I'll be back

 Utterly exhausted and overwhelmed.  I will be back with posting soon.

Hot Peppers and tidbits

I had a mess of hot peppers to take care of, so I made one last batch of hot pepper jelly.  I'll be freezing the rest, or using them in recipes such as salsa etc.

I froze a bunch of mad hatter peppers.  I'll use these in recipes that call for red bell pepper and in many recipes.  I have a ton more to freeze today or I lose them.

Army worms have invaded our state.  I have yet to see any at our property, but some friends are dealing with their entire yards gone.

I brewed up a batch of homemade ginger ale for Mom.  She has had no appetite and loves my ginger ale.  I wanted to make her favorite snack, but decided it was best to not right now.  She says the only thing she can eat right now are tomatoes and popcorn.  My tomato plant has new tomatoes on, but nothing ready to pick, so we'll check the produce down the road.

Speaking of Mom, she has had two more falls since I last posted.  We went into town last night and helped do some things and feed her cats, but didn't get home until dark.

Daughter K had to work late, so we had dog duty, had to feed her cat, put the chickens in and when that was all done we were literally drained of any mental/physical energy.

My kitchen sink and counters are full of dirty dishes, laundry was left on the line all night, I didn't have time to make a breakfast for my husband to take to work this morning, and we are both mentally and physically exhausted.  

Just the Bits

 

I'll be honest, I am ready for fall weather.  The sky in the morning has been beautiful as the weather has been changing lately.

Spicy BBQ sauce was canned.  That used 12# of tomatoes, but I'm still bringing in a few a day in hopes of canning tomato sauce.

I got a bit of bell peppers frozen while the canner was busy too.  

We visited Mom last night and chatted for a while. Her cats are so funny.  They typically stay hidden, but always come out to sniff our shoes and pants and get a bit of love.  Mom isn't feeling any better.

Why I Wear Cowboy Boots. . . Tidbits

It took me a while to figure out how to get this saved to my computer from social media, but I got it done.  It was too long to be able to upload the entire song. I had to save it in 3 short videos to post it on my blog.  I will try and make it a video on YouTube later when I have more time and upload the entire song.  My younger brother is working on a slideshow possibly for this song.

This is my Dad singing and playing his guitar.  He used to take song requests and play at a radio station in the 50's.  Happy birthday in Heaven to my Dad!

I thought I would spread some goodness and love today.  Hope you enjoyed it.  

Dad was a true cowboy.

My husband leaned over this basket and said, "it's like Christmas in a basket" ha ha!  I'll be out picking more over the next few days, but this has to be the worst tomato harvest we've ever had.  In 2016 we had a 300# year.  This year I'm barely bringing in enough to can small batch recipes. 

As for Mom, she had another fall.  Her 14 meals were delivered but had to be thrown out.  They must have sat on the Fed Ex truck way too long.  They delivered a wet, soggy box.  The dry ice had melted.  More meals are arriving Friday.  Praying they arrive cold this time.  We are taking care of meals today.  The delivery/mail systems are having staffing issues and of course slow right now.

Front Porch Musings

 

I really miss the island life.  No service....just normal life, live music, the beach, waves, good friends, and peace of mind.  It was so hard to adjust when we got back home.  How hard?

First, I was utterly frustrated to see that my kitchen was filled with processed foods.  Daughter K went on a shopping binge, and there was junk food and pop everywhere.  On the floor, on the fridge, counters and table.  That was even before I had check the front room.  I had a feeling she had a friend over while we were on vacation.

Breakfast scramble was made - sweet potatoes, onions, green bell pepper, jalapeno, spices, eggs and bacon.

Got the green and wax beans blanched and in the freezer.

Here is a photo of the winter hats I worked on over the weekend (my travel project).  Although I am still not booked for any holiday craft show at this time, I am still doing handiwork when I can.  I try and set an hour or half hour for myself daily.  I have to, or I'll lose my mind.

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.

Freezing Tomatoes

I decided to freeze the last of the picked tomatoes.  I didn't have enough to make or can anything, so they went into the freezer until the next harvest.  

I canned another round of hot pepper jelly.  My mad hatter peppers are finally turning red.

On a good note, I talked to my Mom about Life Alert, and I think she will be getting an Apple Watch that detects falls, and calls so many phone numbers when it happens. I'm just happy we have come up with a solution.  The cost is way less than Life Alert too.  In the meantime, her insurance is delivering her 14 free meals (great news)!