Fleet Week

Fleet Week caught me off gaurd (as usual), but Sandi was studying all weekend so it wasn't that big of a deal to drop everying (or nothing) and head to the waterfront Saturday morning.  I'm kind of a kid in a candy store when it comes to big things that go boom so I arrived early to tour a navel destroyer.

A destroyer is essentially an aircraft carrier's side-arm.  They seem well-equiped for such a task.

50-cal machine gun in the aft

missle launchers

5-inch main gun

The coast guard ships were also interesting. 

The red thing is a large buoy. 

This is a cutter based out of Port Angeles.  It does most things you woudl think the coast guard does: safety inspections, search and rescue, drug interceptions, etc.

Oregon Strawberries

I can't believe I'm posting this.  As a bachelor, I made it a rule to never make dessert.  I'll cook but I won't bake.  Savory over sweets, besides it was fairly easy to play the bachelor card to get dessert. 

Sandi and I walked to the Beaverton Farmers market again (yet another change compared to being single) to buy a 1/2 flat of local strawberries.  Sandi absolutely loves them and considers it a miss-spent summer without them.  We got our berries and we grazed on them all afternoon (they really are good). 

That evening, Sandi was consumed with studying so I made fish tacos for dinner.  It seemed a shame not to incorporate strawberries into the meal at some point.  We remembered that we had an Angel Food cake box and decided that it was the perfect time to use it (that and it was going to expire next month).  Because I love my wife and I wanted strawberry shortcake for dessert, I volunteered to make the cake.  Two cups of water and five minutes and later, I put the cake into the oven and went about my evening.  I couldn't believe it was that easy.  Strange what marriage will do to you.

Planting Herbs

On Saturday Sandi and I walked to our local Beaverton Farmers Market.  Our mission: herb and veggie starters our garden.  We learned a lot last year from our herb garden and were ready to build on our experience.  We came back with a few treasures:

cilantro
(it only looks wimpy because I
just watered it)

basil - Sandi can't wait to make
pesto

arugula - our impulse purchase

bush beans

Sandi planting the acorn squash and green onions

This is the primary herb garden.  I just added cilantro to
the mix. It joins last years oregano, rosemary and chives. 
We had to move the mint to it's own pot as it was attempting
(actually, succeeding) in a take-over.   

We didn't have to purchase chives - it came back with a vengence.

Here are our blueberry plants.  We harvested
6 blueberries last year.  This year we are hoping for 8.

First Roses

This is one of the first roses from one of our best rose bushes.  Located in the front yard, it welcomes visitors before they reach the door.  If this is a preview, it should be a great summer.

This rose is significnt not because it is the first rose on the bush, but because it is the first season that it has actually bloomed.  I transplanted 3 bushes from a friend's yard about 5 years ago.  The other two did fairly well the first season and have since been very reliable.  This third bush never bloomed.  Every year I threatened to rip it out.  Good thing I never did.

Passing the rain test

At last, we had enough rain to test our drainage in the front yard by the roses.  Before I fixed the gutters and installed 3 gravel drains, it was pront to flooding.  The sidewalk leading up to the front door was a mess of debris from the rose bed.  Now, I am *fairly* confident that the bark dust will stay where it belongs.  It was nice to finish off the front yard.

Spring Planting

Sandi got water melon, cucumber and Hungarian tomatoe starts from someone at school.  We're fairly optimistic about the cucumbers and tomatoes, but we'll keep our expectations pretty low for the water melon. 

Sandi and I hosted her family for mother's day after lunch on Sunday afternoon.  I wanted to show off more pleasant looking garden area that what you see below.

By Saturday afternoon, I had it cleaned up and barked for guests.  I'm happy with the results.

We have more herbs and vegtibles to plant, but we are waiting for the Saturday Market in Beaverton to open before we get any.