Saturday, July 10, 2010

Updates

I took my blog off the privacy setting. It was getting to be a huge pain because I had to sign in just to be able to read any comments. If it was a pain for me, I'm sure it was a pain for my regular blog readers! I haven't been the best blogger in the world have I? Our life has been in a bit of an upheaval. I moved back with Evie to our house about a month ago, and we took the house off the market. We didn't want to sell it until we knew where we were going to be going. The interview that looked so promising for Jeff didn't end up panning out. They offered the job to someone else. Basically we live in an area with super high unemployment (which officially is 15% here, but realistically is more like 20%). People are leaving this area in droves due to no jobs. Jeff is finding out that the jobs he interviews for end up going to someone willing to take about $40,000 less than what the job really should be paying. His job he has now (that is in the town we used to live in) is going to be ending soon. The company is shutting down, so Jeff is looking again for jobs. He has 3 months to find a job. He has had some interviews, and one promising one near where his job is now. So we may still be moving. We know God has a good plan in all this!

We have tried to keep some sense of normal for Evie this summer. We have had lots and lots of playdates with other kids, we have gone to the park so many times I can't count, and we have had fun on weekends when Daddy is home. A few weeks ago, we all camped out in the backyard. We didn't get much sleep, but it was a lot of fun.







































July started blueberry season. We went to our local patch and bought 60 pounds of organic blueberries. They are so yummy! We also bought 4 blueberry bushes, so we can start our own blueberry patch. I froze 34 quart bags worth of blueberries, so that should last nicely through the winter.













My garden has been doing great. We downscaled the side yard garden, and I planted as much as I could in the backyard. Here is my huge zucchini, planted in the back. The pole beans are behind the zucchini.













Here are my pole beans and zucchini, and some of my small pepper plants that are getting bigger every day. They are purple, orange and red peppers, and I am praying they will do well, despite the slow start. I planted them from seed inside, but didn't start soon enough.













Here are my bigger green pepper plants that I got locally. They are heirloom plants, and they seem really healthy.



















I tried to cram stuff where I could in my flower beds. The poles you see are where I planted climbing cucumbers. They are finally starting to get going after having bunnies nibbling at them like crazy.
































Here is my garden in my side yard. The tomatoes are doing wonderful! I ended up having to buy the plants locally because my seedlings died. They are heirlooms, and are starting to produce some tomatoes already. I also planted potatoes, carrots, and pumpkin in this garden. By the way, April, if you read this, I just wanted to thank you for the suggestion of Baker Creek Seeds. The stuff I planted from their seeds are the healthiest plants I have ever had! So thank you!!















I hope you all are having a wonderful summer so far!

5 comments:

SchnauzerMom said...

Wow I hate it when things are uncertain but I'm sure the Lord has a plan for you and your family. The hardest part for me is being patient and waiting. Love your garden. Camping out in the backyard sounds like fun.

Liliana said...

Camping in your back yard looks so fun! And so green and beautiful. It should be a public park! :)

I was thinking of you very much day before yesterday.

K said...

Nice to hear from you. I had been wondering if you guys were doing okay. Sorry that things are still so up in the air. Even my hubby who has a job is always worried about his job. He works in consulting and he only has a job as long as jobs come in. For over a year he has had ONE job at a time, and just when one job ends another miraculously shows up. It's frustrating and stressful.
Your garden looks lovely. And the camping in the backyard looked fun.

April said...

Here you are! :) (I'm late to the party once again...)

I do hope things work out for Jeff finding a new job. I understand the feeling of uncertainty. Mike is starting his new business and I get my last paycheck at the end of this month! The new business isn't open yet and won't be until another couple of weeks and even that will be pushing it. And, we're assuming it will be successful! Things will turn out though one way or the other and I don't let worry take me over; it just doesn't help.

Hey - we used to camp out in our back yard as a kid too! I even did it as a teenager just to get out of the house. It was always fun.

Your garden looks great. My tomatoes aren't too happy because most are heirlooms and many don't do well in the south. They get wierd blight type diseases or something (I really need to identify the problems!) and the best way to grow them is how I did it last year - in big pots with sterile soil. I'm so glad your Baker seeds are working for you! So are mine, except for the ones that didn't get planted soon enough (and some of the heirloom tomatoes), but that was my fault. The others are outstanding and I'm thinking now about what I want to plant in the autumn for a winter garden. It's so much fun.

I'm so jealous of your blueberries... both the plants and the massive quantity of organic ones you just bought! We plan to grow them here, but it'll be next year before we can plant any, I'm quite sure.

It's great to get an update from you Jen! :)

Unknown said...

SchnauzerMom - It is hard waiting! I feel like we have been waiting for so long now. He lost his job a year ago June 30th, so it has been a long time. I'm looking forward to some stability :).

Lil - It was fun camping. No sleep whatsoever, but still fun :). Thank you for the nice compliment about our yard!

Jules - Thank you so much for praying! I am so thankful he has a job right now. I am really ready for him to get a stable one. Our blueberries bushes are doing well, but we are watering them like crazy. We have a mix of sand and dark black soil, so they seem to like it :).

Kelly - It really can be a stressful time. I pray that your hubby continues to have work coming in.

April - You aren't late at all :). I'm so glad you visited my blog! I will be praying about Mike's new business. Jeff would love to start his own business. That is one of his dreams. Unfortunately, we need some money to start one, and we are pretty short on that right now. That is his future goal though.
I'm sorry about your tomatoes! Isn't that so disappointing?! I felt like that last year. Ours did horrible last year. This year they are doing great. I'm thinking that duck manure may be the reason. They plants are HUGE! I am SO jealous that you get to plant a winter garden too! I didn't know it was warm enough in the winter to do that where you are. Wow, that would be awesome.
So good to hear from you April!