Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Another Day, Another.....Squash!

Yep. I've only lost one squash plant so far this year. An animal of some sort came through one night and decided to taste test all the cucumber, rather than eating all of one...they had a bite from all. And then something came through and nibbled down some of the tomato and pepper plants.




But still - the garden is yielding quite a bit of contentment this year for this novice gardener. Take a look at the harvest from this morning.





The other day lillies are in full color now as well. This green variety is beautifully gracing our front beds this month of June.

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Harkers Island and Remembering Dad

I am happy to report that Kurt and the boys found a great source of clams when they camped out on Cape Lookout. I'm not sure it was exactly "clam city" but it provided all the clam needs for the week. The only black mark on the expedition was when no one remembered to put the left over clams on ice...we lost a few...and every time Kurt remembers this loss it still brings tears to his eyes! If you talk to Kurt, please don't mention the lost clams. Thank you!

We had a nice time on the Crystal Coast visiting with family, going sailing, water skiing, beaching, etc. It was all topped off with my favorite excursion of all....a visit to Shackleford Banks. This has to be heaven on earth! We landed on the sound side and trekked over to the ocean side. The horse paths through the underbrush offered a nice bit of shade. And the shelling was the best! The water is so beautiful....blue and green like the Caribbean seas.

Here's a photo of the Creamer cousins and Popeye (a.k.a. Marvin Creamer) on the last night of our vacation.

I couldn't help but think of dad while I was on Harkers Island this week. It was the kind of trip he would have loved. I found myself giving Maggie the same sanddollar hunting instructions that dad used to give me. I'm not sure why I felt Clyde with me so vividly this week...perhaps because we ended the week celebrating dads, or perhaps going to the Core Sound area reminds me of the days when mom and dad would take us up to Duck for vacations...back when Duck was unchartered ground, as the Core Sound area is today. Or perhaps just because dad is never very far from my conscious mind. And for that I am grateful. Thank you dad, for sharing the love of the beach ... and the garden ... with me. Happy Father's Day!


Old as she was, she still missed her daddy sometimes. ~Gloria Naylor

Monday, June 9, 2008

Off to Find "Clam City"

Kurt has forged ahead of me and the girls to settle our camp on Harkers Island. We're looking forward to a few days of sun, surf, shells, wild horses, boats and CLAMS! Always in search for the "peak of clam living" we will set out to see if we can find the best Core Sound has to offer.

Back in Apex the heat continues to reach all-time highs...just in time for all those high school graduates to bake a little in Reynolds!

Stay tuned for tales of adventures on Harkers Island!

Sunday, June 8, 2008

Fleeting Beauty

Ah...there must be a lesson in the daylily. Such beauty, such grace - then gone from our sight, like a whisper in the night.

Earth laughs in flowers. - Ralph Waldo Emerson
Today's Stats:
High Temperature: 101!
Rain: 0"
Zucchini: 3
Yellow Squash: 3
Cucumbers: 0

Here's the first daylily of the season in my garden:

Saturday, June 7, 2008

Sweat, Sweat and More Sweat

What dreadful hot weather we have! It keeps me in a continual state of inelegance. ~Jane Austen

I think I have to agree with Jane this week.

Today's Stats
High Temperature: 100!
Rain: 0"
Zucchini: 3
Yellow Squash: 2
Cucumbers: 0

It's even too hot for Oreo to hunt bunnies!

Friday, June 6, 2008

Bringing On The Heat

Today's Stats

High temperature: 99
Rain: 0"
Zucchini harvested: 12
Yellow squash harvested: 4
Cucumbers harvested: 4

So the delightful rainy spring is now behind us. It looks like we have entered a long, dry, heat spell. Forecasters say we could break a record tomorrow with the earliest ever recorded 100 or + high temperature.

Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Technical Difficulties

So it's been a little while since my last post. I ran into a few technical difficulties and had trouble accessing this site. Anyway...those worries are behind me now and I can continue my venture in blogging.


Since we last spoke, we put in the vegetable garden and already are yielding some beautiful harvest. Yellow squash have been the mainstay to-date but the first zucchini was harvested today. How many weeks does it take for a family to get tired of squash for dinner? I think I'll keep tabs.


I've also started working on the patio. Katie and I worked hard over Mother's day weekend laying the flagstone....now I need some nice filler and I'm working on building the bed that will surround this new living space. The vision continues to come alive.

It's now officially hurricane season. Time to print the hurricane tracking map...Arthur has already made himself known. http://www.wral.com/weather/hurricanes/

Cheers!