A New Year

It's a bit daring thought to wish everyone a happy new year. Never know what universe has hidden is her depths for us Earthlings.

We had peaceful Christmas, everyone was so happy about that. Today I finally took down the plastic from my polytunnel. Last chance, it started snowing while I was folding it, and it's been snowing ever since. Not yet 10cm of snow,  this is slow and light accumulation of snowflakes size of gingerbread cookies.

Just remembered I was suppose to take few herb pots inside, they're waiting just outside the front door!

'Suma hates fireworks. Ys absolutely loves fireworks. It's a tricky situation, but this new year we only got few and I was inside with older boys and 'Suma while ys, hb and d were firing rockets. 'Suma went hiding into the sauna during the day when bombing begun- we can hear them from nearby village and town. In the evening she just went hiding behind os and sys when we looked through windows to see all  fireworks. Hb bought "silent" fireworks that made much less noise.

Peaceful Christmas

 It's been a while. I got a new phone and a laptop, and it took more than reasonable time to get them working - at least my phone is now ringing and singing, unlike  some of my co-workers', their phones don't work as phones yet. Great.

Baby Girl is no longer Baby Girl. She's Baby Brother and just as lovely and squiiiishable as ever. We named her as Purr because she was purring so loudly. Luckily Purr is a perfectly good name for a baby boy kitten, too 🤣

He's getting along with his bigger brother, they are not yet sleeping in one pile,  but at the same bed anyway. I think Big Brother is a bit happier now.

Right after New Year my office will be moving.  I have been 20 yesrs worth of documents and notes and library worth of professional literature. It's kind of sad and nostalgia, I've been working on this old government office building ( built in 1840s) and our new office is just finished! No more individual rooms, welcome open plan office... I'll continue working from home at least 'til June.

We are not on lockdown, but recommendation to not to meet other people during holidays is still on. And with this new variant it's better to be extra careful. My parents announced early on November them will not be at home during Christmas. So we have been able to celebrate as we like, peacefully and with plenty of good food. I visited graveyard and lit 170hour candle for my sons' grave, it will be burning there  long so I don't worry they have a dark holidays.

The tree has been tied to the ceiling, so I don't have to worry about it falling when kittens and puppy stary chasing each other. 

Getting darker

Thank you of your kind words. Smart Girl is gone, we haven't found her. Baby Brother is still miserable,  but at least he is now eating. Another cat from out village has gone missing. 

I have waited and waited to get something happier to write. We're had few covid-tests, negative, some children have been home schooling again and now we have wear masks about everywhere outside home inside- if you are outside masks are not mandatory. I've been working long hours, days and weeks, and somehow I feel I'm actually getting there.

Today, after a long wait and one long trip from which we came back empty handed, we finally got out new girl. She has a name, but I don't know if she is that, maybe she's something else. Time will tell.

Meet out Baby

A poor photo, but I don't want to scare her with flash. It's been really dark days, maybe it's getting brighter when it starts snowing.

My sweet kitten

It's been more than 10 days since out kitten left home for the last time. She's nowhere, no-one has seen anything. 'Suma can't find a trace of her- and she's actually a good sniff dog.

There's foxes, lynxes, eagle owls and raccoon dogs. There has even been a wolverine. No wolves, though. And Smart Girl is only cat missing in years in this village. Choose your guilty one.

House is quiet.  Cats are usually out or sleeping, they don't make a lot of noise. Now Baby Brother is out trying to find his sister. He comes inside,   seeks all hiding places, all sleeping places, comes to me asking where's my sister? His fur looks dull and his eyes are empty.

He is heartbroken. He has lost his sister, his best friend, half of his heart,  his joy and happines. I can't help him, I can't mend his heart.

Os and sys are just as heartbroken. How to console teenager boys with broken heart?' Suma is quiet, she looks out of windows trying to see something. I think she doesn't know what she's looking for, but she knows she has to look for something.

We are all lost. 

My baby is missing

 The brainy one, our sweet  girl, one of our cats, is missing. They all roam freely, mostly around out yard, and it is quite common for them to spent a night or two somewhere. But not three nights, not with heavy rains and first frosts.

I miss her and I'm seriously worried.

Time is on the run and I can't catch it

This summer is about to end soon and I just can't get everything done. At least I have been able to forage mushrooms. 'shrooms are what os eats. I had a target to get 20 bags of mushrooms to freezer, and I think I have done it already. 20 bags means mushrooms once every other week, more bags means I can feed him once a week with mushrooms. They are healthy (they have some fibre), nutricious (vitamins, mineral, protein)  and delicious.

During mushroom season I usually keep long nails. I cut stems of mushrooms with my nails, if I have lost/misplaced/forgot to take with me my foraging knife (happens every day at some point).This of course discolours my nails yellow/orange, so if I have to go to meet people, I have to use nail polish. Oh the vanity!

Mushroom season = magnificient nails.

