Okra Seed Saving

Saving okra seeds is as simple as letting an okra pod grow until it begins to dry on the plant, breaking it open and pouring out the seeds. Seeds that are ready are greenish-black and hard. Seeds that are not ready are soft and white. However, if you are growing more than one kind or have neighbors that are growing a different breed, cross-pollination is very likely. Cross-pollination can lead to pods whose seeds won't be the same as the parent plant. So if you have a fun variety like my red okra that you want keep true, you must keep the bugs out. I was reading that the minimum distance between okra crops to prevent cross-pollination is about a mile.

Both of my neighbors grow okra, and I grew two breeds this summer. Just this morning I watched as one plump bumblebee flew from a flower on my red okra to a flower on my green okra before making his way over to my neighbor's yard. I had already saved and packaged seeds before I learned this important information, so I started the process over with hand-pollination.

1. I isolated flowers that were about to open with cut up pantyhose.
2. As those opened, I used a small paintbrush and swiveled it around in the flower to move pollen from the stamen to the stigma.
3. I recovered the flowers with the pantyhose and tied them off with twine.
4. Once the flower was closed, I removed the pantyhose and tied the twine to the base of the flower to mark the pod so I would not harvest it for eating.

This morning I went out around 8:00a and the flowers were just beginning to open. They really are beautiful flowers.

The Walk of Shame

This morning I went to the farmer's market to buy the things that I tried to grow. Yes, this is probably a gardener's greatest walk of shame. However, for $20 I came out with 6 lbs of peaches, 7 ears of silver queen, a pint of blueberries, three squash, two zucchini, and four sweet potatoes. Twenty dollars would not have covered my water bill to grow all of that successfully.

Backing up a bit, I first went to school to drop off my time sheet. I had planned on carrying Matthew and letting Daniel walk, but when I went to unload the boys, neither had shoes. Whoops. So I carried both boys across the parking lot and let Daniel walk barefoot once inside. This was just more evidence that whatever was left of my brain after having Daniel is now fully gone. Fortunately, I had packed a borrowed Moby Wrap, so I was able to push Daniel in the stroller once we got the market.

I'm still deciding if I like the Moby. The benefits are that it is soft, holds the baby close, isn't too hot, and is a very simple design - just one very long piece of stretchy fabric. Matthew seems to have no complaints (see the post-shopper's satisfied look), but I found putting the wrap on in the parking lot to be a chore because the material is so long that it drags on the ground (I tried to let the excess drape into the car). I I think I'm not wearing it right yet, because Matthew started up at my chest and ended up at my bellybutton by the time I was done shopping... and that was with adjusting it once or twice. I saw a really cute carrier at church on Sunday that I would purchase had I the cash, but I might attempt to sew one if I get really brave.

But back to gardening. It seems some people I know grew amazing crops this summer, and some grew not so amazing crops. The former all have very sunny growing conditions, the latter have a decent bit of shade. Next summer the tomatoes will be moved to this year's corn plot, which is the sunniest spot in the yard. Though I may have taken the walk of shame and likely will many times again, I'm not giving up on urban gardening just yet, but a relocation to the countryside might boost my confidence.

It's a Battlefield

This could be a miscalculation, but I think I've posted more pictures of pests than produce this summer. Since I'm on a roll, here's a few more.

How do you know if your cantaloupes are ripe? Well it seems that the wild critters have an uncanny ability to know, and I'm guessing they don't have to tap the melons to tell. I lost two cantaloupes earlier this week and then put out deer and bird netting on the remaining two.

The next morning, something had attempted to pull back the netting to finish up it's work on the canta-carcus from the night before. The bugs were feasting on the remains the next morning.

Fortunately, one of the remaining two mellons was ripe at the end of yesterday and it now on my kitchen table waiting to be sliced into.

Cucumber beetles have been busy munching on the remaining lettuce stalks.

