Saying "Hello" to our New Yard

We're all settled into our new home and back into our usual routine. Thankfully, all the work inside the house got done before we moved in so I can concentrate on the yard. It needs a lot of love but I see potential and I've been working like a dog in it. It needs a lot of maintenance work but I'm excited to see what I can do with it!

And we need a lot out of our yard. Not only do we need a place for the girls to run wild but we need an adult retreat and a garden space. The girls part is done. They can wander anywhere in the yard and be fine (thank goodness for a fence) and the adult retreat part is basically there as well. I do feel relaxed when Daniel and I can go out there and sit in our chairs and just sit and talk. I see a lot I can do each time we sit but I know I can do it later. I have an ongoing list of tasks I can do in the yard. I don't feel like I'll get it all done this year or even the next, but it's tasks I'd like to see done over the next few years.

This week I've worked hard in our yard. Monday, I bought a lemon tree, potting soil and flowers for our patio pots and to put a few in our mailbox bed. I then came home and planted 2 flats of flowers, tilled up a small area for some raspberries, scouted out an area for some fruit trees, pulled up ivy and a lot of other weeks and planned the yard for a bigger bed. Tuesday, I bought 2 ever red loropetulam and 20 bags of mulch. I came home and bricked in my new large bed, extended a bed up by the house, raked and cleaned up the yard. Today I sprayed round up on poison ivy (yuck) and all the ivy I can't get up, as well as other vine stuff that just doesn't go where it is. I obviously have big plans for our yard. I may be a little too ambitious but hey, I see potential! I think I'm getting a little addicted too. :)

I'm also investing in fruit trees. My sweet grandma sent me a generous check for my birthday and I decided I wanted some fruit trees that we can enjoy for years to come. I bought 1 pear tree, the variety is Moonglow (my sister bought me one for my birthday and I found out it needed a companion for pollination; she bought me a Bartlett Pear). I also bought a sour cherry tree, the variety is Montmorency (note: sour cherry trees don't need a second for pollination, if you want sweet cherry trees, buy two for pollination). And lastly, I bought 2 peach trees (our favorite). The two varieties I bought are Redhaven Dwarf and Gala Standard. I bought all my trees from Stark Brothers. Last month, I bought my blueberries and strawberries from them and they've been very helpful. I follow them on Twitter and whenever I have a question I ask them there and they respond within 24 hours (at the latest) with the answer. That makes this newbie gardener more comfortable!

At last, here are a few pictures of our yard. It's only pieces of the yard. It's pretty big and I'm trying to add more gardening plants to it so there's less grass to cut. That is NOT my favorite thing, at all!

The first iris's are blooming!

I created a big bed. It's a work in process and probably will be for a long time. I like it!
Behind the bricks will be the bed. There's already a few things there that are planted or waiting to be planted.

I invested in 4 blueberry plants this year. I hope we'll be enjoying blueberries from them next year! I bought 2 O'Neil and 2 Misty. You need two different varieties for pollination. I ordered them from starkbros.com. They have a 1 year money back guarantee. 

Our strawberry patch. I planted 25 bare-root strawberry plants. I hope they'll spread like crazy and we'll enjoy them next year as well. The variety I chose was Ozark Beauty.  

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My raspberry bed. I made a gardening friend on Twitter and she sent me 5 raspberry canes. She told me I'll probably have 25 canes in 5 years. I'm excited. She thinks the variety is Heritage.

Our Meyer Lemon tree. I'm going to keep it in a pot and on the patio through the summer and fall. I'll move it into our house before the first frost. The man I bought it from said it should give us lemons this summer. It looks like it might!
I'll be interested to see how this works for us.
It's definitely an experiment. I thought a $21 experiment wouldn't be too bad. :)

A bigger picture of the lemon tree.

A peony! I'm anxious to see what color the blooms will be. I'll be moving this into the big bed by the fence in the Fall. For now, I'll enjoy it in this spot. 

As you can see I have a lot going on in the yard. My mom is going to help me with a few things in the yard for my birthday present from her. We're going to Digger O'Dell next weekend to pick out a few things for the new big bed and talk about what can be done in it.

What's going on in your yard this year?