I've cut about a dozen masks, but not been able to sew them yet. It takes about 15 min to sew one mask. I have all materials here. I tried to fill up my stash with more elastic, but in the fabric/cratf store I realized I have more elastics in my storage than that biggest craft chain has! I don't know if I'm ashamed or delighted.

I let kids choose their own fabrics (100% cottons) and made two masks each. Sys tried his on and told me he's not going to use any masks until it is compulsory - he looks like a communist. Ooookei, I didn't see that coming. But yes, we do have a long and winded conversations about world economics, democratic situations of different countries/continents, and factors that makes this country safe and some other countries less safe - why it is much safer to be a teenager or OAP in here than .. In Mexico, or Burkina Faso or Indonesia or North Korea. And what happens in US if dt gets re-elected or not.

I thought I might not get beans at all, they were so slow to grow. Luckily I have 1kg already in freezer and another 750grams needs to be frozen (I've blanched them already). And - most exciting thing ever - I HAVE PICKLING CUCUMBERS! I've got around ten in fridge waiting to be processed, I think I'd like to have mildly hot relish done. And of course dill pickles, if I get more cucumbers. Well, dill pickles they are not, we don't like dill, but something pickled, anyway.

Have you ever counted how much vegetables (incl. fruits and berries) you need to have in order to feed your family five a day portions? That's 500grams per person per day. Seven days a week. So it's 3,5kg per person per week. Doesn't sound bad, does it?

Thats 21 kilos per week for the whole family!

21 kilos, every week. 52 weeks per annum, that's about a ton of veggies. So if I want to feed my family the recommended amount of veggies, I'd seriously need a bigger freezer space...

If I give everyone 150g carrots every day (which is most likely, because they like carrots and we have them year round), thats over 6 kilos per week, and over 300 kilos or carrots every year!

50g cucumber - 100kg cucumbers.

100g tomatoes - 200kg tomatoes.

100g apples - 200kg apples

100g banana - 200kg bananas

 

My head hurts.

On more lighter news we are waiting for covid19 test results for ys and d. D got sick on friday a week ago. Ys got sick on monday a week ago, and they had tests on thu and fri. They both have been at home. No-one else is sick, they don't have fever (not at all), just mild throat ache and clogged nose.

They will be back to schools once they get their results. There's no Covid in our area, they are not really sick and there's bunch of beginning-of-the-school-flu cases at schools. But they have already lost more than a week of school.

Once they get their results, I'm off to Ikea. Ys's room is nearly done, I got floor done during the weekend. he needs a desk, a chair, few bookcases and a wardrobe. Unfortunately some of the furniture I'd like to get are not sold in net store, so I have to go there myself. I've tried to look around but haven't found anything that fits his room (there are some difficult corners) like those will.

Also d needs a wardrobe. Her room is a mess (teenager - do I need to say more?).

I don't think Ikea has any small bottles left. Pity, 'cos I like them, they're perfect size for Christmas hamper gift liquers.

Lost and found (again...)

On Sunday we were berry picking with sister. We found cloudberries (ask Ikea), blueberries (bilberries), bog blueberries and raspberries. I fell on swamp ditch, and I lost my glasses. It was a very warm day, so even if my right boot weighed a ton with bogwater, it was a nice trip.

When I'm talking about blueberries, I mean bilberries. Here in north they are called blueberries (in the Scandinavian languages Vaccinium myrtillus is called blåbär (or blåbær), which literally means blueberry. Therefore many Scandinavians erroneously call bilberry blueberry when speaking English. Ikea Blåbärsylt has bilberries pictured on the label).

There is suble differences in blueberries and bog blueberries. Bog blueberries have a distinct starshape crown at the end, while blueberries have a rounded end. And to add more confusion, North American blueberries have that starshape, too. And "our" blueberries are dark blue/purple through, bog blueberry and North American blueberry are pale inside. Also shape is different. Bogs on left, bilberries on right.

But yes, I can't cope without my glasses (they are reading glasses, and as I work mainly on computer/laptop, they are important to me - and I can't clean raspberries without them - can't see worms...)

So off to woods we went again (on monday with sys and ys who were bored to death even before we reached the edge of the swamp) and YES I found my glassess! Also more blueberries, bog blueberries and cloudberries. I hate foragin berries, by the way.

Black rimmed glasses are not easy to spot on ground.

But the trip was successfull and timing was perfect, this was the sight when we got out of the woods. 20 mins later (5mins after we got home) rain begun. Still raining. This is wet week.

From the garden I have been picking black currants and strawberries. I paid 20€ for 20 strawberry plants last summer, and so far this summer I have got more than 5 litres of strawberries (last summer I got maybe 1l), and they are still producing. Doesn't sound much, but to me it is, I've never been able to grow strawberries before! As strawberries are about 3-5€/l, those plants are already paid themselves after this summrerk  

This is a poor year for currants, one of my bushes is empty, one has few berries, and only one produced "normal" amount of berries. My mother's bushes have few berries, but hb's parents' have none. And they usually have loads. Fortunately I can pick our neighbours currants, so I might be able to get my mother enough currants so she can make cordial for the winter. You know, winter is coming...

