A Birthday Weekend

May 25, 2008 - My sister-in-law was smart enough to remind me a few weeks ago to try not to go crazy trying to get things done in May - because in my family, there is no May. My grandmother, my sister, my sister-in-law, and I all have our birthdays in May, plus you throw in Memorial Day and there isn't a weekend without a party to attend. Very much the case this weekend.

Saturday was my sister-in-law Elizabeth's birthday. Not to be confused with my sister Elizabeth. Two Elizabeth's. Both birthdays this weekend. But sister-in-law Elizabeth first. This is the wife of my brother Stephen who is currently in Iraq. We miss him very much but he is doing well and is in touch often. And now that we're all caught up, let's move on...

Elizabeth and her daughter Lorelai (my other niece who is almost one year old!) were in Oneonta on Saturday, so my mother, my sister, Natalie, and I went there to her family's house for her birthday. It was a fun road trip for us Kipp girls and we had a really great time with Elizabeth's family. There was fried chicken, birthday cake, card games, plus the two babies got to play which was, as always, too cute.

Here's Elizabeth, clearly thrilled to see us and to make her blog debut:

And Lorelai - so cute. Do you think I could pull off tights like that? I just love the look...

And here's the ladies all out for a walk in the beautiful countryside of upstate NY -

Then, lucky old me came home to some SERIOUS yard progress made by Joe - He made several more beds in the backyard, and fenced in each of them. We were both so happy about it, we went and celebrated with sushi and sake! :) Check it out -

Then Sunday morning was the most perfect day. It was everything that I enjoy about what we are doing. We got up early, it was a warm, sunny morning, and we got to work planting. The sun felt amazing, the dirt was warm and perfect, and the morning was quiet and peaceful.

I planted rows of tomatoes and basil -

Joe planted squash and pumpkins-

And then we enjoyed a breakfast from our backyard - eggs with arugala on homemade bread. Yummmm -

Now if you've been paying attention, you will know that next we had to run over to Rhinebeck for the farmers' market - because it's SUNDAY!

It's the season for radishes and greens -

We have our own radishes, but we picked up some spinach, collard greens, and cilantro, as well as some pasta salad and pickles to bring to my sister's party later in the day. Then a quick coffee stop at Bread Alone -

And here's me, just cuz I'm a poser - but check out our new Farmers' Market bag - hopefully by the end of the season we'll have t-shirts too!

Then it was back to the house for more planting and lots of mulching. Fortunately my mother had to cut back a tree this winter so we have tons of mulch to keep the vegetables moist and weed-free. We were in a bit of a rush and didn't manage to finish planting everything before we had to run over to my sister's house (a bit late) for her birthday bash. It was a good time, with hamburgers, hot dogs, beer, and birthday cake -

Plus free tractor rides

And Joe balanced some rocks at Elizabeth's request -

Friends from out of town were here to visit which was great, and we ended the party with a beautiful bonfire - sorry, the camera was put away at that point. It was wonderful just to relax with good friends and family after a day of hard work.