Matt and Grace Visit

Matt and Grace were heading up our way and asked if they could stop by for a visit, which sounded great to us. They arrived Friday just before dinner and we had homemade pizza and breadsticks in the backyard followed by chocolate creme pie, and, of course, our freshly picked blueberries. We enjoyed relaxing and talking for the evening, although I had to miss the end of it because I was fading fast after my early morning shift at the bakery. Saturday morning we had zucchini muffins for breakfast, then went to the Saturday Market and looked around. It's always fun to see all the things they have there. My favorite part is the farmers' market; this time Joshua and I got an orange watermelon. We cut it open to have with dinner and it had great flavor and crisp, juicy flesh. Matt and Grace left to continue on their trip after we got back from the market.

Berry Picking

Thursday morning we went blueberry picking at a local u-pick blueberry farm. We got there just after it opened at eight and enjoyed the peacefulness of the field in the morning.

It was a farm we hadn't been to before and we were pleased with the beautiful location and the well maintained rows with grass growing between. It was a great place to pick berries.

Since we were so close to a favorite blackberry picking spot, we went there after we finished picking blueberries. That wasn't quite so idyllic as blueberry picking, but the berries were huge so we got some good ones. 

Here's the loot.

Zucchini Pickles

The zucchini is starting to really get going so over the weekend I made zucchini pickles. This was my first batch of pickles for the summer and I was pretty excited to be pickling again. It was a new recipe, so I don't know how they taste yet, but they sure look pretty with the yellow zucchini and turmeric in the pickling liquid.

Evenings by the Fire

On Monday I came home from work to discover a fire pit in our backyard! Gayle noticed that we needed one, so she and Joshua went to the store, picked one out, and got everything set up while I was gone, including some new shade loving flowers. I was so excited. 

That evening we had our first fire after dinner and it was wonderful. There was enough wood to have a small fire every evening for the rest of Gayle's visit.

 

Joshua recently built this small outdoor table and it was perfect timing for sitting out by the fire. It's also wonderful for sitting on the back porch in the morning or having dinner in the yard.

Of course, we had to roast some marshmallows. Since I didn't have any regular s'more ingredients and I did have mint oreos, Monday night finally saw the return of the s'moreo, which were created by Isaac and I during a camping trip a number of years ago.

Gayle had to return home on Thursday and we were sad to see her go, but glad she was able to make it up for a good visit. When we had dinner by the fire pit that evening though, the third chair looked pretty lonely.

Mt. Pisgah Arboretum

Sunday, after cinnamon rolls for breakfast, we headed out to explore the Mt. Pisgah Arboretum. It was an overcast day and so was a little cooler than it has been lately and perfect for walking around the arboretum. There are lots of little paths that crisscross the area and we enjoyed wandering around and looking at all the plants, animals, and water.

They had a little wetlands exhibit set up, so we explored that.

There was a bridge over a pond area with lots of lily pads and frogs; there are at least three frogs hanging out in the picture below.

Soon we left the woody area and found ourselves in a large meadow filled with tall grasses and oak trees.

We found some great snakes along the trail. There were also a lot of pretty flowers.

After walking around the arboretum for awhile, we drove a short distance down the road to an area with lots of blackberries to pick more berries.

Once again, there were more green berries than black ones, but the ones that were ripe were plumb and juicy; I think it's going to be a good year for blackberries.

Summer Living

 Gayle came up for a visit and arrived late Thursday night, so after I got off work on Friday, the three of us headed over to the coast to visit Grandad. We arrived in time to have dinner and a nice evening together. 

Saturday we had the perfect relaxed day. It was cool and misty in the morning and we had hashbrowns, eggs, bacon, and toast for breakfast. I got to work on my hexagon quilt and we went on short walk and picked blackberries for the first time of the season. It is still early for blackberries, so there were a lot of green ones, but we found some nice ripe ones.

For dinner, we had a fish fry. Grandad had catfish, yellow perch, pink fin perch, and trout that he had caught recently and he fried it all up along with some hushpuppies. I had brought green beans from the garden, so we also had those with dinner.

As usual, it was quite the feast and way more food than we could eat. With full bellies, we said goodbye to Grandad and Judy and headed back to Eugene.

Lunch Guests

We had special guests for lunch today, Uncle Terry and Aunt Alma were passing through Eugene and stopped to visit with us. It was so fun to see them and enjoy some time catching up.

Our nasturtium plants started to flower.

After dinner, we headed over to 7-Eleven and finally, for the first time, we got free slurpees on 7-11.

Garden Update 7-10-16

 Joshua pointed out that it is probably about time for another garden update and looking back at our garden from the last time I posted pictures, I think he is right. The weather here has been mostly warm and sunny and our plants are loving it, as am I.

As you can see, things have been growing quite a bit. We had a little damage from the storm we had this weekend, some of our borage had stalks that fell over and a few of our bean bushes fell over too. I think everything is going to survive though.

We have started harvesting sugar peas, yellow zucchini, and kale. This weekend we had the first of the green beans, which were great. I have found green tomatoes on two of our plants so far.

Our berry patch has fewer plants and so less going on, but things over there are growing too and we have continued to have a few ripe raspberries every couple days as well as a small number delicious strawberries.

The borage continues to grow like a weed; I have had to cut some of the plants back a few times. But they have pretty flowers and are doing fantastically at their job of attracting pollinators.

Shrimp and Sweet Potato Skewers

We tried a fun new recipe for dinner tonight; it was one I found in Taste of Home.

Shrimp and Sweet Potato Skewers

3/4 lb sweet potatoes (about 2 small), peeled and cut into 1-in pieces

3 T olive oil, divided

1 t minced fresh rosemary

3/4 t paprika, divided

12 uncooked shrimp (26-30 per lb), peeled and deveined

1/4 t salt

1/8 t pepper

4 1/2 t lemon juice

hot cooked couscous

Preheat oven to 450. Place sweet potatoes in a greased baking pan. Mix 1 T oil, rosemary, and 1/2 t paprika; drizzle over potatoes. Toss to coat. Roast 25-30 minutes or until just tender, stirring occasionally. On metal or soaked wooden skewers, alternately thread shrimp and sweet potatoes; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill, covered, over medium heat 5-7 minutes or until shrimp turn pink, turning once. Meanwhile, whisk lemon juice and the remaining oil and paprika until blended. Serve skewers with couscous and the lemon mixture.

The only changes I made to this recipe were to increase the lemon juice to 2 T and to cook the skewers under the broiler instead of on the grill because it has been raining this weekend. The skewers turned out great; the lemon flavor worked well with the shrimp and sweet potato and it all went nicely with the couscous. We both enjoyed it as something different and summery. We finished the meal off with a roll and the first of the green beans from the garden.

Fourth of July

  Joshua and I enjoyed celebrating the fourth of July together this year. After I got off work, we put together a picnic and drove down to Dexter, a little town south east of Eugene. They have an event every year that includes music, food, and games, and culminates with a fireworks show. We got there and walked around to check things and there was quite the party going on. We found a spot on the outskirts of the area to set up our spot. We had a picnic feast for dinner with three bean salad and homegrown greens, deviled eggs, freshly baked rolls, watermelon, and peanut butter bites. We enjoyed relaxing and eating our dinner then playing a few rounds of cribbage while we listened to the bands and enjoyed all the activity going on.

This is the view from our spot; we were right by a large reservoir, but it's hard to see in the picture. The area was really pretty though and it was a beautiful day. It ended up getting chilly as the sun went down and we waited for the fireworks to start.

Finally it was time! I love fireworks on the fourth of July.