Forest For The Trees

I took Quickbeam out this evening when I got home from work. We checked the mail and then went into the backyard. She likes to grab the windchimes and ring them wildly. I let her do it as long as my ears can stand it and then we look to see what is blooming. I was checking over the creeping phlox that is blooming, and the butterscotch jessamine. The 'pink chintz' thyme even has a few blooms on it. And then I suddenly realized that the Lady Banks rose had buds all over it and that some had even started to open...go figure. I almost didn't see the forest for the trees. :)

A Visitor

This morning my 15-month old daughter was standing looking out the front window as she likes to do sometimes. I heard her tapping around on the glass and didn't think much of it. Then she came over and sat on my lap, and the tapping was still going on. So I went over to look and imagine my surprise when I saw the gentleman above, sitting on the windowsill. He would sit there and look intently, I am assuming at his reflection, and then would start fluttering around and pecking at the glass. We have a tint on the windows that reflects light out so I couldn't get a very good picture through it. He kept at it for almost an hour this morning, and his lady girlfriend was sitting on the rosebush outside the window being mightily impressed by her man.

I actually had big plans for this weekend, we were going to finish cleaning up the front flower beds and do some weeding in the back, but a big storm yesterday and this morning put that off of the table. It actually sounded pretty scary last night and we were under a tornado warning for a while. Thankfully it blew over and we didn't have any problems except for some clutter from the back porch blowing around in the yard.

Alas, I guess the weeds in the scree garden will have a few more days to grow. Hopefully the weather will be better next weekend!

Gaylord Opryland Resort - Nashville

We're finally back from our Nashville trip and very glad to be at home. My dad stayed at the Gaylord Opryland and we visited him there Friday and Saturday. We packed up before the sun came up this morning and headed home. I am definately glad to be back. The Gaylord was beautiful but was really crowded and really expensive. We stayed at a nearby hotel and drove over. Here are some of the pictures that I took. For those that haven't heard of it the Gaylord is a huge hotel/resort/convention center almost like a big greenhouse. There are waterfalls, rivers and even boat rides in it.

There were beautiful plants everywhere. I lusted after quite a few of them.

And there were fish in the ponds and streams.

And there was other wildlife too.

Overall it was a fun visit, and it was good to see my family. Now I am back to reality and have to get ready for work tomorrow. Boooooo!

Spring Fever

I don't like to complain...oh nevermind I really do. I have been down with the flu since Saturday evening. After a couple of really bad days I have felt quite a bit better but my low grade fever has been dragging on and on. I really hope it is gone today because my dad and his wife are coming in to Nashville this weekend and we are supposed to go up and see them. Of all of the weekends the flu had to walk in on, it had to be this one. ;) So enough of my crying...

All around outside spring is happening. My creeping phlox is a blanket of color right now. The Butterscotch Jessamine above actually had buds on it back in January and was the first thing to bloom in the garden this year.I even have a bloom on my strawberry plant. :)

And finally my daffodil is getting ready to bloom too.

Why Primroses are a Bad Idea

Okay, maybe not for everyone in every situation, but definately for me and mine. I planted them in a couple of our houses and apparently they didn't do very well. I've always been enchanted by their pretty flowers as pictured here.

The problem is that they spread seedlings EVERYWHERE. I mean there are hundreds of them coming up in the front flower bed, long after the original plants got yanked up. If I ever get these things eradicated they will never be planted in one of my flower beds again. Unless I have a really big area that needs to be naturalized I guess. :)

In Like a Lion

We woke up this morning to a blustery snowy day. I know that my readers farther North are probably not impressed but this is the first snow that we had this year that stuck. I got my little one up and dressed and took her outside to see the white stuff.

I still only have the flowering quince that is blooming and got a similar picture this time last year.

And to make things even better I got this in the mail yesterday.

Magazine Stash - Part Four

It's been a busy week here. I've had midterm tests and papers to write. I have also been busy at work and there isn't much going on outside yet. But now the tests and papers are done for the moment and I am back to my decluttering project.

Crimson Flag - These have such a beautiful and vibrant color.

Hopley's Oregano - Another beautiful plant for the fall garden. This has beautiful red-violet foliage and bluish foliage.

Corbett's Red Heather - I tried to find a source for this but couldn't. It is heather with reddish foliage. Again, good for the fall garden.

'Golden Ring' Japanese Barberry - Can you tell that it was a fall magazine that I was looking at? I had a barberry bush in my garden in NC but haven't gotten around to planting one here.

Climbing Carolina Aster - Okay, so I swore off of more climbing plants, but I might have to make an exception here.

Snowdrops - Another of the bulbs that I need to get planted.

