Category Archives: Uncategorized

Fire Pit Craving

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Last summer, while I was about 7- month pregnant, I had an idea that became obsessed with. “We need a fire pit- and we need it now!” Well, I didn’t quite phrase it like that to Ashish, but needless to say, we loaded up Nishad and ended up at our local chain home and garden store with a 10% off coupon in hand. I ‘supervised’ as Ashish made a circle of bricks in the isle that was exactly what this pregnant woman needed. No, I didn’t crave pickles or ice cream, but a fire pit.

After numerous trips from the car to the backyard (which Ashish earned his cardio workout for the day as we have a walkout basement- so it’s not an easy task), I began digging and clearing a section in our yard for our pit. Yes, we have rock star plans for our yard, but we’ve always agreed it will come in phases. This was just one of those phases- with odd timing. Being that I wouldn’t stop until it was done, I waddled in around 9PM that night. Though I couldn’t really admire my work from our deck, I knew it was out there- And that was enough to give this pregnant lady a sense of satisfaction that I could dream about.

This Spring we continued on with DYI phase two of our fire pit. We added a seating area and landscaping. We had our first bonfire last month. I came prepared with S’More fixin’s in hand. Ashish doesn’t like them and Nishad only likes the chocolate bar. At least we were all able to enjoy the fire pit together. *This picture is from May, 2008.

Norhwoods

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This is our 4th annual summer trip up north to Bemidji. We have rented a cabin on Lake Bemidji from June 3rd until June 9th. Steps away from the beach and all the comforts of home. It takes us 4 hours to get here, but it’s worth the r & r.

There was actually a tornado warning and we had to go to the main lodge, where we spent about 20-minutes in the boiler room with other resort guests. We went in town and played miniature golf, visited Babe and Paul, ate at a great organic restaurant, and visited the Bemidji Historic Railway Depot/Museum (Don’t waste your money or time as there are only pictures of trains and a model train!).

Flint Hill Children’s Festival

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My kinda town- Saint Paul! I think if Ashish and I knew what we know now, we definitely would have looked to purchase a house in Saint Paul. It’s a very artsy, educated, cultured, family friendly city. They have some of the best festivals I’ve ever attended too!

We attended the Flint Hill Children’s Festival. Amazing! There were so many FREE Things for us to do. The Art Moves parade at 1PM shouldn’t be missed. Many companies were on hand like Target, which gave kids free sun hats to decorate. The Children’s Theatre Company made masks with the kids, and yet another theatre made sock puppets with the kids. There were a ton of culturally enriching performances in dance and theatre. For a mere $5 a ticket, you could see even more productions from different parents of the world. Nishad and I went to see a puppet production from a company that is based in Peru.
Be sure to save the date for this annual festival.

Hail to the Storm

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Hail to the Hail! We met with our contractor yesterday afternoon. He will begin work this Wednesday. We are getting a new roof, garage doors, screen door and siding. This is the second time in two years that we begin this process… on a house that was built in 2004.

Minnesota’s extreme weather gets to be a bit old. Every state has its issues, but this year Ashish and I have had about enough. It snowed from October through April this year. Now the severe storms…

We do have a lot to be thankful for though. Two tornados touched down north of us yesterday. The day that this picture (May 25, 2008) a tornado did a lot of damage south of us. Needless to say, we’ve been spending more time in the basement than we would prefer.

Farmer Beverly

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Beverly, Beverly, how does your garden grow? With patience, water, sunshine…and a whole lot of fertile soil! Cucumbers, Zucchinis, Tomatoes, Peppers, Strawberries, Watermelon, Cantaloupe and Herbs…

This is my first ‘Minnesota’ veggie garden! I’m proud to say that things look better than anticipated. Even after Mother Nature’s hail storm that leveled a lot of my plants that Nishad and I started from seeds (I was teaching him about the seasons). Which, in turn, was a good lesson for him; Despite our plans, there are things we can’t control. However, we can control our reaction to them. SO! Nishad, Arun and I went out and purchased a few little veggies to supplement the ones we ‘lost’ in the storm. Even after Arun was in the store- strangling- the plants (as everything seems to be in his reach these days), they too managed to thrive.

I started off my first year with a ‘smaller’ garden as I wanted test the waters, per-say. I wasn’t sure if I would have the time with a toddler and an infant, and honestly, I didn’t know if anything would grow well enough for us to reap the benefits. Well, I suppose if the farmers can do it here on the Great River Road (where we live was once farm land- now a developed sub-division thanks to urban sprawl), so can Farmer Beverly!

Who knows, at this rate, maybe I’ll be feeding the entire neighborhood! With the semolina out-break with tomatoes and peppers and the high cost of produce today, this isn’t only ‘fun’ but something that I feel confident about feeding my family, convenient and cost effective.

Imprints: Nothing like having Mom tell you to go into the garden and get a fresh cucumber! Cucumbers were always my favorite growing-up. I use to wish my Mom wouldn’t plant so many tomato plants so there would be more room for the cucs! I read an article about how kids that are involved in planting gardens, eat more veggies. They get to see the process and build up anticipation for the fruit of their labor. My Mom told me how she would eat tomatoes like apples when she was a kid. I’m going to attempt that this year!