I have got one patch of sugar snap peas to freezer, but peas are just flowering now. Might be a while before I can harvest them.

I think I need to fill up my freezers and pantry this summer/autunm, because Covid-19 cases are on the rise again in Europe. It is not granted I can buy veggies and fruits during the winter.

It's getting better

There is so many good news in my life.

Old man's surgery in June was a success. Tumor was completely removed (no growth ouside pancreas), and among all lymph nodes there were only few with suspicioius cells, and they were nearest to pancreas, further away nodes were all clean.

So, now he "just" have to adjust being diabetic (type 1)... Of course there's follow ups regularily, after all we are talking about cancer, not infected toe nail. But now we can breathe.

He needs to learn to eat again, it's been difficult (he had a weight loss surgery as well, because part of his stomac was removed - he was lightly underweight in the beginning, and now he is "moderately underweight"  he needs to gain at least 10 kg to be on healthy range.

Ys's room is progressed. I got all walls finished and we had electrician today working for four hours (he did more than just ys's electrics), now hb needs to build the ceiling so rest of electric sockets and light fittings can be installed. I'll put the floor down after that and then off to Ikea!

My last vacation week, back to work on Monday. Well, back.. to log in on my laptop. We'll be back on office next week - and only if someone wants to go to the office, we can work from home until November.

My veggie patch has started producing. I've been digging potatoes, first I had to dig six plants to get pot full of potatoes for my family (six people eat quite a lot of spuds at dinner), now it's down to two plants. My early potatoes are Colomba, they are a bit too creamy to my liking, but kids love them. And they are even sized and they have grown very well.

We've been eating lettuce from garden only for weeks. Haven't bought any. My strawberries have been really nice suprice this year, today I picked a little shy of 2l, because yesterday it rained all day and I didn't go to veggie patch at all. But I have been able to give kids handfull of berries each day (a handfull for each child!)

My beets (golden beets and striped ones) are growing strongly, but my Cylindras didn't even germinate, and those few that did haven't been growing. Maybe seeds were too old?

And carrots! yes, I have carrots, I've made carrot top pesto again (because I feed children carrots daily, I've had a few carrot tops, too) and now I'm drying some to get green powder to sprinkle into foods in winter... (my kids hate me)

Harvesting dinner

For a very long time this has been a good year to my roses, I have a soft spot fot these pink ones (don't ask me names or types, they all were growing here when we bought this place over 25 years ago, I was young and not interested in gardening).

They have a lovely strong (byt not overwhelming) smell, and it's been expecially nice this summer, because this is first summer for a very long time I have been abe to smell them! We keep joking that I have corona because I got my sense of smell back...

My mother had these by our front door when I was a child. Those bushes are gone, but my aunt took some of them to her house, which is now our home.

Otherwise i've sent my time in forest. Twice a day I take 'Suma for a walk, and finally I remember to take plastic bag and a knife with me...

These lovelies

And these little buttons

And those tiny pearls

Yes, foraging season is here!

Usually I pick only mushrooms, and get my berries from hb's father or my aunt or someone (like my co-workers in-laws), but because this covid-19 and my in-laws being way over 90 years I quess it's my turn to get my fingers blue.

Local blueberries are tiny, they are different from those garden varieties (which are originally from North America), it takes a long time to pick enough berries for a pie... But I even got kids to pick few berries, we have thermacell to keep mosquitos away.

I usually fry all mushrooms, that's how os likes them. First I boil excess moisture off, like this:

Some porchinos and chanterelles

Chanterelles

Many people think that frying mushrooms means that first you melt butter on frying pand and then toss mushrooms in there. It might work out ok that way, but these mushrooms we have here like to be first boiled in their own juices and then fried with butter and salt.

For freezer I boil mushrooms in their own moisture until it's almos all gone, cool them and bag them. That way they keep for a very long time (over a year). If fat (oil or butter) is added, they keep only few months.

My aim is to have at least 20 bags of mushrooms in freezer, so os can get fried mushrooms once every fortnight during winter. 15 to go...

And those blueberries...

Pie!

This is our go-to berry pie. Pie crust needs something to be perfect, but this is good. I don't blind bake the bottom, and white stuff is yoghurt, one egg and some sugar and vanilla sugar.

Just add heat

Crust looks darker than it was (this was eaten before it was even cooled down. Filling firms up when it gets cool.

Os ate half of the first pie I made, so I quess even with not so perfect crust it was delicious...

My children don't get to eat out often, not once a month, maybe three times a year. Now that d goes out with her friends, she's been eating out more, but of course it all came to halt due to covid-19.

