I now know the meaning to "Slaving over a hot stove"

Today was a fun day...Kevin and I went to Best Buy (I finally joined everyone else on the planet and got an iPhone...my mom even has an iPhone, apparently I am behind the curve). We also went to Home Depot (Noticing a pattern? I seem to go every Saturday) to get more soil for my garden beds and mulch for our front flower beds. I can now get over my "poop envy"...I got some Moo-Nure (notice, they are "Number 1 in the Number 2 Business" haha! I love it!).



Kevin was a great hubby and put all the mulch, soil, and poop in the appropriate places. I am getting so antsy, waiting for planting time. I truly can't wait! Tonight I cooked a labor intensive dinner...wilted spinach salad, pork tenderloin with boursin polenta and a blackberry reduction sauce. For dessert we had amaretto apple crisp. Very tasty...not sure if Kevin agreed. I'm thinking polenta may not be for him (too much like grits, maybe?)...I love it thought and it was a nice change. Plus, in my opinion boursin could make anything taste great. Polenta requires constant attention for 30 minutes. Add that, and all of the other stuff I had going on in the kitchen and I am pooped. Another note, even with my best attempts to clean as I go, I think every pan and gadget I own is piled in the sink. Nice.

This is the life...

Such a pretty day!  Of course, I spent all of it at work, but thanks to Daylight Savings Time I still have some sunshine/sunset to enjoy.  I am enjoying a glass of wine on my deck (see new goal in previous blog post...shout-out to my co-worker Brock for the recommend on the shiraz) and life is good.  I've got my main squeeze home with me tonight  (which is rare since he always works on Friday) so I am enjoying myself.  I am excited about this weekend...lots on the agenda.  First, Kevin just got his truck back from the mechanic so I will be putting him to work...time to put fresh mulch in the flower beds and top off my garden beds with more soil.  To compensate him for his hard labor, I will be making him a (hopefully) super-tasty dinner.  Grilled pork tenderloin with blackberry sauce, boursin polenta, wilted spinach salad, and amaretto apple crisp.  He is a lucky man, but I am a lucky girl.  Oh, and I still have to play major catch-up with my stats class and crank out a paper on RFID tags for my information systems class.  BORING.  I see the light at the end of the tunnel so I just have to suck it up and do it.  Happy Friday!!  I need a refill....  

Girls Gone Wild

Kevin had to work this weekend, so I had plenty of time to do my own thing. Melina may be sick of me now, but we hung out all weekend. This weekend I was glad to be busy (even though I should have been working on stuff for my classes), because today was the due date of my first pregnancy. This day is always tough for me...it's sad to think that my baby would be 3 years old now. So, to keep myself from getting in an emotional rut I am thankful for fun friends to keep my mind on happy thoughts.

Saturday morning, we were up and at 'em! Off to Fayetteville, TN to go to Sir's Fabrics! I got a couple of fabrics to make more skirts and I got a lovely fabric that is very "Pottery Barn"esque that I will probably use to make some drapery panels. This was my first Sir's experience...it is definitely one of those places where you have to dig around, but the prices are unbelievably cheap! On the way back from Sir's, we stopped and got lottery tickets and saw a yard sale on the side of the road (I nearly caused a wreck trying to get to it). At the yard sale I purchased a chair for $18! They were asking $20, but Melina made me haggle. ha! After I graduate, I plan to make this my new project...I want to reupholster the chair. Here is my find...



After the yard sale, we headed to Bennett Nursery. Oh my goodness, how I love that place! Melina and I had a field day in the herb greenhouse (we kept biting leaves and taste testing...are we wierd?). I got so many herbs and I am so excited!



I got Lemon Thyme (YUM!!!), Sweet Basil, Lemon Basil, Dill, Marjoram, Rosemary, Stevia (the natural sweetener), and Julep Mint. I am so so excited about this! I potted these tonight (thanks to Melina for sending me home with some potting soil so I could save a trip to the store...I am pooped!). Isn't my herb stand just adorable? This will go outside in mid to late April.



We went to Kirkland's, Steinmart, Home Depot, and even had lunch at Connor's...to say we had a fun-filled day is an understatement. Girl time is the best...so much laughter that it makes my stomach sore. I got a super cute framed print at Kirkland's and was able to finish up my bedroom (I got a new comforter set last weekend). I've been a major sale rack shopper lately...it definitely pays to look for a good deal, I've been all about "the find"! I love paisley prints so much, I could eat it!



Today, Melina had to take her in-laws dog back (she's been dogsitting) and she agreed to meet them half-way in Birmingham. Her hubby had to work so I went along and we made a fun day of it (Baby Andrew was with us too, and I just love him to pieces...he loves me too, I can tell!). We had an awesome lunch at The Cheesecake Factory and walked around The Summit. We went to Charming Charlie (very cute/trendy/affordable/color-coded accessory store that my friend Pilar has been peer pressuring me about), Sephora, etc. So much fun! Then, before we headed back we stopped by Whole Foods. I sure wish Whole Foods would come to Huntsville, it is wonderful. Funny though, out of all of the healthy options, all I got were 3 bottles of wine. I NEVER drink...really, I never do! I've decided that I should start enjoying a glass of wine in the evenings. I thought, the weather is warming up and I should be sitting on my deck drinking a glass of wine and looking at my soon to be garden. How relaxing is that? So, I've set a drinking goal. Good for me!



I'm a fan of light white wines...probably because I am a wuss. Baby steps...

Tomorrow is Monday...work and school on the menu. At least I have a relaxation plan ready!

Peace-Out!

It's Sew Fun!

Tonight I made a skirt! I must admit, I am very proud of myself. I think this may be another new hobby for me (don't worry, my garden comes first!). After a hectic week, I think I feel a little more relaxed after spending Friday night with my sewing machine.

This is the pattern I used...the "one hour" note on the cover is a mean lie. It took me 4.5 hours from start to finish. I think I could get it down to 2.5 hours with no breaks and more experience...we'll see, I plan to do this again.



This is the finished skirt...the colors are brown, greens, blues, and white. Plus, I love paisley prints.



On the gardening front, my seedlings are coming along. Check out my tomato seedlings...



I spent some time with all the seedlings last night, thinning them out and making sure they had enough water. My strawberries are doing good too...much better than the bizarre way they started out. I can't wait to put these in the Topsy Turvy!



It is 1:15am here and Melina is meeting me at 8:30am. Eek! I better get to bed! We are going to go to Sir's Fabric in Fayetteville and also swinging by Bennett's Nursery (of course to check out their plants). It should be a fun-filled day!

Nighty-Night!

Only babies and puppies are cuter...

Tonight after class, I went and treated myself to a (in my opinion, much deserved) manicure and pedicure. It was nice to relax a bit and unwind. After us girls get our nails done, we try so hard to keep from messing them up...we strive to preserve what we just paid for. Tonight my excitement overwhelmed me, the thought of dirt under my nails couldn't stop me...I had some potting to do.

My prized shipment has finally arrived! I am now the proud mama of 3 new dwarf citrus trees! Hallelujah, Hallelujah!!!


Dwarf Meyer Lemon, Dwarf Lime, and Dwarf Orange

These babies will live indoors while there is any danger of frost, but they will enjoy the summer on our deck. I realize I called these "trees"...they are actually twigs and may likely never bear fruit in my lifetime, but I have become quite the patient girl and these will be worth the wait. I just think they are precious!

Garden Plans

Hopefully these garden plans are readable (if you click on each garden plan, it should open a bigger version). I was looking at a gardening website and discovered that Native Americans grew their corn, beans, and squash together. So, it's good that I planned it that way...maybe it is a sign that I will have a natural green thumb. Let's hope!

A purse for every occasion!

Today was a pretty productive day for the garden. I went to Home Depot (I love that place, but it will eventually send me to the poor house) and got some of the items I've been needing. I purchased the materials for my bean trellis, shepherd's hooks for my Topsy-Turvys, and a cute little garden tote to hold all of my new gadgets. I wish I could have found a more girly looking bag, but this one will do...plus, I love love love the color green so it just fits.



