Garden Update

Peas from the garden!

Went out to pick peas yesterday and had so many I had to fill my pockets, too! Let the shelling commence,

One of my favorite childhood memories is picking and shelling peas with my paternal grandmother.  She had a large garden - at least I thought so at the time, since as a kid, everything seemed huge.  Going back to some of those places as an adult, they weren't so big after all.
After I shelled the peas, I blanched them, drained them well, put them on a cookie sheet to freeze, then into a zip-lok.  Looking forward to some pea and cheese salad like my aunt used to make.  Comfort food!

We're getting ready for the big trip - so much to do.  Looking forward to being on the road so my mind isn't constantly trying to remember all the things that need to be done.  Canada is a foreign country and has a lot of rules and regulations for crossing the border.  The dog food, for instance, must be in an unopened bag.  No fresh veggies or meat (hence freezing the peas...).  Limit of 40 total oz of wine or liquor OR 24 bottles of beer.  Then, crossing the border into Alaska will be another set of rules.  Luckily, Canada has grocery stores.

I'm going to miss seeing my lilies in bloom since they're just starting. 










OK - a bit of weird-ness to end this post.  These moths spent the day in this plant - mating.  All day?

Kayaking in the rain!!

But first, a bit of gardening.............

 The cactus is beginning to bloom. 

 The birds seem to think my Swiss Chard is their dinner.  Now that I've controlled the earwigs, the birds are the ones doing damage.  I don't care so much about the beet greens, though they would be yummy, the chard is one of my favorites!!  Boo birds!

 We were planning a nice weekend of camping with Jason and Mindy to introduce them to kayaking and Hosmer Lake, but the weather didn't appear to be cooperating, so we decided to stay here and do some day trips.  Friday, we went out to Lake Billy Chinook and put in at the Upper Deschutes boat ramp.  It was sprinkling a little, but  relatively warm, so it really wasn't that bothersome.  Until it started pouring, and pouring.  By then, we were maybe a mile upstream.  And soaked to the bone!  I must say, though, that it was one of those "if you don't try, you won't know if you can do it" moments.  I did it.  And had fun!
You can't tell in the photo, but I was wet!  But smiling.  We let the kids use the hard shells and Dean and I used the inflatables.  All of the boats were full of water.





  Jason and Mindy coming in

 Wet, but happy kids!!!

Yes, the sun did come out - the next day.  When we got home, we left everything in - and on - the car.  Good thing our car is an Element - with seats that won't be ruined by wet clothes because it took until today for the inside of the car to finally dry out.  We put the inflatables on the back deck to dry - had to take them apart, which is a real pain to put back together, but they need to be dry to put away.

All in all, it's been a great weekend.  It's always a joy to have them visit.  We laugh a lot.

It's all relative.........

Son Gary and his wife, Teresa are in town for a few days and I forgot to take pictures (I know - bad, bad!!) last night when they were here with granddaughter Nikki and Teresa's son, but I remembered tonight when Gary came out.

Shannon, Dean and Gary enjoying the cool-er evening breeze out on the deck.



We've been trying to stay cool and, for the most part, succeeding. Been doing outside work in the morning before it is too warm. Painted siding yesterday for the greenhouse and for the "guest house" formerly known as the shed. Hard to get motivated when it's warm like it has been. Unusual - even for over here! Laundry hung on the line is dry in minutes. Garden is growing, but needs a LOT of water.

As I sit here at my computer, I am noticing the photo of the Tibetan prayer flags above my screen and my 2 sets of prayer flags hanging above me - and I wonder if we'll see peace in my lifetime. I hope so, but when in recent memory has there been a period without war somewhere? I did my service and sermon on prayer Sunday and although many of us engage some kind of prayer in our daily life, it is ultimately we ourselves who provide the answers. We are given the "tools" to achieve our hopes and dreams - how many of us actually use our "tools" in the ways that are best?