There's naan better ...

... than Lizz's cooking!

Curry-Coconut Shrimp over nutty jasmine rice, whole wheat naan from Trader Joe's and quick mango lassis (canned mango pulp blended with ice and Greek yogurt) ... mmm ... the perfect meal to energize us for an evening of laundry, packing and grocery shopping for the canoe trip.

I love the way the smell of garlic, onion and the medley of Indian spices permeates the air long after a meal like this. Tingly nose. Happy tummy. Contented soul. Ahhhhh ...

LEGO my ...

The past two days seem to have been filled to the brim even though, really, we could have squeezed in more "stuff" if we'd given up naps and reading time. And looking at the old slides we found. And playing Skip-Bo.

Yesterday Lizz, Mary and I took the kids to the LEGO exhibit at the Midland Center for the Arts as we'd planned. Four minutes in the car and the "I'm hungry" litany started. Dang it. None of us had thought to pack snacks. So we shared around the teensy package of peanut butter crackers in Molly's bag. And decided that lunch at 10:50 might not be such a bad idea.

Besides the amazing LEGO sculptures by Nathan Sawaya  and others, there are ginormous LEGO-like building blocks and also two building areas where you can build your own creations. After we had zoomed through the "do not touch" area, it was so good to let the kids have fun in the non-restricted zone.

The exhibit runs through Sept. 2 so if you have the chance to go, I highly recommend it.

After the LEGO stuff, we visited the three floors of the Hall of Ideas, bringing back memories of all the times I took Lizz there when she was small. We did all the activities we did back then - built a bridge, made blueprints of small hands, stamped blocks, played instruments and more.

Today, a semi-quiet day ... last-minute planning and packing for our weekend canoe trip. I thought I had so much TIME to work on that this week and now it's the day before with much to do. Lizz is meeting a friend for lunch. She's making coconut shrimp curry for dinner. Perhaps I'll post that recipe later.

Hmmm. Almost noon. Time to get dressed.

Fun from toeses to noses

Julie and I were eating hummus, tabouleh and some sort of yummy seaweed-flecked rice chips she'd just picked up at Panini's, and heard a high-pitched whirring sound coming from the basement.

"They're not playing with power tools are they?" she asked. "Probably ... but I'm sure they're much safer with Lizz," I replied.

"Mmmmph. This hummus is really good, isn't it?"

For the record: Prior to this, there were no small boys sticking pretzels in their noses, pretending to be walruses. And there was absolutely no hysterical laughter. I'm pretty sure nobody played hockey in the shower either.

Being vegetables

Y'are what y'eat, right?

Ha. If that were true ...

Da boys are coming soon. We're battening down the hatches for their arrival.

No, not really. But nobody will ever accuse them of being vegetables.

This picture was taken a few weeks ago when Share, Jake and I watched the boys for the weekend. Jake was so proud of the giant bag of beans and other produce he'd just picked in his garden. (Aunt Linda - this pic is for you!)

Yesterday, we weren't exactly vegetables. We went to church and then a-visitin'. Had lunch with Share, Jake and Mary. Came home for naps and reading, went to Fuzzy's and then saw Despicable Me at the Court Street Theatre. And then went back to Share and Jake's for pie and more visitin'. There was a Molly sighting and plans were made for our trip to the LEGO exhibit.

And on this drippy, dribbly Monday, I'm looking forward to an unhurried day and week ... we'll have a full B&B tonight as Uncle Lee and Aunt Judy will be staying here en route to Narnia North. So we need to clear space in the guest room, do a little tidying up and plan something interesting for Happy Hour and dinner. What fun!

It's really busy around our house on Monday mornings, I'm discovering. The parking lot has been filling up. The man with the shorts and the coffee from the law farm (Saturday's observation) just came out wearing khakis, a button-down Oxford and a tie. I think he saw me here at the computer. Probably didn't think anyone lived in the peely red house with the ridiculous weeds. That, or figured it was a crazy cat lady.

I hear noises. I think the vege-boys are here!

An extraordinary day ... close to home

I've been thinking that my editorial theme this week should be around vacation (duh) but specifically the idea that there's lots to do right here in Saginaw.

For me, the best vacations are the ones where every square nonometer is not planned out. When Lizz and I travel, we like to soak up the local flavor. If there are "must-see" or "must-do" attractions, we assess them. Historical value, aesthetics, raw interest, time, quirkiness and memorability all factor in. For this reason, we've ended up exploring a lot of off-the-beaten path type venues.