Flowering Maple - I would like to get one of these because they remind me of my Grandpa. He had one shortly before he died. I just need to decide what color to get. :)

Green Thumb Sunday 2/15/09 - Flowering Quince

I finally have something different too look at. :) The flowering Quince in the front flower bed bloomed. It has had buds on it for the last month or so and they finally opened up. I spent part of the afternoon outside letting our Munchkin run around and get worn out for napptime. It was a beautiful day with puffy white clouds in the sky. Not bad for Febrary!

Green Thumb Sunday 2/8/09

There's nothing new really to report. There are a couple of bulbs pushing up, and some buds on the flowering quince. It was a beautiful afternoon, warm and sunny. I happened to look out the window and caught a bluebird on the remains of the succulent feeder. I admit that we went for a drive yesterday and I left my camera at home so of course missed a truly spectacular cloud picture. It never fails that you see something truly impressive when you don't have your camera.

There are a lot of branches and bark fallen from the treeline in the back. I love the textures and patterns of the lichen.

And of course my creeping phlox is still plugging away like a trooper. :) I'm sure you'll all be glad when I have another plant to take pictures of :)

Green Thumb Sunday

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Random Thoughts

The weather today was in the 60's and we spent some time outside with Quickbeam. Mostly letting her run off some steam. I stood for a few minutes basking in the warm sunlight and listening to the sound of the wind in the trees. I used to live in a wooded area and heard it all the time. I was struck by how rarely I hear it these days. Sometimes living in civilized areas isn't such a good thing.

On another front, I read an interesting article yesterday. The Dollar Stretcher is of of my favorite websites. This article discussed how so many people try to manage their weight and debt, when it's their cluttered lifestyle that causes the main problems. An interesting thought. :)

I made a comment on Rosemary's blog about an issue that I have when cutting back on expenses. Even though cutting back is something that I WANT to do and decide to do willingly, it is always painful for the first couple of weeks. I am a PITA because I am feeling whiny and deprived. Then I get into the groove and am fine. That's why we try not to binge and purge depending on our income, but establish a sensible spending limit that we can stick to through highs and lows.

So as always I am thankful for our blessings. :)

Part Three

Down to business:

Irises - I am a sucker for a Irises (though not so much the bearded ones). It is probably one of my favorites. I got a mixed order of Siberian Irises last year from Roots & Rhizomes, including Ego, but I only got one bloom from them so far. I found an article about them and my eye got caught by Bumblebee Deelites. Kind of funny how I want to attract bees to my garden and then find a flower that looks like them. ;)

Viburnum - I want to add lots of fall color to my garden and Viburnum is a good way to do so.

Ruby Grass - Grass is something that I want to add more of to my garden. All flowers can be pretty boring. This Ruby Grass caught my eye. It's zone 8 but I think it might work in the protected corner of the garden. I can't ever pick the easy ones. :)

Henry Eilers - I love novel flower shapes and this version of the brown-eyed susan caught my eye.

Fu Dog - My husband and I both have a love for Asian inspired art. I would like to find a Fu Dog (Chinese Guardian Lion) statue to put in our garden.

Cherry Trees - I love the coppery colored bark on some of the cherry trees, as well as the blooms. I would like one but I don't really want more shade in the yard. I will have to weigh it. :)

Cardinal Flower - This is one of the plants that I would like to put around my pond or streambed. It's been on my wish list for a while.

Indian Pink - This is a new one for me, I saw it in an issue of Alabama Gardener. Beautiful flowers aaaannndddd a hummingbird magnet. :)

Passionflower - I have been intrigued by these flowers for a long time. There is something that is so over the top about them that I both want one and don't. I usually favor very simple, classic flowers but every now and then more novel plants creep into my garden.

Choptank Azalea - I saw this in an article and immediately fell in love with it. Rarefinds is the only place that I have been able to find it.

And, by the way I underestimated the number of magazines, it had to have been 40 or more. I'm about 2/3 of the way through now and my bookcase is definately getting roomier. Almost like seeing results from a diet. :)

Pruning Part Deux

I took some time over the weekend to work on my magazine stack. I actually made some pretty good progress and had some help from my offspring. :)

Bioswale - There was a really nice picture of a bioswale in one of my magazines. It was the one that gave me a vague idea when I saw the drainage ditch in our back yard. It is basically a dry streambed, with gravel and larger rocks and plants on the side. I would like to do something like that with our ditch.

Blue Spruce - I love, love, love the blue spruces and would like to find something like that to plant around here somewhere. I'm not sure if they themselves do well in our area, but there has to be something with that silvery green foliage.

Centaurea - I love the blooms on the Centaurea plants, I needs one. :)

Chick Fountain - One of the pages had a neat picture of a bird bath with hen and chicks spilling over the edges. It would be neat to combine other succulents in with it too.

