Neglect

It is hard keeping up with my garden this week. I tried to rationalize this morning that since it is so humid, that counts as watering.

Truth is I'm not seeing much 'fruit' of my labors. There is lettuce, but it is still small. The cauliflower and broccoli was eaten up by bugs. The lavender I planted doesn't seem to be springing up. The instant gratification desire within me is not being satisfied. It is still on my mind, but in a different way...perhaps gardens are best for the spring.

The cooler air and shadier afternoons remind me that fall is almost here. I am excited to relish in the time of year meant for apples, pumpkins, and raking leaves. Just typing about the orange, red, and yellow shades inherent with the changing seasons makes me smile. I am happy when summer turns to fall, despite the hustle bustle that comes with it.

Leaves

I see lots of leaves! Leaves of lettuce and carrot-tops! However, the leaves of the broccoli and cauliflower have disappeared. :( The ones that remain have many holes in them. Bugs? I don't know what I'm doing, clearly... but I still water the plants!

The flowers I planted last week are also starting to sprout, but the lavender has yet to sprout up. On Saturday morning I bought new seeds: oregano, rosemary, and other spices. I hope to plant them some time this week and set them alongside the lavender. Or I might start the garden inside. It is supposed to be a rainy beginning to this week, so that could prove beneficial for plant growth!

I did an OK job of keeping things watered despite the 5 days of classes. It is a good way to stay grounded, as I've said previously, but admittedly it is tough to add one more thing to a busy morning routine. I did pretty well with keeping up with devotions this week also; I am reading "The Utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers. It is awesome. I've also kept up with my exercise routine and I'm feeling like the legs are holding up alright!

One thing I hope to do LESS of this week is snack. Being back in school makes me crave munchies while sitting in class. My appetite hasn't really changed, so I hope this careless grazing stops!! :)

Hope all of you have a great week!

Mary Mary Quite Contrary...

...how does your garden grow?

It is a BEAUTIFUL morning. I am saddened to think school starts, but summer is not over in my book. It's a cool 70*ish - and I'm outside watering plants and such. I am noticing that the spinach is not coming in yet - maybe it takes longer? The watermelon, conversely, is sprouting right up! How fun :) It is Mike's favorite fruit - and would be fun to have an October watermelon dish!

This morning I finally got some lavender plants into little seedling plots! They are to begin indoors, but since it's starting to "cool" off down here, I'm going to chance it. At least for today. Would be fun to use in the house for fresh scents. And in home cleaning products.

Oh yes. I found a book at the library on green housekeeping. I'm blossoming into an environmentalist before your eyes. I suppose being in my first home and seeing how much cleaning products cost and the do-it-yourself'er in me wants to try some new things. We fill up our recycling bin a week ahead of time, so this week unfortunately we are pitching some cardboard. I'm going to try and rescue it, but we'll see...

I also planted some zinnia seeds. They are in our little bin that we once used for herbs. Interestingly, there are some little basil sprouts that are popping up. In making room for the zinnia flowers, I thought about uprooting the basil. I was reminded of the verse in Matthew -"Let both grow together until the harvest" (Matt 13:30). So this will be fun to watch. The windows are open and Gambler and I are enjoying a quiet Cary morning. More to come!

Growing Basil: Hurricane Edition

As we anticipated the storm, I chose not to water the garden the day before. Predictions were for 2-5", and I didn't want the fresh seedlings to float away! Unfortunately, rain was less than extraordinary - in fact, the wind was the most intense aspect of Irene's visit to Cary. It did eventually rain, and was a nice, gentle shower.

I didn't pull the basil plant in, as it was a free-standing pot. I should have! I guess I wanted to chance it and see - ha. Anyways, it hung in there as well. Following the "storm", I checked on everything and it seemed great.

In fact, I made a wonderful dish last night, the recipe for which my mom passed along to me. Summer Garden Pasta! It was a marinade of cherry tomatoes and basil, among other spices and olive oil. It was perfect. I last hoorah for summer before school starts tomorrow!

It was an incredible summer to say the least - I will miss you Summer of '11, but know this new year will bring lots of new adventures and blessings. :)

Cute site!

Here's a great blog I found of cooking nearly everything in a crockpot! This woman is going through recipes for a year - much like Julie and Julia (Child).

Click here to access an alphabetical listing of recipes!!

This is so exciting - a great way to start a meal and have it ready when I get home!! :)

Sprouts!

Exciting things are happening in Cary!!

Last Friday I began our fall garden. It was a lot of fun - turning over the soil, dirt in my fingers, the whole bit! We are attempting to grow cauliflower and broccoli (were pre-grown sprouts) and from seeds: lettuce, carrots, okra, spinach, and the wild-card - watermelon! So far, the lettuce is peeking through. If even one of these things comes to full fruition, I'll be ecstatic. The whole thing is still a grand adventure.

Feeling a little nervous about school starting. Hoping that the prep work I've done this summer towards meal-planning will pay off. Really hate the "busy-ness" of school life. Having something at home to water and nurture is fun and a good way to stay grounded. And a fun way to spend time with nature.

Mike was totally my inspiration. He planted tomato plants at the beginning of the summer, and seeing his passion and excitement when they started to grow made me feel so happy :) Hoping we both enjoy our second jobs as farmers.

Tonight

We tried a new recipe - Polenta a la Amie.

Basically I found a package from Trader Joe's of Organic Polenta and thought I could whip it up into something creative! Also, I was coming back from Duke and generally we do better if it's something quick and easy for dinner.

Knowing nothing about polenta, I read a couple websites and the instructions on the packaging. I popped the pre-cooked polenta out of the plastic, cut it into rounds (thin) and set them in a lightly oiled pan. Covered it with pizza sauce, some sauteed veggies and cheese and voila - Polenta pizza-ish.

The nice thing about our dinners is a. Mike will eat anything, and b. anything home-cooked generally tastes really good as we're both starving when we get home.

Seeing as polenta is pretty low in calories, I was hungry again at 8:30pm. But it was a nice, light and healthy summer dinner :)