~Oliver Lane, Breaking Beans, Making Biscuits, equals Picnic on the Patio for One~

This week I had the pleasure of spending time with Oliver Trent Lane, our grandson #2. We shared a meal at Olive Garden, took in the  Disney movie 'Tommorrowland', shopped for some totally cool, beachwear, then home we came for a' spend the night', (Oliver has always called staying at our house 'spend the nights', and I just love that about him) Next morning we dined at the new' Flapjack Pancake House' in Powell and then came home and did some much needed pruning in the back yard. As I was watching Ollie work he reminded so much of his Big Daddy, Curtis Lane, and his Great Uncle Jim Johnson. He is not one of those guys that jumps right into work, he studies it, analyzes the project begins, and if that does not work he steps back recalculates and begins again. I have always laughingly said that Ollie spends more time thinking on how to get out of work then actually working, but I now realize he just wants to go about it in a clear and concise manner, which as an employer I appreciate, saves me, time and money (:=). It was fun working side by side in the yard. It gave me an opportunity to share some ideas, and stories. 

As Oliver was straightening  up my firewood stand which is close to the back door, we had to trim the bush that is there to make room. Oliver said "Memommie what is that bush?" "It smells really good!"  So I told him the story of  his Granny Johnson, our Mom, Muriel Rose Engle Johnson  and 'The Bubby Bush'.  When we bought our house in 1980 our yard was landscaped with many very nice trees and shrubs,  We moved in in February and in late May the bush close to the back door starting blooming with bright shiny leaves and these very aromatic purple star like blooms. Mom and Dad had come over and was going out back to check out Curt's garden which at that time was very large and spread out!  My Mom stopped as she was going out the door beside the bush and snatched one of the blooms off of the bush rubbed it between her hands and took a big whiff, she laughed out loud and was beaming as she said" oh my gosh you have a Bubby Bush!"  Curt, Dad and I looked at each other and said 'What?", she went on to explain that as a child up in Woodbine, Kentucky, one of her simple pleasures was to go into the woods close to their cabin in the early summer and get the 'Bubbies off of the bush fill her pockets full of them and play with and smell them as she went about her day.  She also laughed as she told on herself "of sticking one of them up in her nose and it got stuck and someone in her family got the chore of getting it out!"  So every year when it blooms out I get sweet memories of Mom as a young girl and the sweet delight of discovering that we had a bush in our yard that she shared of her days growing up.  The actual name of the Bush is Sweet shrub', Calycanthus floridus, or 'sweet bubby'.

'Sweet Bubby'

Bubby
















Summertime, brings with it so many tasty fresh vegetables. Today I starting thinking about my Grandmother's and the wonderful meals that they would make in the summertime that were simple, fresh, and ones that required very little cooking in the heat of the day.  Windows would be open, usually propped up with a stick, and were designed in such a way that cross ventilation would pass through the house to bring as much breeze as possible.  Most of the cooking was done early in the morning, and set aside on the stove covered with a plate, or in the fridge until later.  I remember when I was a married woman, sitting on the porch, with my Grandma Johnson(Dad's Mom), and breaking beans, her bean of choice was 'White Half Runner', not too full, not to thin, she was very picky about her food, whether she grew it in her yard, and especially if she was paying dearly for it at the market. I found it was not easy to shop with her at 'The White Store' or shop for her! Whew, I got many a scolding because the chicken I had purchased for her was too old, too skinny or too fat for roasting. She really was particular about her chuck roast!

Today I got some white half runner beans, sat on my porch, broke them and then cooked them in water, with some salted lean meat, until all most all of the juice was cooked down, tossed in a teaspoon of sugar stirred them up and set them aside for later. Grandma always put a teaspoon of sugar in everything she cooked, and believe me when I say there was never anything left on the plate for scraps for the dog.

Another sweet memory I have of  Mommie Engle ( Mom's Mom) sitting on the porch of her 3 room cabin and churning milk, for buttermilk and making butter, she let me churn  for awhile and then I got to run my finger over the top to taste the butter, it was delicious, then she would take it out, put it in a bowl and take it to the well house that the cool mountain stream ran through in the hillside and it would keep it cool, nice and fresh.

I decided I would make old time slaw grated fine with cabbage, carrot, mayo, apple cider vinegar and a teaspoon of sugar, salt and pepper to taste, it turned out quite well. Sliced some tomato's, cucumber, radish as a accompaniment and added a sliced cantaloupe for desert. Fried some chicken tenderloins, made some biscuits and the cool summertime meal is ready with a cool glass of sweet tea with a twist of lime for flavor. 

I carried (toted) it all out to the back patio and had a picnic for one with 'Mother Nature' sharing her glory, a cool breeze blowing, birds chirping and tweeting back and forth, sweet smell from the 'Bubby Bush' and the chocolate mint by the patio.  An early evening spent recalling three special women in our life, our Mom, Muriel, Grandma, Corina Johnson, and Mommy Engle, Sarah Bessie.  I am grateful to them for passing on to me the ability to find  the strength, to persevere, and to face each new day with a joyful heart.  I am thankful that I am able to pass on these characteristics, and their earthy wisdom to our children and our grandchildren.  We all need food for nourishment, and knowledge and the heritage of our ancestors to understand where we came from. I have found that most foods we truly enjoy we associate with people, places and memories in our lives. Thanks for reading and God Bless...LSJL

Oldie but goodie of Oliver and Memommie awards day 5th grade

Picnic for one

cool refreshing summertime meal
white half runner beans slaw, chicken, biscuit, tomato's, cucumbers, radishes, cantaloupe, sweet tea with a lime twist
 

Chocolate mint

patio fence

A  lovely cloud for company


 
Then followed that beautiful season... Summer....
Filled was the air with a dreamy and magical light; and the landscape
Lay as if new created in all the freshness of childhood.
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow