Dinner En Blanc...

Last Saturday we celebrated Chelsea. 

Oh how I love this girl! She is like my own. 

Chelsea is going to marry Nick soon...he is a lucky guy! 

After a heavy rain in the afternoon, the evening was nice and cool. 

The yard was fresh and beautiful!

   

 The theme was "Dinner en Blanc"...French and perfect.

 Everyone who attended wore white, 

beautiful for a Summer evening outside.

 

The food was fantastic! 

Uncle Ben and Aunt Amy...who were visiting for the weekend, 

made the most wonderful Cheese Board. 

Every bit of the food was delicious.

 

Watering My Yard....

 

Recently, The Farmer decided that he would connect our yard with a nearby well,

that is used to water one of our orchards. It isn't too far away...and it is something

that we have wished for, for many years! Before now, we have relied on

water from the hose, (which is very expensive), or water from the ditch

 that runs in front of our home. The water in the ditch comes from the town lake,

and is share by all. Sometimes our yard has suffered from lack of water,

especially during the long hot Summer months.

So, to have access to pump water, whenever needed, is a great blessing!

 

 

Yesterday, I mentioned to The Farmer that we needed to water the yard...

could he please send the water. To which he replied..."I think it would be great for your to

learn how to start the water for your yard!" Off we went to the pump, close to our home.

  Once there The Farmer showed me...buttons to push...

 

 

Valves to open...

 

 

Valves to close.

He showed me how to clean the sand out of the sand trap before the water

was released to or yard...and finally he showed me how to check the pressure

of the water, explaining that if the correct pressure was not applied, the pipes would burst.

 While he was explaining all of that... he paused and said...

"I think if you need water...you just need to ask for some help.

  That would be best."

 That is fine with me, by the way!

 

 

Once everything was in place...we rushed back to our home to see the water

coming into the yard. It was so fun to see! Something we have needed for so long is now in place!

  It was a happy evening;)

And yes...I am easily impressed!

Welcome to Farm Life!

Everyone Needs A Picket Fence....

I LOVE a picket fence!

It doesn't matter if it is new...or if it is old...

There are a few fences around town that I have kept my eye on for many years.

One was built by a lady named Agnes Bluth. The fence stood for many many years on

a piece of land where her home once was. The home is gone....

a few of the trees she planted still stand....and recently her old picket fence...

that she made with her hands...was taken down because a new fence was put in it's

place. Although the new fence was greatly needed....it was sad to see the old one go.

Another fence I have enjoyed watching through the years is about 3 blocks from

my home. Again, it was built many many years ago by someone who settled this area.

Now it is falling down...

Covered with climbing roses that haven't been care for in a long time and alot of weeds.

I am guessing that the roses were planted by the same people who put up the fence.

We call the roses...."Pioneer Roses"

The Farmer's Mother says, that the years ago this town was covered with

"Pioneer Roses" now the are not so present. Only about 3-4 houses still have them.

My hope....this upcoming Winter....is to take starts from the existing roses,

and plant them around my home. They are beautiful!



A picket fence warms a home....

I have longed for a picket fence....really to keep the dogs out of my garden.

And finally.....the picket fence is in place!

(it always helps when the parents come for a visit....)

I am THRILLED!!

Something very simple has brought me alot of joy!

On one corner of the fence, I planted Wisteria....my hope is that soon....

it will grow and climb all over the new fence.

Now the question....

To paint or not to paint?????

Do we paint it white.....or leave it natural???

The Farmer isn't a fan or painting fences...he says

"Once your paint...you always have to paint....again...and again...."

Me on the other hand would love the fence to be white.....

What do you think?

A Few Last Tastes Of Summer

Summer is winding up for us. The days are still warm but the nights and early mornings are very cool, actually cold. The leaves are falling from the trees and Fall is basically here.

We are enjoying the few last tastes of summer. The Radishes are from the garden, not only beautiful but tasty. This year I planted 18 tomato plants and they promptly died. Which has never happened to me before. So I again planted about 20 plants and I ended up with 3. But they have produced very well. Because of my garden ,along with generous neighbors, I filled many bottles with homemade tomato sauce. Yum!

The will be perfect for Tortilla Soup, spaghetti sauce, and homemade tomato soup! It has been a great year for bottling, and it feel good to have a fully pantry!

