Weekend Recap

Warning...this is a loooooonnnnnnnggggggg post.

J. and I have been running around like chickens with our heads cut off this weekend.  Up before the chickens both yesterday and today so that we can pack as much as possibly into our weekend off from work.    Speaking of chickens, they broke their personal record for the most eggs in one month in May.

Saturday we hit a garage sale for a particular item (it's a secret for now, but I'll be posting about that later) and then off to an auction outside Liberty, which is just north of Kansas City.  We got outbid on a John Deere 955 with a loader that would have been a nice twin to my 850.  The lady that won the auction paid WAY too much for it.  We're seeing this alot nowaways at auctions - people paying way over retail for stuff.  I guess some people get caught up in the excitement of wanting to win.  We did pick up a nice Swisher offset mower that I can tow behind the lawn tractor or ATV.  Behind the lawn tractor, it will double the amount we're able to cut in one swath.  It will be going to the farm with us later this afternoon.

Last weekend, we hit another auction by the same auction company and it was full of really cool antiques:  radios, stained glass, furniture, you name it.  I was able to snag an 8 foot tall stained glass panel from a church for just $95 and a beautiful 7 foot long ball and stick panel in oak.  Both need repair, but nothing that I can't handle.  Actually, I've always thought that my lot in life was to restore things that other people neglect or break.  It's always fun to see them beautiful again.

Just some cleanup and some repairs to both these pieces and they will be beautiful.  The ball and stick is going on the wall and I'm planning on mounting the stained glass so that we can put a couple of LED lights behind it.  Beautiful!

This year's weird weather continues.  Thursday night dipped all the way down to 49 and Friday  night went to 56.  The norm here is 62, so it was pretty darn cool.  Now we're heading back up into the 80's and low 90's later this week.  That taters love this cool weather, I'm sure.

You saw the first ripe tomato already in my last post.  I discovered last night that there's another one right behind it that's ripe also.  I could have picked them last night, but decided to let them go another day.  Those Early Girl plants are so dense, it's even hard to see the tomatoes...more like forging into the Amazon jungle.  Sheesh! 

Let's take a turn around the garden and see how things are progressing.

 My trellis idea for the squash and cukes seems to be working.  The cukes are just starting to vine on the other side.  And I just realized that I didn't label them in the previous picture.  Doh!  They're right behind the lettuce and romas, on this side of the beans. 

I'm working on growing some monster onions as well.  These will be ready to pull up soon, I think, as about half the leaves are already flopped over. The rule of thumb is that onions are ready when 80 to 90% of the leaves are flopped and starting to yellow.  When we get to that point, I'll talk more about how to harvest them.

The Yukon Golds are coming along nicely in the laundry tubs and need to be mulched.  My Yellow Finn potato leaves are a little yellow after we mulched them but otherwise look healthy.  It's too early for harvest since we're at just over 60 days since planting.  I suspect they need to be fertilized, so I'll be doing that later today.

I went over to buy some of those sweet potato slips yesterday afternoon and there was no one there, so I'll have to try for Wednesday.  Darn...I really wanted to get those planted this weekend.

Well, I think I've bent your ear enough for today.  J. and I are on our way over to the other house to get the walls sanded and ready for painting.  Then we're off to the farm to mow and put the new Swisher to the test.

What's going on in your world?

I've linked this post up to the Farm Girl Friday and Ole Saturday Trading Post hops.