Spring Snow

yep, last thursday it was 80, i think it was Thursday anyway. today i saw snowflakes as i walked the dogs.... and daffodils, forsythia, hyacinths, flowering shrubs and tulip trees and very young leaves on maple trees. It's definitely spring. My neighbors are about to mow their lawn for the 2nd time and i haven't even gotten to my first go round. sigh. :-P

January 1, 2010

It's the first day of a new year and so i keep hearing a new decade. Not much new or exciting. yet I bought some stuffed toys from the dollar store for the cats the other day. I had Lancelot in isolation because he hasn't been doing well of late. I gave one small one to him.

When i came home from work, there were the dogs trying to make it squeak. I was stunned and am not too sure how they got it from Lancelot since he was behind a closed door all day. I have an idea that Lancelot let it get too close to the door and one of the dogs got their paw on it and pulled it out. The other part of this i keep laughing about is that the toy doesn't have a squeaker in it. I bought it specifically for the cats to snuggle with when they want to do so. Oh well.

I also bought myself a Cute Overload desk calendar for Christmas. It's adorable! If you've not had the treat of visiting www.cuteoverload.com I highly recommend it, especially on a less than wonderful day. It always helps to brighten my day.

There was something new that happened this week, i received my Gurney Seed Catalog. Wow! That is early! I remember my Dad just pouring over the seed catalogs when they came in. I think it's the only thing that gets real gardeners through the winter months. Of course, by February or at the latest March my Dad would be starting seeds all around the house in preparation for transplanting them into the garden in May and June. He also would start saving the gallon milk jugs so he could use them to protect the tomato plants should we have a late frost. Hmmm, i'm going to have to start saving the milk jugs...

May God our Heavenly Father bless you with a greater understanding of His amazing Love for you. May He open your hearts to His and pour in His Joy that He and Jesus (and i suspect the Holy Spirit) share moment by moment. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

Wow - i can again access my blog

Well folks, looks like i'm back in business on this here blog. woohoo!

A lot has happened but since i didn't take notes, it may be a while before i share it all. :-)

A friend stopped by about two weeks ago with a gift for my dogs. She has a dog who is smaller than my 60 and 80 pounders. The gift was a toy that Bella didn't like or maybe it was that she just didn't play with it. It's a rubber ball about the size of a soccer ball. Esther absolutely loves soccer balls. This one squeaks. Esther absolutely loves soft squeaky balls. This one has places where she can bite it, hold on, run with it and shake it. I had no idea how she'd respond to that aspect of it. I gave it to her and she LOVED it. :-) Still does.

I then had to I run off to Bible study.

When i came home, i was happily stunned to see that not only did Esther LOVE the new toy, but Buddy was playing with it just as vigorously has Esther had been. I hadn't found a long lasting dog toy that Buddy liked. I've had Buddy for three years. You'd think i'd have found something that lasts more than a day that he liked to play with, but noooo. I was ecstatic. I think i was happier than Buddy was.

The end (of my blog) may be coming

K, I've been told that this week is when they will be tightening the network security at work. So if you don't hear from me except on weekends, please don't be surprised. Of course, how consistent have I been so far with my updates???

end of my blog? I hope not...

I've been informed that changes are coming to my workplace. They are going to be locking down the network even more. I'm not surprised at all. Well, that's not entirely true. I'm surprised it took them this long. Anyway, there is a good chance that i won't be able to update my blog as often. Yes, it's true, my current work is such that i really do have enough free time here to occasionally update my blog. I'll try to keep you posted as to when this fateful day will happen.

Corn, frost, the end of the garden mostly

This is the first cob of corn i picked from my garden. I picked it last Saturday. The edible portion was just shy of four inches long. But it was fun to eat it knowing it came from my garden. Especially since i'd heard i probably wouldn't get any at all. I've picked about twelve cobs so far. All of them smaller than this one, but oh so cute!

