Projects and Flowers. .

Happy Tuesday!!

We have survived graduations. .and 4-H camp. .and almost wheat harvest. .it will be over in a few days. .though it hasn't affected me as much as Devin!

The summer has been rocking right along!

We have been blessed with a TON of rain and beautiful weather this spring. .

And the gardens are spectacular!! Thought I would give a quick tour.

This rose is one that we dug from Jeremy's granddad's house a while after he moved to the nursing home.  He LOVED roses. .and had a ton of rose bushes in his backyard. It only has a light fragrance when it is in a vase. .and the flowers haven't impressed me on the bush until this year!

 

And so, after 3 years of the bush looking crappy in MY yard. .it finally looked good enough to make me cocky about growing more!!  I recently ordered some on sale from Brecks that will smell up my yard I hope!! They have settled in. .and the new bareroot twigs are covered in foliage and two of the 3 new plants have buds!! I will keep you. .and my "records" here posted!!

Here is the memory garden. .the blue atlas cedar is still too sad to take a good close up of. .but, surprisingly, it seems to be making a comeback from the bad winter burn it sustained. .There is yellow Echinacea paradoxa in the back, several types of grasses, Jupitars beard (the pink in the front) and Cardonna purple salvia on the left, with a tiny peek of the Nepeta catnip in the very bottom left. This place is LIT UP with winged creatures all the time!! It's one of my favorite places!! The new daylilies also have buds coming on. .so I will be excited for those to start showing off!

Here's a look from the other side. .in the far back is where the raised bed veggie planters are at! And it is all visible from my favorite rocking chair!

Gallardia are on fire near the pond!

I don't know for sure what this is. .but my Aunt Jane sent seeds from Oregon that I sprinkled out last fall. It is a poppy. .but not like one that I saw in her yard when we were there. .

I neglected to get a picture when this one was in full bloom. .but it was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!! It looked just like the light pink. .except it was flaming magenta!! They are really fragile. .so one day-two tops on the blooms. .the wind just takes their breath away!! I am really hopeful that they will reseed where they are!! I initially thought that she had accidentally sent me lettuce seed. .as it looked just like a fancy head of leaf lettuce!! So the gorgeous flowers were a great surprise!!

Memorial weekend 2010

I love Memorial weekend. .it's always a good time for us to get some projects done. .I remembered one of my favorite projects from 2010 when we moved this slipper slide over. .

Here it is 7 years later. .This thing smells so wonderful!! I love the thick scent in the air when I walk early in the morning! I can often smell it 1/2 way down the long driveway!! It is so cool to be able to see the progress of the garden in pictures. .As I was looking for this photo, I enjoyed looking at some of my other blog photos shared all those years back. .just like baby pictures. .it was fun to see how things developed and changed!

Speaking of projects. .This year, I put Devin to work on a dream feature that I had seen on Pinterest. .

I love the bottle tree that Jeremy made for me several years ago. .
(The larkspur was stunning as usual too!)

The tiny one in the front was our first attempt. .

And then I found a photo of one similar to the bigger tree. .which he sweetly crafted for me!

And since then. .I came across an arc full of bottles that I just loved!! I like Moscato. .and have been saving up my cool blue bottles for ever!! Since I took this photo. .I have been dumpster diving at the recycle center and found a few more to add on!

Jeremy figured out that he has a little grinder in his shop that takes the labels right off without scratching the glass. .and then a little dab of break cleaner gets rid of the tacky glue. .and

VOILA!

Happy, happy, happy!!

I thank you for stopping by. .

I have a few more pictures uploaded for later. .so maybe it won't be long until you hear from me again! Enjoy your summer!

Planting of the Veggies!

Hey, Hey!!

We have had one little frost since like the first of March. .

And I am having a hard time believing that it is still only April!!

So I have been chomping at the bit to get stuff planted!

We enjoyed 4.75 inches of rain last weekend. .Prom day, of course!

But everyone was so glad to see the rains after the week full of the worst fires in Kansas history right in our neighborhood here. .that NO. ONE. CARED!!

My tomatoes have been in the wall of waters for about 2 weeks now. .

And I decided I needed to get the rest of them planted.

The pictures aren't great at all. .

Boring, pretty much. .

But I needed to map the beds so I can remember which plants are what.

My biggest issue at the end of the summer. .is that I have no earthly idea what plants are where anymore. .Because I can't easily find my little tiny labels!! 

And I'm too hurried and lazy to look for them!

I hope this works much better for me!

3 raised beds on the east side of  the house.

In the front one. .Bed #1

on the north side starting front of picture to the back. .

