Draft 2021

Strawberry season has come and gone in our little patch. We picked for 3 solid weeks, averaging 2-4 quarts every other day. There is nothing like a fresh grown strawberry, still warm from the sun, plucked carefully from its vine, and popped directly into one's mouth. Our across-the-alley neighbors are from Mexico. One afternoon, the husband saw my boys picking and came over to visit. It turns out, his wife is from the prime strawberry growing region in Mexico and he had questions about growing strawberries in Iowa. We plan to give him some of our plants this fall when we do some dividing. He has 3 or 4 little boys who had never before tasted a real strawberry. We figured, in honor of their mother, we should remedy that situation. They had never tasted anything quite as luscious, and the looks on their faces were pure delight. One little boy exclaimed, "I never knew they tasted this good!" Makes me think of all the other children - and adults - who have no idea what r

A few weeks ago the girls and I ventured to a local park. They hung out on the beach and the playground while I walked the park's 3-mile trail. It was a beautiful, sunny day spent out and about together. After a quick lunch of pop, chips, and granola bars (I know, I know), we headed out to do some house-gazing; a favorite pastime of mine which I was pleased to discover the girls enjoyed. For me, drive-by house surfing satisfies my high level of domicile envy. The girls simply enjoy watching my level of panic increase as I find myself lost (temporarily, mind you) or too near the river, or railroad tracks. Or worst yet, lost on a dirt road next to railroad tracks close to the river. Ah, phobias, I embrace thee, if only because you so verily entertain my children! Anyway, on our way home after this foray, we drove back past the entrance to this park, which is known for its proximity to the Raccoon River, its large lake, playgrounds, etc. A lot of construction was taking place along th

Last month the girls and I went to our little local zoo. I think it had been a couple of years since we last were there and it was fun to go back. As always, one of their favorite places was the koi feeding area. I came prepared with change to buy the fish food and we enjoyed the ensuing feeding frenzy almost as much as the koi. Two things came to mind while there. First, I wish I had been more willing to say "yes" back when the kids were all little - they got to feed the fish, but each child only got one handful of food. I've learned a lot about parenting over the course of the past 15 years or so. Thankfully, my oldest two tend to be forgiving! Secondly, watching the fish go berserk, roiling and tumbling over each other in a veritable orgy of greed, I was transported back to my uncle's ponds nearly 30 or more years ago. I spent only 6 summers of my youth on my grandmother's farm, but the bulk of my happy memories were formed during those few months each year. M

My mommy doesn't say much... but I know she loves me.

Mea culpa. Mea culpa. Mea maxima... you get the idea. What is the ultimate failure of any homeschooling parent? A child who doesn't know the times tables? Nope. Delayed reading? Nah. Inability to find latitude and longitude on a map? Nuh-uh. The correct answer here is "socialization." As in, failure to properly do so. It's difficult to admit this, being a long-time, somewhat eclectic, a little bit unschoolerish, periodically panicky homeschooler. And in all honesty, most of my charges do quite well in the social skills department. Except for one. And it's all my fault. Despite her tender years, my littlest girl doesn't get along well with others. She's too excitable, doesn't listen well to the social cues of her playmates, doesn't understand when someone else just doesn't want to play anymore. Oh, and she doesn't obey her mother very well, either. A good friend even told me her littlest was uncomfortable around my baby and that her actions

So I'm seeing my therapist again. Seems as if I should be saying this while sipping a martini in some chic little out-of-the-way cafe. Instead, I'm sweating in my family room, complete with white socks and over-sized t-shirt. Me, that is, not my family room. Besides, I don't like martinis. When I was a teenager there must have been a spate of movies-of-the-week (remember those?) featuring women committed to insane asylums, er psychiatric facilities, against their will. Man, did those creep me out. It became a niggling, unspoken fear of mine. One of those fears that rears its ugly phobic head only in dreams. Paranoid much? Anyway, I think it's kind of ironic that I've spent my entire adult life battling depression and anxiety. Fortunately, it's become a lot harder to commit someone. That, and crazy as this may sound, my husband likes to have me around. And they say he's the sane one! There's been a lot going on here the last year or so, and I've noti

So, I haven't blogged in... forever. Blogging is kind of like falling off a horse (which I almost did once, by the way) in that if you falter and don't get right back on-line, you just may never get back in the saddle again. Or something like that. Anyway, we're all still here, our various maladies variously treated and diagnosed, and I'm ready to re-enter the blogosphere. We'll see if I manage to hang on this time. Oh, in case you were wondering, we never caught the mouse.