Simple Gifts

I am  enraptured by the roses my Chief brings in for me. He chooses them from our ever~bearing rosebush 'tree' outside my kitchen window.  They speak volumes to my soul.  Many object lessons and parallels I find from this bush.  Leaf cutter ants  threatened to take it down, but it conquered, and is producing beautiful roses. 

Simple gifts~my love language.  

I am blessed.

Garden

From our land, the 'fruit' of extended family labor:

Always has more juice than store bought.

Fresh Organic Broccoli

My dog...

...likes radishes!

Rosemary Chritmas Tree

We received a gift for Christmas that we could plant in our yard.  We found just the place, and hope it grows...I love the smell of fresh Rosemary!

The First

While everyone up north talks about the cold and snow for Thanksgiving week, I picked our first zucchini of the season.

Our little fall garden is waayy behind schedule. I am hoping we get a few beans and more squash...maybe some carrots and beets  by New Years. The cauliflower plants are being chewed on, so don't think they will produce.
I made the mistake in previous years of giving the broccoli leaves to the dog when I pulled out the plants after harvesting two or three pickings. Now he has gotten the idea that he can go into the garden and munch on the growing plants.  So probably no broccoli this year.

But doesn't he look just so innocent?!

Fall Garden

I was so excited to see this in my garden!

I just hope it doesn't get too cold too soon, as the planting was late this year.

Fall-Winter Garden

We had wanted to get the plants in the ground the first of September, but the tiller had broken, and couldn't get the ground ready. Finally got the parts to fix it in the mail, and got it running again.  The garden is planted for another season. Though it is a little late, we trust that we'll get a harvest...

Oh Beans!

This past spring I threw some dried, over-ripe beans onto the dirt by the front door. During the summer months, this plant came up!

And now...we are getting one bean at a time off the plant. 

Not enough to even make one serving!  It almost looks like a snake! Ewww!

Pecans!

It looks like we might get some pecans this year.  It is exciting to get fresh picked nuts.

This...

is the biggest cantaloupe yet from our weedy garden....  Picked yesterday

I was inspired to post updated pictures of our garden when I saw a friends blog... but during our 20 days of absence the weeds took over, and when I went out to work at weeding for a little while the other day before it got too hot I received a plague of chigger bites that I am suffering for right  now.  I should have known better...to at least put bug spray on!  Oh the consequences of my choice.

Today

Chief was canceled from work today.  Often it means more stress and rearranging of schedules to fit his choice of schedule and sometimes even cause meltdowns within the family...but today I asked him to come work with me in the garden...and he did.  It was a blessed time together.  We mainly weeded, but it helped both of us focus on what the rest of the day would be like.  It helped the kids get some studies accomplished without interruption.  Now he is working on taking some branches and logs away from a tree that fell during a storm we had a few months ago. We even found a small handful of green beans to steam for lunch.  God is good.

Picked...Fresh

This morning while I was walking around outside, talking to my mother, wishing her a Happy Mothers Day, I happened to glance down into the zucchini bush...and found...

something to pick right now!

A Peek Around the Yard

This is what the sky is like today..not a cloud anywhere!

The tomatoes are getting bigger..

And we will get to pick a zucchini soon.

Seems like everything else is taking its slow sweet time growing...except the weeds!

Tomatoes!

We have been house sitting for a family while they are off on vacation.  Their tomato plants are producing such good, sweet, juicy vine ripened fruit for us to enjoy!  Unfortunately it seems that they are all going to get eaten before the family returns...but I guess they must have realized that they would ripen while away, for they told us to be sure and pick them.  They are just the right size to pop in the mouth for a tasty treat.

Potatoes!

I have been enjoying watching these potato plants as they grow...seemingly before my eyes!  I can almost hear them.  This is our first year planting purple potatoes.  We really like this kind, and hope that they do well.