More. And More. And More.

 

This morning. 

We Did It

I started at Christmas. I wanted a date during the summer that we could schedule a family portrait.  This is no easy feat with a family of twenty-two.  We needed to work around school schedules, job schedules, vacation schedules, child custody schedules, and anything else they threw in.  By mid-January I was able to call the photographer, pay the deposit and schedule the photo session.

Then I had my heart incident. As soon as I could catch my breath in the ER, I made my husband promise to have this portrait done whether I was there or not.  I might have been a little crazy. 

We were scheduled for sunrise on Sunday August 2 which worked around teens with summer jobs and sports.  Then my daughter's best friend scheduled a wedding the night before and we had to move to evening. With lots of recontering we managed to move 22 schedules to make it work, even with the out-of-towners. And the photographer's schedule so I guess 23 people's schedules. 

The day dawned and the photographer started texting. We did not have a venue large enough to put all of us indoors. The sun was shining too brightly during the day with storms forecast in the evening.  We ended up moving the session up by one hour and did have heavy winds. 

Luckily my photographer is magic and not only was able to get 22 people looking at the camera at the same moment with their eyes open, but they all had a pleasant expression on their faces too.  She actually provided 61 finished proofs of this menagerie, but I only needed this one. She gave us separate family groups, girls vs boys, grandkids, the OGs, and more.  

There was a Mexican restaurant across the road and I treated them all to dinner for being such good boys and girls. 

We did make reservations, you can't just show up with 22 people.  

I am so grateful that everyone was able to show up and they all looked so nice.  My anxiety was through the roof (for no reason, I get like that) and this will probably be the last time I will be able to gather them all in the same spot at one time.  There are two college students in the bunch, two more rapidly approaching college and it is just getting more and more tricky to sync these schedules. 

How Does Your Garden Grow?

Prolifically.

Unfortunately my tomatoes are tiny and barely red. We picked them because if we leave them they split and get blossom end rot.  This is not a banner year at the Merry House for tomatoes. 

It is the banner year for cucumbers. I just can't do any more pickles (as much as we love them). I am now begging people to take cucumbers. 

I am still dicing and freezing the yellow squash.  I will need the freezer space in October for a 1/4 beef steer with my name on it. We have a lot of squash to eat before then. 

Peppers. We don't even really like peppers. I am not sure why we plant so many peppers! I do slice them into strips and freeze small bags to put under the broiler with brats or burgers. I am also begging people to come get a pepper. 

I am grateful I do have fresh produce with all the issues this summer. I am not trusting the grocery store or wholesalers inspections; the USDA seems to have given up with so many employee cuts. I really don't even trust the Amish farm stands. I am not sure what is true about these parasites and other issues. I guess we will just keep eating cucumber salads and cooking all the others. 

More Pickles

With all the posts about our 49 3/4 Anniversary Trip, I don't want you to think I forgot about my freezer pickles project. One morning I woke up to this on my kitchen counter.

Farmer Merry had been in the garden early.  I posted the photo on Facebook and said "The peppers are trying to edge out the cucumbers."  

That evening he returned with this. I posted "The cucumbers saw what I posted about the peppers and said, Hold My Beer".  

Luckily my youngest granddaughter was here to help. 

We sliced and diced and sprinkled with salt to put in the refrigerator for 90 minutes. I rinsed them, made the pickle syrup and they sat in the refrigerator covered overnight. 

And now I have another 11 pints in the freezer bringing our total to 34 pints. I usually don't get so many pints in a batch. I think I am out of containers and I promised myself I would not buy more. 

Thanks for all the nice comments on the trip. My next bucket list item is a family photo session and then we are going out to a fancy schmancy dinner on the actual date.  I am hoping to talk him into wearing the tux I bought him for our anniversary photos but I think the chance is slim to none.