Volume 600 for the Hodgepodge

 

 

 

Hello Friends, our chicks are here. Meet the 8 M's ... 

Mary Lou

Mary Grace

Mary Bell

Mary Jean

Mary Kate

Mary Beth

Mary Ann

Mary Jane

and the babysitter Ernie.

No I cannot really tell them apart. My husband and I just enjoy naming our chickens. As they grow they do start to get personalities, and we will start to know who is who. They also will have different combs, and we will start to tell who is who from the combs. 

It all is good fun.

 

 And now on to the Hodgepodge. 

Joyce asks the questions.

High FIVES to you Joyce for creating these Hodgepodge questions for us!! 

Volume 600!!

Click here to join the fun. 

 

1. My very first edition of The Wednesday Hodgepodge was published on November 10, 2010 (linked here if you're curious). Tell us something about your life from that era. 

I was a busy mom, enjoying my days with Samuel and Atticus. I was a teacher's aide at the school my boys attended in 2010.

 2. What's a song you love that relates to time in some way? 

 One Piece at a Time

Song by Johnny Cash ‧ 1976

 

Well, It's a '49, '50, '51, '52, '53, '54, '55, '56, '57, '58' 59' automobile

It's a '60, '61, '62, '63, '64, '65, '66, '67, '68, '69, '70 automobile

 

My grandpa loved Johnny Cash, we loved to sing this song together.  Now I sing it with my two son's when we are together when it plays on the radio.

 

 3. May is nearly upon us. When did you last need to yell 'MAY DAY-MAY DAY!!'? 

Just this morning, when our dog got into a nest of bunnies.

Only problem was I was home alone, so the May Day - May Day was to just little old me.

4. How do you feel about food trucks? Is this a dining experience you enjoy?  Do you have a favorite What's something you've ordered from a food truck?  

We have enjoyed several good meals from food trucks. We usually are at an event that has several food trucks to visit and pick what you might like to eat. One that we enjoy makes a fantastic kettle popcorn. 

 5. We're bidding farewell to April...what are three adjectives you might use to describe the month you're leaving behind.

Wet 

Dirty

Green

It has been a wet April, bringing in a lot of mud on our shoes, but in the end our little part of the world is turning spring green. 

 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

 

"The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek."

Joseph Campbell

 

Well, It's a '49, '50, '51, '52, '53, '54, '55, '56, '57, '58' 59' automobile
It's a '60, '61, '62, '63, '64, '65, '66, '67, '68, '69, '70 automobile

Well, It's a '49, '50, '51, '52, '53, '54, '55, '56, '57, '58' 59' automobile
It's a '60, '61, '62, '63, '64, '65, '66, '67, '68, '69, '70 automobile

April

 

April

The soil is the great connector of lives, the source and destination of all, without proper care for it, we can have no community, because without proper care for it, we have no life.

Wendell Berry

 

Sugar Cookie Bars

 Sugar Cookie Bars

1 cup of butter, softened

8 oz of cream cheese, softened

1 1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

2 1/2 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Grease a 15x10 baking sheet

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter,  cream cheese, sugar and mix well. Add egg, and continue to mix. Add vanilla, start to add the flour, baking powder and baking soda.

Once well mixed, press dough into prepared pan.

Bake for 20 minutes, just until the edges are a very light golden.

Cool completely.

 

 Frosting

1 cup butter, softened

4 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1/8 tsp salt

4 - 5 tbsp milk

Beat butter in a large mixing bowl until smooth. Gradually add powdered sugar. Blend in vanilla and salt. Add milk as needed to reach spreading consistency.

 

 

 

 My plan was to sugar violas to decorate my 2025 Easter cake, but things started to go all wrong with sugaring.

 

This was my first time trying this. I think I need to dilute the egg yoke with water if I try this again. 

 

 

 Not looking to bad.. until below.

 

 

 

Oh dear, not working out.

Plan B...

 

 

 I decided to decorate the cake using fresh violas.

It was a Happy Easter Cake!!

 

 

 

April Showers and it is the Hodgepodge

 

 

Hello Friends, above is our 2025 Easter Cake. I made my son Atticus' favorite cake, Sugar Cookie. I decorated with fresh violas. I did try to sugar the violas, but I failed at it. I will share the cake recipe and how my sugaring went in a future blog post. 

 Today it is time for the Hodgepodge. 

Joyce asks the questions.

We answer the questions.

