Fulfilling Day!

Today was a great day!  I started out with water walking with Max, doing PT, and swimming laps at the Y.  Been needing to get back into the pool for laps, so this felt really good!  After this awesome morning, I headed to Torrington to visit with Morgan.  Her dogs ~ from left to right ~ Jake, Slash (in my lap), and Bella ~ all greeted me with a big WARM Wyoming welcome!  These hounds seem to really like company!

I wore work clothes because we were planning to move irrigation pipe, however, that wind was howling and the temperatures dropped.  Mo and I, instead, decided to make some hot tea and work downstairs.  We were sorting some boxes of clothes, weeding out the ones Truett had outgrown.  Right about the time Truett woke up from his nap, check out the awesome sweatshirt we found!  We got to be twin-sies!  All bundled up!  It was so fun!

Love this little man!

My time with Mo and Truett always seems to go way too fast, however, I had previously made an appointment to reconnect with an old professor from Colorado State.  Dr. Whittier, one of my grad school professors, had moved to Western Nebraska to work at the Panhandle Research Station several years back.  Before Heath and I moved to Texas, we invited him and his wife out for supper.  It wasn't until I was chatting with someone at the pool the other day that I was reminded that he is still here!  After a quick email, I was able to schedule a meeting!

It was so great to catch up with Dr. Whittier.  He is doing well and staying busy at the university.  We chatted about some opportunities that I might be able to pursue at our place to turn it into an income-producing piece of property.  It is so fun to brainstorm options!

While visiting, he gave me a tour of a mulch/green pepper experiment they had done.  They harvested over 3,400 pounds of green peppers off of this small plot!  When asked how many I wanted, I said that I might take 4 or 5 peppers.  They said absolutely not, but you can take 4 or 5 bags (5 gallons each)!  WOW!  What a blessing!  These are all beautiful sweet green peppers!

The next plot we looked at was a hops field.  This was fascinating for me as I have never thought of nor have I ever seen how this stuff grows.  I also didn't know that it has great anti-cancer properties.  Check this out!  A bine (not a vine) grows up the twisted coconut rope which is attached to a system of cables so many feet high.  You have to train it to wrap a certain way, otherwise it will not work.  The yellow powdery stuff inside each "flower" thing is the hops!  Crazy process!  I imagine harvesting this stuff isn't easy!

Hops Bine Growing Up

Hops Flower

Close Up of Bine with Flowers

After a great visit, Dr. Whittier helped me carry out all 4 garbage bags full of peppers!  Off to AWANA to share the blessing!  We got to love on babies tonight!