it's 5am and we are headed to montana with some montana thunderstorms, just a few mosquitos, unpacking, cleaning, cooking, and as of today gardening the trailer season has begun. we have had a busy past couple of weeks. i was all set to leave to join jon when we received the call that grandma (jon's) had passed away. so, instead, jon joined me and off to idaho we went for the memorial service and some family time. we were able to spend a couple of days hanging out with family (there were around 30 of us) and watching the sunset from grandpa's front porch. i made myself useful and did some cooking (with a few helpers), homemade organic blueberry pancakes with fresh whipped cream, three batches of cookies (chocolate chip, chocolate white-chocolate chip, n' oatmeal raisin), and finished up with a crisp 4 greens salad and warm garlic french bread. grandma loved to cook and i think she would have been happy to see everyone eating an insane amount of home baked cookies, bbq, fresh cherries from their cherry tree and more.
bright and early friday morning jon, lulu, and i set out for big sky country. i have a little tradition of stops to make the trip go faster---huckleberries natural market in spokane (sushi for breakfast and some organic snacks), starbucks in missoula ( iced grande decaf soy caramel macchiato w/ light caramel...and some sweet summer tunes "patio party" http://www.starbucksstore.com/products/shprodde.asp?SKU=228324 --love it, so ready to have an end of summer party when i return), wheat, montana (john deere veggie sandwiches, fresh strawberry cream cheese danish, huckleberry italian soda), cOsTco at Bozeman, seeing nephew nik at BiG TiMber, buger king in billings (midnight snack--not a ususal stop) , gas in miles city (where the storm began - -crazy wind), and finally home sweet trailer!
no joke, i think montana weather knows that i'm coming. last year i was greeted with a thunderstorm and this year too (right now, as i type, joe is telling me that we are supposed to get another storm tonight -- 4 out of the 5 nights we have been here we have had a severe storm weather advisory, plus a few storms). as we departed miles city the rain came pouring down...seriously, it has been a long time since i have been in a storm with that much rainfall. on sunday night we had storm systems surrounding us on all sides. north of us 30 miles a tornado touched down and headed our way, luckily, by the time it reached us the storm had calmed a little and greeted us a little more nicely...don't get me wrong, i love storms--when i am inside a sturdy house and not a 5th wheel ...so when i say nicely, i mean that when the BIG, closest thunder clap, boomed right next to us, i only jumped out of my seat 3 inches instead of like 5...joe said he'd never seen anyone jump so high...wasn't expecting it that close. thunderstorms in trailers are LoUd!
so, besides storms, we have been working hard --jon out in the field, and me in the trailer, putting it to rights and cooking for the crew (us, the parents, and two very hungry teenage boys). today we planted a garden, (got a screamin' deal at wal-mart on plants they wanted to be rid of). jon rototilled, then we added peat moss, put down plastic and drip hoses then planted our plants. i am crossing my fingers that we will be able to eat the fruits of our labor before i go home. we have tomatoes, tomatillos, peppers, cabbage, crook neck squash, brussel sprouts, japanese eggplant, and a few others. this year is an experiment. we are wondering if it will grow or be eaten my the trillions of bugs that live with us, or the little bunnies or deer...tomorrow i think we are putting up a fence...stay tuned for updates.
lulu is in heaven as she gets to run through the fields and follow jon and the boys around while they work. we have been here for not quite five days and i have already called the vet. three days in a row she ate something tasty - day one - box of oreos, day two - half a bag of saltwater taffy, day three - hershey's cocoa powder...who know's what's in store for next week.
alright, i think i have caught back up...
rIghT nOw:
*jon is playing the xbox
*boys are in bed sleeping
*lulu is laying on her rug
*i am blogging and eating a piece of homemade bread - fresh and warm out of the bread machine
what are you doing right now?
storms a comin'
riding in the tractor
I came three hours earlier to work this morning hoping to attend a conference, completely forgetting about an appointment I have with a client. So I'm sitting in my office waiting for that appointment and refusing to get caught up with paperwork in the meantime. I was twittering around facebook and saw your link! You're sure creative with your time, I love it! Just want you to know that it was a Very useful link for me today :)It has kept me quite entertained for a few minutes. I love your stories, you should think about writing a book someday! You should also think about sharing some of those yummy fresh fruit recipes, Brandon would be forever grateful to you :)
ReplyDeleteHave a blast in Montana with the family!
Marisol
P.S. I absolutely love the picture of the storm, Amazing!