I went to my mom's this past week. All of her irises and peonies are blooming. We went out to see them and walk among them - it's a tradition.
She likes to point out different ones, tell me their names, point out the ones with ruffles or unique beards, remind which ones are mine (well, they are hers, but I ordered them special for her), etc. We walk and touch them and oooh and aahh over them. Every time I decide I've found my favorite, I find a new one that I like even better.
Same story for the peonies. There is such a nice variety. Different colors and types. Amazing!
Then we went back to the house. She sits in a chair that faces the backyard, her garden, and a road that runs behind her house. She said, "Look, Lorrie, there's a car slowing down to look at my flowers." She said this happens just about every day. And she was right. Not only did the car slow down, they stopped and backed up. I decided to go out and talk to them. They actually stopped in the middle of the road and got out and walked thru the garden with me. This lady was mainly interested in the peonies and wanted to get some pieces of specific ones in the fall. Turns out that my mom recognized this lady and knew her name. She's going to call her in September.
Then the guy in the car got out and asked her about her beautiful, straight, healthy row of tomatoes. My mom plants her tomatoes against a fence (so they're supported) and inside a large can with the top and bottom removed. Can you picture it? Imagine the largest can of pork and beans that you can buy. My mom cuts the top and bottom off and puts that can around her tomato shoots. She says it protects her plants from the cold and the black birds. She also says it's easier to water them if the weather is too dry.
My mom's yard is full of flowers, birds and bird houses, flower beds, lawn art, etc. There's no rhyme or reason to where to puts her flower beds. The beds are not symmetrical or in convenient locations. You have to mow in weird patterns to get around all of them. My step dad has to weed-eat around them too. Some people might even say her yard is just a big mess. I wouldn't have it any other way. I'd like my garden to look just like hers.
I love you, mom. Happy Mother's Day!
Showing posts with label mom. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mom. Show all posts
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Confessions
A fellow blogger posted their top ten confessions on being a mother and challenged others to do the same. I'll give it a shot.
1) I remember great things about the baby stage. I remember being a zombie from about 6 months to 2 years old.
2) Lately, I have felt pretty great about my mothering skills. I'm screwing up a lot less!!! :)
3) My child will soon be ten. That freaks me out a little. I'm planning a "ten" themed party. Shhhh.....
4) Abbie knows what she wants to be when she grows up. I can see it happening. I'll be working for her someday.
5) Sometimes, I really think I have been cloned in my child. I can see myself in her (not looks). It's kind of like watching yourself grow up. I hope I can steer her around the backwardsness that plagued me.
6) I love that she likes to read. I just found some books I had in elementary school, and I can't wait to share the stories with her.
7) My one big regret is not having another child.
8) My next big regret is not having a smidgen of patience.
9) I hope she will enjoy scrapbooking and traveling so that we can do it together.
10) If/when she goes to college (she says she's not going - ha!), I secretly plan to move to wherever she goes.
1) I remember great things about the baby stage. I remember being a zombie from about 6 months to 2 years old.
2) Lately, I have felt pretty great about my mothering skills. I'm screwing up a lot less!!! :)
3) My child will soon be ten. That freaks me out a little. I'm planning a "ten" themed party. Shhhh.....
4) Abbie knows what she wants to be when she grows up. I can see it happening. I'll be working for her someday.
5) Sometimes, I really think I have been cloned in my child. I can see myself in her (not looks). It's kind of like watching yourself grow up. I hope I can steer her around the backwardsness that plagued me.
6) I love that she likes to read. I just found some books I had in elementary school, and I can't wait to share the stories with her.
7) My one big regret is not having another child.
8) My next big regret is not having a smidgen of patience.
9) I hope she will enjoy scrapbooking and traveling so that we can do it together.
10) If/when she goes to college (she says she's not going - ha!), I secretly plan to move to wherever she goes.
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Moms
I spent a very nice day with my mom and with Abbie.
Paul and Abbie made breakfast for me this morning, got me flowers, and a surprise gift.
Later, we loaded up the car to go to my mom's house. It was Paul's idea to go to my mom's today and fix her lunch.
{Btw, Paul did try to call his mom and got voicemail. Maybe she had to work}
I don't think my mom liked anything I made, but that is okay. I don't cook much anymore, and even though I love her, I had no plans to cook an elaborate meal. And my mom is sort of a food snob - not in a cranky, mean way - she just mostly likes her own cooking. And ever since she had a brain aneurysm, her sense of taste is off (and she can't smell anymore either).
As soon as we got there, I started making a butterscotch pie. During the process, I set off the smoke alarm. Even though I didn't let the filling cook long enough to get thick enough, the pie turned out great, and it was the one thing she liked. You had to eat the pie with a spoon, but it was yummy!
While I worked on the pie, Paul put together a salad and grated all the cheese for fondue. She didn't like the fondue either. It had a bottle of beer in it, and I think that funked it up too much for her. I did mean to say "funk" because that is how I would describe the added flavor (Paul and I like it).