Younger boys like sushi, and it's expensive to take them to eat sushi to a sushi restaurant. So we've mahde sushi ourselves:

Only authentic things were sushi vinegar and seaweed. Rice was pudding rice (rinsed before boiling), sesame seeds were found in the bottom of my pantry cuboard and a bit over toasted in frying pan, surimi sticks (fake crab stics) and shrimps, and cucumber sticks and cooked carrot sticks. Maybe not authentic but quite nice with soy sauce (in Ikea egg cup) and fake wasabi. I don't know how to use chopsticks but kids do.

I wanted to try to make tortillas, they were suprinsingly easy. But I don't think they worth the effort, because only half of kids will eat tortillas in any form or shape. But if I can't go to shops I know I'm able to make them. Another skill acquired.

An di finally after three years have a working remote for my car. Now I'm able to sell it - but also now I want to keep it 😁

Crafting, kind of

I'm very frugal, when it comes to buying clothes. I rarely buy anything second hand, because, really, if I don't use facebook, there's no place I can find anything. Clothing in flea markets/ salvation army shops/UFF what ever are hideous (in this area), most times. Maybe I'm just difficult.

And I don't use facbook (neither does my brother).

But in the other hand, it doesn't matter. I buy very few pieces of clothing (mainly jeans, bras, winter jackets and some tops), and I tend to use everything until it's completely useless. And I do patching and mending.

These are jeans I bought about 8-10 years ago.

There was a tear above back pocket. I keep my phone in that pocket, so it's no wonder it's worn.
But that's not too bad, isn't it?

But... Because all my jeans have elastan, ths is what happens, because I'm really not a skinny girl. This is third or fourth time I'v patcehd these jeans, and I still can wear them at home/forest/'Suma-walk. Nothing's showing...

I'm not the only one in our family to have hardships with jeans. I've patced these "black" jeans fo hb several times, this time it was crotch and a zipper. I've changed hundreds if not thousands of zippers ( I used to do mending in a working clothing laundry as my job; I was pretty good in it after three years).

When zipper is changed neatly, you can't notice it. So instead I'll show how I patch jeans - I use as a patching material some leftover pieces of hemmed legs. I always have to cut excess off our jeans, short legs or too long jeans? I put it underneath and pin it. My Pfaff can sew over 8 layers of denim if I have proper needle on. I use zig zag, and patch is always much bigger than the hole. This is because of elastan in denim, if those were proper non elastic jeans patch counld be much smaller.

So that's the bottom sorted out. I'd need some top part, too?

 

I have tons of leftover yarns. Small balls, bigger tangled messes. All same or nearly same weight. Crocheted this time. This is the first version, my sis wants one for herself. It'll be better because now I know all ways NOT to do this.

Other kinds of crafting I have been doing is plastering and painting in ys's room (have I told anyone I hate plastering?)  Walls are done, there's one corner I need to work on more. Only ceiling and floor missing...

And on the outside I have been trying to garden vegetables. This is few weeks old picture, but there's no sense to take photos if you can's see anything among weeds.

I ran out of containers and cold frames.

I guess I overdid even myself

I promised kids we'll be having pizza. Ok, I knew I had one frozen grandiosa pepperoni pizza in freezer, so I thought I feed that to yongest ones and make another pizza from ready pizzabottoms ( from the freezer) to os. I was having a spinach feta bake I made a day before. It wasn't until I popped the pepperoni pizza in to the oven, when I took note of the date. Whoops! 2015😳

Ok, I can't  feed that to my children! So I took few more pizza bottoms from the freezer and filled them as they wanted ( the don't like grandiosa much anyway so they were happy they got another pizzas) . But then I had that suspicious thing in my oven... I overbaked it and after  a quick taste I decided it was edible    but not very appetizing. You know how fat behaves in freezer...

I took all 7 pepperoni slices off, added more cheese and baked it again. And ate it. I' still alive  .

I'll promise I'll never do that again!

Storm is a brewing...

Or not. According to weather forecasts we might get some rain, but storms will pass by us through east. Everything needs water right now, so I'm on second day on the row waiting. Yesterday we didn't even have clouds, today it looks more promising, at least whole sky is now yellowish grey.

These hot days (officially +31C, unofficially from +32C to +34C have been really tiring. Old man was in dire need of hydration, but because he has had a weight loss surgery as a bonus, he can consume about 1dl of liquids/15min. So it's been really hard, and they don't have ac at home. And he's having handfull of pills three times a day, it's difficult for him to eat anything after popping those pills... In two weeks he should be off several of those pills, so it should get easier. And being a stubborn old man, he didn't take his painkillers (I don't eat those, I'll make it without) he was sick and tired. Now he takes painkillers nicely, thank you. (His older sister had cancer operation four years ago, and is no shy of giving orders to her little brother, thankfully).

Everything has been busy.

I think someone thinks too much of himself (herself, aren't all working ants female?)

It's been too hot to go for 'Suma walks in to the village, so we have been walking in the woods, no matter how many mosquitoes and other blood sucking critters.

