Thankful Thursday

 Grabbing on to the regular Thursday theme over at Frugal Girl of things I am thankful for this week. It's been a busy week, where I often have felt like I'm just not measuring up to all the tasks at hand. But, as I need to remind myself, that doesn't mean it's been a bad week.  There's been lots of good too even if the good is easier to forget right now than the list of haven't done it yets.

This week I am thankful:

*For several sunny mornings.  Waking up to sunshine puts an extra dose of energy in my tank.

*That I went to the podiatrist and had three spots scraped off my feet.  I have a tailor's bunion on one foot, and several calluses that slowly grow to the point they are causing uncomfortable pressure spots when I walk around.  A few years ago my primary care doctor referred me to this podiatrist for removal of a tiny piece of glass that had gotten into the ball of my foot (and caused a callus where the skin grew over/around it), and that was where I learned that problematic calluses can be trimmed very easily in-office. Doesn't even require anesthetizing the foot and I really don't feel the careful cutting out of the callus as the doctor is doing it.  After months of gradually building discomfort from said bunion and calluses, it feels so wonderful to walk out of the podiatrist's office with (three little divots in my feet and) zero pain.  This is an experience I highly recommend: if you have feet with painful hard calluses, and you have insurance, get yourself to a podiatrist!

*All the blooming trees and flowers right now.

*That it's time (weather-wise) to harden off my tomato and pepper plants that have been growing (from seed) in my living room.  The temperatures are right to where I can move the plants out of the house and let them cycle between the front porch (warm daytime) and garage (still chilly night time) for a week, then another week totally out on the porch before planting them in the garden in late May.  It's always nice to disassemble the little greenhouse and get my living room back to order (and unblock the sliding door the greenhouse sits in front of in time for the warm late spring days that make us want more airflow inside the house.)

*That DH was able to bring home DD1 and Honorary Son's mower, diagnose the issues it was having that made it not run, fix those with just a tune-up, and return it to them so that he didn't have to keep running to their house once a week to mow their grass.  He'd tried repairing it in their yard where it originally stalled out, but didn't have all the right tools there despite Buck and Sixlet 'helping' him out.

The Garden Begins

 Well, honestly, the garlic was planted last fall, so my 2026 garden began then.  But, like most people, I forget that detail and typically consider the garden underway when the first spring plants/seeds go in the ground.

So, for me, the garden began this past weekend, when I planted my onion starts.

After many days of traveling, 5 to be exact, the onion plants I'd ordered back in January for late April/early May shipping arrived. I don't quite understand why the USPS considered the Columbus OH to near Lansing MI route to be Columbus to Detroit, then Detroit to a post office literally 14 miles away from my village post office (and 4 miles from the Lansing hub), then from there to the west edge of Michigan, and from the west edge to Lansing--the middle of the state--then from Lansing to a different post office 7.5 miles from my village post office, then finally to my village post office as the best route for plants shipped priority mail--in the postal service's own box for shipping live plants and marked as such, but that's what they did.  Given that Columbus is literally less than a 4 hour drive from me, 5 days in shipping seems rather excessive.  Who am I to know the most time and fuel efficient way to transport packages though?

Anyway, my baby onions had arrived right during a very rainy spell and it was too wet to plant them right away. And then we had forecasts for two nights below freezing in a row.  So the onions, unboxed and spread out so they could breathe (there were some slimy spots in the bunches by the time they arrived from their meandering trip across Michigan), lived on my dining room table for most of a week.

Highlander and Patterson

Red River and Long Day Sampler

As you can tell by the green tops, they were trying to grow towards the sunlight even without being in the ground yet.  Even so, I was a little concerned that they might dry out too much if I wasn't able to plant them soon.

Finally, at the end of the week, the ground had dried up sufficiently, and the low overnight temperatures had risen to a safer for tender plants zone.  So DH re-tilled the spot (which had been prepped for the onions original expected arrival date) in the garden where I planned to grow them this season, and, with that sufficiently weed-free and fluffy, I got the rows staked out and the onions planted.

And then it rained some more, but not terribly, just enough (I hope) to have given the onions a nice drink and get their roots grabbing into the soil and growing.

Books Read in 2026: April

The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett.  This book is HUGE.  Over 1000 pages.  So, while I started reading it at the beginning of the month, I had no illusions that I would actually finish it in April.  Truth was I had several books requested through the library that were all going to be a bit of a wait until my turn, so I figured I would read Pillars of the Earth until a library book come in, then set it down, pick it up again if the next library book requested wasn't ready, etc.  I knew setting it aside wouldn't mean never getting back to it, because I have yet to find a Ken Follett book I didn't like. They all draw me in.  Even through I have set it down for several other books this month as they became available through interlibrary loan, I managed to read more than 500 pages!  That's how much draw it has on my attention.

A Good Animal by Sara Maurer.  I saw a blurb for this new book online in either late February or early March.  It sounded right up my alley, so I looked to see if my local library could get it and then I put in a request for it.  It took about a month before my turn came, and I started reading it the same afternoon I picked it up from the library. Was it right up my alley?  Oh yes, yes it was.  With very few exceptions I connected with this book so hard. Everything in it I could relate to either personally or from observing the people around me through my decades of living in/near mostly rural little towns.  I will most definitely be looking for more novels from this new author.

