Cooper Jackson

I eat myself to sleep last night. After an amazing dinner. Some quick highlights: Veggie chili, squash soup and zucchini cake (my brain exploded it was so good). After 3 helpings of food I went out to play with the kids in the backyard. After everyone left I passed out on the couch. Now time to gorge on leftovers today!

We received our first basket of produce from the membership to Cold Water Creek Farms CSA. We are so excited we have fresh swiss chard, eggplant, garlic scape, cucumbers, yellow squash zucchini, kale and patty pan squash! So now we just have to make a bunch of stuff out of it! I am going to try some pan fried squash all olive oiled and spiced up with the garlic scape. Melissa is going for swish chard recipe. Any suggestions are welcome.

Also today our neighbor took our potatoes and made potato chips out of them. Best darn potato chips we have ever had!!

Aaron Newton talks about A Nation of Farmers

Aaron Newton (of blog Powering Down and Hen and Harvest) talked about his book A Nation of Farmers. Last December I help him with his website. I just got back from a talk he gave which is an overview of the book he co wrote. He has really inspired me to keep working on our local food efforts. He is on his way to changing the world.

When I got some poison ivy on my hand last weekend I had to sit out Saturday yard activities while the medication healed my hand. I could however dream up what the patio is going to look like when I get done. So I spent some time with google sketchup. Luckily I spent some time in autocad class when I was in high school and now this is really paying off.

Patio design from roof perspective

The fireplace / bbq and pizza / bread oven I took from an existing model. Mainly as place holders because I will be using different materials mainly scraps to build mine. However I needed to get the spacing right. I am also planning on surrounding most of the patio with pergola and grape vine growing up it. That is really a fall project and the patio is this summer.

Patio from the kitchen window

The other important view is from the kitchen window. Melissa wants a view of the far back yard. This is probably going to mean that the pergola can run on the right and left side of this view. And the back will need to stay open. I have some ideas on how to make this cool. Also wanted the pergola to provide some amount of shade so it is more critical for the pergola to be on the left side than the right.

Any feedback?