Cooler weather is welcomed!

I managed to make it out to the garden this evening. It's the first time I have been able to get out there since all the rain.....and John's medical event.

Harvested a LOT of Okra, mostly big. Still keeping the really big ones and will play with ideas for them in the dehydrator and pressure cooker soon. I bet if I cook them in the pressure cooker with some fresh tomato for a while they'll be tender. The pressure cooker does amazing things for tough food....

For now I am putting them in bags and freezing. I hate to just give it to the chickens if I can make FOOD for US. Chickens get what's left or not edible.

The spinach is big enough to start clipping but I don't need it right now so I'll let it grow. I plan to clip enough for Chicken CousCous on Wednesday.

Most of the tomato plants are huge and full of blooms but no tomatoes yet. I expect if the weather cooperates this week we'll start seeing them.

Our beans are blooming up a storm so those will be ready to pick in a week or so too. Yummy!

However, where are my beets?? They never came up and I planted a very long row. Not one seed germinated! I will find some time to get out there to put in some turnips and mustard too in the next week or so. Here, we have time to plant late and still be just fine...

Best of all the mosquitoes were at a minimum. I am not sure if is the cooler temperatures or the breeze but I was surprised that I was not just totally swarmed. That's good news too.

I am hoping we can get out there a couple of evenings later this week, once John has caught up and back 100% to mow and shred a bit. It really doesn't take long for it to grow...and is the #1 thing that keeps us the busiest.... keeping the grass down...

We cooked a good pot of beef soup yesterday afternoon and packaged up what was left over. Today I made white bean, kale and Italian sausage soup and packaged that up too. I won't be cooking tomorrow and will be freezing what doesn't get eaten for lunch or dinner tomorrow.

Love this cooler weather in South Texas. It is WELCOMED!

Hope everyone is doing great....and for those on the upper Gulf Coast, stay safe with the rain from Karen. At least she started falling apart....