Oh-My-Garden!

I'm so happy, I'm so happy, I'm so happy.  The combination of cooler morning temps and a few days of "free" time gave me the luxury of working on our backyard.   Oh, my aching arms and back.   I may not be able to raise my left arm above my head for a week, but it was worth it.   Check out what our yard looks like now.

This is a plum tree that we planted in front of our porch out front.   The freeze of the last 2 winters finally killed our palms out there, so this is their replacement.   The tree is a Florida variety of plum that gets covered in white blooms in Spring and yields yellow plums in the summer.   Can't wait to see that show.  I also planted 3 pineapple plants in the shells out front since that's the best place for them to get full sun all day long.  We'll see if we get any fruit from them.

These are the two areas along our back fence.   Jeremy's dog, Winston, has worn a path along the fence chasing squirrels that run on top of the fence.  Now there are Sea Grapes and Banana trees planted there and they will fill in and take up several feet of depth leading up to the fence.  I'm hoping they will fill in and create a "second level" below all the foliage of our backyard neighbors tall growth.   Hey, we're going for a "tropical" look here, and that means more native plants.   These should be able to withstand any temperature changes without damage.

This is my first experience growing a fig tree.   I planted him about 5 months ago when he was only a foot tall and now he's over 6 feet!  And look at all the figs.  I had no idea that figs grew at the outcropping of each leaf along the trunk.   I check them every day to see if they are getting ripe because I don't want the squirrels to get them! 

And now, the veggie garden.  Right now it just has a functioning fence around it to keep out Winston.  Hmmm....but I have plans, baby, I have plans to take it to the next level.  More on that later.  (Poor Joel...)

This is just some of the lettuce and tomatoes that are coming up.   I think I've planted 5 different kinds of tomatoes and 3 lettuces.   We love salads at our house.

Cucumbers.....

Pole beans......

Tomatoes and eggplant....

Ok, you knew it was coming, didn't you?   Of course I had a cappuccino out there with me while I worked!   It gives me inspiration.....or something like that.

This is the bed with the pole beans and 3 different kinds of peppers.   Along the fence are the banana trees

and gondolay bean trees.   A gardener from Wilcox Nursery grew them and he is from Puerto Rico.  He planted them for me and taught me when and how to harvest them.     I'll let you know how that goes!

Banana..........

Gondolay  (pronounced like gondola except the ending sounds like lay),  I have no idea how it's spelled so I just spelled it phonetically for us!

Blueberry bushes.....

Herbs galore......

My oregano actually survived the summer heat and is going crazy!   So is the rosemary.   I use herbs from my garden every day when I cook and love to cut them fresh to pop in my recipes.    They are especially good dried in the dehydrator.  Oh, they smell so wonderful!

The aloe plant has gone crazy this year!

Well, that concludes the garden tour for this week.   If I'm really lucky, I'll be painting a lot of fencing this weekend and maybe I'll have pics to show you the finished product in a few days.  Then all that will be left is to bring in some seashell to cover the walkways.  

Happy, happy,

Debbie

In The News- But, D.Y.U.?

Hmmm, I've had this idea for a while now and after watching the news this morning, I decided to put my idea into action.    We all "hear" about what is going on around us in the world when we watch the news on tv, listen to commentators on the radio, or talk to our neighbors over the backyard fence.   But do we really "know" and/or understand what we're hearing and how all that is going on in Washington, D.C. is going to affect us personally?   I doubt it. 

So many bills and so much legislation is being passed at breakneck speed that there is no way to stay on top of all the changes being made that will profoundly change our way of life here in America.  With that in mind, every week or so I'm going to try and tackle a single topic and put it into simple-speak so we can all get a better handle on the most recent issue being debated in our nation's capitol.  I'm simply calling those entries to the blog, "D.Y.U.?" which stands for "Do You Understand?"

Today's subject involves the complex monstrous health care bill that Nancy Pelosi(D)  famously said,"We have to pass it for you to know what's in it?"   REALLY????   Are you kidding me?   Since when do our legislators willy-nilly pass a bill without reading it (how would you like to get away with that as part of your defense when talking to your banker?   "Well, gee, I didn't know I owed that much money to you.   I didn't read the document I signed when you gave me all that money."   Ummmm......I don't think the banker would care, he would just want you to pay him back according to the terms of the paperwork you signed.  I don't think it's unreasonable to ask my Senator and Representative to read and understand what they are signing into law on my behalf.