Early in the evening last monday (about 10pm). We don't have darkness at all now. ('Suma is in the picture somewhere)

Ceps are coming along, Not yet edible (or it is, for maggots)

Number One had his 3rd birthday last weeks (oh how the time flies) and he wanted to have a ghost.

I couldn't find any ghost at the supermarket I do most of my shopping (or mega market, what ever) and didn't have time to online shopping. But did have time to sew.

I think this is all right, even thoug it looks like a barbapapa to me. Sorry about childhood traumas, Number One.

Because having a vacation means I have had more time. I've cooked even more, and managed to empty not one but both two laundry baskets!

We had an explosion in the kitchen. I was boiling eggs (like I do once a week for hb's lunches to take with him to work) and heard a loud bang. Because nothing had felled to the floor, I checked eggs. Yep! That's and inch wide hole in that egg! never had that happen before, I mean of course one or three eggs crack and leak almos every time, but this was a new one. Never a dull day in my life.

Have I told you lately... it's hot

We had the most magnificient thunderstorm the other night. Thursday? I think so (I'm off work for few weeks now so I can't remember anything work-related, like last week). We had power cut for about 15 min, which is very rare these days (our porwelines went underground fwe years ago so thunder shouldn't trouble us anymore). Thunder itself lasted almost to hours, and kids kindly woke me up. And rain itself was very much needed, at least in my veggie path and on farmers' fields.

Old man has slowly adjusting to being diabetic, when I called him his biggest worry was that rhubarbs in manor yard won't go wasted (it's a joke, is't s small cottage which old man bought two years ago when last owner had died and his family didn't want it to be sold to other neighbours...) He wants all rhubarb made in to cordial so he can drink it. This is not a great year for rhubarb, it was too dry in early spring (because lack of snow) but it's still growing. He's not getting home yet, which (to my opinion) is a good thing. Even his staples are still on, they are supposed to be taken off this week. And there's a proper ac in the hospital, it's like tropic in their house now.

Because I'm on holiday now, I bagun a new craft project - I've been crocheting baby blankets just because, and I saw a picture of a striped crocheted jumper/tunic I kind of fancied. So, I'm using all left over yarns - which I do have some - and the front is nearly finished. I'm doing it in evenings when kids watch netflix ot youtube, so I don't have to consentrate on tv. I can easlily knit while watching tv, but not crochet. And I think that's the reason I don't crochet so much. It's fun, though.

Veggie plot is not finished yet. I don't know what to do with rest of my brassicas, if I plant them outside bugs eat them in two days. Now they are taking room in my polytunnel, so some of tomatoes are still in their small pots and not growing. My co-worker kindly brought me few cucumber plants (I gave her strawberry plants) and they took some space I had planned for tomatoes...

I know, my problems are tiny.

This is maybe the first year ever i get my spinach to grow. Therefore my new zealand spinach didn't even germinate (sowed twice). Golgen beets and striped beet are growing prettily, but red beets didn't germinate. And chard is looking pretty good even after I planted it in the veggie plot. And beans are doing ok. I stuck some sticks/branches as bean poles, and runner beans are already climbing!

I'm still mad because of corn. I sowed about 50 seeds (expensive quality seeds) and 10 germinated. And few died, so now I have maybe four decent corn plants and two that might still have some green...

Tomorrow we will have afternoon tea, number one is having his birthday party (there will be another party on saturday, but I prefer going tomorrow, so much less people and less hassle). Only trouble is I don't have a present yet, he wants to have a ghost! Grrreat.... I think I have some off white fleece fabric, I'll be sewing a ghost tonight.

Lovely rain

I'm already waiting for my days/weeks off from work. I had (skype)meeting with my two superiors (I apparently need two, one is not enough!) and they were actually more excited about my upcoming vacation than me! and that tells a lot about situation of the world at the moment.

But I have been working a lot lately, I have a project that needs to be finished this week (as day after tomorrow) and with my team we have done at least decent job (if not magnificient).

Therefore I have been spending my time inside in front of my laptop instead of weeding my veggie plot.

I noticed serious bug problem with my brassicas, I need to get that sorted out (I've tried to squeese all critters by hand, but it is so impractical). I have pine oil soap which might or might not work. I'll see.

I's been raining (there was thunder close by) so it's a bit cooler now, so I might get 'Suma to go out with me. She's been hiding inside, poor puppy. And cat's are all snoozing all day, they leave the house by 10pm or later and come back at 7am.

Old man has had some minor complications, he wanted to get up and going so overworked himself and got a minor infection and some internal bleeding. Maybe if he keeps quiet for a while it'll be easier...?

Before operation it was said it takes at least two weeks at the Uni hospital and then two more weeks at here nearby hospital, but he decided he'll be at home this week (a week after his operation). I told him it won't happen, did he listen to me 😂

In the meantime

I have had net troubles today. Couldn't get connection at all with laptop, and had to miss one meeting completely. Another was teams-meeting, and that I can use from my phone. I should be able to use skype from my phone, too, but it is just not working.