Saying Goodbye to our "Old" House

Almost one month ago we left our "old" home and moved to our "new" home. It was a bittersweet couple of days. I didn't cry the day we moved, I was too busy and I think that was a good thing. The following Thursday the four of us went to clean our outside closet and after we were done and looking around inside one last time I lost it. It was harder leaving than I thought it would be. I love our new home and we've all adjusted well and we have so much more room but I still think about our little house. It's the first home Daniel and I bought together, we brought both girls home from the hospital to that house, learned to be parents a first and second time and filled that home with love. I know I'll think of that house often and I'm thankful for the wonderful memories I have of it.

Below are some pictures I took during our last few days at our "old" house. Sweet memories!

The girls have the best time playing together. They enjoy making these chairs into a train. 

Naomi is trying her hand at play-doh for the first. It went well for about 5 minutes then she put it in her mouth. And got it in her teeth. And all over her hands. We'll try again another time. :)

Naomi loves pushing Nyla on her tricycle. She's pretty good at pushing by herself too. Sweetie pies!

It's Been Quiet Here...

It's been quiet on our blog. And for good reason. A week ago we moved into our new home! We've been busy caring for our girls, packing up our home and lives, moving, unpacking and settling in. And we're here and mostly settled! I promise pictures will be coming of our new place. I have before and after pictures and it's quite a difference.
For now enjoy the photos below. The girls are playing dress up, exploring our new yard, loving on each other and saying goodbye to our first home. It's been an emotional couple of days saying goodbye but I have wonderful memories and more to be made in our new home.

Busy, Busy, Busy

Greetings, all ye loyal readers! I know you have been wondering where in the world the Gaffords have been. I can assure you that we have not been doing too much in the way of gabbing. Packing? Yes. Seeing wedding plans through? Yep. Working? Too much. Gabbing? Probably not as much.

The finishing touches on our new house are ongoing, and we are moving in next Friday. It will be nice to have more room for us. Our board games will go in our spare bedroom closet. And the girls will be on opposite (sort of) ends of the house. Ginny is now packing boxes and boxes and more boxes. She is just ready for it to be over with and in her new house. We all agree.

We also married off Ginny's sister 2 weeks ago. Well, not us, I mean, her parents did, but we were there. Well, sort of. My one duty that Saturday was to get the girls dressed and ready for pictures and then keep from making a scene at the wedding. I was semi-successful, as the girls had fun playing in the lobby of the church until they decided it was time to go. Before that, I was able to snap some pictures. They'll show up here eventually.

And of course, I have been working entirely too hard. Well, that's not true. I have been working a lot because the company I work for was acquired by another, and we have been working on our conversion to their systems for 2 months, which has been chaotic, sometimes disastrous, but we have made it through and are slowly working the kinks out. As Ginny says, "You have a job." Yes, I do, and I am thankful for that.

Ginny will be along at some point this week (maybe) with pictures. Until then, have a great weekend!

-D

On Mammaw

Ginny mentioned in a previous post a couple of weeks ago that we had been dealing with a death in the family. My mom's mom - Mammaw to me - passed from the earthly to the Heavenly realm. And while we all are sad and miss here, we know she not only met her Savior face to face but also reunited with her husband. 

My Uncle Tim had put a note on Facebook asking for memories or stories people had of her. I commented, half jokingly, that I could write an essay. He held me to it, and what you see below is the essay I wrote and what he shared at her memorial service. I enjoyed writing this and remembering all of the many good times I had at my grandparents' house.

    Our grandmother was good at a lot of things. One thing, however, she was not good at was Nintendo, as my brother can attest to, as Mammaw tried to play a game of Anticipation (basically Pictionary) for him when he was 4. Actually, the fact that Andrew was even able to get her to pick up a controller was amazing, but it also points to the one thing about her all of the grandkids loved the most - she cared and spent time with us. When my mom went back to work a couple of years after I was born, I would stay at Mammaw and Pappaw's house. The first few times she would come to pick me up, well, let's just say I would run away and scream, "No!" or so the story goes. I think all the grandkids felt the same way. Going over there was fun.
   