Well, the paperwork that was signed in Congress is unraveling as we speak.  On page 710 (go ahead, check it out yourself) of the healthcare bill is a description of how we will put money into an account that will "grow" so that when we reach Medicare age we will "draw" from that account and use those monies to pay for long term health care, if needed.   Simply put, Medicare Part A currently pays for hospitalizations and also pays for 100 days of care in a nursing home.  This new portion of the law would pay for longer term care in a nursing home.   Sounds pretty good, huh?   (Remember when your parents told you that you don't get something for nothing?   Or you get what you pay for?)  Just one problem, the CBO (the non-partisan Congressional Business Office), the folks who impartially "fact check" for our nation, have found that there just won't be anywhere near enough money to pay for all this nursing home care.  

Hmmmm......another financial pit.   Those leading our nation keep promising us a lot of "something" when we're not putting away enough money to pay for those "somethings".  So what is Congress going to do about it?   Well, they're scrapping that portion of the bill.   Yup, just cutting it out.   No big deal to me because I never thought the bill was going to benefit me or my family in any way, shape, or form.   But a lot of our congressmen voted "yes" for this bill based on this portion of it.   Huh, wonder how they're feeling today about their vote?

And while we're on the subject of healthcare....why are over 1400 companies being granted waivers from participating in this fabulous new healthcare law?   The number of waivers granted each week keeps climbing.   If this law is so wonderful, why are union based companies leading the charge to obtain a waiver so they don't have to comply with the new law that you and I will have to comply with?   Go ahead, Google it for yourself and see what is happening.

Stay smart, read for yourself from a variety of sources.   Don't believe me, I'm just a blonde with a computer, check into these important issues for yourself because one thing you can trust me on is this:   These issues WILL affect you and your family for years, if not generations, to come.   Get informed and then you will know who to vote for by the time the next election rolls around in 13 months.   Hey, I know you're busy, but who you elect can and will change the course of your life.   Don't believe me?   Just wait and see how your health care changes in the next 5 years because of the bill "we have to pass so you will know what is in it" takes over.

D.Y.U.?
Debbie

Trippin'

Four years ago, two of my favorite cousins came from Pennsylvania to visit me.   It was their first trip to Florida and the first time we had seen each other in  more than 20 years!  We had such a great time recalling our childhood memories and we certainly made some new memories together.   This morning I happened to come across some photos they had brought down with them.  I had made copies so I'd have some family history of my dad and his family.   Here are a few of them.

These two pics show my dad and my cousins' dad.  Yup!  They were identical twins!   We had an especially hard time telling them apart when we were kids but by the time I was an adult I knew which one was "my" dad.    One story from long ago says that my when my dad was 12, he went sledding down the mountain,  hit something and broke his leg.  Ouch!

See what I mean?    They sure do look alike there, too.  My dad is on the left in this photo.

Oh, how I'd love to sit on this swing again.   The swing was a staple of Grammy's backyard.   She was my dad's mom and the time I spent at her house are warm memories for me. The swing had a hand crank and if you wanted to use the swing you'd turn the crank and the swing would come down from it's raised position.   There was a huge slab of slate as a floor underneath the swing (we lived in the "Slate Belt" and slate was plentiful) and it was always cooler in the summer while beneath the large, protective overhanging roof.    Grammy's swing was so sturdy and lasted for years and years, not like the flimsy ones you see at home improvement stores today.   Could I have one just like it in my own backyard, please?

Ahhhhhhh.....the light bulb in my head just went on!   Now I know where my love of cars came from.  This is dad with his prized car he bought after he came home from the Korean War.  Yup, dad loved vehicles.   It didn't matter if it was a car or a motorcycle, he loved them all.   I'm so glad I reconnected with my cousins.   Thanks, girls, for sharing the early memories of our entwined lives with me.

Just trippin' down memory lane,
Debbie

Moving Day

Well, the time had finally come to move my mother-in-law closer to us.  Madalen is now 88 years old and still in good health but her memory is steadily decreasing which has given us reason to be concerned about her living an hour away from us.   It has taken us over a year to work out all the details but she is now living just 10 minutes down the road from our house in a warm, safe, inviting Christian environment with loads of activities to fill her day.