I got a few strawberry plants/bulbs/whatever the heck they are??? I had no idea that strawberries grew out of something so weird looking, but I guess we learn something different everyday. See...



I planted a couple of different types. Once they sprout, I'll transfer to the Topsy-Turvy. My kitchen table is quickly becoming a greenhouse/potting bench.



Dinner tonight was good and the artichokes were yummy. Of course, garlic butter can make anything taste good, right?



I also started making a grid in my raised beds because space planning is going to be really important if I am going to accomplish everything I want to this summer. Oh, even though I already planted onion seeds inside, I went ahead and got a few onion sets today...this will probably be a little easier (yellow, red, and shallot).

I have my garden plans done and I need to share those, but I am trying to figure out a way to post with font big enough to see.

Adventures in Cooking...

Maybe it's knowing that spring is around the corner, maybe it's out of boredom, or maybe I am just looking for something interesting to post on my blog, but lately I've been wanting to try new things in the kitchen.

Today for lunch, I finally made the spaghetti squash. All I did was split the squash lengthwise, take out the seeds, rub a little olive oil on the inside (with a sprinkle of salt and pepper), and cooked cut-side down on a lined cookie sheet at 350 for about 40 minutes. It was fun to see how it really does look like spaghetti and it was surprisingly tasty! Kevin gave it a try and he liked it a little, but I think we'll be sticking to regular spaghetti noodles more than the spaghetti squash. Either way though, we can cross this off of our culinary bucket-lists.



Tonight for dinner I made Chicken Souvlaki Gyros with homemade pita bread, Greek Salad, and Tzatziki sauce. It was delicious! I've never really made any type of homemade bread (other than a few breakfast/dessert breads) so this was fun to try. It was pretty easy and really nice to know I made our whole dinner myself.

Here are my pitas



Check out the finished product, it was so tasty and really hit the spot!



Tomorrow I have another tasty meal planned. I am going to make grilled beef filet with a Gorgonzola cream sauce and garlic mushrooms, baked potatoes, and grilled artichokes with garlic butter. I think it will be a hit with Kevin. I have eaten artichokes from the jar/can in dips and salads, but never in the true form. We'll have another "first" tomorrow! It is fun being adventurous! I'll be sure to post pics of our dinner.

I'm still a little under the weather, so I am off to an early night's sleep. I can't wait to start feeling like myself again.

Despite what you may have heard, vegetable consumption does not guarantee good health

I've been eating tons of veggies and fruits (gotta build up my compost). You'd think I would be the picture of perfect health...WRONG. I am sick! So, I finally broke down and went to the doctor today and got a shot and some nice cough syrup. I hope this helps. We are supposed to have really nice spring weather this weekend and I have a lot to take care of. Because I have been under the weather, I've completely let go of my household duties. Anyone that knows me well, knows I am a clean freak. So, I've got to get that under control and work on some stuff for school. Just a little over a month left and my Master's will be complete. Yippy!

I almost started having a panic attack when thinking about my garden. I have so many plans, I truly know NOTHING about gardening, timing is everything, etc. I kept playing all of these "what-ifs?" in my mind and I started to wonder if I had bitten off more than I can chew. Being the annoying list-making planner that I am, I decided to make a garden notebook to organize and catalog all of my seeds, schedules, garden layout, etc. Oh, I am back in control now! What did we do before the 3-ring binder, really?



On to my seeds... I had to plant a few of my seeds because some vegetables need to be started inside weeks before planting season. I started my bell peppers (regular and carnival), banana peppers, red onion, yellow onion, roma tomatoes, and beefmaster tomatoes. I also planted some rosemary, dill, and basil. Because I love flowers (what girl doesn't?), I planted some impatiens. Kevin will set some iris bulbs for me this weekend too (he doesn't know yet). ha! On a funny note, my husband loves cactus plants. Who knows why? In my opinion, cacti are LAME-O! But, because I am a super-thoughtful wife, I decided to get Kev a cactus growing kit. It will be funny to see how those turn out.

