Help!

Four continuous days of no sunshine, help!  I can feel my body and mind slowly sliding into a slump.  Went out for a run in the misty rain after work, but my body just felt stiff and sore.  Have you ever noticed how the lack of sunshine affects you mentally and physically?  Not much luck this week for sunny days, so I'll make the best of it.  Anyone have some extra sunshine to send my way?  Please send to:  P.O. Box Sunnyturtle!

Where's the Sunshine?

Surprisingly, the rivers and streams levels in our area are still high.  I went along with Bike man this morning as he took his water samples for phosphorus monitoring.   He collects the water samples and then sends them into the State for evaluations.  It wasn't a warm day today....really cool, windy, cloudy and damp.

On our way home, we stopped to see John and Kathy, owners of Simply Dunn.  And where did we find them today?  

 

Well, not in their pottery shed, but rather in their large vegetable garden planting garlic, radishes, parsnips, potatoes and much more.  I didn't get a picture of their garden, but I'd have to say it was amazing.

There's just something about barns that always catch my attention.  I'm a barn-wannabe....always wanted one. If Bike man and I had a barn, we'd use it for garden tools, lawn equipment, bicycles, flower pots, fishing gear and much, much more.  Anyone have a barn to rent!!!!

Back Home

This is what happens when you have bambi hanging out in your yard.  Bambi loves tender hosta plants.  Bike man had a plan today and that plan involved sprinkling milorganite all around our hostas.  Now we'll wait and see if bambi and her friends will stay far away from our hosta gardens!

The apple tree is finally in full bloom....a little late with our cool spring.

Also running behind is our crab apple tree.  Happy to see this tree blooming since we are getting closer to the end of May!

The rest of the basil and peppers were planted today....still need to plant the tomatoes.  Arrived back home late this afternoon and the kids headed back to the Twin Cities.  It was a fast trip, but so worth the family time together.

Family Weekend

With a three-day holiday weekend, the kids (Becca, Chris & Trisha) and I took the opportunity to visit my  parents in Southwest Wisconsin.  Enjoyed a special visit today from my cousin Richard and his wife Laura of Madison.  We had such a great time talking and catching up on our families.

Dad and Richard enjoyed some man-time while reminiscing over family photographs and many stories.   

Of course it wouldn't be a visit without cooking and eating.  Imagine four cooks in one kitchen!  Well this time, we elected Becca to plan our family evening dinner.....and look what she whipped up.  Thanks to the help of Trisha, Grandma Shirley and myself, we all had one hand in the preparations of Becca's chicken pot pies.

There is nothing better than homemade chicken pot pie.  We cheated and used all-ready made one crust pie shells and then a layer of puff pastry on top.  Add a side salad and it's a complete meal.  Food always tastes better with family around the table!  Just a short trip and then we'll be headed back home tomorrow in the afternoon and the kids will head back to the Twin Cities.

I Promise

See those teeth marks?  That represents the kind of week I've been having.  Too much work and no play.  Even Bike man has been putting in extra hours this week and he's retired!!!  I promise to come back in a couple days......

And Then the Sun Came Out

With a late spring, everything is behind schedule here in Northwest Wisconsin.  Despite that the calendar says May 18th, Bike man finally scheduled his training session for his citizen stream monitors.  Just a simple re-training and a nice get-together with everyone.

As a thank you to all the stream monitors for their hard work, we always throw an outdoor cookout.  Louie's grilled brats and Lisa's onion burgers are always on the menu, along with polenta lasagna, quinoa salad, baked beans, guacamole, and humus dip.  Thank heavens the weather cleared up and stopped raining, just in  time when our guests arrived.  Busy day.....and now I'm pooped!

Busy Week

Time has been limited this week, but I still have managed to enjoy the ending of each day.  Beautiful sunset tonight.