Finally and most exciting is a yellow jacket nest I discovered after church. I went out in the 127 degree heat to water the charred remains of my two blueberry bushes and saw a hole in the ground. On further inspection I saw a yellow jacket fly into the hole. A smart person would have left it alone, but I shot the nest with a jet of water from about twenty feet away. I wasn't wearing my glasses, but it looked like there was a hot vapor around the hole. Really it was a swarm. Whoops. Joe who is highly allergic to bees decided he needed to take some pictures because at the time we didn't know if they were bees or yellow jackets. Thanks to a 15x optical zoom, he was able to stand six feet away (not far enough in my opinion) and get some great shots in series. He's now researching (googling) all these creative ways to get rid of the nest (dead fish over a bucket of water in a hanging tee-pee, anyone?). While we like that yellow jackets help control mosquitoes, an angry nest in the yard just isn't safe for a toddler.

Ugly Tomato

If you wanna be happy for the rest of your life, never make pretty tomatoes your strife. So from my personal point of view, let ugly tomatoes grow for you!


I just ate a really ugly tomato that tasted AMAZING! Based on the flavor and its inside appearance, I think this was a "Red Kiss of Summer" that came from the harvested seeds of a different tomato. Last summer I had labeled one tomato as red and one as pink but suspected they were the same variety - just from different plants. It's fascinating how different individual tomatoes of the same breed can look in size and shape, even those off the same plant.

As for the ugly appearance of this fine fellow, the location of the plant is probably at fault. He was growing at the base of the deck which doesn't get much afternoon sun as it is on east side of the house. The healed over cracking is likely caused by irregular watering early in its growth. I've saved some seeds for next summer!

Living with Daniel

One of the many joys of living with Daniel is when he interjects himself into conversations I have with Joe. The other morning after another long night of much milk slurping and little sleep, I was perched on Joe's lap... okay, perched makes me sound like a blond waif of a sunny yet restrained 1950's woman and in reality I am tall, broad shouldered brunette who is quite headstrong and "perches" nowhere ... I was goofily sprawled across Joe's lap, chest, arms, etc as he sat in the glider that has become "Daddy's chair" rather than the breastfeeding chair as intended upon purchase, when Joe looked at me and asked, "How is it that you are so perky and have so much energy?" "Don't you know? I'm magic!" to which Daniel chimes in with a big grin, "Daniel is magic!" We both laughed and I replied, "Yes, Daniel is magic!"

Daniel interjects himself into conversation so often that we occasionally have to request that he cease and desist. He is nothing if not persistent, as I assume most two-year-olds are, and often he will yell something like "APPLESAUCE!" at the top of his lungs in the middle of dinner conversation until one of us finally jumps up to get it for him - even if he has been asked to wait. We're working on manners with him, but patience and "not now but later" or "in just a minute" are concepts he seems to get but doesn't approve of... such as when we went to Lowes and he wanted to play on the riding mowers on the sidewalk but it was raining and I suggested we go to the indoor display.

Last night I awoke at 2:40 am to Daniel yelling, "Toothbrush! Hammer!" Daniel rarely ever gets up in the middle of the night, or at least he stays quiet if he does. I then had to go dig in his bed sheets for his foam, promotional "Home Depot" hammer and fetch one of his five toothbrushes from the sink. Yes, Daniel has five toothbrushes. When your kid likes to sleep with a toothbrush, you need several backups. Fortunately, Matthew was up soon after to nurse, so my small window of sleep wasn't totally blown to pieces. However, Daniel thought it was time to sing, so I had Matthew sleep in the bassinet in my room and put in earplugs. It is now 8:00 am and both boys are sleeping. Daniel must have worn himself out with his middle of the night tooth-brushing, singing and only God knows what he was hammering.

Fall Gardening

Remember how last year I made a big hoopla about fall gardening? Well I missed the planting dates for most things other than broccoli and garlic, my spinach refused to sprout, and then bugs ate up all my broccoli. I am determined that this fall will be better, but first I must go ahead and clear some space!