Click here to join the fun! 

1. The Hodgepodge lands on National Picnic Day...will you celebrate? Do you enjoy picnics? Dining out of doors picnic or otherwise? What are three or four things I'd find in your picnic basket? 

We will not celebrate. It is not picnic weather here in my neck of the woods. I do enjoy picnics. We do picnic on our adventures. We enjoy kayaking, after we will enjoy a picnic overlooking the lake we were on.

You will find a tuna sandwich, pickles, crackers and cookies for dessert.

2.  A time recently where you felt 'antsy'?  

Our Spring elections, I was running for a position.

3. As the saying goes...'when life gives you lemons, make lemonade.'  Do you like lemonade? When did you recently need to make lemonade out of lemons, figuratively speaking? 

I am not a fan of lemonade. 

While I was sugaring the violas for my Easter cake, things were not going well. I had to come up with a plan B. 

4. Recently five 'celebrities' made a brief (ll minute) foray into space aboard Jeff Bezos Blue Origin rocket. Did you hear about this? Your thoughts? If money were no object is this something you'd like to do someday?

I did not pay attention to this. 

No, I am not interested.

5. Favorite thing about the 'space' you're sitting in right now?  

Looking up at my bulletin board seeing photos, quotes and more of my favorite things tacked on my bulletin board.  

 6. Insert your own random thought here. 

We gifted our maple syrup for Easter. 

Two Tree Maple Syrup is the name of our little Sugar Shack.  

Happy Easter Hodgepodge

 

 

Happy Easter my Friends.

It is Wednesday and that means it is time for the Hodgepodge.

Joyce asks the questions.

We answer the questions.

Click here to join the fun. 

 

 1. Do you complete your own taxes? Besides actual taxes, what's something you've found taxing lately?

 No, we do not complete our own taxes.

Balancing my time... spring can get very busy for me with all my seed starting and garden preparations.  I am trying to do a better job of balancing my time.

 2.  What are three values you treasure most in a friendship? 

My dear friends are the ones who listen to me... sometimes go on and on and on. And they still love me when I am all done and give me a hug. 

Laughter and joy...  my dear friends have a way to make me laugh.

Helping me stay the course when I feel like tossing in the towel. 

3. Do you meal plan or do you mostly wing it? Share your dinner menus for this week.

We do meal plan. 

I am writing this on Sunday, April 13th.

Tonight's dinner is spaghetti and meatballs with a side salad. 

We have a meeting to attend Monday, so we will have leftovers Monday.

Tuesday  ~ I will make chicken - cranberry quiche 

Wednesday ~ I have a meeting, so we will have left over quiche. 

Thursday  ~ my husband plans to grill hamburgers. I will make steak fries and we will have coleslaw. 

Friday ~ fish fry

Saturday ~ we will be busy with Easter dinner preparations. I will grab a soup out of the freezer that I made earlier and froze, we will enjoy soup and bread sticks.

Easter Sunday's Menu ~ ham, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn, green beans and hot cross buns.

And Easter Cake for dessert.

 4. Thomas Sowell is credited as saying, ''There are no solutions, only trade-offs.' Agree or disagree? Discuss.

 Agree. Nothing will be 100%... you will always have to decide to just be with something in your life. An example is purchasing a home, you love the house, but the garage is not exactly what you want. You have to trade off and make the garage "work" the best you can. You will do your best and sometimes that is all you can do.

 5. What's the best perk you've enjoyed at a job?

It has always been the friendships I have made. 

6.  Insert your own random thought here. 

 

Last year's Easter Cake. 

I will share our annual Easter Cake next week.

Happy Easter!!

 ♥

Carla

 

She Said Yes

 

Hello Friends,

Thank you for playing along with my question on Friday.

With that I am happy to announce she said, yes.

Sam and Cate are engaged. 

We are in the process of wedding planning. I will keep you updated.

And with that here is our next question to spark conversation...

 

What are you looking forward to most in your life right now?

I am looking forward to watching my boys continue to grow into adult men. We are blessed they only live an hour away. We are able to talk daily and can visit regularly. Both are working on goals they have set. It can be hard for me to watch when things do not go as they plan or they land in a hard spot. I want to jump in and FIX it. 

I also am looking forward to the goals my husband and I have as a couple as we continue to take this journey together.

 ♥

Carla

 

The One

 

 

Hello Friends,

I am sharing some photos from a recent hike at Irvine Park, Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin.