Beefmaster tomato

Super Banana Supreme pepper

Celebrity tomato

Gypsy sweet pepper.

On the south side is, ,

Green bell pepper

Snow White cherry heirloom tomato

Valencia orange pepper

Jetsetter tomato 

Bed #3 which you can see directly behind bed #1 in the top picture. .

has 3 rows of clemson spineless okra.

Bed #2. .the northernmost raised bed.

Only 4 tomato plants at this point. .

north side is a big boy tomato

Big beef tomato

south side is a Lemon boy tomato

1 renegade potato plant from last year

and a Jubilee heirloom tomato.

Bed #4 in the front.

on the east side are two mucho nacho Jalapeno plants.

6 sweet banana pepper plants (with a garlic plant in there too)

On the south side of the bed are 5 short rows of beets, another garlic plant, and a tiny basil plant.

In between the raised beds are where I opted to plant a couple bulbs of garlic last winter. .like in January. .Oops!

Bed #5 has Straight Eight cucumbers on the north side and National pickling cucumbers on the south side. 

To the right of the photo (not very easy to see) is a huge tarragon plant that I never use because I don't know how. .some sage, chives, oregano, lemon balm, and a bronzeleaf fennel plant that I never got around to harvesting. It not only overwintered. .but I found 3 small plants coming up from seed in other areas! 

I guess I will try to figure out how to use it. .It is sure is pretty. .and gourmet-ish!!

I planted 4 tomatoes in the memory garden. .

I should repost some of the early pictures of this space. .

It has been the best changing garden in my career!!

It may be hard for you to determine that there are 4 tomato cages in this photo. .

I can tell that. .

In the cage closest to left front of the photo is a Parks Whopper tomato.

The one directly to the south is a Cherokee Purple tomato.

The farthest south near the Atlas Cedar is a Salsa Roma tomato. .

And there is one right near the pedestal birdhouse which is a Juliet grape tomato. 

Remember how I mentioned that Jeremy is becoming a gardener as well??
He had been so focused last summer on hooking his drip system up to water his tiny cedar trees. .

That my Valentine rhubarb plant got more water than it has seen in it's lifetime. .

We hooked the drippers to take care of the rhubarb and a couple blackberry bushes as well as the tiny trees. .

So the rhubarb is happy, happy, happy!! 

And so will be the gardener the day she gets a pie from this critter!! 

Again. .

being stewarded by a too-busy gardener. .

I thought all my asparagus plants died.

They have never taken off. .

probably because of neglect.

SOO. .

I bought 14 more roots and planted them a couple weeks ago. .

And Jeremy added a dripper hose to them. .

And today whilst rummaging around this back area. .

I found all of the 4 plants that I knew had survived of the first 10 I planted 4-5 years ago now.

Yay us!! 

We love them grilled. .or roasted. .or wrapped in prosciutto and goat cheese!! 

A tiny little columbine that survived it's first year in my garden!

The shady and moist narrow garden on the north side of the house may be a winner! 

Feeling cocky because ONE had survived. 

I bought a few more at Lowes a few weekends ago. .

When I caught them on a flash sale for $3.00 apiece!!

Behind it is a hosta that is supposed to be 5 feet tall. .

It's been pretty pathetic these first few years. .

But it may be settled in and ready to go now!! 

We have decided to add some privacy to our west deck. .

Something that we SHOULD have done about. .

Um. .

16 years ago!!

But I was afraid that we would tear up all the plants. .
So I dug up this clematis from his little spot there.

He won't die. .

But he didn't thrive there either. 

I am hoping that this area on the north side will be a little better. .

Not as intense sun. .but hopefully enough sun that he will perform. 

Here is the north side of that deck!

I am LOVING IT!!

We had some reclaimed church windows. .

In my head plans. .

I knew that I wanted slats to partially see through. .

And I also know that I don't do perfection. .

Instead, I prefer complete randomness. .

That way no one can judge my lack of measuring and precision!

I think this fits the bill!!

Jeremy, as usual, couldn't picture it in his head. .

But was pleased with it too!

The west side is almost done. .

Complete with change of slat direction and different heights on window placement too.

Hopefully by next weekend, it will be all finished up!!

In the rock planter we made several years back. .

There is a clump of maiden grass on the left and a Karl Forester grass on the right, closest to the deck. 

A darker colored sedum clump that you can see..

along with a hardy little dianthus plant loaded with cherry red buds. A few hen and chicks are loving their life there too--a swap from Gardener on Sherlock's house. 

This is the biggest pain in my butt site. .

The west side of the house. .

Hot. .windy. .nothing likes it here!