Here are some fall planting dates for North Carolina, taken straight from this leaflet provided by NC Cooperative Extension Services. I've highlighted those I am considering planting (garlic should be included on that list). I am giving broccoli another go, but I will be applying Sevin®. Surprisingly pumpkins and winter squash were not included on this list. I believe the cutoff date was July 15, but at the risk of disease from cooler weather, you can stretch that out later.

Vegetables	Suggested Planting1	Suggested Cultivars
Asparagus (crowns)	Nov. 15–Mar. 15	Mary Washington, Jersey Giant, Jersey Gem
Beets	July 15–Aug. 15	Ruby Queen, Early Wonder, Red Ace, Pacemaker II
Broccoli	July 15–Aug. 15	DeCicco, Packman, Premium Crop, Green Duke, Emperor
Brussels sprouts	July 1–15	Long Island Improved, Jade Cross Hybrid
Cabbage (plants)	Aug 1–15	Round Dutch, Early Jersey Wakefield, Red Express, Red Rookie, Sweetbase
Cabbage, Chinese	Aug. 1–15	Pak Choi, Mei Ching, Jade Pagoda, China Pride
Carrots	July 1–15	Danvers Half Long, Spartan Bonus, Little Finger, Thumbelina, Scarlet Nantes
Cauliflower	Aug 1–15	Early Snowball “A”, Violet Queen, Snowcrown
Collards	July 15–Aug. 15	Vates, Morris’ Improved Heading, Carolina, Blue Max
Cucumbers, pickling	Aug. 1–15	Carolina, Calypso, Liberty (mtns.), County Fair ’83
Cucumbers, slicing	Aug. 1–15	Poinsett 76, Sweet Slice, County Fair ’83, Salad Bush, Fanfare
Kale	Aug. 15–Sept. 1	Green Curled Scotch, Early Siberian, Vates, Dwarf Blue Curled Scotch, Blue Knight
Kohlrabi	Aug. 1–Sept. 1	White Vienna, Grand Duke Hybrid
Lettuce (leaf)	Aug. 1–Sept. 1	Grand Rapids, Salad Bowl, Buttercrunch, Red Sails, Romulus
Lettuce (head)	Aug. 15–31	Great Lakes, Ithaca
Mustard	Aug. 1–Sept. 15	Southern Giant Curled, Tendergreen, Savannah
Onions (seeds)	Sept. 1–30	Texas 1015, Granex 33, Candy
Onions (sets or plants)	Sept. 1–15	Ebenezer, Excell, Early Grano
Radishes	Aug. 15–Sept. 15	Early Scarlet Globe, Cherry Belle, Snowbells, White Icicle
Radish, Diakon	Aug. 15–Sept. 15	April Cross, H. N. Cross
Rutabagas	July 1–Aug. 1	American Purple Top, Laurentian
Spinach	Aug. 1–15	Hybrid 7, Dark Green Bloomsdale, Tyee Hybrid
Turnips	Aug. 1–31	Purple Top White Globe, Just Right, Tokyo Cross Hybrid, White Egg, All Top

1 Dates shown are for the upper coastal plain and lower piedmont. In western North Carolina plant 7 to 10 days earlier. In eastern North Carolina plant 7 to 10 days later.

Bugs on the Okra (Pics)

Ants are harvesting my okra blossoms and pods... as in they destroy anything that attempts to grow. Those few pods that do escape their fiery feast grow all gnarled and curvy. Tomorrow I will be sprinkling a dash of powdery death upon them. I have no idea what that flying insect in the top picture is, but I was impressed that my camera gave me such a crisp image. Who knew bugs were that hairy?

