2009 Garden Stats

•Basil: 2 repotted (5/1/09), 3 more repotted (5/9/09), 2 more added (7/19/09) 39 harvests so far, 4 trays of frozen pesto cubes. done

•Bell Peppers: 2 planted in late May. 7 peppers harvested.done

•Blackberry: 2 bushes planted (5/1/09), Over 70 berries so far, done for season

•Blueberry: 4 bushes of differring varieties planted (3/22/09), 14 mini harvest so far. done for season

•Boysenberry: 1 bush planted (3/22/09), 8 berries so far. done for season

•Broccoli Rabe: 12 seedlings set out (6/23/09), went to seed in hot weather, ended. cool season; 12 seedlings planted 10/14

•Broccoli: 6 planted (4/19/09), 8 harvest of 6 heads, side shoots,and leaves.cool season: 12 seedlings set 10/14

•Cabbages: 6 purple planted (4/19/09), 15 harvests, 3 finished, 1 full head harvested 9/20/09, last 2 harvested 10/11. 12 green and 12 napa seedlings planted 10/14

•Carrots: 7 short rows seeded (4/20/09), 102 harvested.Done

•Celery: 6 planted (5/9/09), 4 harvested so far, 2 late harvested. Done

•Chard: Rainbow 8 planted (3/26/09), 4 additional planted (5/1/09), 26 small harvests, done


•Chinese cabbage (opps erased first stats) cool season; 12 seedlings planted 10/14

•Chives: 1 plant, carryover from last year and 1 new planted (4/19/09), 83 harvested so far

•Cilantro: 1 divided to 4 and planted to garden, 1 potted (5/1/09), 25 harvests , Done (7/19/09) Indoor bowl planted 10/10

•Collards: 2 planted (4/19/09), 13 harvests. Done. Cool season; 12 seedlings planted 10/14

•Cucumbers: lemon 4 planted (5/9/09), 3 harvested

•Curly kale: 1 planted (4/19/09), 11 harvests, done. Cool season; 12 seedlings planted to garden 10/14

•Eggplant: 3 planted (4/19/09)

•Garlic chives: 4 pots seeded (4/20/09)

•Garlic: 6 planted (3/26/09), 6 harvested, done

•Green beans: 2 runners planted (4/19/09), 8 royal burgandy and 8 Italian black seeded to garden and 8 more of each potted (4/20/09), 4 planted to garden (5/1/09), 10 additional bean plants planted to garden (5/9/09), 2 given to neighbor, 6 additonal plants to garden (6/17/09) 48 small harvests and 7 large harvests so far. Done

•Lacinato Kale: 8 seedlings set out (6/23/09), 12 small harvests so far, done. cool crop; 12 seedlings to garden 10/14

•Lavender: 1 planted /4/20/09)

•Leeks: 6 planted (3/26/09), 10 seeded to pots (4/20/09)

•Lemon balm: 1 planted (4/19/09)

•Lettuce: Butter 6 planted, French heirloom 6 planted, Spreckled Red-leaf 6 planted (3/26/09). 12 lettuce thinned from pots and transplanted to garden (4/20/09), 41 harvests so far. New gourmet blend seeded to pots. 11 mini harvest so far. 10 planted to garden 10/10

•Loganberry: 1 bush planted (3/22/09), berries on the vine, 12 berries so far. done for season

•Marigolds: 7 planted (4/20/09) to garden, 9 pots seeded, all planted to garden (9/20/09)

•Mint: 1 chocolate, 2 garden, and 2 citrus planted (4/19/09). 4 additional peppermints potted (5/1/09). 5 harvests so far

•Mystery squash family member - these were volunteers, we won't know what they are until they grow! 8 replanted (6/23/09). It looks like some of these are yellow summer squash, 27 harvested so far.

•Nasturtium: 6 planted (4/20/09), 18 harvests so far

•Nonedible flowers for pollination: 2 lupine and 2 butterfly bush carryovers, tulip and glady bulb carryovers, 5 Falling stars and 5 Crocosia bulbs planted (4/20/09), 2
Asiatic lilies and 2 additional glady bulbs planted (5/1/09), All flowers transplanted to make more room for tomatoes (7/18/09)

•Onions: 2 short rows of sweet yellow and 2 long rows of green bunching seeded to garden (4/20/09) and 4 pots of each seeded (4/20/09), 1 upstart green planted from compost pile (5/9/09). 15 planted to beds 10/10

•pansy/violas: 2/3 planted (4/19/09), 21 harvests so far, Transplanted to front garden to make room for additional lettuce. Multiple volunteers in garden bed for window.

