The Gypsy Wagon

Big Fun

It was a busy weekend - full of family, friends, food, faith, football, frivolity and fun.  I could probably find a few more words to add to the alliterative quality of that sentence, but that might border on the ridiculous or at the very least, the redundant.

We introduced Mom and Betty to the joys of tailgating in the mud.

                                   

We watched while our two oldest children affirmed their faith through the rite of Confirmation.

We took many photographs, and tried the patience of two teenagers.

Then celebrated with brunch overlooking the Severn River where some of us ate chocolate dipped pretzels.

After brunch and to further torment the kids, we took more photographs on the deck of the restaurant.

                                                                                                                                                   

We had a wonderful weekend, and were sad to see it come to an end.    

                           

Like Manna from Heaven, Baby

 

Lookie, lookie at what was waiting for me when I arrived home!  My parents and some good friends are on their flight from Texas right this minute - and they sent this in anticipation of their arrival.  If you haven't tried Blue Bell Ice Cream (from my home town!)  then I feel sorry for you.  It is heaven in a carton.   And look at these  flavors:

First an apology

 

An apology to those of you who read my email of this morning and who may have been offended, or startled, or bothered in some other way.  It probably wasn't very nice of me to have done that, but in all fairness I don't think I ever claimed to be nice.  I love a good joke, and while some may dispute it; I think that was an excellent joke. 

I am overdue for some new posts here at The Gypsy Wagon.  I started off  October like a house on fire - posting pictures everyday, and blogging consistently and then I just stopped.  Just like that.  It wasn't intentional - it's just that the photographs I took were so blah, and my stories seemed so boring, and the mundane details of my laundry, and errands and housekeeping and mothering made me feel that it would be cruel to subject you to them.  (Probably not as cruel as the previous post, but anyway.) 

And my grand plan of marking every day with a photo capturing a moment of  "This is My Life" failed when I started over-thinking it.  I set my expectations so high that when I wasn't happy with a photograph or when an idea didn't pan out, I didn't post at all.  I read so many terrific blogs with beautifully styled pictures and delicious prose; and I got caught up in comparing my blog to others.  That turned about to be about as helpful as reading Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition when starting a new diet.  A bit of self-defeating recrimination ensued, followed by some gnashing of teeth, some moaning and groaning, some cookie dough and a new hair do.  It all helped and I'm feeling much better now.

So October marched ahead, and I fell behind, and here I am frantically trying to scoop up the pieces of a month that threatens to end before I've become fully engaged.  I love October; it may well be my favorite month of the year and I don't want to miss it this year.  So.  I'm trying to slow down and dig in my heels and enjoy the final week of the month.  The weather is turning more October-y, and the leaves are swirling about as they should.  The lights in my house welcome me home when evening's darkness comes  early, and I'm drawn inside to the warmth of my family.

I've pulled out the sweaters, and the flannel sheets, the Crock Pot and the mulling spice, the corduroy pants and the soup recipes, the pumpkins and the candles and I'm going to surround myself with all of these pieces of October.  And I'm going to enjoy every minute of it.

Ghost or No Ghost?

Edited to remove post - 11-08-07.. . I couldn't stand the screaming any more.

Greetings from the Land of Seldom-Finished Projects

 

I live in the land of the Seldom-Finished Project, so when I actually complete something that I've started then I feel like I need to post it.   Mainly I think that I just need the visual reminder that it is actually possible to complete a project once it's started.    These are Halloween party favor buckets that I started oh - about six weeks ago.  I never really forgot that they were an ongoing project - just had trouble getting back to them.   None of them are alike, and they have bits of old ephemera, ribbon, scrapbook paper, baker's twine and the like on them.   Some of them are labelled for poison, and some have "Boo"  attached on twine - just to remind you that Halloween's coming.  Here's a closer look at some of the details:

 

Not only are the little buckets complete, but the Dia de los Muertos quilted wall hanging that I started last fall is complete-ish.  It could actually stand a boatload of more embellishment - some beads, more sequins, perhaps a few milagros.  In fact, my vision of it when it's really, really complete has it on the wall with things hanging from the bottom of it, and so laden with wonderful embellies that it's difficult to hang.   In the meantime,  it's done enough to hang for this year.  I'm working on a Dia de los Muertos altar, and will photograph that when it's done.  If you're not familiar with the Mexican tradition of honoring the dead on All Saint's Day.  Lots of good information is found here.  I love the idea of remembering the people from my life who are no longer with us - in a celebratory way. 

Who knows?  By the time I finish this baby, it may be able to play the maracas while mixing a margarita!  At the very least, it will sparkle and shine.

I hope October feels like a real bonafide fall month wherever you are - it was 90+ degrees here today - and I'm not getting enough sweater, blue-jean, and cowboy boot-wearin time!

Saturday

This is my LIFE.  Day 5.  and 6.

This really is my life.  On any given afternoon there's a good possibility that there's a skateboard or three on my front walk.  Three live at my house full-time, and there are often another three or four boards 'visiting'.  This picture was taken yesterday afternoon while all of the skaters were busy taking a nacho break.

Apparently skating makes one not only very, very sweaty - but also quite hungry.

On another note:

When I looked at this stack of cookbooks in my kitchen, I realized that they said something not only about what I like to cook, but where I've lived and what's important to me.

The Tex-Mex cookbook may be the most authentic source for honest Texas mexican food recipes that I've ever seen.  Coupled with the recipes are great stories of the people, the restaurants and the lore that make Tex-Mex not only a cuisine, but a integral part of the Texas mystique.   The legends behind the margarita, the nacho and tejano music all contribute to this book.  It's a winner. 

