Updates!

L had a very fun night last week, the Reading Restaurant! R and I got to go be served some very delicious books in L's class by none other but L himself! He was a Great reader and were were stuffed, but we couldn't say no to a cookie and lemonade for dessert!

On Friday L was awarded the rising star 'Citizenship Award'! Every teacher picks 1 boy and 1 girl from their class who represents:
A positive attitude
Being Responsible
Showing Respect for yourself and others
Giving your best effort
and Year Long good citizenship
Way to L!

R has decided to participate in our local library reading program and the Barnes and Nobles reading program. It's been just a few days and he's on his 3rd book. Currently he has started the 39 Clues series, and the Lost Years of Merlin series.
What a great kid that R is!

My garden has continued to grow, I'm Amazed! And I even ate some strawberries while I was weeding this afternoon, how cool is that?! Everything is taking off, including the weeds :0) I'm totally loving it!
I even grew some pinto beans straight out of a bag of beans meant for cooking and they are all growing. I did the same for a few Lima beans out of a dry 15 bean soup mix, they are growing too! Its all just so exciting to me.
The problems I'm having this year, besides knowing when to stop adding on to the garden, is our dog who keeps running through everything, slugs, and sweet Innocent looking little birds who try to eat the little seedlings. But despite all that, its all taking off.

Here are my snap peas, we had a very windy night a bit back and my wooden tepee fell over and they became a snarly mess, but so far they seem to be OK, and they even have little flowers on them!
This is my container garden experiment with an Eggplant. I've never grown eggplant or grown anything in a reusable shopping bag, we'll see how it goes!
These are my regular peas, they seem to be pretty happy in this web of yarn!
I can't really remember all the types of squash I've planted here, but they sure are growing!

Too Fun! (and more plants!)

J got the boys dirt bikes a few weeks back. They have so much fun on these things its awesome! They get a bit more daring every time...I'm just waiting for L to figure out that his bike actually has more than 1 gear, but we won't be telling him any time soon! I love hearing them zip around the property, we tell them they can ride anytime they want and they have learned how to get all geared up and start them on their own, too fun!


Here are my boxes, I tried growing lettuce and spinach in them but it wasn't working, I had bad dirt in them, so I swapped out the dirt and put in these perennials, they are just about to bloom pretty pink flowers.

We used to greet all our visitors with a nice weedy entrance by the driveway...Not anymore! I got some dirt and perennials and made a new flowerbed. This is 1/2 way done, I have more dirt and plants to put in. I love it, its so much nicer than before!

Here are my 3 new blackberry bushes, I have high hopes for these guys!



Now, its just a fact, I have a mental disability when it comes to sewing. But for some reason I keep returning to it, I am determined to be able to say that I have some skill in this area. I'm happy to say that I made this curtain! The fabric says, "All things grow with love" once I saw it I wanted it. As I was working on it R asked me if I like sewing, I told him No, he looked at me like I was a crazy person for working so hard on something I don't even like. I Like the idea of sewing, I just don't like the process, or the poor graveyard of fabrics after many of my attempts at being crafty. :-)

Learning

I just received my grades from my last 2 classes.
~Business Math I earned a 'B'
~Intro. to Business I earned an 'A'

There used to be a time when the world would almost end if I ever got less than an 'A' for an assignment, let alone a class. However, since I've started my Bachelors degree I have learned to let go.
I don't need to be perfect in school. I still work hard at it, but I have also learned that I can give my homework its proper place in my life. I don't put as much time into it as I used to, I try to keep my life a little more balanced. I still learn a lot, still earn decent grades, but I no longer put as much extra stress on my dear family about my school. I try not to get so down if I don't get that grade I wanted, I try to finish up homework at times that is most convenient for my guys. And there are times I will walk away from that pile of homework so I can go hang with my gang.

Such a Blessing!

This year I have officially caught the gardening bug!!!
Last year J built me a square foot garden after I saw a show about it on BYU TV.
I was amazed at how easy it was to grow veggies and how much I loved it.

This year I am concentrating more time and energy on gardening. I am trying new ideas, new seeds, new ways to weed and fertilize.

I'm enjoying it so much. It is a great blessing to have this land and be able to work with it and do more than just clearing it out; we get to cultivate it and grow with it.

I hope that my efforts prove fruitful, however, if they don't I still am enjoying the journey!

My square foot garden has grown, I've added on with traditional rows and mounds.

Our 1st year here I got 2 Cherry and 2 Apple trees. Last year I got 1 tiny apple, this year I'm getting what looks like at least 2 cherries! Hooray, enough to top 2 sundaes!

J planted these shrubs to boarder the lawn and driveway, they are so cute!

Our Strawberries from last year moved from their small container to this one. They are doing great, J even cut down a tree and it fell on them and they haven't died!

L and I planted some Carnation seeds in these little pots.

Here are White Onion bulbs.

Some Tomatoes.

Snap Peas, we Love these!

This is our mixed leaf lettuce.

Here are some Green Peas and a Hybrid Corn.

Idaho Potatoes!

Green Beans I hope to Can this fall.

Squash, pumpkins, and cantaloupes.

My new raspberry patch.

This is a new garden patch on a different part of our property, planted Black Beans, Sugar Pumpkins, and Red Potatoes.

These are my new Blackberry bushes, they will be planted with my Raspberries.

This is my little container garden, I am teaching an Enrichment class about it so thought I'd give it a go! Here are Watermelons, Zucchini, Spinach, and Cilantro.