After getting her settled in her new apartment we still had to close out her old house.   Now you know what we did last weekend.   Jeremy went along and helped us clean out her shed/garage and then loaded my car with the bins we had filled from the house.   The guys did clown around and get the giggles (I think we were getting punchy by mid-afternoon) when Jeremy found a small flashlight with the words in tiny print on it saying, "For help with blindness, call 1-800-***-9311"

Then it was time to move the big stuff..............like the golf cart.   Don't you think Joel was really brave standing in front of Jeremy?   Hmmmmm......just saying......

Ok, enough fun for one day!   We headed home to unload and rest up for the next day.  Now where in the world am I going to put all of this?  

Thank goodness Jarrad and Dawn came down to help us Sunday or we would still be packing.  Jarrad and I tackled the kitchen which worked great for me.   His 6'6" frame made it easy to empty the top cupboards without a ladder and saved me from a lot of climbing up and down.   The really heavy work for the day was loading the piano into Jarrad's trailer........the one without a ramp.........ummmmm, yea!

All 4 of us need a back adjustment now, know anyone who could do that for us?  Ok, gotta keep on packing.   Dawn had a great interest in the hundreds of books Madalen has collected over the years, especially the Christian reference books.   She carefully spent hours choosing the ones she wanted and loaded them into their truck.   Jarrad had pulled so many things from Grandma's kitchen cabinets that they almost didn't have room for the books!   giggle....yes, Jarrad and I love to cook.  Every time we emptied a cabinet one of us would say, "Oh, that's cool.  I think I'll take that home."   Yup, our cars were filled to capacity.

This is the pile of books that remained even after 2 pastors, myself, Dawn, and Madalen had taken all that we felt we could use.   Wow, that's a lot of reference books.  I wish I had room for all of them but since we downsized our house not too long ago, that wasn't going to happen.

Before we locked the door and drove back over the Skyway Bridge one last time, I took a moment to walk thru the rooms that Madalen had called home for 18 years.  The rooms seemed tired when they were empty of all life from the one who used to live there.   Does anyone else find it hard to end a chapter in their life?   The bright side of this change is the wonderful new home where Madalen lives now.

The morning after she got moved in, we received a call from the assistant director.   She wanted to reassure me that Madalen had eaten a great breakfast that morning.   Mom had also gone to devotions with the ladies, played the organ for their hymn sing and was currently in exercise class.  WHAT?!?   In the 25 years I've known Madalen I've never known her to exercise.   Yes, I think she's adjusting just fine.

Now, if I could just find a place for that last bin that's sitting in the middle of my foyer.
Debbie

P.S.

Can't believe I forgot to include this side story when I was writing about my trip.   While I was at Jackie and Gary's house outside of St. Louis, Jackie was asking me questions about the drive and all the places I had visited.  She started giggling and said my trip was like the movie, "Ted's Excellent Adventure".   Except this was Debbie's Excellent Adventure!   And that's how the title for all the entries detailing my trip came to be.  Thanks, Jackie, for the inspiration.

The End,
Debbie

Just thought you'd want to know!

What's next?

I don't know about you, but I have so many hobbies that sometimes it's hard to decide which one to play with next!   There won't ever be a time when I feel bored because there are so many interesting skills I'd like to acquire.   It seems that my interests fluctuate seasonally, or at least over a period of months.   I'll get hooked on an idea for a quilting project and then all I want to do is quilt for a few months.   Then, some yarn will catch my eye and I break out my knitting needles and knit for hours on end.  

Besides the time I spend with my sweet family, working on creative projects brings me the most satisfaction I have ever felt.  Now that I'm back from my trip, I"m slowly getting back into the rhythm of our home life.   I've never been one to watch TV for hours on end, but Joel loves to.   One of the ways we "hang out" together is in the living room.   While he watches his favorite shows, I do handwork;  win-win for both of us.  It doesn't matter if it's hand quilting, embroidery or knitting, I just like to have something useful to occupy my hands.

Lynn and I went shopping at a very upscale store while I was in Kansas City.  As we were leaving I spotted this jacket.   It's more teal than this photo shows and I just couldn't seem to resist it.   She insisted I try it on, ha!   The kiss of death!   You should never try on something you are so attracted to because then you'll HAVE to buy it.   Well, here it is.   Yes, I bought it!  The lightweight wool is some of the softest I have ever laid my hands on and the tailoring is exquisite.   If there's one thing I really appreciate, it's high quality sewing.  

