Little Summer Garden

Today was such a gorgeous day. In fact, it's 10:00 at night, pitch black outside, and it's still 72 degrees! With weather like this, I had to work in the yard today! I figured we were past our night time freezes, so with the help of my good friend Kris, I finally planted my garden. I planted roma tomatoes, grape tomatoes, bell peppers, jalepeno peppers, onions, cilantro, and zucchini. I basically only had room in my little raised bed garden for salsa fixings, but I did plant cantaloupe and strawberries in another part of my yard. My garden sure looks nice now - with little plants and no weeds. Let's see if I can keep it looking nice this summer :-) I can't wait to start harvesting my veggies!

A Beautiful Day for a Mountain Bike Ride

I went on my first mountain bike ride of the year this morning. It was absolutely beautiful. Blue skies, sunshine... it's supposed to hit the mid-80's today! If I can get past how hard some of the uphills are, I really enjoy myself. The downhills are a blast! And I just love being in nature. The trail we rode today had purple and yellow flowers along the edge, and I could hear a creek running below me for part of the ride. It was also fun to see hikers out with their dogs enjoying the nice weather - Boise is such a great place to live!

First Practice

I haven't played softball in 14 years... so why I think I can play on a co-ed city league softball team, I'm not quite sure. But I've decided to play. My friend Diana joined a team this year, and they needed more girls (there has to be a certain ratio of girls to guys). Now that I'm done with school, I seem to have lots of extra time on my hands, so I decided to give it a shot. Diana and I threw the ball back and forth a couple times this week on a break or at lunch (we work together) just to make sure I wouldn't embarrass myself too badly in front of the rest of her teammates. Diana still had to chase after a few balls - it's amazing how I have totally forgotten how to throw a ball... it seems so unnatural! Tonight was my first practice (and coincidentally, the last practice before games start on Monday), and my first time of trying to hit a ball in 14 years. I have a problem with hand-eye coordination, but when I managed to hit the ball, most of them were pretty decent hits (at least I think I should be able to get to first base). This should be a fun ride... I'll keep you posted :-)

Sunday Will Come

My mom sent me this quote by Joseph B. Wirthlin a couple of months ago, and my great aunt included it in a talk at church today. I really like it, especially during hard times, and thought it was especially pertinent with today being Easter. I'm grateful that my faith is strong enough during those Fridays in my life, that I know that Sunday really will come. I thank my Father and His Son for their love and sacrifice for me.

"Each of us will have our own Fridays - those days when the universe itself seems shattered and the shards of our world lie littered about us in pieces. We all will experience those broken times when it seems we can never be put together again. We will all have our Fridays.

But I testify to you in the name of the One who conquered death - Sunday will come. In the darkness of our sorrow, Sunday will come. No matter our desperation, no matter our grief, Sunday will come. In this life or the next, Sunday will come."

I Still Love My Kitchen :-)

Here are a few more pictures of my kitchen - this time taken when it was light outside! I also posted a pic of my new black granite under-the-counter sink. I love it!

Before & After

New appliances & new countertops sure can transform a kitchen! I love my new kitchen! With a new stove, over-the-range microwave, dishwasher, and granite countertops, my kitchen remodeling is almost complete. All I have left to finish up is to get my fridge refinished (to match the other appliances) and get new cabinet hardware. I'd also really like to get new blinds, but that might have to wait for another day. Have I said yet that I love my new kitchen? These pictures don't do my kitchen justice - you just really have to see it in real life. The second picture I took when it was almost dark outside, so I'll have to take a new one when there's more light - I just wanted to get something posted, as I've had my new counters for a week now :-)

My Little Herb Garden

Without school this spring/summer, I thought I'd try my hand at gardening this year. So I got my start tonight by planting my first herb garden :-) Okay, I think the pots I picked out are maybe a bit too small, but they sure are cute! Anyway, I planted peppermint, thyme, sweet basil, and cinnamon basil. I thought I might actually use the first three in recipes, and the last one I just thought sounded cool! If anyone has any fun summer recipes that call for any of these ingredients, I'd love to hear about them!

This is just the first post of several garden posts to come (I hope!). My brother & I ripped up a huge bed of ivy in my front yard, and I'm planning on planting a bed of perennials. I ordered 26 plants from a nursery I found online, and they should be delivered in a week of two. And soon it should be warm enough to plant my vegetable garden with all fixings for fresh salsa!