Bryan was really, really thrilled to find the first red tomato.
Really.
22 Jul
One in a “million”
22 Jul
How our garden does grow
It’s hard to tell where the garden ends and the trees begin. The tomatoes are easily six feet tall!
There’s a good chance this is actually a green heirloom tomato. Either that, or it’s just not ripe. I have no idea. I really should have labeled the plants.
I do know that these are yellow pear tomatoes–my favorite.
I planted the dill in an underground pot to prevent spreading, and I really should have done the same with the mint. It’s already taking over.
Sweet million–tiny, delicious cherry tomatoes.
After producing exactly one squash, the zucchini plant succumbed to pests and had to be removed.
On the bright side, the cucumbers have a bit more space.
21 Jul
Seasonal updates
Despite the cool, wet spring, the pansies in the pots on the front porch were at least two months past their prime. This was the first weekend we were at home in about six weeks, so I finally had time to replace them with something more seasonable.
But, if you’ve ever checked out garden stores this time of year (at least in Kansas), the selection is limited to a handful of leggy petunias and burnt geraniums.
I did find a couple of beautiful salvia, but I couldn’t really locate anything to plant with them. Fortunately, though, I stumbled across two really gorgeous lantana shrubs.
A benefit of buying plants late in the season is that they look like they’ve been flourishing in place for weeks on end. The size of these single plants was perfect for our large pots.
And, I found a sunny spot (and a sunny pot) for the salvia.
Now, if these transplants can just handle our first few 100 degree days, I’ll be in business.
21 Jul
First bites
A shot from last week–ground beef and cabbage from Gramma’s amazing Runza casserole:
20 Jul
So pretty!
Doug sent Karyl an incredible bouquet of roses while she was staying here. A bouquet which, fortunately for us, she left behind.
19 Jul
Thank goodness for grandparents
We’ve had a relatively hectic month. Following a week-long vacation, Ava’s preschool was closed for a week, then Olivia’s was closed the past two weeks. We were fortunate to have Katie on for a big chunk of that time, and I was able to work from home for a few days as well.
Last week, though, we had to call in reinforcements: The Grandparents.
My grandparents came Monday and Tuesday, and Karyl was here Tuesday evening through today. They all seem to have ceaseless energy, the desire to play “doctor’s office” for hours on end and the ability to convince Olivia that she really does want to be rocked to sleep.
The only downside is that I spent three and a half months on maternity leave telling Bryan that it was impossible to keep house AND watch the children at the same time. Now that he’s seen otherwise, I’m going to have to step up my game.
Or convince the grandparents to move in. Either one.
18 Jul
First bites: Adventures in self-feeding
We recently started giving Olivia little bits of food to feed herself, not necessarily because we felt she was ready, but because we can’t seem to feed her fast enough. So, this gives her something to do while we prepare the next bite. And, fortunately, she does actually seem to do pretty well.
When Ava started to self-feed around nine months, she’d pick up one tiny Cheerio at a time. Olivia scoops up a fistful and tries to cram them into her mouth all at once. Judging by the mess around her highchair, I’d say she has about a 30 percent success rate.
And also, chicken:
Since Olivia is still waking to eat twice every night, I think I’ll offer her a burger next. That ought to hold her.
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