Climbing on the deck rail is an orange honeysuckle bush. .nearly ready to bloom.

I ordered some little starts from High Country Gardens. .and am hoping that they will be up for the challenge. Rock garden goes in after this if the plants are a no-go!! 

The green grassy clumps are actually old hyacinth foliage and some Magic Lily foliage.

I don't have a lot of curb appeal. .

But my little front flower bed is finally looking fuller.

The same day I got the columbines. .

They were also having a flash sale on these salvia plants!

SCORE! 

I added some along the pond. .

Where I have the same issue of too much heat. .and too much sun!

I put a couple little gallardia plants in there today. .and some more plants from HCG down to the driveway. .filling in among the existing--but sparse plantings!

The green hedge looking thing in the back. .are 3 spirea bushes I dug from my MIL's border years and years ago. .I noticed a smattering of blooms on the north side of them today. .Can't wait to see them in full bloom! 

Little water irises blooming.

My pump died this winter. .

And in delaying the purchase of a new one. .

Both of my big Koi died!! They grow super fast. .So I will have to get some more at Petsmart this summer! 

My friend Pat got a bunch of hybrid iris starts from a gardening buddy out west. .And several years ago, she shared some with me. .This is the first time it was big enough to bloom. .LOVE IT!! 

Well. . 

That's all for the garden diary today!

Thanks for tagging along during our very busy day!!

A Little Lamp Story

I really enjoy Pinterest!

But I find it to be very addictive for me. .

And for that reason. .

I don't allow myself a lot of time on there. .

Maybe a few hours once a month or so!

I found an awesome idea a while back for Grant to do as an electricity project for 4-H.

It's a lamp made from a rustic toaster. The original lamp shade was an old colandar. .

But I happened to have an old silver bowl that we got as a wedding gift and never really used. .

Mostly because I hate to polish stuff!

There were no directions on Pinterest for making it. .

Just a photo.

So I gave Grant the old toaster that I picked up at an antique store for $3. .

And the silver bowl.

The rest was up to him.

His dad has a small collection of pipes and etc. .

So he found a small metal tube that didn't overpower the size of the toaster.

They torched out a small hole from the top of the toaster (I know, it totally looks like a cheese grater!)

And attached the metal tubing with bolts and nuts.

I came back later to see how things were going. .

And Grant was working with the wires on the lamp kit I had bought at Lowes.

He didn't appear to me to know exactly what he was up to. .

And when I asked him if he knew what he was doing. .

He, quite candidly, replied that he did not. .

never looking up from his work.

Which made this secretly taken photo a few minutes later. .

Even better!

Apparently even reading the directions didn't help him. .

Because when he brought it to the house. .

And plugged it into the outlet in the kitchen. .

From my spot in front of the computer. .

The last thing I heard. .

Was the click of the lamp switch. .

And then all the power to the kitchen and my computer went off!

I had to bite my tongue. .

As Grant spewed some irritated words. .

And his dad looked at the whole thing and said. .

Well, Grant. .

the wires aren't hooked up right (Really! We hadn't noticed!)

It didn't take Grant long to rewire it. .

And, amazingly. .

The lamp has worked fine ever since!!

Live and learn, right??

The end!

Weekend Warriors

Well. .

The fair is upon us!!

It was funny to watch how our family spent the weekend. .

In between fair set up, Devin's golf tourney, a friend's wedding, a garden tractor pull, and church activities. .

The rest of the weekend was a little discombobulated and ant-den-ish!!

But a lot of activity happened between major events!!

Check it out!

These two kids put the finishing touches on their woodworking projects. .

We tried a new technique to finish them. .

Both boys used a strong black tea mixture painted on their raw wood. .

And then painted it with a solution made from STEEL WOOL dissolved in VINEGAR!!

It instantly turned the wood a deep greyish black. .

And made it look like we dug it out of the dump. .

I know. .

Not everyone would covet that effect!

Unfortunately, though. .

Wood filler doesn't take that type of finish. .

And he filled up some holes, not thinking about that. .

so. .

They had to do some problem solving. .

which entailed a couple different tricks. .

And ultimately. .

Sanding the old finish off, drilling out some holes, coming up with a new idea for covering the pocket screw holes. .

and RE-finishing the table!

I will try to post a finished project picture soon!

Since the FINAL touches will still not be completed until tonight!!

This kid finally celebrated his 17th birthday!

And we enjoyed the afternoon at the lake to celebrate!

Miss Thing has decided this year that she should be able to have her very own turn on the water. .

And so they have taught her how to use the surf board on her belly. .

Jeremy pulls her quite slowly. .

