing I knew how to sew, I am determined to learn.  I just taught myself how to knit through YouTube videos.  I am certain they have tutorials on basic sewing.

Enjoying: Every single moment I can with my family.  They are my entire life.

Praying: For God to tell us the right path to take and that everything will work out.


Waiting: For Thursday, when we find out if our next IUI is scheduled for Friday or Saturday

Liking: That my parents are taking the girls this weekend so the Hubs and I can have a little time alone even if we have to go to the doctors. 
 
Wondering: Why our bodies work against us.  Why is it so hard for my body to work right and how can I change it when I have a lot of odds stacked against me?  

Loving: My family always!

Hoping: That this economy gets a little better and this country's future becomes a little more certain.

Marveling: At my children and how they love us so unconditionally.  

Needing: A pedicure. really. bad.....

Smelling: The dogs breath as she sleeps next to me, it is really stinky tonight!  I think Chloe needs a greenie! 

Wearing: My normal attire. Jeans, a t-shirt and my slippers

Noticing: The cat just started purring and snuggled down on my neck.

Knowing: that I am doing the best I can with what I have. (Also stole part of this, but it is also very true!)

Thinking: About Little Bird starts Kindergarten next month, Peanut is going into 6th grade and Little Bug is starting pre-school.  They really need to stop growing up!

Opening: What I should be opening is more like it.  I have three days worth of mail to sort and open.  And a ton of emails I need to look at!  Maybe the title of this should be procrastinating!

Feeling: A whole range of emotions right now.  Trying to take things one day at a time.  And I know that next week and the week after will yet again be the two longest weeks of my life.  But I need to try to keep everything in perspective.  Even though I really just feel like losing it! 

Haven't you noticed, suddenly I'm bright and breezy?
Because of all the beautiful and new
Things I'm learning about you
Day .. by ... day......