Bird Garden - One of my plans is to have a nature garden outside of our breakfast nook window. I'd like to be able to see a lot of birds, bees and butterflies. So I found a pretty in-depth article on gardens specifically to attract birds. I already have a lot of the plants that it calls for in my regular garden and I could probably divide some of them for this.

• Black-Eyed Susan
• Bee Balm
• Blazing Star
• Butterfly Weed
• Goldenrod
• Joe Pye Weed
• New England Aster
• Coneflower

Pardancandas (Candy Lilies) - I have always been attracted to these in garden catalogs. I had a blackberry lily (which is one of the parents of these) once upon a time but for some reason never got one of these.

Poppies - I love poppies and have tried unsuccessfully to grow a couple of them. Maybe one day I'll get the hang of them. :)

Scree Gardens - I found the article that inspired me to make my scree garden to begin with. I've been happy with my initial attempt, but I need to tweak my plantings next year. I have to say that Sweet Alyssum was my best performer.

Castles - I found a garden of a gent that made miniature castles in his garden for his kids. This also ties into my miniature something that I want to make in honor of Ave Maria Grotto.

Strawberry Cake - There was a recipe in a Martha Stewart Outdoor Living magazine for a strawberry cake that looked goooooooood.

6 Tbs. (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pie plate

1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 c. plus 2 Tbs. sugar

1 large egg

1/2 c. milk

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1 lb. (1 1/2 pints) strawberries, hulled and halved

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 10-inch pie plate. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl. Put butter and 1 c. sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to medium-low; mix in egg, milk and vanilla. Reduce speed to low; gradually mix in flour mixture.

Pour batter into buttered pie plate. Arrange strawberries on top of batter, cut sides down and as close together as possible. Sprinkle remaining 2 Tbs sugar over berries. Bake cake 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325. Bake until cake is golden brown and firm to the touch, about 1 hour. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool in pie plate. To serve, cut into wedges. Cake can be stored at room temperature, loosely covered, up to 2 days.

Jumping Off the Starbucks Wagon

One of our goals this year was to reduce our elective spending and focus on getting our bills paid off and building up an emergency savings. One of our major major wastes of money was going out in the evenings and getting coffee and pastries or cookies. If we went to Starbucks we would spend about $12 or so, if we went to McDonalds and got cookies and coffee it would be about $4. Either way we would spend the money to get there. So I have been trying to make coffee at home but the cookies part wasn't happening. A couple of nights ago I got the urge again but didn't want the mess of cookies. I started thinking about shortbread because we have an extra box of butter in the fridge that needs to be used up before it goes bad. So I went to Baking Bites because it is one of my favorite cooking blogs. She has a recipe there for Cashew Brittle Bars that are basically shortbread with cashews in it. We just got a big container of cashews at Sam's so it was like a perfect storm. I baked them and it was one of the best baked goods I have ever tried. I even have a shortbread pan that makes the thistle imprint on the surface of them. Note that for my shortbread pan I cut the recipe in half and it fit perfectly.

Since we both have a tendancy to pig out on any baked goods that are around the house we both ate one of the bars. I froze the rest in a ziploc baggie and took them out to reheat them when we got the coffe/pastry urge. It has worked out beautifully so far. The bars are by far better than anything at either place and so we're not going out anymore. It isn't exactly healthy for us, but neither were their snacks. So here's one for cutting costs and still getting comfort. :)

Pruning

Over the years I have collected a lot of gardening books and magazines. Books I will refer to from time to time, but it isn't often that I leaf through magazines or catalogs except for right after I buy them. So I have a pretty big stack of magazines in the bookshelf that I have been meaning to get around to. I want to go through them, pick out the ideas that I like and come up with a plan for my garden area here. So with that in mind I decided that I would start trying to go through a magazine or two a week and see where I end up.

The first victim of the culling was a Better Homes and Gardens special edition from 2007. Here is what I liked in this magazine:

1. Bonsai - I have always been fascinated by bonsai and so I would like to incorporate a specimen in my garden. I actually have some plans on doing some sort of tribute to the Ave Maria Grotto here in Cullman, AL and could work a bonsai into that. So I need to figure out what kind of tree I want and whether to do it from seed or buy one already started.
2. Hollyhocks - I really love the simple charm of the single hollyhocks and think they would be good for a back border. So somewhere in my plan I need to put a stand of these.
3. My whole pond area is up for redesign this year and I want to incorporate a streambed with some small waterfalls into it. I am working on a sketch of my ideas and will post it when I get it done.
4. I saw a cleome plant at the house of one of my friends. I have decided that I need this plant in my garden too. And maybe I can beg some off of her since it tends to naturalize. :)
5. Soil improvement - I need to work on a good soil mix for my raised beds.
6. Reading bench - I would love to make a reading spot out in my garden. I'm trying to figure out a way that it could have some shade but not be too shady, if you get my meaning. And finding a comfy bench/chair is going to be tough...has to be okay to sit in for a while but still be able to be left outdoors.

