Merry Berry Farm

We learned about http://www.pickyourown.org/ (national pick your own produce farm locations) from our mailbox this last week. Blackberry season is in full force. I love blackberries. I don't have them very often because they cost more than I can stomach at the store. The pick your own cost sounded like a great way to go. In this case, we picked a gallon of berries for 10 dollars.....well, we picked 4/5 of a gallon. The lady told us it would be about 8 dollars, but then we informed her that Tessa ate to her heart's content as we were picking. We were happy to pay the 10 bucks. My right arm looked like I had been in a cat fight (next time I'll wear gloves), but all in all it was a really nice outing. The berry farmer even took us back to his chicken coop so Tessa could see the hen and her babies.

We now have a collection of Rubbermaids in the freezer full of blackberry freezer jam. Mmmmm. And, no, freezer jam isn't hard to make (otherwise it would have been a no go for me). I think we'll be making a venture out for peaches a little later in the summer.

This is why we haven't blogged

That's as exciting as it's been.
I haven't really felt the need to tell a story or express an opinion on anything. Nothing. Newp.

But I'll update you anyway. Jake started his internship with a firm last week. He loves it. It challenges him, and he's doing well. Plus, they take him out to lunch every day. That would make me love a job too. We're getting use to not seeing him at home as much. We were very spoiled to have a pretty easy semester (the one before it just about burnt him out), and now we're back to reality. He gets a little over an hour each day with Tessa, which is a lot better than nothing. Also, his weekends are work and study free, and that's nice.

I have been doing my mama thing. I've been working on little projects here and there too. Sewing out of necessity and for fun, working on projects that have been unfinished for too long, family history tidbits, cooking out of necessity and for fun, yard stuff, church calling, etc. Hey, remember those hard to kill petunias I planted? Yeah, me too. And, yes, I did water them.

Here are some more pictures of Tessa. She loves to be outside, and is very vocal about it, and she loves to munch --in this case she saw me going through a cookbook and after pretending to eat a couple of the dessert pictures, she repeatedly asked for a cookie (coku). So, I made her some. Uhhh...what else? Her favorite song right now is "The Itsy Bitsy Spider", and she's been taking longer to go to sleep at night because she won't stop talking to herself. She has another silly face to add to the repertoire that keeps us laughing. This one consists of gritted teeth, wide eyes, and a lengthened neck. She's such a ham.

Singin' in the Rain

"If we bring a little joy into your humdrum lives, it makes us feel as though our hard work ain't been in vain for nothing." -Lina Lamont
.

Jake gave me the Singin' in the Rain DVD for Mothers' Day. I love that movie. It makes me smile.

Mother's Day Blog Toast

To my mom, for making me feel better than I am and encouraging me to be better than I am.

To my mom in law and stepmom, for widening the circle, letting me in, and teaching me.

To my grandmas, for their examples of strength and fortitude.

To my sister and sisters in law, for instilling traits I admire in their children and hope to instill in my own.

To my friends, with and without children, for having some special quality that connected me to you, giving me vision of growth in myself.

Cheers!

Book Line Tag

Mary tagged me a while ago. I forgot. Then I saw it again. :)

a) pick up nearest book
b) turn to page 123
c) find 5th sentence
d) post the 5th sentence
e) tag 5 (or more) people

"'I warned her there was risk.'"
The Lonesome Gods by Louis L'Amour

I tag anyone who has read this post and has a book sitting on the same desk or table as the computer they just read the post from.

All the World's a Stage

There is a grocery store I go to in between big shopping trips. It's close by, and I can get in and out of there fairly quickly. There is a cashier there who I really didn't appreciate at first. I didn't like how he commented on my purchases loud enough for the store to hear. I tend to keep to myself and my business, so when others don't have the same social boundaries or inhibitions, it can take me off guard until I know what to expect. One of my favorite interactions with this guy went as follows:
Guy: Okay, that'll be $9.11.
Me: Okay.
Guy: Whoa. That's awkward. (lowering his volume) Yeah. Wow. This is really awkward.
Me: Hmm.
Guy: Yeah. 9-11. (avoiding eye contact) Phew! This is really awkward.
Me: Hmph. (handing him my money and thinking...yeah, it's getting awkward alright.)
Me again: Okay, thanks. Bye.
So I went home, after giggling about it in my car, and related the story to Jake.
Every time I go to this store, if he's working, I end up in this guy's line. Once I wondered if I had the energy to have him ring me up, so I gravitated toward another line. But there he was, practically jumping up and down, waving his arms to get me over to his conveyer belt. I've now reached a point where I go to his line just to see what he'll say next. I look forward to it. My last interaction for example:
After explaining to me why he preferred 2% milk (something about how he doesn't eat much and he's pretty skinny so he can go for the 2%)...
Guy: Is it okay if I put this (spaghetti sauce jar) in with this (bananas)?
Me: I'd actually prefer if you didn't so the bananas don't get bruised.
Guy: (only slightly quieter) Fine, I'll waste another bag.
So I grinned and offered to go without a bag for the milk to make up for it.
Even though he's not winning any prizes for politeness, I can't help but like him.

Entertaining Grandma L