Home on Moraine: How Great Thou Art

Our vacation was lovely. We spent 5 straight days and nights together and made it home without hurting each other, or even being tired of one another, for that matter. little brother turned 6 months and Big brother got to swim like a little fish every day whenever his heart desired. We ate excessively, slept little, and didn't stop moving the whole trip. I got to read a lot. (D and the boys got me a Kindle Fire for Mother's Day..yeah..luckiest lady.) I got to spend two hours in Williams Sonoma. I cannot think of anything better. There were no snags. No flat tires or disagreements or troublesome disruptions in our explorations. We smiled a lot. It was us, only better.

A lot of things bloomed while we were gone. I do plan on writing/posting pictures on our trip later, but I would rather write about coming home. Mostly because that is where I am now, but partly because I can't think of anywhere else I would rather be.

Pulling in front of the house after our span of time on the road, we were met by Penny the Prettiest Turkey You Have Ever Seen. Our house smelled like home. The Queen of Egypt and Alley Cat were running figure-8's between our ankles. Guppy Francisco, the betta fish swam happily and smiled at us. A hummingbird tootled to the feeder. Alice came and painted the roses red while we were gone. There were white, pink, and red roses blooming frantically in our absence. The peonies, too. And more irises I didn't even know were there. It was like they were waiting, pupils dilated, the entire time we were gone and as we drove down the drive, they heard us - and exploded!

little is every bit of six months. He is rolling, sitting, drooling, laughing,chewing, and grabbing. He eats more than before. He sleeps less. He is very bossy for such a little person. Sometimes he sounds like he is saying "Hi!", but he's just making noises. He makes a lot of noises. All the time. Happy ones, squealy ones, high-pitched ones, growley ones, farty ones, spitty ones. He is a joy. The most joyous thing.

secrets.

Big is becoming a real person. With real thoughts and jokes and his own names for things. He has worked out a lot of the behavioral kinks that have been standing in our way lately. He is working so very hard at baseball, it is truly the most I have seen him care about anything, ever. He is an explorer/frog finder/pitcher/son/brother/student/amazing kid.

lemondrops and gumdrops...

Lots of birds are passing through, and while I am not a great birder (I wouldn't even say I am a good birder) I try very hard to get a good look and listen to them. They bring me so much happiness.

rose-breasted grosbeak

catbird

bashful phoebe

'just make sure you get my good side' -ms. phoebe

phoebe

swainson's thrush

D has been keeping very busy learning the ins and outs of his new properties for his new position. Some days in the afternoon, I will call him and he is knee-deep in a wetland. Sometimes he is on his hands and knees examining a caterpillar. Sometimes he is tiptoeing through a prairie counting plants. Sometimes he is lost, looking through the thick trees in the depth of the woods for the sun. Somehow, he still makes it home on time those days. He has a remarkable sense of direction. He knows, always, which way we are facing - on hikes, when we're driving, when we're in the kitchen, when we're 300 miles away. It's amazing. Even when I ask him where an item may be located in our house, he gives exact direction, using words like "the table adjacent to the door" or "the nightstand that sits on an angle from the east corner of the bed," using his hands and arms in such a way that he could land a plane if the situation demanded it. And so, I can easily navigate through the house with my eyes closed because my Darling Husband uses such specificity to direct me around. He is a human multi-tool. And I love him dearly.

the barn. 65 and sunny.

He has taught me a lot about botany in our time together, and I am able to identify a few plants pretty easily. To D's dismay, most of them are invasive plants. I think they're lovely and he thinks they are the devil. Because he and I share this blog, I will only post two, and defend them the very best I can, knowing he will see them and shudder that I would do such an unthinkable thing.

This is Honeysuckle. D and his coworkers have full conversations about various ways and tools they have used to destroyed it (proudly). I know because I have heard them. When you walk past it, it smells the slightest bit like my grandma's cabinet where she kept her linens used to, minus the distinct bleach/starch smell. It's sweet, very floral, light and beautiful smelling. I put this photo in black and white because it shows how stark white they are, also like linens (which are one of my favorite things on earth. linens.) with tiny yellow centers.I would never complain if I smelled like honeysuckle all the time. In fact, so many women feel this way, Bath and Body Works is making money accommodating them.

I'm just saying. How bad can it be?

This is Autumn Olive. It's name is like a song and when you are several feet away from it on a sunny day, it shimmers like a disco ball. One side of the leaf is silver. The other side is a soft, romantic sage green. The texture of the leaves is like worn-in polyester. It's shrubby and shiny and so nice to look at. It's invasive, though, so try really hard not to like it.