This is a picture of the self-watering indoor seed starting kit I got...pretty nifty!



Here are all my planted seeds! Everything is labeled and I can't wait for germination! I am going to have to get used to having all of this kitchen clutter...



Happy Weekend to everyone!

Pretty Bird

I finally did it...I cooked a whole chicken. Let me start by saying that Kevin is scared to eat any meat that I cook. I think I am a decent cook, but because I like my steaks rare he assumes that I like all of my meat bloody. Not true, I prefer well-done chicken (don't we all?). To my surprise, Kevin loved this chicken! He actually liked the pork shoulder I cooked a couple of weekends ago, so maybe we are making progress. Here are some before and after shots of my lovely little chicken.

Before (I read online that there is no wrong way to truss a chicken, so don't hate on my technique). ha!



After (do you hear the angels singing?)



I think I am going to start making a whole bird more often. It really was easy, cheap, and I can use the leftover meat for casseroles, etc. I also made the Black Bean & Couscous Salad and the Grape Salad. Both are so good and easy and our refrigerator is definitely full for a few days. I really don't cook much during the week because of our work schedules, so on the weekends I try to do it big, ha! For the Black Bean & Couscous salad, I started thinking about it...all of the veggies in this salad will be grown in my garden this summer (except the black beans). It will be so neat to just head to the backyard for my ingredients.

This is a picture of the Black Bean & Couscous Salad, I got the recipe here http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Black-Bean-and-Couscous-Salad/Detail.aspx



Here's a picture of the Grape Salad, see below for picture and recipe (I got this recipe from my mom, she got it from church)



Ingredients:

1 bag of green grapes
1 bag of red grapes
1 8oz block of cream cheese (room temperature)
1 8oz container of sour cream
1/3 cup of sugar
1/2 tsp of almond extract
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1/2 cup of chopped pecans

Wash and mix red and green grapes together. Mix the cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, and almond extract together with a mixer until smooth. In a separate container mix together the brown sugar and chopped pecans. In a trifle bowl (or Tupperware if you aren't trying to be fancy, see above), add half of the grapes, top with half of the cream cheese mixture, and half of the brown sugar mixture. Repeat layers and chill. This recipe is great for showers.

Food-Filled Weekend!

Last weekend I got a couple of fun things for my yard, a plum tree and a blueberry bush!



Of course, I will have to wait a few years before I can even start hoping for a plum but the sooner its in the ground the sooner we'll have fruit. I've never heard of this, but when I was at Home Depot I saw a "Fruit Cocktail" tree. I googled it when I got home and sure enough, it really exists! The fruit cocktail tree at Home Depot grows apricots, plums, peaches, and nectarines all on the same tree...amazing. I didn't get it because I knew nothing about it at the time, but now that I've looked into it a little more I may have to go get one. So So Cool!

This weekend I have a lot of things on the menu...new things to try (all in an effort to eat more veggies!). I am going to do Act #2 of the roasted root veggies and succotash since it was such a hit. The main dish will be a roasted chicken. Do you know I have never cooked a whole bird? I can't wait! I hope it is pretty when it comes out of the oven (either way, I'll share some pics). I have everything I need except some kitchen twine so I will go on a hunt for that tomorrow. I just plan to put lemons in the cavity and coat the chicken with a little oil and add salt, pepper, thyme, and a little rosemary. On Sunday, I am making Bacon Mushroom Swiss Meatloaf with whipped potatoes and green beans. Kevin should love that! He thinks mushrooms should go in every dish. Lastly, on Monday we are going to have spaghetti, but instead of noodles we'll try spaghetti squash. A $5 squash vs. an $.89 pack of noodles is a pretty big difference so it better be good! If nothing else, we'll try something new and add scraps for the compost bin.

Speaking of the compost bin, its not easy getting used to having it. I've accidentally thrown out compost-able material 3 times without realizing it! I've thrown out part of an onion, an orange peel, and coffee grounds. I started looking online for a kitchen crock to put my scraps in, but decided that is just too fancy for me...a plastic bowl will do the trick.