Well, co-worked had a chance to bragg about his catch (13,4kg salmon) and all other important but now seriously neglected information was finally shared. It's so good to gossip sometimes.

But because everything else was not working, I called it a day after 10am and used my time much more better way - gardening.

Than you Jo for your kind words.

Old man was awake in the mid morning when my mother called the ward, everything seems to be ok. Operation went smoothly, it was easier than surgeons had anticipated. So far so good. Now old man has to learn how to live as a type 1 diabetic, he has no pancreas to produce any insulin at all. Of course many other hormones and entzymes are also missing, and because part of his stomac was also removed, eating is so much more difficult and important from now on. He's lost too much weight already.

His operation was now, because there has been no new covid19-cases (in that university hospital area). The medical team thought it would be better to have the operation now, even if there migh have been some benefits with postponing it with medication old man was having. Later this year there might be new covid-cases again, so no better time than now.

Weather has been very summery, 'Suma the poor girl doesn't understand why she's feeling so hot. Poor puppy. I planted all sun flowers (14), and chards. Yesterday I planted all broad beans which have been growing in the polytunnel, they were way too big already, but... Better now than never, I guess.

Little cucumbers are in cold frame, and most of tomatoes and aubergines in glass greenhouse.

I have never grown aubergines, di I need to support them somehow, with canes or strings?

Tomorrow I'll have to go to my office (because of the connection problems), but in the evening I'll plant other beans I have and hopefully most of brassicas, too.

Then there's zucchinis and pumpkins left and when they are gone I can use that free space in the polytunnel to plan rest of tomatoes, aubergines and peppers...

And then the weeding starts.

Week 11?

I don't know anymore which week this is - the "new normal". I still can't do certain things that are part of my work, but I'm still overworked most of the time - I know I'm doing something wrong because some of my co-workers have had basically a long spring vacation and my hours keep adding.

But I don't actually care, I know I'm doing my part and when this is over no-one can tell me I didn't do enough.

Children are out of school, D has still one language course to attend (4h a day + homework for two weeks) but she didn't return to school in the first place like boys did, they had 12 days - but mostly they were biking, hiking, picnicking and studying outside the classroom and outside the school building.

But I'm relived school is over for now.

I've been in the veg plot, in polytunnel and all around. I try to work on my veg plot or polytunnel at least an hour a day, but it's not so easy in this househould.

Weather has been nice, too nice, if you ask me. We need rain - yes, we had snow during mother's day weekend, but it's not enough. And it's been several weeks since.

I still haven't planted everything on my plot or cold frames, Most seedlings are still waiting in the polytunnel. We usually cet frost in mid June (it was 10th June, but lately it's been near 15th - we do get the worst from climate change, no snow in winter but more snow in summer).

I have weeded strawberry boxes, I got 10 runners to plant (2 of them will go to my co-worker, they are from plants I got from our nice cleaner lady and I promised to give her any I can find). In another box there's plenty of runners left, but NOW it's raining so I'm not doing it. With rain come mosquitoes, and we have plenty of them in sunny dry days. I have seen several flowers already!

Glass greenhouse has all planted. Six tomatoes, two cape gooseberries, two spinach wines (I don't remember the name of that plant) and four aubergines. Plants are still very tiny, but if I'm lucky I'll get at least some harvest. There was a critters nest in the greenhouse, mole or mouse, I have no idea, but it was VERY productive during winter. I scooped droppings and used as a fertilizer in growing bags (I didn't change the mulch this year). So, time will tell how powerful those droppings are 😁

My corn is my biggest worry - os likes fresh corn cobs so I sowed over 40 seeds. I have six plants! All other seeds sown using same soil are doing well. Yestarday I saw few small green dots in pots - they might grow now, ut it's so late! I think I have to harvest them as mini cobs (like ones used in fry ups). i don't know what's wrong with corn, seeds were bought this spring and they were of expensive/hight quality brand.

Old man is finaly having an operation next week. It's a major operation, at least six hour in the theatre, a couple of days in ICU, few weeks in the university hospital and after that he'll be moved to local hospital to recover -if he makes it through the operation. First he was told the tumour was inoperable. Timing is always poor, of course, but at least he has done all firewood, all field work (potatoes are planted) and fixed his tractor.

I'm considering if I should ask my sister to live with mom for the summer with her family. Even with her partner working benefits overpower risks, I think.

We'll have a family meeting this weekend.

This is a war I WILL win!

I have fought this war for a very long time. For years - it could be almost a decade, because first I was fighting it with my loyal Blackie on my side. Then they were kittens, too, I had to take care they wouldn't get caught in the middle of battle.

I have no evidence on the first battle. It was too hard for me to even think what I was against at. I couldn't see the end of it. But now! the end is nigh!
 
