Summer Bounty

Last of the raspberries

Overripe currents

Bounty!

  

Love my August sunflowers!

OOC beanstalk

First of the hollyhock

We are decidedly more relaxed around here.  While we are not through major transitions, we are through major decisions.  And that brings its own form of peacefulness.  There's still a bit of anxiety in the air, as the summer has seemed too rushed.  For instance, this summer does not seem to be the summer I get out to pick huckleberries.  Or even pick the currents in the back yard.  But I am content in that the huckleberries and currents will be there next year, as will we.  So I can let that go for now, and just enjoy the bounty from my garden that I have been able to capitalize on this summer.  Like lettuce--for the first time ever we have been able to keep up with production.  And garlic scapes.  I discovered garlic scape pasta (recipe here) and have made three batches, to much success and acclaim.  I've also been knitting...a lot.  The most summer knitting ever.  Hopefully I will have pictures to share soon!

Oh, and we broke down and bought a new-to-us washing machine.  Because laundry is somewhat important in the grand scheme of things!

These Are the Days

Just some shots from around the house and garden this week.  The weather cooled down to be just about perfect this weekend.  We spent the afternoon hiking at Phillip's Farm Park, followed by ice cream and a ride in a horse drawn carriage at the McConnell Mansion Ice Cream Social downtown.  An old-fashioned Moscow Sunday afternoon.  

I said a while back that May and June are the most beautiful months on the Palouse.  July isn't bad either! 

Gardens Now

The front bed is done!  And there was much rejoicing!   I'm loving all my gardens right now, as we work our way into June, the most beautiful month of the year on the Palouse.

Almost done...

Finally finished the rock garden around the lavender!

Gnome House!

Mon jardin potager!

Carrots, rhubarb, garlic, and lettuce!

Through the garden gate...

Kitty in the flowers!

Honeysuckle!

So many flowers!

Done, finally!!

 

April Showers Bring...

Unbelievable weather we are having here.  Nearly 80 and only early May.  I try to just enjoy it and not worry that it means we will have a hot, dry summer.  

Here's the enjoyment part:

Oh--and we've discovered a new joy in our household:  bike commuting with our son to school/work.  So much fun, and today it was quite the social excursion, on National Bike to School Day!

Sun and Snow

It's the first week of spring and it has been f-f-freezing!  Except when it's super sunny.  Which is usually followed five minutes later by sleet.  We've managed to get outside, usually running back in for extra hats and mittens at periodic intervals.  The cold weather has kept me knitting, as my hat obsession continues.

The neighborhood Great Horned Owl has been roosting in our tree and leaving owl pellets--very exciting!  As soon as I get them sterilized, we will have a dissection party.  Our bulbs are coming up, and today my son and I planted out the lettuce.  He also went around the yard taking pictures, and took some of these!  He's learning so many things right now, it's pretty amazing.  Baseball, for instance.  I'm sure the ball sport thing he did not inherit from either one of us!

Despite the cold, we're so excited that it's spring.  Easter is almost here, and today we got the decorations up!  I love love love spring, and get so giddy this time of year!

Owl Pellet

The artsy fence photo taken by my son.

The fact that I finished this is pretty amazing in and of itself.

Spring Fever!

It's a balmy 36 degrees outside but the sun is shining so my son and I adventured into the backyard wilderness to tame the wild perennial bed.  It always looks so messy and forlorn over winter, but I find it easier to pull out last year's growth once it's had a chance to rot a little under the snow.  This spring I need to re-edge the perennial bed, in order to make a clearer distinction between "yard" and "garden".  I'm going to do that in bits, though, and mulch as I go.

My son and I were on an adventure to find the still-emerging bulbs.  When my husband came outside, my son ran up to him saying, "Papa Papa, we found the Jingle Bell Winter Flowers!"  I love his translation of "Snowbell!" I'm pretty sure the daffodils that I transplanted from the old homestead near my friend Kate's farm are coming up, but we just need to wait and see.  

In other news from our surburban homestead today, I made blackberry jam with some of the berries that I froze last fall.  It's the first time we've had enough from those bushes to make a batch of jam...and we ate tons of berries and blackberry smoothies already!  I'm not sure if it was our really wet summer that helped the berries, or something else, but it was pretty exciting.  My son is already telling me that he is going to eat all the strawberries this year, so I hope they are productive!

 

 

Getting Ready for Fall

Even though fall has been decidedly here for several weeks, we spent some time this weekend "getting ready for fall."  We went around the neighborhood and found pretty leaves and dipped them in paraffin wax to make a garland.  We dug up the carrots and planted the garlic.  And of course, we went to cyclocross races.  Fall.  We're ready!

Leaf garland...unfortunately it matches the brick colors almost perfectly!

Getting ready to work in the garden

Who says red and green and yellow don't go together?

The willows, looking pretty.

A rainy day for cycling...

 

Smokey, Dusty Days

As much as I love September, around here it does seem to be kind of a dirty time of year.  We typically don't get much (any) rain in July and August, and until it rains in September it just seems to get dustier and dustier.  Harvest dust and forest fire smoke contribute to the overall griminess. It's also about this time of year that I just kind of get tired of watering...and thus forget.  So everything just seems dry, dry, dry.

But of course there is always the harvest!  I've been getting a ton of tomatoes, and supplemented with some from the Farmer's Market to can.  The blackberries this year are AMAZING, and I made a pie from them for a party on Saturday.  The pie wasn't terribly photogenic, but when smothered with ice cream it disappeared fast!

Despite the dryness, and the dust, it's still a beautiful time of year here. Fall on the Palouse really is lovely, all things considered!

Gettin' Wood!

Recently, I went with my husband for the first time to cut firewood.  We have a Forest Service permit, which allows us to cut four cords of wood.  In the past, he's gone by himself or with other men, but this time he asked me to come.  He said it would make me appreciate my warm house more in the winter.  He also told me that sometimes people are in the area shooting and asked if that would make me nervous.

It was then I knew that getting wood was either going to be really fun, or really, really nerve wracking!

The night before I promised that I would follow instructions quickly and carefully without (much) commentary.  The latter ended up not being that difficult, as it's hard to talk over a chain saw.  And with respect to the instructions part--well let's just say I was all about the 'quickly.'  With Forest Service permits, you are allowed to cut wood that is already on the ground (fallen trees) or trees that are standing but clearly dead.  (Note:  they call the latter 'widow makers.')  I knew that felling trees would probably be part of the day's operations, and I admit I was pretty nervous.  So the first time we picked one to cut, hubby handed me a sturdy branch and told me I was the 'pusher.'  He first cut a notch close to the ground on the side of the truck that we wanted the tree to fall.  As he prepared to cut on the opposite side (where we were standing) he told me to push well above his cut to encourage the tree to go where we wanted it to go (i.e. away from us).  He also said that as it begins to fall, I should move back and go stand on a particular tuft of grass.  He then began to cut into the tree and I pushed and watched.  The instant that dang tree started to fall, I leaped for the grass.  The tree landed exactly on target, and hubby turned to me and said "good job, but next time you don't need to throw your stick."  Noted.  

We ended up felling three trees.  He cut, I carried.  He said I had never looked sexier as I did while carrying wood.  I would beg to differ on that account, but it was a nice compliment nevertheless.  I'll also add that we didn't hang up any trees and that all three landed right where we targeted.  I'd like to think it was my innate mathematical ability that allowed me to triangulate the exact place and direction to push, but I think that would be a bit of an overstatement.  At any rate, we are half a cord closer to a full woodshed, and had a little bit of marital bonding to boot!  Not bad for a day's work!