Winter Update

This winter has been a busy one for our family.  We've gone on some adventures (camping and one-day trips), passed around a few illnesses (flu-A, walking pneumonia just to name a few), and are generally ready for spring.  A few quick pictures from the last few months:

Thanksgiving was wonderful - enjoyed the family time and took lots of pictures.  We enjoy this lake.

Christmas concerts for all of us -- I think we played in 4 concerts between me and the kids.  But we love playing with our bands.

Of course horses were involved.  A horse show and lots of lessons.  I think they kind of like each other.  She earned an end of year award from Houston Dressage Society as well -- nice recognition to end a tough year of riding (she's been growing way too fast).

She and I also took a quick girls trip to Texas A&M to check out one of their hunter shows in their new equestrian complex.  It was a really nice facility - hoping she gets to be involved in some capacity with the team while she (hopefully) attends A&M in a few years.  For us it was a very educational experience - nothing like what we are used to for shows.   (A&M won against New Mexico)

And believe it or not - we camped a little.  The dogs kind of show you what we did a lot of -- nothing.... it was cold, rained a lot more than was forecasted and we had several things go wrong with the camper.  But knowing we will also have an adventure - we just chalked it up to our typical family fun; still managed to do a little hiking and see a few deer.  We've since decided we aren't winter camping people.

One last note - My personal essay (about winter) was fortunate to be included in the Shutter Sisters online publication of X: Our Collective.  You can find them (and my essay) here.  

Looking forward to spring, but grateful we are not dealing with what the northern US has been dealing with during the past month.  Although this morning we did have some sleet - sounded like someone was throwing rocks at the door.  

Spring Cleaning in January

The calendar says January, but the temperature outside is in the mid-70s today and I probably should be outside enjoying the mild weather. In my region, we don't get snow, so no beautiful snowy scenes - we usually get some rain (which we need) and mud, sometimes cold freezing rain and mud - winter is not our best season (I'm sure this statement could be up for debate) - except that we do have days in the mid-70s.

There have been several free organizing ebooks available to download from Barnes and Noble lately and I have downloaded them all - inspiring me to do a bit of spring cleaning.  So with the air conditioner on in January, I am still breaking a sweat going through the pantry and the utility room; deciding what we can do without & what we really need to keep.  I have hopes that 2012 is my year to finally get it all together, decluttered, organized, & able to keep on top of my family's life (ha ha).  How are you spending your January days?  Personally I cannot wait to be able to go outside and see wildflowers like the ones pictured above in person instead of just reviewing them on my computer.

Lemons in Winter

One thing on my to-do list, during my day of domestic duties, was to hopefully pick lemons from our Meyer Lemon tree.  Sadly they still aren't quite ready - they are so beautifully yellow & smell so good - cannot wait to juice them & turn them into lemon bars (one of my favorites).  We may not have the beautiful winter scenes with snow & mountains, etc., but we are able to have lemons in winter (along with limes (hopefully my next tree to plant) and mandarin oranges (new tree still looks sad)).  I guess I could call them organic as well since I don't do anything to help them - no pesticides, no special fertilizer, etc - the tree survives on its own. 

My lemon bar recipe is very basic - just can't mess with the natural sweetness of the lemon... I'll share it if anyone is interested.  Anyone else growing something ymmy this winter?