Brandywine Sudduth Strain

I'd read wonderful things about Brandywines, one of the few heirlooms that places like Lowes and Home Depot carry every year. I picked up a seed packet of the Sudduth Strain (the original pink strain) at Logan's. I eagerly planted four sprouts in the back garden in a row with Aunt Ruby's German Green. These plants were very slow to take off, likely because of the morning shade and negligent watering in the spring. The blossoms have finally set fruit, and while the bushes aren't producing heavily, the tomatoes have been large. This week I picked my first ripe one. I read that they need trellises to get even ripening and prevent rotting, and those seemed to help shore up the plants branches as the fruits have been growing heavier.


I had high expectations of this very popular tomato, and while I hate writing anything negative about it, I have to concede that it isn't my favorite. Comparing my notes to the reviews on Dave's Garden, I agree with the descriptors: acidic, mildly sweet, large, juicy, meaty, salty. Someone even called it "the king of all tomatoes." Here's the deal, this one would be excellent on a burger, sandwich or a salad, but as for eating on it's own and as for the cheddar cheese test, it was a little too much of a punch to the taste buds for me. I prefer a milder flavor. However, it is a beautiful pink tomato with excellent texture and consistency. If you like a tangier flavor, this one is definitely for you. I will probably grow it again next summer - just not four bushes.

I pulled out three of my varieties for a photo op and so that I'd have a comparison shot for later identification in the case I forget where I plant each variety. The Red Kiss isn't fully ripe and looks a little orange here, but the pinkness of the Brandywine definitely shows. The size difference is fairly representative of each, although I've noticed that my first wave of ripe tomatoes is much larger than those that come later in the season.

He Said, She Said

Daniel: Super Why Daniel!

me: Are you Super Why?

Daniel: Noooooo...

me: Are you Super Daniel?

Daniel: No! Daniel is Princess Pea (hysterical laughter)

And She Stomped Her Terrible Feet and Gnashed Her Terrible Teeth

I noticed that the stand of corn at the corner of the Governor's Mansion property on Person and Jones is still green and lush. I think they have a whole team of people to ensure it stays healthy and the "Plant a Row for the Hungry" sign stays clean and straight. Seeing that only fueled my fire as I laid to waste the rest of my bug infested crunchy crop. We did have a friend offer his machete, but stomping the stalks was surprisingly gratifying. Joe still whacked at them with a fallen tree branch. My initial thought was, "I bet the people who make crop circles have a lot of fun." I'm not sure we will plant corn in the yard again because it takes up so much room per ear and we aren't really interested in using the pesticides needed to ensure we get the most out of the space. I'll buy at the Farmer's Market next time! I must take my losses in stride and realize this is all about learning how to garden and knowing my limits. Were I not very pregnant during the critical time to be watering, I might have grown a stronger crop and picked the corn before the bugs filled their tummies. It wasn't a total loss as Daniel really enjoyed watching it grow and running down the rows. He actually cried big ole tears when he saw us knocking them all over. Hopefully the small plot of okra next to it will now get more morning sun.

Speaking of okra, one of my favorite summer sides is fried okra. Mom perfected the art of making each piece perfectly crispy but not overdone. Joe and I haven't quite accomplished this yet, but I still very much enjoyed eating it last night. I'm growing two kinds of okra: red and green... sorry I don't have their specific names on hand. The red okra makes fatter pods and cooks up green. The green okra makes thin pods that I have to pick when they are only three inches or else they quickly turn woody. I had two types of seeds, one that grew 3" pods and one that grew 9" pods. I believe these are the nine-inchers, but nine inches of wood isn't as delectable as three inches of edible. We had to compost much of what I harvested because they were too far gone. I now know I need to harvest a little every day or two. To prepare the fried okra, I mix up about a cup of flour and cornmeal in a tupperware, cut up the okra into 1/4" slices, dump it in the tupperware, close the lid and shake. I fry it in canola oil until crispy, let it drain on a paper towel, and add salt to taste.