•Parsley: 1 Italian planted (4/19/09), done, 3 curly planted (5/9/09), 67 harvests so far

•Peas: Snap 6 planted (3/26/09), 12 sugar snap seeded to pots (4/14/09 by Anni) , 36 of 3 differing varieties seeded to pots (4/20/09), 12 planted to garden beds (5/1/09), 13 additional planted to garden (5/9/09), 6 given to neighbor, several given to friends, 55 small harvests. Back bed of peas ended (7/21/09) to make room for summer squash. Front bed ended 8/1/09. Cool crop; 12 plants to garden 10/10

•Potato: 20 spuds planted (4/17/09), All spuds are up now, 9 harvests so far of purple, red, and white spuds, 179 spuds, ended

•Pumpkin: 1 planted to garden (5/9/09), 12 seeded. 10 planted to garden. 3 harvested, more on the vine. 2 new plants added to garden (9/20/09)
•Radishes: 2 short rows of 2 types seeded (4/20/09), and 1 bowl seeded, 8 harvested, done.

•Raspberry: 1 bush planted (4/8/09), 33 berries. done for season

•Rhubarb: 1 crown planted (3/22/09)

•Rosemary: 2 planted (4/19/09), 8 harvest so far

•Russian Kale: 6 planted (3/26/09) &; 1 planted (4/19/09), 339 harvests. Ended

•Sage: 4 planted (4/19/09), 1 planted (4/20/09), 1 pineapple planted (5/9/09), 15 harvest so far.

•Slugs terminated: 47

•SNOW days: 15 and counting

•Spinach: 2 rows seeded and 1 pot seeded (4/20/09), 7 harvests. Done. Cool crop; 24 seedlings planted 10/12

•Strawberries: 17, of 3 varieties planted (4/8/09), 201 berries. done for season

•Summer Savory: 1 planted (5/9/09), 4 harvest so far

•Sunflowers: 6 planted (5/1/09) All harvested for seeds. Done 8/25/09

Thai hot peppers: 4 repotted (5/1/09), 21 peppers harvested

•Thyme: 4 planted (4/19/09), 14 harvest so far

Tomatillo: repotted (5/9/09), 82 harvested so far

•tomatoes: 10 plants of 4 different varieties repotted (5/1/09), 2 early girl and 2 cherry planted to garden (5/9/09), 2 repotted. 5 plants place in new bed (7/18/09) and 4 potted up. 158 big tomatoes and 489 cherry and chocolate cherry tomatoes havested so far. done

•Winter squash: acorn 6 planted, Kab. 3 planted, Delicata 1 planted (5/9/09), 3 acorn harvested, 2 delicata harvested, and 1 Kab. harvested. More acorn on the vine. done

•Zucchini: 2 planted (4/20/09), 6 planted from volunteers (5/09) 196 harvested so far! done

We had an awesome summer season this year. We added a vine berry patch and multiple new raised beds. The fall crops did not do well due to lots of warm rain and a poliferation of slugs! Next year, we add the green house!

And the winner is...

And the winner of the guess when the 100th egg will appear is....

Farmer Alex! who guessed Jan 1st, 2010. And a close second was David who guessed Christmas eve, but was disqualified for suspected chicken squeezing (Just Kidding!). The chickens produced the 100th egg yesterday. Congrats to Alex, who gets to pick our next restaurant adventure and received a surprise token for his awesomeness.

In other news, we used our family pass and went to the Woodland Park Zoo yesterday. Of course, I forgot the fabulous new camera I got for Christmas. It's still sitting by the booklet that tells me how to use all of its fabulous features. So, no pics. In the children's farm area, a goat and a sheep were head butting for the right to stand on a big flat rock. The goat was winning. The Bengal tiger was having a roaring fit, and the three snow leopards were playing a rousing game of tag. We also got a very up close view of the sloth in the night exhibits, especially cool as that exhibit is scheduled to close due to budget cuts. And finally, all the tropical bird decided to come out and show themselves. Our favorites were the golden pheasants, hornbills, and the toucans. We had a great time and no rain!

And the final bit, I've run so many miles since the beginning of November that I can now fit in my high school Levi 501's. (Yes, I still have them!). I've logged 321 miles, and now I run a 10K daily. So far, my legs haven't staged an open revolt. Now, I just need to get faster!

Holiday Tartlets!

Heart Jam tartletts with homemade cherry jam.

Mini mincemeat tartlets. Yum!

Today the future farmers and I met up with our friend Lisa at the Soul Foods coffee area. We had awesome cinnamon roll muffins, organic coffee, and exchanged holiday gifts.

