Happy Independence Day!

And a big thank-you to all who serve this country!

We missed all the rain yesterday, but monsoon just made up for it with a big downpour. Along with the rain came crazy lightning and thunder. After a particularly bright strike and loud crack of thunder, our power went out. Thankfully it came back after about 45 min.

We are sure the rain came because Mr. LOTBB put food out on the grill! 🙂  The pic. below is from yesterday, when we got only a few sprinkles. It is still raining here now. Yippee!!

And So It Begins

We got our first Monsoon 2015 rainstorm this morning. It woke us up in the wee hours about 1:30 am. It was pretty decent too, with nice rain, lightning, thunder and thankfully, no hail or other damage. I thought the storms had passed us by earlier in the evening, so this was a pleasant surprise!

I love monsoon season in Arizona! It is the best when we get rain but often, like late yesterday afternoon, even though the rain passed us by the clouds came along with the wind and cooled things off about 20 degrees. It was lovely to be able to get out of the 24/7 AC for a while and sit out on our deck, enjoying the breezes and cloudy sky.

A Most Excellent May

May 22nd and we didn’t even hit 70 degrees!

The end of May is upon us and it is starting to get hot. But I’m not complaining, because this has been the coolest May I can remember since moving to Arizona in 1993. Normally, it is hot all month, but this year it remained delightfully cool up until this week. And to top it off, we got quite a bit of (gasp) rain! I can only hope that this is a new weather trend.

We harvested our first batch of garlic today. In the fall, we planted some Susanville Garlic, a new variety for us. Usually we grow California white. The garlic grew very well and smells wonderful. I can’t wait to taste it! We have another batch that was planted later and should be ready in a few weeks.

Garlic Harvest

This garlic will be ready in a few weeks.

After pulling the garlic, we are prepping the container for some cucumber seeds. I’m planting a little later than usual this year, so I hope they do ok. We added some compost tea to the soil. They should like that!

Compost Tea

Composter and Compost Tea

I really don’t like the summer heat at all, but I think the excellent May we just had will make it a little easier to live with this year.

What’s Happening in the Greenhouse?

The wind is howling today, although the temps. aren’t really bad. I think it is about 58 degrees, but the north wind makes it seem a little more chilly. (My apologies to all of you back East who are experiencing real cold!)

So, what is happening in the greenhouse today?

Calendula blooming

Nasturtium

Onions drying

Pansy

Peas sprouting!

I do look forward to fresh sweet peas in a few months. The greenhouse is a wonderful place.

Almost Fall

Some of the saved beauties.

Monday is the first day of Fall and I can’t wait! It is very hot and humid here today, so I am looking forward to the monsoon leaving and temps. beginning to cool. Despite the gross atmosphere, we had to go out and pick pomegranates today. Ripe pomegranates are another sure sign of fall. When Mr. LOTBB looked out the window and saw our friendly neighborhood Mockingbird out there pecking away at the pomegranates, he insisted we go out and pick them right away. Can’t we wait until it cools down a bit, I pleaded? It was about 3 pm., the hottest and stickiest part of the day, but there was no stopping him. The pomegranates must be saved! And they were.

The humidity brings out a lot of bugs. Along with the pesky ones, the beneficials come out too. This guy was a little taken aback when I started getting in his face with my camera!

How DO You Do?

Finally, I saw this oh-so-cute little bundle doing his best to hide behind a bucket. I hope he is okay and that his mother is not far away. He was such a little thing and so sweet. I was afraid of scaring him away, but I managed to get a few shots and then left him in peace.

Can you see me?

Historic Rain Day

I’m writing this a week after the “Great Phoenix Flood” of September 8, 2014. We got rain in Big Bug country, but not as much as they did down in the valley. I had just set out for work at 6 am on Monday, when my boss called and told me how bad things were down there. I ended up staying home that day and watching the news in amazement. It was an incredible storm and unfortunately, many people had flood damage. Phoenix and the Valley of the Sun always need rain, but getting 2-5+ inches in one day was crazy. The storm set records for being the most rain received in one calendar day.

What happened? From what I understand, moisture from Hurricane Norbert combined with monsoon moisture to create this deluge. This week, another hurricane has developed. We are looking at Hurricane Odile, now a category 4, just off the Baja California Peninsula. I don’t know if Odile will push as much moisture as her big brother, but we will see. Right now, they are forecasting the most rain for Wednesday and Thursday.

As for the Big Bug, we did get rain last Monday, but “only” around an inch. Actually, Sunday I was heard saying that the storm was a “dud” and “where is all the rain”? It started around 3 am. The Big Bug was still flowing when I had a chance to take a few pictures.

A pretty sunset ended the crazy, historic day.

First Day of Fall

No, this is not the official first day of fall, but it is by my yardstick. We had the windows open all day today! It was a lovely, cooler, windy day. There were clouds this morning, but now the sky is totally AZ clear. The pomegranates are getting very close to pickable!

Some of the juniper berries are turning blue and I’m seeing a lot more birds around. The Phainopeplas are back in force (one of my favs.) Goodbye summer…don’t hurry back!

Monsoon Finishing Strong

We have been able to open windows at night for the past few days. This may sound like no big deal, but after the normal AZ summer of 24/7 air conditioning, it is a major event. The Monsoon is winding down and I am glad. I love Monsoon when it comes in, but by Sept. I am ready for it to go away! I am looking forward to being able to put stuff in the greenhouse, but for now, I am enjoying the nights with open windows and no fake air.

Thunder Snow!

Snow!, a photo by azmichelle on Flickr.

Yesterday was a weird weather day. We had snow, snow mixed with rain and thunder snow. There is actually some left on the ground this morning, though it won’t last long. When I went outside, the snow crunched under my feet. That is an experience we don’t get very often around here.

 Paw Prints in the Crunchy Snow.

Rain and Snow. Finally!

We finally got some moisture in Big Bug country. Rain around the house, but snow at a bit higher elevations.

We got so much rain, I was sure the Big Bug would be running. As soon as there was a break in the storm, I said to my husband, “let’s go take a look at the creek!” Well, I’ve been wrong before. There was some water, but no flow. Not that I’m complaining, mind you. It has been weeks since we got any precipitation at all, so I am most grateful for this storm. We did get a ton of rain, but everything was so dry it must have just soaked it all up like a giant sponge!