Monday i pulled up all of the warm weather plants - tomatoes (no! say it isn't so!), peppers, zucchini, cucumbers, beans, and watermelon (only had flowers, not even the tiniest melon). The tomatoes plants are in the garage. I'm hoping to get a few more ripe or at least pink tomatoes from them. We'll see. That leaves the corn, leeks, kohlrabi, beets and lettuce. For the most part, the gardening season at my home is over. so sad. :-)

The reason i pulled up the plants is because there was a prediction of a hard freeze for this week. It hit Wednesday night. What is a hard freeze? Thirty-two degrees. Ouch. I woke up Thursday morning to frost on the grass. Keep in mind, i didn't go outside til about 9:30am and there was still frost on the grass!

Ever kissed a llama?

I went to a friend's farm for the first time a few weeks ago to pick up some eggs. I knew she had llamas. I didn't know about Carlton. Carlton is a pack llama. He's big. He's sturdy. He doesn't have as nice of hair as the "fiber" llamas. Dale warned me that Carlton tends to be a bit pushy. I walked up to the fence and suddenly had a llama in my face - LITERALLY. :-) He also wasn't too happy about me scratching Mutt's nose. Carlton would move his very long body between me and Mutt whenever i reached through to scratch Mutt's nose. By the way, Mutt is a sheep. There's another sheep there named Jeff. I didn't meet him. I could only view him from afar. Seems he's not as partial to having his nose scratched as Mutt is.

I have a green pepper!!!

I have a green pepper! It's smaller than my thumb, but who's counting? Well, it might be the size of my thumb by tomorrow. I'll have to check. :-)

My garden is doing really well

My garden is doing really well considering that it's a not a very good year for growing vegetables. We have had a very cool summer. July was the coldest July on record for this area. In spite of that i had a lot of cucumbers and green beans. I had a few zucchini. In fact, i was surprised at how few i had. The corn, which i didn't expect to get anything from has six ears on it, out of twenty-five stalks that's not bad, imho. The tomatoes didn't start to turn color til August. That is totally unheard of; they should have been red or yellow in July. The peppers have failed to produce. I think it's because the tomatoes are literally over-shadowing them. The kohlrabi is doing well. I haven't picked the leeks yet. I'm hoping they will bulk up. And the watermelon. Well, yeah. I have flowers. I actually expected even less from the watermelon than i did the corn and so I'm not surprised that all i have is flowers.

My lettuce was super. No, this picture isn't of lettuce. I forgot to take a picture of it. This is my corn starting to tassel.

I planted way too many lettuce seeds in two window boxes that i put up on a plant stand on the east side of my front porch. I had purchased a mesclun mix, so i grew lots of different colors and styles. I had to remember to water them frequently. I also had to thin them which i really didn't want to do because they looked so pretty. One of the lettuces tastes a bit like pork to me. Tho I'd been told it is in the horseradish family. I want to know which one it is, so i can grow more of it next year.

Esther likes both cucumbers and green beans. She found a way into the garden even tho i have a very flimsy fence around it. I've really enjoyed letting the dogs run in the backyard first thing while i check out the garden and pick some green beans or a cuke. Then on our walk I'll give Esther the green beans or part of the cuke as her treat for sitting at the corners before we cross.

The first time she found her way in the garden i had been running between the garage and the front of the house. When i came back into the backyard there was Esther standing in the middle of the garden with a small cucumber in her mouth. I was so angry i didn't even think to take a picture til later and by then it was too late, the adorable moment had passed. I should have known that Esther would find another opportunity to get in the garden when i had my back turned. In this picture she is in the corner where the kohlrabi are. She hasn't tried a kohlrabi yet, tho i suspect she'll like them because she really likes broccoli. No, no broccoli in the garden this year. She's actually trying to figure out how to get out now that she's been caught in the act. This time i had to open the fence for her to get out. :-)

Esther

I've had a request to put more pictures of Esther up on my blog. I love this picture. I don't know if anyone else will... but here you go.

