Growing things (pictures!)

 

I love growing flowers!  Even though most of them you can't or don't want to eat, their bright colors are so cheerful and flowers make the world a more beautiful place to live.  I wonder how many varieties of flowers are in heaven? 

 

 This is a Dahlia (it's the first time I've ever grown them)...

 Can you tell I was having fun with camera settings?  ;)

 Yesterday, Sarena came over and decided on which spice cake/frosting she liked best.  We talked lots of other wedding related things too, so it was a fun visit!!
  Rachel, here's a link to the recipe for the best-tasting spice cake----according to Sarena:  :)  http://allrecipes.com/Recipe-Tools/Print/Recipe.aspx?recipeID=76964&origin=detail&servings=16&metric=false

 Andrew and I went out target shooting after Sarena left.  We shot at 100 yards most of the time and did fairly well.  :)

After supper, my dad had to haul yet one more load of water up to the cows, so I said I'd like to go with him.  While he filled the big water tank, I took some pictures outside...  These are similar pictures to the ones I posted a few days ago, except this is how our yard looks now.

 The Morning Glories are taking over!

 The lawn is all drying up.  We've run the big sprinkler on some of it, but we usually need the water in the garden (or for laundry) more than on the grass, so the lawn gets crunchy.

 The side view of the garden...

 The cabbage and broccoli...  We're praying for a late frost this year!

 Does anybody know what this bushy plant is?  My mom grew "it" many years ago and we didn't enjoy "it", but I thought I'd give "it" another try.  

 My golden raspberries....

 This is my favorite place in the garden!

 The zinnia bed I planted...

 This variety is called "Peppermint stick zinnias".  :)

 They're just so lovely!!

 The hollyhocks on the edge of the greenhouse....

We have 3 different varieties of raspberries growing now, actually, we have 4 but one variety isn't producing yet.  The red raspberries are slightly tart; the dark blackish raspberries are very tart; and the golden raspberries are very sweet...

 

 Our hay-yard is filling up!  That is a blessing indeed!  We're praying for rain though as it's getting very dry and we may not get a second cutting if we don't get moisture pretty soon.  The axle on the 9030 in this picture just broke, so the guys are working on fixing that now.  Andrew also has new car projects he's working on...

 I headed over to the water-filling station and shared some raspberries with my dad.  The tank was finally full here and he's going to shut the pump off.  That green tank can hold 1,600 gallons of water and it was the 3rd time my dad hauled it up to the cows yesterday.

 There is a windmill up in the pasture, but a calf had got in the tank and knocked the pipe off, and then it wasn't very windy, so my dad and Andrew cleaned the tank out and then hauled water.

 Blue sky!

 There is water in the little lakes all around the cows, but it's getting pretty stale and stinky now and the cows do not like the water (and it's really not the best thing for them to drink)...

 The big tank here at the "Hub" holds something like 10,000 gallons of water!

 

 

Splash!

 When we got home, we walked into the corn field to see how it's growing.  There are 2 cobs forming on most of the plants and 3 on some...

 I wanted to know if the corn was as high as an elephant's eye, and my dad thinks it is.  :)

The guys spent today in the hay-field once again and picked some rocks too.  Mom and I worked on things at home and did the chores.  Our neighbors to the north came over to look at one of Andrew's vehicles and then stayed and visited for a while.   Mrs. S even helped my mom milk Sally.  :) 

Well, good night all.~