A new addition...

Ok, we finally finished the last addition to the vegetable garden.  I still need a few more wheels to finish the last section of the fence.  

 To set the wheels we drill through the metal and then anchor them with strong screws.  I really like that the wheels are all different.   I don't plan on going all the way around the garden.  Just to the end and then make it taller.

 There is no way the sweet corn will be knee high by the 4th of July.  The chipmunks also seem to have pilfered a few seeds.  My herbs at the top are doing great.  

The inside is also productive.  As soon as the lettuce and spinach outside gets a little bigger I will pull them from the inside and start another set.  The bok choy is huge and I can't eat it fast enough.  Note for next year:  four seeds would be fine!  The broccoli doesn't seem to be heading out any time soon.   

The vegetable bed is now perfect.  Ok, maybe I'll make a bean tower for next year.  It will be interesting to see how the harvest is this year.  The cold wet weather has slowed down the outer beds.  It may have been a mistake putting the broccoli in the greenhouse with the beans.  Less bok choy would also be helpful.  Some where in that mess is a huge carrot.  It is about the only one that germinated.   It amazes me how I went from no vegetables to a greenhouse and 3 outer beds.  Another gardening challenge accepted. 

Did you ever notice...

Did you ever notice it only rains on weekends?  My third tier of the vegetable garden is just waiting to be put together.  One of these days this will be another vegetable bed.

These wheels will be incorporated into the garden fence.  The big one is from my Dad, the little one from a friend, and the double wheel is from an auction. Someday they will look like this.  Notice the big one is a gate that can be rolled open.

 My hives are back up and running.  The poor bees haven't been out much with all of the rain.

 A photo of the swing when it isn't covered in snow.  Below is the outdoor vegetable bed in full swing.  My garlic, chives, beets, onions, mint, spinach, and lettuce are all doing great.  The carrots didn't seem to germinate.

 The toolbox smells great! It was a wonderful addition to the porch.

 I'm trying to get succulents started in these, but the darn chipmunks think it is their personal sandbox.

 A wet male crossbill and a wet female black headed grosbeak.

Another day on the porch waiting for the sun to come out.

Sometimes you are just lucky...

My husband and I don't have children.  I've taught over 6,000 teenagers, that is enough stress. Sometimes I am lucky enough to enjoy my sister's 5 kids.  This weekend was one of those times.  I picked the oldest two up at the camp they attended this week.  That included the rodeo, hearing them sing, and seeing them in a skit.  From there we went home to drink lemonade, tour the gardens, roast s'mores, eat s'mores ice cream and take a hot bath in the giant tub.   (Hope my sister isn't reading this.  I probably didn't feed them the healthiest stuff.)

 There is a lot of fence sitting at a rodeo.

Waiting patiently for her turn.

 The game face is on, before she begins.

 

We had a great time roasting marshmallows and making s'mores.  Though a few marshmallows were sacrificed into the fire.

 

 The next day we met the whole clan at the 1880 Town.  The little ones got a chance to stretch their legs and run around they did.

Poor little brother had a hard time keeping up with all of those sisters.  He did his best.  

It was hard to leave them at the end of the day.  They are quite the little crew.  I hope they had as much fun as Crazy Aunt Bonnie:)  I sure felt lucky that we got to spend some time together.

Enjoying the color green...

 I've been enjoying my gardens already.  The chamomile is if full bloom.  As you can see below, I have plenty of spinach, lettuce, and bok choy in the greenhouse.  Everything I've planted is doing great, except the carrots had poor germination.  The broccoli I started from seed is going great guns.  I have peppers on one side and tomatoes on the other.  I used a horse feed trough for the tomatoes on the bench.  If it works I'll get a second one.

 My husband is from Minnesota and thus has a soft spot for maple trees.  We fell in love with this Royal Red Maple and brought him home.  The hills has beautiful golds and oranges in the fall, but we lack in red.  Hopefully, this beauty will provide the additional punch we were looking for.

 I so regret leaving a huge patch of lily-of-the-valley at our old home in Lead.  For some reason I thought they were a dime a dozen.  Not so.  I finally got my hands on a few.  Still nothing will compare to how our yard smelled when the huge patch I used to have was in full bloom.

My poor little small cup daffodils and species tulips don't look so sharp, as all it has done lately is rain on them.  They are a bit like me, muddy.

 I am quite happy with my Ajuga Burgundy Glow looks great right now.  the camera doesn't do the colors justice.

 My CL Westerland Rose is beautiful as always.  The colors just glow.

One of my favorite flowers it the Primrose.  They look so happy.  They also seem to not only tolerate, but actually thrive in our heavy clay soil.

                                                                                                                                                             The beekeeper stopped by with a new hive.  Everything is so green.  It is so good to see after such a long winter.

 Most of the weekend was pent on the porch enjoying a hot cup of coffee, as it rained most of the weekend.  I am thankful that we didn't have the hail that was seen to the north of us.  I hope everyone else is enjoying the color green.