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Saturday, September 30, 2017
Butterfly Bonanza!
I'm very happy that we planted lilacs and butterfly bushes--check our our visitors this morning! (Yes, I know they might be moths...I'm not letting any in the house)...
Sunday, September 24, 2017
Almost end of summer garden and other report
This has been an interesting garden year. Some of the veggies that have gone nuts before (cucumbers) have yet to produce anything this year. Due to that weird May snowstorm, the peach and cherry trees and the grape vines didn't produce any fruit (boo hiss). But we've had lots of tomatoes...
and peppers (don't bother asking what kind...we discovered years ago that no matter what kind of peppers we plant they all end up as some weird, hot hybrid because peppers cross-pollinate..)
A couple weeks ago we spent a quick weekend at the apartment--I have real wildflowers outside the kitchen window! (Not for long...they had snow predicted today!!!)
This is my Alma gardening experiment--one little pepper plant producing some olive-sized peppers :)
What else have we been up to you ask? Well, we discovered that hats cause Sid to become paralyzed and unable to bite...a win-win (see how cute he is?)
Five (fast) weeks of Cross Country...new team, new bests, new school--lots of fun.
More peppers... (the big one is from the CSA, not the garden)
More tomatoes (Heirloom and other) and enough okra to cook with (yay!)
And, of course, mint. So much mint. Do you want mint? Come on over, we have mint everywhere...
Beets from the garden for beet salad...
And my favorite--carrots, parsnips, leeks, and potatoes from the garden. There were only three potatoes, but I planted a fall crop in the greenhouse...maybe we'll get some later this winter.
A bonus photo of Claudia and I at a cross country meet...
I guess fall is officially here!
Sunday, September 17, 2017
August 2017 books!
Hello...
This blogging thing may not be as used as it once was...
Books from August 2017:
1. The Painted Queen (Elizabeth Peters)--Long-awaited and much anticipated. Apparently, Barbara Mertz (Elizabeth Peters) was working on this book when she passed away. There was possibly a lot of drama behind the scenes, as the family and the estate tried to figure out if and how to publish it. Eventually, a friend of hers who is also a writer stepped up and finished the book. There are some "errors" in the story--things that I don't think Peters would have let slip through, but nothing too terrible. The book also set in the middle of the series, so we all know "what happens next" anyway. It was a nice book, a good way to say goodbye (one more time) to Peters and her characters.
2. Matchup (Edited by Lee Childs)--This is a collection of short stories (some fairly long) written by mystery writers in a partnership. It probably would have been a lot more entertaining if I knew more of the authors. Diana Gabaldon was a contributor and many of the other stories were entertaining. (Glad it came from the library though, not purchased).
3. in Scarlett (Elizabeth Peters)--CD in the car--always entertaining to listen to Barbara Rosenblat perform Elizabeth Peters.
4. Loved (PC and Kristin Cast)--The Casts say that they never intended to write another sequel, but for some reason (that they never really explain, but hint at) they did. It looks like there are going to be more books in this post sequel series. If you read the earlier novels, worth reading, if you didn't, don't start with this one.
5 And the Rest Is History (Jodie Taylor)-Entertaining as always...
6. One for Sorrow (Mary Downing Hahn)--Not what I thought it was. Someone (or maybe I read somewhere) recommended it as a ghost story, turns out it is by an author I've read before and really was an upper elementary school age book. Quick read.
7. Option B (Sheryl Sanberg and Adam Grant)--Interesting book. She references "Lean In" a lot and how clueless she was. It was an interesting book about how to deal with unexpected things in life.
8. In the Clearing (Robert Dugoni)--Can I say I enjoyed a murder mystery? I did....Robert Dugoni is very entertaining.
9. Long Way Gone (Charles Martin)--I thought I had read everything by Charles Martin, then I saw this and didn't think I had...then I started reading and it is a very familiar story....but just published. So maybe I read an excerpt or summary? I always love Charles Martin's stories--a good read. Follows a former country songwriter with flashbacks and current story.
10. Trojan Gold (Elizabeth Peters)--CD in car--see # 3 :)
This blogging thing may not be as used as it once was...
Books from August 2017:
1. The Painted Queen (Elizabeth Peters)--Long-awaited and much anticipated. Apparently, Barbara Mertz (Elizabeth Peters) was working on this book when she passed away. There was possibly a lot of drama behind the scenes, as the family and the estate tried to figure out if and how to publish it. Eventually, a friend of hers who is also a writer stepped up and finished the book. There are some "errors" in the story--things that I don't think Peters would have let slip through, but nothing too terrible. The book also set in the middle of the series, so we all know "what happens next" anyway. It was a nice book, a good way to say goodbye (one more time) to Peters and her characters.
2. Matchup (Edited by Lee Childs)--This is a collection of short stories (some fairly long) written by mystery writers in a partnership. It probably would have been a lot more entertaining if I knew more of the authors. Diana Gabaldon was a contributor and many of the other stories were entertaining. (Glad it came from the library though, not purchased).
3. in Scarlett (Elizabeth Peters)--CD in the car--always entertaining to listen to Barbara Rosenblat perform Elizabeth Peters.
4. Loved (PC and Kristin Cast)--The Casts say that they never intended to write another sequel, but for some reason (that they never really explain, but hint at) they did. It looks like there are going to be more books in this post sequel series. If you read the earlier novels, worth reading, if you didn't, don't start with this one.
5 And the Rest Is History (Jodie Taylor)-Entertaining as always...
6. One for Sorrow (Mary Downing Hahn)--Not what I thought it was. Someone (or maybe I read somewhere) recommended it as a ghost story, turns out it is by an author I've read before and really was an upper elementary school age book. Quick read.
7. Option B (Sheryl Sanberg and Adam Grant)--Interesting book. She references "Lean In" a lot and how clueless she was. It was an interesting book about how to deal with unexpected things in life.
8. In the Clearing (Robert Dugoni)--Can I say I enjoyed a murder mystery? I did....Robert Dugoni is very entertaining.
9. Long Way Gone (Charles Martin)--I thought I had read everything by Charles Martin, then I saw this and didn't think I had...then I started reading and it is a very familiar story....but just published. So maybe I read an excerpt or summary? I always love Charles Martin's stories--a good read. Follows a former country songwriter with flashbacks and current story.
10. Trojan Gold (Elizabeth Peters)--CD in car--see # 3 :)
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