What Spring is

Asparugus popping out of the ground, our first year harvesting from our patch.

Green Garlic, a remarkably fresh, spring flavor.

New Chickens- our laying flock to be.

We are having a beautiful rainy day here. The type of lighting that just make everything look brighter and more beautiful. our tulips are knocked over a bit, I didn't post upside down pictures. This morning, getting up early everything is a glow! I love it.

Bleeding hearts, with a filter in picasa, such pretty flowers.

A grape hyacith poking up on the edge of the driveway.

So Kate, what have you been up to?

Well it has been an incredibly busy couple of weeks around here. we had a busy week last week and a busy one the week before getting ready for it. We are up to 25 people for meal deliveries making it 50 meals a week, catered a 235 person paying gig, a 50 person and a 10 person dinner party and then had our own sader. Above, a portion of the 750 meatballs I rolled out. Below Ben cooking them up- isn't fire dramatic?

My first attempt at ruggalah- only 50 of those needed.

As well as a great kosher for passover coconut macorroon recipe- first attempt, sweet sweet success.

Our weekend here will be a relaxing one, prepping for Tuesday cooking, and another weekend with a couple of gigs. Hopefully will be back to the blog, I miss the updates.

An Actual Scoop

So things are going. Ben and I know that the next few months trying to get this business officially off the ground are going to be a lot of work, and know that it will be worth it... needless to say regular posting hasn't quite made it's way back onto the agenda of my days. Work is boring me and I long for the day that I can say goodbye and put all of the uncomfortable egg shell walking behind me and forget about the boss who feels she has the right to criticize my body type during my yearly evaluation... yes she went on for 20 minutes, yes multiple people have told me to find a lawyer to sue the park district and no there does not seem to have been any type of disciplinary action taken... so moving on.

Spring is here, it started slowly and came a little later, but 3 weeks ago we got these

Snowdrops blooming in the front yard

then a few days later the crocus had their chance- they didn't do to well as Asher wanted to pick them all

And along that same time our spinach started thriving in the cold frame.

Today was a day full of gardening... 80 feet of potatoes, trenches dug by Ben, planted with assistance from Kate and Asher.

And Cabbages are in the ground as well! Things are really wet out there but much dryer than a few weeks ago.

In good news our food nanny gig is going well. We lost a family this month unfortunately, but picked up two mores, one of 2 and one of 4. So we are very happy and of course still looking for a few more to help out with summer especially as things are a bit hit and miss with peoples vacation schedules. If you want to check out what we have been cooking check out the food nanny blog here. Here are seven families meals divied up and loaded into our car a few Tuesdays ago... we are getting a bit more organized.

Yes, I suck, but soon I will be back

Not quite 100 things about me, if you have a blog consider yourself tagged, copy and paste and answer yourself.

101. My name is:Kate
100. I was born in:Peru, IL
99. I am really:ready to not be working at the nature center
98. My cell phone company is:I don’t have one
97. My eye color is:Blue
96. My shoe size is:7
95. My ring size is:7
94. My height is:5′1"
93. I am allergic to:dog, cats, amoxicillin
92. I was born on:November 6, 1977
91. I am annoyed by:
People that ask way to many questions, trying to be nice and considerate, but really just come off as being really nosy (mom this not in reference to you, I know you are just legitimately interested in my life, not just nosy)
90. Last book you read:A Color of His own, to Asher this morning… who has time for grown up books?
89. My bed is:currently positioned under a skylight, and I love waking up looking up at the trees, can’t wait for leaf out!
88: One thing you hate about yourself:Let’s go with would change, body wise, my belly- I have always had the pudge, but we could say farewell.
87. My favorite Holiday is:Christmas every other year with my family and birthdays- I love birthdays and celebrating and cupcakes.
86. The perfect kiss:All depends on the state of the lips.
85. The last three cd’s I bought were:Wow, I do not buy music. Neil Young last two albums, prairie wind- for Ben’s 29th b-day, the one with impeach the president for Christmas a couple of years ago--- no new ones for me… the last one I remember actually buying was Norah Jones 5 years ago.
84. Are you living at home:yes, my own
83. Do you have any siblings: Yes.
82. Are your parents divorced: No
81. What did you do yesterday: Woke up, had a relaxing morning at home with the boys, work had some interviews. Boys came to visit. A wonderful lamb shoulder roast and wine, a trip to krannert for dessert, tax organization, romantic honey time and bed.

