Nature is abundant this year...does that mean a hard winter ahead?  We were walking in the woods to check out a couple of trees that Rob had cut and we startled a whole family of either quail or partridge...I had no idea they were there in the back, just inside the wood line!  Rob has found some red spotted newts and will take one home with him...apparently they have a 20 year life span! 

The garden is doing it's thing...I have baby summer squash,baby cukes and baby beans...looks like a bumper crop.  I have a dilema with my raspberries...the grass has grown back around them, so I have to figure out how to fix that.   I planted a few more beans in a space vacated by broccoli, and replanted radishes and spinach. 

I'm having a great herb harvest, and finally all the "Wave" petunias I planted are starting to run, so they and the marigolds have filled in my "mound" in the center of the cottage garden...the new shed/garage is up and has a space on the side for yet another garden bed....nothing is ready for division, so I guess I'll be getting a few more plants (oh darn!)

More wood is in the woodshed, still not enough for the winter, but we are where we were when we moved in, so that's enough until January or February.  I'm already starting a list of what to plant next year and where...I'mso please with how things have grown here!

The basement remains an issue, but since Ed has decided to make the basement his workshop and the sun room my craft space, I no longer have to worry about getting it perfectly organized...just finding stuff isstill an issue.  I have no idea how long it will take to get things moved around or whipped into shape.  He needs to run electricity to the sun room and since it involved crawling into a small space under it, he puts it off as long as he can.  Ed's schedule is crazy at work and will continue to be crazy until the ship is launched, so no telling what will happen.  Once the ground freezes, work on the sunroom will probably come to a halt.

I've noticed several people commenting on how fast the summer is going by...I thought the spring would never  move forward, but now, it seems like the days  fly by !   I haven't been this busy in the summer for a long time,but jeez! This is rediculous!

We took a hike to a local spot called "Tannery Falls" yesterday.  I am amazed that it's not a more publicized spot.  The falls were amazing to see!

Have a great day!

Ed comes home late this afternoon, so today will be busy busy busy...a power clean, lots of work around the place and another trip to the POD to try and clean it out some more.

We went yesterday to do some cleaning out and found that someone had hit it and jammed the door.  We finally got it open and brought home a ton of stuff....I'm beggining to think that there it a secret door in the back and more stuff keeps getting put into it, as it seems like a bottomless pit !  Maybe it's like wire coat hangers and when you close the door, they breed in there and make more junk.

I hope Ed is happy with all the work that was done around here, Rob has worked continuously...he's like a little beaver...cutting wood and chopping dead trees, cutting and stacking. 

I have been enjoying the visit enough so that I didn't get nearly enough done, but that's life!

You all have a wonderful day today!

I've been drying herbs like a mad woman! Got lots and lots of chamomille and catnip.  I'll be blending it to make teas mostly.  I also got my first potato !!!  I couldn't wait any longer to see if they had started to grow. lol

The Strawberries are making babies, so I'll expand the bedto the one next to it. It appears that my husband has discovered a fondness for eating berries that we grow ourselves.  (big surprise).  I got the first tomato, a cherry one, and the beans have little tiny baby beans on them.  I'm content, but have to start some more plants for the end of the season...maybe a few more beans, lettuce, radishes and spinach...

Sam and her hubby have come for a visit and to do some work...Rob is such a nice guy, and so helpful.  Sam is grumpy and hormonal, and tired of being pregnant.  She's due on the 8th of December, but I'm thinking she will not last that long.  Another boy..Aidan.

It's been a good week so far.

I'm looking forward to today. I've decided to set several small goals for each day, so that I get more done. Today I gt to go and finish picking the spinach that has bolted and preserve it in some way.  Last night I managed to fill a quart baggie with dried spinach. I brought up my food dehydrator and got it in working order and started drying. I also got some catnip done for tea.

Ed got called to DC for an emergency meeting, so he'll be gone all day and into the night.  As well as my gardening stuff, I'm looking for clip art to use on our tags for our crafts. I'm thinking since the name we are using is "Mountain Mamas'" I should find a mountain scape or something. ...it's fun and a pain at the same time. lol

The weather is still pretty odd...lots o f  dampness, muggy.  Some of my flowers are getting black spot, but I got a recipe to treat them from Steph, so I'll probably make up a batch of that too.  So, life goes on...not bad, not good, just normal! I can handle that.

Have a  wonerful day!

So this morning, we got up bright and early...went out and planted the new plants and Ed had a brain storm.

Keep in mind that this is the guy who had two goals for the year...build his workshop and prevent me from over doing with the garden.

So, he's decided that he won't build his workshop, rather he will put it in the basement, and build cupboard with window seats over them in the sun room for my craft stuff.   He said he kind of likes sitting on the deck and looking out at the gardens and we could put another garden in the spot where the old cabin was (where his workshop was going to go)....so, he has completely changed his mind.

It's all cool to me. At least with him in the basement I'll be able to holler down and see if he's alive instead of trudging out across the yard! lol

So, we've decided to add onto the wood shed a shed for the tractor and yard tools, build a bin for the wood chips and the yard compost, and make a fireplace in the new "garden space".  I have no clue if it will get done this year, but knowing my husband, as soon as he comes out of his "I feel lazy" funk, he'll get started on it.

Oh darn! This means I need more plants! lol

Have a wonderful weekend.