Ms. Magnolia June is spending the night and her requested supper is her usual ask which is fish and macaroni and cheese. I have the fish thawing on the back porch and as you can see, Maurice is guarding it carefully.
For breakfast tomorrow, she has requested pancakes, bacon, and perhaps a cheese omelet. We shall see.
She also asked for chocolate chips in the pancakes which every grandchild always requests for their sleepover breakfasts although I have never in my life made a pancake with so much as one chocolate chip in it and never will unless someone's life depends on it. And I told Maggie that.
"Okay," she said.
It reminded me of when the kids were little and would ask me to buy some sort of horrid (delicious) sugary cereal as if there was a chance in hell and I would always say, "Do you think I've lost my MIND?!"
I probably did buy them some fruit loops or something at some point but it certainly was not a regular thing. Oh, I was so cruel. And I still am. Although when Maggie and I went to the store after I picked her up, I did get rainbow sherbet and grape juice for her after dinner purple cow. I mean, I am a grandmother.
And as such, I figured I'd have her help me snap some beans today to help me get ready to can them tomorrow. I had two gallon sized bags in the refrigerator already and picked again this morning at which time I almost passed out from the heat.
My GOD it's hot and the humidity is only 48% and yet somehow, it seemed absolutely unbearable when I was out there. I honestly wondered if I was going to pass out for the first time in my life.
I did not. But I will say I was definitely having a fine old lady case of the vapors.
All of that aside, Maggie did help me snap beans and we got managed to do all the ones I'd picked earlier today.
She did a good job, too! I have this fantasy that I'm going to teach my grandchildren about the joys of growing and preserving food but I'm not sure that's going to happen. Trust me when I say that none of them would have tolerated the picking of them. At least I don't think so. But sitting on the sofa in the AC, watching Shaun the Sheep and snapping them isn't that horrible of an activity. And who knows? Maybe at some point in some of their lives, the growing/gardening/preserving gene will kick in and they will have some visceral memory of watching Mer doing these things and they will feel as if these are things they want to do.
I would be very pleased to know this had happened. Of course I'll be dead by then so I'm not sure why I care but the grandmother-passing-along-of-the-knowledge-to-her-grandchildren urge has definitely kicked in for me and I feel as if I must do these things. August and Levon's other grandmother is a master gardener and preserver, putting me firmly into the dilettante category so perhaps they at least will feel the pull to plant at some point. Their mama grows things too and actually, Lily and Lauren also have some things growing so they do have examples to look to.
Mr. Moon has just gotten home from getting Tom settled into a rehab place. He did not have another stroke but did have a UTI which as many of us know, can cause severe delusional thinking and action and that's what had happened. The hospital was insistent that he needed to go into another facility before being allowed to go home which was absolutely the right thing to do, and Glen figured all of that out and transported him there and had to explain to him why he needed to be there and so on and so forth and now we shall see what happens next. I seriously doubt he's going to be deemed able to take care of himself but he hasn't really been able to take care of himself for a long time and yet, here we are.
Well, Ms. Magnolia has informed me that it is after six o'clock and I am pretty sure she thinks I need to be starting supper and I guess she's right. Off I go to cook fish and macaroni and cheese and cut up some vegetables. She has agreed that she is finally ready to sleep in the guest room by herself instead of in the bed with me so this is a big step. She says she has already done that once before and she may be right.
I don't know. I don't really know much of anything these days.
Except that I do know how to grow, pick, snap, and can beans.
May all be well with you and with all of us as Donald Trump melts down into complete and utter insanity and dementia while those who should be handling this situation seem to have no idea what to do.
Scary times. Horrific times.
Let us seek peace and comfort where and how we may.
Love...Ms. Moon
My grandmother had a deep, deep influence on me, much of which resurfaced later in life. It wouldn't surprise me in the slightest if your gardening wisdom (and grandmother wisdom in all other ways) pops up in several of the grandkids at some point. Your grands are so fortunate to have you and Mr. Moon near at hand.
ReplyDeleteChris from Boise
At some point it is entirely possible that Maggie and the boys will want to grow stuff, they have examples all around them. My younger daughter, "no-one" was always in a book or online and couldn't boil water without burning the pot dry, but is now growing vegetables and fruit trees and has becaome an "experimental" cook where she tries a recipe and then makes adjustments the next time she makes it, or just throws things together until they "look" right or "smell" right.
ReplyDeleteDid Maggie also help with the cooking of the dinner? Peeling, chopping, stirring?
When the children get hungry they become interested in growing their own- "I can grow pizza!" and so they can- especially if the dough is made from potato.The grandchildren are so lucky- I didn't have grandparents- didn't have that extra special bond. Maggie is our girl child- in blogworld, She may learn a great deal from you, her life is richer with you in it.
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