They Did It!

 Those men are amazing.

This is the LONG line of pipe

running the length of the garden.

It's going to be wonderful to have

a frost free hydrant at both ends

of the garden.

Waaaaaaaaaay less hose dragging.

And now the excavator magician

is filling the trenches.

And we have water!

Both to the garden,

and to the house, once we are ready.

Eventually they will build a

pump house to protect the well

and the pressure tank and pipes.

But for now....

WE HAVE WATER!

Getting Closer to WATER

 The guys got most of the pipe

laid yesterday and then

discovered this morning that the

connectors weren't designed for

high pressure (like water....).

So, I jumped in the car and did

a quick trip to Home Depot to buy

some more connectors.

(Luckily they hadn't glued ALL of

the wrong ones in so we will be 

able to return them...)

Anyhow.

I also got 10 dozen eggs prepped for

the freeze dryer.

And then the adult son of a local friend

called and said he had just returned

from Missouri where he picked a 

bunch of morel mushrooms from a

"crick" bottom.

He has purchased lots of fun

freeze dried things from me at

the farmer's market and wondered

if I would be interested in trying

to freeze dry some of these...

I'm always up for a challenge!

So he brought them over and we

put them all spread out on the trays

and popped them into the machine.

Usually I pre-freeze everything, but they are

already pretty "dry" so they didn't

need to be pre-frozen.

(Even the Harvest Right App says

they only need a few hours of pre-freeze

and it's just as easy to do it in the machine.)

Anyhow.

I should have taken a picture,

but I was hurrying to get the eggs into

the freezer so they will be ready when

the mushrooms come out.

I want them all done before I have to

leave town on Friday.

Don't want Rod to have to deal with them.

Anyhow.

I'll snap a picture when they are done.

I needed to clean out the freezer though,

since I wasn't sure if I was going to

pre-freeze or not,

and there was half a bag of

Rhodes rolls.

Put them in pans and set them to rising.

During my final break I put them in the

oven with instructions for Rod to take

them out when it dinged.

That last hour of teaching was

TORTURE!!!

The rolls smelled so good!!!

I'm going to run make some alfredo

and we'll have nice warm rolls with it.

Anyhow.

The guys got the well pump moved from the

stock tank well over to the house well.

They didn't run any water through it though.

They'll do that tomorrow.

Wanted to make sure all the pipes glue

was fully cured.

So, hopefully tomorrow is the BIG day

for water!

It will be so good to just be able to

turn it on down at the garden and not 

need to mess with the generator anymore.

We've been doing that dance for 2 years.

OK,

I'm off to make some dinner.

Have a GREAT night!

New Project

 Interiors for the house are on hold

for a little bit, because 

WATER is important!

We got a "little" rain yesterday.

But not enough to make a dent.

So having water for the garden

is essential.

This is our third garden at the farm,

and bringing water in by trailer

is NO FUN.

Last year Rod and Kyle bought a pump

for the well (instead of the solar one that

just could NOT put out enough water...)

and that was a HUGE upgrade.

Except we don't have electricity all the

way out there at the well.

In case it's been awhile since you've seen

the property, the well is a LONG way

from the road, and a LONG way

from the garden.

They ran a LOT of pipe from the well

down to the garden, 

but we still have to run a generator

to get any water.

And gas isn't cheap these days.

So...........

Enter Kyle and the Cat Excavator!

Through the trees and down to the garden!

(Waaaaaaaaay up on the top of the hill

if you squint you can see the pig barn.)

Over on the right.

Kind of by the tree.

Only more to the right.

Yeah, there.

They even got some of the pipe run!

(He needs a ladder to get in and out 

of the trench, it's 4 feet deep!

Gotta stay below the frost line...)

It also goes from the well

(inside the Menard's tube...

we stuck that on it so nobody would

accidentally back into / over it!)

to the house.

Gotta have water there too!

Anyhow.

Pretty good for one day's work!

Tomorrow is Hays Day.

And then Wednesday they'll be back at it.

