Seasons

We had a beautiful February. I know we desperately need rain in California, but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy basking in the sun when it's out. All of our plants got tricked into thinking it was springtime and so, of course, they all started budding out to enjoy the sun as well.

The sun is most certainly not out today. 

Today, we have the joy of our first real snow since Christmas. My honey and I took stock of the plants and decided our apple trees are on their own. Same for the daffodils. But we wanted to help our little nectarine tree that is quite literally in full bloom. My honey wrapped the little tree in a garbage bag to keep it warm. 

So now the dog is scared of the nectarine tree because she's scared of garbage bags. 

Luckily for her, it's supposed to be warm and sunny again by tomorrow, so we should be able to unwrap the big, scary garbage bag from the nectarine tree in the morning. 

Snowpocalypse?

So far, the Snowpocalypse has been a bit of a let down. Instead of the 2 to 3 feet we were supposed to have by now, we have a whopping 5 inches of snow. Which the dog has no problem pooping in--if she stops frolicking long enough. 

Snowpocalypse 2016: Wednesday Morning

My hubby and I have spent the last couple days preparing for our first Snowpocalypse. We bought extra kibble for the dog and the kitties, extra kibble for ourselves (read: canned goods), and made sure our firewood wasn't in danger of disappearing under the two plus feet of snow that's been predicted to dump on our quaint mountain home over the next few days.

So far, we've gotten over three inches of rain and about an inch of slush that would make a great dessert if we had the proper flavor syrups and it wasn't full of leaves and grit from falling on the ground. Here's what's predicted as of this typing:

That's right, the low end of the most up-to-date estimate is that we'll get just over three feet of snow before I'm supposed to go back to work on Sunday. Who knows if we'll be able to shovel our way out by then. 

In any case, we're expecting to be snowed in for at least a few days. We have our "snowed in" cocktails lined up and hopefully enough firewood to last awhile. Our biggest concern at the moment is: where is the dog going to poop? She isn't tall enough to poop in three feet of snow...

More updates to follow as Snowpocalypse 2016 moves in. 

chicken noodle soup

A couple weeks ago, my honey asked "when's the last time we were sick? We haven't been sick in awhile..." I immediately shushed him and looked around for something wooden to knock on (not difficult in our home, which is almost entirely wood). So, naturally, I've caught some version of the crud and have a pot of chicken noodle soup simmering on the stove. Just in time to be all snotty and gross for graduation this weekend.  

Another Chapter

At almost exactly the same moment in my life when my hubby and I got hitched, I also began another chapter in my life. It was that thing that all college graduates dread: I went back to school. Thankfully, this wasn't your typical sit in a classroom taking notes then try to remember it all for a test. I learned something even better than if I'd been sitting in a classroom day after day.

I learned that it's okay to fail, as long as you try something new.

I tried composting with worms, which failed because they got overthrown by maggots. I tried to figure out if bats prefer to hang out near a bat box, which failed because they left for the winter. I tried automated composting, which failed because the motor got gummed up. I tried to get my neighbors to recycle electronics, which failed because they already do. I tried composting in a tumbler, which didn't fail!

As this particular chapter of my life draws to a close, I know I will carry on trying new things. Some of them will fail (like the color paint I tried near the fireplace, or the new recipe I tried for dinner last night). Others will not fail (like trying to make my own fire starters, or trying to grow an indoor kitchen garden (technically, the jury is still out on this one, but I'm being optimistic)). 

Without school, I'll have time to try to deliciously infuse more homegrown foods into our diet, try to figure out how to keep the kitties out of the dresser (yes, it's that much of a problem), and try to get more excited about football.

Another sappy post...

...about why I love my hubby:

Over the weekend, we were working on one of many home improvement projects. After awhile, my hubby asked: "why is there so much Katy Perry music? Is this the Katy Perry station on Pandora?" 

Me: "yup."

Adventures in Dinner

My honey doesn't often have time to go to the grocery store. But when he does, the results are markedly different than when I do the shopping. 

The essence of his shopping trips is "I like that. I'll get it." Whereas I usually try to buy ingredients that go together to make cohesive(ish) meals. Once, when I asked my honey to get groceries, he brought home: pizza rolls, frozen corn dogs, cereal, milk, and beer. Which would be great if we were a couple of bros in college, but we're not. 

Last week, we went to the store together. As we wandered through the produce section, my honey stumbled upon the peppers. "Ooh, jalapeños... Let's do jalapeño poppers." Now, I have never eaten a jalapeño popper, much less made one. I have no idea what else we might need. I assume there's cheese involved. Most foods worth eating involve cheese. Did my honey decide to purchase cheese to go with our jalapeños? He did not. 

Tonight, I decided to go for the poppers. Fortunately, there is almost always cheese in our fridge. A little cream cheese, some mozzarella, a dash of hot sauce, and we were in business. I have to say, they were pretty good. 

I may have to go with my honey's random food cravings more often. Perhaps starting with corn dogs. Mmm corn dogs.