Grateful Friday

Today I give thanks for...

A new roof. It isn't a very exciting way to spend lots of money, but there is a sense of security derived from taking care of Casa Wags. 

Mike working from home. He's available to deal with contractors.

Progress in turning the 4th bedroom into a proper office for him. We got rid of the bed and are working on getting him a bigger, more functional desk.

And speaking of work...Ted got into the thick of international tax consulting this week and he was pretty jazzed about it. He came after a day of collaborating with his team so eager to tell us all about it. It reminded me of when he would come home from a golf match and tell us about every single shot.

Cheese orphans. They are perfect for happy hour charcuterie. And happy hour with my fristers.

Day drinking with my peeps. Last Saturday we took a drive to Elkhart Lake for lunch on the beautiful day and then we made a few stops on the way home. Small town Wisconsinites are the best.

 

Country roads.

Mornings on the porch at the Tree House. It's such a zen way to start the day. Ina is also a good companion.

Our fall trip to NYC is booked. We're going in November instead of October so I'm hopeful that we'll get crisp fall weather.

Scoring made in Brooklyn bagels at a local market. There is nothing like a NY bagel.

I made my first stock of the season and then turned it into Chicken Noddle Soup to share with my neighbors as a thank you. Loafs of banana and pheasant bread because soup without bread is unheard of and overripe fruit must be repurposed.

I froze a container to take to Lils later this month.

She's all stocked up because Grandma and Grandpa came to town to take her to lunch and bring her groceries.

They are seeking the sun and extra cuddly when the temps change.

 

 Cat in lap weather. Cute cat at that.

 

Game day pics from the girls. This weekend they're in Chicago.

A quiet weekend ahead staying close to home.

October 9th

I'm very much enjoying the month of October. It's no revelation because it is my favorite of months and fall is my best loved season. It feels more like summer during the day, but a chill sets in once the sun goes down noticeably earlier with each passing day. I embrace it because November and December are also in my top three. Tonight the sweetest crescent moon is hanging in the sky.

Ted has a standing Wednesday night tennis match under the lights for as long as the mild temps last. Mike and I are watching the news and feeling extra grateful for our weather. Prayers for all those in Milton's path and Helene's wake. Hazel is happy that the roofers have left for the day and finally has come up from the basement. 

The doorbell rang at 7:30 this morning. I was fast asleep and dreaming that I was at my mom's. She was having a party. I went to answer the door for her. Mike stirred and I realized someone was at the door irl. Minutes later, they were on the roof. They as in a crew of ten. That's when Hazel disappeared. I put in some ear plugs and put two pillows on my head. I wanted to get back to that dream because it was a really good and happy one. My dreams have been vivid and gripping. I have been grooving on my sleep.

The old roof was torn off and the new one just about on when I got home. A hard working crew is a serious force. The new gutters will be up before the end of the week. We are all about getting shit done right now. Yesterday it was landscaping in the back where we had three ailing pine trees removed this spring. The list is long, but we'll keep ticking away at it when we have the energy and the funds.

We've got a really good rhythm going here at Casa Wags...a healthy, happy balance and there is nothing  better than feeling that parity.

All this taking care of business is a reaction to these unpredictable times. We can control our own little lives and our little ecosystem while storms and wars rage around us. I know it's just a tad more evolved version of putting my head in the sand. It's creating the only calm I can while the chaos reigns in the wide world around us. Life is a whirling dervish right now, but only when I get caught up in it. I'm doing my best to keep my sanity and sanctity.

October is...

