May 12-18, 2019 Garden, Youth Program Party Prep, Strings Practice, Dentist

May 12-18, 2019 

Garden, Youth Program Party Prep, Strings Practice, Dentist

My joy of the week---seeing the wonderful Wrens around our house!!!!

Hello, Friends!

I worked way too hard this week, but I didn't have a migraine and so I really went gang-busters on getting things done; especially in the garden area. It is amazing how much green is everywhere now!  

Dd asked if she could host the LAST Youth Program, on Sunday night, at our house and gave me a few days notice.  

You'd think I would spend the week cleaning in our house, but I always seem to do the opposite of what I'm 'supposed' to do and ended up spending 80% of my time working outside in my veg and flower gardens.

The plastic is helping keep the seedlings cared for!

We have two hoop houses again this year.

Veg Gardens:

I decided to transplant about 1/3 or 1/2 of all the seedlings that I've been growing inside to my outside beds.

 I planted kale, Swiss Chard, Kobusha Squash, and asparagus.

I added 10 new asparagus plants this year

Planted Green Beans!

Transplanted heirloom tomatoes: Black Prince and San Marzano's.

We had some volunteer lettuces pop up randomly in the garden area--in the grass and in the beds, and I've dug them out and put them in a permanent spot.

Flower Gardens:

It's practically impossible to summarize all the work I did in the various flower gardens this week.  When we moved in the three sandy beds in front of the outbuilding had some harsh spiky bushes planted in them, and I hated them. 

 Last year we finally dug out all the bushes and this year I planted, so far, two of the three beds with hostas, black-eyed Susan's, two baby lilacs, and volunteer sunflowers.

  I also moved a few perennials like Peonies to better locations.  Took the Morning Glory seedlings from inside to the outbuilding bed with a trellis. 

Grape vines pruned WAY down.

 I finished up the pruning of the grape vines and also the pool plants---roses and hydrangeas, and butterfly bush.

The new blackberry area---I've really cleared out the thorny bushes

Compost:

This is the wonderful time of year that all the work I do on our compost pays off and I can dig out all the processed new material to add to our garden beds.  I honestly lost count how many wheelbarrow loads I took from the compost to the beds!  A lot! 

This is the area of wood peat--I think the previous owners must have dumped their horse manure here.

Wooded Peat/Dirt:

 I also brought a few loads (4-6) of the peat from the woods to the flower beds.  I've found a few roofing tiles in the wooded peat area so I'm just using this material for flowers and not anything we are going to be eating.

Hostas and Ferns:

The previous owners had quite a few hosta plants around the front gardens and they continue to spread out new offshoots.  I have been digging up some of those volunteers and moving them into my new flower gardens for variety.  I've done the same thing with ferns too.

Here is ONE of the piles of pulled up thorny bushes I've made this week.

This is what the bushes look like before I pull them up.

Woods/Thorny Bushes:

I spent a few hours this week on my pursuit of digging up all the thorny bushes I can!  

Last Olympians:

Monday night I met with Shawn to decorate for our Olympians party on Wednesday.  We set up four tables, with table clothes, with prizes all broken up into $1, $5, $10, $20 tables.  The prizes on the dollar table were simple things like pencils, crayons, stickers...and the things on the $20 table were LEGO sets, hammocks, huge Twizzlers... it was a lot of fun setting it all up!  Then on Wednesday, the kids had a blast using the "Olympians" money they earned to buy the prizes of their choice.  The more things they pass (memorizing bible verses, read books, do chores to help parents or elders) the more money they earned to spend on this final night.  I was surprised how sad the kids were that this was the last night and some were graduating and that made it worse for them.  I'll miss seeing them each week too!

Dh Sick:

Dh caught a really bad bug this week.  He actually had to stay home on Tuesday and should have stayed home Wednesday too.  He had a fever and has coughed non-stop for days now.  Bless his heart, he is really exhausted.

