Garden of plenty

 It was a busy summer, and not just for us adults. Jess got her first job and worked a lot. It was strange having only one teen at home, although to look at her bathroom you'd think there were 10. After 9 years talking about it we finally finished the surround/pergola for the hot tub. It felt great to check that off the list. We hung an old sign we found half buried in the ground at the Methow farm, as a historic touch. 

Every year it seems like the garden is taking more and more work -- or we're just getting older and no longer have young kids to conscript.  I planted corn for the first time and it surprised me by doing great. Beets were blah but we must have harvested nearly 100 cucumbers, probably more. It was insane. We had a nice amount of carrots and lettuce and a bumper crop of raspberries. Zero plums and apples this year however. Now I know why farmers keep diaries  -- every year is a different story.

 The chickens are thriving. Hennie continues to be the shunned girl, while Everilde, Hilda and Gretchen are the mean girls. Not pecking or anything physical, more like ignoring her and not letting her socialize.
There's a reason 'pecking order' is a common expression, not too mention 'cooped up'.