My Dad

For those of you who don't know him, I have the most wonderful dad ever. He and my mom married in November 1952. They were married for 53 years. He served in the Navy as a cook for 3,000 men on a ship. After his military service ended, he worked for the US Post Office as a letter carrier for 26 years. After his retirement in 1990 he cared for my mother who had Ahlzheimer's until her passing in 2006. He's had his share of health problems over the last few years, and continues to do everything he does with a smile on his face, a prayer in his heart, and the most positive outlook on life I've ever seen.

On January 1, 1965, my mother gave him a Bible he treasures. The love his fingers have shown the pages is obvious. According to Sarah, it's the ORIGINAL duck-taped Bible. For Christmas 2009 Deborah, Daniel, Randy, and I got it recovered for him. Take a peek into our family and meet my dad. :)

Harvey, Lori, and Belle

are wearing hair nets now.

First Harvest of the Garden 2010

April 28th we got our very first harvest of crops from the garden in 2010! Broccoli, spinach, English peas, and parsley fresh from the garden can't compare to store-bought goods.

Our parsley particularly, has a strong flavor. A little bit goes a long way.

Fresh English peas are the best item we have had from the garden so far. I might even go so far as to say they beat the okra from last year. Now that's saying A LOT!

We put the fresh spinach with Romaine lettuce to make salads. The leaves were crisp and tasty.

The broccoli looked a little funny, but the flavor was good. It was nothing like store-bought.

Randy picking English pea pods

Spinach leaves will grow back after some are cut, or so I'm told. We shall see.

Spinach plant after harvesting some of its leaves.

Broccoli before harvesting. It doesn't look like grocery store broccoli, but it tastes better.

Finding just the right stalk to pick.

*Snip*

Our first harvest of 2010!!

Vegetables after they were washed

We added store-bought tomato and green pepper for the salad. The ones in the garden aren't ready to pick yet. Soon we will be able to add those to salads and other dishes, too. Can't wait to make succotash again when the okra, tomatoes, and green peppers are ready.

This is what is left after shelling the English peas.

Our very own GARDEN salad.... :)

"Three peas in a pod..." Reminds me of Eli, Deborah, and Sarah

Ahhh... the finished product

Yummy!

Could it be...

a Magnolia flower in the making?!

"Baby" Food

baby blackberry

baby peaches

baby broccoli

baby English peas

baby bell pepper

baby tomatoes

After the Rain

Rain gives the garden a fresh, alive appearance.

blackberry bush

climbing Kentucky Wonder Beans

Brussel Sprouts... love the water drops on the leaves

Brilliant green of bean plants

Pure beauty.........

Rain or shine, the Cub Gnome is always on the job

"Raindrops on roses"...

Tex got a haircut

Randy gave Tex a haircut today. Check out his before and after shots. Not ready for the Marines yet, but a definite improvement. Thank you, Randy!

Before:

After:

Bluebonnets

This weekend Randy and I drove to Ennis (about 30 miles southeast of Dallas) to see the Bluebonnet Trail. It was beautiful. Enjoy the slideshow! I'd love to hear your comments.

Picture slideshow made with Smilebox

Meet the Trees

Two trees in our family were already residents when we moved into the house. "Tex" is a Cedar Elm. I lovingly call it the "Ugly Tree."

"Sarge" is a Sweet Gum Tree. SGT... get it... Sarge?!

"Maggie" moved in last year. Over the last year she grew 6 inches. We're anxiously waiting for those ivory sweet scented flowers.

The Peach Tree Family all had lovely pink flowers as soon as the weather got past the last freeze. We don't expect peaches this year, but the flowers are pretty.

"Harvey" is a Harvester Peach Tree. He hangs out on the side of the house in the front yard.

Harvey has the most leaves of the three.

"Lori" is a Loring Peach Tree. She was trimmed back the most when Randy got the trees from the nursery. Lori looks kind of funny with leaves coming straight from the trunk instead of branches.

Lori lives by the side gate in the backyard.

All three peach trees have these fuzzy objects on their branches. We're not sure if they're peaches or not. Research said the trees wouldn't produce fruit for a couple of years after being planted. We'll just have to wait and see.

"Belle" is a Belle of Georgia Peach Tree. She got a unique haircut before being planted. She shares the side of the yard with Lori.

So now you know how Randy and amuse ourselves. We name our trees! What can I say? They're part of our family.