ARRRRGGGGG.....

Enough said about that.


On to more fun stuff like these Easter ideas that I found on the net:
A simple yet adorable pear salad (or garnish) and some cute biscuits. 
I think they both came from Woman's Day magazine.

My favorite pear bunny is this one.

I love pears in cottage cheese (note the cottage tail--too cute!)

I am not cooking for Easter this year, but I will save these ideas for next year.

Snowy, Windy, Cold Sunday/Coldwater Creek Disappointment

I am spending a bit of the afternoon making a wine label for a tablescape I will be doing soon.

On Friday I was contacted by a dealer of Mikasa dinnerware. The guy said he had been to my tablescaping blog and liked my zebra table.  He said he would like to send me a service for four of this dinnerware and in return he would like me to do a table and post a review.  Cool! (You can tell I was a teenager in the 70's).

If you have been following me for long, you know my weakness one of my weaknesses is dishes. I have had to stop buying because I already own well over 2 dozen patterns and I have no more space. I love animal print dishes. The fact of having no more space passed through my mind for exactly 30 seconds before I hit reply and said that I would be thrilled to set a table with these dishes! I know, I am weak...I can always pack away a set I rarely use.  I have no square sets of dinnerware and I have no leopard print dishes.   I need these dishes!

So in anticipation of setting a new table, I made my own wine label to go with the theme. There is no such wine...but I think the name goes with the dishes.

This guy said he will be posting my tablescape on his facebook page and has 7000 followers or whatever they are called on facebook, who may be stopping by to see the table.

So I am feeling pressured to put my best efforts forward on this table.  I hope I don't crumble under pressure!   I have not posted a new table in quite a few weeks, so this is just the challenge I need to get back to tablescapes.

I was so disappointed in the Coldwater Creek order I received Friday.  They have raised their prices and lowered the quality.  See this:

 I thought it would be great for summer.
Now that I have it, I don't think I can even wear this--perhaps I could use it as a rag--no, it's too thin for that.

It is supposed to be "crinkled", but honestly, it looks like a wrinkled old rag.  I am so disappointed CC!  My husband is happy that I am displeased because he is hoping I will stop ordering from this company.  I have never returned anything and I won't return this (too much hassle and expense). Maybe I can wear it at home out on the deck when  nobody will see me.

Housework Cramps My Style

My mother has always been an energetic home cleaner. Even with four kids just over a year apart, she always had the cleanest house on the block.  I can never remember a time that our childhood home was not clean.  Lucky for her three daughters, Mom passed that gene on.  We have all enjoyed keeping pretty clean homes and we all work full-time. 

Now my mother is in her 70's and very active in her volunteer activities--when I say very active, I am not exaggerating -- she works VFW bingoes on many Friday nights and Sunday afternoons, spends almost every Wednesday afternoon at the local Tendercare home playing games with the residents, sometimes she and my dad spend 10-hr days cooking for VFW fund-raising events, she is a three times past president of the VFW ladies auxiliary and is the soon-to-be president of the Cooties auxiliary--another veteran's group with a very strange name (my dad is the commander of that group, second year in a row -- they both have endless energy).  Two weeks ago they traveled four hours south to a military convention. Next Wednesday they will travel even further to a VFW home in upper MI to entertain the older veterans living there. They have a carload of gifts donated by our local VFW to give the residents as they play bingo. The residents really look forward to this visit.  My Mom & Dad never challenge them when they yell "bingo!", even though they cheat like crazy to win the little gifts.  They are just happy to bring a smile to the face of an old veteran who has little else to look forward to.

I have only highlighted a few of their recent activities--suffice it to say they are not spending their golden years in a Lazy Boy recliner.  If they have any spare time, they like to go on weekend trips with us.

Last Saturday I called my mother to see if they wanted to go on our trip with Roamy. She was home that day, but my Dad was working a gun show at the VFW.  She said she had to scrub floors, do laundry, etc. because she was so far behind.  "Housework is cramping my style!" she declared. 

Isn't that the truth? I am far from my 70's, but I wholeheartedly agree. As I get older, my ambition for housework is waning. Today I am stuck home doing housework. It's cold and raining so there won't be any garden work like I had planned. I would much rather be on a weekend getaway.  Life is just too short to forgo fun to clean a house. My new motto is "Enjoy life while you can--you never know when your time is up!"

From now on my housework will just have to wait because I am my mother's daughter and housework is beginning to cramp my style, too!