Yesterday I spent some time pruning my herb garden by the deck. It started when I decided to lop off all the flowers from the sweet fennel because I was tired of wasps being so close to where Daniel plays. This plant was only supposed to grow to 4', but it easily topped 8'. When the plant dies back, I will attempt to dig it out and relocate it to the front where it won't be shading out tomatoes and the other herb plants. I also hacked deeply into the oregano, rosemary and lavender to encourage them to bush out. These are best pruned in early summer after they have blossomed. If they are pruned too late in the season, the are likely to be damaged by frost (I have evidence of this in the front herb garden). They are also best pruned when they are young or else cutting into the woody sections could lead to permanent damage as well.

Wearing Thin

Be warned: this is one of my "Did I hear a waaah?" posts. I can't help it. It's just spilling over. Come back tomorrow if you don't want to hear it.

Joe has been home this week and you'd think with the amount of weight he's pulling around here I'd have nothing to complain about. I probably don't have anything to complain about, but I'm going to do it anyway, go have a good cry, and get it out of my system. Since I'm part washed up never has-been engineer, I'll do this in list form.

1. I bought tons of Huggies Little Snugglers diapers. I'm friggin' tired of having to change Matthew's diapers, clothes, and bed sheets in the middle of the night because of leaks. He's feeding every 2 hours, and 2 hours should not warrant such leakage. The newborns leak out the tops, and the size 1's leak out the legs. I've been doubling up the newborns with a size 1 Luvs, and that helps but not fully. I stocked up on these stupid nappies in bulk quantity so I wouldn't have to go out for diapers for a month or so, but it looks like I'll be heading to Walmart to see if they will let me exchange the unopened ones for another brand.

2. Daniel whines a lot. A WHOLE LOT. Non-stop. (Go ahead and make some jab like "I wonder where he gets that from, eh eh?")

3. Matthew wants to nurse every two hours at night. Do you have any idea what that can do to a person's health and morale? Try only sleeping 1.5 hours at a time max. Now go do that on a hormonal roller coaster. Now go do that by waking up every 1.5 hours to angry cries and a little mouth of a baby who furiously wants to suck the very life out of you and then blows up his pants and falls asleep in the middle of eating so that he never fills up and thus gets hungry two hours later. Don't worry, he gets tons of kisses and love from me.

4. Bugs ate all my corn. We had two good ears. I believe that makes them $20 a piece. Today we will unleash relentless aggression on the remaining stalks. I plan on wearing boots and doing a lot of stomping. Joe wanted to go buy a machete. I think a machete in the hands of a postpartum lunatic is a very bad idea.

That's about all the "waaah" I think you kind friends can handle right now without thinking I've totally fallen off my rocker. I'll leave you with a picture of a wasp on sweet fennel so this blog entry includes some visual stimulation.

Red Kiss of Summer Tomato

Yes, I just made up a name for a tomato. In all fairness, I had no way of truly knowing what breed it is since it is a second generation plant from a 2009 Burpee's packet of Heirloom Rainbow Blend that is no longer offered. Initially I assumed it was Omar's Lebanese, but the OL seeds I purchased on ebay resulted in something completely different and disappointing. Could the vendor have sent me something other than OL? It's possible that happened or that his strain grown in Ohio doesn't have good results in Raleigh, NC. If Omar in Ohio is spot on with his breed, I could be looking at the Dutchman, which is actually pink. Pink/red... what do I know?


Anyhow, from here on out we shall refer to this tomato simply as "Red Kiss". I picked this one just a little early and allowed it to ripen in the window sill for a couple days. I sliced it open and completely forgot to take a cross-section snapshot before I started to devour it. This was the flavor I have been dreaming about through the winter and waiting impatiently on all Spring. It is a large fleshy beefsteak with low acidity, high spice and sweetness and a flavor that you wish would linger on your lips a little longer. The skin wasn't too crunchy and the fruit produced relatively few seeds. Best of all: it was amazing with sharp cheddar! I'm almost tempted to only grow this tomato. Ever.

