Currently: October 18, 2017

Yep. Usually Currently posts are slated for Sundays. But...when have I ever been one to follow the rules (even if they are my own)? I skipped out on topics for Top Ten Tuesday and Top 5 Wednesday this week partially because they just didn't grab me and partially because the Boy and I have both been fairly under the weather for about a week. I have been a serious slug.

So...partially because I didn't do this post on Sunday and partially because there is a HUGE readathon event going on this weekend, I'm posting a Currently post in the middle of the week. And because...hey...why not?

Weather: 

We are experiencing fairly nice fall weather this week. Word is that it will be our last one before the snow starts flying. Yeesh. Time goes by too quickly. (Additionally, I would be totally okay if the snow holds off for a bit longer.)

Today it was pretty and sunny out. It stayed in the low 60s with a soft little breeze. Not too bad if you're out in jeans and a hoodie. I went out briefly when one of the pigs was threatening to escape. Other than that, I've been holed up in the house with this ridiculous cold.

The sun, however, beamed pretty strongly into our southern facing windows, so it was a nice and toasty 78 in here. You'd think it was late August. I had to open a few windows to cool it down a bit. Seems like such an odd thing to do in northern Minnesota in mid-October.

Watching:

It took us two nights due to a cranky and sick baby and honestly not feeling so chipper ourselves, but we had a relaxing couch viewing of The Age of Adaline on Amazon. I'd been wanting to watch it for quite a while and, though I wasn't originally sure how it would go, turns out we both enjoyed it. It was nice to just unwind for a few minutes while still doing something together.

Reading:

I have a teensy, tiny bit of The Lauras left to read. I'm mulling over my opinion about it...we'll have to see how it wraps up. Meanwhile, I have about five (!) pages of notes on it. Apparently I'm getting a bit better about keeping a book journal.

Once I finish The Lauras, it's time to get (finally) started on Slade House. It took forever for it to show up in the mail and I'm already missing out on group discussion for RIP XII. Gah! Now I have to be careful to avoid spoilers. With any luck, I'll have enough readathon time to wrap it up this weekend and get back into the RIP swing.

Listening:

I flipped on my Spotify yesterday while I was getting ready. I had the Boy in the bathroom with me and he was feeling a bit off, so I wanted something to soothe him. The playlist of choice? Nothing fancy...really just some Beatles tunes with a bit of solo John Lennon thrown in. It was a nice change to have some music filling the air while we got set for the day. While I won't be doing it every day, it is definitely something that can liven up an otherwise slow or painful morning.

Learning:

I am devouring the web for ideas on how to finally put together my own bullet journal. I've been contemplating starting one for a long while now, but just haven't gotten my guts up. I have all of the supplies: some great notebooks, some good pens, a pack of twistable colored pencils...I've just let myself get held back by the fear of imperfection. Ha. As if I would ever be fully satisfied with any form of bullet journal I managed to create. I have a feeling that I will still feel the pull towards a notebook that I can add to and remove pages from, we'll see how I do with my first foray. I will admit that I'm a bit put off by the fact that I'm starting it at a super odd time of the year, so it won't be a January - December thing, but honestly...I'm always going to look for an excuse, so it's going to be time to just jump in.

Making:

I'm super dragging my feet on finishing up my canning. Pathetic. I have a small pile of pumpkins, a butternut squash, and a few acorn squash sitting on the step just waiting to be processed. I also have yet to pull my carrots. It's going to have to happen in the next two days. This stuff needs to be done, dang it!

It's not really "making" anything...more like getting rid of something, but I've been working on weeding through my saved Facebook posts and the pile of Pinterest emails that I have accumulated over the last few months. Holy crap, it takes forever! It does feel somewhat accomplishing to hit that unsave or delete option though.

Thinking/Feeling:

To be blunt, I feel like garbage. This cold is killing me. It's been nearly a week and I just feel drained. My head is pounding and my body is super achy. I have a ridiculous cough and every once in a while my nose decides to start running like a faucet.

The Boy isn't his chipper self either. He's been waking up between 6 and 7 times a night because he's honestly just so miserable. Between getting up with him and being stuck awake because of my own incessant coughing, I've been averaging about 2 hours of sleep a night. Not the best when you have a cold. Luckily, his fever has subsided. Mine seems to be making intermittent returns, though of a less intense nature each time. I really hope that we're nearly fully on the mend by this weekend. It would be great if we both felt somewhat normal tomorrow since I have some plans for us, darn it.

I'm also feeling some serious anticipation for the weekend. The 10th Anniversary run of Dewey's 24 hour Readathon is this weekend. For my time zone (Central US), it starts at 7am on Saturday and runs through 7am on Sunday. I'm really looking forward to it. It's one of my favorite readathons.

I probably won't read through the whole 24 hours, instead treating it a bit more like the 24 in 48 readathon and reading as much as I can for all of Saturday and Sunday. It's just the way the cookie crumbles when Gary has to work all weekend and the Boy and I are running this show together. The good news is that I will have myself a bit of a readathon partner, so there will be some children's books thrown in the mix to break up my own reading.