Dental Cleanings:

Dd and I had our teeth cleaned this week.  It went really well.  We had to switch hygienists and this new person did a really good job and was especially pleased with how well Dd does with keeping her teeth clean in spite of her braces.  She was glad we are such fans of our Waterpik's, as that makes such a difference in dental health.

Strings Practice:

We had Strings Practice and we tried to iron out the songs we are going to perform for the church on Sunday.  Joe suggested I take home the AutoHarp and see if it is an instrument I might enjoy playing...what fun!

Morel Mushroom:

Saturday I found the first morel mushroom of the year!  I hope we find a lot of mushrooms this year like I did last year!

New Raised Bed by Compost:

Dh made a new bed out of spruce trees for the frames.  I think we will plant peas and squash out there---not sure what else yet.

Dd's Academic Progress for the Week:

LAST week of Grace Classes!!!!

What a difference in the sky photo's now--so much more green leaves.

Bible:

Church, Sunday School, Youth Program and independent bible study: Word of Life Teen Bible study and Awaken: 90 Days with a God that Waits from Priscilla Shirer

Volunteering:

1 1/2 hours at Olympians Program

Music: 

Strings Group Practice: 1 1/2 hours

Grace Classes: Finals all Completed!

Cultural Geography 

Spanish I (BJU) 

Algebra I (Saxon) 

Introductory Logic 

Exploring Economics (Ray Notgrass)

Dd spent a lot of time finishing up her class work this week and completing papers.

Physical Exercise: 1:00 hour

Dd helped me with planting flowers this week.  She did a great job with the hanging baskets.

The Mayapples are getting big but still not blooming yet.

It's getting so green in the woods!

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May 5-11, 2019 Birthday, Mother's Day, Gardening

May 5-11, 2019
Birthday, Mother's Day, Gardening

The watercolor Heather gave me for my birthday this year! 

 Hello Friends!

What a good birthday week for me! Giz and Grampy called early in the morning, I had two church friends (Judy and Martha) call and sing me 'Happy Birthday,"  Heather L. texted,  and my mom called in the afternoon, not to mention Dh's wonderful gift that I walked by twice before even noticing!  The gift I got this year was a battery-powered Stihl chainsaw (MSA 160 C-BQ Lithium Battery); exactly what I'd been asking for!  A chainsaw that I don't have to pull endlessly to start; just a push of a button and I'm off!  I also received a few cards at church on Sunday; one signed from the ladies in the Sunday School class I attend.  It was a really lovely day and I was so surprised and pleased by so many people remembering and caring that I didn't quite know what to make of it!  

These are the seeds and the watercolor is at the top of this page.

After Dd eventually woke up she brought down the package that had come in the mail that she has quickly snapped up before I could see it!  It was a gift from Heather!!  Oh my!  She had sent a beautiful watercolor she had made and flower seeds of:
 orange Cosmos, small Zinnias, large Zinnias, red/purple Cockscomb, and Hollyhocks!!  
I can't wait to try and grow them!!!!  Such a wonderful and perfect gift for me!  I had the watercolor framed and on my wall within 24 hours!  Now I have two of her watercolors on display!

Hailee and her family gave me this adorable metal chick and two chicken t-shirts!

After my birthday, to stretch things out longer, Hailee and her family had a gift bag for me too.  I was totally blown away by this!  They found two chicken t-shirts and a metal baby chick sculpture for my kitchen window!  I still don't know what I am going to do to show appreciation for this!  They are really just such a loving family and I don't quite know how to respond---TWO new t-shirts and a Chick!  Gobsmacked.  It was really just a very, very lovely birthday that really made me feel loved---not sure how to handle that but it is really uncomfortably nice!

Dh had made Whoopie Pies a few days before my birthday, as my 'birthday cake,' so I still had that on my birthday to celebrate with.  Although they were awesome I still wish I had a batch of Big Mary's, she took care of me a lot in Maine and had serious abilities with Whoopie Pies!

