So Much Rain...

One of the new garden boxes got moved to the front yard and Kirt worked on the sprinkler system. With so much rain he actually had to bale water out of the holes around the sprinklers to work on them today.

Kirt is pruning the pear tree. Our pear tree gives 3 different kinds of pears. Yum!

Owning a Home is a Lifestyle Choice

Today we went out to have a late lunch at the home of Mike and Susan C. Six months ago the bought a house (just a little way off Grantline Road) with some land. The house is really lovely inside, but the 5 acres is a great deal of work. They have an orchard, a pond, a barn, just for starters. They have ordered 25 chicks and will soon have a chicken coop with lots of laying hens. They want to be a self-sufficient as possible.
The house had sat empty for over a year and so the overgrown landscape has been over whelming, but I think they had to chop away with a huge machete. Actually they had to get a huge ride on lawnmower type of thing- sort of what the school landscaping guys ride on to mow the lawns.
In the barn Kellie has room for her steer that she is raising for her Ag class. and Whitney P. has her 2 pigs there also and comes out each day to take care of them. Also in the barn they have 2 barn cats (feral) who actually earned their keep yesterday for the first time by catching and killing a vole.

Some Pictures from the Garden

A little bit of my tomato harvest. They're so little and yummy! (Ignore the waterspots.)

Marigolds that grew about 4 or 5 feet tall!

Samantha picking a tomato. She doesn't actually like them, but they're fun to pick.

Picking carrots.

"Look! It's just my size!"

The last week in April

We are all so blessed. Our ward is having a forty day fast for the missionary work, and Kirt and I signed up to fast on Tuesday, April 27th, and then we also signed up to feed the missionaries that night. We told them to be on time as we would be very hungry. It felt really good to do the fast together. Elder Dalton from Tooele, serving in our ward and Elder Logan from Hawaii- he was on splits from Rancho Cordova.

We see many around us losing their jobs, and are thankful that we both have employment.This morning Kirt has gone to WINCO to do a major grocery shop- my bet is that he will spend about $300. I gave him a list with many case of canned goods on it. I think it is important to keep well stocked.

A young father in our ward, Josh MacDonald, died in an auto accident this week, leaving wife and three children.

Out garden now has tomatoes and beans and squash out in the planter boxes, and Kirt transplanted some sunflower seedlings out along the back fence. We have other seedlings almost ready to go outside.

Planted Seedlings

On Monday, the 19th, Kirt put our little seedling beans and cucumbers out in the garden. We still have some other vegetables that are not quite ready. Yesterday it poured, so hopefully none of them drowned!
The sunflowers are all about 6 inches tall in their little pots, but their plot is not ready yet.

The Garden...

Every day Kirt comes home, changes and then goes out to work preparing the garden for planting. I started some seeds indoors to get them growing. We have 2 raised planter boxes, but really need more. The trick it putting them where the most sun hits for the longest time during the day. He had to turn over the soil and add some other dark stuff and dig it all up over and over.
The prophet has told us to plant a garden to help feed our families. When we tried growing corn last year and were not successful I showed these cobs to our Relief Society and told them "Don't wait till you NEED to feed your family from your garden to learn how!"
This morning he is able to plant the tomatoes- we bought plants for them. Our seeds are just popping up in their little boxes with the clear plastic domes to keep it warm and moist inside.
We have 2 different kinds of green beans, peas, squash and cucumbers and dill weed. I would like to bottle dill pickles this summer. I have not canned pickles since 1971.

Spring is here...

In California, it is time to be thinking seriously about putting in our garden. Our peach trees are in bloom, the apricot and pears and already bloomed and the blossoms are gone. I hope to get a fruit dehydrator this year.
Kirt has the soil in our raised planter boxes all turned over and ready for planting. We have some Raspberry and Marion berry plants ready to plant. - we just don't know for sure where they will go.
The 2 pots of hyacinths that Kirt gave me for Valentine's are blooming on the front entryway and they smell heavenly.
We have a Pomegranate tree that Samantha gave Grampa- it should go in the back yard somewhere.
I think we might build an arbor on the south side and grow some grapes. Then I will have the fruit I need to be able to can fruit cocktail. (except the maraschino cherries and I think fruit cocktail will be just fine without them.)