Veggie Tales

Michael has the green thumb in the family.

I killed a cactus.

I was in fifth grade so maybe I wasn’t mature enough to handle the responsibility of a desert plant. But it did not survive, and, to this day, I haven’t had much better luck.

But Michael works on a garden every year and feeds his family with all sorts of great veggies. And 2017 will be an epic veggie year.

He has already tilled the garden and has an excel list of what he wants to plant. I asked him to make enough space to walk through the garden. I get nervous when plants get big. My imagination runs wild, and I think there are snakes under all the bushes.

The future garden. 

But while admiring the garden, we found a new friend.

Last time we found a turtle shell it was broken, but this time the shell was inhabited.

Cute visitor

Abby’s favorite part was tickling the turtle’s toes. The turtle’s favorite part was when we left him alone. I’m pretty sure he gave me a wink when we walked away.

Abby loves all creatures.

But there’s one problem with the garden – I can’t cook as fast as the vegetables grow.

I know we want to can, as well as be good stewards of the bounty and share with family and friends.

I would love for you to share any great recipes for canning, jams, fresh vegetable dishes. Better yet, I would love for anyone to volunteer and teach me to can or make new recipes. Any takers?

Back to the Grind

“Work work work work work.”

Is this song from Rihanna appropriate? No.

Is it catchy? Yes.

I can’t help the fact it gets stuck in my head, and I sing it out loud.

My kids join in but they sing, “Work work work work work. Whistle while you work work work work work.”

Bless their sweet hearts, and thank you seven wholesome dwarves who know the value of hard work.

But seriously, it has been a work fest at the farm.

Michael has devoted tireless hours to sanding the dining room wall so we could paint. The contractor has been working on the kitchen. And the rest of us have been scrubbing and painting. We have managed to make huge strides on the house, and it is looking fabulous.

The dining room has been painted a soft green. Now we need a new light fixture. 

The animal mural is gone. Madi's room is now a light purple. 

There was a minor delay due to the children who helped paint the dining room and happen to like a lot of paint on their brushes. As I cringed during those minutes, they found great pride in their work and still talk about how helpful they were and how much fun they had.

The work is hard but the memories are sweet - most of the time.

It’s not all labor though.

We have taken some time to further explore the land and found a hiking path through the woods, which will make a great camping spot. And we have managed to have a few bonfires on these chilly nights. I’m always game because I get s’mores out of it.

And we still like each other. (Good thing I didn't write this post last week. Working together can be challenging.)
Photo credit: Emily Bartley Photography.

But we still have a long way to go before we move in.

Cue the music.

“Work work work work work.”