Random Friday

1.  Thanks for all the well-wishes on my foot.  I had an MRI late Thursday and will hopefully know the results later today.  I'm not very good with open ended situations (friends and family are nodding their heads vigorously), I need a plan.  I can understand a plan.  I can follow a plan.  So, hopefully I will soon have a diagnosis and a plan.

2.  The weather has cooled down to a reasonable level.  Thank goodness.  I am not a fan of the heat.  I know pleasant will soon be replaced with sweltering, but I'm enjoying the reprive while it lasts.

3.  My yellow summer squash are starting to come in.  The other night I picked some of them, the size of fat fingers, and sautéed them and their attached blossoms for dinner.  Brett ate them.  And he didn't poke at them or make faces or anything.

4.  We had a bit of a scare with Kersey yesterday.  When Brett went down stairs to let her out in the morning, she couldn't walk, was shaking, whining and yelping.  As long as I stayed next to her, sitting and stroking her face and belly, she didn't shake.  But, when I stood up she started shaking again and reached her paw out, resting it on my leg.  She did eventually manage to get to the barn where she ate her breakfast (she is a lab and nothing comes between them and food).  Then she laid down in the sun (it was very cool, in the upper 40s) and started trembling again.  Brett took her to the vet where they examined her (more ear splitting yelping) left hind leg, took x-rays and drew blood.  She's been extremely arthritic in that leg for a few years and they believe a bone spur broke lose and got into the joint.  We are starting her on pain meds for the arthritis and the bone spur should re-attach itself somewhere - so she won't need surgery.

Getting Caught Up

Despite sleeping most of the night, I woke up tired and achy.  I think it will be a few more days before jet lag is behind me.  Yoga this morning definitely helped, but that was about all the activity I could handle.  I spent most of the day on the computer, working.  The weather was not welcoming - hot and sticky.

Brett cut down a tree that had died and when he came into the house I asked him "Did you play with the hose or is that sweat?"  He said it was sweat.  Ewwwwww.  He went back outside and a while later I found him resting at the new digs.

Guess who his new best friend is?  Yup, Little Bear.

Bella munched on his sleeve while Bear considered his next move.

My shoe laces are always popular, especially with Bella.

Thistle is a bit more subdued than the other two. 

While I was gone, the donkeys finished shedding out their winter coats.  Tuffy was demonstrating his yoga moves to me.  At least, I think that's what he was doing. 

Passage has discovered a new place to nap in the feed room.  Cats!  Crazy beasts --

Yesterday, Brett picked up our first CSA basket from the farm.  It was like Christmas!  A big basket of fresh, local, organic produce. 

My rhubarb and tomato plants went bizerko while I was gone. 

What do you think Lori?  Sacrifice a stalk or two for compote or pie?

This weekend, I'll tie up the tomato plants and try to restore order to the garden.  In the meantime, I picked the ripe tomatoes and pulled a beet -- we're going to have a big salad for dinner with seared ahi and all those lovely veggies I got in my CSA basket.

Flower Bed and Vegetable Garden in May

Perennial Garden

Vegetable Garden

Artichoke

beets

strawberries

tomatoes

pumpkin

cucumber

rhubarb

tarragon and chives

mint

oregano

basil