I prefer to do things for other people than have them done for me… with the exception of the farmer… he can keep doing things for me and I have no guilt associated with that…
so when my friends threw a party for my 40th birthday it was pretty overwhelming… you always hope your friends like you – that they aren’t just tolerating you and then chatting about how awful you are when you leave the room… and at my party yesterday I truly felt loved… really loved… and it was amazing
I wasn’t sure if I was going to make it to the party as my three children and husband all decided to shower before they left to go to church and left me to 2 inches of lukewarm water to bathe in… just to give you a full mental image, as I was trying to wash my hair in the few inches of water in the tub, I threw my neck out… I then started to cry – whimper really – and then cursed my family on their way to church and thought that 40 is not so great… I eventually pulled myself together in time to head out…
first off, you know you are 40 when you go to yoga on a Sunday at 2 pm to celebrate!!! this is at the Hotroom in Kindersley, SK and in my humble opinion the best hot yoga studio in the world… Michelle did an amazing job with us – starting with couple yoga that had me mounting my friend Mandy (any chance I get to mount her I take it), then into some flow style of yoga and then wall Yin and stretching – my favourite…
moments like this remind me of how lucky I am to have known these friends of mine for over 20 years now and raised children with them, cried with them, cheered with them and gone through life with them… (and also the friends in my life not pictured here as well)
I realized that the friendships I have been fortunate enough to be have been able to form in this small community have really sustained me and brought me through many ups and downs on the farm here…
when I moved out to rural Saskatchewan to start a life with the farmer, I didn’t really know what it would be like in a tiny little community… and I feel like I struck GOLD with the community I moved into… everyone here truly cares for each other and each other’s kids…
it is a safe place to raise a family, with lots of support and encouragement… there is an attitude of hard work and respect that permeates life in this farming community…
so when my friends took the time, during a busy seeding season, to take me to yoga and have a potluck meal with presents – it just floored me…
broccoli cashew salad
Ingredients:
– Dressing:
– 1 cup mayonnaise
– 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
– 1 tbsp whole grain mustard
– 2 cloves garlic, minced finely (optional)
– 1 tsp granulated sugar
– 1 tsp kosher salt
– cracked black pepper
– Salad:
– 2 large heads of broccoli, cut into bite sized florets
– 1 pkg cooked bacon, chopped
– 1/2 cup chopped, roasted cashews
– 1/2 cup dried cranberries
– 1/4 cup diced red onion
– 2 green onions, thinly sliced
Directions:
– place dressing ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together
– mix salad ingredients with the dressing
– refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving
– keeps really well in the fridge
one of the things I have been noticing as I age is that the friendships I have in this small town continue to bring wisdom, strength and encouragement into my life… women here challenge each other to keep improving themselves and growing…
I wasn’t sure I’d like a small farming community – I liked cities and the anonymity that goes with city life… I really didn’t want everyone to know my business all the time (although I’m not sure exactly what I was hiding… the fact that I like to watch Netflix and eat chips and dip???)
but I have grown to love it and when I get home after a long weekend away, I love driving on the lonely back roads to our farm and knowing who lives in each house as I go by… as the fields and sky stretch on and on… and I feel like “I am home”…
it isn’t a tourist destination spot – that is for sure – unless you are a hunter I suppose… but for me it’s home… it is where my friends and I have all built our lives together… it is where we have prayed for rain and celebrated rain… it is the people here in this tiny community that make it beautiful…
tuna casserole
Ingredients:
– 12 oz egg noodles
– 4 tbsp butter
– 1 med onion, diced
– 6 oz button mushrooms, chopped
– 1/4 cup flour
– 1/2 cup white wine
– 3 cups warm milk
– salt and pepper
– 3 cans tuna in water, drained
– 1 red bell pepper, chopped
– 2 tbsp parsley, chopped
– shredded cheddar cheese (optional)
– 4 tbsp butter, melted
– 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
Directions:
– preheat oven to 400 degrees
– boil noodles, till al dente, then drain and place in large mixing bowl
– in a saucepan, melt butter and saute the onion and mushrooms
– sprinkle with flour and stir
– add the white wine and cook down
– add the milk and salt and pepper and cook down
– add this sauce to the noodles
– add the tuna, red bell pepper and parsley to the noodles and sauce
– pour into a 9×13 pan sprayed with baking spray
– sprinkle with shredded cheese (optional)
– combine butter and breadcrumbs
– sprinkle over the noodles
– bake for 25-30 minutes
so I am feeling all the love today and I hope to keep that love going and support others in their farming, small town life journeys…
i feed a farmer 
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