Halloween Eve!

Tomorrow is Halloween!

I love Halloween. It's just a cool holiday. And is this not an awesome Halloween picture?

Yes, Phil again. But he's a black cat sitting with a pumpkin. Actually that's last year's picture, since he hasn't managed to pose so nicely for me again this year, ha ha.

At work tomorrow, we are all dressing up, students and teachers. Or most of us. I'm sure there will be some sticks in the mud who don't do it. But it will be fun regardless.

Then I will sit here all night tomorrow night with my bowl of candy and get NO trick-or-treaters. Really. Last year, not a one. The year before - one. The year before that - three. Not a kid heavy or Halloween active neighborhood. I'm the only one who ever decorates, too. 

But I do it just for me. And the candy, for good or ill, will get eaten, lol. 

:)

PS - Trivia sucked tonight. But then half the team was missing. Still, ten bucks is ten bucks...

Just Keeps on Giving

My last post had much excitement about my new china cabinet! It's still awesome, and I grin every time I see it. Well, almost every time, lol. But I still love it, is the point.

These are a couple of baby pictures of my dog Sophie Anne, aka Sophie:

Wasn't she cute? And little? Ha ha!

Now you may be wondering what one has to do with the other, the china cabinet and my huge, hundred pound scaredy dog Sophie  (see current picture. Yep, over a hundred pounds, that one, lol).

As I was putting things into my awesome china cabinet on Sunday, the door was open, of course. And as you can see, there's glass in it, as there should be. Sophie walked up and sniffed the door - then she huffed and looked alarmed. I checked it out.

I kid you not. She was looking at her reflection in the glass! And it scared her! 

She is huge, and the biggest chicken ever. So today she was walking by the cabinet again, movement in the glass caught her eye, and I saw her see herself again! LOL - and she paused, but then looked again and walked on.

So who knew there was this added, hilarious bonus to having a china cabinet? I'm even happier now... as I giggle.

:)

Busy, Busy, Busy!

Today started early, paused for a nap, then busy, busy, busy once more!

First up: China Cabinet!

Woo hoo! I've wanted one of these babies for years. Unfortunately, they are usually really expensive. I found this one yesterday at a rummage sale. She took the price I offered, and there went my birthday money from my awesome mom  :D  (Last year my birthday money went toward skydiving. The year before that, a tattoo. Needless to say, my mom was very much more pleased with this year's spend, hehe.) 

Once the thing was wrestled into the house (thanks to the Amazing Andy! So far he's received a piece of cheesecake and two small banana trees for his efforts, with promise of dinner another time. He brought avocados. We're going to keep trading, I think, lol), it had to be set and cleaned.

And then of course, stuff put in it. As if I needed any more proof that I am an old lady:

I've been wanting a place to put my teapots for years, and my inheritance from my Granny. It's not nearly as full as it could be, which is just... hehe. Something I'll have to take care of now, won't I?  ;-)






But that's not all to this productive day! Keep going...

Great Day Today!

Really - I mean it! It was a great day!

I ended up going to this rummage sale near the little foodie shop I like, and I got something awesome! Pictures tomorrow, once I've gotten it home.

Now, however - take a look at this:

Yes, that's Jack the Beanstalk, already making a break for it. I don't think my idea of a small piece of decorative fencing is going to cut it here. Not with all *8* plants that are now in my tub! My mom doesn't think so either. It looks like I am going to have to break down and buy a trellis.

Still - I think I can get away without much work here (remember, this is the no-dig, low work garden, hehe). I can get a trellis and just lean it against the house or the fence, then set the tub next to it. With a little coaxing, those bean plants will figure it out, right? Then there's still no bending over, since the trellis will most likely be taller than I am (ha ha! What isn't taller than I am?). 

That's the plan. And judging by the rate these things are growing, I need to get that trellis ASAP, lol. 

Check back tomorrow for pictures of my rummage sale awesomeness!

:)

FRIDAY!!

Woo hoo! It's Friday!

'Nuff said. Hehe

:)

Call for Advice!

I am repeating a picture from last night for this post:

The reason for that is that I have realized I need help with a few things. So let me have it!

First up - yep, those beans. I realized (too late) that they are pole beans, and not bush beans. Meaning that they are going to have to have something to climb on eventually. So - my first thought is to grab a cheap piece of semi-decorative fencing (or maybe two, one for each side) and just shove them down into the dirt on either side of my bean tub.

Thoughts?

Second - Blog!

For the life of me, I cannot figure out how to get the links at the tome, like "Home" and stuff. Help?

Third - Possum removal

Yep, the dogs cornered a possum a couple of days ago. Now I have nothing against wildlife in general, but dang if those things don't just look like big rats! And "big" is the operative word here, because this was a *big* possum! I think it's gone, because I made the dogs stay in and not try to chase it. Later they were barking up a tree, making me think the thing climbed its way out once it got dark.