So there are the results from magazine #1. Seeing how big of a list came from one magazine I think I'm in for it since I have about 25-30 of them to go through. ;)

Volatility

I stepped outside this afternoon at work and couldn't believe how warm and bright it was. I went back inside and checked the weather and it was 67 degrees outside and sunny. 67 degrees! In January! And you know what is so ironic? It is supposed to snow tomorrow. :P And then get up to 47 degrees. The only thing predictable about winter weather here is that it won't be predictable at all. Since the days are starting to get longer also it was light long enough to take a walk after we ate dinner. We also had a bonfire around sunset time taking care of some brush wood that has fallen along the back treeline while the baby ran around on the grass. It was definately a much more pleasant evening than we've had in a long time.

Green Thumb Sunday 1/25/09

It's a beautiful balmy 47 degrees for a high today so I am not going to complain that it is a bit chilly outside. I looked out in the back garden today and saw that my winter all-star creeping phlox is still blooming so I had to feature it. There were a lot of birds taking a bath and getting a drink in the pond today, so it was an interesting show out the back window. There are still a lot of seedheads on the plants that I'm going to have to take care of and cut back sooner or later.

I loved the contrast of the spiky shadows on the rocks under the coneflower seedhead.

And there are still the remnants of the three aster blooms from last fall.

And as if taunting me for my inactivity the horsetail has runners up three feet or so from the main plant. I mean to pull it up in the spring and haven't decided if I want to put it in a container or just get rid of it. I'm not feeling too sympathetic for it right now. :)

Book Challenge - Cache Lake Country

I was visiting Rosemary's blog and saw the Book Challenge and had to see what mine is. Here is what the challenge is:

Grab the nearest book.
* Open the book to page 56.
* Find the fifth sentence.
* Post the text of the next two to five sentences in your blog along with these instructions.
* Don't dig for your favorite book, the cool book, or the intellectual one: pick the CLOSEST.

Rosanne is passing this challenge on, one she found from Every little thing blog.This is a fun idea to see what everyone is reading in the midst of a very cold winter.

My book is Cache Lake Country: Life in the North Woods. My very good friend One Hope, One Heart just got it for me for Christmas. Here goes:

"If a strip is short you sew it to the end of another. The next step is to twist the strips around thin hide thongs until they form what looks like a fur covered rope.These pieces are then woven into a robe about four foot wide and eight feet long. You want them wide enough to roll in and plenty long enough so your head can be covered. Some Indians make their robes of flat striips cut lengthwise of the skin and then sewed end to end."

These are instructions for making a rabbit skin robe. The book is about a gent that gets a job as a land surveyer and finds a remote lake. He builds a cabin and lives there. It's on my reading list, but I had it out looking at the illustrations on some of the pages. Thanks Rosemary! :)

......

I am a bit in shock today because today 20% of the people in the company that I work for got laid off. I don't think that my job is in jeopardy right now (at least until the next round!) but it is such a grim thing to have happen and makes you think a lot. One was a good friend of mine and the rest were mostly people that I saw and interacted with daily. Definately makes one re-examine economic decisions and think hard about plans for the future. And definately makes one appreciative of the blessing that a job is. :)

Chili Weather

All that I can say is that I'm really glad that we didn't have anywhere that we had to be this weekend. It is cold. Not quite as cold as the -40 that Minnesota is having, but cold for here. :) The picture above is the ice on my lotus container. We went down to Lake Guntersville this morning to have brunch with a friend of ours at the Outlaw Steakhouse. I had ideas of getting some good pictures to post while we were there because it is very scenic. I quickly decided though that maybe the springtime would be a better time for pictures.

So we came home and I decided that we would have chili and grilled cheese sandwiches for supper. Here is my reliable stand-by chili recipe.

1 lb. ground sirloin
1 medium onion, chopped
1 green pepper, diced
1 (5 oz) can of tomato juice
1 (16 oz) can of petite diced tomatoes
2 (16 oz) cans of black beans, drained
1/4 c. chili powder
1 tsp. cumin
1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. each black pepper, oregano, sugar
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

In a frying pan, brown the ground beef, onions and green peppers. Put the remaining ingredients in a pot, cover and let simmer for 30 minutes or so.

I personally don't drain the beef because ground sirloin has barely any but if you used a higher fat percentage you would want to.

:( :( :( :( :(

Holy cats is all I have to say. It was coooold, and 14 degrees had actually warmed up some. It wasn't too bad when in the sun and the wind wasn't blowing. At least I am home for the long weekend and the fireplace is going. I think some hot chocolate is in order. :)