From watching the weather it appears NE South Dakota was blessed with serious April showers earlier this month. I don’t think I’ve been around when 5 inches of rain fell in just a few days but I bet the low spot in our front yard was flooded. This will be good for the weeping willow tree we planted there last year as they like wet feet (roots). The moisture might also jump start our asparagus which the neighbors will enjoy prior to our return. Some friends at the lake have a large asparagus patch that I am hoping to cull and use for pickling this year.
April is my least favorite month here in Flagstaff as the snow is gone but nothing is growing beyond some blossoming trees; plus it is very windy in the spring with temperatures hovering in the 50’s during the day and frequent night freezes. Also, spring rain is quite rare here in northern Arizona so everything looks dry and barren. I finally got around to planting three Ruby Red Barberry bushes below my front window; now I just have to keep them moist until well established. Tree trimming and spring yard cleanup are done so my thoughts are turning to preparations for our trip back to the lake in early May.
Just like when we leave the lake in the fall, our biggest challenge is always emptying out the freezer. It starts about a month before our scheduled departure when I start reminding Paul to stop purchasing new items for the freezer; “taking things out not putting things in” becomes my daily mantra. This is extremely difficult for him as he loves grocery shopping and hates to pass up weekly deals. The next task is to put on work gloves and wrestle everything out of the freezer to take inventory. This is followed by coming up with about a dozen menu items for our evening meals during the final weeks of our time here. Paul then tweaks my suggestions and locates recipes for each meal. Thankfully, he is still able to grocery shop to fill in the blanks. Although a lot of work, this process is probably a good thing to do at least once a year to ensure good “freezer management.” I have heard lots of stories about packed freezers full of mystery food items difficult to identify much less use in a reasonable time frame.
Paul has decided mom and I should fly home sparing us four days on the road; yippee! He will endure the road trip alone which I think he will enjoy. What is it with guys and road trips? He will leave here and arrive there before us, unpack the car then pick us up at the Sioux Falls airport. After a few quick supply stops we should be able to quickly slide into summer lake life. Ahhhh….can’t wait!