Warm Weather Woes & Whoas

Hi All,

I hope you are fairing well.  With this unseasonably warm weather I can honestly say that we have not fared very well but that is life sometimes.

Woes

In general I try not to be pessimistic but the denial of failures and hardships is pointless. We all face them.  The past few weeks have been hard.  Barely a week and a half ago my uncle passed away - rather suddenly from cancer that took hold and would not let go.  He was a big cheerleader for my garden and I enjoyed the times when I called him with garden questions or to tell him stories about Reesie Boy  (He had a German Shepherd once, too).  Our family has felt a lot of sorrow and I can't go into the garden without thinking about him.

So, if ever you find yourself on a cool April night under the full moon planting your green beans seeds, think of my Uncle Jimmy.

Another passing happened and it blindsided us as well.  Our rabbit, Rabitha, died Tuesday evening.  

Though it was cooler than it had been, it was still blisteringly hot.  A combination of old age and heat got the better of her.  Although she was an outdoor pet we still wish that we'd brought her in, moved her hutch, built her a small swimming pool, installed an a/c unit, something, anything.   I will miss pulling up weeds for her and putting flowers in her hair.  I know that my husband, and Reese especially, will miss going out to visit her.  We had her funeral yesterday morning and buried her with a recently departed bird that we found on the front porch.

Lastly, my entire patch of corn was knocked over.  Either the bombardment of rain pushed it over or an animal got into it.  Either way, I spent the cooler part of the morning hoisting it back up.  It is now standing sort of upright thanks to basically all the sticks and stakes that I have.  It had really started tasseling so I hope it won't die.  To say that I am over death is an understatement.

But, life isn't all bad just as it isn't all good.

Whoas

I have had some happy things in my life, too.  

Reese turned two years old!  Here's a brief clip of his birthday celebrations that is only marginally embarrassing ;).  

Yesterday was my last day of work until we start back up in the fall!  Yay!

I cut my hair and donated NINE INCHES to Pantene's Beautiful Lengths.  My head literally felt like it was floating for the first hour after I cut it.  I am so happy I did it and it looks great :)

Additionally, I made delicious Zucchini Casserole using the recipe (more or less) from the VP Foundation's Low Oxalate Cookbook.  This is a great cookbook and if you or someone you know had kidney stones or similar issues they may enjoy this book a lot.

And today I made my first ever batch of canned pickles!  I made 4 pints!  It is exciting :).

So, as a wise person once said, life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, it's about learning to dance in the rain.

Hope you can find your rhythm and always a good reason to dance.

Take care,

Rebecca