:::I Believe In:::
80. Love at first sight: No.
79. Luck: Yes, my grandma rose is just lucky, that lady wins so much at bingo.78. Fate: Sure77. Yourself: Yes
76. Aliens: not so much
75. Heaven: not in the form of we all hang out with the big tubby white bearded man in the sky and look down at everyone and eat and drink to our hearts content.
74. Hell: jury’s still out on this
73. Ghosts: Yes- ask me about my college house- haunted!.
72. Horoscopes: Maybe, not the newspaper ones, but I do think that the way things were aligned at your birth may play into your personality- there are just always exceptions to the rule.
71. Soulmates: yes

:::Which is Better:::
70. Hugs or Kisses: Hugs- you can share them with so many people and they can give you such a charge when you are having a bad day. And you can just say so much with a hug, that you can’t with words to comfort a good friend. I love hugs!
69.
68. Phone or Online: Neither to be honest, I am not that good keeping up either way.
67. Red heads or Black haired: who doesn’t love some red hair, I love the color, but really are they better than black haired folks—what kinda question is this?
66. Blondes or Brunettes: Brunettes- ditto for up their, I still love some blonde haired people, for myself though I would never pull off blonde.
65. Hot or cold: Cold- not that I always love it buy wow do I hate the hot- it does not mix with me.
64. Summer or winter: So tough I love all seasons if it weren’t for summer I wouldn’t be able to garden and enjoy the taste of great tomatoes, temperature wise winter is my love- but the short days make it hard for me to photosynthesize.
63. Fall or Spring: Fall and I mix perfect and I long for it in the summer, but spring is equally anticipated.
62. Chocolate or vanilla: Vanilla
61. Night or Day: Day
60. Oranges or Apples: Fall Apples, Winter Oranges, it all depends on the season to get the best flavor.
59. Curly or Straight hair: a bit of wave

:::Here’s What I Think About:::
58. Abortion: Everyone’s personal decision- should stay legal, because I don’t have the right to make that decision for anyone else. Until we make it easy for all woman to have babies by way of health care, living wages, child care- no one has any right to judge or illegalize another’s right to make that choice- and even then- mind your own business- have you seen the population size lately!!!!
57. Backstabbers: I'm sure my opinion matches everyone else about them!

:::Last time I:::
56.Had food?3.5 hours ago, left over chille, with cheese and yogurt and corn tortillas.
55. Saw someone I haven’t seen in awhile:In August at my Alumni soccer game, people I hadn’t seen I five+ yrs.
54. Cried in front of someoneI am sure it was in the past week- I cry easily, I can fake cry as well, I just have very active tear ducts.
53. Who is the ditziest person you know:I just can’t answer this one
52. Who makes you laugh the most:my husband
51. The last movie I saw: Waiting- great moving about waiting tables for some chain crap restaurant- oh how I love the restaurant scene.