Thankfully, it hasn't been seen since and the dogs haven't gone any more nuts than usual. But - how does one possum-proof a yard?

Just askin'. Let me know how I can work on any or all of these, lol!

And remember - tomorrow is Friday! Woo hoo!

Thanks!

:)

Random Catch Up

Don't have a lot of time this afternoon, since tonight is Trivia Night! And yes, my team got invited to the Tournament of Champions - woot! It's Sunday, November 3rd, so I'll keep you updated.

First up - Bean Sprouts!

Yep, you guessed it Baby - those seeds I just decided to stick in the tub for fun are starting to come up! This picture is three days old and already Jack (the large, original beanstalk, ha ha) is nearly twice as big in this picture. And these two sprouts *are* twice as big. And there are 3 more!! So look out - might be getting some green beans after all!

Second - Best Lunch Deal on the Planet

I kid you not, with tax, this lunch of a foot long, all beef hot dog and a refillable soft drink is $1.61 here in South Florida. Where, you might ask (if you aren't lucky enough to have one of these in your neck of the woods)? Costco! That's right - the warehouse store. And you don't have to have a card to go in the other door and get to the food counter. It is *packed* there at lunchtime, if you can imagine, lol.

And keep on for more...

Dinner Anyone?

So it ended up being a busier weekend on the ol' (faux) homestead this weekend. The um, heavy rain yesterday afternoon didn't help, as we all know how conducive that is to napping... Yeah, two glorious hours and well, I'm sure you get the picture, ha ha!

Also - life is short, eat dessert first...

Because I did promise my classes I would make them my mother's world famous cheesecake, and so make it I did! Here's a picture of it:

This is actually a double recipe, since one fits in a pie plate alone, lol. But I have enough students and others that I needed to share with, so I've managed to work it out to fit in the big dish. Everyone seemed to love it, judging by the requests for the recipe, lol. (And no - not sharing! The one family recipe I am *not* allowed to give out, lol)

Anyway - I had also been planning to try an experiment with some pork chops. And there were all these new potatoes around, and rosemary, so...

Here it is! Did this one yesterday, as well. Breaded pork chops, rosemary potatoes, and homemade apple sauce:

It turned out really well, if I do say so myself. Needed more rosemary on the potatoes, but next time I'll know that. Besides, my little rosemary plant is still little, lol. 

So yeah, a productive day in some ways. I'm pleased with the results.

Soon - I swear, that book review! I finished the book days ago, so I'm working on it.

Thanks!

:)

Lettuce Try Some Lettuce

Once again, I think I overpaid for a plant.

Yes, that is lettuce. Or according to the tag "City Salad Mix" My rosemary plant was looking mighty lonely, and of my *very few*choices to buy, it was the lettuce. 

It is the growing season (one of two) in South Florida, yet when I told one of the people in the garden department - they had no idea. Seriously.

All the Wal-marts, Loews, Home Depots, etc have all replaced the majority of their Garden Departments with Christmas stuff. I kid you not. It's not even Halloween, and after that is Thanksgiving. And *then* comes Christmas! 

How is it possible that A - these people don't even know now is the growing season for the department? And B - IT'S NOT EVEN HALLOWEEN YET!! *deep breath* Okay - I'm calm now. 

But now a few questions... How does one even know when lettuce is ready to pick? It looks okay to me now, but will it grow back? My sister contends it's super easy to grow... let's hope, because this is my first experience with trying to grow it. I guess I will have to *egad!* have to look it up!

Anyway - wish me luck. Tomorrow - my book review on The Wilder Life. It was... something. 

Later!

:)

Garden Update!

So as promised, here is the update to my dig-free garden!

First up - Rosemary

Yes, I paid entirely too much for the one little plant, but the idea of rosemary potatoes called to me and I couldn't help myself. So far... so good, I think. 

Second - The Little Bean Plant That Could

Seriously. Of all of the seeds I planted, four came up, three got burned leaves, and this one was so little I wasn't sure it would make it. But so far, so good! Keep your fingers crossed. I'm tempted to throw some more seeds in this huge tub of dirt...

And Lastly - Squash

I think the picture speaks for itself. I like squash after a fashion, but if all this really produces squash, I think I'm going to be hauling it to work to give away... *sigh* As my sister found out with her tomatoes - too much of a good thing, ha ha! We'll see if that happens.

Tomorrow - updates on the Wilder book I wrote about last night. I am seriously having my eyes opened, I can tell you...

:D

PS - Does anyone know how to do the bread crumb thingy at the top of the page? Where you can put links to "Home" and all that jazz? I'd be much obliged if someone could shed some light on that... 

It's Not Just Me!

Ha ha! Look what I found in amongst some bargain books today!

Yes, it's just what it says. Someone apparently decided to try out half or more of the stuff in the Laura Ingalls Wilder books! I've only read the first chapter so far, but it's amazing how popular those books were and still are. 