Then it was time to hit Trader Joe's for last minute supplies for our annual Christmas Eve tamales. We made tamales with a homemade ranchero sauce, yellow rice (thanks Lisa for the Saffron), and a big leafy salad for dinner, delish.

We also took a trip to half price books and Uncle's game store so the future farmers could spend their gift cards. As Ari often says, "So many books, so little time."

In the spirit of the day:

Happy Hanukkah

Midwinter Peace

Joyous Yule

Feliz Navidad

Noel

Merry Christmas

and

Season Greetings!

Of the sea..

Today was an of the sea day. We went to the Seattle Aquarium this morning. For once, the Giant Pacific octopus was wide awake and putting on quite the show. It glided all over its tank, pressing tentacles against the glass to the ohs and ahs of the visitors. It snatched a herring lightning fast from its keeper, too. We also saw a large wolf eel in full swim in the dome tank, and had a chance to view embryo skates in their egg pouch - extremely cool!

Then we went to Pike Place Market to buy supplies for holiday dinners. It was pretty much seafood; king crab, salmon - smoked and fresh, and mussels. No octopus, eel, or skate on the menu. We also found some great avocados and blood oranges (okay go on, make Dracula fangs here, you know you want to). I love the holidays in the Northwest!

Deck the hall with lots of merry!

Down on the funny farm, we've really been enjoying our winter holidays. We started off by going to an awsome concert in Kirkland, Geoffrey Castle's Holiday Show is an absolute must see. Get your tickets early!

We celebrated Midwinter and Yule last night. David and I went out for dinner, without the future farmers. (That hardly ever happens.)

We've also been enjoying holiday foods, especially cookies! Thank goodness, I'm running alot! I average a 10K a day now, wahoo!

Tonight, we went to the Bellevue Botanical Gardens to see the lights. Every year, volunteers light up the plants and transform the gardens into a winter wonderland of beauty. And it gets better every year (except for the traffic!).

Movie alert: If you haven't seen it yet, go see Avatar! It's amazing! See it in 3-D!

Happy, Merry Everything!

3 Teens!

A news update: Anni turns thirteen (13). We now live with three teenagers in the house! I'm earning every one of my grey hairs! No, seriously, the future farmers are awesome. I'm a lucky mom!

The weather has finally warmed back up into the 40's. We no longer have to worry about the chickens freezing to their perches. And despite the cold weather, they're still laying eggs! We believe this is due to the clear top we put on the coop, clever design that!

I'm still running and my knees have not yet abandoned my body, but my pants are threatening to. I seriously need new jeans in a much smaller size. The future farmers are playing a new game, 'Honey, my mom is shrinking'.

Lisa came over for holiday card making on Saturday, and Sunday, we celebrated Judith's birthday with a movie and lunch. This year our house smells like the great northwest woods thanks to all the fresh greenery around the house. We have a Balsam fir, extremely fragrant and lots of garland (juniper, I believe) We also have oodles of variegated holly and mistletoe over all the doorways (hey, I like kisses). We've decided to take a more natural approach to our holidays, since we celebrate absolutely everything!

December!

Our frosted Chinese lanterns on the back deck.

Thanksgiving dinner on the funny farm.

The younger farmers can't wait to dig in!

In other news, farmer Alex had a birthday. We went to the zoo. He really liked the bats. Anni's is coming up this week. I'll be living with three teenagers! Say a blessing and eat a vitamin or two for me!

We've been busy doing lots of holiday events. We went to the Pike Place Market the day after Thanksgiving for holiday favorites, pomegranates! yum. Yesterday, we did some holiday shopping and then the river lights walk in Redmond in the evening.

Our weather has turned for the cold, with a few places getting light snow last night. Today, I took the older farmers to see New Moon. Ari liked it, Alex did not. Then I went running. I can do a 10k now, yipee!

Nano, the national novel writing contest has ended. The Seattle area won again for most words and donations! I wrote almost 186,000 words on my story, and have added another 120, 000 since. So, a very productive November! I'm still working on the novel and having so much fun. I love the story!

And a project update to close with:
1) We are still eating seasonally and as locally as possible by continuing our CSA farm box with a local organic farms and trips to the Pike Place market.

2) We are still attempting to grow more of our own food. The chickens are producing eggs, and we still have some greens and herbs growing in the garden. Our attempt at winter garden was not sucessful. The heavy rains caused a huge influx of slugs! They ate most of the small plants.

