It's hard to believe that it's been nearly a month since my last garden post. And what a month it's been! After spending nearly every waking moment last month pulling weeds (and finally losing the use of my hands, temporarily, to carpal tunnel), I realized that I seriously overdid it this year and planted WAY more than I can handle - even with help from the kids.

I could spend the rest of the summer doing nothing but weeding (which isn't possible), and I'd still be nowhere near done. Plus there's the hours spent watering each day and...oh my. I already had a full-time job, in addition to homeschooling, did I really need to create so much more work for myself? I think not! Several times I've been tempted to mow everything down and call it quits, but that would be such a terrible waste, I can't quite bring myself to do it. Nevertheless, I have no idea how I'll continue to manage it all!

Here are some random photos from the past few weeks:

Hands-down, our favorite drink this summer is Borage Lemonade. Mix 3-4 medium leaves in a blender with lemonade -- the resulting beverage has an almost watermelon-like flavor and is SO good!


These days, I'm increasingly grateful for the wild overgrown patches I've got, such as the area above. It's a mess of plants, but there are very few weeds and lots of blooms, so I'm happy!

I sowed some Charentais melon seeds in amongst my roses to fill in gaps and keep the weeds down temporarily. Somehow, I never imagined that they would grow so huge and take over everything! Hopefully later this summer I'll be able to make some Charentais Melon Sorbet (or here) - yum!


We've had a profusion of wild Morning Glory vines popping up everywhere. Fortunately they're mainly in the [far] back field, so aren't disturbing my garden. I can't wait until they bloom!


Within days of purchasing our lambs, Caelan became quite ill and died, despite our vet's best efforts to save him. To ease Colby's lonliness, we added Eliza (a Boer/Nubian goat) to our little herd and they're now the best of friends.

"That afternoon, when Laura arrived, a little round table in the hearthplace had already been laid for tea. And what a meal! There were boiled new-laid eggs and scones and honey and home-made jam, and, to crown all, a dish of fresh Banbury cakes. The carrier had a standing order to bring her a dozen of these cakes every market day.

It seemed a pity to Laura that the first time she had been offered two eggs at one meal she could barely eat one and that the Banbury cake, hitherto to her a delicious rarity only seen in her home when purchased by visiting aunts, should flake and crumble almost untasted upon her plate because she felt too anxious to eat."  - Candleford Green, Ch. 1

Though I finished watching the final episode of Lark Rise to Candleford's Season 3 some time ago, my obsession has not subsided in the least. I've read all I could find by Flora Thompson and have spent an inordinate amount of time tracking down recipes for some of the foods mentioned in the book(s) and series. I bought The Lark Rise Recipe Book by Mary Norwak, but found it disappointing (a few of the recipes can be found here). Two things I was especially eager to try were Banbury Cake and Queen Cake.

After those cravings had been satisfied, finally, I launched into a full-fledged baking (and cooking!) spree which has lasted for several weeks now. Nevermind that it's entirely *too hot* to be baking! Here are a few of the favorites that we've tried:

• Buttermilk Spice Cake w/Cream Cheese Frosting (my favorite!)
• Budapest Coffee Cake (the kids' favorite)
• Orange Yogurt Cake
• Maple-Nut Chiffon Cake
• White Wonder Cake
• Raspberry Cream Cheese Buns
• Carrot and Pineapple Cake
• Banana Coconut Muffins

Spanish Cake (from The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book by Fannie Farmer)

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 egg yokes
1/2 cup milk
1 3/4 cup flour
3 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 egg whites

Mix ingredients in order given. Bake in two 9" cake pans for 20-25 minutes at 350°. Frost with  Cinnamon Vanilla Buttercream or Chocolate Cinnamon Buttercream. (I'm thinking this cake would be delicious with just a hint of orange too!)