random things

Sometimes its hard to swallow the inherent narcissism behind actually bothering to write anything here.  I am swayed toward doing it mostly because of my beautiful friend Elizabeth who writes so thoughtfully and honestly about her family and her faith.  My first reaction to reading her blog was thinking that she was incredibly brave.  And I want to be brave.  Not cynical. 

Besides my friends and some random extended family I have no idea who reads this, although people do.  I can see the number of viewers and the countries they're viewing from and it never fails to perplex.  I can't help but wonder about who is reading this stuff and why.  More specifically I wonder WHO IN POLAND IS READING THIS?!?!  [edit: no one in Poland is reading this, thanks nerds for educating me on Eastern European spambots]  Not that it matters.  I can appreciate all things random and foreign as much as the next person.  Do people in Poland go out in the dark to shovel snow when it is still snowing?  I'm just curious.  Because my neighbors here in Iowa do, and I can't explain it.  They're going to have shovel again in the morning, right?  I'm feeling a little self-conscious about my snow-covered sidewalk, but I'm not about to shovel it TWICE in twenty four hours, especially on a weekend.  The mail carrier isn't even coming tomorrow!  Hey, maybe the neighbors are just really excited about the first snow of the season and being able to use their new shovel!  I'm going to keep telling myself that and try to feel better. 

Random enough?

If not, here's some more random stuff..

Tristan with a GIANT PUFFBALL MUSHROOM!!

One year we found a giant puffball mushroom whilst hiking through Moorehead Park.  The giant puffball, Calvatia gigantea, is an edible mushroom before its spores have formed and its interior is still firm and white.  Unfortunately this one was just slightly too mature to consume, but that didn't stop us from feeling amazed and enamored of it and nature in general!  If it had been just days earlier we could have sliced this baby up and grilled it and really been in mycophile heaven.

At our house we are cheap and we recycle.  You can't see it in the above photos, but just out of view is a set of metal drawers that serve as Tristan's "craft bins".  In them is all manner of crap that I'd really prefer to compost or throw away, but since I've tried hard (and succeeded) to instill in him a concern for the Earth and an appreciation of found things, I can't possibly do something as heinous as composting an egg carton or throwing away ribbon or stickers or stamps.  Or actually allow the county to recycle boxes for me.  No, Tristan laid claim to this box and made it his "boat".  I don't remember what year this was, but his bedroom hasn't looked that way for ages (and by "that way" I mean clean), and I was only recently allowed to finally properly recycle his "boat".  Complete with crossing shoulder straps it was really something to behold.  And trip over.  The above photos document only the premier incarnation of the "boat", there were many renovations to follow.  But here it is in all its initial glory, in Tristan's adorable and cheaply decorated room.  (Ignore the Pottery Barn luggage, it is an ANOMALY.)

We do a little stargazing.  We pay attention to the phases of the moon and dabble in biodynamic gardening.  This November's Beaver Moon(!) was particularly beautiful here.  There is a cemetery on a hill east of our little town that we like to view the moon from, but I have yet to get a good picture of the moon, or anything else for that matter, at night.  I just don't have the equipment or skill to take photos of anything in the dark, but that doesn't stop me from trying.  I like the above shots for what they are (besides amateurish and out of focus) but curse the fact that they do no justice to how beautiful the evening really was.  The memories I have of standing on that hill with my son are some of the most precious to me, and I will miss this tradition tremendously.

Speaking of beavers, check out this awesome documentary about beavers and their amazing work creating healthy ecosystems!

And speaking of taking pictures in the dark, I found a couple of our vegetable garden taken in the twilight of probably late May 2013.  The composite edging (which was fun and easy to install with Tristan a couple years before) has since been replaced with concrete edgers and pavers, though they'll soon be excavated and sold.  This space has been so much fun for us to play in and grow all manner of flowers and veggies in, despite the slope and unrelenting full sun..

 

I coached soccer for two years (yes, I really did, in 2012 and 2013).  Most of these kids were on my team both years...

I don't miss the soccer (I hate competitive sports in general), but I miss the kids.  I still see most of them semi-regularly, but eventually I won't, and neither will Tristan.

And because now I'm in a contemplative mood...

The Colorado River and Tristan's reflection