Hummingbirds

A few days ago I noticed a lone Hummingbird perched at one of our long empty feeders. I haven't filled them in awhile...just something I haven't taken the time to do. But I felt tender toward the little bird that was searching for a little something sweet. And so I filled our three feeders. That little bird must of had alot of friends.....because we now have a literal swarm of hummingbirds that begin their feedings before the sun comes up each day. I have the most beautiful view of them from my kitchen window. It just makes me so happy to watch them fly in and out of our yard. I have never seen so many before....it is a beautiful sight!
The flowers in our yard are just beaufiul right now! We have had an unusual amount of rain this year and everything is so green and the flowers are vibrant! Our yard is filled with petunias that not only look amazing...they smell amazing too! It really is a pleasure to be outside in the yard right now! Thanks for all of your sweet comments for my birthday. I had a wonderful day, in El Paso with The Farmer. He was very good to me;), as usual. We ate a yummy lunch, got alot of errands done and did some shopping. Auntie Beth arrived safe and sound to top off a very nice day! Thanks again to all of my sweet friends and family!

Fall Garden Ideas

Because this is what I am in the middle of...I thought I would share some ideas for Fall gardening. We cleaned out a section of the garden yesterday, removing plants that have done their job! We still have alot of plants that are producing so those will stay until they are done. In our Fall garden we will plant spinach (above),
This yummy and oh so good for you, vegetable,
Garlic...a must for most all of my cooking,
Beets, carrots, chard and some great lettuce mix. YUMMY!
And do not forget about marigolds...they are an excellent helper in keeping bugs away. Also Mexico celebrates "Memorial Day" which we call Dia De Los Muertos, in November, and these marigolds will be ready for that day of rememberance. Many people in our area grow flowers especially for this day. What do you grow in your Fall garden...and do you have any special tips to make the garden extra special???? I would love to hear your suggestions

Another Summer Favorite

Little Rooster, Preshie and I spent the morning in the garden. I love the garden, it is not as weed free as it should be, but I love it! I have hoped that The Darlings would learn to love it too. My Dad always kept a beautiful garden while I was growing up and we learned to work in the garden and eat from the garden as well. The Darlings are great on the eating part...but still learning to love the working part. We cleaned out a section of the garden to prepare for our Fall garden that needs to be planted. And we picked alot of squash, okra and tomatoes. YUM!! We really love okra at out house. Again something I learned to love, growing up. Most people don't enjoy okra, usually it is in gumbo or prepared in a way that it is slimy. It is a very under appreciated vegetable if you ask me....and if prepared right...a complete joy to eat! Above is what okra looks like, freshly picked from the garden. The Darlings don't like to pick it, because it leaves you itchy, but it is worth the itch!
Here is the okra sliced and ready to cook. I dust it lightly with flour and place it into a pan with 1 T. of butter and 3-4 T. of oilve oil. Cook, stirring often until browned.
Here is the finished product! Yummy! It is crisp and wonderful. Along with garden fresh tomatoes you have a great lunch that is good for you.

Fried Green Tomatos

My Grandfather grew up in the hills of Kentucky and brought into our family flavors of his youth. So, as a child I remember that he loved fried chicken (mostly KFC) with all the trimmings. He also enjoyed Fried Green Tomatoes which were cooked quite often in my home as I was growing up. I in turn, have introduced them to the Farmer and the kids and they also love them. It is a long process to get a red tomato from our garden....we pick the green ones almost as fast as they appear. This is what I found in the garden this morning (above). Fried Green Tomatoes are very simple to make and very yummy to eat. First, select firm green tomatoes and wash and trim them.
Next, chop (chunky) the green tomatoes and place into a bowl.
Dust with flour, enough that each piece of green tomato is coated. Note: I have tried many other methods, dipping in egg or cornmeal or a combination of all of the above. For me and my family we just love plain and simple. A light coating of flour is perfection for us.
Place the green tomatoes in a large frying pan with 2T. of melted butter and cook until the flour coating becomes brown and your mouth begins to water!
Perfection on a plate! Fried Green Tomatoes. We love them served with a little ketchup. The flavor is a little tart, a little sweet and very delicious! Enjoy!

These Make Me Happy!

ARTICHOKES!!! They are my favorite, they have been all my life. Back in the day, my Mom would always let us choose what we wanted to eat for our birthday dinner, and I would always choose artichokes. When you purchase them in the store, they start at $1.50 each and are usually more than that. We discovered that our climate is perfect for growing artichokes. Horray for us! We watch and we wait until the first one shows itself and each person secretly hopes that no one else has seen it. Today is the day....we have three ready to eat...now the question will be....who will eat them. I am pretty sure that the Farmer and I will enjoy them for lunch.....while the children are at school. Shhhhh, Don't tell!