booberry is right on tomatoes not setting in extreme heat. I have found that morning sun is the best for tomatoes (and other vegetable plants as well), so try to have the tomatoes out in the morning sun. When it has been upper 90's here, I have allowed the tomatoes to get full sun in the morning, then provided shade to them about midday until around 4:00 PM. After 4 PM, the sun wasn't quite as strong and I uncovered the plants. It seemed to help them, and they still received about 8 hours of sunlight. Also make sure you are watering them probably twice a day if they are in containers in that kind of heat. The curled leaves (the lower few limbs are curling?) is usually a sign of stress, but normally will not effect production unless the stress gets serious. I hope this helps, and good luck. Tee

Crazy weekend. We left the house at 6:00 am on Saturday. A big chunk of the interstate we needed for our route was closed due to flooding, so we looked at the DOT's road closure map and decided to make our own detour to avoid both the multiple road closures and the detoured semi traffic. Steve picked a back route he travels frequently to get to his favorite trout streams. I had tears in my eyes as we drove. We weren't anywhere near the worst of things, yet we were seeing flooded homes, businesses, freshly planted fields of corn and soy beans, cattle fields, farm equipment, cars and trucks. We saw countless mudslides, seriously eroded road beds, fallen trees, and seriously flooded and newly created waterways. In some places sandbags worked, in others, they failed miserably, in many more instances, they were never even attempted. And this is a drop in the bucket compared to Iowa. We got to the family wedding in Minnesota in a reasonable amount of time. It was also my dad's 60th birthday. You know how some people take certain birthdays really well, and others take them really badly? My dad took this one really badly. He's not exactly an "optimist" to begin with. He kept his chin up and responded to well-wishers with "Well, I woke up this morning and I wasn't dead yet, so I guess it's a pretty good thing." Ugh. The wedding was beautiful. This is not my cousin by blood, but she's 100% my cousin. When her mom was 8.5 months along in her first and only pregnancy, her dad, the picture of early 30-something health and athleticism was playing basketball... and dropped dead of a heart attack. My uncle married her mom when my cousin was two or three. Seeing my uncle walk her down the aisle was bittersweet for everyone in the church. I was touched by the fact that relations listed in the program did not include the distancer "step-." It was a happy, poignant, beautiful occasion. The reception was going really well (this is a very fun group of relatives and we were laughing hard), and then my dad got the phone call: His brother died. Let me just say that this was not a shock. When my "drunk uncle" died a few years ago, this was the uncle around whom high drama occurred when he brought a flask of hard liquor to the funeral and got drunk at the church. He was a severely depressed (near catatonia) alcoholic, and had aged 20 years in the last five. We all saw it coming. We just didn't see it coming that day. Plus, "seeing it coming" doesn't mean you welcome it. Since this wedding was on my mom's side of the family, my dad elected not to spoil the bride's day by telling her. Instead, we hung around and alternately listened to my dad and made the best of it by laughing until the evening ended. Not even the severe thunderstorms and tornado warnings ruined the night. The next day, Steve and I awoke early to have breakfast with my parents and wish my dad a happy Father's Day before they hit the road. Our way back took us through the city where my newly-widowed aunt and their daughter live, so we met them at the funeral home while they were picking out caskets and making arrangements. We were the first of the extended family to see them, and my heart broke for them. No wife/daughter should spend Father's Day picking out her father's/husband's casket. Then we followed our detour back home, hugged each other and ordered pizza. I am emotionally exhausted.

Right before I gave birth, my mom bought me a great pair of comfy pajamas. They have elastic waist bottoms and a top that buttons down the front. I lived in those the first few weeks. Now that it's almost three months later, I'm a SAHM and I live in sweats, stretch pants, and my husbands size 36 waist jeans. Pre-preg I wore a size 10. I still have an extra 15 pounds to lose and it's all in my hips. I can't even get my old size 10 pants over my hips at all! Very depressing. I figured out that I am 4 inches bigger around on all my measurements right now! I'm just anxiously waiting for Spring to arrive so I can get outside with the baby. I know I'll lose the weight then. Breastfeeding has literally sucked the weight off of me though. I gained 40 lbs with this baby and lost most of it within the first few weeks. But like I said, once I can get outside, I will lose the rest. I told myself when I was still pregnant, when this was over, I have to follow in my mother's footsteps and be the "hot mommy" on the block, not the frumpy one! Good Luck and just think comfort, that's the most important.

It's hot again, another day over 100 (well, only at 100 at the moment). I think, this is the 14th day in a row. Got some plywood to finally put my mattress up on a platform. Should be easier to get up in the morning. :) Mel came over with his pickup, and helped. Then we moved the big TV, and he fixed my brakes on my bike. As a Thank You I took him out to lunch. Just got back, but will head out again, to get groceries. Really tired of this heat... Moni