Happy Homemaker Monday

We had a superb weekend on the island.  Our last sanity saver trip over this year.  Maybe. If they have an opening, I'm taking it.  We were literally off grid.  There is no service where we stay, and we like it that way.

On the way home we stopped at a large produce stand and brought home some green and wax beans.  I will be stopping there every year we head to the island from now on.  They have a large variety of everything.

Came home to find out one of my chickens died.  

We literally unpacked the truck, threw everything on the bed and kitchen counters, ran out to pick a tomato, and headed to the "Big City" to check on Mom.  We took her some chocolates a woman makes on the island, one tomato (only one turning red that was a beefsteak type), and some popcorn she loves.

Mom looks much better, but has a long way to go to recovery.  She still cannot drive herself anywhere, so between our Daughter K, her neighbor, my younger brother and I, we are trying to do our best, but we all have jobs/work/kids/garden to put up etc.  It's been rough, so hence the trip to the island.

Today I am joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.  I'll link up if my brain remembers to.

The weather . . .

Hot and humid.  No rain in sight.

Right now I am . . .

Dragging my feet trying to get the day started

Thinking . . .

I wanna go back to the island. There is too much going on here, and too much needing done.

On my reading pile . . .

Nothing.

On my TV . . .

Bloodline

On the menu . . .

Have no idea.  Just got back from a weekend vacation.

On my to-do list . . .

Everything.

-put away dishes (life with a lazy young adult kid)

-run dishwasher

-pick garden

-water all gardens

-laundry

-clean entire kitchen

-label and put away canned items

-unpack from the trip

-vacuum

-sweep and mop

-clean out fridge (may be a week long job)

-clean green beans and blanch and freeze

-water house plants

-clean bedroom(yikes!)

-water porch plants

-dehydrate some herbs

-the. list. is. endless....

In the craft basket . . .

Winter hats.  I'll post a picture later when it's light out. Maybe even tomorrow if my brain remembers.

Looking forward to this week . . .

A clean house???

Looking around the house . . .

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!  Ugh.

From the camera . . .

A photo while driving the golf cart on the north side of the island.

Prayer list . . .

Mom.  Right now there are no other special requests.

Happy Homemaker Monday

 

I had a very relaxing island getaway weekend with my husband.

We came back fully recharged mentally and physically.  I've got my to-do list written out and ready to take on the day.

The island has a huge wild flower area and you can't see from the photo, but it is loaded with mullein.  I could not believe how much was in this area.

Grab a cup of your favorite java.  Sorry, but this post is a bit of a long one.  Taking a few days off gives me some things to talk about today.

Before we left I got 3# of tomatoes in the freezer, and I'm drying all the skins for tomato powder.

We are still getting a few nice sized green bell peppers from the garden.  I haven't yanked the plants yet, and with rain coming, I'm leaving them in for now.  It's been a blessing to get so many this year.

I finally got the garlic harvest down from hanging and will be planting the larger ones today for my fall planting.  These will be planted in grow pots.

We won't run out of hot peppers this winter.  It'll be nice to have on hand for soups, chili, pizza toppings, all sorts of casseroles, breakfast and whatnot.

I also got locked in on our pre-pay propane rate before winter is here.  Glad I remembered to do it.

If you asked for the home canned ketchup recipe I updated my last post with the link, where it is on my blog.

Today I'm joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

The weather outside is . . .

The rain has now shifted from Tue/Wed to today.  So....with help of a daughter, and my husband, we picked all my black beans and we fall planted 52 cloves of garlic.  Although, I do need to plant more, but will need to buy it if I can find it so I have enough for next year's homemade garlic powder, minced garlic and so forth.  I use a lot of it with my canning recipes.  I also picked 3 more green bell peppers and one lonely cucumber.

Anyway, back to the weather, rain is 90% today, 78°F/48°F.

How I am feeling this morning . . .

Well, ready to take on the day, but a certain cat thought I needed to start my day at 3:30am.  He's not even my cat.  Sigh.

On my mind . . .

My to-do list.  I already checked off two for today that we did yesterday, so that makes my mind rest a bit.  I'm not looking forward to the shift my husband is working, as that puts all the garden work on me alone this week (one day at a time).

