key to my heart

huh, what is this strange thingy dingy?

Our 2002 Honda Odyssey minivan is slowly becoming old and stubborn. The back hatch will open with the remote only 20% of the time. For the other 80%, I climb into the back seat and painstakingly reach over the headrest to manually pull up the lock. This type of unlocking is not as relaxing as using the fancy remote.

Not long ago, I stood behind the van, remote in hand, pressing the "unlock" button over and over, hoping for a miracle. And then a miracle appeared. My nephew, Charlie, was standing next to me, noticing. He said, "Auntie Beck, just use the key."

Are you kidding me? All those times I had squeezed myself into the back of the van or sent someone else scrambling back there to pull up the lock toggle, I could have simply put the key into the lock and given a little twist.

Sometimes the solution to a challenge is right in front of us, so clear and obvious and easy that we push it aside as if it's in the way, looking around it to find "the goshdarn answer", the more complicated the better. Sometimes, if we're really lucky, a great and gentle teacher will appear to guide us back to center. I have thought about that precious moment with my nephew, who is also my godson, many times since that day.

Thank you, Charlie.

family project

chelois on the way

This is a photo of our tiny "chelois" (pronounced shaywah) grapes, just beginning to grow. These little buds are a good sign for our multi-generational family project: the vineyard. Here's how it breaks down:

• my brother, Karl, enjoys making wine,
• my mom and dad are great and enthusiastic gardeners,
• kids and cousins shall pick and mush grapes,
• my brother, Dan, will write and perform a gorgeous grape-picking song,
• LaDonna, Chrissy and David will lend a hand with the critical task of tasting,
• I love the idea of family projects,
• and we happen to have a very sunny hill in the backyard.

So we're all set. This project began last spring, when Karl suggested we try a vineyard here in our yard, since his is rather tiny. He offered to select and purchase the vines, my dad and I agreed to plant them and care for them. In May of 2008, a package arrived with 24 vine cuttings, chelois, foch and frontenac varieties, ready to plant. The digging began. There were some setbacks: the soil is clay-filled and stony. Digging holes and trenches big enough for the roots took days and days. Many times I collapsed with laughter as a half hour's hard digging and scraping yielded a cute little hole only 1.5 inches deep. Two months in, sheep and goats escaped from the pasture and ate off all the leaves. And then there was winter.

the "vineyard" one year ago

still looks pretty much the same

This spring, we had nearly 1/3 of the vines showing signs of life. I ordered replacement vines for dead ones, gave them all a good shot of chicken manure compost and we're back in business. I predict that one day we'll have a nice little vineyard with actual living grapevines. This summer, we will need to put up trellises--that job will fall to Dad and me. In a couple of years we will actually harvest grapes for winemaking. I'm very happy about this little project.

what's in the backpack

Although we still have a couple days until summer break, Calvin has already cleaned out his school locker and brought home a huge garbage bag of stuff. Usually this bag will sit in the mudroom for a month or so, until someone is motivated to sort through. And normally, the kid in question will do the sorting. But this morning, Oliver and I decided to tackle the job and peek into Calvin's world. Traditionally, Cal would just hand me all his completed assignments and I would keep the gems. But this year, in 6th grade, his academic life has been entirely his own domain.

We never really know what's going on in the private minds of our kids, the fullness of how they live in the world when we're not around. But sorting through the pile can give us a clue. What I found today was a stack of beautiful, thoughtful writing and amazing poetry. I am knocked out by the depth of Calvin's perception and the beauty of his expression.

Compare this to my own little "All About Me" packet recently discovered in a basement box. I had written it when I was the same age that Calvin is now. It is a mildly entertaining exercise in least effort:

"Favorite food: spaghetti

Why: because I like it."

Clearly, Calvin is operating on an entirely different plane here. Oliver and I also found some amazing drawings among his big brother's school papers. The drawing of the warrior/knight was so detailed and gorgeous, I scanned it to share here. As always, I am humbled by the good fortune I have to live with this family of mine. Wow, wow, wow.

warrior by Calvin

come and go

this is Mr. King Whitey, on her way to the barn

Finally, our house is a people house once again. We recently took the last of the (very stinky) baby chicks out to live in the barn until they're big enough to hold their own with the rest of the flock.

The bird in the photo is Oliver's little chicken, named Mr. King Whitey. I only buy female chicks, but sometimes we have to pretend they're boys to keep the peace.

It's good that we have 8 growing chicks waiting in the wings because the other birds seem to be dropping like flies. We've lost several to the fox, there's always a raccoon hanging around and a couple days ago when I went out to put the birds to bed, a red one lay dead. I think she broke her neck flying around the perch. Luckily for me, we were not personally attached. When we lose a friend bird with a name, there is suffering.

One dilemma that arises when an animal dies is what to do with it. In the first years, we would hold a proper funeral ceremony and burial. Now, I just want to wrap them up and sneak them into the trash, which is what I did with this most recent one. Inevitably, there is the issue of telling the kids. They can be counted on to ask, "What did you do with it, Mama?" Even though I said a few nice words to the deceased before I guiltily tossed the bag into the can, it is quite creepy to hear myself say, "I threw it away."

rhubarb pie

Annika's rhubarb custard pie--wow!

Annika, age 10, has a singular talent for baking. Thank heaven, because it is not my top area. Recently, she made this rhubarb custard pie with a lattice crust. It's the tart-sweet combo that is so freakishly delicious. 

rhubarb filling

I am so lucky to live with this lover of the fine pastry arts. There are scads of delicious memories and photos of Annika's wonderful treats, so many that I have a backlog of "Annika baking posts" waiting in the wings. The photo of her gloriously flaky "heart biscuits" was the inspiration for the title photo and name of this blog. They are actually little strawberry shortcakes.

the pretty woven lattice--the girl figured it out on her own

One of Annika's many inspired dreams is to open her own bakery. She claims she will absolutely refuse to turn her bakery into a chain, no matter how successful it is, as the wish is to do all the baking herself. I don't think anyone else could pour as much love into the batter as Annika does. (She has conceded to the possibility of hiring a helper or two to work the counter.)

I can't wait to be her first customer. 

Rhubarb Custard Pie

--Grandma Hull's recipe*

(the #1 favorite rhubarb recipe for 

4 generations of women in my mom's

 family, Annika & me included)

3 eggs

3 T milk

2 cups sugar

1/4 cup flour

3/4 t nutmeg

4 generous cups rhubarb (pink, cut into 1/2" pieces)

1 T butter

double crust for 9" pie

Beat eggs & milk slightly. Mix sugar, flour and nutmeg, add to the eggs. Stir in rhubarb. Pour into pastry lined 9" pie pan and dot with butter. Cover with a lattice top.  Bake 50-60 minutes until slightly browned and custard is done (a knife inserted into the custard should come out clean)

*Recipe courtesy the Willis Family Cookbook, with many thanks to Aunt Claire and Uncle Frank for that excellent collection of time-honored family recipes.

baa baa breakfast

I've been experiencing technical difficulties lately with photo downloads, therefore blogging has slowed to a near halt. While my resident expert works that issue out for me, I can provide some entertaining videos.

Here is a little movie I shot this morning while feeding the sheep. Few people get the chance to bottle-feed little lambs every morning, so I thought it would be fun to show how it goes. The video takes a long time to get to the good feeding action, sorry about that, I have not yet figured out how to edit my film.

Have a great day everyone!