Thursday, June 21, 2012

Garden Diary: Basil Volunteers

 Yippee! I counted over forty little basil volunteers in my herb bed! Can't wait to make pesto!




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Friday, June 15, 2012

At Krispy Kreme




Krispy Kreme in Branson is always one of Talon's must stops. He drags mom and dad in kicking and screaming. Ha! If you know us for reals, then you know that is a lie. We race Talon to the door! Free doughnut, people, free doughnut!  (we buy a dozen too so as not to appear totally tacky)




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Thursday, June 14, 2012

Garden Diary: My Gardens 2012

After last summer's triple digit heat wave and drought that hit in early June, I declared: No more gardening!  

Hahaha! Yeah, right.  I've declared that the last few summers of uncooperative weather.  But I do have less garden this year so that if it all goes south I won't have too much money, time and effort invested.

Here are the garden beds that I'm utilizing this summer:

My small main herb garden.  Well, mainly basil garden in the summer but my Mexican tarragon, chives, lemon balm and chamomile also live here along with a few flowers. 

A couple of weeks ago, I pulled up most of the pansies, lettuce and radishes but left a few to flower and drop seeds. I filled in the new empty spaces with marigold and dill seeds which are already sprouting.


Here is my second largest  garden bed and it houses a combo of herbs, flowers and veggies. This is the garden that I can see right out of my kitchen windows. So pretty and peaceful to watch all the bees, butterflies and hummingbirds enjoying the garden.  

Lavender, sage and rosemary are permanent residents.  I have a large patch of okra growing behind the lavender and sage with  green beans, squash and zucchini scattered around. 

The flowers that are already up and blooming are volunteers.  Like with the small herb bed, I recently pulled up the cool season crops and sowed summer crops in the spaces.  Later photo updates won't look so bare!




This little garden bed is built around an old clothesline pole with fencing for vining plants. I have three such poles-- the previous garden bed shown has one too. 

Right now, there are extra cucumbers starting to climb on this one and a large cherry tomato which is too small to see right now. Also, a patch of carrots in limbo... more about them in an upcoming garden diary.



My only round garden! It has daylillies and a variety of flowers and veggies most of which are just sprouting.


My big garden which is actually two rows shorter this summer. See I am gardening less!  This is where the tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, cucumbers, beans, squash and gourds live.

I took these photos over a week ago and my gardens are getting more lush everyday. Just wait till the next photos!

Hope y'all enjoyed this tour of my 2012 summer gardens and stay tuned for more garden diary updates! 

What is growing good in your garden so far this summer?



Joining these parties:
Thursday Favorite Things party hosted by the lovely Katherine of Katherines Corner!
Happiness is... hosted at Rub Some Dirt On It.

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Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Biking at the Park

Talon has been practicing riding his new bike at the park.  The park is much safer and easier than the rocky driveway and the weedy hole-ridden pasture at home.  He is still a bit shaky and stayed on the grass during the first trip to the park.  But these photos are from the second trip to the park...


And Talon gave the paved exercise path a go!  Look at him concentrate and...


Off he goes!


Talon is so proud of his new skill.  And Mom and Dad are too.  We were a bit worried for his sake since he was so frustrated and discouraged at first.  Learning new gross motor skills is always a bit of a challenge for Talon but we took it slow and easy and step by step.  And now he is peddling like a pro!  

Well, some day soon he will be peddling like a pro.  It is funny how many things a newbie has to learn about riding that we 'old hands' never think about:  coasting, tapping the brakes to slow but not stop, turning, veering around holes and obstacles,  stand up pedaling for more power and braking. 

Ah, braking! Braking is such an important riding skill to master.  I sure hope Talon starts remembering to use the brakes soon.  He brakes like Fred Flintstone which isn't very efficient and is quite terrifying for his parents! 

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Monday, June 4, 2012

Gift of Orange


Talon ended his first grade year reading at a third grade sixth month level!  Wow!  Needless to say, Talon's first grade teacher, Mrs. R,  was fabulous! So dedicated, energetic, creative and fun!  


We wanted to give Mrs. R a special end-of-the-year thank you gift.  But what?  She gardens and  loves orange (Go Pokes!) so when we spotted a display of these gorgeous Asiatic Lillies 'Tiny Dino' it was an 'Eureka!' moment. 

But I could not find a decorative orange (Go Pokes!) pot in the correct size to save my life so used this lovely fabric to hide a plain beige pot. It added the perfect finishing touch! 



So if you ever need to pretty up a plain pot for a gift or for home/party decor, look in the fabric/craft section at Walmart or Target ect.  There is a display of  ready-to-use fabric squares in various sizes and in a rainbow of gorgeous colors/patterns to choose from.   I don't frequent that section of the store so had no idea such handy dandy fabric squares existed.


So what did Mrs. R say when Talon presented the lilly:  It's my favorite color!

Linking to: Macro Monday




 

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Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Can You Spot The Real Boy?


Can you spot the real boy?  


He moved! Can you spot him now?


   Talon has been  posing with mannequins since age three.  Wonder if he will outgrow this behavior? Probably not as long as his parents keeping laughing.  And not as long as his mom continues to indulge in the silliness of posing with mannequins too.  Actually, I hope he never outgrows the silliness...