By the end of the week, my mother's gift arrived!  She had sent a beautiful purple Hydrangea plant!  It is too cold to plant it now so I am thoroughly enjoying it on my kitchen island!  So beautiful and I'll be able to hopefully enjoy it for years!  Such a nice gift; I was really blown away as I know money is really tight for her and this had to be too much.

Migraines:

It was a migraine week with four migrainey days (and one headache day too), but I was able to keep moving and stay out of bed.  When I went to the doctor for my third round of Botox injections I talked to him a little about how it's going.  Then a few days later I received a call from them and found out I should be rating each migraine on a pain scale from 1-10 and not counting the 1-5's as "migraines."  That is really odd to me because many of the low-pain migraines are the ones where my brain and eyes are really off and I'm miserable.  I'm going to try to do a more thorough job keeping a number scale to go along with identifying the migraine days.

Worship Meeting:

Ack. Ack. Ack.

Our church has been going through a transition this year as the pastor we'd had when we started, who had been there almost 30 years, retired and a young man took over after co-pastoring the past two years.  A new committee was formed called the Worship Team with the desire to have the youth of the church have a say in the growth.  They invited Dd to join and included me in too.  We've been discussing ideas about how to get our church some advertisements to bring in new families, fun activities, and of course the topic of music.  It is really difficult in this day and age to straddle the huge divide between Hymns and Worship music in America.  We've visited so many churches over the years and were so thankful to find our nice quaint little hymn singing church surrounded by farming fields.  Although I much prefer hymns there are some at our church that long for Worship songs and the modern hanging screens from which we would all look to sing along with.  As Dd and I voiced our opinions about this I could feel the divide growing between our thoughts and feelings and the people on the other side.  This is exactly the type of thing that divides churches and I hate it.  I don't want to lose my friends over the type of music played at our church.  I've been praying and praying that my comments won't cause a riff with our Worship loving friends.  I really pray that our church won't change or won't change a lot with the new pastor and new ideas.  I really love my church and my friends and do not want to see division.  Ack. Ack. Ack.

Chickens:

We were able to let our hens free range some this week.  They always enjoy it so much!  They are enjoying the greens I pick for them immensely!  Miss Lemon now has an Amberlink (a white hen) brooding beside her.  The two are clucking up a storm and in a tizzy when I pull them off the nest to eat.  They both have lost weight and are a mess.  I hope they can recover soon or I will have to take drastic measures---maybe I should think about putting them out in the tractors to help break them of their instincts.

This is Bunny, she was one of the two hens that I had to give extra attention to over the winter.  She is nice and heavy, but still missing feathers on her tail end.  She is on the lower end of the pecking order but doing well.

This small area is one section I had placed the blackberry bushes we brought from Indiana, it was WAY too small so I found a better location this year.

On the edge of our woods, beside our back driveway, I've spent the past few weeks pulling out thorny plants and using this area for my blackberry plants that continue to multiply each year.

Woods:

I've been pulling up, digging up, those crazy thorny bushes all over our property!  They are just everywhere and now is the time to take them down.  I've found some plants that have massive roots and I have to dig and dig to get them out of the ground.  I've got piles of the pulled thorn limbs everywhere!  I worked more on the area where I moved our Blackberry plants and have most of that area cleared for my berries to come in without strife.  I'm so glad my back is putting up with the pulling, but I am trying to do it gradually, a little each day to accomplish my goal.  Poison Ivy case number one for the year!  My right hand has already been hit; lucky I have a good lotion to help it dry up.

Garden:

Saturday I planted a whole bed with lettuce and greens.  I had wanted to bring out some of the seedlings I have been growing but we still have frosty mornings and temperatures in the 30's at night so I have to wait another week.  

Can you see the spinach and greens coming it?  I can! I look forward to not having to buy spinach for a change.

The bed I had planted the week before is doing well and the spinach has really grown up!  Dh bought new plastic and we recovered our hoop house frames and covered the new plants.  Now I can put the seedlings under the hoop house and they should be safe.  I've been adding wheelbarrow loads of dirt from the bottom of our compost pile to refill the garden beds that seem a little low.