It's no secret to anyone who knows me that I love unstructured days. I promised Lizz we would not have a to-do list this week, but as usual, from the time I picked her up at work on Friday we began the "we should do ..., we should go ..." litany for our limited time together. This time, it went like this:

• We should cook together - shrimp coconut curry, macadamia nut brownies, Caprese salad, tomatillo pico de gallo, rhubarb pie ...
• We should go get pedicures
• and get coffee at Morning Emporium
• and have lunch at Fralia's
• We should take Ashton, Sammy and Molly to the LEGO exhibit in Midland
• and the new splash pad by the Y
• We should go for walks
• and go to yoga at the Y
• We should take naps. Every day.
• and watch movies
• and read books
• and explore

So, how are we doing with our list?

Well, after my post yesterday morning, we:

• Ate tofu blintzes (from Trader Joe's freezer section) with fresh local peaches for breakfast
• Went to the Farmers Market
• and bought an abundance of produce as usual
• and met a young man who recently moved to the area from Northern Michigan; his wife is teaching creative writing at SVSU and he makes soap and is the stay-at-home dad ... I had to buy some soap from him just because I love how they're living their young lives ... a deliciously fragrant and nubbly lavender-oatmeal bar is now on a fish-shaped dish in the downstairs powder room
• and bought Bean Bunny t-shirts
• Chatted with the neighbors in the driveway (a treat because even though we are steps from each other's doors, our busy lives don't leave much room for neighborly visits ... something that needs to change)
• Teamed up on baking apple pie with a crumby crust and top (Lizz's recipe - I was just in charge of peeling and slicing applies)
• Made tomatillo pico de gallo (recipe from a chef at the Farmers Market)
• and sampled and seasoned and sampled some more
• Read and took naps
• Went to a friend's house for dinner
• and had a delightful time catching up with friends Deb, Al and Ellen
• and got to know two college students from our sister city of Tokushima, Japan, which Lizz and Ellen visited five years ago (and where they were so warmly and lovingly welcomed, tears still come to my eyes when I recall the memory)
• and feasted on a variety of delicious foods blending the cuisines of several cultures
• Finished watching a movie
• Fell blissfully to sleep after counting my blessings for an extraordinary day full of moments and memories in the making

Amen. (We're off the church now. Seemed a good way to end the post and begin the day.)

A whole new day

There's that silent "w" again. What's up with that?

I have been trying to post for about an hour now. This creaky old computer really wants to interfere with the flow of my creative juices - and the serenity of my day. I'm not gonna let it.

Of course, I have several essential things to share today.

As I was sitting here, looking out the window while waiting for the computer to get its poop in a group and listening to the glorious sounds of the dishwasher doing its job, I saw an exceptionally large woman in a motorized wheelchair zoom up my street. She was dressed in bright yellow and carried a pink pocketbook. There's a story there. I'm sure of it.

I think the Earth turned on its axis several times while I was waiting for the computer to load and do all its whoziwhatsits. I am now 492 years old. As I sit here aging gracefully, the mail lady pulled in to the parking lot to make her deliveries to the law firm next door. I started to type "law farm." Ha. I liked the jaunty little hat she was wearing. Maybe "jaunty" is the wrong word. It looked like one of those cute felted wool hats with a longish brim. Not quite jaunty. Definitely not postal.

It's drippy and dribbly out there. Perfect conditions for sleeping in, reading and contemplating one's navel, don't you think?

I'm reading a new book that Lizz brought home for me - Traveling with Pomegranates by Sue Monk Kidd and her daughter, Ann Kidd Taylor. No, not that Ann Taylor. I started reading it last night but then got back into it this morning. Figured I'd do a "quick" little post and then get back to it. 1.5 hours later ...

Seriously. I am about to drop-kick this CPU. It took me six tries to hyperlink that title up there. I may be technologically impaired and have no idea how all this stuff works, but I have no patience for defective digital thingamabobs.

I'm pretty sure I need an iPad. So I can have something new to yell at.

I really am a pretty peaceful person. Perhaps not patient, but basically peace-loving.

Finally, I was completely thrilled to discover when I got home last night that I gained a new "follower"!
I try not to have blog envy when I note that Misty has 59 followers after just five months. Perhaps that can be attributed to her rather clear editorial purpose. And consistent posting. And a few other things. Still.

Some guy wearing khaki shorts and a green t-shirt is carrying a cup of take-out coffee and entering the law farm. Big doings on a Saturday.