This bowl now sits on my counter at all times. I try to dump it out at least once every 2 days so we don't get bad smells in the house.

I forgot to mention earlier, I am also making a couple of snacks this weekend. Some friends of ours just had a baby and we are going to take them some food (I'll just make double so we'll have some too). I am going to make Grape Salad and Black Bean & Couscous Salad. Both are very tasty! I have a bad habit of eating so much of the grape salad that I get sick, ha! I'll try to show some restraint this weekend.

I can't wait to post pics of my chicken...I hope it turns out to be tasty.

Happy Friday!

We're in this together!

Melina and I met at her house at 6am (eek!) to get started on her garden beds. We started by figuring out where they would be placed in her backyard and then beginning her lasagna layers. After we got the newspaper/cardboard layer placed, we had to take a break for water aerobics. We had such a great time (this was my first water aerobics experience), and our instructor was an Asian, female version of Richard Simmons (headband and all!). She had a super-high intensity level and I never knew a pool workout could be so challenging. I loved it and we hope to make this a Saturday morning ritual. After our workout, we had lunch and got back to the garden preparation. Melina's layers are exactly like mine (cardboard/newspaper, leaves/mulch, peat moss, and soil), but she added another super-awesome ingredient...



Composted Manure! Is it bad that I now have poop envy? Seriously, I am going to have to go get some of this stuff! Take a look at her garden beds...



Remember, her middle bed is stacked because she will use that for root vegetables that need a little more depth. I think we are both excited because our garden beds are ready to go, but also a little sad that we don't have anything to do until we can plant in April. I also should have mentioned that today was BEAUTIFUL outside! We haven't seen the sunshine in quite some time, so we really enjoyed ourselves being outdoors.

For now, I am going to research all of the fruits and vegetables I intend to plant. I need to take a look at space planning for my garden and draw out my plans. Once I get that finalized, I'll post the details.

Happy Saturday to All!

Mother Earth

My friend Melina (my partner in newbie gardening crime) gave me a very thoughtful gift... a "Mother Earth News" magazine subscription.



It's a pretty cool magazine! My first issue has a really neat article on tomatoes...who knew there were SOOOO many types of tomatoes!?! There are a couple of "Al Gore"ish articles (which Melina warned me about), but for the most part there is a lot of good information. This new subscription is something else gardening related that I can get excited about. We've had a doozie of a winter and I am ready for spring. This weekend we have pretty weather in the forecast and highs the high 50/60s, so I have plans to be outside. Melina and I are going to set up her raised beds and the lasagna layers. She is even going to do one stacked raised bed so that she can plant some of the root vegetables that require more soil depth. I will try to remember to take some pictures of her beds too. This should be fun!

Happy Valentine's Day!

This morning we woke up to beautiful snow. The flakes were huge and it was really coming down (for Alabama standards). I decided to take a picture of my snow covered soon-to-be garden.



Kevin and I were planning on getting take-out from one of our favorite restaurants and enjoying the evening in. I think we may just stay home today and watch the Olympics. It's not the most romantic of plans, but I really do think my favorite times are spent in comfy clothes with Kevin and Stoli (our super-spoiled Maltese).

Since I have a ton of the pork shoulder left over from yesterday, I decided to make 16 bean soup with it. Who doesn't like comfort food when there is snow on the ground? I'm soaking my beans as I type.



Happy Valentine's Day to all!

Bright idea! OK, so really it is pretty obvious.

Confession: I have been eating terrible things. Putting all this bad food (mainly fast food) is killing my energy level and I just don't feel good. I think I am in a winter slump or hibernating...either way, something's got to give. So, tonight I went grocery shopping for produce...I am craving vegetables (I think my body is trying to tell me something). Tomorrow I am going to cook a pork shoulder with apples and onions. To go along with that, we will be having succotash and roasted root vegetables. My sweet friend (shout-out to Julie) recently told me about parsnips. A few weeks ago she tried them for the first time and loved them. Since I have never tried them, I decided this weekend is as good as any. For the roasted root vegetables (in addition to the parsnips), we will have carrots, butternut squash, potatoes, and rutabaga. Speaking of rutabagas, my mom used to make these for me as a child and I remember loving them. I am not sure why I have neglected these as an adult, but I think it is time the rutabaga and I get to know each other again. I also got some bananas and some cucumbers (to make German cucumber salad, of course!).