Wanting/Needing:

A maid? Can I just put that out there? I really hate having strangers in my house. Even more so, ones that will judge my cleanliness or lack thereof. But after a week of not feeling up to things, I could super use a one day housekeeper to just put things back together. If they could also repair the dishwasher that currently refuses to close, that would be even better. You never realize how ridiculously fantastic it is to have a machine that cleans and dries all of the darned pots and pans and eight thousand cups and spoons until you don't.

Loving:

My best buddy right now is orange Gatorade. It's my go to when I'm not feeling right. It may be total crap for my teeth, but at least I'm staying hydrated, right?

While I'm not thrilled that he feels miserable and is definitely more whiny and less happy than usual, it's nice to know that the Boy still wants to snuggle up. I'm the one he wants to hang out with. The clinginess makes it hard to get things done, but he's so stinking cute. And he tries so hard to be himself. He's a really good boy and I'm super lucky. 

Planning:

All the things. Let's see...

I'm hoping to go with my little family to a pumpkin patch tomorrow. We'll see how the weather is and how everyone is feeling. It would be nice to get some more fall pictures of B.

I also need to make a Costco run. I have a box of requested goodies for a birthday that can only be purchased in this area of the nation and need to be shipped back to Idaho next week. That is big, important, top priority stuff. Besides...this gives me an excuse to buy Costco candy for this week's readathon.

I'm really hoping to get my bullet journal off the ground in the next week or two. Is it sad that I have to plan my planner before I can make my planner? I swear, sometimes I'm a raging disaster.

And OF COURSE I'm planning on taking part in Dewey's 24-hour Readathon! I'll post a prep post a bit before start time (probably the night before) that will spell out all of my plans for the weekend. I'm still working out the details on how I'm going to manage my time and what books (and even more importantly, snacks) will be on the agenda. If you're a reader (even if you can only participate for an hour or two), go on over and check it out. Join in on the fun! I promise...this is a good one.

What about you? What does your "Currently" look like?

Currently: October 8, 2017

Location:

This isn't a regular category for me, but this isn't a regular week. I'm typing this edition of Currently from my parents' kitchen.

Yesterday, my adorable travel companion and I got up in the wee hours of the morning and hopped on a plane. After a very long day and two connections, we were met at the airport by Nana and Papa, who were very glad to finally see him again (and maybe a little okay that I came too).

So I'm hanging out in Idaho for the next few days. It's nice to be with family and to see some of my friends, but it's hard being out here without Gary. He wasn't able to come and we're missing him. So...though vacation is nice and we like being with everyone here, it will still be good to go home on Thursday.

Weather: 

It was a bit cooler today than it has been at home the last few days, but that's okay. We brought jackets and we're all set. It looks like it will be crisp, fall weather for our entire stay. Harvest season around here is in it's decline and all of the fields are neatly harvested. It's a reminder of all the things I love about fall.

Watching:

We sat down as a family a few nights ago and watched The Secret Life of Pets. It was a pretty cute show. I even found myself laughing out loud once in a while. Not bad. 

Reading:

I'm about midway through The Lauras by Sara Taylor. It's an interesting read. Taylor has a way with words and her ability to provide fantastic description is just simply amazing. Her writing is rich and smooth and immersing yourself in the story becomes quite easy. But the narrative in this is extremely emotionally gripping and I have, more than once, found myself somewhat aching for the characters. I'm interested to see how I will feel when I've finished it. I will say that I already enjoy the narrative of this one much more than I did her The Shore which felt disjointed and choppy. This flows so well and it has a clear path. I very much enjoy that. Lurching story lines make me feel far too uneasy.

Learning:

While I am incredibly lucky that my little traveling companion did fantastically on the trip here, I have discovered that it is ridiculously exhausting to travel with a child by yourself. We had an early start and between that and the two connections, the day just felt unendingly draining.

I have also learned that there may be few things worse than changing your child in an airplane bathroom. Those places feel plenty small enough when you're merely trying to situate yourself without falling over or bumping an elbow. When you're trying to wrestle and infant who wants to roll away from you on a surface that is just not long enough to contain his whole body and the entire room is also bouncing around, it's kind of like being in one of those boxes where money flies up at you while you wildly try to grab it. It's claustrophobic, chaotic, and you just hope you walk out of there with some of your dignity, most of your sanity, and maybe a successful minute and a half's worth of work. It is the one thing I am very much not looking forward to on the way home.

Making:

I am in "making" hibernation mode for a bit. I've more or less completed the garden. I have some pumpkin and squash remaining to tend to along with the carrots that I am hoping will get their act together.

This past week, I froze up an additional four bags of Brussels sprouts and four bags of kohlrabi. I also made some applesauce (both spiced and plain) and tried my hand at apple scrap jelly. 

The jelly itself turned out fantastic and tastes something akin to a honey, but the process was a bit of a mishap. I managed to turn away from the stove at a very inopportune moment and lost what had to have been at least a half pint of jelly to overboil. It was a very sticky and long process to clean my poor stove.

Thinking/Feeling:

I am torn between feeling homesick and comfortable. Being at my parents' house is always a nice feeling. I love my family and I'm really glad when I get to spend time with them. Being so far away is difficult. Especially since everyone else is here. 

But I do miss the farm. And I really miss Gary. This is the first time our little family has been separated. It's not easy. It's not something I care to repeat very often.

