Winter motivation

I've been trying to get motivated to write for a few days now--I actually started last week but decided what I wrote was just whiny so this is take two.

It is officially winter here but supposed to be 60 degrees today, unlike the rest of the country, I guess. I heard that as of today all 50 states have snow on the ground for the first time in 50 years  The radio announcer said that he though Hawaii would be the "hold out", but that it was actually Florida.

I had a birthday last week-We aren't going to mention which one. Mr. IM and the kids took me out to dinner and my much-delayed Christmas jewelry arrived (it is very pretty).  They also picked up a set of books written by a Park County writer (and sold at the Al-Mart in Alma!).  Then they all disappeared for the evening and I got to read my books and talk to Liberty about personal space. ("One hundred ten pound dogs don't get to sit on people's laps.  Fifteen-pound cats do if they behave.  You are a one hundred ten pound dog...back up, back up, back up....")

My greenhouse experiment continues to go well-we had a cold snap earlier this week, but it looks like the beets have survived.  The potatoes (round two) haven't sprouted yet...but I always have sketchy potatoes so I can always plant more. I don't know if I'll ever get anything from these plants, but it is a fun experiment.  I planted cucumbers inside (and celery and basil, but I always have those inside).  My spicy oregano (from two summers ago) finally gave up, so I harvested and froze it--I need to find a fun recipe that uses spicy oregano!

We tried a couple meal service plans during December and decided that we just need to be better at making a menu, shopping, and prepping ahead of time.  Neither of the services we used cut down on prep time, just made sure we had ingredients.  Since Mr. IM and The Boy are in the mountains every weekend, it makes life interesting to plan.  The Girl has had SAT Prep class, so we've been staying at the Suburban Ranch, which I think makes Liberty happy, she is not a fan of car rides these days.

Thanks to all of you who included a note or letter in your Christmas card--we love the pictures, but it is always nice to have a letter as well and not have to remember what was on Facebook!

Spring planting is getting closer...stay tuned!