On the breakfast plate . . .

Bacon, Egg and Potato Casserole, Coffee

On my reading pile . . .

Seed catalogs.

On my TV . . .

We signed up for beast TV, so now with a box we can get all sorts of channels.  Hubby watched his favorite football team play last night and he's a happy man.

On the menu . . .

-beef stew, homemade biscuits

-homemade biscuits and gravy, scrambled eggs and fried potatoes

-roast, potatoes, onions and carrots

-possibly a cake or sweet item on the menu this week.

On the camera. . .

Picture of the moon I took last Friday night.  Strangest shape I have ever seen, but neat to see.

Looking around the house . . .

Well, the tomatoes are dwindling down, but at least the dishes were washed before I got home after our weekend away.  Romeo needs his toys restocked so one of these day I'll get that done.  He's acting up lately.

New recipe I tried last week or one I want to try . . .

Kahlua Krisipe Treats using homemade Kahlua.  I'll be test tasting these at dinner.

To relax this week I will . . .

Crochet. Maybe work on Christmas tree ornaments.

Something to share . . .

On my prayer list . . .

This country (FL and Idaho have lifted all restrictions, and FL said they would never shut down again and banned fines for people not wearing masks), my youngest daughter, our family, and any personal requests.

Island Time!

We took a hiatus from life and went to the island for the weekend.  Where we are off grid most of the time (love it that way too), and where it was the most normal of normal life.  Peaceful, no protesting,  no rioting, stores open, campground open, beaches open, golf cart rentals going, winery was absolutely packed (they put outside tables all over the property), live music at all our favorite stops, and beautiful scenery.

It's not cheap to eat and drink over there however.  One glass of sangria at the winery is $7.00 and a pitcher $21.00.  We went out for Breakfast one morning and it cost us $70 for the 4 of us.  We packed a lot of food, so we ate at our rental and grilled.  We also brought our own adult beverage.  Breakfast out was biscuits and gravy, scrambled eggs and a slice of watermelon (and the biscuits and gravy sadly were the worst we have ever had).

We got to stay an extra night.  Oh darn, lol!  Winds were bad on Sunday and the ferry shutdown after about 9:30am.  We had just got in line, but went back to our lodging and we were allowed to stay another night.  No one would be coming over anyway, so most people had a place to stay.  

Monday however, they ran one ferry.  We got in line and were told 4-5 hours.  An hour later they had 3 ferries running and 2 hours later we were back on the mainland.

I wasn't worried.  I have a crochet project and a pack of cards.  The girls played cards in the back of the truck while we waited.  Some people got out and had a picnic in the grass with their family.  We were all patient, except for the store workers in the marina store at the ferry.  They were furious (and very rude) with the onslaught of sales while we all waiting.  By the way, we had access to public restrooms, a restaurant and store at the marina where the ferry pulls in.  It all worked out.

Lots of wild life over there too.  Saw many deer, raccoons, rabbits and lots of birds, including Boston orioles.

The island has an eagle nest too.  They have 3 babies in the nest.  So cool!

Upon arrival home, our mailbox was bashed in with what we believe was a baseball bat.  We have a USA flag cover on it, and feel it was because of that and a lot of vandalism in an neighboring town (someone on a 4 wheeler at night).  They also stole one of my nice solar lights I had in a flower pot (which has glass panels on it).  I'm so mad about it, so we will be adding more security cameras.  Next time we go away, we'll have a house sitter too.  We had someone come to feed animals, but they we will hire someone to stay the night from now on.  

I already want to go back to the island....vandalism at our home, news, media, more protesting, vandalism nearby, stupidity regarding flying our America flag (by the way our flag pole was laying in the bushes, and it appears the flag pole holder was beat off the porch post).  I have another place to put it up today, and I dare them to come back and beat it down again.  America is not the land of freedom any longer.  It's home of a bunch of idiots and other words I can't put on this post.