Wanting/Needing:

I have been contemplating it for a while, but this trip has reinforced the fact that I really need to get myself a booklight. Reading before bed, I always feel guilty keeping the bedside lamp on when Gary has to work the next morning. With traveling, I've decided it's an absolute necessity. So...I think that will go on my purchase list when I get back.

Loving:

While I don't have a photo to share just yet, I am loving the shortness of the haircut I got today. I have a stylist who I went to high school with and she has been doing my hair for years. She's the best and I refuse to have anyone else cut or color my hair. So anytime I'm in town I try to make an appointment with her. Today she gave me a nice, short a-line with some two tone color. Dark underneath and highlighted. It looks like good, natural color while giving me some dimension and should grow out without giving me a stripe...which is important since I won't be able to see her again until we get back around Christmas time.

Planning:

Right now, my most important immediate plans concern tacos. Really. I'm meeting up with some friends for Taco Tuesday at one of the most fabulous places ever. It's a small restaurant in my hometown. Ah...Imelda's. I always have to eat there when I come home. Homemade tortillas and the best barbacoa around. It's delightful. I'm salivating just thinking about it. Outside of being able to spend time with my family and friends, it's always one of the highlights of my trip.

In the slightly longer run, I'm planning on taking part in the Dewey's 24 Hour Read-a-thon when I return to Minnesota. This year is the 10th anniversary. It's always a great time and I'm really glad that I should get to participate some this year. I'll have more info about it next week.

What about you? What does your "Currently" look like?

Currently: October 1, 2017

Weather: 

It's definitely fall around here. The weather has turned distinctly cooler. The leaves are falling and the sky is growing a little darker. It's been windy and rainy for the last couple of days...perfect lounging and reading weather.

Watching:

I started out not really sure that this one was going to work for me, but I'm really quite enjoying it. I rather like the structure of the show, it's just quirky and intriguing.

Reading:

I finished the second and third books in the Miss Peregrine trilogy by Ransom Riggs: Hollow City and Library of Souls. That makes three books completed for the RIP XII Challenge.

They were both fantastic reads. I stayed up waaaaaay too late in order to finish Library of Souls. But...it was totally worth it.

And now, I'm starting something totally different.

I've received The Lauras by Sara Taylor from the publisher. I read Taylor's debut novel, The Shore back in 2015. Her writing was beautiful and magical. And while I had issues with her plot structure, I am still very much excited to see what she has come up with now.

Listening:

Nothing. Other than some radio station roulette while I was driving during the week, I didn't listen to anything. This may be a category I only use when I actually do listen to something.

Learning:

I am considering trying something a bit new once I finish with the garden. I've been reading a lot of blogs this week and am thinking about trying my hand at making soap. It may be a crazy idea, but I figure it's worth a shot. At worst, I have some less than pretty soap to use at home. At best, I have something new to use as gifts and farmers' market sales.

Making:

Okay...first of all, how cute is this kid? He's the freaking best.

This week, I'm pulling tail ends of the garden. I finished off a total of nine bags of freezer slaw. The pigs wound up getting a nice little snack of the remaining cabbage since I had nothing else I wanted to do with them. There are still a few smaller heads out there, so I may end up doing a little something...maybe some boiled cabbage puree for the kiddo.

I pulled the Brussels sprouts stalks and should have enough for about four more bags. I also learned that pigs really like Brussels sprouts. In addition, I got myself some kohlrabi, a few carrots, and the four pumpkins you see in the picture above. Canning season is finally winding down and my checklist is getting smaller. Thank goodness.

Thinking/Feeling:

Gary brought home a cold last week so both B and I managed to get sick for a couple of days. Good times. I was exhausted and had a major headache for a couple of days and The Boy was not at all himself, but we both seem to be on the mend now.

I'm getting a little excited for my trip back to Idaho next week, but I'm also a bit apprehensive. I'm hoping that The Boy does well on our flights. He's older than he was last time we flew and (while he's typically a great traveler) his schedule is a bit more complex. I'm hoping that he adapts well and we don't have any serious meltdowns. It's also going to be difficult to be away from Gary for so long.

Wanting/Needing:

I need more hours in a day. Seriously. It seems that time goes by so quickly. It seems like I have a million things to do and I just spin all day long, getting things done that weren't on the original list. I guess at least I'm accomplishing something?

Loving:

Our new carpet! The basement replacement carpet is so much nicer than the old stuff. It's softer and warmer. Maybe it's just that it's new, but I'm really pleased with it. The color is a bit different, so we will need to do some adjusting with decorating to make everything blend, but it should work out really well. For as much of a headache as it has been getting something situated, I am glad it's all settled.

Planning:

I'm going to finish up my basket of produce on the doorstep and then I need to make some applesauce. Then there's some odds and ends to puree for The Boy. Once canning season is officially wrapped up, it's time for my next project...the bathroom.

I'll be peeling off the remaining wallpaper and getting started on painting. I need to start looking for light fixtures to see if I can move the side lights to the top of the mirror. I'm also planning on framing the mirror to give it a bit more pop. I'm also looking to add a cabinet above the toilet for some towel storage. Pieces and parts... I'm trying to get as much set before we put flooring in. I'll likely get a little bit done this week, but the majority will probably have to wait until I get back from being out of town. It might be a busy week.