Hopefully we'll have water by Thursday,

because Friday Kyle and I head to

Wichita so he can jump on a plane to Orlando.

($65 one-way ticket... he's a little

worried they are going to strap him

on the WING!)

I'm continually amazed at what these guys

can accomplish when they put 

their minds to it.

Moving the Transplants

 Kyle and I (ok, mostly Kyle)

worked hard yesterday and got

ALL of the tomatoes transplanted

and about half of the peppers.

This is what happens when you start 

your tomatoes WAAAAAAAY

too early.

But the peppers look pretty good!

There were plants on the front seat too.

Anyhow.

I didn't take a picture because by the time we were

done, the wind was blowing about a gazillion

miles an hour, I was SUNBURNED,

and I was TIRED.

(And they are tiny up against their trellis

and you probably couldn't see them anyway.)

We had to stop about 4 so we could

run the sprinklers for 2 hours.

And then after the sprinkler did its thing,

I came behind with a water wand and

hand watered in them all.

It was actually pretty easy and efficient

and didn't take nearly 2 hours.

I might do more of that..... we'll see.

**********************************************

In OTHER news, it looks like Jim sold

his car!!!

(An important step in moving...)

Marketing is half the battle!

(And the fact that it's a good car,

low mileage, and he's taken care of it...)

But a good photo doesn't hurt!

One guy wanted to make a trade.

Tempting.

But.... Kansas.

Dirt, farm roads.

And... CASH is King.

**************************************

In OTHER OTHER news,

Sabrina has a couple of virtual

job interviews today.....

FINGERS CROSSED!!!!

They are all going to love her

and there will be a bidding war.

I'm confident.

Things are getting REAL around here!

More planting on tap for today.

We want to get the rest of the peppers

in the ground and also the seeds

for the rest of the garden.

There are a LOT of them.

But we can do it!

They are forecasting rain for tomorrow

and Sunday.

We'll see if it actually happens,

but if it does, it would be a good start

for our new babies.

LOVELY Visit!

 We had a REALLY good time!

This morning Kyle came over and

we headed into Hays to go to the

Sternberg Museum of Natural History.

I couldn't decide which version I liked better.

They were both cute!

We even got a picture with Kyle in it!

We saw lots of interesting things, 

spent a couple of hours wandering around

and learning lots about the Natural History

of the state of Kansas.

Lots of fossils.

(Yes Kyle. Including US.... lol.)

We did a LOT of laughing.

Then we drove over to the Fort Hays

State University's bison herd!

There were a bunch of buffaloes looking 

at a bunch of buffalos.

They have a nice little herd.

2 traditionally colored,

1 half and half

and the one white one...

It was a really nice day.

Not tooooo hot and pretty windy

so kept the temperature down

as well as the flies... lol.

Drove them around the university

campus a little and then to Walmart

so they could pick up some bottles

of water and iced tea for the rest

of their trip...

and then home so they could pack

up and head to Utah next.

Our front porch.

It was pretty windy!

(Rod was trying to escape before MORE pictures...)

All in all, it was a nice visit

and we were sorry to see them leave.

Bye guys!

Until next time!

(They are headed to Moab, want to do

the Arches and then up to Boise to spend

a day or two with some old friends from

our Provo / Rocky Mountain Helicopter days

and then Yellowstone and home again

via the northern route.)

Safe travels!!!

Scott & Janis Visiting!

 We have been having a great

visit with Scott and Janis!

Scott might be happier than

I've ever known him to be!

And I've known him for 46 years.

Retirement suits them both!

The gazebo at City Park, Hill City

No idea what I was doing.....

Checking out Kyle's house

They were really impressed with all

he built, especially by himself!

I stayed up at Kyle's with the dog

and Kyle drove them around the property.

Ending with a tour of the new

house build.

No trip to WaKeeney is complete without

a stop at the North Pole and a picture

with Santa!

Last night we went to dinner at

the Brazin' Bull and had yummy

Taco Tuesday stuff (and hamburgers

and the BEST corn fritters and

fried okra) and then home to sit

in the living room and tell stories.