Blogger Friends are the Best

What a surprise to find these seeds in my mailbox when I got home from work  today.

They were sent from my long-time blogger friend, Dianne, at Dianne Rambling On.  She has been reading my blog since its inception (7 yrs. ago? I have lost track) and is always there for a well thought out comment.  You can tell by Dianne's comments that she really reads every sentence of a post.  Nothing gets by her...she notices every detail!  I love that about Dianne.

 Dianne must be a treasure to her real-life friends.  People in my real life are not nearly as nice to me as Dianne is, and I have never met her!  She was at Longwood Gardens in PA and she thought of me  and bought these seeds.   Thank you, Dianne. I am so touched by this gift.

I have never had "mounding" nasturtiums.  I am planning to plant these in a container because I can't grow any seeds in the ground.  I will probably have multiple containers.   Tune in later this summer to see if I do justice to this kind gesture from Dianne.  I really hope I don't kill them!!  I am a pretty poor seed grower, but I will try extra hard to turn these seeds into  magnificent container plantings.

Thanks again, Dianne. You are certainly a treasure to this blogger!

Let's See What Survived the Winter

I left this table and chairs out all winter.  By doing so, I was hoping all the layers of paint would peel off to reveal the original red color.

I don't think it worked. You can see all the different colors this set has been, but the remaining white paint is still quite securely stuck on.  I will try to give it a power wash, but that did not work last year, so I am not hopeful.

I don't remember what I stuck under this driftwood. Must be some perennial that goes into my birdhouse planter since it's square.

I was thrilled to see that the Elijah Blue Fescue grass survived. It must start out green and then turn blue?

Here is the color it should be.

This pathetic looking plastic container has overwintered next to the outside basement wall. I can't tell yet if it survived.

I sure hope so because buried beneath this mess is one of my favorite summer perennials -- Ligularia--the rocket.  It's the tall yellow flowers below.

It's such fun to see my old friends again! 

My First Walk Through the Garden Paths in 2011

It's nearly 60 degrees today so when I  came home from work I took a walk through all my garden paths.  OMG, I have way too much work to do!

I am going to follow with a bunch of pictures with no commentary. They will serve to remind me of how far I have come when I look back in July.   I feel pretty certain that almost all of you will be very happy that you do not need to clean up this spring mess!

 After I walked through all these gardens, I was happy that over the weekend we had put the glider on the deck. I just sat here and contemplated all the work I had to do. 
In the old days, I never called it work.  Now that I do, I think it is time to reduce my garden space!

Oh, darn! I was setting this up to post tomorrow morning,but I put the wrong date. So now I have two posts for today.

Please check out the other gardens at Fishtail Cottage Flora Thursday.

Can You Stand Another Crocus Picture?

I know you have seen first crocus pics for the past two months. I really believe I am the last person in Blogville to get a crocus bloom (just for the record the first tiny crocus bloomed last Thursday)  It may be boring to you, but it's my FIRST BLOOMS OF THE YEAR, signalling that spring has finally arrived.  Therefore, please pretend I am a new grandmother and I have just opened my wallet and two dozen baby pics cascade to the floor...just grit your teeth, smile and tell me how pretty  my baby is.

Come on now, you have to admit that this is a darn good looking clump and they are already closing up for the night. Yes, I am quite proud of this clump of crocus. It's the best little spring clump I have had in my 23 years of gardening.

I even spent about an hour outside cleaning up some of the front flower beds. I cut down 2 wheelbarrow loads and decided that was enough for my first outing.  Hopefully, it will be warm today and I can do more.
Because you were kind enough to read this far, I have included some container eye candy from my file called "Container Ideas".  I think most of these pictures were snagged from HGTV's site.

Picture #1 would be gorgeous on top of my main arbor.  For the past couple of years, I have not planted anything up there. It was too much work lugging a hose 50 feet to water it. But last year I had a faucet installed right near that arbor, so I think I will plant the top of it this year.  The second pic is just a color combo I like.

And OMG, wouldn't you love to own that home with those spectacular window baskets and that stunning side porch?

Pic #4 is a nice combo for a wall planter. I own a couple of those planters and thought it might be an interesting combo to try.
Happy Hump Day!

Shop Like a Hawk

It has been about six weeks since I went on a clothing shopping spree. I like to get the lowest price I can, so I watch  like a hawk  --it's an art...wait too long and your size is gone....buy too early and you pay too much... when I feel the price is right,  I swoop down and snatch  up my prey!


