Sundays on Silverado #2

That was so fun! I loved reading all the posts from bloggers who linked up to the first ever Sundays on Silverado link party! I’ve picked three to feature this week, and linked them below, but I hope you will take the time to browse all the wonderful posts from last week and this week, too. So many fun and inspiring ideas were shared!

My Weekly Recap

Back-to-School

Friday was my first official day working back in my school building since March. It was stressful. To say that I’m anxious would be putting it mildly. Right now, I’m relying on two coping strategies:

A whole lotta prayer, accented with a little bit of alcohol.

Okay, so one of these strategies may be healthier than the other, but right now, this balance is the best I’ve got.

The Garden

The tomatoes are exploding right now, and the peppers are just about ready to pick. We’ve been busy finding ways to make the most of all that fresh garden produce. In the last few days we’ve had BLTs, Fresh Tomato & Basil Risotto, Mini Roasted Tomato Flatbreads, Caprese Club Sandwiches, and BLT Pizza! A couple of these I still need to get written up, so I can share them with you!

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Outside Time

My “classroom” at school is literally a closet. It used to be a book storage closet for the library. It’s a small interior room with no windows and poor ventilation.

I’m trying to enjoy as much sunshine, fresh air, and nature as I can before I spend my days in the closet again.

Thankfully, Mother Nature has been kindly obliging with some wonderful skies lately.

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Iowa Derecho

We had a derecho this week. Never heard of a derecho? Me neither, and I’ve lived in Iowa my whole life. A derecho is defined as: a line of intense, widespread, and fast-moving windstorms and sometimes thunderstorms that moves across a great distance and is characterized by damaging winds.

The news also called it an “inland hurricane”. In landlocked Iowa. Seriously, just when I think 2020 can’t dish anything else out to us…. there’s more. 😞

In my town, we got off easy compared to a large swath of Iowa. It’s been devastating for so many. I don’t even have the words to describe the amount of destruction to crops, farms, homes, businesses…. Hundreds of thousands were without power for DAYS, and nearly a week later, many still have no power.

I was working from home, and on a virtual meeting when it hit my coworkers who live about 15 miles west of me first. The sirens starting going off in their area, and they all quickly had to disconnect from the meeting.

When I looked out the window to the west, I could tell it was going to be bad. I had no idea how bad, though.

My husband was off that day, and had gone out on a bike ride. I called him and told him I was coming to pick him up. Before I even got my car a block from the house, the storm hit, and a giant tree crashed across the highway very close to my car!

I was able to back up and get around it, but as I drove into the storm, smaller branches keep pelting my car and all I could think about was my husband on the tree-lined bike trail with no shelter!

I finally made it to him, and in drenching rain and wind we got his bike into the back of my car. We weren’t even a mile down the road, when another massive tree broke and crashed across the road, maybe 100 feet in front of us! I had to back up and find a different route home.

When it was over, we were stunned to see the devastation across our state. So many had it so much worse than us. Iowa will be in recovery mode for a very long time.

If you’re inclined, many of my fellow Iowans could use your prayers right now.

This Week’s Features!

Okay, it’s been a hard week around here, so let’s move on to some better news: this week’s great features!

Why You Need to Keep a Well-Stocked Pantry by Milk Glass Home

Rachael has such great advice about keeping your pantry, fridge, and freezer stocked and ready. This is great advice anytime, but during a pandemic, it’s really smart.

Painted Dollar Store Pumpkins by Interior Frugalista

I have so many of these little dollar store pumpkins in my fall stash. I never thought of painting them! I will definitely be giving this a try!

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread by My Slices of Life

Banana bread makes me think of my mom. Her recipe is still my favorite, but this one with chocolate chips added in looks amazing!

I truly enjoyed reading all the posts that were linked up last week! I’m so looking forward to seeing all the great things you guys have to share this week.