My best loved 31 days of the year...the liminal, soultender space between often harsh seasons...transitory...a denouement...the beginning of the end...the fourth quarter...my muse, my moon, my model...everything hygge and homey...one pot meals and all day football watching...soups, stews and stoups that take care of the forgotten dregs in the crisper and warm us to the core...the roll-out of new shows and scary movies that I love to watch with Lils, the other horror lover in the house...time to notice things like showy trees and luminescent skies and squirrels squirreling away for what is to come...mantras like be.here.now and later after my nap or hike or cup of coffee...cozy afghans on every couch and chair...flannel pjs, sheets and shackets...preppy loafers and wool clogs, but Birks and flip flops too...it's moody music, broody mornings, cocktails by candlelight, dinner in the dark...it's pumpkins on the porch and pumpkin seeds roasting away in the oven...apples plucked fresh from the trees and squash so new it will last until spring...it's my mom's pumpkin bread and her pumpkin bars because food is love and food is memories and I love remembering her...it's my annual reading of Piggie Pie a favorite from when they were young and visiting the photo archives for the years of costumes...it's a month of no major holidays or birthdays to distract or steal the show...it's 29 years with the love of my life in this life that I so love.

Grateful Friday

Today I give thanks for...

The first day of fall. It almost slipped by, but then the change in temps demanded I bear witness. Sunday was cool and rainy and perfect for a slow start. The kit kats slept the day away, the guys were all about football, and I finally felt compelled to make that pot of chili. 

Being included.  It was an honor to be invited to the family celebration for our new neighbor's four year old daughter. They had the most delicious Arabic/Mediterranean spread and everyone was so welcoming. Pizza is the typical fare at most 4 year old's birthday parties, but we ate lamb like I've never tasted before and like kings and queens I might add. The cultural smash-up was a reminder that the things that define us need not divide us...Christians, Jews and Muslims breaking bread together.

Neighbors.

After the party, we stopped at Len and Sandy's for a glass of wine to see their beautiful new kitchen. 

Another birthday. We celebrated my dad's birthday Saturday. The kids came from Madison and that was a happy visit. The girls had to eat and run, but it was just good to see them and feed them. The fajitas were certainly a yummy treat. They took cake to go. The guys played cribbage and the ladies chatted until it was time to call it a night. A good night.

The start off this week was wet and more seasonal. My pots are leggy and not very lustrous, but I'm not quite ready for pumpkins and mums. I'm thinking about them though.

Rain. We really needed a good soak.

The extended forecast is 70s by day and 50s and 60s by night. 

A compliment this week that is still making me feel extra good days later. I think is was validation I so needed to hear.

The reminder that kindness is never overrated and it always goes a long way.

Ted is a dad. Meryl welcomed Manny her adorable kitten recently and he's loving the care package I sent him.

Today the W's picked up Winnie the cutest puppy I ever did see.

The girls found a house for next year. Now they can just enjoy football season in their free-time. Housing is cut-throat in Madtown.

Dinner with friends tomorrow.

Linda is on the mend and coming home from Mayo Sunday.

Our trip to NYC is on for November. I've never been to the big apple during the 11th month. Fa la la.

A snazzy new pair of navy loafers for my trip. A pair of pjs too...a must for traveling.

I finished Tom Lake. It was not my favorite, but I'm glad I finally gave it the time. In all fairness, my disconnect may be the fact that I took forever reading it that caused the impact to fall short.

Sister Hazel sleeping beside me all night long.

Breezes and barred owl calls through open windows. Wind chimes too. Crickets still chirping and  geese honking and all the sounds of the world waxing and waning.

The flavor is Butter Pecan Sunday. Tomorrow is my Mom's Heaven day. Close enough to call it a sign.

This Week

Wednesday is my least favorite day. I'm ready for the weekend, but smack dab in the middle of the week. That being said at this time and place in my life, I don't find myself longing for the weekend very often. This week I am.

I think this has everything to do with my lack of chi right now. I feel like I'm spinning my wheels. I need to get centered, to find balance, to quiet my mind. I need to exercise. That's what's missing. 

Another piece of my zen puzzle is reading and that's something that's been absent from my life for way too long. I picked up a book I started at Webb Lake last summer that I haven't touched in the 12 months since that vacation. Tom Lake was still familiar. That fact is proof that Ann Patchett is a character artist. I will finish it before the end of this summer in a few days. Then I'm going back to finish the book I started in Mexico earlier this year. I've got a nice stack of almost reads piled on my bedside table that could take me through the end of the year.