We also made chili pie - corn chips, chili, and cheese. Chili was from a can - regular not hot. But she thought it was spicy so she didn't eat much.
She also wondered what kind of lettuce was in the salad. It was from a bag, and I couldn't remember. She picked at it. If it had been regular iceberg and had had tomatoes in it, she probably would have been okay with it. She did like the cucumbers Paul put in it.
Normally, I like people to like my cooking, but her lack of interest in my mediocre cooking didn't hurt my feelings. I know how she is. My stepdad, on the other hand, had seconds of everything.
Here's more info about my mom's weird food snobbery. When she travels, she starves because she doesn't like other people's cooking. She traveled extensively up the east coast and didn't like any of the food. Not even the amish cooking. She's even been to Paula Deen's restaurant and wasn't impressed. She went to some fancy restaurant, and the waitress noticed she was picking at her food, and she asked my mom if something was wrong. My mom said she had never had green beans the way they cooked them (I think they were long, skinny, green beans that had been lightly sauted). The waitress was shocked and said the restaurant was known for their green beans. She asked my mom how she cooked hers, and my mom told her. She cooks her green beans a LONG time with bacon grease and a hunk of bacon or ham and plenty of salt and pepper. One morning, they stopped in a Hardee's (somewhere up north), and my mom was excited (they had been traveling for weeks and she was beginning to starve from lack of homecooking). She stepped up to the counter and ordered biscuits and gravy (what she orders from Hardees at home). The employee informed her that they didn't have biscuits and gravy. My mom asked if they were out, and the lady said, "no, people don't eat that around here, but we have porridge." Boy, was she shocked and disappointed.
Growing up, the only drinks we had at our house was water (a given), whole milk (what she still buys), and tea (of course, it is sweet, anything else is sacriligious/dishwater). Anytime my mom has been in the hospital for surgery (and she's had several), she asks for tea as soon as she comes out of recovery. Not just any tea will do, it has to be her own tea, and of course, the nurses only want her to have water so soon out of surgery. We have to sneak it in (you can't ignore her request). When she travels, especially up north, you can't get sweet tea. And even if you could get sweet tea, she doesn't like anyone elses. She tolerates mine (I make it just like she does). Now when she travels, she makes her own tea on the road. And to get the authenitic taste that she is used to, she brings her own sugar and her own tap water from home. It's her way or nothing!
And in other news, this weekend was the annual Iris Show in Greeneville (goes along with their Iris Festival). My mom won BEST IN SHOW for her Iris named Supreme Sultan. This is the first "named" Iris that she ever owned, and I bought it for her several years ago (I had forgotten that, but she reminded me). She now owns numerous named Irises, and her garden is phenomenal! I'm so proud of her!
Abbie and I had a great day together too. She got me a "singing" card - she loves to pick those out. She helped me and Paul cook lunch. Then she played outside with my mom's dog. She and I borrowed my mom's scooter and rode it around the block. She is going to sleep with me tonight - as a special Mother's Day treat for her.
Paul and Abbie made breakfast for me this morning, got me flowers, and a surprise gift.
Later, we loaded up the car to go to my mom's house. It was Paul's idea to go to my mom's today and fix her lunch.
{Btw, Paul did try to call his mom and got voicemail. Maybe she had to work}
I don't think my mom liked anything I made, but that is okay. I don't cook much anymore, and even though I love her, I had no plans to cook an elaborate meal. And my mom is sort of a food snob - not in a cranky, mean way - she just mostly likes her own cooking. And ever since she had a brain aneurysm, her sense of taste is off (and she can't smell anymore either).
As soon as we got there, I started making a butterscotch pie. During the process, I set off the smoke alarm. Even though I didn't let the filling cook long enough to get thick enough, the pie turned out great, and it was the one thing she liked. You had to eat the pie with a spoon, but it was yummy!
While I worked on the pie, Paul put together a salad and grated all the cheese for fondue. She didn't like the fondue either. It had a bottle of beer in it, and I think that funked it up too much for her. I did mean to say "funk" because that is how I would describe the added flavor (Paul and I like it).
We also made chili pie - corn chips, chili, and cheese. Chili was from a can - regular not hot. But she thought it was spicy so she didn't eat much.
She also wondered what kind of lettuce was in the salad. It was from a bag, and I couldn't remember. She picked at it. If it had been regular iceberg and had had tomatoes in it, she probably would have been okay with it. She did like the cucumbers Paul put in it.
Normally, I like people to like my cooking, but her lack of interest in my mediocre cooking didn't hurt my feelings. I know how she is. My stepdad, on the other hand, had seconds of everything.
