Spring Gardening

I didn't find the energy last spring to order seeds. I bought starts and planted whatever starts I could find.  I didn't find the energy to order seeds this year. Michael and I stopped by Lowes as he is going to make a seed starting station for me. He nudged me into buying seeds. 

Judy, a dear friend, gave me this our second year here. It is great for starting seeds, and growing winter herbs. However I could only start two trays at a time. I planted more and rotated but it wasn't optimal. 

I bought some grow lights a couple of summers ago but never got around to using them. Michael put this together for me. 

After a cup of tea and a bit of reading this afternoon, I was motivated to get out all the new seeds, the old seeds and organized them. I had downloaded a free Alaska seed starting guide from Common Ground Alaska. I would link it, but I can't find it on their site just now.  

I started some ribs and baked beans - low and slow.....and then headed to the growing station. 

From checking out the ebook I found I was a "bit" behind but not by much as our last frost is May 30th. 

 I have some old seeds and some new seeds. This is a great time to experiment. I overplanted and we'll see what happens. I planted 108 tomato plants (several varieties) so I'm hoping I don't have 100% germination. I've NEVER been able to get a strong tomato plant from seed. Michael says if it doesn't work, we'll buy starts. If it does, we'll have lots of tomatoes.  I also started snowball cauliflower, marigolds, sunflowers, broccoli, brussel sprouts and celery. I had 7 trays....this set up can handle 24 trays of seeds. I need to buy more trays. LOL 

If I rotate the trays, I can get 4 on a shelf

I labeled with the name of seed, date planted, days to germinate, and year the seed was packed. 

The basil is about ready to die out and make way for new spring summer basil. 

Even with the gardening gloves - I just can't resist. Tis the season of the black thumb...or black thumbnail at least. 

I need more pods and trays.  I have no idea if I'll us it to the full capacity this year - but I can already see it's going to be much easier to have this big growing station.  Oh, I ran into the greenhouse, and it was 80*. I decided to plant some spinach and lettuce in the greenhouse. My hope is to be harvesting it about the time I plant out in the beds...and then use the inside space for tomatoes, beans and peppers. 

Michael came home from his appointment. He, Dad and I had a yummy dinner. Allie got home from work and grabbed some and a couple of hours later Stacia got home from classes. It turns out ribs are a favorite around here. I'll have to do that often this summer. It is perfect to get started and go on with the day outside. 

As I gardened last year, I dreamed of moving the hot tub from the garage to our new outside deck. Actually, being able to set up the hot tub and enjoy it after an afternoon in the garden. My back was sore this evening and I headed out for a nice, leisurely soak after dinner. This gave me time to catch up on polos too. 

Spring Stride?

Michael and I are struggling to shake off our winter lethargy and find our normal spring stride. Honestly, grief often feels like a weight one carries around. It sucks our energy. We expected that last spring. We're surprised we're still feeling weighted down...but we're learning how to carry on with the extra weight; both physically and spiritually. We'd really hoped winter would hang on until Easter as it normally does. Here we are facing tons of projects which need done and still preferring to sit around with tea and books or water and screens for Michael. Not to worry - I am taking a fistful of supplements, drinking a wild array of teas, taking breaks to breathe on the hour and tell myself "I am still here." I realize I'm supposed to have more meaningful affirmations but to date I haven't the energy to create any more affirmations to recite. I breathe and pray/affirm on the intake, "I am still here," and on the exhale, "And.so.is.God. " Possibly should change that up.... God's still here and so am I. ::snort::  I suspect that is what grief is like....love transforms to grief; grief becomes comfortable and manageable, and we carry it along with the joy. 

We are sort of aiming for one project a day until we are up and going with typical summer energy. I recently spent 90 minutes clearing away the winter poop -moose and dog and unidentified. NO pictures.  I filled my time this Tuesday with picking up Dad's meds, getting the car washed and picking up a few fresh items at the grocery store. 

Today, Michael put together the deck box we purchased. 

