Goodnight Froggy

Normally I don't post an entry without a photo, but I never did get a really good one of our Froggy. He lived behind the plastic of his happy 10-gallon bowl and it was challenging to capture his true popsicle green hue. He was so fragile a species, our tree frog, that human touch was to be avoided.

Today he returned to the earth by the cradle of a wooden spoon where the microorganisms will break him down into useful nutrients. Nature wastes nothing. 

My 5-year old son had cascades of tears on-and-off for about an hour. "Mom, can you lay on the bed and hold me?" I love how he was so willing to ask for what he needed. I am curious to see if the feelings of loss will come back. I bet they will ... and I honestly want to observe how he handles the death of his second pet. When we buried froggy in our garden we offered God a prayer of thanks for this little green energy ball of life. 

Later, my son had some thoughts that I left as his. "Froggy was in charge of his own life. Right Mom? .....We were not in charge of Froggy." A few hours passed and then a visit to Grandpa and Grandma's. Grandpa Ed said, "Well, Froggy is in froggy heaven now ..." E said, "Well, he has to return to the earth first." 

On the drive back home, I also posed this question, "What can you put in a box? A happy feeling? Giggles? Hunger? I tried to explain the idea of something you can hold or touch versus the intangible. And these happy feelings and giggles are the things that Froggy showed us, even if we don't have him in his little box tonight. 

Froggy was my nocturnal blogging friend. To have shared my space (home heart child) with him was a very special exchange with life indeed. I didn't have to hold him in my hand to love him either.

Along Comes A Dashing Dryer

I don't want to romanticize life without an electric dishwasher too much, but it does have its moments. Often my husband and I wash dishes together the old-fashioned way. I am the washer. He is the dryer. We talk about our day, giggle, bump into each other or can enjoy silence. Sometimes, we'll even dance. For a while he was trying to teach me to Polka and it often transpired while doing dishes to Johnny Cash. 

"Doing dishes", as we say, is not only good for your relationship, it gives your dishes a longer life, uses less water and allows you to opt for an environmentally friendly dish soap. Mrs. Meyer's (from Minnesota!) Lavender Dish Soap is my favorite. No gloves needed. Kids also stay away while washing dishes. They don't want any part of it! 

I use really hot water. In fact I don't fill up the sink with water, I let it run hot on each dish while washing, rinse, then put in the other sink for drying. I don't like the idea of dishes soaking in dirty water. 

Next time you're a little lonely, bored or just need the help, hand over the dish towel, put on some music and have a good time. (I also had a good time washing dishes with my Mom last week - so feel free to experiment wish guest dish-washers.)

What I Didn't Buy

For the moment, I'm turning away from the bucolic pauses of this blog and turning my creative lens to something new - retail. My neighbors may have wondered what I was doing with salads, buttons and other such things on a white board in my front yard, and I suppose the staff of Target was talking on their 2-way radios too. What is that woman with the camera and kid doing? 

 

Just as Target has planned, they bring visual delight into my life by way of stuff that I didn't know I wanted. I am just trying to go grocery shopping after all, and suddenly I'm meandering down the housewares aisle with a cart of melting Breyers ice-cream and warm Tropicana juice. 

Today, the Smith and Hawken outdoor thermometer among many items charmed me. I carted it about for a bit but later stashed it back on the shelf. The week before, I ogled brightly colored linen throw pillows for quite a while. In the cart. Out of the cart. In the cart. Out of the cart.

Target merchandises to women and hey, don't they really do a spectacular job? I have been "putting it back" for a long time, but it's never easy. By the way, I have no regrets about what I didn't buy, but I am still thinking about the thermometer and pillows. I hope they go on sale. (see more of what I didn't buy)

4 Heads

Very exciting around here. Here's my second harvest from our garden - and it is some of the best tasting lettuce I have ever eaten. Four heads picked yesterday. The very small organic starters originally came from Gale Woods Farm. It's fun to wash this lettuce and it's also a good excuse to try out some new salad dressing recipes. Here is one I really enjoyed.

7 Random Things About Me

This one came from Inspirasana.

1. My first bike at 5 years. Used. Big banana seat. 

Fushia all-over.

2. I like getting older, wiser and more authentic.

3. I don't ever want to wear dress pants again.

4. I love red shoes. Always have.

5. Chocolate cake donuts from Wuollet are my 

favorite vegetable.

6. Dream job -- exhibits curator from home office.

7. Collector of antique earrings and jewelry.

OK, my turn to tag someone -- KT, you are officially tagged! Inspirasana, my fun is done.

The Missing Casserole Dish

We live a very wild life here in our small Midwestern suburb so you can imagine the turmoil that a misplaced Le Creuset casserole dish could muster. My kitchen is small and this was very strange! On a whim, and expecting an "I don't know" answer ... I asked my husband Sven (yes, he is very Norwegian) if he knew what happened to my 9 x 12 blue ceramic casserole pan ....?? "Why yes," he said, "it's in the Jeep." 

You see, Sven rises early for his work routine and I don't usually see him before he leaves. Apparently he sneaked this wedding gift out of the house by cover of his Bemidji Woolen Mills flannel vest. But there's more. The winter night before, he'd been at the out-of-neighborhood grocery store buying up Spam, cans of cream of mushroom soup and bags of tater tots. Then he stashed the evidence in the frozen entrails of his Jeep. 

Earlier in the week, he and his is co-conspirator Shep, had plotted to make a casserole in their work's test kitchen bread oven. I am not sure why I got so angry about Sven spending $25 on ingredients with empty nutrition, at a time when our budget was tight, but I did. What else was he keeping from me? Trips to the work vending machine and late-night conversations with decoy buddies?

I told some friends about this a couple of weeks later. It's something you only want your really good ones to know. "You mean he just sneaked out of the house with a casserole pan under his arm ... in the darkness of morning?" Roger asked. "And then he made a hot dish with a co-worker and didn't tell you? Oh golly, he shared it with others too?" said Peggy. I knew Roger and Peggy were right. I overreacted. Thank goodness for level-headed friends and good conversation over a potluck dinner. 

To boot, Sven and Shep received some sharp comments from the boss. Ms. Oberholster said it was a BREAD test kitchen, not a SPAM baking demonstration -- "Our business relies on the simple wholesome goodness and the smell of bread and pastries after all. What were you boys thinkin?" 

Men, dreaming of a hot steamy plate of food for lunch in the middle of winter. I tell ya - it's trouble. The blue casserole pan hasn't been out of the house since.