Green Thumb

I have been bitten by the gardening bug! I have never been much for growing anything, aside from mold on uneaten leftovers, but for some reason I have this desire to grow a vegetable garden in our yard. We have the perfect spot, a place where the previous land owners raised a garden, so the usual sandy soil is pretty loamy-what joy! I am incorporating this into Josh's science lessons for school, and he loves it so far. Yesterday we started building a compost pile out near our garden site, and we are saving all the fruit and vegetable scraps, coffee grounds, eggs shells, etc. We are hoping the worms come and find us, because we have had no luck finding them.

Marybeth told me that she thinks that the country store down the road sells live worms (only in the south!!), so I'll have to check it out...can you imagine?? Spending money on worms?!? She also reminded me that the best place to find them is to follow the tractor as it tills the ground up at Mom and Dad's house, but I don't think I can justify that far of a "worm run"! (Although I would like to!) I remember going outside in the evening up there, after the dew had fallen. With flashlight in hand, we would sneak up on the biggest, most elastic night crawlers I have ever seen! We would yank and pull until either we or the worm gave up (or it snapped in half...ewww). My kids love worms, and are dying for the chance to harvest some from Nani and Papa's yard! Anyway, back to my garden..

Today we cleared a 6x9 foot garden that the boys will tend. When I asked them what they wanted to plant in their little garden they rattled off their list...keep in mind, they will probably turn their noses up when it comes time to actually EAT these foods, but it's still fun and educational. Jonathan told me that he wanted to plant acorns in his garden...no, not acorn squash...ACORNS! HAHA...just what we need...more oak trees dropping leaves! He also wants to plant corn and watermelon, which he actually might eat! Josh spent time today making cards for his rows of produce. We won't actually begin to plant until the weather turns a little warmer, but they are really excited about it already. I'll post some pictures of the boys shovelling and raking their garden. They are quite the little farmers!

Scrumptious, easy dessert recipe!

My friend Joy came over the other day, and it was her son, Elias' birthday. She made the most delicious, easiest ice cream cake for him, so I thought I'd share the recipe. For all my family up north, sorry...I know there's snow on the ground...just tuck this away until summer!

Ice Cream Sandwich Cake

You need:
Ice cream sandwiches (The Neapolitan kind work nicely!)
Cool whip
Your favorite Ice Cream toppings
a crushed candy bar of your choice

Place a layer of Ice Cream Sandwiches in a rectangular pan, top with cool whip.
Add crushed candy bar pieces, then top with another layer of Ice cream sandwiches. Add more cool whip, then add your favorite ice cream topping (we like Hershey's syrup!)

Stick it in the freezer for a few hours, until everything has frozen...slice and enjoy! It looks like a layer cake that you slaved over, but it only took minutes! My kind of dessert...but definitely not low cal! Oh well, once in a while, you have to splurge! :)

Close encounters

Well, our yard is about two-thirds of the way raked, and we have had some rainy days that have set us back a bit. Even so, there is a 100% improvement, and I can see the grass again! It has been relatively warm around here (our fruit trees have buds), so hopefully our grass will come out of dormancy soon. We have remnants of the burnt leave piles in our yard...large black circles, in no particular pattern. It looks as if we had multiple alien landings! Oh well, anything is better than a gazillion leaves, acorns, etc!! Our next project is to break out the tiller and get the garden ready for early spring!

Taking the bad with the good

I reek of smoke...from my head to my toes...my feet are throbbing, I have blisters on both hands, and when I get up from the chair, I am walking like I am 100 years old! I feel like I was run over by a bus...twice! What, you may ask, happened to me??? Luis and I worked in our yard all day! We have a very large yard (about 3 acres), with many trees...many deciduous trees...oaks, gum tree maples, and pecans...so in addition to the leaves, we have thousands of little acorns, and hundreds of gum tree seed pods everywhere. Not to mention a bunch of pine straw from the many southern pines in our yard, and that means pine cones, too. Luis and I were considering just lighting a match at one corner of the property, and letting it all burn, but we were afraid our home might go up in flames as well. So, he armed himself with the industrial blower, and I grabbed the rake, and we blew, and raked, and burned leaves and debris from 10:00am until dark, stopping only for a quick lunch break and an occasional glass of water. Most people would have just cut all the trees long ago (like after raking LAST year) but not us! Those trees, bare as they may be right now, are the most beautiful shade trees in the summer! It seems that the entire squirrel population of South Carolina lives in our trees, and feast on our acorns and pine cones. Our southern pines are in a row, spread out just perfectly for Coach Luis's soccer drills for the boys to weave in and out while dribbling the ball. So, we'll keep raking, and blowing and burning each year, keeping our minds dreaming of the breezy summers sipping sweet tea under the shade of our gorgeous trees. Here's a little glimpse of what keeps us raking...

details...

I am naturally a very inquisitive person...I may be quiet, but I am one who loves details and I pick up on everything! This can be a very good quality for a forensic scientist, a detective, or some other sleuth of that sort...but when it comes to the plans of God, I have to admit my curious, logical mind sometimes gets in the way! I have improved over the years...many lessons learned...some the hard way, and, more recently, some by learning to hear and trust God's voice. It's funny how I can strive to create a plan, but when I just learn to let God direct it, something miraculous happens...and a path that wasn't even visible yesterday, suddenly emerges right in front of my eyes.

We just today became members of a church that we have been going to for about 3 months! We are already seeing God's hand opening doors that no man can shut! (Hallelujah!!) I am also praying for miracles for my extended family, both on my side and Luis's...there are so many needs...but God is more than able! He has been so gracious to us, and we are so thankful to Him. My prayer is that God helps us to be real Christians...no sugar coating...no rose colored glasses...just REAL! I think the world has had enough "make it look like everything is perfect" Christians, who are really full of bitterness and empty on the inside. The time is getting short, and so many people's lives are hanging in the balance. 2009 is going to be a year of great harvest!! Get ready, get set, GO!