    Playing tennis in the backyard. Throwing a ball on the carport roof and catching it when it rolled off. Cooking with sand. Watching the trains. Playing the game "Uncle Wiggly" or "Life" or "Sorry." Looking at stamp collections. Watching The Price is Right and Wheel of Fortune. Working a United States puzzle. Drawing on all of the Exide paper. Playing "farm" in the backyard. Getting to play in her car in the carport, even if one time my cousin Emily and I somehow managed to start it with a key that was not the actual key. Catapulting little plastic balls into a plastic net in the middle of a metal board. There are a lot of toys and games in that house that got played with for over 20+ years. If the walls at 4042 Speck Drive could talk, they would have a lot of stories about a lot of grandchildren laughing and having fun.

    If you were to ask the Whitehorn family what my favorite dessert is, I'm willing to bet the most popular answer would be "Mammaw's Rice Krispie Squares," and they would be correct. And not the marshmallow squares... the peanut butter Rice Krispie squares. I don't know what she did to make them so good, but they were. Often imitated but never duplicated, hers were and always will be the best. As my cousins Emily and Mary can attest to, she made a mean bowl of chocolate ice cream, too. And by chocolate ice cream, I mean taking vanilla ice cream and mixing the precisely perfect amount of chocolate syrup in it and stirring it until it was the perfect consistency and flavor. Her cheese toast was always the best. And for Andrew, her meatballs could not be matched, even when our mom followed the exact same recipe Mammaw had. His response? "Not as good as Mammaw's." Indeed.

    Now that I am a parent myself, I see the way my mom interacts with and loves on my 2 daughters. I know where she gets that. I know where she learned that. And it makes me smile, because I know how much fun I had with Mammaw. And my girls get to experience that same fun with their Gigi. Proverbs 17:6 says, "Grandchildren are the crown of the aged." And for Mammaw and Pappaw, that was the absolute truth. All of us knew how much we were loved and how much we mattered to them. And that legacy will carry on. The stories and memories will pass on. And if I am blessed enough to have grandchildren of my own, I will share those stories and have as much fun as possible with them.

-D

Menu Plan-February 4

February 4-10

Happy February, y'all! February is a big month in our family this year. My baby sister (she's 27) is getting married this month! We are so excited and so looking forward to all the festivities. One of my grandmothers is coming in this Friday and the rest of the family and our friends will get here the following Thursday and Friday. So not only are we in the process of remodeling our new home but we have a wedding and all the final details to get done. It's going to be a crazy couple of weeks. I'm so looking forward to all the fun times the next couple of weeks bring! Thankfully, menu planning saves me the headache of "what's for dinner?" I'll be sticking to my planning and hopefully cooking the next 14 days. Here's the plan for this week!

Monday- leftover honey baked ham, 30 minute rolls and vegetables

Tuesday- leftover cheesy chicken spaghetti and salad or vegetables

Wednesday- fluffy diner-style omelet {new} (from Cook's Country) and fruit

Thursday- jambalaya and vegetables

Friday- pizza and salad

Saturday- lunch: leftovers
dinner: dinner at our house with my parents, sis and future brother-in-law and Grandmother; I'm making cheeseburgers and bbq chicken legs on the grill. Here's the bbq sauce recipe I'll be using.

Sunday- lunch: leftovers from Saturday night
dinner: dinner with my family, at my parents house

Naomi-15 months old

Sweet Naomi,

You are 15 months old today! Where has the time gone? Didn't we just bring you home and lay you down in your bed, where you looked so tiny, even though you were 11 pounds?

You were a surprise pregnancy, our surprise baby. What a surprise blessing you turned out to be! You are a ball of energy,with a never-ending smile, always on the go and in love with your sweet, big sister!

You love puzzles, books, anything with wheels to push around, jumping on Nyla's old baby bed mattress, Gigi's phone, saying "cheese" when we take your picture, and doing "cheers" with cups while we're eating. You give sweet hugs and kisses are you're still our snuggle bunny. You love your bed, blanket, baby doll and running around with Nyla. Coloring and playing outside are two of your favorite activities. You never like when I take away the markers to clean you up or grab you to come inside. But after a few minutes you're smiling again. 

We are so happy and thankful God entrusted you to us. I pray we do all God calls us to do for you. We love you sweet baby girl!