What about you? What does your "Currently" look like?

Currently: September 24, 2017

Weather: 

Fall has arrived...sort of. It's been a bit fickle around here, floating back and forth between warm days and decidedly fall days. I don't mind that it's somewhat clinging to summer. I need a few more days of niceness. Today it was a mix of both. The temperatures were nice...in the mid- to high 70s, but it was cloudy and breezy with rain off and on. I had enough time to harvest the cabbage from the garden and do a little spot checking on my remaining crops and then spent the majority of the remaining day indoors.

Watching:

Since we live in the middle of nowhere, getting network TV is a trick. We don't have cable because of the high cost, so we do a lot of Netflix instead. We had watched a couple of episodes of NBC's The Good Place a while back via their website, but watching on a computer screen isn't as nice as on the full-sized television. So...I was really happy to discover that the first season of The Good Place is now on Netflix. The second season is coming to regular TV, so we'll perpetually be a season behind, but at least we can still watch. I'm quite enjoying it and it's nice to have a show that we can watch together.

Reading:

I have finished my first read for RIP XII! Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children was a good read. It was a bit out of my normal wheelhouse, but it is incredibly imaginative and reads super smoothly. Riggs manages to keep the narrative aimed at a preteen/early teen reader set, but still keep things fun and entertaining for the (*ahem*) older reader as well. I was pretty pleased with this one.

I have now moved on to the second book in the series, Hollow City. I'm about 1/2 of the way through and this one is reading just as easily as the first. I have a feeling, should this continue, that this will be one of those series where I'm sad that it ends.

Listening:

I did a little more Pandora this week and I think I'm going to have to change tactics. My station is playing good music and it's all stuff that I indeed do like, but it hasn't yet suggested anything new for me. It's all bands and songs that I've heard before. I'll have to branch out and find a way to explore a bit more.

Learning:

It was more farm learning this week. I spent a few days wrangling piglets who kept wanting to find ways to escape their pens. They have now been well corralled. In addition, the vet came out on Friday and helped us to castrate a few of the boys who will become butcher hogs next fall. He taught us how to do it ourselves, so now I'll be on the action end of the scalpel for the next batch. We'll see how that goes. Initially, I had told Gary that I wasn't going to do that part. But...after watching him try to wrangle the boys while the vet did his job, I quickly decided that being on the outside of the fence was the better idea.

Making:

Turnips and rutabagas have been finished. I pulled the onions and potatoes as well. The potato crop was disappointing and my sweet potatoes were fairly nonexistent. I wound up with two the size of carrots and that's it. Bummer. However, my green onions went gangbusters, so I have about sixteen freezer bags of sliced green onions all put up.

Today, I pulled the majority of the cabbage. Since our pepper crop did crummy and I'm still letting my carrots grow, I had to make a run to the store for a few supplies. I then spent the afternoon and evening making freezer slaw. I have four gallon bags put up and will be working on doubling that tomorrow. Then I have to decide what in the world to do with the remaining cabbage heads. I still have six jars of sauerkraut in the cellar, so that is not on the agenda this year.

Thinking/Feeling:

This week, the general feeling around the house has been exhaustion. The little guy has continued to teethe, but also seems to be going through a growth spurt. It's been restless nights for all three of us as he has decided to wake up several times throughout the night. He also and tosses and turns even when he does decide to go down for the count. We're hoping this is a short-lived stunt, because we could all use some good sleep around here.

Wanting/Needing:

I am getting really excited for the renovations we're taking on in the next month and a half. We had the house measured last week for the hardwood and tile installations we're planning. I have to contact our flooring guy tomorrow to get one more piece of the quote, but then we're almost ready to roll. I am really looking forward to having the upstairs flooring complete. It should make a huge difference in feeling like we're moving forward with making this house a bit more complete and a bit less of a project.

Loving:

I haven't used it much up to this point, but with today's adventure into freezer slaw, I'm seriously loving my food processor. I still have a lot to learn about it, but it made slicing up all that cabbage so much easier and faster. It easily saved me an hour or two. Thank goodness. At this point in canning season, I will take all the help I can get.

Planning:

I have a few lists put together of all the things I want to accomplish around the house, on the blog, with our farm website, and other tasks. It's been really nice to have a visual reminder and to be able to add things as I think of them. I'm also a super huge fan of being able to check things off as I go. I love being able to see my progress.

Once I get through canning season and can officially call the garden complete for the year, I'm planning on going on a few blog tours. I have some reading to catch up on for sure. I'm really looking forward to reading some of the posts for recent Top 10 Tuesday and Top 5 Wednesday topics. I also have a feeling that they will introduce me to some new books that might just strike my fancy. No matter how ridiculous my TBR pile gets, I still very much enjoy discovering new potential reads.


What about you? What does your "Currently" look like?

Currently: September 17, 2017

These weeks are going buy too quickly. We're inching closer and closer to winter. Gah. Summer went to dang fast. I demand a redo. Come on...just four more weeks. No? How about two? Please...I'm being reasonable. Ugh. Fine. I'll soldier along and try to get all of my outside work done before the inevitable snow arrives.

