He's 2!

Let's take a break from the gardening to celebrate Carson.  He turned 2 yesterday.  We've been celebrating all week long.  We started with a swim at Bear Lake.

We made some Cake (then tried the icing on for size)

And of course, we blew out some candles.

We love you Carson.  Happy 2nd Birthday!

Composed

Sometimes a day doesn't feel right from the start.  This happened to me on Monday.  I was running late, forgot my coffee, was feeling a little tense, and then, while driving 75 mph on I-80 on my way to work, my car started to shake, violently.  Then I had some trouble steering.  Once pulled off the road and after completing a little panic attack, I called for a tow to the mechanic and got a lift home.  Needless to say, I didn't make it to work (my apologies to any patients that were rescheduled.  I owe you a batch of cookies or some tomatoes).
My stress started to abate pretty quickly when I entered the house to a smiling Carson yelling "Mommy!"
So we did what you do when stuck at home waiting for the news from a mechanic.  We sat around in the backyard, did a little garden maintenance and put together the components of a composed salad.
Beets with fresh oregano and carrots with fresh thyme.

Roasted until tender, then beets peeled and seasoned with salt and pepper.  The carrots were just sliced.

On a plate with some lettuce, fresh tomatoes, cukes, and green beans.  This was drizzled with a quick balsamic vinaigrette and some crusty bread and goat cheese.  It was a perfect summer composed salad.
Oh, and my car, fine, it turned out that a dry cleaner's bag was wrapped all around my drive train and while this rendered my steering useless for a moment once removed my car (and myself) remained unscathed.

The goods

After cold, excessive rain, and late warming, things are picking up the pace in the garden.

The scarlet runners are enticing the bees

The cucumbers are spreading out on their trellis

The collard greens and chard are taking off even though they are being snacked on by the birds

The companion planting of basil and onions is working out nicely

It turns out that carrots and tomatillos are good neighbors too.

So far this month I've been harvesting carrots, dark greens, potatoes, cucumbers, and herbs on a regular basis.  Carson is conducting his own harvests also.

Next, we get ready for the winter garden...more on this to come.
-JG