In an extravagant fit of sheer awesomeness, my mother just gave me a Vita-Mix blender as an early Mother’s Day gift. I’ve been eyeing one for a couple of years and we really thought this was the year, but a few household repairs came up and . . . you know how it goes.

But I suddenly find myself with this Lamborghini of blenders at my disposal, and there is no stopping me now.

My first day with Frieda (my highly efficient new friend, on constant call, ready to whip up any drink I might want with Teutonic efficiency) I used it Five. Times. Yes, five. For one round with the girls, I peeled four clementines and threw them in there –seeds and pith and all – with a peeled banana and some yogurt and some vanilla extract. Sheer heaven. Frieda (my new best friend) will take any fruit and pulverize it to a smooth, un-pulp-y liquid. I have high hopes that she will help me get more whole fruits and veggies down Cora’s throat – Cora is my Texture Nazi.

So far I’m sticking with classics – mango, strawberries (we’ve got a few of those around), bananas, oranges, that sort of thing – with a bit of plain yogurt. I’ve learned that if I put in frozen fruit it makes a drink the consistency of a milkshake.

A milkshake.

Total number of caterpillars we started with in our garden ten days ago:

Ten.

Total number of caterpillars now in residence in our garden:

Zero.

Yes, we have managed to lose every. Single. One.

In a related story, my dill is miraculously growing back from one-inch stubs.

Not that it makes me feel better.

Last Friday I pulled the girls out of school early to go strawberry picking, an annual event we always look forward to. We’re lucky to have an organic strawberry farm just north of us here, and we pack a picnic and make a day of it. The strawberries are EXCELLENT and the prices below grocery store, so we always pick plenty to bring home and freeze for canning and smoothies.

This year we may have over-reached a bit.

Maddie and Cora were able to really participate this year and did a great job filling up a few buckets with very ripe strawberries, while my mom and I worked diligently to pick as much as we could. I kept remembering how we ran out of the thirty pounds we picked last May by mid-July, and I was determined to pick more this year. I sent the girls back to the farmer for extra buckets a few times, and we ended with quite a haul.

Sixty-eight pounds, to be exact.

We're down to one caterpillar out there.

One caterpillar, and five people all hovering anxiously around it, our hopes and dreams for it and its nine former friends all poured into this one stupid larva.

I swear, God's creation will drive me to drink this week.