Leisure, country style

First day back from a week of garlic-peddling and surfing, we relaxed into our Home life as only we can. While Sarah packed for her work trip (leading a weekend mama's retreat), the boys and I stayed out of her hair by hanging out three loads of laundry on the deer fence then heading out to the garden. One hour later we returned with zucchini and squash, a bucket of windfall apples, three eggs, and a camera full of documentation of our ever-growing pumpkins, corn, and mile-high beans.

We all three were thrilled to reconnect with our garden in such a hands-on way before breakfast, and the boys were bouncing off the walls from eating their first cherry tomatoes of the season, from the bushes they started from seed months ago.

As Sarah continued her usual mad quest to finish hand-dying and sewing the makings of prayer flags for her retreat (no generic Wall-Mart prayer flags for Mama Renew, thank you!) we cored, sliced and dehydrated the apples for winter school snacks, then helped Sarah pack her bike gear (cycling up the Sunshine Coast - go Sazz!). Then a leisurely walk/cycle to the Waldorf school to pick up the neighbours' CSA produce bag, an hour visit/play with 2 other families there helping in the garden, visit to the miniature horses on the way home, then finally a stop at the next-door schoolyard for our first major harvest of windfall apples from the sadly neglected tree there. We got our entire winter supply of apple butter, sauce and pie filling from that one tree - why no-one else actively gleans there is a mystery.

Late lunch, beautiful nap, then a walk down to the river for a swim and fishing - caught a frog and a crayfish (yes, threw both back). Picked 6 quarts of blackberries and some delicious plums along the roadway home. Quick late dinner of veggie dogs, cucumber, bell pepper and potato pizza (sliced leftover baked potatoes with spinach and cheese melted on top), then quickly picked up the bucket-full of plums I'd picked off our tree during the second half of their nap. All this, and still in bed by 8:15, plenty tired and happy and engaged in the world.

Now only 9:30, a delicious free evening to myself - a time I've boldly advertised that I get more done than when the wife's around. So what will it be: apple-plum-blackberry jam for the winter, apple-blackberry crumble for this boys' weekend, watch shooting stars from the garden hot tub, or start working on the fathering book I've committed to co-authoring? Hopefully all of the above. It's good to be home.