The scarf on the jacket is one I knitted last winter and it's one of my favorite things out of all the garments I've made over the years.   It is knitted in pie-wedged shapes so that when you wear it, it falls in ripples.   Too fun!

See what I mean?  Pretty cool, huh?

There is a little boutique knitting store only a few blocks from our house and every once in a while I drop in to see what's new.   The scarf above was made from Prism yarn (which, by the way, is a St. Petersburg yarn dying artist's company) and the included pattern I bought there.    About the same time that I bought that funky yarn, I spotted a book of patterns using very fine, mohair yarn.   The romantic styles in the book were just too appealing to resist.   Then, I had to buy the yarn to go with it!   Of course!
And here is what I made:   a scarf and.....some gloves.

The scarf can be worn like a wrap on a cool evening and has tiny beeds knitted into the lacey design.   I'd never knitted using beads before but found it was a great challenge I enjoyed.  The fingerless gloves intrigued me so much that I had to try my hand at making a pair.   Thank goodness it was cold enough quite a few days last winter that I actually had opportunities to wear them.  They are great to wear while driving a car because you can still use your fingers to answer the cell phone, etc.   

The latest knitting challenge I had was teaching myself how to knit socks.   Socks are really strange to make as you use 3 double ended needles and knit around and around so there isn't a seam to annoy your feet when wearing them.   It was really awkward figuring out how to hold the needles comfortably, but I finally figured out a way that worked for me.  Here's what I've finished so far.

And they're cozy, too!   I've already got another pair of socks on my needles and should have them done in a couple weeks.  Well, it's time to get some things done around the house.   Hope you get cooler weather wherever you are.........

Happy Fall,

Debbie

Oh-My-Scrumptious!

Are you a Foodie?   I think I'm a Foodie.   I love to grow food, I love to smell food, I love to cook and bake food, and I really love to eat food.  Yup.  It's official.   I'm a Foodie.

Remember when I told you I stopped at an orchard coming south through Missouri a couple weeks ago?   Well, I bought some apples there and  then Barb had picked some pears for me at a friends house near her in Alabama.   After I got my car unpacked from the trip and did forty nine loads of laundry (ok, maybe I'm exaggerating a bit) it was time to do something with the fruit before it spoiled.

Yum, here comes the good part.   Two of my crock pots came out of hiding and after peeling, coring, and slicing the apples, they went into the crock pots along with a little water, sugar and nutmeg.   By the end of the day I had chunky applesauce! 

Now, just what do you do with pears?   When I was a kid I remember my Aunt Etta canning pears from her trees so they'd have fruit all winter.   Didn't think I had enough pears to do that, so, I had to come up with Plan B.  Barb makes a delicious jam called Pear Honey, so, I got her recipe (actually, it's Paula Deen's) and started peeling. 

You just cook it down until it turns a gorgeous honey color and thickens and then it's ready to be put in jars and go through the canning process.   Now, I get a little nervous about canning.   Hey, I can't help it!   It's the nurse in me.  All those classes I took in microbiology make me far too aware of all the organisms that can make you sick if you don't do things just right. 

Well, you know what?    Everything went just fine.   I read cookbooks like other people read novels and I had been boning up on "how to" do this the right way.    It's been a few years since I canned anything but it all came back to me once I got into it. 

All you need are a few tools of the trade.   Doesn't that blue handled thing look like something you'd use to birth a calf?   Hey, I'm just sayin'!

Ta-Da!  Success!   And it tastes good, too!   Now I can't wait to do a few more jars of......hmmm, I need to figure out what I want to can next.

But wait.  There's more!   Wait till you see what I made 2 nights ago.

Make a yeast dough.   Saute onions till brown.   Cook 1 lb., yes I said 1 lb. of bacon and crumble.  Roll out dough, spread onions and bacon over dough.   Roll up and slice.

Put in pan.  Now let rise again and bake.

Can you smell it yet?

Eat and repeat.  Can I get an Amen, sister?  Is it any wonder I don't lose any weight?  Too bad.   I'd rather be fat and happy than skinny and bitchy.  Enough said.

I'm just sayin',
Debbie