Today we are going into Hays to

tour the Stenberg Museum.

I have to teach tonight and Rod has

Mutual, I'm not sure what else the

evening will bring, but today will

be lots of fun!

Blast From the Past

 It's been a CRAZY day.

We were expecting Scott and Janis to

come visit some time this week.

Not necessarily TODAY..... lol.

So instead of planting the garden,

I did a deep clean of the house and

then Kyle and I ran into Hays to get 

some groceries.

They arrived while I was teaching my

first hour, so I went outside and visited

with them for a minute during breaks

and then they went out for dinner

at the little Prairie Rose Bar & Grille.

They said it was delicious!

I'll take some pictures tomorrow when

we take them out to see the new house

and the farm.

(Wish there was more to see.....)

But in the meantime,

this popped up on my timeline.

2011!!!!!

HAHAHAHAHA!

Wonder if he will revert back to that

once he's living out here in the

backwoods of Kansas???

Taping and Mudding

 Poor Rod.

Not much variety in his life.

Now that he's all done with the plumbing

(just some minor shower stuff left

and connecting it all to the septic...)

he is now on the Taping and Mudding detail.

He's doing a great job!

It's not without its challenges....

the tray flipped off his ladder and

hit him in the sleeve.

Good thing it's just mud.

Washes right out.

I'll help him when I can,

but next week is all about the garden.

I need to get the tomatoes and peppers

in the ground now that the COLD

is likely over for the year.

Last frost date is like the 5th of May,

but looking at the forecast we are

in the low 40's to 50's overnight

(with one HIGH 30) between

now and then.

PLUS we want to get the seeds

in the ground as well.

We can't wait to see actual green stuff

growing in the garden!

Yesterday I went to my friend Mary's 

house - she started more than she needed

and so I got 2 "No Heat Jalapeno"

as well as 2 Pablano peppers.

I forgot to get any of those seeds.

So that will be nice.

I'll probably put them in the raised beds

here at the house.

I'm going to leave a couple of the other

tomatoes and peppers here as well

so Jim and Sabrina will have something

in the gardens besides flowers and

potatoes and garlic.

Our bush under Kyle's window is looking 

GLORIOUS this week!

(Rod JUST mowed... those darn dandelions

pop up overnight!)

Anyhow.

Just finished the Louisiana class for the day.

I'm tired of sitting in this chair....

I'm headed to the living room to chat with

my honey and make him some dinner.

Have a lovely Saturday evening!

OH!!!!!!

And while I was at Mary and Dave's we

were talking about their aphid issues

(luckily we haven't have that yet...)

but we have GRASSHOPPERS

and they said to get some TURKEYS!

Those guys LOVE grasshoppers and will

eat every last one of them.

In fact, after they were all gone,

they trundled down the road to the 

neighbor's field and ate all those too!

Dave just walked down every night

and pushed them back home.

So.... we might need to get a couple

of turkeys!

(They said they had 20 of them,

one drowned in the water trough

and the other hit an electric wire and

got tangled and died....)

But they ate all the grasshoppers

so they didn't need to feed them

and their biggest was FORTY POUNDS!

Anyhow.

Something to consider....

Love That Excavator!

 And the operator, obviously.... lol.

Using that handy dandy piece of equipment

yesterday (and Wednesday) we got all

of the tomato infrastructure installed!

Four rows with 6 posts in each row took

just under 10 minutes to do.

Imagine using a t-post pounder to do that!!!

(About half way through, Kyle opened the

window and said "And you want to SELL

this machine???")

Yes, yes, I do. 

Ok, I don't, but that was the deal.

(It's running us over $600/month... and we put

$25k down when we bought it. Would be nice

to stop paying that and get that down payment back.)

But on days like this, I question my decision.

It's not going anywhere anytime soon though.

We will need to put in the septic system,

and dig all the trenches for the water from the

well to the house and the garden, and probably

some electricity out to the other well.