We were in the backyard. The dogs were playing and Esther laid down to rest. I don't know if you're aware of this, but it's kinda hard to get a good picture of a black dog. I have some others that are better. But they were taken by a far better photographer and it will be a bit before i post them.

Esther has had an eventful summer. In July she woke me in a panic about 5:30am one Saturday morning. It was her normal "MOM! MOM! There's a thunderstorm coming!!!!" method of waking me - stomping on my chest and knocking books on my head. Except, we weren't supposed to have any storms. I checked out back. Checked out front. Suddenly Esther is going potty in the living room. I looked at her and told her she had just earned herself a trip to the vet. Yes, i did bring a sample with me. The urinalysis revealed two things. She had an infection and her specific gravity was very very low (10.05). In the words of the vet, "lower than i'd expect if her kidneys were failing". My thought, "that's good right? Because kidney failure is very very very bad." He then mentioned Cushings disease. Also not very good, but better than kidney failure. However, i had to put her on antibiotics to get rid of the infection before we could move forward with investigating what was causing the low specific gravity. Two and half weeks later i took another sample in to the vet. Specific gravity of 10.04 this time. Couple of blood tests later and Esther was cleared of Cushings. No Cushings for Esther. You go girl!

Then the vet recommended we check her for diabetes insipidus. This is not sugar diabetes, which is diabetes mellitus. What they both have in common is lots of drinking and lots of urinating. The test for diabetes insipidus is to treat it and see if intake and output drop off. Treatment for dogs is to give them a drop of medicine in one eye twice a day. The vet assured me that it's easy to give dogs eye drops. Yeah, right. All i could think is, you've not given eye drops to Esther. Of course, he's a vet with many years experience and an amazing ability with animals. Even my dog sitter laughed at the concept of giving eye drops to Esther. I'll spare you the details because this is getting long; i will say we made it through, but it was tough. I couldn't tell if the medicine made a difference, so i finally decided if I couldn't tell, then it wasn't a significant enough change to warrant continuing treating for it. I called the vet's office. I spoke with the receptionist and asked her to tell the vet there wasn't a significant change. That was a week ago Monday. I haven't heard from the vet. So i'd say she doesn't have diabetes insipidus either. Yea!!!

I know, you're all asking, so now what? Honestly, i have no idea. I suspect just watch her for any issues in that regard. In the meantime, i'm making sure she has enough water as well as potty breaks, of course.

They were Carrots!

Yep, it's been confirmed. I have carrots growing alongside the grape tomatoes. I didn't "weed" them all! Yea! Now to see if they grow into carrots.

I have some little itty bitty very green pear tomatoes. The beans, peppers, large tomatoes, and cukes are in blossom. The watermelon plants don't look like they are growing well. The corn is still small. The kohlrabi, zucchini, leeks and lettuce are doing well. imho.

The kittens are absolutely adorable, but since i didn't "plant" them i can only admire them from afar.

Gardening Update

In Sunday's Parade magazine there was an article about how to take care of simple vegetable garden issues. One of them was tomato plant flowers turning brown and falling off. I'd never heard of such a thing. The article said to put eggshells in the dirt because the tomatoes needed calcium. I asked my fav gardener if i could use bone meal instead. Bone = calcium. I had more it than eggshells, so i thought, maybe it would work. She said yes and that in fact it probably would work better.

Only one problem with it i discovered today. My dogs, emphasis on DOG, like bones and by association, bone meal. The dogs were in the backyard today when i brought the bone meal out and Esther was all over me. Jumping up and down and trying to get the bag out of my hands. She didn't succeed. But once i'd put it around the tomatoes and worked it in a little, i saw this head go through fencing and then the nose came out and a paw went in, scratching at the ground, then the nose again. Finally Buddy's curiosity was aroused and he went after it too. sigh.