Now it the time to move any plants that need moving and transplant--in this picture, down by the wheelbarrow, I've moved two Peony plants to a better, sunnier location where they should thrive.

Flower Beds:

I've been using the wheelbarrow to haul up loads of mulch from the bottom woods.  I managed four loads on Saturday.  The previous owners, who owned horses, seem to have dumped the manure in this one spot down into the woods and the 'dirt' there is amazing.  I've found a few roof shingles in the mulch so I'm using it mostly for the flower beds.  I've been working on the flower beds this week, trying to put the good plants where I know where they are so I don't accidentally weed them or allow weeds to overtake them in the summer.  It is hard taking over someone else's flower bed!  Each year I get a little closer to seeing what they put in and where!  I've managed to find and replant all the Foxglove, which I LOVE, and can pamper the plants better this year.  I've spent way too much time this week on my flowers!  But, I always focus so much on my veg and have neglected the flowers the past two years and want to right the situation.

Mother's Day:

We didn't really celebrate Mother's Day much this year.  Dd and I have been tiffing a lot this week so things have been a bit strained.  Dh went by the flower shop this week and brought home some Rosemary plants (2) and a pretty little Spanish Lavender plant for me -- Lavender plants are one of my favorites!  He also bought me two new pruning shears!  He did a great job this year!

Workouts:

I've really been focusing on my workouts this month and have started something new---weight training.  I'm usually a Pilates/Yoga/treadmill/hikes and Leslie Sansone gal, but I've decided to add more weight training than just the weights with my Leslie videos.  I checked out, from our library, a Jillian Micheals DVD called Lift & Shred that I've been trying.  I really do not like her comments to her two helpers; especially her being mean to the man in the video, but I do like the simple and basic exercises she has us do.  It is kinda fun trying something I've never focused on before, but I'll never give up my Denise Austin and Leslie Sansone friends that lift my spirits!!  I've done the same Denise Austin Yoga and Pilates DVD for 17 years now and still love it!

The asparagus is coming up like crazy!!! Yay!

My Bible Study:

I'm still plugging away at the Priscilla Shirer Bible study: Armor of God and re-doing the Beth Moore study on 2nd Timothy called: Entrusted with our church class.  I had finished it last summer so I am having to redo it to refresh my memory for our classes.

Saturday, after this picture was taken, Dh and I put on NEW PLASTIC and our hoop houses are working again! That will really help our plants to grow.

Dd's Academic Progress for the Week:

Bible:

Church and  Sunday School

Independent Bible Study:

Word of Life Teen Bible Study

Awaken: 90 Days with a God that Waits by Priscilla Shirer

Volunteering:

Nursery during church: 1 hour

Olympians: Game time: 1 1/2 hours 

Music:

Strings Group: Practice

1 1/2 hours: Guitar

Henny Penny

Grace Co-Op Classes:

Cultural Geography (BJU)

Spanish I (BJU)

Algebra I (Saxon)

Introductory Logic

Exploring Economics (Ray Notgrass)



Reading:
Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone: Completed

Buckbeak (yellow) and Venus (black and orange)

Physical Exercise:

One Workout

One Hour Mowing the Yard

Black Beauty, I know, you'd think I'd have a better name than that!

Next Week:

Oh my.  I agreed to have the church's last Youth Program at our house next week!  As you know, I am a clutter bug and our home is a VERY humble one too.  I'm hoping people won't be too judgmental about our home.  Our focus is being outside and our priority isn't on looking fancy.  I wish I was the type of person that didn't care, but unfortunately, I know I do and will have to tidy up every bathroom!  I am getting better with every year under my belt, but prayer's appreciated!

Also:

Dd's last GRACE Co-op Classes for the Year! Yay!!!  Next, we will have to start our science and English for the summer lessons.  Our final Olympians night for the year, with awards, gifts, and ice cream is scheduled for Wednesday night.

Aphrodite and Beth Moore eating that sticky weed

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