I FEEL THE POWER!....Of Vitamin D

We have had a long, wet winter.  We've had some cold days, but mostly just this damp, seep into your bones, chill.  Think " the Moors"in a Jane Austin Novel.  It has rained, and rained, and rained.  We had over 10 inches of rain in February alone!  That kind of cloudy damp condition all the time can make even the most stout hearted lover of winter, rethink things,  That's me.  I usually love winter, but this year I've just been waiting on the rain to end.  We would have a couple of rain less days; not necessarily sunny, but no rain, and then the rain would come in full force.  FINALLY yesterday started a, hopefully, 5 day dry spell.  We have more rain on Tuesday scheduled, but it's less than an inch which is awesome!  Maybe my back yard can be less of a sponge.

You don't really realize how much you need the sun until it finally arrives!  That's under normal circumstances.  Under a "quarantine"( no I'm not sick, just following the stay at home request), being able to go outside and work in the garden is PRICELESS!

We need sunlight!  It's what gets us Vitamin D the all natural way.  I think I was a quart low.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/vitamin-d-and-your-health-breaking-old-rules-raising-new-hopes


So for the past few days I've been outside"playing".  Getting the garden ready to plant.  I have Broccoli, Red cabbage, spinach, lettuce, cilantro, carrots, yellow squash, garlic, Parsley, Lemon Balm, Lemon Thyme, Mint and Oregano already in the garden.  We've been picking from the lettuce, spinach, cilantro, and other herbs.  I use the Thyme for cough medicine.

All of the herbs are being harvested and dried in our oven.  It's easy to do.

Simply wash them, drain them well, then spread in a single layer on a cookie sheet.  Put the cookie sheet in the oven with only the oven light on.  This usually take about 12 hours.  Sometimes a little longer, you want them crispy and easy to crumble.  When they're ready, let them cool a little them crush them and store in a jar.

I've been drying some thing or another pretty consistently.  Tonight is a little Cilantro.

While all of these items are in the garden already, it's only because I've been slowly but surely putting them there come rain or shine.  I've also been reclaiming the garden.  With all the rain we ended up with these shallow root weeds that spread.  You can see what I'm talking about in the bed center right.  That whole bed is covered.  I haven't gotten to it yet.  I've been removing weeds to get the beds ready to plant.  It was while doing that I found 4 cilantro volunteers!  I have found the easiest way to grow cilantro is to buy a plant and plant it.  Get frustrated when there is a hot spell and it goes to seed before you can use it.  In frustration, just scatter the seeds.  Ignore it til the following year.  Then enjoy the pants that wanted to be there.  Lol.  The two beds in the center of this picture are actually growing garlic and mint.  Strawberries are in the cinder block holes.

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I needed this sunshine.  I needed to be out doing something in the midst of all this craziness in the world right now.  Something that didn't require baking thank you very much!  I have to confess in my effort to not let anything go to waste, I've let everything go to my waist!  (see what I did there?)  The guys are happy (smile).  Mom's baking!

So what are you up to in order o pass the time?