Linda and I in front of Astoria's bridge; Herb and Nathan on an old sailing vessel.

After dropping Herb and Linda off at their boat, Chris and Milo, Nathan and Val and I took the trolly car the whole length of Astoria, as it follows the Columbia river. The man who "drives" the trolly narrates the history of Astoria as we go, and it was very interesting. The town was settled by many Scandanavian immigrants who came there as fishermen, and they built their houses with very steep roofs to keep off the show, not knowing that it doesn't snow in Astoria. We saw many very interesting houses, many of them old Nordic mansions with steep roofs on the hillsides in the east side of Astoria.

OCTOBER IN THE HIGH DESERT

Here in the TriCities we have a lot of color, but in the desert around us, fall color consists of mainly the sage brush, poplar and aspen trees, and the brown hills. It has its own beauty.

Our October garden has sunflowers as tall as trees and ripening fuji apples, squash and pumpkins, grapes, hordes of tomatoes, and of course the ever faithful zucchini and summer squash, green beans, chard, and lettuce. Val dug up the yukon gold potatoes yesterday to store with the squash.

With this cooler weather our plentiful summer blackberry crop is dwindling. We go out to pick every day and still have blackberries for breakfast, but we find fewer and fewer ripening ones.

At the end of August Steve and Sandie and our grandkids came to visit on their big journey across the U.S.  Evan, Seth, and Emily loved picking fruit in the backyard, riding bikes, swimming over at the Villas, and playing with our neighbors' boys, although Emily would have enjoyed a little girl to play with.  We filled 'em up, fixed up the Minnie, and sadly saw them off after a wonderful visit.

These are some of our tall tomato plants with grape vines and strawberries in the background.  Tomatoes are just starting to ripen and be picked for the table here in our northern late summer.  Grapes are ready to be picked but could be a little riper.  Peaches are about through.  They have been huge---as big as softballs this year!  We have given away many peaches, and I will be canning the rest this week.  And blackberries are so plentiful right now that we picked three gallons today.  They are as large as cherries and so beautiful.  Strawberries need to be picked every day.  We get at least a quart a day from our small circular bed.  We make a great dessert of strawberries and blackberries with maple syrup on it.

OUR VACATION

We spent a week with family and a week on the Olympic penninsula.  It was a perfect vacation.  Time was spent with Nathan, Joe and Steve and families, then with Chris in Portland on the way home.  We canned fruit and cooked and picnicked, went to farmers markets, played with kids, and discussed diabetes and diet endlessly.  I tried to potty train Evelyn, at least got her off to a good start.  It was a productive trip as well as a fun one.  I really love my family.

Emily, Seth, Evelyn, Sofia, and Evan (in the canoe) were enjoying a lake in Oregon on a camping trip.  

These are some photos from our vacation on Olympic penninsula.  The wildflower pictures don't do justice to the flowers we saw, because where I saw fields of orange paintbrush, we couldn't pull off the road.  But they were so beautiful.  Val and I had lunch with a deer and about 15 Clarks nutcrackers (birds) who sat on our laps and ate from our hands.  Also a crow sat at our feet.  The animals were so tame.  We fed them vegetables and fruit.

Wheat Chile Recipe

This is a recipe my kids grew up on .  It is really yummy! Use a large kettle, as it makes a lot.

Ingredients

2 c wheat berries

6 c water

2 lb ground beef

1 large onion and bell pepper chopped

1 t salt (or to taste)

1 T chili powder

pepper

16 oz can tomato sauce

large can tomatoes

8 c beef broth

2 t dried oregano or fresh oregano to taste

4 cloves garlic

Instructions

Cook wheat in water for 1 hour until tender.  Brown beef.  Drain off fat thoroughly and brown onion, pepper, garlic, and seasonings.  Add wheat and all the rest of the ingredients.  Simmer uncovered 1 hour or more until the desired consistency.

Add

1 can small white beans and 1 can small black beans, drained.

optional: Add cohopped cilantro.  Correct seasonings.  Serve

some recent garden pictures

I just put away my canning things for awhile after canning many quarts of apricots and applesauce, making jam, drying apricots, freezing apricots for pies, and helping a sister in our ward can apricots.  I need a break from canning until the peaches are ripe!  Our apricots were huge this year and plentiful, and I gave most of them away.  I just can't use them all.  And I don't want to see another apricot for a while.

This is Holly and Isaac and part of the applesauce we canned the other day.  My apple tree is ready to share, but most importantly, I am happy to teach young mothers to can fruit.  Holly is very anxious to learn.  Home canned apple sauce is delicious and nutritious, right off the tree.  Its taste is incomparable when compared to that store-bought stuff.  And it costs so little.  

I have been teaching mothers like Holly to can this summer.  Do you realize that in the winter that the fruit we buy in the supermarket is shipped here from South America.  It is picked green and trucked up to the states and loses its vitamins in the process. It is grown and picked in less sanitary conditions than the USA (I've been to Mexico, and the fields smell like urine).  Yet we consider this produce "fresh."  Our home canned fruit retains its vitamins and is picked fresh off the tree.  In the winter it is healthier for us to eat it than the stuff on supermarket shelves.  

I've also helped several families start gardens this summer.  It is important in these times to have a little garden, some fruit trees and vines, and grow some of what we eat.  We will save money, eat safer food, teach our children to work, and teach them to enjoy the food Heavenly Father has given us from the earth instead of from the package in the store.  I am a crusader for this and have told anyone who will hear me at church that I will come over and help them with their gardens or to learn to can, and I am proud of any family who is ready to start.  Gardening is a way to save money, get great exercise, peace of mind, satisfaction, health, nutrition, and family togetherness.