Lily's antics.

Here are some sweet videos of our baby at a year-and-a-half....she is getting so big!

Our summer at Ridgecrest in pictures.

I know these are small, but they sum up our summer at Camp.
We LOVE Camp Ridgecrest and Crestridge and the amazing staff that come to serve every summer. The Lord was so present this summer and we are so glad we were a part of it....








It's fun.....but man, do we love having Daddy at home!

NOT Ladybugs.

We have been enjoying our garden so much this summer. It's sad to know that the summer vegetables are on their way out but now on to Fall! We thought we were sharing our garden with Ladybugs and then, I discovered this:

Description: The Mexican bean beetle (Epilachna varivestis) is one of the most destructive insect pests of beans in the Eastern United States and portions of the Southwest. Both the adult and the larval stages feed on the undersides of the leaves, and sometimes will attack young pods and stems. As a result of feeding, only the veins are left, giving the leaves a lacy appearance. Damage is most severe in July and August and occurs on all bean varieties, including bush, pole, lima, pinto, navy, kidney, soybeans, and cowpeas. Bush varieties seem to be attacked more readily than pole varieties.

Adult beetles (1/4 inch long) are similar in appearance to large ladybugs. They are yellow to coppery-brown in color, oval in shape, and have 16 black spots on their wing covers. Larvae (1/3 inch long) are fat, hump-backed grubs with fuzz or spines, arranged in six longitudinal rows on their backs. They are orange to yellow in color and attach themselves to leaf surfaces.

Life Cycle: Adults overwinter in plant debris and other protected areas and emerge when the weather warms up in mid-to-late spring (usually when beans begin sprouting). After feeding for 1 to 2 weeks females begin to deposit yellow eggs in groups of 40 to 60 on the undersides of bean leaves. Larvae hatch in 5 to 14 days and feed for 2 to 5 weeks before pupating on the undersurfaces of leaves. Adults emerge 3 to 10 days later and live from 4 to 6 weeks. The period from egg to adult is about 30-70 days, depending on temperature. There are several generations each growing season.

Bean Beetle Control: Since damage is most severe during summer months, consider planting early maturing bean varieties to reduce pest problems. Hand pick the adults and immature stages from plants and drop them in a pail of soapy water. Also, remove the bright yellow eggs laid in clusters on the undersides of leaves. Floating row covers can be used as a physical barrier to keep beetles and grubs from damaging plants......

I did it. I picked them off by hand. Sick.

Our beans still died, but we were able to enjoy a lot of them!
Now, I'm trying to figure out what is attacking our zucchini or are they just done...this gardening stuff takes a lot of research. And did you know that winter squash are actually planted in the Spring? That makes zero sense to me. But you probably knew that.....

Our harvest.

Our very first harvest! A little small because I got excited about picking....rookie.

So far:
7 zucchini
3 yellow squash
2 green peppers
ALOT of bush beans.....don't know the poundage.

I know that may not sound like much, but for first time gardeners and planting from seed that is a huge bounty! My friend, Natalie, and I have spent a lot of time babying this garden and it truly has been one of the most fulfilling experiences in my life so far. I also have to give props to Phil and Marty (the maintainence genius at camp)- they are the muscle behind the garden!

My oldest and I went down there today and just picked a bunch of vegetables.....and then, ate them right there! Without washing them. She is really into checking on what's growing and then sitting in the stroller while I pick everything. It has been the coolest thing to do as a family. Even if you have to start small or in pots, I encourage you to try!

The squash and very small cantaloupe and watermelon in the way back- our fingers are crossed.

Our peppers are looking great and strong! Excited to see what colors they turn.

Our bush beans' leaves are being destroyed by something- a worm maybe? We are still getting a lot but not sure what to do. Our zucchini and cucumbers are in the background here.

Coming soon to a kitchen near you.....cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, melons (maybe), jalapenos, more beans and squash galore!

Photo shoot. In camo.

The great Leslie Sloan did a little impromptu photo shoot for us the other night.
The lighting was perfect and the girls were cooperative- perfect combo.
We also happen to be wearing camo to celebrate our friend, Ben Johnson, leaving Asheville.
And we kinda like it.....
Silly bands!
Cute legs.

You'll probably be seeing these pictures around Christmas time.....

Beach Time!

We went to the Edisto Beach a couple of weeks ago. Phil was able to come for a couple of days- even in the middle of the summer. It was such a fun time to be with grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, etc. We ate and played and hung out and explored and biked. Here are some pics from the week!
Lily
Pi
the 4th

Our fam
Our trip to the Serpentarium! It was so fun but pretty gross.....and now, Piper likes to warn me about all of the poisonous snakes we might see in the woods. Great.

This is how our garden grows....slowly.

So we decided to hop on the garden train....it was inspired by Barbara Kingsolver and family's book, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. Since our yard is 100% shade. Really. We are doing one at camp in hopes of turning it into something the boys at camp can experience also. Our girls love it and have seen it happen from day one!

Here we are picking some wild blackberries near the garden. We would pick them and the little one would gobble them up before we could get a pile in our bucket.
The garden has been one of the most fulfilling/ hardest things we've ever done. Most good things in life are. For me, it's because I really have no idea what I'm doing and I like to do things well the first time. So we prepared the soil, but it's the first time to plant here so the conditions are rough and our veggies aren't growing that fast.

But we have put some mushroom compost, Plant Tone, hardwood mulch (which we hope will make the soil better next year once tilled in and makes our path less muddy to walk) and lots of water, and it seems to be doing better. Here's what we are growing: bell peppers, jalapenos, rosemary, tomatoes galore, bush beans, zucchini, yellow squash, cucumbers, cantaloupe and watermelon.

Us working in the bush beans.
Our squashes are coming up nicely and starting to flower; our beans are about to go crazy; the bell peppers are growing and we do have some tomatoes.

Here it is! Growing slowly but steadily!

Near the green stakes are the bush beans- much bigger just a few days later!
Some of our crop:


We are trying to take picture along the way so we can learn from this experiment! Enjoy the process with us and any advice is welcome....especially if you can tell me what the yellow spots on my watermelon are.....