It’s hard to believe that we’ve reached the middle of August and fall is just around the corner. I feel for all of you that are struggling with the difficult decision of whether to send kids back to school virtually or in-person during a pandemic. Certainly not an easy decision to make! If you need a little break this week, check out my favorite procrastination links from around the web…

Have you noticed all of the butterflies and bees collecting pollen from your allium, coneflowers, and bee balm? They are a great reminder to keep our gardens filled with these host plants and nectar sources for far more than the color they bring to our gardens. If you need a little break this week, check out my favorite links from around the web…

How are you coping with the monotony of social distancing? It seems that so many people are finding comfort in old-fashioned letter writing. While we may not be gathering for summer barbecues and pool parties in the way we once did, putting pen to paper and sending a letter via snail mail can be the perfect way to connect. If you need a little break this week, check out my favorite links from around the web…

How are you spending your summer days? My schedule is now determined by the weather with cool and dry days left for serious yard work in the farm gardens. The farm has brought the hard work, joy, and solace that I needed this summer. If you need a little break this week, check out my favorite links from around the web…

We are busy at the farm picking greens and lettuces, and the zucchini and radishes will soon be ready. We’re going to be sharing a lot of this produce because, really, what better time is there for all of us to share the bounties from our gardens than during a pandemic? I hope you are staying safe and healthy, and if you need a little break check out my favorite links from around the web this week…

Summer officially started this past Saturday and is in full bloom at the farm. Check out my instagram for updates on our flower gardens and farmhouse renovations. While our summers may look a bit different this year, I hope you are able to enjoy the simple pleasures summer has to offer whether it’s walking on the beach, taking a stroll in the woods, or sipping lemonade on the porch. If you need a little break this week, check out my favorite links from around the web…

I thought I'd share the words written last week by Angelina Cicero, the dedicated English teacher who taught three of my four sons:

How many roads must a black man walk down, before you call him a man?

#BlackLivesMatter

If you are white and you have a fear of black men, it is not because the black man is dangerous but because you have not eaten beside him, worshipped beside him, talked with him of his dreams, held his babies, seen him look into the eyes of his wife, listened to his stories, read his history. Why have you not? Why have you accepted a segregated life? Why have you allowed this world to indoctrinate you into seeing him as the "other"? Such abstinence from the full human community is neglect. Willful ignorance. Dangerous.

If fear lives in you, canceling compassion, erasing his humanity, causing you to view him as expendable, his neck as a place to hang or crush him, his body a something you may maim or shoot, and him unworthy of kindness, you must examine why you have excused yourself from a fundamentally human act: to perceive that black lives matter. To perceive that you are the one whom people fear for a reason, not him.

While nothing can or should distract us from doing our part to fight the injustice and brutality faced by so many of our fellow human beings, my procrastination links are here, as they always are, if you need a bit of a respite…

I hope you were able to have a relaxing and safe Memorial Day weekend. If you need a little break as we work toward going back out into the world and finding our new normal, check out my favorite procrastination links from around the web this week…

As the country eases its stay-at-home restrictions, I am continuing to spend my days doing the things that make me feel the best: cooking, gardening, and writing. I hope you are staying safe and healthy as we navigate our new normal out in the world. If you need a little break this week, check out my favorite procrastination links from around the web…

What is making you smile these days? Amidst all of the heaviness around us, I hope you are finding moments of joy throughout the long days of quarantining. If you need a little break today, check out my favorite procrastination links from around the web this week…

As we continue our days of social distancing, I am thinking of all of you who are working, parenting, teaching, and caregiving within the confines of your homes. There is certainly nothing simple or easy about this time. If you need a little distraction from the demands within your home, check out my favorite procrastination links from around the web this week…

How are you doing as we enter our second month of quarantining? I hope you were able to enjoy some sunshine and beautiful spring weather this past weekend. If you need a little break from binging on your favorite Netflix shows and working on projects at home, check out my favorite procrastination links from around the web this week…

Another week of writing, cooking, and walking awaits. I have to admit there is some comfort in my social distancing routine. If you need a little change of pace in your own routine, check out my favorite procrastination links from around the web this week…

I’m happy to be back at the farm now that my son and his girlfriend have completed their two-week isolation. And, I’m looking forward to tackling the many spring projects that await us. My thoughts and love go out to all of you who may be sick or lost loved ones during this terrible pandemic. As we all continue to stay at home and do what we can to stop the spread of this horrific virus, take a moment away to enjoy my favorite procrastination links from around the web this week…

What acts of kindness, beauty, and compassion have you seen in the midst of the despair and fear we’re all feeling? If you look closely while out on a walk, you just might see hand-drawn and painted rainbows in some of your neighbors’ windows as a way to pass on a little hope and cheer during these scary days. I’m hoping you are able to find some calm and beauty in the days ahead, and, as always, if you need a little distraction, check out my favorite procrastination links from around the web this week…

Hoping you and your loved ones are staying safe and healthy during this time of uncertainty in our world. If you need a little distraction from the ominous news updates, check out my favorite links from around the web this week…

I am home from sunny Florida and back to the freezing cold of Wisconsin, but happy to be snuggled in the coziness of the farm. I am looking forward though to the warmer temperatures on their way this weekend. If you need a little chuckle, you can read about my journey to Florida with my parents. And, as always, check out my favorite procrastination links from around the web this week…

As my checklists and to-do lists for the farm, writing, and life in general continually grow, I realize that a quote I recently stumbled upon could not be more true many weeks…“my best fiction writing is my daily to-do list.” If you need a little distraction from your own to-do lists that may not have gotten checked off this week, enjoy my favorite procrastination links from around the web…

It’s hard to believe that I’m starting my seventh year as a blogger! For a recap on the state of the blog, visit my most recent blog post. I’m looking forward to sharing some new photos of the farm later this month on the blog. In the meantime, I’m enjoying winter on the farm and awaiting the next round of snow. If you need a little break, check out my favorite links from around the web this week…