Weather: 

The chill has arrived. Our little glimpse of Indian Summer was apparently just a tease. We dropped 30 degrees like it was nothing. Today it's hovering between 50 and 60. The sun finally came out this afternoon and made it slightly better, but I'm wearing jeans and a hoodie. It's a sad state of affairs. I already miss shorts weather.

Watching:

I've always been a sucker for British comedies. It's my quirky sense of humor I guess. I loved The IT Crowd and am terribly sad that there weren't more seasons. This week, Netflix wisely recommended Black Books. It's been fantastically awkward and weird and lovely.

Reading:

I finished Tatiana De Rosnays' A Secret Kept earlier this week. It was a decent read, but just didn't have the power that her Sarah's Key carried. Still, it was a good book and I enjoyed reading it.

I'm now reading Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs. It's my initial read for the RIP (R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril)Challenge XIII. I'll be posting an official sign up post for the reading event tomorrow.

Listening:

It was mostly a quiet week. I had Netflix running in the background while I did canning this week. No Pandora or Spotify, unfortunately.

Learning:

Well...out of necessity, my fence repair skills are improving. I woke this morning to a cow mooing outside my bedroom window. I got out of bed and looked outside to see...nothing. So I wandered into B's room. I looked out his window and found myself staring Southern Belle directly in the face. I bribed her back in the pasture with a bucket of corn and went back inside.

Not five minutes later, I heard Gunner growling upstairs. Tada...cow in the front yard. Same cow. Ugh. I got her back in once again and went to find the spot where she piled through the fence. She had gone under the barbed wire and pushed through the tensile net. I don't know what motivated her...she's huge...but her escape was marked by hair lodged into the barbs for a good three foot stretch.

I did a quick fix with the existing wires while holding B. It was decidedly awkward. Then I headed in to shower and get ready for the day. Hmm...nope. Cow. I called her around the garden and coaxed her in yet again while making sure the horse didn't take advantage and let himself out. That done, I went into the garage for some pliers and wire. I tightened up the fence in four spots (admittedly it's nothing perfect thanks to my wimpy hands, but it should do the trick) and wound twine through the spot to act as a visual deterrent. Thus far, no cow in the yard again. Thank goodness.

Making:

The canning continues. I processed so many beets this week that my kitchen looked like a grisly crime scene. In the end, I yielded 17 pint jars of sliced beets along with 4 half-pint jars and 34 cubes of puree. The truly sad part...that was only half the beets. Gary has been feeding them to the pigs for the last couple of weeks.

Root vegetables are up next. I now have a laundry basket full of turnips sitting on the front step ready for processing. Yesterday, I pulled the Brussels sprouts that were ready and got them processed and bagged for freezing. I also cut up the watermelon and pureed some cubes.

I'm behind of where I wanted to be this week, but at least there was progress. I have absolutely got to get through the turnips and rutabagas this week. I also need to pull the onions and potatoes and start them curing. The good news is that we aren't forecasted for a freeze yet, so I still have some time to keep this endeavor moving forward.

Thinking/Feeling:

Old. Seriously. I turn 39 today. Gah. I never had issues with my birthday until I turned 36. Something about being closer to 40 than 30 has made me just feel...ugh. I had honestly come to terms with 38, but now I have to reconcile myself to a new number. The saving grace is that I have a good handful of friends turning 40 this year, so they're helping me to feel better about it. After all, they all look pretty wonderful and are still having fun at 40.

Wanting/Needing:

We started cleaning the garage this week and Gary has begun constructing shelves along the back wall. It will be so nice to start organizing things. The plan is to get everything that's in boxes gone through and sorted (keep, toss, sell) and put those items we're keeping into organized totes that will go on those new shelves. Once the garage is sorted, we'll attack the basement. We have a couple of metal shelving units that will go down there so that I can organize things that will stay inside (like fabric). It will be so incredibly fantastic to be able to access things again. With any luck, we're also hoping to create a small informal sitting area downstairs. Things to look forward to for sure.

Loving:

I like weird things. Seriously. But when I like something, I really like it. For example, when I buy clothing, I buy multiples of the same item if I really like it. My jeans are all the same. My shorts...same. The shirts I bought last week? Different colors of the same brand and style.

Well...apparently it's no different with my cosmetics. A few years back, I picked up some Burt's Bees lip balm. Nothing special, just something for my poor chapped lips. But...they come in different flavors. So...obviously I now have a small collection. Out of the thirteen shown in the picture above, I own nine of them. In addition, I have Pumpkin Spice and their newest, Cucumber Mint (it's delightful). I also have their Flavor Crystal Lip Balm in Sweet Orange and Tropical Pineapple (spoiler alert, I'm not a fan). Seriously...what kind of person needs that much lip balm??? But hey, I like variety I suppose.

Planning:

We're moving forward on the flooring plans. The new downstairs carpet gets installed in ten days. We ordered our tile on Friday. I should have a call tomorrow to schedule when they will come out to measure for the upstairs hardwood estimate. I'm ridiculously excited about floors. Adulthood is weird.


And now, if you'll excuse me, my child has decided that my shoulder and elbow are chew toys and Gary has walked through the door with a cake. I'm going to go enjoy Sunday evening with my family.


What about you? What does your "Currently" look like?