This Book Made Me Think of You by Libby Page.  I also saw this one online, thought the storyline sounded like a take-off on P.S. I Love You (only with books instead of letters), and really was curious enough to compare the two that I requested it from the library.  Although the premise is the same (as I suspected), the way the story is written around that common idea is different and I very much liked the book and discovering the monthly surprises for the main character as well as how the plot developed throughout.

Judy Blume a Life by Mark Oppenheimer.  As a Judy Blume fan from way back who has (I'm pretty sure) read all of her books, I was very interested in reading her biography.  I put in a request through my local library, and waited for it to be my turn.  At 80ish pages in, I'm slogging along.  I hate to sound negative about one of my long time favorite authors, but this biography is barely keeping my interest so far.  It has been interesting to see where some of the inspirations for her books have come from.  Other than that I'm finding this book to be dry and more like a report than an engaging story.  Will I keep reading?  Probably.  Unless I don't get through it before it's due back to the library.  In which case it will be a DNF forever.

Another New Pasture

 Last Saturday afternoon, while I was at a bridal shower at our church, DH pulled and adjusted the spacing of the gate posts that the latch goes on for pastures 4 & 6 (reason this was needed is mentioned in this post). He also put in the gravel pads at both gates.  And he bought the parts for and installed the remaining jump wires so now all my electric fence tape is live.  He was a productive guy!

On Sunday after church we installed the latches on both of those adjusted posts.

Which meant that now I could move the two mares, the Poetess and the LBM, into a new pasture with better grazing than the one they'd been in.

Of course, with moving to a brand new, never before been in pasture, comes excitement!  And running!

The Poetess ran circles around the perimeter of the pasture for about 3 minutes longer than the LBM did (being as the LBM much prefers eating to running) before settling in to taste the new grass buffet in front of her.

Needless to say, they are very happy with their new pasture.  As am I.  There is a little tweaking of the fenceline common to pasture 3 and pasture 4 to be done yet, then I will be able to say our fencing/pasture project is finally complete.  What a huge thing to be able to cross off our to-do list.

What a Bargain!

 Last weekend I happened to make a very timely and frugal discovery.  My local Tractor Supply had 100 gallon Rubbermaid stock tanks (my through experience very much preferred water trough) on sale for 30% off.  So, rather than being $100 each, they were the low, low price of $70 each! 

Let me tell you, having been looking for a deal on used--but not leaky--water troughs for months and knowing that this exact tank sells used for $75-$90 (or more!) at auction within an hour drive of this little place here, I jumped on this bargain price for brand spanking new tanks!

Now that I have six pastures fenced, and had all ready drug one tank from the now empty pasture 2 into the now in use pasture 5, I had decided last week to invest in at least one more Rubbermaid 100 gallon tank.  Dragging the dang thing, empty, from one pasture to another was a pain in the ass patootie that I didn't care to be repeating every few weeks during the grazing season.

When I discovered that TSC had them for just $70, there was no doubt in my mind that I was most definitely going to buy one.  And when I shared this info with DH, he (enablingly) suggested I just go ahead and get three new ones so that each pasture has its own and I nevermore need to drag a tank from one pasture to another when horses move to new pastures.  I mean, at 30% off, it was practically a Buy 2 Get 1 Free deal.

How could I not?

Loving my new tank-rich status.

Liquid Lunch

At the end of last week, we had a couple of days that hit 80 degrees.  I know for those people who live in southern areas, that's not an unusual April temperature.  But it is in Michigan!  Not only is that unseasonably hot, it also comes with humidity on the high side.  When you are in the mid-50s (and relatively low humidity) one day, then the sun is scorching while the air is moist the next, it's kind of hard on the body.

Often, when its hot and humid (no matter if it's April or a summer month), my appetite for 'heavy' foods--like meat--drops.  Then I have trouble consuming the proper amount of protein in a day.  Since working with a nutritionist again (beginning in late summer 2024), getting the right amount of protein in every meal is something I've learned to try to focus on.

One thing I discovered, is whey (since I have soy sensitivity) protein powder mixed in with milk.  I found a brand of protein powder that I find palatable, that doesn't have soy or artificial sweeteners (soy blows up my gut, artificial sweeteners give me migraines), so I keep a container of that on hand in my pantry.

Now, when it's a hot day and I don't really want to eat, I 'treat' myself to a liquid lunch.  The first time I said Liquid Lunch to someone, they thought I meant alcohol as/with my meal.  Ha!  As someone who doesn't much care for alcohol, I've never understood why people would drink for/at lunch.  It's so not anything I would ever think to do.

So much so that facetious me now has a little laugh everytime I make myself a Liquid Lunch of protein powder and milk.

 

12 oz whole milk to 2 scoops protein powder

whisked until frothy, then poured into a glass

enjoyed out on the deck with a good book

Blackberry Clafouti

 Last spring, I tried a new recipe and made cherry clafouti.  I loved it, DH did not.  So the next time I tried a downsized recipe and thought it was just perfect for me.

At the time, I also wondered if I could substitute other fruits for the cherries and I tried using strawberries in my downsized recipe.  Another success.

Well, this week blackberries were on sale at the grocery store 2 6oz containers for $1.  So, I found myself with lots of blackberries. Because how could I resist 50 cent conatiners of blackberries?  And of course I tried subbing them into the clafouti recipe.

Win!  Yes, blackberries can also be substituted for cherries in that recipe.  Plus, you can also sprinkle powdered sugar on top when you take them out of the oven.  Was it lunch?  Was it dessert?  It was a healthy dessert for lunch on that day, LOL.