On top of dealing with that, the washer drain pump broke the night before we left.  The new pump arrives tomorrow.  No laundry today.  On top of that...yes there is more...we have 2 vehicles and 3 people working today.  Hubby took the Harley to work.  My car is done.  He drove it last night and said, "it's done."  We will be car shopping in a hurry this week.  If it rains, we are in a huge pickle.

The septic guy came Monday.  I had to find a location on the island to get a signal to call and explain our situation and where to locate the septic.  Got home and found he located it and emptied it.  That is off the to-do list now.

Deer have located our tomatoes and ate the tops off some and most of the others down to the quick.  It could be the year of no tomatoes again. I am walking the dogs around the back of the homestead to leave scent and keep the deer off.  In all the years we've lived here, we've never had a problem with the deer (other than the eat pears, but always leave plenty for us).

So, while we got a weekend of rest, we are back to one big headache here on the homestead.  I'm so tired of the way Americans are acting right now, tired of the media, news, and now this vandalism that happened on our very own property.  It's time to get the back stop up and some shooting practice going. If things continue like the are, we'll need the practice.

I hope you enjoyed my weekend retreat photos.  I'm about to go take a peek at the tomatoes and get my late day started.

I'm Back! ~ An Island Retreat ~ Happy Homemaker Monday

Friday morning's sunrise.  Thank you to all of you who sent me a card.  It was much appreciated.

We stole away to the island for our "off grid" retreat, and it was very restful and much needed.

It's truly off grid.  You can't get text messages or cell service for internet either at our rental.  Only at one end of the island.  We all really had a peaceful time.    They have very few stores, which we like about it.  The have a re-sale store inside an old house that funds a local island church.  I bought a vintage table cloth.  

Funny where you meet people.  Our waitress at breakfast is from my birth town, and she is a teacher at daughter's school.  Her parents are from the island, and she works there on the weekends.  The island is a little over an hour away drive, so that was just pretty funny.

We saw so many deer on the island this trip too. One crossed the road in front of our golf car.  I saw a fox early morning too.  I bet the deer taste good too during their hunting season.  There are cattle, horses, goats and chickens on the island, but no crops other than grass to feed the animals.

I had the best wine over on the island.  They have a winery and a brewery.  Actually two wineries.  I enjoyed the wine while over there, but next trip I hope to bring a few bottles home.  It's just pricey - $15.50/bottle.  We plan to take our growlers over next trip too, and bring home some of their homemade beer too.

We've made friends with a woman who sells handmade jewelry out of her garage, so we always make a stop to visit her too.

I'm joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom today.  Last night we got an alert from the Sheriff's office.  There are cars being broken into in downtown of where we live (small town).  I'm on the look out now.

Our broccoli sprouts are growing wonderfully.  What's your best way to eat these besides on a salad or sandwich?


The weather outside is . . .
Raining early this morning, high of 76°, mostly sunny after the rain stops.


On my reading pile . . .

On the TV . . .
Movies.  I just ordered a movie from our library.


On the menu . . .
I have no idea.  Just getting back to reality today.
-tuna and noodle, mashed potatoes, asparagus
-sloppy charlies, veggie
-southwestern black bean burritos


On the to-do list . . .
-start tinctures
-do dishes
-unpack and put stuff away
-laundry
-pick peppers
-water microgreens
-Dr. appt.  (I will have some answers very soon to share) All of our weekend plans will depend on the surgeon's decision.
-Take a form to the school for daughter, pick up another one
-take trash out
-trip to the grocery store
-library returns and pick ups
-email our friends on the island
-crochet two more dish scrubbies (order I received prior to island trip)
-start a XL hot pad (another order)
-start another set of pot holders (another order)



What I am creating . . .
I finished a set of pot holders while on the island.  I started a dishcloth too.  Watch for a handiwork update soon.


Looking around the house . . .
Considering our situation prior to our "wellness weekend" and the fact we just got home last night, it's in need of a good cleaning.  The kitchen is my main focus this week, then the bedroom, front porch and the garage.


From the camera . . . 

The sunrise was not much to see on our trip unfortunately.  It was cloudy, on top of too much obstruction this time of year, but still enjoyable to watch.


Prayer list . . .
Myself and my leg, our daughter who lost her son, personal requests.