Harry Potter - No Spoilers Here

So I won't comment on the plot, but 25 hours after receiving the book, I have finished it. I was glad that some of my predictions were on and some were way off. After all, if I had been completely right, it would have been boring wouldn't it? I felt satisfied with the ending and hope there will be more. Looking forward to an encyclopedia of characters Rowling has as much as promised to publish. Love to know that Dean Thomas's story!

New Head Shot

What a gal!

How Does Our Garden Grow

Shots of the veggies in the backyard! We're pickling today...

Harry Potter Predictions

So here are the things I think I know about the new book to be released in 20 minutes:

1. Harry will be able to communicate with Dumbledore through his many protraits that are prolific in the wizarding community. After all, he is on Chocolate Frog Cards.

2. Dumbledore really is dead. He would not have preserved himself in a hoarcrux; it's too evil.

3. Snape was asked to kill Dumbledore, by Dumbledore himself, and that is what his protest in the forest was truely about. Notice that he didn't kill anyone in the escape from Hogwarts.

4. Harry will survive to the end of book 7.

5. Perhaps of no real plot value, but an interestin detail: the portrait in the prime minister's office is an Umbridge, I think.

6. Hogwarts will reopen by the end of the novel and Hermione will be asked to teach there.

7. Harry and Ginny will finally get back together and he will be part of the Weasly family, officially.

8. Has Percy been under the spell of the new Minister of Magic?

9. There is something unresolved, and I think important, with Fawkes the Pheonix. Remember that Harry and Voldermort both have a feather from the tail of this phoenix in the core of their wands. And remember that Neville got one of the last known Olivander wands - could it also contain one of these feathers? Will Fawkes come to Harry's rescue again?

That's all I've got. Can't wait to read all about it!!

Disney Paper Art

For all you Disney Fans out there, I ran across this really fun site. You can make a model of several of the Disney icons from paper! This Space Mountain model rates a medium on the difficulty scale. You can bet I'll be trying some of these.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

I finished reading Barbara Kingsolver's book. I love her voice. It's like a cross between my Literature Professor, Pat Magness and my good friend, Caitlin Jorgenson (also a professor). I loved this book. It was really inspiring for me. It makes me want to live on a farmette and can all summer long. But short of that it makes me proud that I grow some produce and shop regularly at the farmer's market. Reading this book also prompted me to be more informed about the origins of my food. I am not as zealous as Kinsolver is about saving the gas it takes to cart in my fruits & veggies from all over the globe, although I am happy to do more than just recycle to save the planet. The thing that most hit me is that my money should be going into the economy where I live. I want to support my local farmers and their way of life and help send their kids to school. I want to be more intentional about how I spend my money and how much of it gets to the producers. These things seem to matter. At least I think they should. And if none of that is really impressive to you, Kingsolver's daughter provides these fabulous meal plans and recipies throughout that are mouthwatering in and of themselves. It's worth a look.

Because We All Need Another Personality Test...

find your car personality here

Thanks to my hubby Richard for this fun little quiz.

The First Real Tomato

We got our first real tomato from our backyard today. Hayes has been dying to pick it for the last 3 days. This morning he picked it and ate it for breakfast. By all reports it was delicious! He also had a strawberry from the plant he purchased with his own money this spring. He told his dad it was just like a real strawberry except with sugar on it! I don't know which one of us is having more fun growing all these new and interesting plants.

The community garden is on a roll too. I went over yesterday to tend it with a friend and we pulled enough green beans to feed 3 families, 2 very large zucchini, the rest of the spring onions, a few very large green tomatoes, and enough beets to feed my family. I cannot speak highly enough about those beets! I love fresh food. Hayes said, "This is the best dinner ever! Fresh veggies from the garden!" I couldn't agree more.

Our own cucumbers have exploded and I may not be singing the same tune in a month, but right now, the prospect of all this home-grown food sends me to the moon and back. The bounty of summer!