And the food just keeps coming...

So the summer is winding down, as we are beginning to harvest lots, and plant for the fall.  Lately, we've been picking a lot of tomatoes, cucumbers at leasttt once a day, basil, corn, melons, strawberries, green beans, broccoli, and more.  Old green beans are being pulled out, and the next succession is popping up, with the next 2 on their stages of growth too.  The pumpkins are finally turning orange, and the romas finally starting turning red.  There's been a lot going on lately, and it seems like more is still on the way.  Actually, the onions are finally swelling and finishing up too.  It's as if the plants started to sense what time of the year it was and got to work.

I really enjoy harvesting.  We're picking so much things that are all of different colors.  You've got the green of dark green of zucchini, the flashy orange cherry tomatoes, the bright red strawberries, the blue-ish/green broccoli florets, and the red/purple-ish cabbage.  It's all so beautiful.  So with so much food, we spend Sunday canning.  We pickled a bunch of cucumbers, and then also beets that a friend had given us.  And on top of all the amazing vegetables and fruit we're getting, it's huckleberry time!  I had my first huckleberry during the beginning of my time - just frozen ones from last year, but now we've been enjoying them fresh.  They're a bit smaller than blueberries, bigger if you're lucky, and a very length task at picking them.  So far we've got up the mountain twice and got about 3 or 4 gallons each time.  Tomorrow is another adventure up the mountain to pick more.  We ran into other people who were picking as well.  People love their huckleberries...they might even get frugal with sharing!  Yesterday we also had zucchini blossoms.  I took the male flowers off the plant (male so we're not sacrificing any zucchini) and then we breaded and fried them.  They were pretty good, but since it's just a flower, there was a pretty strong oil flavor...

Last night was my last time going to yoga class :(  It's been such a great time though.  I really enjoyed Tuesdays night with Sara, when we went to yoga and then to her friend's house for wine and snacks.  It was always very relaxing and fun.  I've also been getting some more writing done, so that's been good.  The book is going a bit of a different direction right now, but I'm enjoying the ride. I wish that I could slow down time, because it's almost over.  I can't even believe that when I say it.  It's flown by so fast...

Enjoy some new photos from the past week...

My hammock in between two apple trees.  Always a good spot for a nap.

The chickens and the rooster.

An oriental salad we made from the gigantic Napa Cabbage with cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots, onions, and we threw in mandarin oranges.

The mixed beets that we got from the neighbor, which we pickled.

The mixture for the pickling beets.

Hobbes trying to steal my zip up.  

Tomatoes! What a beautiful array of shades of red.

More tomatoes, with some of the first romas.

Some zucchini, cucumbers, and figs.

Baby carrots that we planted for the fall

Baby beet..soo wonderfully colorful.

Bush beans that somehow still survived while the majority died and got pulled out.  We'll see what becomes of them.

“All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better.”  

- Ralph Waldo Emerson