Currently: September 10, 2017

It's amazing how quickly a week can fly by when you feel like you're constantly on the run. It's been a bit of a whirlwind around here and I'm up to my neck in "to do" items. I started putting them in my phone so I wouldn't forget, but I think I'm going to make a paper list just so I can have the satisfaction of marking items off and still seeing them prominently displayed. I need validation for motivation.

Weather: 

It's weird outside today. It's been nice and warm at around 75 and I was hoping it was going to be a nice, sunny day so that we could maybe do some Sunday evening fishing as a family. But instead it's been windy and gray. The temperature and the scenery just don't match. It's been a really weird summer.

Watching:

I took to Netflix this week and watched the entire sixth season of Once Upon a Time during the afternoons while the baby napped on me or I canned in the kitchen. I've loved this show since it first started, but this season was the first time I actually had an episode that I didn't like. It was episode 20 for those curious. I don't want to spoil it for those who haven't watched yet, but I'm pretty sure I rolled my eyes incredibly hard for its duration. It was just too corny and not fitting with the rest of the show. I guess in around 200 episodes you're bound to have one just not make the grade. I'm looking forward to seeing what they do with season seven.

Reading:

I've more or less just been falling into bed every night, so not much reading has been had. I am about a third of the way through A Secret Kept though, so at least there has been movement. I'm hoping that I'll be able to finish it this week so that I can can start a read for the RIP (R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril)Challenge XIII.

Listening:

Today I put on Pandora while I was doing some canning. It was nice to have something playing in the background instead of just having silence. I was hoping for something new, but it didn't pop up any surprises. Luckily though, I did have some good tunes to keep me occupied - The Killers, The Fratellis, and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs among others.

Learning:

I got myself a Ball Blue Book a few weeks ago just prior to the start of canning season. I've been looking through it for ideas and recipes as I've been going about my preserving. Unfortunately, our fruit bushes didn't do so well this year so I'm missing out on some good jams and jellies, but I've used enough of the tomato recipes to result in some well tomatoed pages. Oops.

Making:

This week I finished the kohlrabi and some hot salsa. I turned some of the remaining tomatoes into bruschetta and the rest into tomato butter. Today I shucked and canned the corn and picked the beets. I'm hoping to get my beets, turnips, and rutabagas done this week and maybe my Brussels sprouts will be ready by next weekend. They're getting pretty plump.

Thinking/Feeling:

The little guy has been teething pretty hard this past week. It's been a bit exhausting. Poor bug just wants to snuggle and sleep, but gets a bit crabby and inconsolable here and there...not at all like his happy little self. In addition, we've been working on getting him to sleep through the night in his crib. We're making progress, but I'm finding that between his extra needs during the day, the massive amounts of canning I'm needing to get done, and the heavy amount of sleep interruptions...well...I'm just beat. I've managed to pass out on the couch with him at least once during the afternoon for a quick power nap.

Wanting/Needing:

Other than some steady sleep, I've discovered that I need to do a little bit of clothing shopping for myself. I bought some a.n.a. boyfriend t-shirts from JC Penney earlier this summer and I love them. They fit nice and they're really comfortable. Plus, they were relatively inexpensive. Turns out, that's a good thing...because I have at least two that have been ruined by baby formula and food puree. And I just discovered that they're on sale. So...I'm getting some replacements.

Loving:

I got myself some new chalk markers for my glass calendar on Prime Day. My old ones had dried out a while back, so I was using wet erase markers. It did the job, but it just wasn't as bright or pretty. There were a few different brands available on Prime Day, but the ones I was initially eyeballing sold out before I could grab them. I wound up getting the 8-pack of Crafty Croc chalk markers instead. They're great. The colors are bright and they have double-sided tips (one rounded, one angled) depending on how large and/or sharply you want to write. It's the little things in life.

Planning:

I bought an airline ticket earlier this week to go visit my family in Idaho in October. Nana and Papa have been dying to see the little guy in person again instead of just via FaceTime. We're hoping that Gary might also get to go for a couple of days, but it's looking like that might not be possible. Brecken and I will be going for about 5 days though and it will be nice to see friends and family again. Plus, I'm looking forward to getting my hair done and having some Imelda's tacos.

And now...this post took me far too long to write today. That's what happens these days. Too many things to get done and little interruptions here and there. I'm headed off to bed and hopefully a little bit of reading time before I crash out. Tomorrow, it's back to work on my checklist of "to do" items, including canning the beets. Wish me luck...

What about you? What does your "Currently" look like?

Currently: September 5, 2017

A long, long time ago, I did a feature on the blog called "Currently". It was more or less a weekly update on what I was up to. It started out as "Summary Sunday" and then morphed into something slightly different to fit what I needed at the time. Unfortunately, it fell by the wayside (along with a pile of other things). However, while doing my Feedly reading the other day, I read Andi's post about Scribbling -- an idea she got from Amanda. It reminded me of my old Currently posts and I decided that would be a good way to put myself back into a weekly post. I've taken my old prompts and merged them with Amanda's to give myself a good list of summary categories. It should be a good way to help motivate me to get more things done and remind me where I'm slacking.

Ready...set...here we go...

Weather: 

It's pretty gloomy out there today. It's been rainy the last couple of days and it's cooling down a bit. Today the high will be around 63. 

