Summer Winding Down, Where Did It Go?!?

Does it get any better than fresh kale?

Somehow, the summer came into our lives and drew me away from this machine more than ever before.  This is not neccessarily a bad thing, but of course it caused me to reset my priorities for my online time.  I suspect that with more incliment weather, I should have more time to update my thoughts and our lives in here.  So, here's a bit of an overview of our summer.

GARDEN

We had a VERY successful crop of zucchini, which I grew in a large container (ie. tote). I only had 4 plants, and pulled over 30 zucchs out (this number does not include the few that rotted on the plant or otherwise did not grow very well got thrown into the compost).  There may have been more, as I have seen my neighbors eyeballing the plant quite often! LOL!  Other plantings include: Tomatos (large crop of cherries!), cukes (some poor soil problems), fingerling carrots, potatos (small crop), radish (small crop before they all bolted), blueberries, grapes, kiwis and strawberries are just establishing this year, baby watermelons (doing well, not harvesting just yet), green and yellow onions (doing great!), garlic (smallish bulbs but healthy crop), peas (did GREAT! Very prolific!) and herbs (all herbs doing very well and will be put in cold frame for the winter).

FAMILY

We had such a fun summer with the kids. We did some swimming, walking, and adventures. My in-laws came for a visit for 3 weeks, which had (not surprisingly) its ups and downs. The kids had a wonderful time with the in-laws, and I would describe my time with them as "enjoyable" for the most part. I don't do well with passive-aggressiveness, which my mother-in-law seems to excell at. It is part of my inner work to learn how to deal with this better. I usually just pretend I didn't notice it, and then later complain to my husband. You can imagine that this is not a terribly effective method of dealing with it. He's rarely ever able to recognize it for what it is, so therein lies the problem.

CAREER

My home childcare is going well, and I have a chance to do a part-time evening teaching (adult ed) job (but it has not quite materialized yet). I've been doing some online surveys, which occassionally gives me $10-$20/week of extra income.  I am thinking strongly about taking an advanced Spanish class so that I can retake my teacher's exam to get my certification. I forsee that teaching (in one capacity or another) will be in my future for some time to come.

INNER WORK

My inner work has been slow but I do feel I've made some progress.  I find myself less easy to get upset, and easier to calm. I have had some OLD family issues that have come into my life within the last few weeks, and I'll have to explore those another time.

EARTH-CENTERED BELIEF

I have felt very in-tune this summer, and have been taking the time to fully enjoy the nice weather this year. I'm really enjoying the pagan community this year and feel a more included than ever before. I do not fit the "stereotype" as I think I come across as a watered-down, average-joe-in-a-polo-shirt kind of gal. I also do not have the energy that many people do to attend every function that comes down the pike, so that does tend to limit my connections as well...but this year I am definately finding myself more connected!

HOUSE

I have slowly been reorganizing and decluttering my house. It's a slow process, but this year I'm really starting to see it show. Our bedroom is always The Final Frontier (tm), because anything we don't know what to do with goes in there, but the other rooms are certainly showing my efforts. It feels good to get rid of things we don't need or use. We donate whatever we can, which also feels good.

NEW DREAM

My husband and I have a new dream that we've been considering. We'd like to buy a sailboat, learn to sail, and then make some really far-reaching trips.  Naturally, we both have to see how seasick we are first! Next summer we are thinking of chartering a boat to do just that, and to begin taking some lessons on sailing. It's a very exciting dream, and one that I hope we can make a reality!

Overall, it's been a nice summer filled with lots of inner and outer adventures. I'm most proud of my garden, even though it definately had its issues. I learned a lot, which is the important thing. The things I learned will help me to be a better gardener next year, and the year after that, and the year after that!

I hope you've all had a fun summer, and thanks for indulging me as I reflect back on the last couple of months here at our little corner of paradise.