My current status is "living with my daughter and her family." That means that while Mr. Scottie Dog is working hard to finish up our affairs in CA, I reside with daughter Beka, her hubby Jason and five of my grandchildren ages 9 and under in the small town of Jordan, MN. We all live in a 100 year old house right in town, one and a half blocks from "downtown."
Daughter Liz, hubby Steve and granddaughter Sydney (10) live in Prior Lake, MN about 15 minutes away. Of course I am back and forth often. Sometimes with one of the girls and sometimes alone. I love the drive. Between these two towns it is rural Minnesota at it's best. Cornfields, soybean fields, farms, silos and wide, wide open expanses of sky.
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| Highway 13 (Scott County) heads North and South. |
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| Rows of corn, nearly ready for harvest now. With all the lovely rain this Spring and early Summer the corn seemed to grow a foot a day. |
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| There are farm ponds and lakes too. |
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| So many different kinds of barns! |
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| Barns and Silos. |
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| Some farms raise grass. |
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| Some fields are filled with soybeans. |
I enjoy the drive back and forth. I've counted more than 20 farms bordering the road. Hartmaan's Quarter Horses, one farm advertises "Farm Fresh Eggs" and another "Fresh Produce." This is the land where you don't dare leave your car unlocked....not because of thieves, but because you may come back to a back seat filled with zucchini!
Tonight we had grilled chicken strips with zucchini fritters and a Mediterranean Salad with garden fresh produce....everyone gardens and the bounty is huge. If the children are hungry. Have a tomato. If it's snack time, let's get a cucumber from the garden. Oops....a huge tomato sat on the ground and the ants got to it...just feed it to the chickens. Don't forget the peppers, the cabbage and oh, so much more.
This time of year the drive is green and lush. Soon, the nights will turn cold and the landscape will turn golden. And then white. After most of my life in Northern CA (the land of perpetual green), I'm enjoying the Midwest and the changing of the seasons. Hurry Mr. Scottie Dog!
