Save the Peppers !

Our poor little pepper plants have only grown smaller since I planted them outside, so we decided to take action.


To combat the 90 mile an hour wind that blows across the garden area, we are building a little greenhouse.


Today we got the framework finished, and tomorrow we'll put the plastic on. We'll get a heavy duty clear plastic and cover the whole frame except for one window. The wind almost always blows from the west side, so it will be safe to keep the east side open. Then it can get air and be easily watered.


I bought some more pepper plants--the kind that our salsa recipe needs. I'll plant these tomorrow once we have the plastic on the frame and they are safe.


Greg put hinges on the frame also, so if I need to get in I can just lift the whole thing up and over. It will flip all the way backwards and rest on the ground if I want it to.


Ta Da!

More Snow

Here's a little update on our snow condition. I shook off the snow and watered the garden while Greg went to get a big tarp. Our garden expert friends told us to water the garden because that will make it warmer and melt the snow. Then we covered the whole area with the tarp and set up a little heater inside. That's better than the sheets, which were becoming heavy and cold with melty snow.

SNOW!!!

I woke up several times last night to the sound of the wind blowing rain against the
window so hard it sounded like tiny rocks. The last time I woke up, at about 6:30, I was amazed to see snow fluttering by my window! Oh no! My poor garden!

So I ran out on the deck and brought all my strawberries in to the stairwell so they don't freeze.



Then I grabbed some sheets and ran outside to cover the garden. Greg went out and helped me too. I covered the tomato plants, the peppers, zucchini, and cucumber plants. I think carrots are supposed to be ok in the cold. We'll see what happens with the onions and herbs.



I left my new little tree out there, because it's been outside all this time anyway. It seems to be doing ok.



The weather man on TV said it's not supposed to actually freeze in Pullman, but it feels pretty darn cold out there, and the snowflakes are getting bigger and bigger.
We'll just hope that the garden makes it.

Alder Lake Camping Trip

Every Memorial Day weekend Greg's family goes to Alder Lake on Mount Rainier. We meet a few other families and have a good old time making and sharing good food, going out on the boat and hiking around. The Kelley boys always water ski, knee board and wake board. I think they're crazy though--it's still cold at that time of the year, and of course the lake is made of glacier water.

Alder Lake used to be a little town, but they built a dam and flooded the town, turning it into a nice lake. Here are some pictures of the dam:

Sorry, I just couldn't help myself. We always talk about the dam and make lots of dam jokes when we're there. Heheh!

Mom, Dad, Greg and I walked on the trail to the dam and had good look. Dad climbed up high to pose for some pictures while we were down below with our cameras. While he was posing and being silly, and band of motorcycle guys came riding up and saw Dad. They stopped and asked him what he was doing, because they saw was a silly man in a purple sweatshirt dancing around and posing like a girl. Haha! So he had to explain that were down below taking pictures of him.

Then Mom wanted to climb up and join Dad. I was a little afraid because it was so steep and slippery. So she climbed up and up, and right at the top slipped and fell down. Greg skipped quickly up and gave her hand.


Here are some pictures of our site and when we went out on the boat. I wish now that I had taken more. Greg's brother, David, got a lot of really good pictures with his camera.

During the day if we weren't on the boat or going for a walk, we would sit around the picnic table and play board games. Mom and Dad would usually take a nap in the middle of the day.

At night we would sit around the campfire on the Kelley's site and carve marshmallow sticks, make s'mores, and tell stories. One night my parents and Greg's parents took turns telling their stories of how they met and date, and some of their early years of marriage. That was fun. Mom, Beth (David's friend) and I would walk down to the bathrooms together to get ready for bed.

It was so nice just to be outside and have fresh mountain air and beautiful scenery. My favorite part is when Greg and I (this year we took my parents) go alone in the boat up the river where it gets narrow and shallow. The banks are close together and you can see waterfalls and eagle nests up high. It's so quiet and peaceful. Some logs had washed down and gotten lodged between the two banks, so we couldn't go up very far this time. It was still nice though, and Mom and Dad really enjoyed having their own special little boat tour.

Organizing!

I've been spending my time recently doing some serious organizing. I pulled everything out of the closets in my bedroom and the craft room and went through everything. It feels good to clean out old junk and have things neat and clean. I had fun organizing all my craft supplies and especially the scrapbook paper. There's pieces of cardboard in between the paper so it all stays nice and straight.

Now I feel like I can make a mess with the scrapbook stuff and not be adding to messes upon messes. Hopefully I can start learning how to sew too!

Racing

Sometimes Greg really gets into his racing games.

New Tree

As you can tell by now, I really am liking plants. Here's my newest addition. I found it growing in a weird place on the property, so I adopted it. I'm not sure exactly what kind it is, but I have a sneaking suspicion it is one of those tall white-barked trees that are growing all around here.



The other little pot is my apple tree. I started it from a seed from my apple and have been growing it on the window sill. I decided it was time for it to be in the real world and get used to living outside. It seems to be doing ok. So in about 6 to 9 years we'll get to have some apples from our tree!