So what have I been up to? Wow ... where do I start??
Well, I've been to the mall. Yep - I said that mall. When my Dad was was moved to the hospital and then the hospice in February, most of my spare time was spent at the hospice, and there were some weeks where I barely even got our grocery shopping done. I hadn't been to St Vital in eons, and I wasn't even sure I knew how to get to Polo Park anymore! Turns out, they're both still in their original locations, and they both welcomed me with open arms :) I engaged in some much needed retail therapy, and got some great deals along the way.
I've done some crafting, mostly jewelry and cards. Let this be a hint to anyone who crafts out there - your craft just isn't complete unless you have glitter on it!! Trust me.
I've done some reading and have a few different books on the go:
"The Slap", which is a book about a guy who slaps a child who is not his own at a BBQ and the ensuing fall-out from 8 different peoples' perspectives. I have to say, when I first started it, I was LOST with 8 people at a BBQ all being introduced within just a couple of pages, but the style is very Grapes of Wrath-ish, and I'm quite enjoying it.
I'm also reading "This is not a book - Adventures in Popular Philosophy" which is a very high-level overview of the four branches of philosophy and the philosophers whose work has influenced thinking in that area. Similar in style, I'm also reading "This book has feelings - adventures in the philosophy and psychology of your mind". Fortunately the chapters are short in those two books, so things don't get too heavy.
I'm also reading Tina Fey's autobiography "Bossypants". It's not bad, certainly way better than Peter Russell's autobiography, but for someone I find quite entertaining and humorous, I find her autobio a little on the boring side.
And of course I ALWAYS have room on my nightstand for a cookbook or two, or three, or four ...
I went to the library for the first time in forever and found volume 1 and 2 of a book called "The Cake Mix Doctor". As a die-hard cook and baker, I'm always looking to expand my circle of willing guinea pigs to try my latest creation, and The Cake Mix Doctor is comprised of recipes that use cake mix as the base. As I blog, I'm baking a Marbled Spice bundt cake for Romeo to take to daycare tomorrow. Correction - Romeo is baking it, he always does. I've never made it before and won't get a chance to try it, so I'll have to rely on our girls at the daycare to give me their honest feedback.
Lastly, I planted a garden. Yes, you read it right - I. Planted. A. Garden. There's probably nothing I hate more than gardening, and had all but given up on EVER trying to plant a garden again after the yearly disasters I've created, but one of the girls I work with mentioned "square-foot gardening" and after she explained it to me, I was inspired to try it one more time.
The concept of square-foot gardening is that you plant your vegetables in 1 sqaure-foot "plots", usually in a raised box, no more than 4'x4'. Unlike traditional gardening, which grows stuff in rows, square-foot gardening has everything planted in square-foot plots right next to each other, virtually eliminating weeding, and creates an ultra-efficient garden (no wasted water, no wasted fertilizer etc) Although the photo below is not my OWN garden, you'll get the idea from the photo.
I was on vacation the week of May 23rd and with a little help (ok, a LOT of help), I got my garden weeded, tilled, constructed, and planted. I went out to water the garden a few nights ago and was pleasantly surprised to see the beginnings of the radishes I planted! I'm so excited!! I ended up with 20 square-feet of plantable area, in a 48 square-foot frame. Apart from radishes, I also planted strawberries, rosemary, cilantro, two types of basil, two types of tomatoes, onions, garlic, two red and golden beets, swiss chard, eggplants, peppers and carrots. Because of the nature of square-foot gardening, you don't end up with tons and tons of food that you need to give away, so it helps to cut down on food that goes to waste. Once the garden is up and running, I'll post some pics of my actual garden.
I've also started going to hot yoga again, and I'm reminded just how much I missed it. I'm also reminded how out of shape I am, but yoga is so forgiving, and I have already noticed a difference in just 1 week.
On a personal front, things are going better than expected (I think?). I think of my Dad often, and am occasionally reminded that he's not here anymore and that I can't just pick up the phone and talk to him anymore. My Dad was a great singer, and was always singing, and now I wish that we had taped him singing so I could listen to it now. Oh well ....
My Mom has finally decided to live with my sister here in Winnipeg on a permanent basis. At first, I had reservations about it for many reasons, but my sister says things are working out well for now, and although it's an adjustment for everyone, I do hope that in the long-run, things will work out for the best. My Mom living with my sister is somewhat conditional on my Mom enrolling herself in extracurricular activities to keep her on-the-go, and she seems to agree with that notion. My Mom will be going out West in July/August for about one month to visit my other sister in Calgary and my niece in Edmonton.
So that's it in a very summarized nut-shell.
Sorry for the extended hiatus, everyone, but I think it's what I needed.
I will update again soon, maybe with photos of my new garden? :) Wish me luck!!
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