Growing Our Life in Northern Michigan
How are you all doing? We are doing mostly good with occasional spikes of anxiety/stress. There’s a lot of uncertainty in the world right now. Our government is now telling us that we need to stay home until the end of April to reduce… Continue Reading “Early Spring”
How is everyone doing? Monday our Michigan Governor ordered everyone to stay at home to stop the spread of Covid-19. For at least the next three weeks, individuals may only leave their home under very limited circumstances, and they must adhere to social distancing… Continue Reading “The State of Michigan”
How are you all today? I know a lot of people are very scared. I understand and I empathize. To quote Thomas Paine, “These are the times that try men’s souls.” It’s easy to get anxious when there is uncertainty and a constant barrage… Continue Reading “A Quiet Peace”
The weather continues to be rather weird. Today the temperature was in the 40s. It felt very warm outside. This afternoon it began to….I’m not sure if it’s rainy snow or snowy rain. The forecast calls for the possibility of rain/snow for the next… Continue Reading “Animal Antics”
We sure have had some crazy weather this winter. Wednesday and Thursday we were under a Winter Storm Warming. It snowed steadily for those two days with strong winds that blew the slow around and caused whiteout conditions. But yesterday the temperatures began to… Continue Reading “Savoir Faire”
EJ and I had a good weekend together…well, once we got through our appointment at H&R Block to get our taxes done. I always really dread it, expecting the worst, anxious that we are going to have to end up paying a gazillion dollars.… Continue Reading “Crikey!”
We’ve had a few cold, windy, snowy days that made my face and fingers ache. Today is mostly sunny. When the sun comes out from behind a cloud, it makes my eyes squint from its brilliance. My northern eyes aren’t used to sunshine. LOL.… Continue Reading “Instant Cooking”
Hannah Joy woke me up earlier than usual this morning. She jumped off the bed then came over to the side of the bed and started grunting at me. I figured she needed to go out so I got my coat, hat, gloves, and… Continue Reading “Morning Delight”
I re-organized the chest freezer and the kitchen cupboards on Friday but didn’t stop there. I sorted through my closet yesterday, getting rid of clothes that I no longer wear. I’ve also been working on organizing the library, even sorting through our file cabinet.… Continue Reading “Murder in Deer Valley”
Here we are, we’ve already made it to February. I used to dislike February. Even though it has the least number of days, it always felt like the longest month. By February, winter felt like it had last forever and that Spring would never… Continue Reading “Annie”
We’ve had some crazy weather today with wind gusts that stirred up the snow into duststorm-like clouds and twisted it into snow-nadoes. Then we had freezing rain that tapped on the windows and froze there. We are supposed to get more than 6 inches… Continue Reading “The Washcloth Thief”
I hope everyone is having a wonderful New Year’s Eve! Hannah Joy and I started our day cuddling in my chair. She likes to sleep on my lap under a blanket with only her nose sticking out. I like it because she keeps me… Continue Reading “New Year’s Eve”
I have friends who we’ve “adopted” as family. My friends sent Hannah Joy a Christmas gift. Because of a snafu, it arrived after Christmas instead of before, but I reassured my friend that Hannah didn’t know any better. Hannah was so excited to get… Continue Reading “Hannah Joy’s Gift”
I haven’t written for a couple weeks–not since December 1. I (and EJ too) have had a lot on my mind that I’ve been processing and working through. It is difficult to write when my heart is filled with sadness. Yet, we know that… Continue Reading “Pardon My French”
I know the holidays can be difficult for many people, for a variety of reasons, but I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving. Or survived. EJ’s first attempt at making homemade bread a week or so ago turned out wonderfully so he tried again… Continue Reading “Tradition”