3) This is a tough time of year to decrease consumerism, but we're trying. We've limited everyone to just a couple of gifts. We're not wrapping gifts within our family, instead placing them in large decorated bags - reusable. We've also asked the future farmers to chose an experience over a thing as part of their holidays, more fun for everyone.

4) We're spending lots of time doing holiday events in our area, winter hiking, and staying snuggly at home.

And the feet go on

Check out that egg count! We're at the halfway point.

In other news, all three future farmers and I took an urban adventure to the Seattle Aquarium on Friday. We decided to become members! We saw a sleeping octopus, several wolf eels, and a giant clam (and lots of other cool critterage). Our favorite was a swimming lobster. It was really something to see its little swimerettes moving.

Ari and I went to a write in at my friend Lisa's house this Saturday. It was very productive for my nano story. Alex came along to play video games with another member's son. Ari and I tried guitar hero. I suck!

On Sunday, I decided to rearrange the Learning Center. I'm counting that as my workout for the day, as I had to move five bookcases, 2 chest of drawers, a sofa, two computers and desks, and a boatload of book baskets! It took all day!

The winter gardening is not going well. The veggies are way too wet! But, the chickens are happy and laying. The running is going very well too. I can now run for an hour straight again. So far, my knees and ankles are not complaining. Now, I need to run faster!

Nanowrimo write-in

Check out that egg count folks. We're up to 37. I think I can cancel eggs on the grocery order for awhile. All 3 hens are laying steadily now.

Today was a great writing day. It was nanowrimo day at the Hugo House in Seattle. I wrote 10,000 words on my story today which put me over the 50,000 word mark. Yipee!!!

We had to do some winter weather shopping this weekend. Anni needed shoes. Alex needed long sleeved shirts and a jacket. Ari, as always, needed cash for coffee and books. I stocked up on gloves, hats, shoes, and workout gear. Yes, I'm running again. (Say a prayer for my knees and ankles!)

eggs and words

All three hens are laying now! The egg count is up to 29. Our weather has returned to wet and icky. We had another big storm this evening. The hoop houses have managed to stay upright, but everything is very soggy!The baby broccoli are happy and growing!

The word count for writing is 25,000 on the new story. (My fingers and brain hurt!)

Write, write, write!

The egg count is up to 25! Out local farmer's markets have closed for the season. Our local produce stand had a going out of business sale. Apples were $10/box, pumpkins $.50 each, and potatoes were ridiculously low per bag. Our favorite find was veggie chips for $2/bag, normally $7/bag. Now we'll have to journey to Seattle for market finds.

Sorry, the funny farm posts have been a bit sparse lately. I'm participating in Nanowrimo, a novel writing experience. So, I've been busy writing and typing and writing and typing. I'm also attending lots of writing workshops. I went to two this weekend that were awesome. I'm up to 18,350 words so far. I'm shooting for 50,000 words this month. Wish me luck!

Pictures of the Castle in Victoria

I especially like all the beautiful stain glass windows.

Fish, waterfalls, and dogs!

The Salmon were plentiful at the fishery along Highway 2. We counted over a hundred!
We took the trail up to the three Wallace Falls today. Here are some shimmering mushrooms we found on a log.

And a lovely fern frond.

And a bush in berry bloom.

And here come the falls.

Alex and Ari made it up to the lower falls.

David and Anni made it to the Middle Falls.

And Barkley and I made it all the way to the Upper Falls!

On the way down, we encountered two very unfriendly dogs, off leash. Barkley sat and wagged his tail at them until one of them grabbed my arm in his mouth. Then Barkley became super protector and went for them. Barkley was unhurt but very tired after hiking 5 miles up and down a mountain and being a hero!
And here he is all tired out after earning a spot on the sofa for the evening.

Fall Festivals

Guess who came to dinner? Our friend Lisa. Hey Lisa, look out where you put your hand!

Something creepy this way comes!

Our Halloween dinner! A stuffed pumpkin stew, with chips, fresh salsa, guacamole, pumpkin brew, and a Halloween cake. Delish!

Alex showing his costume. He's being a loser! (Must be that Yankee's t-shirt!)

Anni as a cheerful pumpkin!

David as the Phantom of the opera. Ari thinks he's hysterical!

and because this is the fall festival post...

Another creepy crawlie. This is a giant bird eating tarantula!

10th Egg!

100 Egg Contest update. The chickens laid another egg. We're up to 10 now. And we've had another guesser.
Lisa - February 8th. 2010

"I laid the egg today," says Henrietta (Anni's chicken)

Today, Alex, Anni, and I went to the Boeing Air and Space Museum for a field trip. We say the new Amelia Earhart exhibit which was really interesting. I didn't realize she was such a fashion icon as well as a pilot.

