little helpers

This picture says it all....the tiller was broken/in the shop, we tilled the garden by hand. Surprisingly my back didn't hurt afterwards(thank you, Jilian Michaels dvd). We had lots of fun. Every 30 seconds the boys thought they needed a different tool. Halfway thru, they were off playing in the sandbox. So then it was just Dad & I. Anyway, we've got some great looking tomato plants & pepper plants planted. My herb garden has been weeded & mulched. Benjamin remembered when we put down newspapers last year as weed block. He reminded Papa to get some newspapers this time to help distract the ants in the garden. I love the funny things he says.

Got Zucchini?

We're enjoying zucchini from our garden. Thanks, Amy, for this great recipe. We loved it and since it made 2 loaves, we shared it with our friends!



Zucchini Pineapple Bread

3 c sifted flour
1 t salt
1 t soda
1/2 t powder
1 1/2 t cinnamon
2 eggs
2 c sugar
2 c grated zucchini
2/3 c veg oil
1/2 c egg substitute (I just add another egg to the above 2)
2 t vanilla
2 8-oz cans crushed pineapple, drained

Combine flour, salt, soda, powder, cinnamon in large bowl. Beat eggs with mixer at med speed until foamy. Add sugar, zucchini, oil, egg sub, vanilla - beating until well blended. Add zucc mixture to flour mixture, stirring just until moist. Fold in pineapple. Spoon batter into 2 loaf pans coated w/ cooking spray. Bake 325 1 hour. Cool 10 min in pans on wire rack. Remove from pans and cool completely on wire rack.

How does your garden grow?

Benjamin asks to help in the garden every day. Grandpa Ben would be proud of this little great-grandson. He loves his special gardening tools & is quite enthusiastic when it comes to digging & inspecting the plants. Benjamin is quite good with the water hose. Fortunately Trevin nor myself has gotten drenched yet! Maybe later on we'll let him cool us off, but for now it's nice to stay dry.

-What do our plants need to grow, Benjamin?

-Well, they need water, vitamins, sunshine, & chicken!

Hmm...I don't remember talking about chicken and gardening together. But maybe since we eat a lot of chicken (and we encourage him to eat his chicken/meal to grow) he thinks the plants need the same thing. So, we'll have to continue the garden lesson.

Fresh Produce

Despite everything against it (ie the heat, drought & my pregnancy), our garden has continued to flourish this summer. I am simply amazed. Benjamin & Russell helped me harvest beans this weekend. We still have lots of tomatoes & peppers too.

Cousin Pictures

Fun times at Hoppin Hippo - slides & jumping areas

Giving Cocoa some attention

Touring Grandma's garden - yes, that corn & beans in the back!

5 Klepzig great-grandchildren at Grandpa's visitation

Anticipating a harvest...

Upon reflecting on the events of this week, I've been thinking about the harvest ~ the harvest/result of our life here on earth. There are so many examples in nature that teach us important lessons. (ie the heat of the summer - helping to ripen & sweeten the fruit before it is harvested) It has been good for me to work in our garden this week...to see the hope of a harvest, to remove weeds & stones, & teach our boy about seeds & life coming out of a seed that falls into the ground. I love our little garden...

Our first tomato

Lettuce
Fajita bell peppper
Blooms on the cantaloupe
an abundance of lemons on our tree

Outdoor Fun

Our Memorial Day weekend was very relaxing. We enjoyed swimming at Nana & Papa's pool (even though they are gone on "big plane to Ideeho"), bike ride Saturday morning, naps everyday, lunch with our workers on Sunday after mtg, hamburgers & visiting with great G&G at the conv grounds after gospel meeting, a quick trip to Sam's Club this morning(which was so quiet & empty!!), gardening, & setting up B's new little pool in our back yard. Thank goodness for the little canopy that gives a little shade since we don't have our covered back porch yet.

Enjoying strawberries from our garden
Enjoying a beautiful evening at the ballpark
Benjamin loves his little trailer for bike rides
A new pool for summer playtime

Our weekend

We got lots of little projects done this weekend ~ prior to getting 'strep throat'. Now that I'm laying low & not moving around too quickly I have time to get these posted. Last week little B got 'pink eye' in both eyes. Another first for us. How in the world do you put eye drops in a squirming, fussing, crying child??!! I learned very quickly the only way for us to deal with this situation was to put them in when he was sleeping. Any other suggestions?

An expression we added to our master bedroom

Our garden is a 'work in progress', but we are enjoying lettuce, strawberries & sugar snap peas so far.

A finished product in our guest room - using a free expression, a $3 clearance frame from Joann Fabrics & Crafts. All I did was glue the glass in place & remove the back of the picture frame. Super easy, super cute & super cheap!