My Garden is HERE!

It is done!! As long as we don't get torrential rain in the next few days, I believe I've been successful in my garden this year. I was able to finish weeding and turning it over on Friday - that is the first picture - oh, and the tomato plants I rec'd from Vicki are in too!. It is far from perfect, but most of the weeds and grass are gone and I've raked it. I thought I might die from doing this..it was SO labor intensive. I was about to give up when David appeared with a glass of water - bless my boy! I took a long drink and keep on going. I then let it rest for the day, and then on Saturday Sami and I planted it in the rain. I just wanted to get all the plants and seeds I bought IN. I planted lettuce, carrots, onions, radishes, my mother's day dahlia bulbs, peas, two kinds of cukes, watermelon, honeydew melon, and strawberries. I am SO jazzed!!

Zeus May 16, 2011

Zeus lost his battle with lung cancer today and joined his canine sister Cassie in Heaven. He was a great dog - just always happy and sincerely loved us with all of his being. He was happiest going for a walk or having you just sit with him outside. He loved his "squeakies" - the toys we bought that quickly lost their squeek! He also loved ice cream, and always knew when it was his turn to "share". The minute Dan's spoon started clicking the bottom of the bowl he came running. Dan shared a last bowl of ice cream with him today. It was hard to let him go, but we know he'll be happier and will be able to breathe better again now. We love you Zeus!

Sami is Home!!

Our girl is home! Dan and I flew down to Provo, Utah to get her on April 21. She was all packed up - I was so proud of her efforts. We did a little cleaning in her apartment, and then we were free to do what we wanted. I had a list of stores to shop at - ones we don't have here at home. We managed to get to all of them, and fit in visits with family and friends. On Saturday April 23 I flew home and Sami and Dan drove home. They stopped along the way and visited family, and still made it home Easter Sunday at 2:30 am. We are so glad she is back! She hopes to gain employment this summer to help with college costs, and enjoy home cooked food. I hope the summer is a nice long one so we can enjoy her before she goes back in the fall. And yeah, I don't know how to fix the pic - you get the idea though.




It stormed in Utah when we were there - aren't these clouds something else? The wind was so strong it really knocked the car around on the way back from the airport. Sami was nervous -she almost pulled over to let Dan drive but then it calmed down a bit. A truck with garbage packed in the back started losing his load - and garbage rained down! I was glad to get through that all.




I thought I would add this pic of Dan eating this scorpion laden sucker. Why he would do such a thing is beyond me...other than he can now say he did it. YUCK~!

My Garden "Becomes"

So as you can see, I've weeded a bit more and am now up to the crawlspace entrance. I'm now 1/3rd of the way there! If you compare this pic to my last post, you can see what I've done. I've been disappointed with the weather - I am a fair weather gardener, and pouring down rain doesn't help my causes! By the time I went back out after the days of rain had passed, I found new weeds in my already weeded garden. So patiently I plucked the new ones out and then moved on to the old. It kind of reminds me of life. When we work hard at overcoming a bad habit, or work at maintaining a new one, we can't just say "okay I conquered, I'm done with that and on to something new!" Periodically we have to go back over old territory and pluck weeds to make sure we are maintaining what we've gained. It doesn't take much usually, just a little care.

Oh, and I've learned how to grow the best, most wonderful lawn anyone has ever seen! Plant a garden - you'll have all the most hardy, hard to pull grass you could ever want.



I thought I would update you on Zeus too. Here he is with his second most favorite play thing. Yes its a log - and a small one at that. Usually he will get one from our wood pile that is nearly too big for him to carry in his mouth, and then proudly run around with it. He was tired in this photo because he ran around "visiting" his neighbor doggy friends (from his side of the fence - he didn't run loose) while I gardened. He is getting shorter of breath now, and if he runs too hard he nearly passes out. Generally though, besides a little coughing he does okay. He coughs occasionally, some days more than others, but other than that he seems happy. The lump on his side gets bigger with each day, but it doesn't seem to slow him at all. We are watching closely for signs of pain, although the vet said he probably wouldn't have any, just a tougher time breathing as time goes on. We are just loving him, and taking one day at a time. It is a good outlook on our own lives, don't you think?

Zeus the Wonder Dog

Two posts in one day, I know, can you believe it? I've decided to become better at blogging since I love reading my friend's blogs. This is Zeus. He is my best friend during the day when no one else is at home. He lays behind my computer while I work; when it is raining and we can't walk outside he lays by my treadmill as I sweat away; he even follows me to the bathroom and sits outside the closed door. He lets me know when someone comes to the door, and he makes me feel safe. I don't hesitate to walk around the block or even in the next neighborhood when I have him by my side. We found out recently he has lung cancer. A strange diagnosis for such a young dog (6 years). He still runs around outside like crazy, but he coughs more every day. We will be sad when it is his turn to go to heaven, but I am so grateful to have had him in my life. Love you Zeus!

The Turtle vs the Rabbit

So we've had this raised garden spot for years. I've planted in it quite a few times, although in recent years mostly it is a spot for grass and weeds. Oh, if only the grass grew as well in my lawn as it does in the garden! Anyway, prior to last year I hadn't gardened in a few years. Too much to do in other places. Last year I decided I really wanted homemade salsa - from fresh grown tomatoes. So the kids and I spent a day digging out the weeds and grass...til we got down to the opening to under the house. We had to stop there because we found a bird's nest in the grass. Anyway, I figured we had enough space for tomatoes and peppers. We planted....and it rained, and rained, and rained. I gave up, the tomatoes finally came back but the peppers died. I let the garden to to seed..again.

It was suggested by my doctor that I need to be outside more during the day. I need the sun on my face so that I sleep better at night. So I decided to take on the garden again. I decided to start today by just pulling grass a little at a time. Slow and sure wins the race - like the turtle, right? So the first pic above shows what I finished today. Doesn't look like much, but it was the end with the bird's nest in it last year, so this was 2 years worth of grass and weeds. It felt good, and I decided that even if I only plant flowers in May, I will have my face in the sun whenever it shows. I'll post more pics as I get more weeded.

Someone Turned 50!

Dan turned 50 on March 17, 2011 and we had to have a party to celebrate! We held it on March 19 at the home of friends of ours. It was a blast to connect with people we haven't seen in awhile, and to share stories about Dan. Funny stories were shared of course, but people also told what a good person he is - and how he would give the shirt off his back to anyone in need. It was a great night!