We also saw the NASA exhibits and the historical aircraft. Anni really liked sitting in the cockpit of one of the jets. Alex was fascinated by all the switches on the older aircraft. I quite admired many of the leather flying boots. (I'm such a girl!)

The farm box came yesterday. I forgot the photo, but we had red chard, red onions, a sugar pumpkin, persimmons, pears, apples, plums, mushrooms, potatoes, avocado, tomato, collards, celery, and a cucumber. We made a delcious mushroom marsala pasta for dinner with a Sicilean lacinato kale sidedish - yum!

A new post at last

Well, we're back! I took a brief trip to Victoria, BC to relax and write. I now have a great start on a new story - yahoo! Stay tuned for photos!

We have a contest! Two of the three chickens are now laying. So far, we've had 9 beautiful brown organic eggs. Here's the contest....

Guess the date on which the chickens will have laid 100 eggs and you will win a fabulous prize (no, I'm not telling what!) So far, the following dates have been taken:
December 7th, 2009 - Farmer Anni
December 24th, 2009 - Farmer David
January 1st, 2010 - Farmer Alex
January 29th, 2010 - Farmer Ari
February 20th, 2010 - Famer Julie Ann

If you'd like to guess, send us a post or e-mail with your guess. In the event that a couple of folks want the same day, the date goes to the first one to reach us. We'll let you know who wins. :) Good luck!

In other news, we went to the second to last farmer's market on Saturday. It was cold! We stocked up on pasture fed meat, potatoes, cilantro, apples, onions, and winter squash. On Sunday, Alex and I joined our friend Lisa at the Seattle Home Show. We drooled over exquisite cabinetry, gorgeous tiles, and beautiful kitchen countertops.


And now as promised, pictures! These are from the gardens.

We're psuedo grandparents! (Or who laid this egg?)

We're back! The funny farm had a run with a nonfunny virus. First Alex, then Ari, then Anni, then David and finally me. Eck! Cough, cough, Achoo! But we're starting to feel better.
The girls (the clucky ones) are finally laying eggs! Here's the first. We've had another today. We have no idea which of the hens is laying, but we're glad at least one of them finally is. The eggs are brown, organic, and delicious.

Here's Ari hiding behing that giant pumpkin I lugged home from the farmer's market.

October weekend

Well, we had another busy weekend down on the funny farm.

Saturday was farmer's market day. We're really going to miss the market when it ends for the year on Halloween. This time we found 3 little pumpkins (to eat!), onions, green onions, leeks, spicy peppers, lettuce, cilantro, free ranged, ground beef, winter squashes, apples, blueberries, hazelnuts, and raspberry brandy sauce. After a quick coffee with our friend Lisa, Alex and I did a quick visit to the used bookshop. We found lots of great bargains. I found a cookbook on cooking squash and pumpkins, perfect for the season!

Back at the funny farm, Ari and Anni were busy handing tissues to each other. They both have colds! After lunch, some of us headed to the garden for a session of weeding and planting. Out of the beds came the dandelions (and straight to the chicken coop where the clucky girls enjoyed them immensely) and into the beds went the little brussel sprouts, cabbages, cauliflowers, broccoli, kale, collards, onions, and leeks. Then came the challenging bit. Due to our upcoming weather forecast for freezing temperature overnight Saturday and Sunday, we had to protect our baby plants. So it was off to the hardware stores for plastic piping and clear plastic sheeting. We built hoop house covers for 4 of our raised beds (the ones with the seedlings). The next challenge will come on our first fall windy day. We'll see if those clothespins hold!

Today, we had a cozy day. We cooked. We made crab crepes for brunch while contemplating this week's menu. For dinner tonight, we made a delicious Argentinian soup, using local ingredients. It featured some unusual additions such as pumpkin, winter squash, and peaches. It was awesome! We also made a big batch of golden mole' sauce using lots of the dried and fresh peppers from the farmers' markets and many tomatillos from our garden. It was spicy!

SeasonaliTea

Today, this funny farmer was pondering on the seasonalities of things. In fall, our tastes seem to change from the pastels and lights of summer to the warms of the autumnal palette. I've noticed this especially with regard to tea. We're big tea drinkers down on the funny farm; breakfast tea, iced tea, tea time, evening tea, and soothing teas. We drank lots of fruity teas during the summer. Some of our favorites were iced strawberry tea and mango black tea. In September, we turned to apple cider tea with a drop of caramel sauce, and our fav, for October, is the pumpkins spiced tea with a dab of brown sugar.

