Our Garden

So since this blog is titled "The Murray Adventures" I decided that I can write too. I realize that Kristin is much more interesting, witty, charming, etc... that is why I married her. However, she didn't say I couldn't write on this blog so here goes with a highlight from our fairlytale little life.

Kristin and I have been doing a garden at my Grandma Munns house in Archer just outside Rexburg. We have been growing and watering and praying for this thing to work out. As you will notice from these pictures we have had a pretty good run at this first garden of ours as a married couple. I have had a blast working alongside Kristin as we have pulled weeds many hours under the hot sun this past summer. The garden also gave me such a stress relief during my Summer semester which ended July 24th. Dirt seems to be able to relieve tension for me, go figure.

My mom always is saying the phrase "there must be a gospel principle in that." As we have done this garden many lessons have come to us as we have experienced the ups and downs of a vegetable gardeners life. The first lesson we learned is that we need help! Although we both grew up in homes where gardens were grown, we both had to recognize that there is much we can and need to learn from others. We learned, in a hard core way, the law of the harvest. Both Kristin and I have used the lessons we learned in the garden in lessons and talks in church. I think above all we also learned that work can bring you closer to each other than almost anything else in this life. I am so grateful I got to be with Kristin as I did this. I love the crap out of her!!!

Enjoy our garden pictures!


Kristin and My uncle Lynn prepping the garden with a John Deere and a disk


Gettin' rows ready for seeds. Early May


Kristin and mama Murray planting seeds. Early May


Trench watering; tried and true. June


First signs of life: Beans!! Late June


First harvest- Raddish. July

Kristin, Riley (my niece), and myself in our towering corn. Late July

Again, this time facing the camera.


A skunk got into our corn one night so we had to take drastic measures. An electric fence was put up to keep the critters out.

Kristin's first time touching an electric fence. Now she's a real country girl!

This is the latest edition to our family... Little Bhuela Zucchini arrived on August 25, 2009 to a proud and loving mother. We decided to name her in honor of Justin, Thanks Manger.

Our first corn from the garden about to be consumed.

We Love You Grandpa Munns!

A couple of weeks ago, Grandpa Munns passed away unexpectedly. Blaine and I both loved Grandpa Munns so much! We are grateful that we got to have him at our sealing, and I am so glad that I had the chance to know him for a short while. At his funeral, stories of humor and kindness were shared, and I came to love him more and more. Grandpa Munns was such a good man, and he's one of those people that you can't help but just love when you meet him. He loved his wife and family so very much, and was always serving those around him. Just before he died, he had a church calling serving as a Sunday School Teacher at the local Jail. We will miss him so very much, and I hope I can be a little bit more like Grandpa Munns.

The Amazing Chef Blaine!

Yep, here he is folks...Chef Blaine! I have always heard that when you first get married that you have to teach your husband to cook...I guess that isn't true. Blaine is always whipping up culinary masterpieces. Here are just a few of them...
This was what I came home to last Thursday. It was the best homemade crust I had ever had. I had spinach and sliced petite baby dill pickles...my new favorite topping on pizza.

We tried out a recipe we found on the internet for Creamy potato soup. We couldn't find soup bowls at the store, so we settled for some Barillo rolls that were delicioius!

This is one of my favorite thing that Blaine makes...rice balls and stew. This is a typical meal from Ghana. Aren't the rice balls so pretty?


One of our favorite breakfast foods is pancakes! We love to put peanut butter and maple syrup on top! Blaine can make the fluffiest, biggest pancakes!

Our Home Sweet Home!

Welcome the the Lil' Mini Home Sweet Murray Home! It is just the right size for us two and we love it! It is great to be only a couple blocks from campus, and our ward is great! Hopefully these pictures will give you an idea of what our home is like! This is the view from our front door! The fridge is to the left and the sink is to the right. One funny fact is that if you have the fridge door open, you can't open the front door! It is so condensed that with one stationary and one pivot foot, you can get the food out of the fridge, cook dinner, wash the dishers and get something out of the pantry without ever lifting one of your feet off the ground! If you notice there is a Salt City Christmas Eve Candle sitting on our stove. We love the smell of this when we come home at night!
This is the view of our living room from the same spot in our entry way!

The Living/Dining Room

This is our cozy little living area. I like the view from our living room window! Having a room so small makes me want to keep it cleaner, and more organized!


Our table from Brian and Wendy that we love!



A cute little shelf complete with a photo album and family Bible from our good friend Kyle Poll!





This is our Nauvoo end table with the most darling lamp in the world. A lot of times we leave this on at night for a while and it just makes use happy!






This is our china cupboards! Looking at it makes me feel like we're rich! I love the pitcher from Sarah Cook and the glass bowls from Aunt Leah! We use them on our fancy occasions!



I just love this corner of our kitchen! Seeing the picture of the Rexburg Temple brings me happiness!

The Bathroom

This is by far my favorite room of the house. I know that sounds kind of funny...the bathroom being my favorite. But I just love it the way all the decorations coordinate! And it is the easiest to clean! This is the perfect place for that clock I have been waiting to use for forever! Thanks Cindy!
I think this artwork looks so cute with our towels that have an "M" embroidered on them from Aunt Vicki.

This is the shower curtain from Scott and Nicole that I look at every day and fall more in love with!
We are so grateful for all the people that gave us these gifts to make our home beautiful!