I can attest that getting my groove back in the kitchen has been a good thing. With Teddy home, I up my game because he is maybe the most appreciative and voracious eater in the house. He can and does cook for himself and sometimes us, but I love to cook for him. This week's wins were potato chip chicken fingers, croquet  madam pizza and smashburger tacos.

This is a tricky week for me. My Mom's birthday is Saturday and while I feel somewhat at peace with her passing, I am still sad. It's not paralyzing or debilitating. It's like a constant ringing in my ears. It's distracting and I want it to go away. I know now that it never will and many of you know that too. It just is. It is what it is. It's a marker of time passing, seasons changing and life marching onward in spite of missing parts. Missing, but not forgotten.

This week is also a bit of a reset for me especially in the years since my mom's untimely death. It's not just the back to school and the change in seasons...it's the before and after. It's more a point of reflection for me than my birthday or the start of the new year.

I did an illuminating exercise in my 20s that prompted me to define the pivotal, defining events in my life. The first was my parent's divorce when I was four. There were about seven. I'd say thirty years later there are no less than twenty. Losing my mom was a big one.

This week I'm going to be kind to myself. I'm going to lean into vulnerability and let myself wallow a bit, but I'm also going to look for the everyday joy moments and remember to say thank you for this life that is full of much more light than darkness. More love than loathe, more laughter than tears, more tribulation than trial. And I'm going to do so remembering the woman who gave me this life. What a gift...life...her. My Mom.

Last Night

So these end of summer days feel like the dog days. It's hot hot hot and I'm craving not hot. It's confusing when the street lined with maples I drive down every day looks like fall. The tippy tops are turning claret red and slowly and then all at once the trees will be flaming, but I'm still sweating.

I bought ingredients to make a big pot of chili this week. Instead Mike is going to make a crock of taco meat for salads. It is not soup weather here yet.

That being said, the evenings have been perfect. Last night we sat outside for a drink after dark and it was lovely. We were downtown to see Tucker Carlson with RFK Jr and Larry Elder. After all the ideas, we had to process, chat, chill. When Tucker said he decided to do this tour because live speech is the only free speech, it rang true in a very uncomfortable way. Everything I know about the Fourth Estate supports what he said. He also pointed out that there is no such thing as misinformation. There is the truth and then there are lies. Yeah and then there's rhetoric aka propaganda. 

Larry Elder spoke on the dangerous predilection to pin all of our nation's problems on systematic racism and RFK Jr put big pharma on the hot seat and not just for Covid, but for all of the ways that it behooves them to keep us unhealthy.

Enough on that except to say that it was actually an uplifting evening spent with like minded patriots. In real life, I keep my political values mostly under wraps because I have to. I have a decades old friend who once said to me that she could never be friends with a conservative. She told me as a consort in confidence unaware of my leanings, but it's stayed with me for years. My lovely neighbor was bloviating about things I disagree with and I just smiled. I was at a dinner party recently where people were celebrating the attempted assassination of a former president. I stayed quiet. I share this because I think there are a lot of people just like me and that gives me hope.

Hope that someday I will be able to stand up for my beliefs without the fear of cancellation or retribution.

Grateful Friday

Today I give thanks for...

I just got off the phone with Lils. She's having her first "normal" weekend in a long time. No training. Just fun.

Tomorrow she'll be at the Badger game.
 

Mike will be cheering on the team at Camp Randall too.

First day of Junior year.

Next semester, these ladies will be sending me first day pictures from Barcelona.

I'm off today and I have zero plans for the weekend. I'm ridiculously happy about that.

Tickets to see Tucker and RFK Jr on Monday.

This little goof ball.

 

And this sweet love bug.

Trailing rosemary.

A pop of color.

Meryl anchored the news this week and she was a boss.

Ted is back from Orlando. He met lots of colleagues and had some fun too. He was wined, dined and entertained. And it's no surprise that he made the wrap-up video. 

 

The last days of summer before my best stretch of months. It's warm during the day and cool at night. 

 

A stop at the orchard to stock up on Ginger Golds.