Here's more info about my mom's weird food snobbery. When she travels, she starves because she doesn't like other people's cooking. She traveled extensively up the east coast and didn't like any of the food. Not even the amish cooking. She's even been to Paula Deen's restaurant and wasn't impressed. She went to some fancy restaurant, and the waitress noticed she was picking at her food, and she asked my mom if something was wrong. My mom said she had never had green beans the way they cooked them (I think they were long, skinny, green beans that had been lightly sauted). The waitress was shocked and said the restaurant was known for their green beans. She asked my mom how she cooked hers, and my mom told her. She cooks her green beans a LONG time with bacon grease and a hunk of bacon or ham and plenty of salt and pepper. One morning, they stopped in a Hardee's (somewhere up north), and my mom was excited (they had been traveling for weeks and she was beginning to starve from lack of homecooking). She stepped up to the counter and ordered biscuits and gravy (what she orders from Hardees at home). The employee informed her that they didn't have biscuits and gravy. My mom asked if they were out, and the lady said, "no, people don't eat that around here, but we have porridge." Boy, was she shocked and disappointed.
Growing up, the only drinks we had at our house was water (a given), whole milk (what she still buys), and tea (of course, it is sweet, anything else is sacriligious/dishwater). Anytime my mom has been in the hospital for surgery (and she's had several), she asks for tea as soon as she comes out of recovery. Not just any tea will do, it has to be her own tea, and of course, the nurses only want her to have water so soon out of surgery. We have to sneak it in (you can't ignore her request). When she travels, especially up north, you can't get sweet tea. And even if you could get sweet tea, she doesn't like anyone elses. She tolerates mine (I make it just like she does). Now when she travels, she makes her own tea on the road. And to get the authenitic taste that she is used to, she brings her own sugar and her own tap water from home. It's her way or nothing!
And in other news, this weekend was the annual Iris Show in Greeneville (goes along with their Iris Festival). My mom won BEST IN SHOW for her Iris named Supreme Sultan. This is the first "named" Iris that she ever owned, and I bought it for her several years ago (I had forgotten that, but she reminded me). She now owns numerous named Irises, and her garden is phenomenal! I'm so proud of her!
Abbie and I had a great day together too. She got me a "singing" card - she loves to pick those out. She helped me and Paul cook lunch. Then she played outside with my mom's dog. She and I borrowed my mom's scooter and rode it around the block. She is going to sleep with me tonight - as a special Mother's Day treat for her.
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Bird Watching
After visiting my dad today, Abbie and I went to my mom's house. She was just finishing up a Butterscotch Pie. We sat and talked while Abbie and I ate a late lunch. Eventually, we ate a piece of pie (Mom couldn't wait for it to completely cool). It was delicious! I have the recipe and might make one this week.
At her house, we always hang out in the kitchen. She has her rocking chair facing the backyard where she does a lot of bird watching. She kept telling us about all the bird happenings - which birds were building nests, which birds she has seen lately, etc. She also has full view of her bird bath which is quite a popular hangout. Birds were in and out of it, splashing and drinking, the whole time we were there.
After scraping the pie plate clean, we went outside so Abbie could swing. Mom has a wooden, bench-style (porch) swing mounted on big square beams (with ivy growing and climbing all around - it is idyllic). On either end, she has regular, child-size swings. She and I sat together in the porch swing while Abbie ran around nearby. The bird play-by-play continued. She knows all the regulars - the bluebirds, the wrens, finches, chickadees, mockingbirds, starlings, house martins, etc.
Basically, my mom's backyard is a nice habitat for birds and butterflies. She also has a fish pond, and we saw a frog in it today. There is nothing formal about her gardens - she plants what she wants, where she wants without any any true planning for curb appeal. She grows many plants that the butterflies like, and she has the birdbath, numerous bird houses and gourds and lots of places for a bird to perch. She also has a grape arbor (not sure if arbor is the right word, but she has one, whatever it is). The birds love perching there and building nests.
I love sitting with her, shooting the breeze. We don't discuss politics or gossip about family or talk about anything "heavy." Bird watching is fine with me!
At her house, we always hang out in the kitchen. She has her rocking chair facing the backyard where she does a lot of bird watching. She kept telling us about all the bird happenings - which birds were building nests, which birds she has seen lately, etc. She also has full view of her bird bath which is quite a popular hangout. Birds were in and out of it, splashing and drinking, the whole time we were there.
After scraping the pie plate clean, we went outside so Abbie could swing. Mom has a wooden, bench-style (porch) swing mounted on big square beams (with ivy growing and climbing all around - it is idyllic). On either end, she has regular, child-size swings. She and I sat together in the porch swing while Abbie ran around nearby. The bird play-by-play continued. She knows all the regulars - the bluebirds, the wrens, finches, chickadees, mockingbirds, starlings, house martins, etc.
Basically, my mom's backyard is a nice habitat for birds and butterflies. She also has a fish pond, and we saw a frog in it today. There is nothing formal about her gardens - she plants what she wants, where she wants without any any true planning for curb appeal. She grows many plants that the butterflies like, and she has the birdbath, numerous bird houses and gourds and lots of places for a bird to perch. She also has a grape arbor (not sure if arbor is the right word, but she has one, whatever it is). The birds love perching there and building nests.
I love sitting with her, shooting the breeze. We don't discuss politics or gossip about family or talk about anything "heavy." Bird watching is fine with me!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
