Tip of the Day 9/4/12 bonus

Tuesday Bonus: I just finished cutting up a 1/4 bushel Roma tomatoes and put them in the oven to dry. As I was working and looking out the kitchen window at my beautiful flower garden, I was thinking about what led me to that task. Last Fall I thought it would be great to put in a small garden this year, so I did some reading. When I come up with an idea, I want to be well informed before I ta

ke it on. I had a garden many years ago and don't remember much about it except from the pictures (it looked huge) and what the kids and my husband tell me about it. When I see the pictures I realize I really was sick during that time. :) After doing some reading, I came to the conclusion I would plant a few containers this Spring and prep for a bigger garden for next year. As Spring drew closer and my back got worse, I realized even container gardening wasn't going to happen this year, if ever. Then the crazy weather hit and our local farmers began reporting how much damage there was and how the produce was really affected. Our choices were going to be much slimmer than normal. My usual produce stand did not open at all and I began looking for another to buy from. There are 12 or more within a five mile radius of my house. The next closest one has two buildings, one indoor type shop and next door a roadside stand. They never did open the shop this year. As I was garage saleing I stopped at a few to see if they were the right one for me this year. That was how I found Alex's Veggies. They are just around the corner from the one with the 2 shops, and across the street from one that I know the family. I was drawn to Alex's and am so thankful. Sheryl is a tremendous blessing. I told her I was looking for 1/4 and 1/2 bushels of several things. She put me on a call list and I waited. I had asked for bell peppers, the ripe ones had been destroyed the previous day in a freak hail storm, so she had to wait for more to ripen. Two weeks passed and she called to say she had zucchini, when would I like to pick it up. The next day I picked up MY 1/2 bushel, they picked it for ME that morning and had my name on it, and paid $7. Two weeks later she called and said the peppers were ready, did I want all one color or mixed. You all saw the picture, $10 for a 1/2 bushel. Later that week I picked up a 1/4 bushel tomatoes for $3.50, 1/2 bushel onions for $15, and this week 1/4 bushel Roma's for $5. All of these were picked when I said I would pick them up. Along with the blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries earlier in the summer, and the peaches and apples I will have to get from another farmer since it is Alex's VEGGIES, we will enjoy a lot of great food this winter. The point of this rambling muse, "God works all things together for good." As I move our house away from unhealthy additives and more whole food, I was blessed to support a local farmer. My back is healthy, Alex and Sheryl gained a new longtime customer, and we helped support our local economy. This was the right choice and the direction God led our family. Support your local businesses, develop a relationship with the proprietor, consider their needs as you fill yours. We are in this together and can be a blessing to each other in these days of uncertainty. I may not have bought enough to keep Alex and Sheryl in business another year, but hopefully I helped encourage them to keep doing what they love.