Feeling Blessed On This Day of Rest

Posted by Paulette

This morning was beautiful. I awakened to hear Jonny in the kitchen doing dishes without being asked. He also said he was going to make breakfast, but when I informed him I wouldn't be able to eat what he was planning, he agreed to let me make something else.

I made muffins and was enjoying the fact that while Dave and 
I were working outside yesterday, the kids were working inside to get everything cleaned up and ready for Sunday. I appreciate that more than they know.

Then while I was posting the recipe for the muffins I made, I heard Katie playing nurse to her little sister Sophia. "Sophi, you're hot. I'll go get you some water." I turned around and Sophia had that "look" about her that a mother knows. That one where they're eyes don't look right. And sure enough, she had a fever. I agreed to stay home from church and watch her.

We both have had some good naps. It's 3:30 pm and I'm still in my jammies. I decided to go do some watering in the back yard. My little private Garden of Eden.

The family will be home soon. Let me share with you my little time.
This is our little wheelbarrow garden. 

I've planted some basil (you can never have enough basil), Spanish Lavender, lemon verbena, and some mint. I let them sit in their pots too long and didn't water them one day. This is what the Arizona summer does to plants. It zaps them! The basil and lavender seem to be reviving, but the mint got it bad.

It's coming back though. See that little baby, there? That's what good soil and water will do.

The sun is so bright, it's hard to make this one out. Those are my 5 ducks. When I came outside they were chilling out on the porch. I hate it when they lay on the porch. They Poo poo everywhere. Yucky! So I chased them off the porch, sprayed it off and set the hose to run under the fig tree. They discovered the puddle I'd made for them and decided to relocate. That big gray one on the right is actually wagging his tail feathers he's so happy. They have a cool place to sit and EAT! 

This is our new raised bed. It's composting and waiting to be filled with beautiful plants in October. It's "hot" right now, since it has a lot of steer manure in it. Isn't that box beautiful? It's like a piece of furniture, and I made it!
Maybe, just maybe, if I can make a raised bed for my plants, I can make a bed for Hyrum, since the one we bought from Ikea for him fell apart. Junk!

This is what good soil looks like. It's not Arizona dirt, and make no mistake, there is life in there. All of the microbes and insects in there doing their job. We used a mixture of beer and coke to fast track the  composting process. 

And we still need to add back in the beneficial microbes. The recent rain has helped with that, but I will be putting some yogurt or kombucha in there too. 

Well, looks like I'm out of time. The family is home. And I am needed.