We had a nice Easter. The cake turned out okay and everyone enjoyed it along with the cookies and candy. The kids had a blast with the egg hunt. I let Kyle go first and when he had found his 5 eggs then we let Amy hunt. She is 4 years older than him so she found them faster. Everyone enjoyed dinner. It was nice to have a big meal and not a one pot meal for a change.
The weather is warmer now so the guys have been digging up more of the yard to enlarge the garden. Our last frost date was yesterday so today we are going to start planting some of the plants. We are going to plant the cabbage, broccoli, onions, leeks and lettuce today. We should have a pretty decent garden this year with so many people to work it. Each type of vegetable will have its own bed.
The cherry tree is getting ready to bloom and so is the plum tree. I found leaves on the raspberry plants and the bed of cleavers is coming up. This spring I am going to teach all the younger adults all I know about edibel weeds. I want to make sure they don't pull them out and throw them away. Today I will teach them all I know about cleavers. They have been eating them all winter and they know it. I have been using them in soups.
While Nikki, Tammy, Jen and I planted the plants the guys worked on putting up the trellises where I wanted them. They also set up posts and wire to run the raspberry vines on. I showed Steve and JR how to bend the tops of the raspberry vines down to the ground and plant them so we could get more plants. When the new vines have rooted I will give the neighbor behind us 3 to start his own raspberry bed with plus we will have more for our own use.
The chickens have been happy to get back in the yard again. We put them out in the chicken tractor and move them around the yard during the day time to let them forage for bugs and other things they like to eat. The guys built a cage for the rabbits so we could move them around the yard to and let them graze on the grass. The two female rabbits are getting fat so I am pretty sure they are going to be giving us baby rabbits soon. This will be a first for me since I have never raised rabbits before. We are keeping a close eye on them to make sure nothing gets the babies if they have them.
Life seems to be getting back to normal. We see more and more neighbors out and about. They are digging up gardens of their own. Walking the neighborhood and stopping to chat with each other. Sharing or trading seeds. Helping each other with things that need to be done. Setting up what ever they can use to collect rain water. Teaching each other what ever they know to help each other survive.
Through all the neighbors stopping to talk to us when we work outside we have learned that when others found out that the guys had hung the bodies from the overpass to show gangs what would happen to them if they tried to attack us others had followed suit and hung bodies from trees next to roads leading into town. The roads into town have been blocked with what ever people could find to block them with and now people are signing up to guard the road blocks. The warning signs must be working since we have not had a gang attack the town since early March.
Mike wants to try and build a bike powered generator. I found the plans for one in my notebooks. He also wants to build a solar water heater so that we can have hot water with out having to burn wood to get it. I am pretty sure he will be able to do both. There is nothing that he has tackled so far that he hasn't gotten to work some how. He plans on making a run to the junk yard in a couple of days to see what he can find to build them.
Tomorrow we will be planted all the beans. I have seeds for green beans, waxed beans, Christmas limas, cranberry beans, black eyes peas and scarlett runners. With all the canning jars that Julie brought with her, what I had myself and what the neighbor has added to our supplies we should have enough to can most of what the garden produces this year and we will dehydrate the rest in the solar dehydrator my son made me for Christmas.
None of us were totally prepared for what happened but thanks to us all working together things are getting better. Our neighbors are planning on going back to their house to stay if a few days but we will continue working together to make our little part of the world a little better place. They have offered their back yard for more growing space to benefit all of us so JR, Mike and Steve are going to be digging it up soon. We will plant the melons and maybe some of the tomatoes over there.
The weather is warmer now so the guys have been digging up more of the yard to enlarge the garden. Our last frost date was yesterday so today we are going to start planting some of the plants. We are going to plant the cabbage, broccoli, onions, leeks and lettuce today. We should have a pretty decent garden this year with so many people to work it. Each type of vegetable will have its own bed.
The cherry tree is getting ready to bloom and so is the plum tree. I found leaves on the raspberry plants and the bed of cleavers is coming up. This spring I am going to teach all the younger adults all I know about edibel weeds. I want to make sure they don't pull them out and throw them away. Today I will teach them all I know about cleavers. They have been eating them all winter and they know it. I have been using them in soups.
While Nikki, Tammy, Jen and I planted the plants the guys worked on putting up the trellises where I wanted them. They also set up posts and wire to run the raspberry vines on. I showed Steve and JR how to bend the tops of the raspberry vines down to the ground and plant them so we could get more plants. When the new vines have rooted I will give the neighbor behind us 3 to start his own raspberry bed with plus we will have more for our own use.
The chickens have been happy to get back in the yard again. We put them out in the chicken tractor and move them around the yard during the day time to let them forage for bugs and other things they like to eat. The guys built a cage for the rabbits so we could move them around the yard to and let them graze on the grass. The two female rabbits are getting fat so I am pretty sure they are going to be giving us baby rabbits soon. This will be a first for me since I have never raised rabbits before. We are keeping a close eye on them to make sure nothing gets the babies if they have them.
Life seems to be getting back to normal. We see more and more neighbors out and about. They are digging up gardens of their own. Walking the neighborhood and stopping to chat with each other. Sharing or trading seeds. Helping each other with things that need to be done. Setting up what ever they can use to collect rain water. Teaching each other what ever they know to help each other survive.
Through all the neighbors stopping to talk to us when we work outside we have learned that when others found out that the guys had hung the bodies from the overpass to show gangs what would happen to them if they tried to attack us others had followed suit and hung bodies from trees next to roads leading into town. The roads into town have been blocked with what ever people could find to block them with and now people are signing up to guard the road blocks. The warning signs must be working since we have not had a gang attack the town since early March.
Mike wants to try and build a bike powered generator. I found the plans for one in my notebooks. He also wants to build a solar water heater so that we can have hot water with out having to burn wood to get it. I am pretty sure he will be able to do both. There is nothing that he has tackled so far that he hasn't gotten to work some how. He plans on making a run to the junk yard in a couple of days to see what he can find to build them.
Tomorrow we will be planted all the beans. I have seeds for green beans, waxed beans, Christmas limas, cranberry beans, black eyes peas and scarlett runners. With all the canning jars that Julie brought with her, what I had myself and what the neighbor has added to our supplies we should have enough to can most of what the garden produces this year and we will dehydrate the rest in the solar dehydrator my son made me for Christmas.
None of us were totally prepared for what happened but thanks to us all working together things are getting better. Our neighbors are planning on going back to their house to stay if a few days but we will continue working together to make our little part of the world a little better place. They have offered their back yard for more growing space to benefit all of us so JR, Mike and Steve are going to be digging it up soon. We will plant the melons and maybe some of the tomatoes over there.