I'm so glad it's Saturday. I'm so glad I'm on vacation. I have not only a whole new day ahead, but a whole week of Saturdays! I feel like Jake!

Gimme a V, gimme an A, gimme a C-A-

T-I-O-N!

My vacation begins today! A wide open schedule and nine days of mother-daughterness!

I'm working on random house stuff this morning, then will meet a friend for lunch en route to Ann Arbor.

Lizz and I don't have any plans at present to go anywhere - other than the youth canoe trip next weekend. But I think we're both looking forward to hanging out, sleeping in, watching movies, doing some girly stuff and just all-around catching up. It's like we're each at least a quart low and need a fillerup with one another and our family here. It's also our big breather before the busy fall schedule takes over in just a few weeks.

I can't wait.

An update and a recipe

It may be late in the day, but I'm finally posting and officially bringing back recipe day. I'd decided to share the Southern Cobb Salad recipe Lois made at our study of The Shack at church last year. So I just finished keying the whole thing in, with our modifications, and then thought to check and see if the original BHG recipe was online. It is ... so when you're ready, click here and go on over to read and download. I love sites like Better Homes and Gardens that have lots of nice options to save and print out recipes in a friendly way.

For modifications ... Lois added crumbled bacon and blue cheese. I would also add diced avocado. Oh, and she said she made the dressing in the blender. Easy-sneezy.

My favorite Cobb Salad is still the one at Fralia's, the cute little deli just a few blocks from my house. Yum. But if I'm gonna make it myself? This Southern-style recipe is my first choice.

So ... photo doesn't quite match the recipe theme, does it? This is a picture of my childhood home as it was when we first moved there in 1968. I WAS TWO. Mom and Dad purchased it for $13,900. It's now a 3 BR, not 5. It has an attached garage. The porch is quite different and all of the windows have been replaced. I think it might have been yellow or white back then? I don't remember (I WAS TWO) and can't really tell from the old photos. We painted it olive green and it was that color until about nine or 10 years ago when Dad had gray vinyl siding installed.
 
So now I need to train myself to call this Mike's house. One day shy of 2-1/2 years after Dad's death, checks were written, papers were signed, and we made it so.

Seeing the light

In the 99% humidity yesterday afternoon I met the soon-to-be-new-owners over at my dad's house so they could make some lists of things they'd need to do. They wanted to pull up a corner of the carpeting and see if there were hardwood floors below (there are) and if it was glued down or loose-laid (that seems to be the case in the area we checked).

For a little while, I sat in their car while their youngest, the daughter who will be two tomorrow, napped. I remember when she was born. I closed my eyes and thought of all the memories made in my childhood home. Opening one eye, I looked at the porch and thought of the time when I was four and a neighbor kid and I sat underneath chewing up peanuts and spitting them into a jar. We were making peanut butter! We thought we were brilliant doing it without any fancy equipment. I remembered picking up the horse chestnuts - a favorite activity still of any kid who walks below those trees. Nobody can resist their shiny beauty. My dad had made me little tools to carve them into dishes for elves and fairies. I wonder where those are now. Did I pack them up along with other things?

When the toddler woke up, I went back inside and continued to gather the last few family memories I needed to transport over to the repository at my house. As usual, I spent the most amount of time in the kitchen. So many times these past many months - and truly, for years before that, when the rest of the house overwhelmed, I'd retreat to the kitchen, where I could create order, often by immersing dusty relics in soapy water and meticulously and therapeutically wash away the grime. Yesterday, I washed the wire baskets I'd brought home years ago that Dad had hung up in the office. Maybe I can put them in the basement and hang potatoes and onions in there ... or art supplies ... or ...

With my hands in the soapy water, my eye caught the orange petals of the Dansk lamp I'd assembled and hung in the breakfast nook back in high school. I moved in there to inspect it closely again: How the heck does one clean this thing, I wondered. I'm pretty sure I thought that back when I put it together, piece by piece.

It struck me: It's rather like the light at the end of the tunnel. A beacon that there is an end to this project. A thought that's both lovely and a little bit sad.

Finding joy

Yesterday marked my 200th post on Shiny Things!

Today, I'm finding joy ...

A bit waspish

I have a wasp problem. What is it with me and my pests? The little guys are seriously ticked at me. Oh, gracious. Hope I don't get ticks.

They're right outside the kitchen window, in the corner where I want to start scraping/paining next. They've apparently built a nest up inside the wall and enter through little holes in the underside of the siding. I took the screen off the window so I can scrape the frame so all that stands between me and a gobzillion wasps is one thin pane of 100+ year old glass. They see me standing on the other side and wham their little waspy bodies up against the glass and I swear it SHUDDERS.

