When we lived in Missouri, there was a food co-op organized by one of the local churches but they mostly ordered boxed type goods – cereals, mixes, flours, pudding mixes, etc.  After a bit of searching, I found a co-op here that mostly orders fresh, organic vegetables and fruits.  If we lived near a larger city, or even where there was an HEB or similar type grocery store with lots of fresh fruits and vegetables, I’d be so happy . . but there are advantages to small towns so I’m not complaining . . until I go to the grocery store.

Speaking of fresh fruits and veggies, do you wonder how young families or those on very tight budgets are making it these days?  Every time I buy fruits and vegetables, or meat or milk for that matter, I get really frustrated at the continued escalating of my grocery bill.  Do you ever notice the groceries those around you in line are purchasing?  I’m not judgment and there was a time in my life when I probably had a lot of the same things in my cart and I survived.  Last week there was a young mom checking out in front of me at the grocery store and her cart was full of packaged meals, chips, cookies . . I didn’t see any fresh vegetables or fruit.  It’s a heck of lot less expensive to buy those kinds of things instead of fruits and vegetables.  But . . who knows the whole story!  Maybe she had jars and jars of home canned veggies at her house and she didn’t need to buy anything like that!

Back to the co-op — yesterday my first order arrived.  We have a choice of getting either a large or small veggie box and/or a large or small fruit box.  There are all kinds of other things we can order too.  I had ordered extra blueberries and extra lettuce.  After not having any home grown lettuce for over a year, I was so thrilled with the lettuce!  That’s not photoshopped lettuce . . that’s exactly how it looks!

In the fruit box, I had avocados, several kinds of apples, oranges, several kinds of pears, lemons, and grapefruit.  There may have been other things I don’t remember.

In the veggie box, the things I remember are celery, carrots, baby baker potatoes, small sweet potatoes, artichokes, collard greens, broccolini, cilantro, cabbage, sweet red bell peppers, onions, cherry tomatoes, Romaine hearts . . and I can’t remember what else.  You may see some things in the pictures I haven’t mentioned.

I had never seen the little baby baker potatoes and they’re so cute.  I love baked potatoes but they’re so huge.  Most of the time Vince and I split one but these little things are perfect for individual baked potatoes for those of us trying to cut back.  It’s hard to tell in the picture but the cauliflower is a normal size.  Both the baking potatoes and sweet potatoes are tiny.

The cabbage is huge so you can see how big these red peppers are . . the biggest ones I’ve ever seen!

Before you ask, I’ll do another post about what we do with all these fruits and vegetables.  Til I can get my garden going, and maybe even as a supplement to the garden, it’s so nice to be able to get such a nice variety of fresh fruits and veggies.

Should we make guesses as to how long my plants will last?

After a few years of living with drought conditions and fighting the deer, I may give up but for now, I have to be able to look out in the spring and see something blooming.  The previous owners had cactus and really not much of anything in this bed at the front of the house.  There is a hyacinth that just finished blooming.  Either the deer didn’t notice it or they don’t eat hyacinths.  There are some chives in there and some blue bonnets that are about to bloom so I tried to work around those.  Otherwise, the rest of the stuff can stay for now but probably not forever.  My rule is that if we don’t eat it or it doesn’t bloom, it doesn’t stay.

Yesterday I set out two rosemary plants, a dianthus and two lavender plants.  I have two more dianthus and two more lavender that I’ll set out in the morning.  I wish I had dug up some of my irises in MO and brought them with me but I didn’t.  Some of them had been with me since Louisiana and in Kentucky and then Missouri, but that’s where their trip ended. I probably won’t get more irises but they’re blooming around town and it made me miss mine.  They’re something else the deer don’t eat so . . maybe I will get more . . some day.

As soon as I get everything planted that I’m going to plant, we’ll get mulch and add it to this bed.  Lots of work to be done around here . .

And, some cowboys wear Crocs . . with white socks no less!  Do you think we should talk Vince into getting some cowboy boots?  Do you think we should talk Vince into ditching the Crocs?  What about those white socks?  Do you know anyone who wears white socks with crocs with shorts?  Me either!

We were out working in the yard yesterday afternoon and I saw the cows way up towards the front so we grabbed a bucket of treats and walked down to meet them.  The cows didn’t seem to mind the Crocs and white socks.  Or, if they noticed, they sure didn’t act like they cared.

They know exactly what’s in that bucket and if Vince doesn’t hand it out quickly enough, they stick their heads right through the wires and try to get it.   They looked distracted enough with the cubes that I think I could have crawled right through the fence and milked those rascals but I’m scared of them.  That has to hurt!  Oh . . I don’t even want to think about it.

They’re big . . real big and even though they love those cubes, they don’t look like they like us too much.

This one decided to walk towards me . . like I might have something for her.  No, Sister!  I have nothing and I’m scared of you! And don’t even think  you’re getting my phone!  Maybe she thought it was something to eat or . . maybe she had a phone call she needed to make.  Maybe . . she was calling the fashion police . . about this guy with Crocs and white socks and shorts!

I kinda wish they weren’t so big and scary looking.