And bring in some fill dirt around the

base of the house, and try to fill in the "pond",

and there are probably a gazillion other things

Kyle wants to do with it once his poor

brain can stop thinking about the house build.

Anyhow.

There is a line of arches for the beans.

Then several (4) rows of t-posts

so we can do the infamous Florida Weave

around our gazillion tomato plants.

Also one row with cattle panels like last

year for the cherry tomatoes that take

over our lives....

Yeah, it's not straight.

But I needed a "before" picture,

because hopefully by July it will be

TOTALLY covered in bean plants

(and beans...)

We have a freeze warning tonight,

so the plants (which have been outside

overnight for the last two days and nights)

are coming back inside the house under 

the lights to protect them.

But Monday, this garden will look more

like a garden.

With ACTUAL green stuff in the ground!

(That isn't onions or weeds.... lol.)

Gotta sharpen the stirrup hoes.

Let the 2026 garden season begin!

Goodness Gracious!

 We have been BUSY!!!

Rod got ALL the plumbing done!

YEA!!!

And then he assembled the metal

box that the AC unit will sit on.

He bought the kit and said the

instructions were TERRIBLE.

But he got it figured out.

I guess if you can build a helicopter,

you can build a metal box.

Kyle finished the drywall.

All he has left are the walls in the

bathrooms and the mechanical room

since Rod is still doing stuff in there.

And today Kyle and I put up the cattle

panels for the tomatoes to lean against

and then got about half of the arched

panels we are going to put the pole beans on.

We are going to do a FULL 50 foot row of

arched panels with beans!

I'm so excited!!!

It will be really cool looking!

(And feeling)

They won't be fully grown

until July.

It will be lovely to sit under there!

Anyhow.

(Plus picking beans is AWFUL, so having

them up on a trellis overhead will be so

much better!)

(Remember the rattlesnake beans?

Same idea - but Kentucky Blue beans...)

Anyhow.

We also planted a full 100' of potatoes.

Some red, some purple and some yellow.

We have some leftover from last year

that we didn't harvest.

Didn't think it was worth it.

They were TINY and not very prolific,

so we just left them in the ground

and they are growing!

About half a 50' row.

NONE of the sweet potatoes we left

in the ground came back, but that's ok.

Anyhow.

It was a busy and productive day.

I'll head back out there in the morning

and we will get the rest of the arches up.

And then we want to start getting some

seeds in the ground.

The soil is 50-60 degrees.

It will only be 29 overnight on Friday and Sat

but nothing will be up by then anyway,

so it should be ok.

And we want it IN THE GROUND!

Then next week we will finally

start transplanting the tomatoes and peppers.

Gotta get them in the garden and out

of the spare room.

Scott and Janis are coming for a few

days, probably next week,

and then Jim and Sabrina will be here,

so we need that room cleaned out!

OK.

Just finished teaching,

Rod just got home from Mutual.

I'm going to go figure out something

quick and easy for us to eat 

and then it's time for bed.

Exited? Terrified?

 Kind of equal measure of both?

Hahahahahaha

(kind of)

So, the house build is progressing.

We now have a full ceiling and the

wall going into our bedroom!

About all he has left is the mud room

and the kitchen.

The guy is a machine!!!!!

And it's a good thing, too!

Because THINGS ARE HAPPENING!!!

1. Sabrina gave her notice.

2. Jim rented a moving truck.

3. Jim bought Kyle a plane ticket to Orlando.

For May 1!!!

They get the truck on May 7 until the 14th.

Which gives them a couple days to

load it and a couple days to drive.

(And gives Kyle several days to CHILL

in FLORIDA.)

Expect BEACH pictures.

(Plus he plans to do some door dashing 

while he's there and make some $$$)

Meanwhile, he will be GONE for about

10 days, so we need to be at a place

where we can

a. MOVE

b. Divide and conquer?

One of us might need to stay at Kyle's house

so the animals can be fed, etc.

And one of us might need to stay here because

Beau can't do the stairs at Kyle's house and 

if we don't have the fencing done, Luna and

Bandit also need to stay here.