50. What I don’t understand is:mean people just being mean
49. Something I always really miss when I leave home is:my family- it is so hard to leave your cute babe in the arms of the man you love….
48. The thing that I’m looking forward to the most:being able to quit my job and work out of my home with those people in 49
47. The thing that I’m not looking forward to is:the lack of sleep ahead of me as we plan and execute our home business
46. Tomorrow: I’ll work and play with my family
45. Today: going to celebrate common grounds successes at Crane Alley.
44. Next Summer: being a stay at home mom, working with Ben and gardening a lot!
43. Next Weekend: hanging out with an old friend who I love dearly!
42. People call me:Kate and Mama
41. The person who knows the most about me is: Ben
40. The most difficult thing to do is:get everything done on the list- it is long and there is never enough time- plus I keep coming up with more.
39. I have gotten a speeding ticket:when I was 16, driving to MN to visit friends with Kirstin, I was also singing Cecilia by simon and garfunkle and we actually put our hands in the air after freaking out that we were moving to get my driver’s license, thinking the cop would fear we were looking for a gun… can you believe my parents let me do a 6 hour road trip at 16?
38.My zodiac sign is: Scorpio
37. The first person i talked to today was: Ben.
36. First time you had a crush: Peter something back in the second grade at St. Matts, I think the last started with a B, he was cute.
35. The one person who i can’t hide things from: I hate to say that I don’t think anyone, I am most open with Ben, but I’m sure there are some things he doesn’t know.
34. Last time someone said something you were thinking: All the time
32. What is your dream job?Working collaboratively with Ben, able to homeschool our kids and be as friendly to the earth as possible.
31. First real job: I think papergirl counts.
30. I have/will get a job: I have a job, would like to have a different one.
29. I have these pets: One chicken currently at pet status, Fawkes, 3 as just layers that will be retired in the fall.
28. I wish: I didn't have to work.
27. The worst sound in the world: fingernails on the chalkboard
26. The person that makes me cry the most is?Like because they hurt me? I make myself cry because of those stupid active tear ducts and growing up in a non-confrontational family.
25. Best sound in the world:Asher saying, “mama” and afterwards giving me the best cutest smile in the world- it melts me.
24. Person[s] that makes you happy: My boys, my family, and friends--- they all know who they are.
23. Florida or Hawaii: Hawaii for me to explore and hike, Florida for Ben to fish.
22. My favorite piece of clothing: my yellow cardigan
21. Last time I cried:I already answered this and I am sick of talking about my overactive tear ducts.
20. My friends are: my support- my history
19. My computer is: in a very cold room
18. The school I go to is: N/A
17. Last person I got mad at: Ben
16. The all-time best movie is: BRING IT ON- come on I can watch that crap all the time!
15. The all-time best feeling in the world is: Love.
14. I lose all respect for people who: are arrogant and cocky, oh and don’t want to do actual work to make money.
13. The movie I cried at was: notice overactive tear ducts, especially while PMSing or MSing (no pre)
12. TV channels you watch: not so much. I haven’t watched an actual live tv show at my home since the last Veronica Mars.
11. Favorite web site: soule mama
10. I like/love: so much to list
9. The worst pain I was ever in was: Ass Cyst winter of 03 and 04- such horrible times.
8. My favorite word is: sofa-king
7. My room is: terra cotta colored although the actual paint color was mince meat- that almost prevented me from having my dream color- shame on that paint namer- like it’s a hard job- mince meat really?
6. My favorite celebrity is: I would love to meet Dar Williams and Willie Nelson
5. My weakness is:Craft Supplies, let’s narrow that down to fabric, I crave it and collect it and love it and have a hard time parting with it.
4. What I like about the opposite sex is:
3. Who broke your heart:Tom
2. One thing that makes you feel great is:spending an afternoon outside.
1. One person that you wish you could see right now:my college roomies, it is like one person when we are together

Works in Progress

I have had a little opportunity to sew in the last week and came up with this cute dress, I wanted to try out some gathering of pleats and a little embelishment. I have had these fabrics forever, the blue is inside my wallet, alone I love it but it needed something to break it up a bit, and how happy was I to use up some of the gingham that is in my stash from estate sales! a great combo and I love the flowy skirt.

And a reversible dress, still awaiting buttons and a bow to be sewn on... but you get the idea.

Finally!

So we finally got the toy bags hung up in Asher's room. Only took us a year! Fun quick project. Peg board from Michael's, sanded and polished with some mineral oil, and beeswax, tree sun and cloud hot glued on, after hanging it on the wall- the sun and cloud covering up the screw head- total time estimated at 20 minutes, not including the run to the store.