Yikes.

When I first realized there was a problem, I emptied out the can of wasp spray I had in the garage on the few wasps I saw buzzing around the area. In full daylight. Oops. I'm surprised I didn't get stung. What had been just a few wasps quickly multiplied and they swarmed crazily all around my head and arms. It was like they'd called in their brothers, cousins, uncles, neighbors and everyone's distant relatives. Then I went to my favorite hardware store and bought another can of spray and some caulk. Figured I'd spray like crazy and then caulk up the holes. This was my plan. I've been going out every morning and evening to spritz a little. Not surprisingly, I ran out of my spray so stopped at the hardware store on my way home yesterday and picked up two more cans of some kind of super foaming spray. I waited until dusk to try it out. All the stuff that says wasps get drowsy and slow at night and in the morning is WRONG. I'm seeing a direct correlation between spraying and increasing their numbers exponentially. Now I think the little buggers that remain have built up a resistance. The problem seems far from abating. Au contraire.

Crap.

Belatedly, I've started thinking about the toxicity of the stuff I'm spraying. I'm usually pretty conscious of such things. I'd rather pull weeds than use toxic weed killers, for example. But for some reason, I'm just piling cans of murderous sprays into my cart, and rushing home to push those little buttons with abandon. I think the only times I've been stung by a bee or wasp were when I stepped on them up at our cottage on Green Lake as a kid. So it's not like I have memories of horrible allergic reactions or anything. I think I'm more concerned about those who come to visit me. I want this to be a safe and shiny place. So my eco-sensibilities have just flown out the window apparently on this recent anti-wasp rampage. Though this morning I did remember that I had a natural, non-toxic trap that I'd gotten from Aunt Harriet's house a few years ago. It's the pretty nubbly green recycled glass I love and has a darling little petal stopper on top. I've been keeping it in the entryway with a big purple paper flower in it that I got in Cape Charles, Va., several years ago. I propped the flower up in the corner, put some dish soap and water in the trap and ventured out into the war zone with it this morning. (Directions I found vary - fill with sugary water or with dish soap. Both methods are supposed to attract and trap the little fiends.) I don't see any evidence of the guys taking a break for a beverage or a bath, though.

Jake says he has some sort of sure-fire solution in a mustard bottle. Guess that's next.

In other news, Jake and I made a near-final trip to my dad's house this morning to get the last of the family things and to take a load of stuff over to Goodwill. I cannot believe how empty dad's house is now. Now it just needs a massive cleaning. And some paint.

I am planning to host a giant photo-sorting party at my house sometime this fall/winter. But right now, my basement and guest room are filled to the brim. I swear the humidity today is hovering around 99 % so the conditions weren't the best for our project. I continue to be very thankful for my functioning A/C. After the "svetty" morning, I stripped beds and did laundry, finally put away a few months' worth of straggler items that had collected in the laundry room, and tried to make a dent in piles of paperwork. Then, after lunch, I took a shower and flopped in the library to finish the book I'd been reading and to take a nap.

Well, I've rambled on long enough. I think it's time to go figure out what's for dinner.

It was just $1

How often do you buy things because you just CANNOT pass up that great deal?

I bought this slightly frazzled Bromeliad at Lowe's back in May. It looked like it needed some loving. And oh, great googly-moogly. IT WAS A BUCK.

But of course if I had a dollar for every time I took advantage of a super deal and purchased something I really didn't need? I'd be a wealthy woman. 

Hold on. Gotta go throw in a load of laundry. Claudette erped on the guest room bed again. Don't you want to come stay at my B&B? Thought so.

I'm back. Miss me? I decided to clean the litterbox while I was down in the laundry room. Blech.

Do you love my peely window? Do you love it so much you'd like to come and help me scrape and paint???

I have discovered that there is a direct correlation between me actually posting something here and people stopping by to read my posts. Go figure! Last month, when I so faithfully spewed out some words every single day, many of you faithfully visited. And then I got a little lazy in the first week or so of August. I had a really good excuse the first several days (see last post for Exhibit A). And the past few days my computer has just been really poopy and slow.

I must tell you, I was honored and very humbled to discover that my friend Deb was actually inspired by my daily postings last month. She began this month pledging to do the same with her blog and I only stumbled upon that post the other day. Obviously, I've not been keeping up with my reading list. Shame on me. For so many months, I faithfully read at least a half dozen blogs a day. I was inspired by Pioneer Woman, amused and entertained by Dooce and June Gardens, awed by Dan Denardo (and a little envious of all his fabulous travels). Over the past couple of weeks I've kept up with Misty and that's about it. My days have been overfull with extracurricular projects. And like I said ... poopy computer syndrome.

