Wrapping Up The Week of May 16

Is it really another week already?

We did a bunch of gardening this week. The first raised bed was close to ready for planting when the week started. We got dirt, and Ashlyn finished the bed up and got beets, onion and hot peppers planted.  We also got a good layer of ash in the second bed. Ashlyn wasn't sure if she wanted to bother planting anything in a second bed this summer but when my parents came on Wednesday they brought 4 tomato plants. Ashlyn had been planning to do 2 tomato plants, one each in two pots on the patio, but now with 4 we're working on setting up the second bed. So we did lots of burning of brush this week to get a good layer of ash in that second bed.

The night after Ashlyn got dirt in the first bed, something dug up a couple spots.  We're guessing it was a groundhog we've seen in the back yard. So, for the time being, Ashlyn arranged the tomato cages, laying down across the bed to protect it.

As already mentioned, my parents came on Wednesday. A family friend who was working nearby came over for dinner on Wednesday and we all spent a fun evening catching up. It was a late night for the kids, but well worth it, and bonus, the kids slept in at least a little bit on Thursday, compared to when they normally get up when Mama and Papa are here.

One of the things we got at the homeschool convention was a set of "learn to read" books that are based on nature, since Little Bit is such a nature lover. As I suspected, she's loving them, and yes, learning to read them. To help make sure she's learning the words, and not just memorizing the text based on pictures, we got bright pink index cards and we're making flash cards as she learns new words. We've been doing fun things with the flash cards like having her jump from word to word as she says them, and making new, often silly, sentences with all the words. During music lessons she spread out the cards all over the floor and was looking for specific words. Then we made lots of silly sentences.

While my parents were here we got the air conditioners installed, though naturally, the hot weather of the week was the first couple days, it cooled back down on Wednesday, sigh . . . we also got tons of weed-eating done with Dad's weed eater. And YAY dad put in an outdoor water spigot! I have been completely baffled as to why there wasn't one at this house, especially with all the flower beds the previous owners had. The last two summers we've carried water either from the creek or from in the house to water flowers and garden plants, but with the addition of the raised beds, we're very thankful to have an outside spigot now!

Sometime during yardwork I snapped this picture of Ashlyn and Little Bit playing with Moccasin.

On Friday afternoon my parents headed home . . . and took all three girls with them! Rodney and I had a memorial service to attend on Saturday so needed my parents to watch the girls. They opted to take them home with them so they could spend Sabbath visiting the C&O Canal Visitor Center in Cumberland, and then hiking through PawPaw Tunnel, also on the C&O Canal.

Rodney and I enjoyed a rare evening alone, then headed to MD on Sabbath morning to celebrate the life of an amazing man! The dad of one of my close friends, I still can't believe he's gone. While it's the last reason I'd have chosen for going back to our old church, it was very nice to see so many friends from when we lived in MD. Even after living here for 7 years, walking into our old church felt like going home.