From Whom All Blessings Grow

It's growing season here! I expect most things to be dead and dry by August, a carryover of my mostly-Floridian life (or maybe just my lack of skill as a gardener?). 

But at last, at long last, tomatoes are taking center stage.

I have a special love for homegrown tomatoes, and this year we planted seven varieties -- if you're going to plant tomatoes, why not have some fun? We planted Black Krim left over from last year, along with Roma, Chadwick Cherry, Green Zebra, Yellow Pear, Black Cherry, and Rainbow Cherry (not an actual variety, but a "mix" of various colorful cherry tomatoes -- it's a toss up as to what you'll actually get. Ours are pale yellow and red!). 

This is a green zebra, with a not-yet-ripe Black Krim behind it to the left

Our tomatoes are real survivors, having overcome the ravages of hornworms early in the season (they disgust me, but fortunately our chickens' delight in devouring them made it a little less terrible to pull them off the plants), various "predators" throughout the season, and my overly ambitious planting. I had every intention to thin the plants properly, but I underestimated how agonizing it would be to rip out completely healthy plants! And I definitely underestimated how large the plants would get. The straw bales are, apparently, extremely fertile -- despite their crowded spacing, our tomatoes are quite massive. Poor planning in the staking department has left us with plants trailing all over, pulled down by the weight of the fruit. It's honestly so bad that some of our tomato plants are trailing on the ground! Basically, everything that we could do wrong, we did.

And yet, tomatoes. So many, so beautiful, and so delicious. We are harvesting around a pound every day or two, and we have been eating, freezing, and giving away tomatoes at every opportunity. 

Our cucumbers and bean plants bit the dust early in the month. I'm not sure whether to blame "old age," voles, disease, bugs, or heat. Or maybe all of the above. Here's a photo from earlier in the summer, when they were at their peak:

Every year we learn more in the garden -- our zucchini and spaghetti squash fell prey to squash vine borers (ugly little things! They eat out the INSIDE of the plant stem. Ugh), all of our plants would have benefited from having trellises in place early (we were a bit rushed getting the garden planted, so we only did the immediately necessary things), etc. We've replanted the bales from the picture above (all that was left was the little lavender plant in the front corner, and an enormous basil plant in the back), so hopefully we'll get some more produce before the season is over. I want everything to thrive and produce, so I'm always disappointed by the failures -- but I'm realizing that gardening is a skill that takes time to hone, and even experienced gardeners have their setbacks. It's still a joy! It really is amazing to me how God has designed life to recreate itself. The curse (bugs, disease, weeds, etc.) battles hard and sometimes wins, but life is resilient. 

The littles have been growing like weeds all summer, too. This little fellow turned one, and I'm struggling to believe it (though he's very comfortable in 18-24 mths clothing, "little" chunk that he is!).

We've taken advantage of "pass swaps" to visit some new-to-us places -- this one was particularly magical, with the imminent threat of a summer thunderstorm preventing us from lingering too long. I do love our little adventures together!

And now, Summer is almost over. We've already started the school year (back in July, actually -- littles with too much time on their hands...), and I'm eager to see the season change. Goodbye, August!

June Yarn Along: Profusion

I'm joining up with Ginny's monthly Yarn Along for June, and the only title I could think of for this month is "Profusion." A profusion of projects, books, and green-and-growing things. 

May was a good month for knitting, though it had some ups and downs. The "up" was finishing my Looking Back cardigan (pictures coming soon!), even though it was too warm to wear it. It's safely tucked away for the fall. The "down" was having to frog back 2 1/2 skeins of yarn for the Starboard pullover I'm knitting for Little Man. I realized when I got to the end of the body that my measurements were off -- I'd reduced my needle size because my gauge was too big, but apparently I reduced it too much. Additionally, I'd made a mistake in the increases at the neck, which I repaired rather than frogging back to the mistake. I thought it would be okay, but it bothered me every time I saw it -- and I became more and more convinced that blocking wouldn't make it look better. So I frogged all the way back and started again, which means I don't have that much to show for all of my May knitting! Boo. I haven't had to frog back that much of a project in a long time, and it is a bit disheartening. But I do feel better now that I've started again (bigger needle and bigger size, just for good measure!), and it's knitting up quickly. 

You can also see my Bubble Net cowl, which is my current "mindless" pattern. It does have a lace pattern, but it's a simple 2-row repeat (with a knit row in between), so it still qualifies as an easy project to pick up when I need something simple. I suppose two knitting projects is not really a "profusion," especially since I like to keep two projects on my needles whenever possible.

But I made up for it with my pile of books! I was excited to find Craeft in our library system -- I spotted it on Katherine's blog during the last Yarn Along, and knew I had to give it a go. I'm just getting into it, but it's intriguing so far. Comfort Detox was also in our library and had been on my list for a while, so I put it on hold. Ironically, it arrived at my local branch at the same time as my interlibrary loan request, Uncomfortable! Apparently I'm feeling too comfortable? Who Could That Be at This Hour? was a total impulse as I was browsing the juvenile section (supposedly looking for books for my children! Ha!) -- I can't resist Lemony Snicket, and had no idea there was a new series. My tablet is on the top of the stack, because I'm also part-way through An American Princess: the Many Lives of Allene Tew. I don't remember where I spotted it, but it piqued my interest -- and a few days later, it showed up as one of the free monthly ebook options from Amazon! It's certainly engaging, though not really a feel-good read -- so far, Allene's life seems far from enviable.

