Archive for February, 2013

February 23, 2013

What mama did

Five Minute Friday. Writing to write not worrying if it’s right.  Today’s topic: What mama did

Go:

What mama did.  I can’t pinpoint just one thing.  My mom did so much.  She still does.

Some people don’t get the opportunity to thank their Mother while they are still here.  We don’t think of it, we think we’ll always have tomorrows.  Today I’m grateful for the opportunity to thank her while she’s still here.

As a parent, you never know what leaves a mark on your child.  My Mom’s touch did that for me.  Some of my favorite childhood memories were sitting on our front porch listening to thunderstorms.  As a child, they scared me, especially the loud claps of thunder, but when I was sitting on my Mom’s lap, her soft hands stroking my hair and holding me just tight enough, I felt safe.  Over time I grew to love thunderstorms and when it would start to rain, I knew that I would get to sit on Mom’s lap.

We had a rocking chair too.  Two actually.  One in the living room and one on the porch.  Sometimes during storms we would sit on the rocking chair.  I continued to sit with my Mom until my legs had grown so long there was no more curling up on her lap, they would dangle and fall but I didn’t care I would still try to fit.

I knew my Mom’s hands, the softness, the shape of her fingers, of her fingernails.  I would trace her veins with my fingers.  They were beautiful to me.  And they still are.  My Mom’s hands are different now.  Rheumatoid Arthritis has made its mark.  Today her hands cause her so much pain, frustration and embarrassment.  But when I look at them, I still see my childhood, I see the hands that gently stroked my hair and they take me back to the stormy evenings on the front porch swing.  They bring me back to the comfort I felt when she would gently hold her palm to my cheek as I nestled my head on her chest and drifted off.

What did my mama do?  She comforted me with her touch and for that reason, her hands will always beautiful to me.

Kate

February 21, 2013

It’s Planning Time! Need Help?

My pulse is quickening, heart rate buzzing, and like Santa, I have a twinkle in my eye. No, it’s not Christmas, it’s time to plan those gardens!

Are you ready? Do you have a plan? Did you include a crop rotation? Do you know what you’re going to plant? Are you starting seeds indoors? Buying transplants? Have no idea? Have you purchased your seeds yet? Have you started planting your seedlings? Do you know when to plant your seedlings? Do these words make you panic? If so, let me know, I can help!

Yes, this is my first post as a shameless plug of how I can help you plan your garden to get you prepared for a successful gardening season.

Spring officially starts March 20th. Most seeds need to be started 4 – 8 weeks in advance of the last frost, with 6 weeks being the average. In central Minnesota, the average last frost date is May 15th, so what that means is that you need to have a plan in place and start seeds soon!

If you are interested in planning or planting a garden but are stuck on the planning part, I would love to sit down with you, either in person or in a virtual setting and help you learn how to do this.

We can map out your planting beds, a crop rotation, and a planting and harvest schedule so you know which plants you need to start growing and when.

This could be a one-on-one session, a small group or larger scale.

Need help? Let me know!

Kate

February 15, 2013

beloved

20130215-151356.jpgFive Minute Friday. Writing to write not worrying if it’s right.

Go:

beloved are our families, our friends, our pets. hopefully our things aren’t as beloved as them.
i hold in my heart the love of so many, to love, to be loved, beloved.

so important, it is, to let them know. to share the feelings, let them out and let them go.

so often i’m busy, so much can distract me, that out of the corner of my eye i nearly miss the affection. my child looking up, the gaze from my spouse, my mother’s warm voice, my father’s heart in his eyes. my four-legged babies with their eyes all adoring, tails wagging, awaiting the love they deserve. the soft rub and meow. even the girls with their clucks. life is so precious and love is so much.

but sometimes i forget to say what i feel. the reality is that often i go about my day, rushing here, running there, always failing to say. my have tos and my need tos seem to get in the way of letting my beloved feel what i feel.

today my heart is full, i feel like the grinch with his make-over. my heart is nearly bursting, like water balloons in the summer.

beloved are my friends with whom i’ve lost touch and i yearn for the day, that we bond again, just us.

for my beloved are many and i feel oh, so blessed. so fortunate, so lucky to touch and be touched.

to all of my friends and my family and critters, if you’re reading this now take a moment to feel, whether you are near or you’re far, whether we’ve just spoken or not. i think of you often, probably more than you think. just in case you wonder or ponder or doubt, i’ll forever hold you near and dear to my heart. for if you’re my in my circle, if i call you a friend, i love you, my beloved, forever.

the end

kate

Five Minute Friday

February 13, 2013

Don’t Get Mad, Get Eatin’!

If you know me, you know that I’m very passionate about one thing… food. Good food. Great food. Great tasting food. Great tasting, healthy food. Great tasting, healthy food that I can grow!

And… if you know me, you probably know I’m pretty pissed at the world about the “food” that is in our grocery stores. I’m mad that the stores are jammed to the gills with processed crap that feeds the majority of the world. I’m mad that the “good stuff” is on the perimeter of the store and that the “good stuff” really isn’t all that good because it’s picked too early and selected not for its taste but for its ability to last on the store shelves for as long as possible. I’m mad that we’ve become dependent on convenience to feed our bodies rather than really good food to nourish them and keep them healthy. I’m mad that when I want to “go out” to eat there are only a handful of restaurants that serve “real” food. I’m mad that most people don’t realize exactly how bad the food is. I’m mad that most families are choosing cost over nutrition to feed their families. I’m mad that people have to choose cost over nutrition. I’m mad that the food in our stores is killing us, causing Obesity, Heart Disease, Cancer and Diabetes. I’m mad that people aren’t mad about that! I’m mad that it’s often uncomfortable for me to talk to people about food because they get defensive and think that I’m “one of those people” or that I’m cramping their style or somehow judging them when instead I’m just mad that we are even in this position to begin with.

I’ll tell you what though, being mad doesn’t do any good. But being the change does. So I decided that I’m not going to be mad any more. I’m going to do something about it. What am I going to do? I’m gonna eat. That’s right, eat.

I’m going to eat and I’m going to grow. Okay, realistically I’m done growing in the physical sense, but I am going to grow food. I already have a garden, but I’m adding on this year. I’m making another section of lawn go away and I’m going to grow as much food as I can, right out in front of my house. And then I’m going to have as many people as possible eat my food. I want them to eat it and taste how great it is and love it. And then, hopefully, they’ll want to grow great food too and share that food with everyone they know. And before you know it, we’ll all be eating food not because it’s “cheap” or because it’s quick or because it’s convenient, but because we want to eat something that tastes wonderful and that nourishes us.

And I want to share recipes for that perfect tomato we grew in our garden. And I want to learn to can my own food not from You Tube, but from my friends and neighbors. And I want to trade some of my eggs for a great loaf of bread or a jar of homemade jam. And swap my tomatoes for greens or strawberries.

I want food to be food. I want it to nourish us, all of us. I want us to be healthy as a neighborhood, as a community, as a country, as the world. Yes, that’s right, I plan on saving the world by eating… one delicious bite at a time. Starting now.

Kate