Our lovely weather is about to undergo a drastic change, according to the weather guy on TV. Nighttime lows will be hitting down in the thirties, which means it's almost the end of NW gardening season. We're going to try to extend it a bit by covering a bed or two with raised row covers. We're hoping to get a few onions, carrots and brassicas over the fall season. Wish us luck.

The summer garden season has been a wonderful one. The hits of the garden were the tomatoes, beans, tomatillos, peas, and (groan) zucchini. Our flops this year were the corn and strawberries. The corn needed much more sun and the spring was just too wet and cold for the strawberries. Lessons learned for next year:
1) Move the corn to the sunny spot.
2) Plant the lettuce where the tree shades in the full afternoon sun.
3) Compost, compost, compost!
4) Move the beans to the back beds so they can run the fence line.
5) Plants loads of marigolds.
and finally
6) Only 1 zucchini plant!

Fall has retreated

Our weather has been absolutely gorgeous the last few days. The front garden is in false spring with the roses, pansies, and assorted other plants all reblooming! We picked a whole bouquet of pink and red roses yesterday. They smell wonderful.

The pea plants and baby spinach are doing well in the garden. The green beans and tomatillos are still producing at an outstanding rate. Thank goodness the zucchini had finally slowed down. We still have 20 on the kitchen counter! Our pumpkins are in full bloom with two little pumpkins on the vine. Today, we cleared weeds and nonproducing plants (a few spent beans, tomatoes, and squash) to make room for seedlings that will need to be set out by the weekend. We also fertilized all the currently producing plants and herbs with an organic fertilizer and some compost from the worm bin.

Alex is finally getting over his bronchitis, but now Anni has a cold! Pass the tissues!

We had a lovely fall lunch today of potato leek soup with potatoes and leeks from the farmers market, milk from our local dairy farm, and chives from the garden. It was delish! For dinner, we had some porkchops basted in a wonderful apple chipotle sauce from the good folks at Aldrich Farms. It gave them a great sweet spicy tang.

And I'm still making it to the gym, 4 days in a row! Drum roll please...So far, I have 9 miles running, 9 miles cycling, 12 miles elipsing, and 30,000 lbs of weight lifted on the weight machines. Phew!

Fall Fun and Buns of Aluminum

This weekend the funny farmers had lots of fun. On Saturday, we went to Full Circle Farm's annual Hog and Grog celebration at the farm. It was terrific, a potluck to beat all potlucks, with the farm folks providing BBQ pork and the brews. There were hayrides, live music, and plenty of muddy fields to explore! The weather this year was beautiful (unlike last year when it poured bucket loads!). Full Circle is the provider of our beautiful CSA boxes.

We also went to the Saturday farmer's market. We saw a huge and lovely pumpkin for only $4. "I'll take it," I said, not thinking of how I was going to get it all the way back to my prius in the parking garage. It weighed a bleepin' ton! I think my arms are both 6 inches longer now.

Also at the market, we found local tuna, peach syrup (perfect for wholewheat pancakes), apples, Asian pears, onions, delicata squash, a beautiful orange squash that looks like a little turban (but I don't know the name), ground cherries, cucumber, potatoes, and a huge bouquet of fall flowers in a real pumpkin vase.

On Sunday, Ari and I went to a writing session at the library with many of our fellow writers. It great to just sit and write. I added to three of my stories! Woohoo! We also weeded the garden and planted all the spinach seedlings to the garden.

I decided it was time for this funny farmer to start working out again. After all, the holiday baking season is nearly apon us. I made it to the gym yesterday and today. So far, I have 5 miles running, 6 miles on the ellipse, 3 miles on the cardiobike, and 15,000 lbs lifted on the weight machines. I hope I can move tomorrow.

Fall Arriveth!

Well, we know fall has finally fallen. We turned on the heat last night. And today we went sock shopping. Ari and Anni also needed new shoes, rainproof. Though it's cool, there's still a fair amount of sun for which my veggies are very grateful.

The future farmers are participating in the International Peace Project curriculum, and to that end..

Does anyone know why we had a dinner of BBQ Pork sandwhiches and sweet potato fries yesterday and Aloo Gobi (using potatoes from our garden and a cauliflower from the farm box) and chicken tomato (garden, of course) curry tonight?

Yesterday, was Jimmie Carter's birthday. We learned about his work, post presidency, with Habitat for Humanity and international human rights. And today would have been the birthday of Gandi. We learned about his struggle to bring independence and human rights improvements to India. Coming up later this month is the Children's Day of International Peace and Understanding.