I don't mind the cooler weather and I love that fall is getting closer (it's my favorite season), but at the same time I am very much missing the sun. I spent most of my summer in a cast thanks to an unfortunate accident involving an angry mama cow, so I missed out on a lot of the good weather.

I am also freaking out slightly because this shift in weather means that the Minnesota winter is not too far away and there are oh so many projects that need to be completed outside before the snow begins to fly.

Watching:

I've been watching more or less nothing but Octonauts lately. It's such a sad state of affairs. The little guy loves it when they start to sing and it keeps him occupied when he's in that state between wake and nap. We usually cuddle on the couch and watch an episode while I give him a bottle and get him settled down. The result is that the song at the end of the show (Creature Report for those familiar) is often stuck in my head for the rest of the afternoon.

Reading:

I'm getting out of my reading slump thanks to the reboot that Bout of Books gave me. I just finished the third book in the Paper Magician trilogy, The Master Magician. The trilogy was a good read, with the first two books scoring 4-star reviews and the final book receiving a 3.5. It's a YA series that moves quickly, but smartly. It was a nice pick to help remove me from my reading slump.

I've now just started A Secret Kept by Tatiana De Rosnay. It's a bit of a genre shift, so we'll see how I do with that. It's a more serious novel and I've been sticking to mostly light-hearted reads in the last few months. I'm hoping I can keep moving at a steady pace and not let that change bog me down.

Listening:

I haven't really been listening to much music and I didn't realize it until I began writing this post. (See...it's already working.) I'll have to revive my usage of Spotify and see what I can find to love out there. Right now, all I've been really hearing is the aforementioned Octonauts tunes and the music from B's various toys and mobiles.

Learning:

I'm still working on my English degree, but I have taken some time off from school for now. I wasn't able to find any good classes to apply to my major with online courses and I'm still hoping to stick with Boise State even though I am working from Minnesota. I'm holding out for spring semester. With any luck, they'll have something for me. If not, I may consider transferring myself to another program where I can complete my studies online. 

Making:

Canning season has arrived. It's mayhem around here. So far, I've frozen peas and multiple fruit and vegetable cubes of pureed baby food. I've also canned three kinds of pickled radishes, radish jelly, applesauce, three kinds of beans, two kinds of salsa, tomato paste, kale, and pickles. 

I still have oh so much to do. Next up is processing and freezing the kohlrabi and canning yet another salsa. I'll be following that with beets and turnips. After that, I'll be processing (in no particular order): Brussels sprouts, corn, carrots, rutabaga, cabbage, three types of onion, potatoes, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, zucchini, butternut squash, and acorn squash. 

Whew. I think that's it. I'm paying for that brilliant idea of a large garden. The good news is that we'll have lots put up for winter.

Thinking:

There's been a lot on my mind lately, to be honest. Life is certainly a far cry different than it was a couple of years ago. I went through a divorce, found someone who appreciates and loves me for who I am (not for what I can give them), retired due to a medical condition that forced me to do so, closed my practice, moved half way across the country, shifted to a new style of living, and had a baby. They talk about the major events in life that can cause stress and I've hit nearly every one. It's been a ride.

Feeling:

I am enjoying the changes for the most part, but there are days where I still feel lost. I think that's probably the case for just about anyone at most points in their life. I very much enjoy being a mother...it's something I was beginning to think would never be an option, but it brings with it a new set of anxieties. I worry about the best way to spend my time with him, what I should be teaching him, is he meeting milestones, is he still breathing in the middle of the night, etc. I've never loved and feared something so much in my life.

Wanting/Needing:

The removal of some chaos would be lovely. We're trying to sell off the summer piglets, but have now discovered that we'll be having a surprise litter here shortly. It appears that Pippa will be having piglets of her own in a few weeks. Once that's all buttoned up and the canning has been finished for the season, maybe it will feel a little more relaxed around here.

Hopefully, we'll also be able to get the storage shelving in the garage completed. That should allow us to weed through the boxes in the garage, get rid of some junk, and get things a bit more organized. In turn, some of the things stored in the basement will be able to be relocated and we can have a bit more breathing room around here.

When it comes down to it, I've found that what I need is simplicity.

Loving:

Honestly, for all of the change and chaos, I'm loving this life. I enjoy being in the middle of nowhere. I love that I'm able to stay home and spend the day with my son. I'm enjoying exploring the possibilities of homestead life and learning new ways to do things.

Planning:

We continue to take small steps on remodeling the house. The goal for September: flooring. We had replaced the basement carpet just before Brecken was born, but there have been some issues with it. So we are having it replaced yet again (under warranty) to a different brand. We'll also be ordering and scheduling installation of hardwood in the upstairs and purchasing tile for the two bathrooms and the entryway. With any luck, by the end of October, all of the floors will be well underway or maybe even completely installed. 

As far as the blog, I'll be starting a whole new blogging schedule. My plan is to complete a Currently post every Sunday. Tuesdays are for Top Ten Tuesdays, Wednesdays are for Top 5 Wednesday, and Saturdays are for Book Blogger Hop. Beyond that, I'll have random posts here and there. Since today is Tuesday, we'll start tomorrow with Top 5 Wednesday.

Now...let's see if I can shake off the dust and get back into the swing of things...
What about you? What does your "Currently" look like?