I don't know if this speaks to how pervasive "classic children's literature" is, or just to how widely loved this particular series of books are. Or maybe it's just an innate sense in us all to preserve, save, prepare for the unknown. It could be some sort of yearning for a time when life was so much simpler. You did these things because they were necessary for survival. There weren't any other choices.

And crafts that are spoken of here? They were born out of necessity, but also the human need to be creative. No matter how many people try to tell me they "don't have a creative bone in their body", I don't ever buy it. Maybe it doesn't manifest in a way that "seems" creative, but even a change to a recipe has creative overtones. Creating a new type of display anyplace is a form of being creative. 

In the end, it's just nice to have validation that I'm not the only crazy one out here.  ;-) 

I wouldn't say I'm going as far as this book purports the author did, but I am looking forward to reading all of it. There must be a bit of Fate involved here, because A - I don't like shopping, but I was gratuitously shopping today, and B - this particular store has not ever, to my knowledge, had bargain books just sitting out in the middle of the aisle. 

I'm quite excited about it. Not just the sense of camaraderie, though. I just want someone else's take on it all. I am already sensing another read through of the books themselves, which I haven't read in years. And it's not like I'm exactly trying to "live" the Laura Ingalls life. 

But as I always say - never say never! Ha ha! And also - you never know where inspiration will strike.

:)

That Time of Year!

Halloween!

Ophelia dressed in her Halloween finery!

How can you tell it's Fall in South Florida? The temperature has been below 80 in the morning when I leave for work every day (that's 27 Celsius, in case you were wondering.)

And we all know Fall is the time for harvest (except here, of course, lol) and saving, etc. And all those awesome fall foods like soup and stuff. Including pumpkin pancakes. I'd never made pumpkin pancakes before, but as my sister assured everyone on her blog, I tried 'em. (see recipe here:  http://www.caleyskitchengarden.com/2013/10/easy-cheaters-recipe-pumpkin-pancakes.html )

Granted, I didn't have freshly cooked pumpkin. I'm having trouble finding the kinds of them that you cook down here. And I had an old can in my pantry. Waste not, want not, right? It worked for my purposes.

And a side note. No matter if they are regular or pumpkin, this is always the evolution of how pancakes end up getting made by me (I get this from my mom, btw. Hers are always like this, too.)

First cooked batch:

Yes, they got better, lol. Keep going...






Second cooked batch:  

And then the rest are like this:

The finished product (yep, there's more!):

And Now For Something Completely Different!

Quilts!

That's right - Quilts! Or um, one quilt for now. Quilting is a craft I am absolutely, positively NOT taking up! No sirree, I am not. It doesn't matter if my grandmother gave me a gazillion quilt blocks to be embroidered, nor does it matter that I have some of her quilting hoops... Nope. Not doin' it. (Have I convinced you yet? Because I don't know that I am totally convinced...)

My point is - my grandmother used to make quilts, too. She was a pretty crafty lady, ha ha! One of these days  I should scan in some pics of her... But I digress.

Oh - but funny story! And true! My grandmother was called "Granny". She had intended to be "Grandma" like most normal grandmothers. But apparently my Uncle John thought it would be funny to call her Granny, and as I was little and didn't know better, I started calling her Granny. And there you go. Now my mom is Granny, too, lol. Okay, sorry for another digression... On to the point of this post!

My grandmother had five grandchildren, of which I was the first. For my high school graduation, she made me my own quilt. As in, she stitched every bit of this by hand. Let me say that again - no sewing machine touched this quilt! (Unless you would consider my grandmother's hands to be a sewing machine!). She made one for each of us, in this same pattern (called Dresden Plate). And each of us had a different unifying color. Mine is, of course, blue:

And even more amazing pics...

The "Garden" Is Planted

Repeat - The "Garden" is Planted!

That's right - my experimental, no-dig garden is done. Or as much as can be done for now. If it is at all successful, I will definitely expand. But here are the pics for my progress:

1. The Foundation (ha ha!)

The building blocks - literally and figuratively, ha!

2. Actual "building"! (Or um, you know, assembly, lol)

3. Preparation for Planting

My holes for drainage - muy importante!

Oooo - Colorful!

And ta da! The Finished Product...

Sorry for the Delay - and a Culprit Has Been Found!

It's been a crazy week here on the ol' homestead (or you know, wannabe homestead - ha!) 

To make up for it, here are some pictures of one of my babies, Lilith Dade, aka Lily. 

Here are a couple of when she first came home from the shelter:

She was a skinny thing, but completely happy and loving. And sick. For real - she had to have a nebulizer and had to be treated twice a day with it, as well as antibiotics. Though she has the most *amazing* blue eyes

Here she is now:

With Phil, of course, a couple years ago, her best bud until Sophie came along. But since Sophie joined the household, there has been no more digging under the fence, so one problem solved, ha ha! 

And you know how they say that if you have a fat dog, *you* aren't getting enough exercise? Probably true...

I'll get on that soon, I swear!

And now - for the tomato culprit!