Blessed Rain?

Winter Garden with corn

Oregon Spring tomatoes

Not everyone would think that of the rain and yesterday I would have agreed. I too was complaining that this was summer and my tomatoes are not getting ripe. Where is the heat? I was in the garden until about noon planting a new set of peas (fall peas) and weeding. Peas because I still have spring peas that are finally giving up and spring lettuce that hasn't bolted due to the cool weather this summer. Just minutes after coming into the house it started raining and hasn't stopped since. Suddenly I felt my whole body relax. I took a shower and planned dinner (with my peas) and for the first time in weeks my thoughts went to ordering garlic, reading, and yes blogging. I had been working so hard in the garden this year (the first year for this garden) that I didn't realize how  much work I was doing. I get up in the morning, make coffee, and still in my P.J's coffee in hand I wander out to let the chickens and ducks out to free range. Then I wander down to the garden just to have a peek at yesterdays work and that is my undoing. Hours later and still in my PJ's dirty and exhausted I walk back up to the house for a shower. Sometimes as late as 3:00pm. Today I get to stay in the house and read or something else that I haven't done all summer. Feels like fall and I will order my garlic today because I know by the middle of the week the sun will be back.

The chickens have been laying eggs for a few weeks now and they are almost in full production. I spent a portion of my time yesterday playing referee in the coup. Molly (my bantam hen) may be small but she is not going to take the bigger girls pushing her around. She thinks the lower middle nest box is exclusively hers and the bigger girls like to climb in with her. This results in a lot of squawking and screeching and even a few pecks while I am trying to remove the offending squatter. It is everyones favorite nest box.  I spent some time sorting hens into other boxes in the hopes that they would figure out there are other places to deposit their booty.

Molly and one of the bigger girls

Enough of this. I have bread to bake and books to read before the weather changes again.(And it always does here in the N.W.) I am also going to teach my youngest teen how to make minestrone soup to go with the bread. And just because I have nothing better to do I am publishing another blog so friends and relatives can follow the progress of our oldest teen through her final year of high school and her simultaneous freshman year of college.  Take a look. Leave a comment. I love comments and follow both blogs.Breanne's Senior Year

Thanks for looking.