It's the strangest thing ... gardening seems to be one of the only things in the world that can completely get my mind off of
everything else. It doesn't make much sense. It would seem that since only my hands are occupied that my mind would wander. But it just
doesn't. It's a wonderful thing ... something I'm just going to accept as a blessing.
I've been indulging in plenty of "garden therapy" lately - recently rotatilling the garden and planting zucchini, yellow squash, green beans (two kinds), lima beans (Emily's favorite!), cucumbers (four kinds!), sunflowers and zinnias (not to eat, but because they make me smile), and tomatoes. You can see here that my potatoes, onions, lettuce, spinich, carrots and peas (regular, sugar snap and snow) are all coming along nicely.
I still have about 50 pepper plants that will go in the ground in a few weeks along with the okra. Andy asked me awhile back if I was planning to feed the entire town of Winfield with the produce from my gardens. :) In fact, I am hoping to participate in our local farmers market this summer ... certainly not every Saturday, but a least a few time. I also have a new raised bed that Gage and I finished last weekend (yep, that makes THREE gardens!) where I plan to plant herbs and more cutting flowers.
The fruits and berries we have planted this year are coming along just swimmingly. Roger recently planted for us four peach trees, four apricot and four cherry. It has become a tradition for Gage and me to plant trees for our anniversary. This year we have a handful of pear trees and apple trees on their way!
The six blueberry bushes and six raspberry bushes we planted are also sprouting right up! Last summer I planted strawberries, which are thriving!
One thing about planting soooo many different varieties of plants I am not familiar with is that I have LOTS to learn. I'm devouring anything I can get my hands on that tells me more about fruits and berries. For instance, I was recently reading about the care of strawberries and discovered that it is recommended that one pinch off the blossoms until July 1. When we went out to pinch blossoms, Gage and I discovered that the plants were already LOADED with berries! Here is just a tiny little bit that we picked off. Now, the book that I read didn't say anything about pinching off the berries, but we decided to try it and see what happens. Hopefully if won't decrease the yield later in the summer. In any case, we are looking forward to plenty of yummy fruits and veggies this summer and in years to come!
We had such a fun, full weekend for Memorial Day! Andy, Libby, Kalo and Maggie flew in on Friday to spend the weekend. What fun we had kayaking, eating smores, fishing, and playing to our hearts' content!
Leevi also brought his boys down to camp for a few nights - what fun! Our house just seems so empty now ... our house wasn't made to be neat and clean, as it is most of the time right now. It is made to have toys strewn about, sandy, muddy shoes on the porch and happy kids running all around ...
... which leads to my big news. :) We're going to be adding another Werner to the family later this year! Our baby is due December 2nd, and we couldn't be more excited! Everything seems to be going smoothly so far. I am just into my second trimester, and we heard the baby's heartbeat a few weeks ago, which was amazing. I haven't been sick at all, just tired. I took two loooong naps yesterday afternoon. :) Emily is very excited about having a new baby brother or sister, and we are all anxious for our little peanut to be here!
Now for a few pics of our weekend fun! (I'm pretty sure I used Libby's camera more than my own, so I didn't have many to choose from here ... yes I do have camera envy!)
Kayaking down Timber Creek ...
Emily did so great! Peanut's first kayak trip! ... boy that lifejacket won't fit much longer!
Being silly!
Maggie ... too cute!
S'mores - YUM!
Playing with the new puppy.
Things have been sooo crazy these past few weeks that I didn't even get to post pictures of Ellie when she joined our family. She is half lab, half golden retriever and so cute! She already brings much joy to our lives!
We had promised Emily we would get a puppy once the house was built. I'm not sure which she is more excited about right now - the new puppy, or a new brother or sister. :)
