Every muscle in my body hurts

There is not one part of my body that doesn't hurt. Even the bottom of my feet hurt. I'm hobbling around, hunched over, and there are two little kids that are still there to manage. Jesse is on a 4 day and 4 night business trip.

When does school start again?

Back in Portland. The first thing we did when we returned to town was check the little veggie garden and our fruit trees. It might just be the weather or a coincidence, but we haven't had an aphid problem this year. I'm going to attribute it to the herbs that I decided to plant alongside the veggies. I've read that herbs are a great pest deterrent. It seems to be working. Or maybe it's a coincidence. Regardless, I'm going to follow up on that one on a larger scale back on the farm. The herbs smell great, so it's a win win.

Check M out. She is super excited about the $3 sandals I picked up in Bingen. First pair of heels, and she rocks them!

Not only are the plums ready to be fully harvested, but the pluots are in fine shape, too. They are very firm and slightly sweet. From what I understand about cold storage, you are supposed to pick them just before peak ripeness for the longest storage. I hope this is right, or I will find out the hard way. Cold storage is just above freezing. Leave them undisturbed and they will keep through the winter. They ripen a little during storage, which is why you pick the fruit before it softens. The skin does have a little give, so I go for it, teetering high on the ladder, and amassing a decent amount of fruit for only the second year of owning this tree. M put a sign on the fridge door - do not open - and we store only the pluots and plums together.

The pluots might look a little funky, but it's because I haven't washed them. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to wash them or not. It seems like it would make them rot. I think the commercial operations wash their fruit in something, but I'm not a commercial operation, and I can wash them before I eat, right? Might need to look into that one. Picking them was work in itself, so I'm apt to just let this one go. Especially since we never sprayed the trees with any type of pesticide or fertilizer. I've been told that if you don't spray, you lose a significant amount to bugs. This wasn't the case, and it gives me hope that we can do this on a larger scale in Hood River.

Decided to take the pluots that had blemishes, cut off the good parts, and make a little juice. I also used the peaches we picked at Mr. N's place, along with a bunch of carrots. While I was juicing, I put a tablespoon of chia seed in the liquid to plump up. To top it off, I added 2-3 large scoops of greek yogurt. Delish!!!!

The kids LOVED it. I've been experimenting with Chia seed since last weekend. The Farmer mentioned to us that there's a decent market for Chia seed domestically and that it's something we should consider growing. When we mentioned it to Brian, he told us that his wife puts Chia seed literally in everything. I like it. It's a little like bubble tea.

I watched a neighbor's cat. It's a stunningly beautiful, affectionate, and playful kitten. The plan was to hang out with the kitty twice a day, cuddle, and play in the basement. The kids would have no part of it, though. Every time the cat came near, the kids started screaming and crying. Not what I had imagined.

Other than that, we had a couple of playdates this week, a visit to OMSI and a lot of downtime. Since this past weekend, I haven't been able to walk much, because of some major arch pain, and my legs and the rest of my body are pretty sore. Pretty tired too. Think it might take some time to gain the muscle I need to make farming and home renovation a reality. On the upside, I think I've lost about 5 pounds. Not bad for two weeks.

We've been eating pretty healthy this week, too. It's nice and hot outside, so we've mostly been foraging in the garden and living on eggs, tortillas, avocado, and other fruit and vegetables. 

I love summer.