WHO YOU LOOKIN AT???

POTATOS AND WALKING DEAD?

JUST BEFORE GOING TO MY SISTERS HOUSE TO WATCH THE SECOND SEASON OF THE WALKING DEAD, I PLANTED WHITE AND YUKON GOLD POTATOS IN MY NEW BED. YAY!

ANOTHER WORK DAY...KIND OF

Wow did I sleep well last night. Woke at 5:30am and snuggled with the kitty for another hour thinking about what I want to get accomplished today.

Then got up and poached a duck egg for breakfast over toasted homemade bread with hot sweet jasmine tea.



Checking my seedlings as I do everyday, I see that the marigolds are developing secondary leaves and a pumpkin is sprouted.





Prepping todays lunch. Last year I canned beef and potatos. Last week I dehydrated a large package of frozen veggie mix and a large package of "season mix" which is mainly onions and bell peppers.





Today I took 1 cup of veggies and 1/2 cup of season mix and added 4 cups of boiling water.

I will saute garlic and then add flour and cook until toasty brown. Then will add the beef broth and some water and salt and pepper. Then add the beef and veggies and cook until thick.

Served today after church with home made buttermilk bread. This will fill up tummies and will energize my grand boys into doing chores (maybe)

COLD DAY

I am chilled to my deepest inside parts! It was 24 when I woke this morning...and I slept late. I drank a cup of jasmine tea and enjoyed the morning. I picked up my helper at 11 and by noon we had purchased 150lb of animal feed, and a post puller. We got home and he and I moved 2 more raised beds from back to the front new garden area, laid out another 300sf of heavy black plastic under the new beds and on the sides and ends, then while I built two round wire compost bins, he pulled 50 t posts and took down 100ft of wire fence.

We cut it in half and rolled it up and dragged it over to the new garden area. I trimmed back the huge red tipped photenias that are on the back of the garden so we could work and so the beds would get good morning sun. He removed 16 t posts and drove them into the laid plastic on the perimeter of the new garden area. Then we ran the old wire fence around the new garden area. Then he mounted two of my curtain brackets and we removed the tool box from the back of my truck because I now need 2 yards of dirt to fill the rest of the beds.

I have one 4x8x10" bed full to the top with wonderful garden dirt/compost blend and one 2'x8x14" bed half full of garden dirt. This is the potato bed. I will check the calendar and see if I can plant tomorrow. As the plants grow I will add more dirt until it is full to the top.

It never got over 39 today and the wind blew all day hard.

Although I kept on gloves and a hat I am still very chilled.

I have taken 3 advils and every muscle on my body still hurts. I am going to take a hot shower and will relax the rest of the evening under a thick soft blanket.

SICK DAY

I hate being sick! I am listening to a book on tape. Dean Koontz. Funny guy.

I want so much to be outside but I may have gotten chilled on Saturday working outside all day. That may be why I am sick now.

So I started a large package of frozen onions and peppers called season mix in the dehydrator.

I just finished a large package of peas, corn, beans and carrots.

I will mix them together when they are done and store them in canning jars.

When I can, I will mount 3 sets of curtains in the living room. I will try to work on laundry.

It has been cloudy and gloomy since Friday. I am very ready for sun. (yep after a long summer of so many days cloudless and over 100 degrees this is surprising)

Until then, I will start a fire in the fireplace and continue to rest and restore with homemade chicken noodle soup with bay, garlic, caynene, nutmeg, and onions; jasmine tea and palm sugar, and theraflu

OFF WORK TODAY

You would not believe how peaceful it is outside. Last night storms shook the house...wind....downpours...thunder and lightning.

Today the sky is full of ragged torn grey and white clouds...with peeks of blue sky. Eastern Bluebirds are singing on the fence line.

Light cool breeze.

And all of the birds are singing, doing battle for the favorite female and all in all declaring that Spring has come to Texas. (what happened to winter?)

I took a drive yesterday after work to Soil Technology in Caddo Mills, TX. I met a wonderfully nice man who showed me their soil blends in huge piles. He custom mixed 1/3 compost, 1/3 garden soil and 1/3 sandy loam and filled the back of my truck.



I filled my salad garden.Here is the fence we put up around the salad garden. I will plant onions tomorrow and lettuce.





I filled every pot I could find.





I transplanted irises that a friend gave me. And I transplanted some grape hycinths that I collected in 2002 when I moved from Van Alstyne, TX to Wylie TX. I can't believe I still have them or that they are alive! I never watered them through last years drought.



I pruned all of my fruit and nut trees and my grape vines. I think they lived also and I never watered them either. If they are alive it is a miracle and I need to lavish love on them this year.

And look who I found sleeping in the shed! Yes that is what you think it is.





As you can see my happy helper is always at attention with his eyes on me. Just in case I need him or want to hug him.



My beautiful rooster looking out for his hen while she searches for bugs and seeds.



Ok so these may not sprout...but maybe they will. I am going to try to grow chestnut trees.




If this sweet bay is still alive it will be a miracle but the root system was strong and the limbs were flexible. So I decided to add compost and prune it to see what happens.



Curley Parsley



Red Rasberries



Orange Citrus Mint



Broccoli!!!