One distressing thing about spring is the snow melts and there staring one in the face are all the unfinished projects left when winter caught one unaware. Not really unaware, we simply keep working until it snows.   We need to finish the finer details on the new deck....railing on the back and the bottom stairs and hauling away the extra boards and such. Snow is such a pretty covering. 

Oh yes, and here Michael had trenched for electricity to be installed. The snow came and the sod froze before we could fill it all back in. It's time to jump on that too. It seems a good time to get out and cut down man sized killer weeds in the back woods and along the edges of the lawn. 

We also hope to stain the house, put in an electric dog fence, organize the garage, build another garden bed or two, reseed the chicken yard and come up with a summer housing solution for them so we CAN reseed...we will keep busy. 

Stacia tried out a dinner she plans on making while they are in Japan, so I was able to skip out without making dinner. I headed to Women's Bible Study at WCC. I am enjoying that rhythm again. 

We seem to have a peanut butter and snack bandit in the house. 

Congrats, Jared

I have made a notable exception to my policy on not discussing politics online to post about Jared's campaigns. Yes, today, Jared was up for election. He ran for Seat A from Chugiak, Eagle River and JBER (Joint Base Elemendorf Richardson) of the Anchorage Assembly. This is not his first campaign.  Stepping into politics takes courage. I was SHOCKED at the amount of money spent to keep Jared from a local office. I was bemused at the things I began to hear about Jared - it became obvious these people do not KNOW Jared. They probably aren't interested in hearing proof that what they believe about him is incorrect, or that the news sources they are trusting are provably inaccurate....and then I realize this is sure to happen on higher levels of politics, as well.  We would all do well to check and recheck our sources before spreading them or at least honestly admit our bias'....

These thoughts ran through my mind and then the prayer that Jared would win and finally the acknowledgement that ok, "God - your will, not mine! But I sure hope we think the same thing would be good on this one!"

Jared was spending the wait with a few friends. He didn't want a big watch party, so we went ahead and went to life group. We knew the results would begin to come out after 8:30 p.m. As the group discussion continued, I admit, I snuck a peek at my phone and did a quick check!

The final results won't be certified until Wed. evening, but this is a great lead. It's a good enough lead I've heard others call the race for Jared.  Congrats, Assemblyman. 

Jared & Jamin 📷via Jamin's facebook 

📷from Jared Goecker for Alaska

March Random Glimpses

 The one with random glimpses from March! All the things I thought I'd blog but haven't....

It's March 1st and the moose are back...three of them today. They look rough. 

 Soccer is the name of the game this month for Benny! 

Arielle's collage...

We have started playing a game at Family Gathering which involves picking random prizes hidden under cups. You may get a roll of breath mints,a hot wheel car, or a $100. Totally random. And, yet, Bre and her kids keep winning the big bucks. ::snort::  This month Jojo (Josiah) won $50. Bre sent a photo of his shopping spree. 

The girls (Stacia and Allie) went with Jared, Larissa and Noah to the start of the Iditarod. It was WARM, but there wasn't much snow. 

Note Stacia's husky ears. LOL 

They made the media...Jared,Noah, Lariss and Stacia 

What could this be?

Krista won the award above. She was named the 715st Air Mobility Operations Group Company Grade Officer of the Year.  This is quite an honor for a chaplain to receive. She's enjoyed being  part of the East Pac Beast Pac. 

These girls are so fun to watch as they grow and develop their unique personalities. Josi is 13 1/2 months old and Ellie turned one year this month. Josi is in the top percentile and Ellie is in the bottom percentile...both progressing just fine with milestones and personality...today they sported matching overalls. 

📷via Arielle

Michael is diligent to check temps, chemicals etc. This month he changed out the water. We are enjoying the hot tub. 

Nate and Heather sent this puzzle to all of us.  Dad has a habit of rearranging pieces. There were some times in the process where Nate and Heather had odd body parts where they should not have been. It was a good day when this one was complete! 