We're back!

Anni and I are back from here recent stay in the hospital. She did very well, but was very bored having to stay in bed for 2 days. We're both really tired! We were glad to sleep in our own comfy beds.

But then Alex had need of the medical profession. His cold, sore throat, cough bug wasn't getting any better. So off to the doc we went. Alex has bronchitis. So off to the pharmacy we went for antibiotics.

So, we took it easy for the rest of the day. We read stories, and played in the garden. The pumpkins and peas we planted last week are doing well. We harvested more green beans, tomatillos, cherry tomatoes, zucchini, chives, parsley, and basil.


And then the farm box arrived

It was full of fall goodness. We had broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, lettuce, bell peppers, chili peppers, corn, grape, a melon, nectarines, pears, apples, plums, and asian pears.

For dinner tonight, we had a delicious pasta with smoked salmon and leeks in a cream herb sauce. We served it up with a garden salad and a desert of farm pears and dark chocolate. Delish!

Farmer David

Today, farmer Julie Ann went to the Foolscap Conference with her writing friends Lisa and Judith. It's a very local sci-fi and fantasy venue with panels, auctions, and lots of awesome books. To further expand my reading repertoire, I bought book 1 of a fantasy trilogy. I found an awesome ghostly picture at the auction that bears a striking resemblance to my Nana. Ari thought it was awesome, and Alex enjoyed the Spiderman in the future comic books.

Farmer David took over the Funny Farm while I was away. He worked on the hen box and the garden. He found a curtain rod for the curtains of yesterday that looks great. He even made dinner: Alaskan halibut with jalapeno salsa fresca and avocado, garlic and herb fries, garden green beans, toasted sourdough bread, and chocolate for desert. It was delish! I love Farmer David!

Anni has to go into the hospital for some monitoring tomorrow. So the blog probably won't be updated for a couple of days as I'll be staying with her.

Quadruple Win:wins

Today was a beautiful day in the Northwest. We decided to have a day of fun.

First stop was the Seattle Friends of the Library book sale. It was huge! There was a whole warehouse full of books! Ari was in pure heaven! We left with 2 bags full. Ari found lots of scary books. Alex found an adventure book in his favorite series. Anni found 5 reading books, and I had a boxful of environmental books. All of our books were $1 a piece, and the money raised supports library programs. So, here's the first win:win.

Today was the Smithsonian's visit a museum for free day. You could print a coupon online for admission to many museums across the country. We went to the Experience Music Project (EMP) and the Science Fiction Museum at the Seattle Center for FREE! I liked the Jimmie Hendricks exhibit. The kids loved seeing all the sci-fi aliens and robots. It was WAAAAY COOOOL!, and our second win:win of the day.

After a quick lunch at the Seattle Center, we set off for home. Along the way we passed the Juanita Community Garage Sale at Marina Park. We pulled in for a brief browse. I had $9 in my pocket. I left with an antique wooden bowling game ($2), 2 really nice wicker lamp shades ($1 for the pair), a 3 tier serving tray ($1), and best of all new curtains ($5 for four 84" panels) for my dining room that are a perfect complementary match to the decor. I saved tons not having to buy new curtains, and we helped keep usable stuff out of the landfill. This was the third win:win.

And finally, Ari and I set out for RASP this evening. No, RASP is not short for raspberry. It's the acronym for the Redmond Association of the Spoken Word (used to be poetry). I read a humorous poem, in rhyme no less, featuring catapulting sasquatches, Rocky and Bullwinkle, Natasha and Boris, Ruby, a mayor and skipping. Lisa read a great piece about grits. There was also a featured author talking about her book and several other speakers. This goes on the last Saturday evening of each month. It's great fun, and FREE! The final win:win of the day.

Flowers, pooches, kids, and nudibranchs

The pumpkins vines are snaking across the garden. Their large flowers are popping open, and little pumpkins are emerging! We planted 8 MORE pumpkin plants today, as well as 5 seeds. We love pumpkins! We also planted some fall peas, rutabagas, and cilantro in the garden. The weather is supposed to be nice for the next couple of days, and then, fall arrives!

Here's a photo for the Barkley fans out there. His foot has healed up nicely, and he's back to his bouncy self.

Why are Ari and Alex hanging over the edge of a pier, at night no less?

They're peeking at nudibranchs, those fancy slugs of the sea. The kids joined with students from Ari's marine biology class and People for Puget Sound to observe the sea critters of the night on Wednesday.