February 10

inspired by soul mama my top ten things about February this year. The light, only twice a year is it like this, cutting into the house at a great angle, lighting up thing I don't necessarily want to see (cobwebs, dust, food crumbs) and radiating on things I forgot to notice the last couple of months (hello staghorn and aloe)

A walking boy! Oh the joy that he can enter a room on two feet, I absolutely adore it.

Seedlings! Hooray for gardening and early onions doing the best they can in our cold basement, growing and getting stronger by the day.

New Chickens- we are getting 6 more baby chicks, set to arrive in 6 weeks, adding to our lovely flock and looking forward to more eggs and more fun with Asher as he falls in love with some new animals.

Cold Frames- as the snow melts, we have been able to harvest some spinach to enjoy with afternoon meals.

New Adventures, we are gaining and little momentum in the catering venture, have 20 people enjoying the meals Ben cooks up every week, happy with all of the canning and freezing we did confirming our ideals that you can eat locally year round and help others do it as well. Next big hurdle: the health department, will they help us realize our dream of having a certified kitchen attached to our home? A lot of excitement to come, a lot of work to do, and what seems like not enough time to do it in.

Wood Stove Heat: as the temperatures have been dipping down some more, I am so thankful for the woodstove and our ability to heat our house with the wood that fell as trees were pruned and lost in 2006 and happy with low gas and electric bills!

Anticipation of whats to come, bulbs bursting out of the ground, ramps multiplying from last year. The return of the sun reminds me of all the growing that will be going on in the months to come.

All the moments that I have had a chance to make something. A bit harder to come by than a year ago, but so rewarding.

Someone turning one!!!!! I have spent the whole of this month reminiscing about my pregnancy, how wonderful I felt at full term... the anticipation of the one to be those 10 days past my due date. And celebrating this most magnificent little boy who is everything I expected and so much more. The joy of being a mama is beyond description.

Food of the week

So we had some fun this week making spring rolls and pad thai. So good and a nice belly warmer on a cold day.

Crafty Completion

I would say this is a crafting success, Asher loved playing with his new cookies. They were loads of fun to make.

More of the flood

So here are some pictures in Busey Woods, the boardwalk was built because of times like these and even it wasn't high enough for these water levels. First off on the drive into work, the underpass (?) just south of University on Vine by Schnucks. This place is notorious for flooding, but this day was exceptional.

Heading into Busey Woods, you can see the foot bridge to get into the woodlot, typically there is 16-20 feet between the bridge and the water level. Not so much on this day.

And then our lovely boardwalk, just not standing high enough.

Flood!

Oh how I love the power of water. Yesterday I arrived at work to some massive flooding. It was incredible! The day camp building has 4 feet of water in it. The saline ditch was up 12-16 feet, and all of crystal lake park was covered in water including the road.
Here are the steps behind our maintenance office.
And the bridge to the day camp building.
And the day camp building... so much water. Oh sorry the last two pictures got deleted. I will get more up in a bit as Asher allows.

Other works: A cork board for the kitchen. Ben and I were so excited to take on this endeavor. We had over 200 corks saved up and this is how far we got. We will need 630 corks to fill up the whole board... so it may not be complete for a nother month, but it was a great snow day project on Friday.

I got inspired to try my hand at making some play cookies as well. These will be some chocolate chippers and chocolate chocolate chippers....Yummy!!

Some projects in the works and some complete.
A place mat for the messy boy, in hopes that the table will (fingers crossed) stay cleaner.
And some knitted and felted asparugus. I have been putting off felting for a while, you know filling the whole machine with hot water and then considered felting by hand, but not really a good choice for wanting immediate results, the beer cozy trial was not fun to hand felt. How can I get really hot water and agitation? The kitchen aid. I gave it a shot with hot tap water and it worked alright. But the hot hot water from my tea kettle, a few drops of soap and the 4 speed worked its magic on these asparagus in under 10 minutes! So hooray.