Sunday I swooped from my early-morning perch and all of these fell prey:

I own two or three of these already. They are shirts I like, so I bought a second color. Most of these I will wear opened with a tee. The first brown shirt is extremely sheer (I own a rust-color and love it). You have to wear a shirt under it; I will probably wear orange to add some pizazz to blah brown. That black/white checked shirt will perk right up with a  summer white tee and some fun jewelry.  I like 3/4 length sleeves for work because of the air conditioning.

DH will probably have a little snit when he realizes I bought clothes again. Oh, well, he knows it's clothe me or retire me from the work force. He always chooses the clothing. :)

Red Velvet Whoopie Pies

I finished the whoopie pies yesterday.

They are cake-like with a filling of marshmallow creme and cream cheese. There is no other sugar in the filling so it is not very sweet, which I liked.
I found the recipe here.  Update:  Thanks, Pea, for mentioning the frosting recipe on this page. I did not use that one. I found one that called for 8 oz. cream cheese and 1 7-oz jar of marshmallow creme.  I just whipped it until fluffy (albeit very sticky!). 

We had our first lightning/ thunderstorm last night. Our power got knocked out for over two hours. How did people ever live without electricity? 

I think all that rain got rid of the last piles of snow in my yard. Now if it dries out, I can get to work in the gardens.

For dinner last night, I  made these chicken crescent sandwiches:

Here is the recipe from the Pillsbury site:

Pillsbury Chicken Crescent Sandwiches

INGREDIENTS:


1package (3 oz) cream cheese, softened

1tablespoon LAND O LAKES® Butter, softened

2cups cubed cooked chicken

1tablespoon chopped fresh chives or onion

1/4teaspoon salt

1/8teaspoon pepper

2tablespoons milk

1tablespoon chopped pimientos, if desired (I left out and put in cooked carrots instead)

1can (8 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated crescent dinner rolls or 1 can (8 oz) Pillsbury® Crescent Recipe Creations® refrigerated seamless dough sheet

1tablespoon LAND O LAKES® Butter, melted

3/4cup seasoned croutons, crushed



DIRECTIONS:

Heat oven to 350°F. In medium bowl, mix cream cheese and 1 tablespoon softened butter; beat until smooth. Add chicken, chives, salt, pepper, milk and pimientos; mix well.

Separate or cut dough into 4 rectangles. If using crescent dough, firmly press perforations to seal. Spoon 1/2 cup chicken mixture onto center of each rectangle. Pull 4 corners of dough to center of chicken mixture; twist firmly. Pinch edges to seal. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Brush tops of sandwiches with 1 tablespoon melted butter; sprinkle with crushed croutons.

Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Just before the power died, I finished this wonky house block.

Last week I did a mock up on my computer and this is what I am working toward:

I only need to make 4 or 5 more house blocks, so it won't take too long.

Roamy the Fudgie Explores Michigan's Mackinac Bridge as He Enters the Land of the Yoopers

Because he is interested in becoming a bridge building engineer, Roamy spent a lot of time exploring the Mighty Mac (as the 5 mile-long suspension bridge connecting Michigan's two peninsulas is fondly called). The bridge connects the city of St. Ignace on the north end with the village of Mackinaw City on the south.

"Mrs. Zoey,"  he asked before we crossed the bridge, " Could we stop here and get out of the car so I can check out the substructure underneath the bridge?"  He is such a precocious little gnome. 

"Impressive," he said as he inspected every little detail. "I wonder how long it took to complete this bridge."

 I informed him that the building began in 1954 (waaay before Mrs. Zoey was born) and the bridge opened to traffic on November 1, 1957.

"Amazing," he replied. "Mr. Zoey, Could you please drive across the road to the lighthouse?"


How could Mr. Zoey  resist a sweet face like that? 



As all with  most young boys, Roamy loved this cannon near fort Michilimackinac. (I know some of the  native American words are tough to pronounce - Mish-el-mac-a-naw)

We drove through Mackinaw City (the city ends in a "w", the bridge and island end in a "c"--yet both are pronounced the exact same - mac-a-naw--very confusing, I know).

"Mr. Zoey, why are there so many fudge shops in Mackinaw?" Interesting that Roamy should notice the overabundance of fudge shops.

Over the years the city has become known for its fudge. Tourists are referred to as "fudgies" because they buy so much of it.

Roamy talked us into buying 4 different kinds before he was finally ready to jump back in the car and cross the Big Mac.  I told him he was now an official "fudgie".