Preservin'

Today, the funny farmers got out the preserving supplies. We made 4 jars of plum butter and jarred up 6 jars of German red cabbage relish. There was a fantastic sweet and sour smell in the kitchen!

We also went for a walk along the Sammamish River trail this afternoon. It was warm. We hit 90 today! So much for our fall cool down, but the veggies are happy!

A farming kind of day!

It was a busy weekend down on the funny farm. Yesterday, we started as we usually do on a Saturday. We went to the Farmer's market. As our fridge is bursting at its joints with fruit and veg, we decided to look for other market finds. We found some nice grass feed ground beef, some fresh local tuna, and yes, some fruit and veg. We found some lovely baby red potatoes, cilantro, Asian pears, and this:
Can you guess what veggie this ^ is? Answer at the end of the post. Here's a clue: It's a member of the nightshade family (as are potatoes and tomatoes).

In other news, we had a lovely day full of entertainment yesterday (hence the workday today). We perused bookstores. I got a SHORT haircut which I love. Ari and I went out to dinner with friends and then to see the new film "Brightstar", the love story about Keats. It was beautifully done, but a bit dreary for my taste.

Yesterday's garden harvest: tomatoes, green and burgundy beans, a yellow summer squash, a zucchini, 2 delicata squash, and 2 pumpkins.

Here's today's messy haul from the garden: 250 green beans, 59 tomatoes, 3 tomatillos, a green pepper, 12 carrots, 1 baby pumpkin, 1 zucchini, 2 big handfuls of chives, 1 handful of basil, and not pictured one very large purple cabbage. Tonight, I'm browsing the cookbooks to see what I can make with that cabbage!

Today, we worked on the chicken coop's hen box. The weather is beginning to get cool in the evenings. So, we're finishing up the insulated box before the nasty weather arrives. The cluckers were happily nibbling on our shoes strings as we added pieces to their coop.

We also did lots of gardening. It was a perfect gardening day. The sun was out, but it wasn't hot. We weeded the garden plot and pulled the spent zucchini and tomatoes. We planted some more pumpkins and marigolds. Then, we weeded the berry bush row and around the plants in our future meditation circle. Tomorrow, I'll be replenishing the soil in anticipation of planting all the seedlings that are up in the seed trays. I'll also need to go on slug patrol as we had a few days of rain and they're back in force.

Tonight for dinner, we had a lovely fallish Northwest dinner. We had some fresh halibut (from our local fishermongers) baked in the oven with herbs (from the garden). We added the baby red potatoes (from the market) served with chive (from the garden) butter sauce, and fresh steamed green beans (harvested from the garden this afternoon) with lemon pepper and salt. For dessert, a peach cobbler with peaches from our farm box. It was delish!

Did you guess the mystery veggie yet?

It's a golden eggplant! Soon to be a curried eggplant. Yum!

Gorillas, Castles, and Produce, Oh my!

Here are mom and baby gorilla having a forage through the straw.

Alex's most excellent card castle. Is this reminiscent of Gormenghast?

The CSA farm box arrived yesterday. This one had crimini mushrooms, chantrelle mushrooms, oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruit, eggplant, cucumber, white carrots, leek, nectarines, apples, peaches, pears, and a melon. It was a bit heavier that usual in the fruit department. You'll see why below...

The garden continues to spew forth veggies! Here was Tuesday's harvest: 2 yellow summer squash, 2 zucchini, tomatillos, tomatoes, parsley, sage, thyme, basil, greem and burgandy beans, chives, baby carrots, and a few raspberries, and blackberries.

Last night for dinner, we made a delicious green chili stew with pork and 14 veggies. It was delicious!

Bikes, Bites, and Yikes! Random thoughts from a busy day

Here's our friend Lisa in the middle of her 100K bike ride for charity. She's arriving at a rest stop, 2/3's of the way through. She looks great and is still upright!

Here she is waving by at the stop.
And she's off again!

The raspberries are ripening.

So are the blackberries that are snaking their way over into my yard.

Tuesday's garden harvest; a winter squash (already!), celery, zucchini (of course), tomatoes, and herbs.

Thursday's harvest: acorn squash, yellow squash, zucchini, tomatoes, tomatillos, kale, lots of beans, and herbs.

Today's harvest: Zucchini, tomatoes, beans, carrots, kale, and herbs.

We also went to the farmer's market today. We always find wonderful local foods there. Today we found locally made sustainable Italian sausage, hazelnut oil, locally caught tuna, potatoes, lettuce, onions, apples, and hot peppers. Yum!

And finally a wise face from our zoo trip last week. This gorilla was watching all the folks watching her.