Six Years

Sunday Joe and I watched our six year anniversary saunter on by as we spent our day entertaining a toddler and learning how to keep a two-and-a-half week old baby happy. At one point we were in the bathroom getting ready for naps and Daniel was running around being his usual raucous self and I had a temporary moment of being overwhelmed by a house of xy chromosomes and underwhelmed by the day's level of romance and commemoration of the significance of the date, and I couldn't help but exclaim, "This is not what I imagined six years ago!" Daniel looked up at me in surprise as if to say, "Well I didn't get here by accident..." and I couldn't help but laugh. Nope, I wouldn't change any of it.

We ended up going to Lake Johnson to feed the ducks. We drove both the truck and the Jeep because Daniel had been asking to ride in "Daddy's tan truck" for several days. On the way we stopped for bagels and had a nice little picnic breakfast at the lake. In my entire time of living in Raleigh and visiting Lake Johnson, I have never seen the ducks so hungry or demanding. At one point, we were totally surrounded by ducks and geese and poor little Daniel who came about eye to beak with the tallest of the geese was nearly terrorized by the squawking and stalking. We retreated to a picnic table where Daniel launched entire slices of bread at a time. Finally, Daniel and Joe went on the offensive and ran at the fowl creatures scattering them in every direction.

The past two weeks I've been fighting my inner demons - you know the ones. They scream "We want to go to the beeaach! NOW!" They only get louder when everyone you know seems to be taking trips themselves and you are grounded in the city because you literally have someone attached to your side (read boob) 24-7 who probably wouldn't enjoy the long ride, wind and heat. We will wait until the end of the summer and assess our sanity level and travelability. We partly quelled those inner yawpings with a trip to our community pool yesterday. Matthew slept in the carrier in the shade the whole time while we ruled the kiddie pool and took turns watching the baby and playing with Daniel in the big pool. And we had Bojangles. That was lovely.

What Is Biting My Boy??

Something is biting or stinging Daniel. Last week it was his ankle and today it was the back of his upper thigh. Two weeks ago it was a very large blister that ended up having a stinger in the middle. The common thread between the most recent two is that there was a good bit of swelling, a lot of itching, multiple bumps, and absolutely no complaint of an initial bite. They seemed to both happen in his sleep as we first noticed them first thing in the morning (on the ankle) or after his nap (on the thigh).

This is the rash on his thigh. Mom thinks it looks like hives, but he hasn't eaten anything abnormal today. I gave him a dose of children's benadryl and spread on some extra strength benadryl cream, and two hours later the only evidence of the rash was a tiny bit of redness.

This afternoon, Joe and I carefully inspected Daniel's room. Joe found this crazy cobweb-nest combination in Daniel's window which was slightly cracked open.

I found this spider jumping around on Daniel's curtain



Joe pulled out my toy microscope from childhood which we use once every two years, and we've been trying to id this little guy. His size and jumpiness made me think it was a jumping spider. Jumping spiders aren't harmful to humans unless they have an allergy to spider venom, although one site said they can cause irritation and swelling. Then I found this CRAZY video.



And finally, Joe insisted I included this picture from Wikipedia.

Strawberry Trouble Shooting

Last Spring I purchased about 9 Quinault everbearing strawberry crowns, planted them in the back gardens and then moved them beside the deck at the end of the summer so we could till up the back. As with just about everything I garden, I knew nothing about strawberries when I started growing them, so I've been learning as I go.

Over the past week or two, I've been pretty excited that my strawberries are generating runners - meaning I will be getting new daughter plants. Each runner is forming two new crowns that can be pruned from the main plant and relocated once rooted. I've noticed two problems during this new phase. First, my new wave of strawberries are tiny. Unfortunately, everbearing strawberries aren't supposed to produce many runners, and these should be pruned to preserve as many nutrients for the fruit as it develops. Whoops. I'm a little late on the pruning, so this year I'm going to just allow the runners to do their thing.

The second problem is that the older leaves on my plants are getting brown spots that eventually spread and cause the leaves to die. Comparing these spots to pictures provided by online resources, I know I have a type of fungus, and I think I've narrowed it down to strawberry leaf blight. Leaf scorch and blotch are other possibilities.