Will I have something to say tomorrow? Well, I guess we'll just have to find out. Perhaps I'll reinstitute recipe day.

I've been with you in spirit this week ...

"Hi Space Cadets! Welcome to Starship Galactic Praise!" Can you see me doing this in front of a church full of kids and adults gathered for Galactic Blast VBS? Sunday through Thursday last week I was Commander Nano in the opening ceremony each day AND also taught the 5th/6th grade and youth class - between 12 and 17 kids each night! Thank God for my co-teacher and helpers. Please take a moment to appreciate my very special shiny cape. 

I have very good reasons for not posting at all last week. And VBS is just one of the reasons every square nanometer of my days was filled.

The rocket ship the Amazing Mark built is at left here. This thing was HUGE. This was where Galileo popped out every day so we could have our little chat about his escapades, and the daily green idea and praise phrase. One little boy was so funny ... when I asked for input from the audience he'd raise his hand and say "I wanna talk to the gorilla! I need to talk to the gorilla!" 

In addition to working 2-1/2 days, here's a bit of how my week/weekend was filled:

• Found a helper (my VBS co-teacher) to assist me with the house-painting project. We worked Thursday and Friday mornings and got the driveway side of the house, the front of the garage and the breezeway mostly done. 

• Certain people in my life will be pleased to know that I now officially have central air since Mark from church (of rocket-ship building fame) came and repaired the little drain thing on the air conditioning unit so it won't drain condensation all over. Of course, the day it was repaired was cool and breezy but it's been humid the last few days so I turned it on today. I miss hearing the outside noises but the reduced humidity is nice. 

• I visited the attorney and the purchase of my dad's house is well underway. If all goes as planned, we'll have the closing the week of Aug. 16. Final clean-out over the next week. I can't believe we're in the home stretch.

• Uploaded tons of VBS photos and sent out links.

• Worked on youth group stuff -  Open Mike night last Friday and materials for our upcoming canoe trip.

• Served on "boy duty" with Share yesterday and part of today (had a slumber party last night). Poor Share - since he moved to his "big boy bed," Sammy has developed a habit of climbing into bed with his parents every night. So last night, that was with me and my big sister. But in making room, Share fell off the side of the bed and got pretty dinged up and bent her glasses in the fall. Sammy is a restless sleeper, so I got punched in the eye and kicked in the ribs a few times during the night. 

No wonder I needed a nap today, huh? 

Most August

I just opened the fridge to get 1/2 and 1/2 for my coffee and a bowl of cocktail sauce flew out and spattered all over. Geez, I wonder why. I am so very tidy, don't you think? Share and Jake and Cindy and Dick came over last night to help REDUCE the leftovers and somehow they multiplied.

I'm down to one container each of salsa and guacamole, there are fewer cut veggies and shrimp (but now no cocktail sauce), and the wine and beer inventory has been significantly reduced, but now I have:

• meatballs and marinara
• sauerkraut and pork
• hummus
• several containers of lemon pepper chicken salad
• caprese salad
• ginormous container of white cheddar cheese spread
• grilled chicken
• lots and lots of peaches

I still haven't made the Moroccan meatballs, the bruschetta or the eggplant antipasto I'd planned but have ingredients ready to be transformed.

Uh, lunch anyone?

In other news ... our vacation bible school (VBS) starts tonight. I am heavily involved this year - for the first time in many years. For a few years I was in charge of or helped in the kitchen. Then I stopped for a long time. Lizz was the VBS helper in the family. And then, about three years ago, I team-taught the youth class with a couple of other people and had a great experience. And then I took some more time off. To rest, apparently.

This year, I'm leading a combo class of grades 5 through 12 with LOTS of help AND I signed on to be the M.C. for the opening program every day because one of "my" youth is the mascot. I'm not sure I initially realized that's what I'd volunteered to do when I went to the meeting last Monday, but now I am super excited and getting into character. My name is Commander Nano. And my costume is really really cool. I spent most of yesterday afternoon working on the formless void project and so did not get a nap. I really hope there's time for one this afternoon, because I'm gonna need it. I have to be at the church by 5:30 tonight through Thursday, and our program goes from 6-8:30.

Nano nano. (Name that 70s TV show!)