Magnolias Southern Cuisine is from Magnolias restaurant in Charleston, SC.  Both times that we lived in Charleston, Magnolias was one of our favorite destinations for a special night out.  I've never been able to order anything other than their shrimp and grits - and I'm happy to report this recipe is in the book.  In fact when I open this cookbook, it automatically falls to that stained, worn page.

The Barefoot Contessa is the go-to girl when cooking for a crowd or for the family.  The pecan bars in the first BC cookbook may be the most wonderful sweet thing I've ever made.  Shortbread cookies plus candied and carameled pecans plus chocolate equal heaven!  Every thing I've made either of her books has been a wonderful success - and not due to any stellar effort on my part.  Her recipes are just that good.

And the Stonewall Kitchen book reminds me of our time in Maine where I'd regularly visit the Stonewall Kitchen headquarters in York.  The recipes in Harvest reflect the seasonal offerings of our part of Maine and were the first place I found a recipe to cook fiddleheads.  The baked goat cheese salad is spectacular and worth every single calorie.

Our past and present come together in this stack of cookbooks - and they give me an opportunity every now and then, to cook a meal that's also a memory.

Ladybug, Ladybug

This is my LIFE - day 4

Here's what early fall looks like - up close and personal. 

This ladybug was working so industriously on this milkweed pod that she couldn't be bothered by me or by the countless little yellow bugs on the stalk next to her.

Wonder if they know something about the upcoming winter that I should know.

edited to add:  I really lost some photo quality on this one.  It was much sharper before I converted to jpeg for web use.  Connie - any idea?

Coffee Cup

This is my LIFE  - day three.

There's a Lyle Lovett song, called "I've been to Memphis" that starts with the words

The sun comes up

in a coffee cup

Waitress please, I've had enough. . .

Years ago (like 9  years ago), I couldn't get that phrase out of my head.  It demanded to be made into a quilt, and so I did just that.  I pulled out bits and pieces of scraps of browns, blues, yellows and oranges - and then went to my local fabric store and found the border print that seemed made for this. That's where I found the swirly brown print that looks just like my coffee as the cream is stirred in. 

I drew a funny little sketch and then set to work - figuring it out as I went along.  I won't say I was obsessed with this project, but I will say that I got little else done during its construction.  Oh sure, my children ate and were reminded to brush their teeth and all, but I don't remember worrying about the laundry or any other silly incidentals during that time.  Cullen was a baby then, and when my big two went off to preschool, he'd watch me sew like a madwoman until it was time to pick them up.  I didn't have my Bernina then, and my sewing machine was barely up to the task of the freemotion quilting surrounding the coffee cup.  I broke more threads, more needles and had more knots on the back of this quilt than I had before or since. And although I can't remember precisely - I bet there was some swearing under my breath as well. I just couldn't get my machine to cooperate with my vision of those lyrics. 

In the end, it was all good.  The tension is sporadic, the colors uneven and there are things I probably should have done differently in terms of composition.  But I don't care.  I love that song, and I love this quilt.  I love the sculpy coffee bean buttons that Lara made that surround the saucer.  I love that it's uneven and quirky and primitive.  But mostly I love it because it was one of those things that demanded to be made.  Lotta power in that song, wouldn't you say?!

Afterschool special

This is my life - day two.

And this is about as representative of my life as it gets! Here I wait in my car while 5 middle schoolers buy slurpees - an afterschool treat for one last hurrah of a warm day.   

This was actually a really nice moment - seconds after I took this shot, all 5 middle schoolers came out of the 7-11, laughing and talking in the sunlight on this warm October day.  I'm glad I was still enough to appreciate it.

October, October - I love you so

Oh I do love October!  It's the most magical of months - the leaves are changing hue, the light is golden, the nights are cool, and change is in the air.

Morning glories aren't typically an October image, but I needed to show mine before they gasp their last breath and are pulled down until next year.  When we moved in, this sweet little garage had nothing around it , except the peony that you see to the right of the door.  It had been mowed over, and looked like a bunch of dried stalks.  This spring, we added the coleus, the hydrangea, the window boxes, the hanging geranium (now defunct, but providing a support for the morning glory).  I hung an old twiggy wreath above the door, and hoped for a bird looking for the perfect spot for a nest.  I never did entice a bird to build her home there, but the two packets of morning glory seeds found it perfect for them.  Initially I had small trellis' on either side of the door.  When glories covered them, and showed no signs of stopping John attached a few eye screws under the eaves and attached monofiliment.  In no time, the wreath was covered and the door might as well be. 

Don't look too closely at the garden.  It's time to prepare it for winter, and truth be told, it hasn't had much attention lately.  It peaked a month or so ago, and then has suffered some serious neglect.  It's probably only coincidence that the neglect occurred when football season started. . .

On another note, I was reading Melody Ross' blog and discovered her "This is my life" project.  It's a great way to capture the bits and pieces that make up your life - one photograph at a time.  I'm so captivated by the idea, that I'm going to endeavor to participate every day in October.  Join in if you like - take it one day at a time and see where it goes.

Because what is a Texan without her boots?  These are my new Lucchese boots - Thank you EBay - and I love them!  Can't believe toes this pointed can be this comfortable.

You know the Dr. Seuss book "Oh, The Places You'll Go"?  Well this is all the places we've been (lived) - so far.

This is actually outdated as I haven't added our current home.  Guess I'll need to get a new canvas and start over!

Aah - it was a lovely day for football.  And in case the resolution isn't high enough, or if your eyes are anything like mine, let me reiterate the score for you:

Navy: 31

Air Force: 20

It was a lovely, lovely day for football.