But those are decisions for another day.

My anxiety levels just can't handle it today.

Meanwhile I've been on the phone with

MULTIPLE different "service" people at

Citibank trying to close an IRA.

I've been trying to close this account for

TWO MONTHS.

Sheesh. It's $3000.

How hard should it be???

I finally got someone who actually seemed

to know what they were doing and who

CARED about the person on the other

end of the phone.

We'll see.... I'm not counting my chickens

just yet...

But there are 8 dozen eggs in the freeze dryer.

And clothes in the clothes dryer.

And I'm getting ready to run to the farm to

pick up some eggs (since we ate the last 2

this morning...) and also check the soil temperature

in the garden to see if we should go ahead

and plant???

We are expecting one more cold weekend.

in the low 30's Friday and Saturday nights.

But if the SOIL is warm enough, the air temp

doesn't matter that much as long as there is

no frost, and hello Kansas wind.... 

frost is pretty rare here.

Anyhow.

We are SOOOOOO excited!

(And SUPER anxious.)

This is a BIG leap of faith for these guys.

Fingers crossed.

Having family close together

(even if we starve... lol)

trumps everything else.

We will make it work.

We always do.

But.... woooooo.

The heart palpitations are REAL.

Chilly Friday

 Looking at the forecast,

this might be the final chilly day.

Which is good, because I have GOT

to get these tomato and pepper plants

into the dirt!

Some of my cherry tomatoes are already

about 3+ feet tall and have flowers!

Yikes.

But spring is definitely here,

so probably on Monday I'll start

getting them in the garden.

(Tomorrow we have a farewell for

the Bishopric 1st Counselor and his

family, I served with his wife in

the YW Presidency and of course 

Rod is serving with him...)

Last night Rod and I had to run into

Hays to get some.... stuff.

Construction adhesive to install the shower?

Anyhow.

When Kyle and I were there on Tuesday,

they were out of the drywall we use.

Yesterday he installed the final piece so

we needed more and they had just gotten

a shipment, so I paid for another 78 sheets.

They said we could pick them up today.

So... about 11:30 Kyle showed up with his

truck and big trailer and we headed back

into town again to get the drywall.

Which means we then had to UNLOAD and

stack another 78 sheets of drywall.

He said he counted and is pretty sure he only

needs 68, but I already paid for it.

And then the guy running the forklift,

after he had it all loaded, said he messed

up a couple of pieces with his forks, so

he added an extra 6 pieces to our pile.

So we probably have 16 more than we need.

But, maybe we will need them.

If we don't, we'll load them back up and

return them.

Along with all the extra pvc we ended up

not actually needing.

(We also have to return a BUNCH of insulation...)

But that goes back to Menards in Salina

so that will wait until we go to get the

counter tops. We'll use that in-store credit

to pay for all the faucets for the kitchen and

2 bathrooms.

WEEEEE!

Anyhow.

This is the closet and bathroom doors

in our master bedroom.

The other side off the master...

(we have a LOT of windows in this house!)

Pretty sure that is one of the windows in the office.

The plumbing is looking good!

A few more days and it should be ready

to connect to the septic tank!

Meanwhile, after we got all the drywall

unloaded, we had to run up to Kyle's house.

All the peach jam is in the cupboard in his

island (since I made it at his house....)

and we needed another jar.

And also I wanted to pick up all the 

eggs he collected this week and get

them ready for the freeze dryer.

We replaced the ball valve on the side

and it is working MUCH better now.

The first batch of eggs took about 48 hours.

These are already done and it was just

under 24 hours. (I need to get done here

and go get them into sealed mason jars...)

Kyle's raspberry plants are SPREADING all over 

his strawberry raised bed.

The strawberries in this bed are struggling

a little bit, partly because the rabbits keep eating them.

But the little gnomes are doing their best to

guard and protect them...

They were originally black, but you couldn't

see them against the dirt, so Kyle painted them!

Aren't they cute!

Ok.

Gotta go do the eggs!

Nite all!