Currently...

I've been trying to write this post for three days. THREE DAYS. And I very nearly gave up on writing it again tonight. I don't know what it is about my lack of motivation, but I do know that it's freaking ridiculous. I've been terrible about getting anything blog-related completed.

Yesterday, I managed to attack the Feedly feed and whittle down 1200 posts to just under 300. I suppose that's more manageable, ya? I also updated my challenge and bucket list pages. That hadn't been done in almost three months, so it was an undertaking that was sorely overdue.

School has been back in session for two weeks now and I have been a bit overwhelmed with getting myself used to a new schedule. That's meant less time for anything outside of work, school, and sleep. But...it's getting a little more under control. At least I say that now. This upcoming week will be my first round of testing, with tests in three of my six classes and quizzes in two others. So I suppose ask me how I really feel here in another five or six days.


Watching :

There has been very little on the watching front, but what there has been has been glorious.

Source

We sat down as a family last week and I made the guys watch Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure. I can't believe that Collin had never seen it! Travesty. I think they both enjoyed it.

Other than that, the only other watching has been YouTube videos. But have no worries, I found a gem there as well. If you're familiar with BuzzFeed, there's another of  their employees you need to know. His name is Matt Bellassai and he hosts the weekly YouTube show Whine About It where he "get[s] drunk at [his] desk and complain[s] about stuff". He's a riot. Enjoy!

And yes...I may have watched another of his videos while writings. I also may or may not have completely laughed my ass off. Well played Matt.


Reading :

Will it come as a shocker to anyone that I am woefully behind on reading? No. Because I am forever behind. It's like the forever alone guy, but with novels.

I have like 20 pages left in The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins. Seriously, what is my problem? This book is freaking awesome and yet it's sitting there, taunting me. That's it. I'm finishing it tonight. You heard me people. A book will get read today!


Listening :

First of all, can I just say that Spotify's new(ish) "Discover Weekly" list is freaking awesome? I get like 20 new songs each week based on stuff I've already put in my playlists. So. Many. Good. Songs.

Second, I'd love to share this great song I heard yesterday, but for the life of me I CANNOT remember the name of the song or the artist. It's driving me crazy. If I figure it out, I'll let you know.

Meanwhile, coming in a close second to the song that I have unwittingly forgotten, was this one. It's a little off the beaten path from my usual, but I still enjoy it. 

Sleep by Poets of the Fall.

Learning :

Oh all the learning! Classes started on August 24th and I'm taking an insane 16 credits this semester. The list of fun is: Accounting Cycle, British Literature, Finance, Management, Marketing, and my uber favorite...Business Statistics. (I'm being overly sarcastic there. Statistics is the devil's work.)

Before this semester started, I had a 4.0. Ya...I'm more or less resigned to the fact that it won't survive beyond this semester. My goal is honestly just to get out of stats with a C. It might be a freaking miracle. I contemplated dropping it, but then I'd just have to deal with it another semester. Better to just rip off the band-aid and be done with it. Right?


Making :

Nothing. Yes...nothing. I'm a complete crafting failure. I don't have enough time to sew a button on let alone make something useful. One of these days my sewing machine will see action again...

If you stretch the definition of making a little bit, I suppose that I actually am getting something made. I'm in the midst of designing a new book review template. It's getting there. It's more creative than what I've done in the past, but I'm trying to weed it down. Right now it's a bit of a bear. There are some promising components though. I hope to give it a test run before the end of the month.


Thinking :

My brain has been full of all sorts of stuff over the last few weeks. Most frequently it's been thoughts of "why did I think this was a good idea?". There's also been a lot of contemplation about where I really want my life to go from here. Yes, big, fat existential thought stuff...the ultimate result of which is usually resigning myself to my current fate since the mountain of debt I've accumulated has me virtually trapped in a specified path. Ah, to do it all over again. There would be changes.


Feeling :

Concurrent with the thinking stuff, I've just been feeling the need for a different lifestyle, something more simple and less overwhelming from a responsibility and financial standpoint. The things I thought I needed for myself in my twenties are not the things I think I need now. Stupid growing up...


Wanting / Needing :

I'd love to win the lottery, does that count? I actually want a new house. Well...new to me. It doesn't have to be new. This want stems from a need. Because it seems that the current house of horrors has decided to bless us with another repair need. This time it's the sump pump. It decided to go ahead and go out. There will be a plumber here on Tuesday to let us know whether our anniversary and Thanksgiving travel plans get to be exchanged for a new pump and the pleasure of his company for a couple of days. Ugh. Adulting sucks guys.


Loving :

I'm loving that fall is right around the corner. It's my favorite time of year. The weather has shifted over the last week and I can definitely feel a change. Hoodie weather has commenced! Yay!!

Planning :

Hand in hand with loving that fall is here goes the planning. The big plans. The Halloween plans. Pumpkin season is approaching. I threw out a call for help on my Facebook last week so that I could get some ideas for this year's yard display. By popular opinion, it looks like we'll be doing a Minions theme this year. I suppose that means I should probably watch the movie.


Holy crap...I wrote a blog post! Look at that guys. Behold, a miracle before thine eyes! One of these days I'll stop sucking at being a blogger...