I am going to start something new here at The River. Every now and then I plan to ask a question or two for us to answer. Remember, it is just for fun.

 

 

 

Question #1

If you are married, when and how did you know you'd found "the one"?

If you are not married, how do you think you'll know when you've found "the one"?

 

This is not "the one"!

My husband and I met at work.  I was working part-time as a dishwasher at his parents lodge. I was drawn to his work ethic. He helped his parents run their restaurant, bar, cabin rental and canoe shuttle business.  

We started to go out on adventures. He made me laugh. We had a great deal in common. He was not afraid to try new things, he was strong, yet a gentleman. 

At the time, I was working in accounts payable at Marquip in my hometown full-time. And another fella at work that I enjoyed talking with, we would have lunch together with other co-workers. He did ask me out a few times, but the energy was not the same as it was with my husband. I knew Jeremy was the one. And he is!

Now it is your turn..

 

 ♥

Carla

Pass the Salt and Pepper and it is the Hodgepodge

 

 

Hello Friends, we are still waiting for spring blooms, I am sharing a past bouquet full of lily of the valley, tulips and more. And now on to the Hodgepodge. 

 Joyce asks the questions.

We answer the questions.

Click here to join the fun! 

 

 1. What's a lesson you've learned from a mistake?

 I have learned ... PATIENCE!!!

 I have been impatient recently. I will dig up plants thinking they did not make the winter. Yet... they are alive just not ready to wake up to wish me a happy spring.

I told my husband the other day, PATIENCE is my new word for 2025!

 

 2. Do you salt food while you're cooking or let diners add their own?  What's a food you think must be salted? Do you like pepper? 

I let the diners add their own.

I like to add salt and pepper to any egg dish, fried, scrambled, quiche and more.

Yes, I like pepper.

3. What was the last gathering you attended and what did you do there? 

We had a family birthday party for my son's girlfriend Cate. 

It was  held at Sam and Cate's duplex. She showed me all her indoor plants. We got to play with the their cat Joey. Their other cat hides when people come over. 

We enjoyed pizza. And I made a strawberry tart for birthday dessert. Cate loves fruit desserts. We gave Cate her birthday gifts.

Homemade Strawberry Tart

Happy Birthday Cate, my husband built Cate a plant stand.

 

Sam and his birthday girl, Cate!

 

 

4. Your favorite shade of purple? What's your favorite purple flower?  

I enjoy all shades of purple. 

Purple sweet peas are a favorite. I also love my purple bearded Iris. 

I have a dark purple gladiola, that is almost back. I really like it too. 

Oh, I just LOVE flowers.  

 

5. Share a favorite spring travel memory. 

 

It would be a hike we took with our boys when they were in their early teens. We were hiking to a rapids along the Flambeau River. The usual route was washed out. That did not stop us. The boys made a make do bridge for us to get across with old logs and rocks.

 

 

 6. Insert your own random thought here. 

The annual TePaske Easter Cake is being created in my mind. For those of you new to The River, I bake and decorate an Easter Cake for our family. We make a big deal out of the Easter Cake Reveal. 

A couple photos of years past... 

 

 

Conversation

 

Hello Friends, 

Pull up a chair, I have a few questions.

Coffee or tea with a slice of lemon poppy seed bread?

 

Red Light Therapy

Have you tried it? 

Do you have your own light? If so, what did you purchase and how does it work.

 

Dry Needling 

Have you tried it?

Any side effects?  

Did you notice a difference after your sessions?

 

Thank you dear friends, it is fun to get others insight if they have tried or researched something, that is one thing I love about blogging, you can get a bunch of insight from all over the country and world. 

♥

Carla

 

 

 

 

April 1st

 

Hello Friends,

April 1st has come and gone. And if you are a regular reader here at The River, you may have remembered that I was running for village trustee for the first time. 

My first election. 

I will share a quick recap of how I got into this... I already am on a few committees with the village government. I decided to attend the monthly board meetings last year, because I started to hear rumblings about some issues that really bothered me. After attending the village board meetings, I decided that if I wanted to change things, I would need to get involved in our local government. 

One of the rumblings that really had me concerned was de-funding our police department.  That really bothered me. We raised our family here in the village. Our boys could ride their bikes up and down the street, stop at the local park and I did not worry. Why?

