Thursday Update

My cleaning efforts have been hampered lately by Eleanor's paper dolls.


She makes dozens of them each day


And leaves them all over the house




They are really cute, though.


We had several nights below freezing this week so I've been cleaning up and mulching over the garden for the season. Today we cut down the cannas that grow next to our patio, which means that the chickens will have to find a new favorite hiding place until next summer.

We have about as many leaves on the ground as there are on the trees now.


Maggie isn't doing too well, but for now we're just waiting to see what happens with her. I believe we will have to put her to sleep soon, and it looks like I will have to take her. I'm not looking forward to it, but I suppose when the time comes we'll just do what needs to be done.

Food we grew

In taking stock of the productivity of our humble garden, I'm thinking back over the meals we've enjoyed from it. A few of the things I planted (spinach and onions) just did nothing, and since I don't know why, I'm thinking of skipping them next year. A few others (kale and swiss chard and lettuce and basil) just keep going and going and I'll definitely do them again. The tomatoes are finally ripening and we're loving them...I did 8 plants this year and I'd like to do a few more next year. Tony and I are hoping to put in a few more raised beds this fall so we can expand the garden and more easily rotate crops.

These were from the first potato pot I dug up. Three of the four pots did great, but in one of them all of the plants died and the potatoes turned to mush. I don't think it was disease, I suspect I over-watered them. I'm thinking of trying growing potatoes in straw next year, rather than in the pots.

We had the potatoes with some of the green cabbage. We still haven't harvested the red cabbage. Cabbage it turns out is fairly easy to grow, but next time I'll cover it with a floating row cover to keep the moths out and avoid problems with cabbage loopers.

I planted lots and lots of basil and we LOVE pesto, so that's a definite do-over.

Last week I roasted some of the tomatoes with some peppers we grew and made salsa. We have a big bowl of tomatoes and we're just snacking on them. I don't think it's possible to have too many tomatoes.

Another Lovely Morning

The garden is definitely a success. My goal was to grow something this year, and in that at least I have succeeded! Sophia fell off of some playground equipment yesterday and hurt her arm, I still haven't decided if we should have it x-rayed or not.

This sunflower was a volunteer, from some birdseed that fell around the sidewalk. It makes me very happy.

The cheeps are spending most of the daytime in their hutch in the backyard this week. I think they'll move out there fulltime next week. The one in the doorway is Daisy, she's so friendly!


Here is a shot of the hutch we (well, mostly Tony) built out of leftover fence wood. It still needs some finishing touches and then I'll do a post about it, showing all of the amazing features!

It's a Lovely Morning

The kids are playing,




the growing things are growing,


the trusty bear dog is at my side,


Tony finished the last leg of the fence, enclosing the breezeway,


and it looks so nice from the front,


and the pre-teen is still in bed, reading.

Catch up time

I've been busy and sick, which is a bad combination since being busy while sick inevitably leads to being sick longer than necessary. Due to the long interval between posting, we have lots to share, mostly in photos, so here goes.

These are our Pascha baskets from back in April. Pascha came much later than western Easter this year, causing confusion amongst our family and friends. Here is a fairly concise explanation of the disparity, for those who are interested: http://orrologion.blogspot.com/2008/03/on-dating-pascha-or-why-orthodox-in.html
The dark brownish-red eggs were dyed with onion skins, something new we tried this year and they turned out very nicely.


Maggie, aka the world's only midwestern bear dog, fell asleep under the crafting table and got covered with bits.


The girls had a nice day at the zoo recently, and Sophia made a new friend.




I tried to capture the beauty of the lilacs at twilight, but you really can't photograph the lovely smell, so this was the best I could do.


Anna was hanging around and doing that funny scrunchy nose thing she does, but due to the low light the photo is a bit blurry.


Margaret created this lovely greeting for me on Mother's Day that made me smile.


We have growing things in our Square Foot Garden beds at last. The black pots on the left have potatoes in them, the beds have beans, tomatoes, some herbs, lettuce, kale, spinach, and swiss chard in them.


I have more, but I'd better save them because blogger is acting up and I don't want to lose what I've posted so far.

Sunny Sunday Afternoon

Some photos taken from the back door:

Raised garden beds, awaiting plants:


Circus dog basking in the sunlight:


The first few fence posts:


Back corner of the yard, we finished setting the posts later that day, and we're ready to put up the fence. Hurray!