Roamy seemed a bit agitated as we drove up the slow incline to the halfway point of the bridge. I noticed a few sweat beads on  his brow as we drove along the outer lane (next to the water).

 I informed Roamy that we were now 199 feet above the water.

"How deep is the water below us?" he asked. Did I detect a tremble in his voice?

"250 feet," I replied.

PLOP! The noise startled me.

Poor Roamy passed out cold from freight!

 There are many people who fear crossing this bridge. Some absolutely cannot drive themselves across. The toll takers call them "timmies" -- people who have to stop and ask for help in getting to the other side of  the bridge.  It is said that many timmies have to get in the backseat and close their eyes as one of the bridge workers drive them across the Straits of Mackinac.  Even some big  burly truck drivers have to have the Mackinac Bridge Authority take the wheel of their rig to drive them across. 

Luckily we had all that fudge. I waved a big hunk of chocolate almond across Roamy's nose and he woke right up! 

Within 60 seconds he was all better and able to stand as we approached the toll booth to enter Michigan's upper peninsula.

It was an enjoyable honor to host Roamy.  I hope he had as much fun as Mr. Zoey  and I had introducing him to Michigan's Mighty Mac and taking him  into the land of the Yoopers (residents of MI's upper peninsula are referred to as Yoopers---it comes from the abbreviation UP for upper peninsula).

Tomorrow I will pick another destination for Roamy. I will email the person selected. 

P.S. Roamy has decided that his vocation may not be designing bridges. He says that perhaps a florist would be his true calling.

Roamy Arrives in Northern lower Michigan

Never heard of Roamy? He was living in a garden in CT, when one February day he had a sudden itch to travel. He left home in the middle of the night, leaving a note for his family that he would return in one year. He has been traveling around the United States ever since.


 His family misses him and in an attempt to keep up with Roamy's travels, they set up this blog.  
 
In our get-acquainted chat, Roamy told me that so far he has been to these starred states:

Through chattering teeth, he said that so far Michigan is the furthest north he's traveled. 

I think he enjoyed Missouri's weather last week a bit more than he likes the still freezing temps in Michigan.  He was not really dressed for temps in the mid 30's, so I took him over to the sunny side of the garden so he could warm up. 

 He thought the garden was a playground and seemed to have a lot of fun running around and climbing on pieces of garden junk art.

He was pretty tired after the long journey from Missouri so he had a quick dinner, asked me to notify his family that he was in good health, and went right to bed.

This weekend we are planning to take him to visit the Mackinac Bridge (where the arrow is pointing on the map). He's pretty excited about that. He said he once dreamed of being a bridge engineer. He's pretty young, so his dream may still come true.

Roamy only sticks around a few days and then gets the itch to move on. He will be looking for a friendly place to visit next, preferably in a state he has not yet seen. If you would like to host Roamy, please leave me a comment and I will let let him choose his next state later this weekend.

Update on the ATV win:  It's been sold already. I never even saw it.  I guess I will have to haul rocks my usual way -- in a wheelbarrow. :)

Look What DH Won on April 1 -- and it's NO joke

This beast is a Yamaha Grizzly 350 4-wheeler! Worth over $5,000!!  DH is very lucky in drawings like this. This is his biggest win thus far.

Now what are we going to do with this thing?  Maybe I could use it to pull a big garden cart full of flowers...or some rocks.....you know how I like rocks. Mine are not nearly as big as Karen's monsters, so this would work to lug them around.

We won't be bringing it home until next week. Hopefully, we can sell it. I am sure there are lots of people who would just love one of these. 

I Have Not Had a Very Good Week

I like to keep this blog light and fun so I won't go into details, but I have had a very bad week.  Now and then out of nowhere we are thrown down a rough road. Somehow we find the strength to keep trodding down the path.....
So when I got home this afternoon, I decided I deserved to open this bottle of wine that the Big Kahuna gifted me with last month.

I can't even pronounce the name.

I do love having a boss who likes to buy good wine. He usually gifts me with a bottle of whatever the latest case to arrive at the office is. It's always fun to break away from my $14/box grocery store wine and pretend to be an oenophile (a wine aficionado or connoisseur) like he is.

He keeps saying that he has turned me from a teetotaler to a lush! I have to say this dry white wine is very good--prior to his vino teachings, I hated dry wine. Now I like the dry whites; I even like some of the reds....so maybe he's right! LOL.

So far I have no plans for the weekend. I will probably stay home, clean, cook, sew and maybe begin to read one of the novels I won.

I hope you all have a good weekend!