From NCCES:
"Leaf blight (Dendrophoma obscurans) occurs on older strawberry leaves, and is more severe on red stele resistant cultivars. Spots are large, 1/2-1 inch in diameter, circular to oval in shape. Young spots are reddish-purple, enlarge with age and develop a brown center bordered by a purple zone. Small black fungal fruiting structures may be observed in the center of the spot. Lesions may also develop on runners of susceptible cultivars. This disease has been common for several years on red stele resistant cultivars."

Other online sources encouraged removal of infected and old leaves (water can splash off the diseased leafs and spread the fungus to new leaves), so yesterday evening I spent some time pruning and attempting to clean out the old leaf debris that was likely holding in extra moisture and preventing good air circulation which can lead to the spread of diseases. These plants are supposed to have 18" spacing, and it appears that some of my crowns have already multiplied (sneaky little things) causing the bed to already be over crowded. This fall I will be thinning the bed!

Helpful Resources:
Strawberry Diseases and Their Control - NCCES, NC State University
Diagnosis of Strawberry Diseases - NCCES, NC State University
Strawberry Leaf Diseases - Ohio State University
Strawberry Leaf Diseases - Integrated Pest Management, University of Illinois

Aunt Ruby's German Green

Last summer, my tomatoes seemed to explode all at once, but this year's crop is slowly trickling in. While this isn't ideal for canning homemade pizza sauce, I'm going use it as a chance to enjoy the peculiarities of each breed and take time to document my observations for better planning in the future.



Aunt Ruby's German Green is a tomato which I wrote off last year as being a little too strange for me but was one of my brother's favorites. I harvested seeds last summer and went ahead and planted two sprouts to keep the breed going in my yard, and one other sprout popped up on its own and was allowed to grow (I didn't know what type it would be until a week ago). Ironically, it has been the most vigorous and productive breed so far this season. It is a very sweet tomato, not tart but has a rich spicy taste that is completely lost on store-bought tomatoes. I paired it with sharp cheddar for a quick snack, and so far it's my favorite with cheddar. The flavors complement each other well. Some of the more tart breeds work better with the milder mozzarella. I went ahead and harvested the seeds from this particular tomato and will definitely be planting it again!

Waking Up

A Little Card Swiping

I know I'm only two weeks postpartum, but it is totally demoralizing in this heat to want to put on a pair of shorts and for the button to still be a good two inches from reaching the button hole. I honestly don't care how I look - I just had a baby, things are going to look different - but I do care about being comfortable. It's too hot for maternity tummy panels, and a girl's bum should never ever be stuffed into a pair of gym shorts (at least not publicly). So I did the deed and went to Old Navy, Walmart and JCPenney while I was down a toddler. I found a couple shirts, a pair of jeans, some plaid shorts, and two jean skirts all on sale (or dirt cheap in the case of Walmart). If I drop the inches before the end of the summer, so be it, but for now there is no rush to lay off the Cookout shakes.

All that card swiping reminded me of the joy of shopping and the necessity of generating some cash flow so the card swiping doesn't get me in trouble.  Today, the plan is to get back to work. What? Don't worry, my couch is my office chair. Since Matthew does nothing but sleep all day, today is the perfect day to get in some work and maybe fold a little laundry. I'm not sure how I will fit work into my schedule with two kids, but my guess is I will be logging hours in the evenings and weekends when the babies are sleeping or Joe is around to entertain Daniel.

Recently my job title changed my Teaching and Instruction Professional to Adjunct Assistant Professor. The main implications of the title change are that I am now a member of the graduate faculty (although not tenure track or permanent) and can serve on a graduate student's committee. This requires attending planning meetings, oral exams and the final defense and reading and critiquing their thesis or dissertation. Potentially this could be fun and provide a good challenge for me, but I will have to figure out babysitting as a baby and toddler would not have much to contribute to a defense.