I dug out the yen we had kept when we left Japan. We planned on being back as missionaries shortly...but Stacia will be able to use it on her trip. In the process of digging out the yen, we found money from Korea, the Philippines and Iraq...it was a fun discovery. 

I will find words to share how much the painting below means to Michael and I... such a great remembrance from a loved mentor and friend. 

Charles' fort was shrinking but he still thought he could hide behind it. LOL 

Krista, Bre, Nolan and all the kids met up with Larissa and Noah for a fun day at JBER. I KNOW I had more pictures but this is the one I can find now. Thanks, Larissa! 

Trudy and Noah on the flight line. 

Watching the kids on Cory's birthday. 

Benny, Charles, Danny

Magnificent Monday

Mondays used to simply be the start of a workweek/school week, with all the stereotypes which go with Monday, Monday. 

Since Oct 23,2023 Mondays are more....a reminder, a marker...flannel Mondays are still a part of the journey Michael, and I are on...not by any set or planned way...just happens.  BUT Monday's have also become Cy's Girls day.... I get a brief glimpse of Livie before she heads for school, spend the day playing with Josi, have lots of quiet time to read, think, pray during nap times, and then Liv comes home from school.  It's a great way to spend a Monday. 

Josi was happier to greet me this Monday than she was last time. 

In all the talk of who Josi looks like I've noted no one has mentioned OUR LIKENESS. We truly favor one another - something about the nose and ears I think. Genetics are strong.  

Josi is an enthusiastic and wild driver....such fun! 

I am loving the SPRING days. It seems EARLY (and it is for us), but this may mean an early fall so I'm determined to enjoy the sun to the fullest! Josi and I went out for a walk. 

Liv came home and we discovered a big box on the doorstep! A new pack for all to enjoy this spring, summer, fall. I see many hikes in Josi's future. 

An advantage to the longer days is the light as I drive home to the valley. I stopped at the cemetery. There are times my heart is full and I simply need to stop here and spend some focused time remembering, processing, praying....I have yet to run into anyone but family here. 

I have also discovered this is a good place to walk and pray...I can easily get in a mile or two while I process. This was scenic but the cows kept turning their back on me when I snapped the shot....ah well.

I got home to discover Stacia is home from her housesitting adventure. Her next gig will be the trip to Japan. I find it funny that meta is filling my feed with shots of Japan since she announced her upcoming trip. I don't mind, I see some upcoming trips to Japan in our future. 

GG was happy to have Stacia home for many reasons. She is one of his most consistent puzzlers. He called me to snap a picture of this finished puzzle. 

We Love Sundays

We love Sundays. It begins with the mad rush to get everyone up and out the door on time to drive to Eagle River. We meet up with our muni of Anchorage kids...participate in a fantastic meeting and head out for lunch afterwards. Allie took a car this morning too as she and Stacia wanted to come home directly after lunch. For the first time ever the front handicap spot we usually take was FILLED. This was an adventure for GG as we found some spots in the back, but he doesn't do stairs well....so we enjoyed an impromptu spring walk around the campus to the front. I told him it was good for him. He was a good sport. What we thought we felt was borne out by numbers...ACF is growing! ::snort::  We broke 2,000 for the first time ever on a NORMAL week. Brian has encouraged some of us 10 and 11:30 people need to move to 8:30, Wed night or the NE Anchorage campus.  Most exciting to me was hearing the number of new believers in Jesus (64) and the number of those taking the Crash Course which is the next step in discipleship. Good stuff. 

We went to Garcia's for the first time ever  after service and it was yummy. The girls and GG left to come directly home. Michael and I visited Lowes. We picked up things for a project for Michael, a deck box, and seeds...we picked up more seeds. 

Back at home we continued to relax...and Nolan dropped by for games.

GG sporting a new birthday shirt. 

Michael, Stacia, Nolan, Allie

As the day wore on, I opted to head for the hot tub. I had some interesting new hot tub partners.