On to my bright idea...tonight as I was peeling my cucumber and cutting off the ends, a light bulb went off. The more vegetables I eat, the more scraps I will have for my composting bin. If I succeed at eating more fruits and veggies, it is a total win-win for my compost bin and I. To kick things off, I've already prepared a batch of scraps to put in my compost bin in the morning. I will be adding my cucumber skin and ends, 1/2 of a squeezed lemon, old chopped up chives that I never used up, several egg shells, and coffee grounds. Also, the hubby has promised to help me gather more leaves for the compost bin since the bulk of the contents should be "brown" material (the smaller portion is the "green" material, such as wilted lettuce and cucumber peel).

This weekend should be nice and relaxing. I sure wish there was a way to post a "smell" on a blog...can you imagine how wonderful that pork shoulder is going to smell?!?

Edited to add a picture of our dinner. We had the apple and onion roasted pork shoulder, succotash, and roasted butternut squash, parsnips, and rutabaga. Kevin loved it!

Now comes the hard part...

I don't know for sure, but I think setting up the garden site must be the hardest, most labor intensive part of gardening. Taking a blank canvas backyard, developing a plan, making sure the soil is nutrient rich, etc. seems like the least fun activity when it comes to growing your own fruits and vegetables. We actually enjoyed today (even though it was in the low 30s outside)...if we enjoyed today, I think we'll really have fun with the garden this Spring/Summer! Today my husband and I got all this taken care of. Until late April, we really don't have that much to do. This is our soon-to-be garden area



This part of our backyard gets the most sunlight so we decided to place the boxes here



We started with a layer of cardboard boxes (notice the beer boxes, ha! ...Thanks Ruggby's!). We saturated this layer with water to encourage it to break down.



Then we added a layer of leaves & mulchy material that we got from the woods across the street from our house.



I made a quick run to Home Depot for some garden soil and peat moss. The Rogue is loaded down!



My laborer (aka. husband) helped so much! Thank you honey!



After our "lasagna layers" were complete, we covered our beds with black plastic bags so that it can "bake".



So, until April there will not be much to blog about. I will start my tomato plants inside and my herbs (hopefully) will continue to grow. I also will be adding to my compost bin. This weekend I added an orange peel and some coffee grounds. C'mon Spring!

And we have life!

Remember my cute little indoor herb garden? Well, we have growth! I was so excited as I saw the first sprouts of cilantro and oregano break through the soil. Then, out of nowhere, my parsley took off! I left for work on Friday and there was no parsley...by the time I made it home that day I swear there was a parsley bush! So fun! The chives are late bloomers, but they'll get there. I noticed a couple of places of green chives in the pot. I am really loving this...thank goodness for the herb garden (there is no way I could make it to spring without some gardening/planting fun). Here's a picture of what we've got so far.

Oh joy!

Do you know what I have been looking forward to? Composting. How many of us waste veggies and fruits that wilt, spoil, or rot before we can eat them? Well, not anymore. That celery that has been in my fridge's veggie bin since (cough) Christmas will be put to good use. Speaking of Christmas, it sure felt like the holidays when I got home today to find this on my porch...




And so the fun begins! I can't wait to make plant super-food out of wilted lettuce, coffee grounds, newspaper scraps, and leaves. Check it out!




Now, I also have another little trick up my sleeve. What's cooler than an Aqua Globe and a Sham-Wow (and a little less cool than a Snuggie)?




A Topsy Turvy!!! I plan to grow my tomatoes, hot peppers, and strawberries upside-down on shepherd's hooks in my garden.

Lastly, today's special shipment of garden goodies is special for another reason. All of this cardboard will be part of the first layer in my "lasagna" garden. Look at me, I'm a little green!