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Saturday, May 12, 2012

Breakfast at School


Talon's school invited all the moms to a breakfast in honor of Mother's Day.   



Breakfast with my little boy. What a lovely way to start the day!



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Vehicular Inflatable Fun at the Mall


Isn't this a cute inflatable bouncy slide?  Talon had lots of fun bouncing...


and punching and sliding with Lightning McQueen. 


 But his favorite was this monster truck slide. 



He had never seen one like this before. Very cool!


And a bit creepy! And very tall...


There is Talon way up in the tippy top.  Hallooo, Talon!





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Monday, April 23, 2012

A Blanket of Buttercups


These buttercups bloomed overnight. Like magic! 

We spend a lot of time outdoors and  I'm very observant where nature is concerned but I still had to ask my little boy: Were these flowers here yesterday?  Just to confirm that I wasn't losing my mind and all powers of perception.    

Such pretty little flowers.  And they are small-- only about 1/2 inch in diameter.  I love the vibrant yellow and in person the blossoms gleam as if wet. Don't know how to make the sheen show up in a photo so please take my word for it-- the flowers look wet even on a dry day. Very unusual.



Now friends, if you run across a field of buttercups don't be tempted to weave flower wreaths.  Buttercups are toxic!  To livestock and humans. 

In humans, handling the plants can cause contact dermatitis.  I got an itchy little blister on my ankle from wading through these buttercups.  The lengths I'll go to... even endangering life and limb for your entertainment!

Buttercups are members of the the genus Ranunculus and you can learn more here.

Joining these lovely parties:
Mellow Yellow Monday
Macro Monday Pin It

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Red In My Garden


These vibrant red cuties in my spring garden are Scarlet Globe radishes.  Very aptly named and very tasty too. What veggies are growing in your garden this week?

Joining the Ruby Tuesday 2 party this week.  Pin It

Monday, April 16, 2012

Daffy for Dillies


I'm downright daffy for daffodils.  Such merry blossoms... so many shades of yellow welcoming the warm spring sunshine.  

These earliest blooms grow in my herb bed. 

Notice that I'm working the daffodil look myself... yellow blouse, green capris, dirt brown sandals. Silly? Maybe...  but it is a celebration of spring and a girl must dress for the occasion! 


Oh, I just love these frilly trumpets!



A few of the naturalized daffodils in the front forty.

I planted a bushel of mixed bulbs 13 years ago and it was full of  lovely surprises. 

These daffodils run the gamut from white to cream to yellow to orange... from giant blossoms to petite clusters... from long trumpets to no trumpets.

Notice the flower with the spider. Looks like it has fangs of its own-- Mr. Spider better watch out!




Did I mention I was daffy for daffodils?

 Yep, daffy at the very least...  



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Mystery of the Lone Daffodil

On an early spring nature walk, I spotted a lone daffodil at at edge of the woods near the creek.


See it?

I don't remember planting a bulb in such a faraway out of sight location.  But I must have... how else would it get there?  Do animals bury bulbs?


Daffodils are minglers so it is odd to see a loner.  Sure cheers up this desolate patch ground though. But I really need to get it some neighbors so it doesn't have to work so hard.





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Monday, April 9, 2012

Egg Day Photo Diary 2012


 Egg Man!



 He stands out in the crowd!


 At the school egg hunt, Talon found 19 eggs. That was the most eggs found and he won a chocolate bunny!  Later, Talon told me he actually found 20 but gave one away to a friend who hadn't found many.  What a good boy! I think I will keep him!



The Easter Bunny stopped by...  he left the basket on the hood of the car out of the reach of  naughty not-to-be-trusted canines.

 Eggs everywhere! In trees, on the house, in garden plants and odd little holes.  I hid one egg in the car muffler. Not the most brilliant idea I've ever had.  When Talon tried to get it, he pushed the egg too far in.  No worries though-- Hub started the engine and the egg plopped right out!

 The Grand Prize Egg!



Happy  Egg Day 2012!
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Sunday, April 1, 2012

A Birthday!



Talon is very excited to be seven! 

His birthday was the last weekend of our spring break so our little holiday ended with a big bang.  

This year, instead of a decorated cake with a toy on top from the bakery, he asked for a homemade tiered coconut cake. What a funny boy!  I did the best I could-- at least the cake wasn't too lopsided.  Talon thought the cake was very fancy. He was so thrilled with it that he has already put in an order for a cake with eight tiers for his next birthday.  Yeah, right... 



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Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Talon's February Photo Diary

Hee-Haw! Riding a donkey during intermission at his school's donkey basketball game. 

Talon's class made dalmatian hats to celebrate 100 days of school!
Did you know that dalmatians can play video games?


Playing sniper from the top of the stairs.  Sometimes he gets sniped back.


Aw, Talon spent a day at my school.  He attended PreK and Kindergarten at my school and I've missed seeing him during the school day.  He had a ball seeing his old friends, helping out with speech therapy and picnicking at my desk.


   
Making hearts with his teacher at the Valentine party.
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