I try to be good about not reading too much at the same time (and technically I finished Who Could That Be and Uncomfortable before starting Comfort Detox), but between holds and interlibrary loans and my lack of self-control, I have a lot of reading to do!

June is always a bit of a surprise to me in Virginia. I suppose I sort of expect Spring's fervor to abate by June (in Florida everything was so hot that few plants looked great at this time of year!), but it's just the reverse. Hydrangeas and lilies are just coming into their own right now, and an exceedingly wet May has produced some lovely results!

Both the hydrangea above and the lilies below were gifts from a neighbor who was moving -- she's got two green thumbs, and wanted to pass along her plants to someone who cared (her house was bought by a flipper who wasn't planning to keep her beautiful garden). The day before closing, I trekked across the street with a wagon and a shovel, and tried not to look conspicuous as I made off with her best plants! I dug up the hydrangea and as many lilies as I could (at least 15 to 20, I think?), along with a colony of irises. Over the next few days, I tried to "install" them in our own yard -- only to discover that unlike my neighbor's rich, well-tilled soil, our back yard is a maze of roots. So. Many. Roots. I finally prevailed and got everything in the ground, but goodness! Now, several months later, all of the plants are flourishing and I'm basking in the free-to-me beauty as they start to bloom. 

What's growing on your needles, mind, and/or bit of earth? It's a breezy, balmy day here in Virginia, so excuse me while I go enjoy it!

Just One

While we didn't have the opportunity to start a "real" garden this year, I couldn't resist buying a few plants -- one red pepper, and one Roma tomato.

Quite honestly, I though this pepper plant was beyond hope. While the tomato sprouted, it didn't grow a single inch for months. Finally, at the end of the summer, it produced one solitary flower, and one solitary pepper.

Pretty, isn't it? But here's a little perspective...

It's an admittedly large lime, but it's also a decidedly small pepper!

Our tomato plant did better... barely. Two tiny Romas, out of the plethora of blossoms it produced (I think something must have been eating them). Ho hum... perhaps we can improve our "harvest" next year!

Spring

Moving several hundred miles north in the middle of March gave us a second chance at Spring. And while Spring in Florida was nice in its own way, I've discovered I love Spring in Virginia even more!

Of course, that could be because we actually have *grass* at this house. We had grass (or something like it) in Florida, but it was nothing like the lush profusion sprouting outside our door here. It helps that we're not responsible for watering or mowing it (some of the perks of our current rental!). 

I can't believe how big our Laddie is getting! He was quite content lying in the
shade of a pear tree on his quilt (made by a dear friend).

Within a few weeks of our arrival the pear trees were in full, glorious bloom:

I must admit that I can't stand the smell of Bradford pear blossoms (they remind me of frying mushrooms. Go figure), but I was happy to trade off the smell for a few weeks of beauty. 

 It's good to finally feel more settled. There's an odd box here and there, and a few items that haven't found homes yet, but for the most part we've figured out our new routine here. I'm really shocked by just how much we've gotten rid of during the unpacking process. I thought we'd cleared out pretty well before we left, but apparently my standards of "worth keeping" having gotten stricter since then! Which is fine with me. I'm enjoying having less to worry about and maintain.

I'm also getting the hang of the grocery stores here -- we have one less than a mile from our house, which is luxuriously handy. I still do most of my shopping at the local military commissary, but I've found that there are usually a few sale items worth snagging each week. Strawberries for $1 a pound? Can't say no to that!

We're continuing to explore our area, meet new friends, and learn what it is to start fresh in a new place. It's already exciting, and I know that the real adventure lies ahead when we move again in a few months.

But for now, settling down feels very good indeed!

Toadstools

I think Fall is finally on the way in Florida! The weather has been absolutely delicious over the past few days -- and while we have a few warm days ahead of us next week, I think it's safe to officially welcome Fall.

And what better way to do that than with toadstools?

Little ones.



Medium ones.



Big ones.



Unfortunately, while our yard had various types of fungi on display, I couldn't find a single gnome! But I'm keeping my eyes open...

Are You Going to Scarborough Fair?

Parsley,

Sage,

Rosemary,

and Thyme...

How could we have forgotten to plant rosemary? Oh well, dried will have to do until next year! One of the best features of a garden? Fresh herbs right outside the door, ready to use for dinner.

Fresh From the Garden

Recently our family has become more "food conscious," thinking about what ingredients we're using and trying to reduce our intake of processed foods. This shift in perspective coincided with my sister's and my desire to have a vegetable and herb garden this year. With the help of our father, our garden is now flourishing.



I raided the green beans yesterday for lunch; they've already supplied us with beans for four meals, besides the random beans I pick when I'm outside.



It just doesn't get more organic or more local than this. Now that's peace of mind.