Cold cold cold

Its cold. I hate cold. I have a job I need to finish, but its too cold. I dont live in Texas for this.

Planted spinach

I transplanted some of the spinach seedlings into 4" containers today. I also left a notebook for N in a baggy to keep it dry. Now we can leave notes for each other. I also made us a greenhouse soap-on-a-rope by making a hole in a round bar of gardeners soap and running a length of garden twine through it. I hung it on the end of one of the benches.

Planted up a flat of ????

I made the same mistake I make every single year. I started some seeds and did not label the flats. So I think I potted collards in four inch pots, but it could be mustard or kale. I think the kale got mixed in with the trailing snap dragons, but, again I am not sure because I didn't label the flats. The only things I can identify are the lettuce, spinach, and beets. I will promise to label the flats next year, but if my history is any indication of my future, I will be complaining about this again next year. I will probably do it again this year when I start tomatoes and peppers.

Michael's Birthday

Michael was born the day after Christmas 1997. He was the best late Christmas present ever. Much love to Michael Ray.

Here's Michael

Time to get busy

We made it through the holiday and had a great time. Over the next week I want to complete my winter garden with the rest of the veggies in the green house. We have spinach, more Swiss chard, lettuce, collards, beets, and kale. In a few weeks seed potatoes will come out and I will leave a space for those. Here pretty soon I will be starting tomatoes on top of the drier then move the the green house when they are an inch tall. Also need to start some more rose bushes. Time to get busy.

The mom with her girls

Garden bunnys

Here is a picture of Michael with Lucy. She is nice and gets to come inside sometimes. Her sister Star is not nice, and does not get to come inside. They make great compost (rabbit crap)

Michael with Lucy

Dora and Gracie in their hats

Another freeze

It froze again last night after the weather people said is wasn't supposed to. I think I may have lost a couple of potted pansies. Oh well.

After the first freeze

The tomatos melted...















but the cabbage and Swiss
chard are just fine

Note for the spelling police

Ha ha according to my last post, I am going to have literate tomatos.

It is freezing

Well at this time it is not actually freezing yet, just down to 36. It is supposed to go down to 28 tonight. Below is a picture of the things I brought in from the garden. There is swiss chard, green tomatos, dill, fennel, basil, chili pequin (red and green), and one really ugly carrot. The bunnys will get the carrot, we will eat the rest of it. Most of the tomatos will turn read after a while. I just leave them in a bowl in the table. The boys will eat them as they turn red. I dont know if the green chilis will turn red the same way, but I am going to give it a shot. The red chilis will dry in the bowl after which I will put them in jars for storage. They make an awsome tobasco type sauce with salt and cider vinegar.

Things I brought in before the freeze

I cut it anyway

This is the broccoli that I posted a picture of ten days ago

Gracie with Broccoli

Here is Logan wearing your hat while writing about Abe Lincoln

Logan writing while wearing meme's hat

Get down from the stove

Going to have to start this list of things I never imagined I would have to say again. See the list on the right.

I caught the yarn monster

I have been fussing at the boys for two days about balls of yarn all over my office floor. Well, they didn't do it. It was Tisha. I caughter her in the act just didn't get a picture for evidence. Here she is a few minutes after her crime pretending she didn't do it.

Yarn monster

Trying out cabbage recipes

I picked a few very large outer leaves off of our cabbage today. We tried making it like we make Swiss chard.

Saute onion in olive oil until translucent, stir in shredded cabbage, add 1/2 cup chicken broth and cook down (about 10 minutes) stir in two tablespoons balsalmic vinegar. This time I also added a little thyme, parsley, and a chopped up Granny Smith apple at the end.

It was good, but the swiss chard is better. Michael said it needed salt.

Christmas presents for the boys teachers

Below is a picture of the hats I am making for the boys' teachers this year. Kurt picked out those colors. I have to make a scarf and wrist warmers to go with that one and two more sets for Michael's teachers. Plus the Meme wants a set.

Made a hat for Kurt's teacher

Santa Baby

Reusable bags are now cute

Our very pretty, very fashionable neighbor proudly showed me the reusable canvas bags she bought at Brookshire's for her groceries. She likes them because they are cute. Going green just got a cute endorsment in little old Crandall. She most likely will not think my homemade string bags are nearly as cool.

Broccoli

Larry has become crazy about the broccoli. He has decided it is his and we will cut it when HE feels like it. We had to eat store bought frozen broccoli for dinner (of course I steamed it), because he feels like HIS broccoli needs to be bigger.

Finished another one

I finished Whitney's quilt at about 6:45 this morning for all of you who think I sleep all the time.

Whitney's Quilt

Sweep the deck

Logan, Michael, and I cleaned up the deck this afternnon. The leaves are all swept and the pansies are in their pots. I took a before picture, but it was too dark to take an after when we finished. I will take a picture tomorrow and post it.

Broccoli

It seems like overnight our first tiny little head of broccoli grew into something big enough to eat. We will give it a few more days and cook it.

Broccoli

Christmas party quilt

My SIL, Freya, ended up getting the quilt. She was not inclinded to trade.