We had a village chief of police who knew the kids of the village and looked out for them. A side story here, one of our deputies retired, we recently bumped into him at a local function. He asked us what our boys are up to now after they flew the nest. He said, I just loved watching them ride their bikes and playing with friends. 

When I heard that current village board members wanted to de-fund our police, I decided to run in the spring election. 

It all has been a learning process for me. I met with the village clerk to learn how I go about getting on the ballot.  My neighbor nominated me, I completed all the paperwork and I was on the ballot. 

We decided to send out postcards with a photo of me and our dog, Ernie.  Ernie and I walk the streets daily, we thought that would be a good way to be recognized by those who do not know me.

 Others know me as the "Flower Lady" with my fresh cut flower business.

I was running against well known Cameron people. When I say this, born and raised here for generations. That is not me, we moved here, we are transplants. (I have a lot of stories about that too, I have shared some here on the blog.)

I know you are saying "Come on Carla, get to the results, did you win?" 

Jessica Larson 377 votes

Carla TePaske 297 votes

Randy Hill 361 votes

Dave Ebner 375 votes

I did not make it on the board. 

The village clerk called me today, she congratulated me on how well I did for my  first time in an election.  She also shared that if any of the board members resign in the future the spot will go to me, election law. 

She encouraged me to try again, she said you did really well for your first time. 

Many friends and family reached out to me during the day on Wednesday. Giving me encouragement or a hug. I am thankful for that, because I did feel sad, I wanted to try to make a difference... shake it up. Hee Hee!

I am so thankful for all those who cheered me on and also encouraged me that I should give it another try. "You were so close and you have good ideas, keep in the fight."

But there was one text message that gave me "Happy Tears" ...

 

Good Morning Mom!! Proud of you for trying!

Love, Sam

 

Sam is our oldest son. 

♥

Carla

 

Grab Your Hammer and it is the Hodgepodge

 

Hello Friends, we have been busy cooking down maple sap into maple syrup. 

We enjoy a maple sundae after each cook-down.  

A scoop of vanilla custard.

Some cashews sprinkled on top of the custard.

 Warm maple syrup swirled on top of the cashews and custard. 

Enjoy! 

 

And now to the Hodgepodge. 

Joyce asks the questions.

We answer the questions.

 

 1. No foolin'! April is here. What's one fun thing on your April calendar? 

We will be celebrating our oldest son's birthday, Sam will be turning 25!!

He sent me the photo below that he took with night vision during a recent training session he had with the Wisconsin National Guard. You can see the ridge, trees, grass, and look at the stars. Sam loves how the nigh vision highlights the stars.

 

 2. It's often said, 'A fool and his money are soon parted'...what's the last thing you wasted money on? 

Hair products, at my age I should know to just stick with what I already have, that works great most days. If I have a bad hair day, off I go, and buy a new hair product, that usually does not help the bad hair day. Ha!

 3.  April 2nd is National DIY day. Are you a do-it yourself kind of person or maybe you're married to one? If so, what's the last thing you DIY-ed. If you're not a DIY-er what's the most recent job you had to hire someone to complete?

My husband and I are tag - team DIY-ers.

Our largest project was gutting our kitchen and doing a complete re-do! We ripped out the tile floor, or more like had to smash the tile floor out. My husband started to say, "I am not 25 anymore, heck I am not 45 anymore." It was a job. In the end after the sore muscles heal, you smile and can be very proud of what you did.

Memories of the floor. Under the tile was the original hardwood.

 

 I will share our current DIY.. in the random.

 

 

 4. Do you eat lamb? If so do you have a favorite dish that calls for lamb? 

 

We do not eat lamb.

 

 5. Do you fit a stereotype in some way? Explain. 

 

I do not think so? I might need some help with this one? Ha Ha!

 

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Our latest DIY.. a hot box. At least that is what I am trying to create here. My plan is this.. I do not have a heated greenhouse. During the day the greenhouse can get up to 90 degrees or warmer. My new little seedlings are so happy. And my greenhouse will soon be full of seedlings. My problem comes at night, when our Wisconsin spring temperatures can dip way down at night, and I cannot leave my plants out overnight. I have to haul them all inside, creating a jungle inside our house. My thought was to make a hot box, using my chicken coop shavings, putting them in a box lined with greenhouse plastic and putting water into the shavings. During the day the sun will heat the shavings and in the evening the box will release the heat slowly, keeping the greenhouse somewhat warmer than the true outside air temperature.

Now will my idea work?