Fresh Laundry and Finding Corners

There is something wonderful about fresh laundry. There is a special rhythm to laundry that makes me feel connected to the past. When its warm and I take out my basket of warm, wet laundry and pin it to the line that bisects green grasses and white fences- as I feel the warm sun beating down on my neck and arms- as a gentle breeze stirs the sheets bleaching in the light and my daughter peeks her head out from under her imaginary tent, I feel connected. There is no place else but my back yard. I can imagine I am anywhere in time and know there was a woman doing the exact thing I am doing. Its this strange ritual that I love

It is really strange that I can wax poetic about laundry.

My son has a moderate case of eczema. We try so hard to get rid of it (short of using steroid creams) and nothing seems to work. We put him in cloth diapers and I was washing them in bleach and his little tush got so chapped that we decided to use a different detergent. We bought Lehmans Soap Nuts after reading reviews for them. They are the dried fruit from a soapnut tree. They are fragrance free, hypoallergenic and cost almost nothing. They sounded too good to be true. Today was their first test. I was unfair in starting their test with Grant's very stinky diapers. The results were amazing! Even bleach couldn't get the musty wet bag smell out of those diapers. Now, Lehmans definitely isn't paying me, but I just had to rave about these. I wish they were paying me. In soapnuts.

As I was hanging up the laundry I was looking at all the wonderful green around me today. It seems like just a few weeks ago I was watching the hills behind my house looking for that faint green mist that signified spring. The mist that hangs over the grey brown trees as they start to sprout little buds of tender leaves. Now the hills are a brilliant shade of green yellow. The heat of summer hasn't yet dulled the colors and it looks like paradise. As I peeked over into my neighbors yard I saw a beautiful lush corner, surrounded by soft grasses that look like they would feel cool on bare feet. Verdant branches hang like a canopy. It looks almost edible. I found myself coveting my neighbors yard and the corners that they were ignoring. I will have to go hunting for some of my own tomorrow.

The Monster and Springtime Monster Soup

Today, after my daughter and I read an Olivia book before her nap (Olivia is a pig version of my daughter), I asked her what she wanted to be when she grew up. The answer usually varies between a veterinarian, an artist, a princess or a ballerina. Today she looked me in the eye and said "I want to be a monster."

"O....what do monsters do?"

"The ride in cars and throw candy when you yell at them."

We took her to a Halloween parade and she thinks the people in the cars were nice monsters who throw candy when you yell candy at them. She has quite the imagination.

All morning she was sitting under her art table drawing quietly in every (and I do mean every) book within her reach.

The weather was cloudy all day so we could not adventure outside. Instead I brought a little bit of spring inside. I made cream of asparagus soup. It was a nice thick bright green soup. I knew my daughter wouldn't touch it. She always asks the names of things we are eating, so after I announced that dinner was served, she immediately asked what we were having.

"Monster Soup. Its what the babies in Shrek eat."

She gobbled up two bowls full and said she could taste the waddles. I don't know what she meant by waddles, but later, during bath time, she said she felt like she was turning into a monster because of the soup. She growled, my son laughed. They both went to sleep well fed and sweet smelling. What a wonderful end to the day.

Monster Soup

1 lb of fresh asparagus, cut into 1 inch pieces

1/2 cup of chopped onion

2 cups of chicken broth

2 Tablespoons of butter

2 tablespoons of flour

1 teaspoon of salt

pinch of pepper

1 cup of milk

1/2 cup sour cream

Place asparagus, chopped onion and 1/2 cup of chicken broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered until asparagus is tender, about 12 minutes. Process in a blender until smooth. Set aside.

Melt the butter. Stir in flour, salt and pepper to make a roux. Stir for 2 minutes. Add the rest of the chicken broth. Cook, stirring constantly until it boils. Add the asparagus mixture.

Put sour cream into a bowl. Stir in a ladlefull of the hot soup. Add sour cream mixture to soup. Heat to serving temperature, but do not allow it to boil.

We ate it with slice of rye bread and butter with fresh strawberries for desert. Delicious.

Have a good night and a good tomorrow.

Farmer Market Saturday

The sun was shining on our little family today as we headed off to the farmers market in Kutztown. In an attempt to reduce our food budget I took some cash and our basket and trapsed down the street to the bustling market filled with people. Its almost as much fun to watch the people shopping as it is to shop. We bought fresh eggs (which we eat about a dozen of a week), we bought apple sausage, turkey scrapple, ground beef, tomato plants, eggplants, bananas (at 39 cents a pound!), local apples and the sweetest local strawberries I have ever tasted. My daughter ate so many when we got home. I can not say enough good things about our farmers market here. It is filled with Mennonites who grow and sell their own produce. It is amazing to live somewhere where it is alot like stepping back in time.

I highly recommend buying local if you are trying to cut back your food budget. I know a million blogs recomend it, but its so true. My family spends bout $150.00 a week at a local super market. A good portion of that is produce and meats. I don't know where they come from. I know that very often I see recalls for produce that are making people sick. I took $40 with me to the market and only spent $27. That is our meat and produce for the week. That should cut my grocery bill by about 1/3. We will have to see when Tuesday comes (regular grocery shopping day). Our farmers market is open year round and filled with local butchers whose cows and chickens I see from the car as we drive past their farms. The produce (except for the bananas) come from local farms who are working towards creating a tasty product, not for ease of shipping. The difference in taste alone is unbelievable. That and I don't worry about recalls.

My childen and I were playing around with the camera today right before their nap. Usually at that point I have a baby sandwich. I place my kids around me and I get to blow tummy rasberries without showing one more attention to the other. This picture is the result and I just had to share it. My son is trying to eat me.

Natural Gypsy

I have always been told I am a gypsy. I know I am. My ancestors were gypsys and mercenaries from Eastern Europe. My mother always told me I was more gypsy than anything else and I have always believed her. I can feel the pull of the road, the wonder of what is around the next curve. In college I followed that pull around the country and met many wonderful people and have seen many wonderful places.

Now I am the mother of two in rural Pennsylvania. I have a wonderful home and a wonderful family and it is time for this gypsy to stop wondering and put down some roots. But there are neew adventures every day. There is the adventure of creating new things, learning new things and becoming something different everyday. So I ask you to come along with my family and me as we walk down the path that our ancestors have walked before us. Learn to become and do something more with us.