The fun's not done

Mom is still not living in her apartment; it's hard to make progress when your mental to-do list can only handle one thing at a time. As suspected, this big change has highlighted and exacerbated Mom's struggles; my sister and her family are on the front lines and I feel for them all. On top of that, the sale of Mom's house to the neighbors has hit a major snag. Dad's will (which my sister and I haven't seen, but of which we might be co-executors) was never probated, and even though Texas is a community property state, his interest in their house does not automatically transfer to Mom. Oy. I think my sister and I will be wandering around in this foggy swamp populated with scary unknowns for the foreseeable future.

The backside of a window I made Dad, found in the last room the neighbors cleaned out!

it doesn't look this good after a few days in the country and a sprinkle of rain

As revealed in the comments of my last post, we did indeed come home with a replacement car that night. It's another manual Jetta TDI, three years newer with less than half the miles of the '09, and in beautiful condition. Rick is still practicing out of our old pickup, but is closing in on a replacement for it.

zucchini, eggplant, and cucumbers picked 7/16

don't know why this was on the ground this morning

Garden production, like garden production does, has kicked into overdrive. Summertime, and the eating is . . . frantic! Last night for supper I roasted two pounds of green beans, the best way in this house to ensure a quantity is consumed. Green beans, snowpeas, and eggplant are overdue for another picking, and last night I harvested SIX beautiful Long White Zucchini of Palermo (I promptly shared one with a neighbor who came over to buy eggs). Tomatoes and bell peppers are finally coloring up; I ate two cherry tomatoes last night, along with a few strawberries from our mostly dormant plants. I am scrambling to use and share all of it, as I don't want any fresh produce to go to waste.

I haven't mentioned my knees for awhile because who wants to listen to others go on about their health or physical problems? But since recovery is still progressing in meaningful ways I thought I'd share an update. The heat and swelling have finally dissipated enough that only the scars visibly give away what happened (well that, and the fact that I'm still a little slow to get underway after sitting for awhile). I'm sleeping better because they are more comfortable, and I've been back to walking a brisk two miles for awhile now. However, last Sabbath afternoon was the first time I ventured to take Poppy's leash during a walk, because when I tried that early on, resisting her considerable pulling force was more than my knees could handle. Now? No problem! (I've entered us in an agility match for a month from now. 😁)

Poppy and me and my favorite tree

I'll close with a couple interior views that warm my heart,

Party on the pie safe

the view from my bathroom caught my eye this morning

and one from outside that doesn't:

the view from the garden

That well-drilling rig has been grinding away for several days already, disrupting the peace and quiet of country living and promising even more neighbors. We've suspected this was coming for a number of years now, but still hate to see "rural" giving way to "suburbia."

That's it for now from . . .