These ones are easy to spot:

There might have been only about 20 bigger plants, maybe even down to a dozen. Sounds much, but if you think there used to be hundreds of them!

But these - they do not look like they are the same plant at all.
 

Look how innocent they are! So hard to see among all other stuff.

But if you closely, you'll see them. And I don't mean ground elder (bishop's weed).

Giant hogweed. Something I don't want to ever again see in flower. Those little seedlings are from flowers over seven years ago. They have been dormant on the soil, and if something disturbes the soil (like few years ago digger when all electric went underground) they will sprout. The seed banks seems to be endless - but in reality, I have finally got upper hand. It may take me three-four more years until I have permanently killed ALL of them, but now it takes me maybe 15 minutes to go around my neighbour's yard and spray (or brush now) all individual plants. In the beginning I just sprayed everything green, because everything was giant hogweed. I use glyphosate, as instructed by local enviromental authorities. It is nasty stuff, but I use it as sparingly as possible. Maybe this is the last year I have to use it at all!

I.Will.Win.This.War!

But on the other side of our yard...

A lovely sight

No giant hogweed, no lupins. I don't walk this way very often this time a year, because all birds that are nesting there. With 'Suma it's too much trouble. There's enought trouble without us:

Pictured through blinds - I think she's a she and has a litter under neighbour's barn.

 And then nature decided it's not summer yet.

I'm NOT swimming

I've been wondering who's been digging small holes on the ground on the forest. Now I know! those tiny footprints are adorable!

Two youngest are back at school. Ys gets there by taxi, but sys's route to schools is a bit more complicated (first walk to taxi stop, then taxi leaves him at the bus stop, then it's 30min trip to school by bus, and then more walking) and I don't want him to sit in a bus along 30-50 other pupils. So I drive him to school every morning. It's a good thing this will only last few weeks, and then we will have a long summer vacation. Phew.
D is still studying at home, her school will be closed all spring term.

I watched Eurovision Europe Shine a Light-show - well, it wasn't much of a show, if Molitva was the funniest performance. I also watched every 41 songs for this year (? lost count and hope at some point, maybe after Bulgaria and Serbia). Well. No wonder I have a massive migraine/headache now Uactually it's been at least a week now).
Because I don't usually watch much tv commercials, it was funny to notice how much those commercials were made around this corona situation. Even WWF's add was about keeping social distance!

But snow is gone, again. I made rhubarb crumble (from stalks from neighbours yard - I have permission for this) AND vanilla custard! I picked some fire weed shoots for a stir fry, and right now there's nettles soaking (to get bugs off), I'll put them in to the dehydrator to dry. I've already run out of last summers nettles.

We have a bank holiday coming, so I hope hb will get our tiller running. It's ancient (from 70's). but I really don't want to spend money to buy a new one. But my vegetable plot is heavy clay, and it needs to be tilled every spring. It was field for 50 years, and I've been growinf vegetables only for few years. If he will not get it running, I'll just have to make with shovel and fork.

Week 7, Prawn casserole

Week 7 went by as fast as the wind that was blowing whole week. I have no idea how this is possible; days had just as many hours as ever.

We managed to put planks on the wall of ys's room. I also treated plastered walls with dust binding substance. There's 2 drywall walls, and ys wants them to be metallic. Fiiiiine.

Thin lines are strings we put to line up screws

Wood (spruce) was treated first with strong tea, and then with iron soaked vinegar (I put rebar bars into vinegar and let them soak for few days - the longer they stay, the darker the shade). If wood has tannin itself (like oak), tea treatment is not needed.

 Many people has been telling how they have been eating rhubarb for weeks now.

My rhubarb is finally growing

 At least I got something from my veggie patch (actually from one of the cold frames):
 

These are the very last parsnips!

 Because we can't (or want not) go to fast food places, I'm trying to get fun food for kids. Last week I made home made hamburgers (I found few bags of hamburger buns from freezer) and kids thought they were great, not like McDonalds but good.

I also made doughnuts (os can't eat store bought because they have cardamon)

I'm still trying to make meals from pantry and freezer. I found handful or frozen prawns and after toying with several ideas I settled on prawn casserole - kids don't like it but I do. I didn't have any tinned tomatoes (turns out i do have, but couldn't find at that moment), but had passata. I had some aubergine left, and instead of garlic I used garlic scapes from freezer. Last bag of spinach from the freezer was aslo used - and I have to say concotion was delicious!  A mighty great achievement considering I had no idea what to make when I took the bag of prawns from freezer.

Nature is aiming towards summer no matter what. We don't have here bluebells or wild garlic, instead we have all kind of poisonous plants:

Mezereon

False morel (Gyromitra esculenta)

Liverwort (anemone hepatica) trying to be a wood anemone.