And she LOVES every minute of it. .

And even started using her arms to pull herself from side to side. .

Very tricky!!

I got tickled as her dad put her in control of the wheel and went back to see how Grant made the surf board work. .

That was a new toy as of last year on vacation. .

And it pulls V-E-R-Y slowly. .

to get a larger water wake to surf in!

But she thought she was a GREAT driver!!

A little bike riding on the new slab of concrete poured last week to expand Jeremy's work area in his shop. .

Grant had finished up a lamp for his mom. .

Which I will post this week. .

And then worked on one for his room. .

both for his electricity project.

And Jeremy has drug another project into his house too!!

And has been welding on a truck that he making. .

He bought the old cab at an auction!!

This past weekend, he was welding in a dash board. .

And Tristan helped him with it for several hours too!

The boys have learned lots about lots, hanging out in that shop!!

We were blessed with a little bit of rain on Sunday afternoon. .

And the three youngest kids enjoyed riding their bikes in the rain. .

I waited and waited to get Cami in the photo. .

But she was doing her own thing. .

Singing and pedaling. .

And went all the way around our little track!

The photographer got tired of waiting!

The moisture was good for our souls. .

It's nice to just take a big deep breath of that clean air. .

And it makes me wonder why I don't just stop. .

And take a nice deep breath. .

more often!!

Tomorrow is the 4-H judging of most of our projects. .

That means. .

After work tonight. .

My kitchen will be a fog of flying flour. .

And a tornado of ticked-off testosterone. .

And one little girl who can't get enough attention!!

But hopefully it will score us some award winning delicacies!

Wish us luck!!

Thanks for stoppin' by!!

Is it July ALREADY?

 Hard to imagine that the summer is just flying by!!

The last two weeks have been busy. .

And the next month will disappear before we know it too!

Thought I would show a few photos from what we have been up to!!

 Tragically, 2 weeks ago. .

My friend and fellow youth group leader took her unborn baby of 31 weeks. .

And made a personal and permanent trip to heaven. .
To live with her Savior and God!!

She left behind her husband (also a fellow youth group leader) and her other two small children.

While her life is now GLORIOUS. .

Ours is a little empty. .

God is Sovereign. .

And He is holding up those that are looking to Him. .

And we are hopeful. .

For a future in His Kingdom. .

And that is really all that matters!

In the middle of those difficult weeks. .

We were able to enjoy a short trip to see our own family. .
And enjoyed several hours at the park playing. .

Where the slides. .

And catching fireflies were big events!!

We've also spent time getting ready for our county fair. .

which is here next week!

Baking. .electrical projects. .woodworking. .

and these. .

CHICKENS!

Unfortunately. .

We didn't realize until the fair books came. .

that one pen of poultry for judging had to include THREE chickens. .

We've had trouble with our chickens since we went to Vegas in March. .

We decided that initially a hawk was picking one off every day. .

And then it was raccoon issues!

We have been keeping them in the cages even during the day again until the past few days.

But still. .

we only have two Rhode Island Reds, one hen that we don't even know the variety of. .

we just call her "road runner chicken" because she is so stinkin fast!!

And our two new Silver barred rocks in the photo above. .

One of which just layed her first little egg last week!

A little over a week ago. .

We got a chirping box from the US postal service. .

Full of tiny chicks!! Devin and I shopped online and bought some black Australorps, Austra Whites, and Gold laced Wyandotte chicks. .These will take up residence with the other 5 girls in the coop.



Last weekend I had FIVE days off from paid working. .

And we enjoyed a few spectacular firework shows. .

Celebrated an early 17th birthday for THIS one. .

And did lots of cleaning and yard work!

Tristan and I landscaped the new flower bed on the north side of the house around the addition. .

And he even added a little "garden whimsy" in the way of this stone sun!

Or sunbathing turtle. .

whichever whimsy you choose to imagine!!

The weather has been HOT and dry again!!  

We had GREAT 80 degree temperatures for about a week. .

and this week we are back to 100 plus.

 Last night I walked into the house about 8:00, thinking it was feeling much cooler.

.and it was still 98 degrees. .

Woof!!

So the flowers are starting to look hot and bothered!!

And frankly, so is the gardener!!

I did a ton of mulching last weekend with some wood chips given to us. .

Since they were from the country, the likelihood that they had herbicides was really low. .

and it made my memory garden look nice and fresh. .

and will help enhance and cool the soil!!

Though I was anything but enhanced OR cooled by the time I was done throwing it down!!

Such is the life though!!

Right??

Anyhoo. .

That's it for us. .Thanks for stopping by!

Have a super week!!