Rain Dance

We are t minus 9 days without rain.  You may say that is not too bad, but when the temperatures are in the upper 90s and the low 100s it is bad.  In fact, it is sweltering!  We recently returned from our annual family vacation to the beach and found that our grass looked as if it had been burned.  Luckily we have wonderful neighbors who looked after our vegetables and plants.  Otherwise, I think our whole yard would be a dry, putrid, brown color.  So we are doing a rain dance, along with a lot of people here on the east coast.  We have a 30% chance of rain today and a 50% chance tomorrow.  As I sit here typing, I see approaching cloud cover and the radar says pop-up thunderstorms are forecast for this afternoon.  I pray that these thunderstorms hold a lot of rain that can quench our suffering yards and crops.

Beach trip summary and pictures to come soon!

Veggie Tales

Back in May, we bought 2 Topsy Turvy planters and planted tomatoes in one and cucumbers in the other.  I had done some research on these prior to purchase, and we saw that we could grow something besides tomatoes in them, so we decided to give it a try.   They were not difficult to assemble, but are a little easier if you have two people.  We first hung them both on our shepherd's hook in the back yard, but the vines quickly grew to the point where they were brushing the ground, so we had to make other arrangements.  Our neighbor suggested that we hang them from the swing set, so we tried that next.

I apologize for the quality of this picture, but you get the idea.  This is our tomato Topsy Turvy.  It is really amazing how quickly vegetables grow with this thing.  I have never had a garden, but the website says that vegetables are ready 4 weeks earlier compared to growing them in your garden.  It just seemed like one of the cucumbers would grow overnight, especially when a decent rain passed through (not often). 

Our first tomatoes started to appear before we moved the vines to the swing set.  This was very exciting, and of course Seth wanted to pick them immediately.  One thing about the Topsy Turvy is that you need to water it ALOT.  We have had a few 90 degree plus days recently and we have watered the plants in the morning and late in the afternoon.  Because the Topsy Turvy is not in the ground, it does not hold moisture for long.    Here are a few more pictures of the tomato and cucumber vines before the first crop was picked.

And here is our successful crop.  So far we have gotten 3 cucumbers and 1 tomato, but we feel it is early yet.  We are looking forward to enjoying the fruits of our labor, and saving a little bit of money on summer vegetables.  Who knows, next year we may try some peppers and squash!

Returning to the Blogosphere

I am back I hope, at least for the summer time.  School has been really demanding this spring (with testing, retesting, library inventory, and computer collection) and I have not had the time to post here like I have wanted to--hence the 2 month hiatus.  We are all doing well and we are glad that the warmer months are here.  Here is a recent picture of Seth 'fishing' with Papa Gene in his backyard:

Whenever Seth would stand up in the boat, Papa Gene would rock the boat a little and tell Seth they were getting into rough waters, so he needed to sit down.  This kind of reminded me of the time the twins wanted to ride the animal ride outside of WalMart.  My daddy and I placed both girls on the horse and my daddy proceeded to shake the animal to simulate the girls riding the animal.  No coins were ever deposited into the machine to make it move.

Back during Easter break, I started Weight Watchers.  I have lost 10 lbs.!  I can really tell the difference in the waists of pants, shorts, and skirts!  I am wearing my belts as tight as I can wear them and I have had to dig out clothes that I have not worn in a few years.  It is exciting to be able to achieve this and to know that I CAN do it.  Losing weight is HARD.  I have learned to cut back and make healthier choices when it comes to eating.  Portion control is key and I have learned not to eat to feel full, but eat to be satisfied.  There is a difference. 

We recently got a new car.  We were due one....Rob was driving my 1996 green Geo Prizm that he had to enter from the passenger side.  It was time for one.  We got a 2011 Gray Toyota Camry.

I will be driving the Camry and Rob will be driving the Highlander.  Rob is happy about driving the Highlander.  I am having to adjust because I am so used to sitting up higher.  Now when I go to a drive-thru, I have to reach up, whereas in the Highlander, I just reached across because I was level with the drive thru.  Now, I sit down low.  It's a great car, though.  Gas mileage is wonderful....I can go a whole week and not have to fill up but one time.  

Recently, our friends, Nathan and Katie McAnally visited Greenville for a photo shoot and they were able to join our Young Adult group for supper.  We had a great time with them and were glad they were able to join us to make it feel a little like 'old times.'

That is all for now...I will write more soon, I promise!