Two Little Pumpkins

See these two cute, perfectly round, perfectly orange little pumpkins? They came from our garden. Only we didn't plant them. At least not on purpose. Last fall the girls got two little pumpkins and painted them. When they got squishy Dom put them in the raised beds for compost not really thinking about the fact that unlike the Jack o'lanterns we carved the painted pumpkins were still full of seeds. Then in the spring the unmistakably large leaves sprouted and started to grow. I admit I had my doubts that they would actually produce fruit because of the abundance of hybrid seeds everywhere but I was pleasantly suprised.

Now I won't go into detail about the fact that I am a wee bit miffed that these two beautiful but unintentional pumpkins grew, while some other things I intentionally planted did not fare so well...

Poor Dog

Boomer loves to lay in the sun or in front of the fireplace or on anything that is soft and cozy. Actually it doesn't have to be soft and cozy, a magazine or a single piece of paper will do as long as it means he doesn't have to be fully touching the floor.

Because the floor is hard and cold and uncomfortable.

Poor Dog.

So despite the fact that Boomer is 85% black and absorbs the heat, he still enjoys finding a sunny spot to lay in. I also need to add that he will only lay in the sunny spot if there is a person, preferable me, is within 2 feet of him. I was sitting at the bar and normally he would be under my feet and/or resting his head on my feet. Cause he might get lonely.

Poor Dog.

And see how he rests his head on the door jam so it doesn't actually have to touch the floor. And if he turns his head just right he can catch the breeze coming in through the screen.

Ahh...nice..

But uh-oh, here comes trouble. Misty comes along to find the dog lying in the only sunny spot.

Now there is plenty of room for her to curl up next to the dog but there is no way she is about to share the sun with the dog. This is a cat that would rather drink out of the toilet than share a water bowl with the dog. She doesn't think very highly of the him.

Poor dog.

So Misty meowed at me to let her out cause there is plenty of sun to sleep in out on the deck.

But two minutes later I turn around to see this....

Misty is sitting at the screen and Boomer is trying to poke her. This is the 'I didn't really want to go outside I just wanted the dog to move out of the sunny spot in the kitchen, now please let me and move the dog so I can take a nap in the sun' look.

It's amazing how I get all that from just a simple look isn't it? Now Boomer's look says 'open the screen cause I had a little nap and now I wanna chase the cat'.

(I am just an amazing interpreter of canine and feline expression, aren't I?)

Unfortunately for Boomer, Misty rarely runs away from him anymore. She prefers to rub up against him and use him as a rubbing post.

Poor dog.

Fourteen Years

"Two souls with but a single thought, Two hearts that beat as one."

-John Keats

Pudgy Pies!

When we were out in Colorado, uncle Chuck introduced us to pudgy pies. Pudgy pies are a wonderful concoction enjoyed around an open campfire. There is one piece of equipment that you must have to make a pudgy pie, and that is a campfire cooker/sandwich maker. I imagine you can find them in any camping supply store but we were lucky enough to have two sent to us by Auntie Lisa after we had returned home from visiting them.

You also need a bunch of goodies to fill your pudgy pie. The possibilites are endless and this is what is the most fun about making pudgy pies. Some ingredients we have tried are: chocolate and peanut butter, chocolate and marshmallow, apple pie filling, and Nutella.

The basic procedure is this, Take two pieces of bread and cut off the crusts. Place one slice in on half of the cooker. Place whatever fillings you want on the bread and then cover with the second slice.

Place the top half of the cooker in place and then set the cooker into the campfire. You want the bread to get all nice and toasty and the fillings to get all warm and gooey. Don't forget to turn it over so both sides get nice and golden brown.

Mackenzie chose marshmallows and chocolate for hers and called it the candyland fantasy pudgy pie. See all the gooey goodness inside? MMMM...
It was a little over done but still good.


The next pudgy pie had apple pie filling inside.

MMMM...Good!!

Heat Waves and Hurricanes

I did such a good job on my raindance to help relieve my allergies that I conjured up a hurricane!! I am kidding of course. I didn't actually do a raindance but hurricane Earl was right on course for the northeast. But it fizzled, which I am actually grateful for. It is always amusing though to see the media go crazy with all the hype and then have the storm fizzle out.

It was a high pressure front that actually pushed Earl farther east and brought us some cooler, drier air in the process. The temps have been in the mid to upper 90's all week and the humidity moved in midweek. Though us New Englanders are used to the crazy extremes in weather I think we probably handle the cold better than the heat. I know I do.

I felt a little bad for all the kids that had to start school this week including my own. Most of the schools around here are not air-conditioned because the hottest months are usually in the summer when there is no school. Some schools in that state even went so far as to cancel school or have early releases at the end of the week. My kiddoes toughed it out and are no worse for the wear. They like their teachers and both have already made new friends. So here's to another succesful school year despite heat waves and hurricanes!

Ragweed is Not my Friend

Ragweed is NOT my friend. It makes my eyes itch and my nose run. It makes my throat scratchy and it makes me sneeze. It makes spending time outside in the yard almost unbearable. And not being able to go outside makes me cranky. I have lots of outdoor projects that need to be finished But after a short amount of time outside I feel like scratching my eyes out and ripping off my nose.

This year the pollen count is really high, which I imagine has something to do with the lack of rain we have been getting.



I am so desperate that I am going to research rain dances.

Or take a blowtorch to the bunches of ragweed growing around the perimeter of the yard.

But first I have to go blow my nose....Again.