Chard Update

Hello family! We're supposed to be out working in the yard today but it's 50 degrees and drizzling. This is the coolest and wettest June we've had in a long time. We bought pepper, tomato, cuke, and squash starts a couple of weeks ago. We transplanted them into bigger pots and they've been growing in the greenhouse where I work. I brought them home yesterday - they're HUGE now! We need to get them in the ground ASAP. Hopefully tomorrow when it's supposed to be sunny and warmer. Today is the 3rd annual Four Paws yard sale. I organized it the last 2 years but told them last year (when I was pregnant) that I couldn't do it this year. We still offered up our shed as a collection point for donated stuff, and this morning we hauled it all to the sale.

Last weekend we traveled to Wayne County to check out some land that our friends had heard was available for purchase. It's in Fremont and is part of a 480-acre family ranch. The Horrocks Ranch is still in operation, but they're not in great financial shape. They don't want to sell any of their land, but they're willing to let go of a few acres of the rocky hillside on the north end of their property. We checked it out and found a spot that we're pretty excited about. It's rocky and its covered in sagebrush, cactus (one was blooming with big red flowers) and juniper, but its close to town and it overlooks a pastoral valley of irrigated fields. We're going to buy at least 5 acres and at most 10 acres, for $5K/acre. We're currently looking into what it will cost to run a water line and electricity up to the spot where we would eventually build a home. The views below were generated in Google Earth. Capitol Reef National Park is just south and west of Fremont, and Fish Lake is north and East.

Meanwhile, I had a heart-to-heart with my boss on Thursday and pretty soon I'll be dropping from 30 hours/week to 20 hours/week. Everyone tells you that having a child results in huge changes in your life. I knew they were coming, but I guess I had the wrong impression of how I would handle them. My career is an important part of my life, but it pales in comparison to the importance of my spending time with Gavin. I will lose my insurance benefits, but we can get coverage through Brandon's employer. I will still get my retirement benefits, which is GREAT.

We've been slowly working on remodeling the "TV room" area upstairs. We added a closet and re-did the banister at the top of the stairs. We covered up the yucky walls of the stairwell with wainscoting and installed a new railing. When I say "we" I mean Brandon. Its almost ready for paint, so its getting close.

All for now! Hope you're enjoying the weekend. Love, Julie