Peace and strength, javachik.

Healthy brains ~ma to Theresa's hawk.

Summer memories. My mom futilely trying to get me to lie out and tan, finally acknowledging that lying in the sun was like torture for me. Lying in bed at night under the open window, listening to bullfrogs and crickets. Drinking water directly from the hose and then spraying it over my head in the heat. The taste of sulphur-infused water from our well. Smells of hay and drying tobacco and manure and feed and leather tack in the barn. Escaping the heat (and other humans) in the hayloft. Wading in the creek. Walking barefoot everywhere. Walking down the gravel road every day to get the mail. Honeysuckle vines on the fence down the gravel road. Eating honeysuckle nectar, drop by drop.

I miss the old farm. But even if I go back there, it's not the same; too much is gone or irretrivably changed. The place I loved is gone, even though the physical place remains. The grove of trees is cut down, the creek is dug out in a algae-choked pond, the magnolia tree and the snowball bush are gone, the smokehouse is long gone, the barn is falling into ruin and the house is barely livable. Reality is not as good as it once was, in this case.

For a long time I cried at the thought of having to sell the place, because I knew I'd never have 200+ acres to wander around in, blissfully alone, ever again. Now I'm making do with early-morning walks in the park.

dcp, I called the first number because that is only about 20 miles away. Got a recording but asked her to call me back. Thinking she would at least be able to tell me if that first information was correct.

Stoopid bird for making me care. The windows are dirty for a reason. Do not fly into them!

I'm drowing in peaches and they are not going to wait around forever.

These peaches aren't going to poach themselves.

My childhood summers were mostly filled by picking fruit and making jam, playing in the front yard, and going to beach every Sunday and playing in the surf while my dad played volleyball. And a car trip every summer, that always involved a long, winding drive up the coast on PCH.

So my weekend excitement is the purchase of an iPhone!! 3GS. Silly salesman tried to talk me into the 4G, not understanding that I don't have an ish with "outdated" technology. I've been playing around with it and would love to hear about desirable apps.

4 more boxes packed. I am up to 57 and rooms are starting to look really empty.

Burrell, I have that phone! Apps I love are mostly kid related, though I love playing Paper Toss and Katie is obsessed with Angry Birds. Another fave that Noah and Grace both crack up over? Talking Carl. We also have Brain Pop which is educational and fun (with quizzes!). Noah deleted Textropolis off my phone which makes me feel tragic because I was 61% finished with the whole damn thing. SO SAD and mad.

In other news, our Vitamix is here. I think for my birthday I should have you all come over and we'll have blended drinks of various stripes. We'll call it the Eat Like Grace party.

Also, Burrell, Today's Groupon half off cookies at Platine would be perfect as it is near you and I hear their cookies ROCK.

I'm snacking on steamed broccoli topped with shredded gruyère, and trying to decide what to make for dinner.

Are the cookies good, Kat? Good to know, I'll pick that one up.

Isaac is also very excited to hear that Angry Birds is fun. He wanted me to download it.

What I really want to find eventually is a good GPS app, but in the meantime I've downloaded FB and a few games.

Also, simultaneously scared and amused at idea of a Eat Like Grace party. It doesn't involve sardines, does it?