 Of course there's other signs of warmer season. Somehow we still have a pair of swans, they usually leave after two weeks, now they have been here for five-six weeks? I don't think they are building a nest, maybe next year?
And then we have a pack of leverets of european hare. We have both mountain hares and european ones here, but I think mountain hare leverets stay more in the woods, and those european hare leverets stay on fields. I think mountain heres are pretty, european hares are a bit... I don't know, bony? This monday I counted 8 leverets in one group! They are not fully grown yet, maybe they find big numbers more safe? Because..
We have a fox visiting our yard - not very nice because our three cats. But hopefully it has enough food without trying to hunt out pets.  She will no doubt eat some of the leverets.

In two weeks kids will be back at school (or two youngest will be), but my orders to work from home might continue all throught the summer.

Today I might try to feed kids carrot and parsnip soup with toast. We shall see.

Week six

My co-worker counted on wednesday we have been working from home for 43 days (inculding weekends and easter days off). So now it's 47 days. And children have been at home even longer, d for 50 days (they stayed home before this lock down came compusory, because school was needed for those doing their final exams) and sys and ys for 48 days.

Sys's school project -  and as you can see, everything is WIP.

It's fine. I go shopping once a week if there's no special needs. Like next week, my car is due MOT and I need some soil bags for my veggie plot and my aunt need gardening gloves and my mom wants me to check if there's any leftover goodies from shops. Old man should eat much more, he's losing weight and he's already bag of bones. Pity he can't eat anything healthy or fatty (and everything must be cooked to oblivion). No full corn anything - with exception of oats.
Here is no restrictions to go outside or working outside (just recommendation for high risk people to stay at home and away from other people - however they are allowed to go shopping etc if there's no-one to help them) , but no public meetings over 10 people are allowed, no restrictions on shops or supermarkets (or megamarkets).

So because he doesn't do shopping anyway, he decided our wood needed cutting. Wearing overalls I got him almost 30 years ago. If you want to find a thrifty person, old man is one. If there wasn't corona, I would have been there splitting the wood while he was cutting it.

So, because people are trying to avoid other people, they are flocking here.

And of course they parked right in front of our back gate. Which hasn't have an acual gate ever.

Somewhere behind all those bushes are those old (more than 100yrs) fish ponds, which nowadays might have some frogs, a pair of cranes nesting (they have laid eggs already) and two pairs of swans (which will fly away in few weeks, they will not nest here). It was magnificent park once, a very popular place for walks while in honeymoon in the manor house (it was very popular hotel at the time, even after the WWII). Old people still remembers that and NOW they want to see them again. Or their children. Or people whose parents have worked either in the manor or hotel or those fish ponds. Since then land is split and sold to several other people (part of it belongs to a country house which was spilt from the original manor), fish were harvested with dynamite and all buildings were either relocated or demolished (again using dynamite - you might think people nowadays are stupid, but think again, after WWII all kinds of stupidities were done all the time!) Pump house is gone (dynamite), caretaker's cottage is gone (relocated) as well as gamekeeper's hut (relocated, it was moved only few hundred meters and is now our closest neighbouring house, and it is empty now). Our grounds are part of that original fish pond area.

Rush hour - I haven't seen more than one plane in weeks before that and not afterwards either

 

Another uninvited visitor. We had snow for a day.

 No more snow. I put on that strawberry plastic to keep weeds on bay until soil is dry enough to plow. Might take some time, because ground was still frozen a week ago. Hopefully lack plastic warms it.

Salad!

I just had to get something in to the polytunnel, so I sowed some salad seeds. Now there is also radishes, more salads and perpentual spinach (new zealand spinach). In one of the cold frames I sowed carrots. Inside I have peppers, chillies, aubergines, brassicas and so on. I had parsnip seeds from last summer, and knowing how poorly older seeds might germinate I wrapped them on moist paper towel to see, if any seed will sprout.

Hb has been working on my car since Friday, and he might finish with it today evening. It will not pass MOT and keys are not working, but I have to take it there anyway, otherwise I can't do it at all.
I've been looking for a replacement, but haven't found any yet. I can borrow old man's car, but he needs it occasionally, when he has to go for blood tests or treatment or such. No longer taxi drives for him, too hig risk for infection.

I have made several face masks, this was the first one (instructions from New York Times, not good). I won't use this pattern again.

It is easy to us to stay at home and not to meet other people (Number Two excluded). D has it harder, she actually has friends now, and had realized she misses their hugs and closeness. Boys have a great time, they are only worrying if they have to go back to school before summer. I doubt it will happen, but you never know nowadays.

I have less freetime than before. My days are filled with cooking, walking with 'Suma, doing dishes, washing, gardening, helping children with their school - and yes, I have to work eight hours a day on top of all that.  (I cook at least one big meal a day, usually two, I make lunch for hb to take with him to work, and then there are breakfasts and snacks). I don't bake much, on Friday I made buns and one loaf, I got the loaf out of oven 1am.
There's been some very nice days, and some very difficult. But overall, we are doing fine.