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I can’t believe it is already Friday. Where did time go this week?

I’m in love with this wedding! It makes me want to throw a fall party in a park somewhere! And, everyone must dress up.

via Once Wed via One Love Photo

My energy has been so sporadic lately that I haven’t been as good at taking farm photos and such. But there is some news on the front - some good some not so good.

Good news - We have harvested about 8 summer squash and 5 or 6 zucchini.
Not so good news - All squash plants have Powdery Mildew, and some form of root rot. Two years now I have had squash plants and each died due to Powdery Mildey (a condition that forms when the weather is too humid/hot/wet), but never root rot. It seems as though some kind of bug has eaten through the stem of the plant, down to the root, and is beginning to gnaw away at the roots. We have not seen the tale tell signs of wilting leaves yet, and fruit is still producing - yummy as ever.

We’ve made this summer squash soup twice - delicious! And, this zucchini cake.

Good news - Our tomato plants have started to grow new baby tomatoes after that bit of HOT HOT weather.
Not so good news - Our heirloom tomato plant is having an adverse reaction to the change in weather - HOT days, cool nights and is beginning to scar. It is called radial cracking, and begins at the stem part of the tomato growing around to the bottom. The tomatoes are still edible, but the heirloom are not ripening fast enough which seems to be causing the cracking. We may have to whip up some fried green tomatoes, or green tomato chutney.

Good news - The basil plants are out of control!
Not so good news - I have had no energy to make a huge batch of pesto! Must do pronto. I need to find a nice binning solution to freezing it. It can last for months, but my freezer isn’t that big.

Good news - The green beans are flowering.
Not so good news - No beans yet!

Good news - Lots of cucumbers
Not so good news - One of the plants is NOT burpless - You can imagine how we feel hours after ingesting a good cuc.

Good news - The peppers - red and yellow have finally started to grow.
Not so good news - none to report.

Good news - Our seeds from Seed Savers showed up - we have romaine lettuce, beets and carrots to put in for fall.
Not so good news - I don’t really know when to put them in as it is still so hot outside.

That’s about all the news so far. I can’t believe the summer season is almost winding down. I don’t know what I’m going to do come winter. Any ideas?

Summer time and frozen treats are two of my favorite things. I love popsicles, ice cream, sherbet, you name it! So when Nathan recently picked up a blender I went wide eyed in hopes of fresh fruit smoothies!!

I made my first one with blueberries from one of my favorite local farms Ellis Family Farms, ice, milk, and yogurt!

Delicious!

I wish I could hire someone to scour Craigslist for a cheap couch for my house. This ole love seat has got to go!

Number 1. It cost me $50, and has served its time.
Number 2. It is currently the dog’s bed. Guh-ross.
Number 3. The pillow cushions are all lumpy now, and make for not so comfy back while sitting on it.

I’m looking for something simple, clean, easy to take care of. And, I promise I will not let the dog get on it. Maybe leather, maybe cotton. Anything but this loveseat will do.

I just tried to find a photo of it, but can’t.

The garden is growing right a long. This weekend we finally got some much needed rain, though it did quite a bit of damage in Illinois and Iowa! Over 7 inches in two hours! Our damage was less than extensive. Looks like our zucchinni plant got knocked over a bit by the rain and wind. But we got our first vegetable!!

And, we picked a lot of the flowers that are male and won’t turn in to fruit. I’m hoping to try and fry them up tonight. I was just too tired yesterday to fry anything.

These photos of the garden were taken last weekend, and it has already grown even more since then. But look at how big it is getting! It’s taking over the farm sign!

And, we have corn! Though something ate an entire ear the other day! Raccoon maybe? Yes I have seen raccoons on our street in Chicago before!