My Garden

So, this is how my garden started...

I've been wanting a veggie/herb and fairy garden and just could never seem to bring it all together.

So, surprise to me, my hubs took it upon himself to gift me with a 5th year anniversary gift 😊

I just didn't get a small fairy garden, he enlarged it😁 and then said, it needs something more...

So he built on to it 😊 and we planted.

It's funny to me the planting seasons from where I grew up in Mass to Florida. 

I don't think they've even broken ground yet and here we are, in March planting.

It's April 29th now and I have squash, lemons, limes and peppers showing their fruits, while the Ocra, Onions, Tomatoes and carrots are coming along.

Then he tells me this morning, it's to hot down here to grow anything but Ocra in the summer. 😐

I don't mind Ocra, but love my other fresh veggies too, guess I'm gonna have to can or freeze😉 until October.

Pic from last night

The fairies and gnomes are loving the foliage and you can see the squash blossoms peeking up through the leaves.

The mints (mint, chocolate mint and spearmint) thrive, the basil and Italian parsley not liking the weather here so much, the sage and chives, they're in the middle on how they like the Florida weather right now 😜

Read lots and Stay Spicy peeps!!

C ~

💋

www.authorcasalo.com

Indulge in the Spicy Side of Romance

Crazy Store Prices

With veggies becoming much more expensive in the stores, I've decided to take matters into my own hands.

YUP...I planted a garden.

Now farming is in my blood, my grandfather had a huge farm up north (people down here call them ranches.) It was a pig farm, but there was every animal you could think of, including work horses to pull out the fallen trees in the fall to heat the house for the entire einter. Huge fields of corn, hey if it didn't sell it went to make cow corn for the winter.

My grandmothers personal garden was nothing to sneeze at. It was a good half acre and had everything from corn to strawberries. We never went without a good pickle or blackberries in the winter time. Yummy!! And there was an apple orchard about about an acre in size.

So I've done what I can and we have two raised beds, one herbs, one veggies. The romaine lettuce is coming very well and we've been snipping leaves off for sandwiches. The sweet banana peppers and cubana peppers are belling. I'm waiting for the 72 bell pepper seeds planted to start peeking up out of the soil and the only tomato plant to start doing it's thing.

I can't wait to start with the summer squash and zucchini!!

My herbs, I love fresh herbs!! There's nothing like walking out doors in the morning before the heat of the sun, OK it's Florida, so I go out after the sun has gone down to gather my mint or sweet basil or chives for baked potatoes that night with dinner.

Fresh grown goodies...it's a good thing :-)

Eating light for the summer - Would you change your menu up?

With the warmer months upon us, I've decided to do something about the little complaint going around the house.
"I need to lose a few pounds."

So I've asked a friend of mine for several vegan receipes. Her look was commical!
"You Miss meat eater, the bloodier the better, wants vegan receipes?"

I said, who better than to ask than you.

It's not like I intend a full vegan menu, not only me but my men would never go for it. I all ready got "The Look" when I mentioned it, but I came back with..."You've been complaining too and it's only a few days a week and our big dinners slow down in the summer." The argument stopped there, LOL.

But I figure what's wrong with switching two or three meals out a week. Veggies are good for us, and besides, I don't like eating heavy meals in the summer time. You know those "comfort meals" good for a rainy or old day.
It's summer, it's hot and my belly rejects a lot of heavy stuff. OK so maybe it's all in the mind, but I have noticed in past years, that I do lose a few more punds in the summer. *YAY ME* right, LOL.
I'm also intending on building two raised beds, one for veggies and one for herbs. Not only for hte meals I intend to cook, but have you seen the prices in the stores lately? Holy Moly Batman! Talk about price gouging.

So I ask you, do you notice yourself eating lighter during the hot and humid months? Would you change up the menu a bit?