I thinned the corn today too. I took the corn plants that i'd pulled up and transplanted them. I think i'm up to about 24 plants in a sort of square configuration.

I might have "weeded" my carrots and parsnips. sigh. I planted them, then was told to make sure to pull all the weeds, especially in the first 4-6 weeks. Weeds use up water and nutrients so you don't want them competing with your vegies. Well, i went to town weeding around the two grape tomatoes. Then suddenly realized that what i was pulling up might just be the carrot and parsnip sprouts. I stopped immediately and am watching them for the next week or so.

The adventure continues!

Walking cats

I finally purchased a cat harness and lead. I took Wiggins out first. She really didn't want to walk beside me. But she loved investigating the front garden while i followed her.

I then took Josiah out. He really enjoyed checking out the yard. He did a much better job walking beside me.

I've been told by a number of people that i know that they also walk their cat(s). Who knew. I didn't think it was that popular of an activity. Apparently i'm wrong.

Summer Gardening

A week ago i went to Home Depot and purchased most of my vegetable garden. I actually planted it the day after i purchased it. I was so proud of myself. I haven't had a vegetable garden for the last two summers. The summer before i ignored my garden and it failed miserably. Those of you who like gardening are probably sitting their aghast at these admissions of failure, especially if you know how well my Dad grew his garden.

Three summers ago i adopted my first dog. Esther, the wonder dog, loved to pick tomatoes and play with them like a ball. She loves to eat vegetables too, but not fresh tomatoes. Well, not that year. I gave up on the garden and focused on Esther and learning about dogs and dog ownership.

This past winter i decided i'd have a vegetable garden again. Well. I'd try again. This has taken quite a bit of thought. I had to decide how i was going to protect my tiny little vegetable plot. All of nine feet by nine feet. Once that was completed, i had to decide if i wanted to improve the quality of the dirt before i planted the vegetables. I decided to add llama beans (aka droppings) to the garden and some more dirt. The llama beans are supposed to be one of the best fertilizers ever. You can use it straight from the llama. k, it might be just a hair messy that fresh, but not much at all. It doesn't burn the plants, has very little scent and lots of nutrients. The scent reminded me of a freshly cleaned barn - mostly smelled like hay.

Oh and of course, the perennial question - to start from seed or buy starter plants. I was working out a method to start from seed. However, as most of you probably know, not only do i have dogs, i have cats. Therefore, i pretty much have no indoor plants. The cats like playing with the plants' leaves and in the dirt. I decided I'd purchase the starter plants. Maybe next year i can devise a plan for starting seeds inside, in spite of the cats.

However, a neighbor graciously gave me two beautiful tomato plants that she started from seed. They are heirloom tomatoes to boot. This was actually a great motivator to me to complete the garden. I decided I couldn't let the tomato plants fail and they'd look so sad all by themselves.

By now i suspect some of you are wondering what i planted... zucchini, cukes, string beans, watermelon, leeks, kohlrabi, green peppers, grape tomatoes (in a container), pear tomatoes, and corn (seeds). I also have some peas, carrots, parsnips, and beets in some containers. My peas aren't do so well this year. Maybe they will do better next year. I have found that a tomato cage works well to support the peas in the container. I also want to plant lettuce and swiss chard in some containers. But i need to get the seeds and i need more dirt.

Feel free to comment on the utter ridiculousness of growing watermelon and corn. It's too late in the season. I don't have enough room. etc. etc. etc. True on all points, but it'll be fun to see if anything develops. By the way, my corn has already popped and is about 3 inches high. I suspect it won't be "knee high by the 4th of July", but you never know. If the llama beans do their part, the corn and watermelon just might surprise me.

Clematis

I love watching my clematis grow and bloom every year. It's just so lush and the color is sublime!

Beige Iris

I told you that it's been a lovely spring. It's been cool. In fact, tonight we have a frost warning. I'll have to move my potted plants into the garage when i get home tonight. Last spring was way too warm and disappeared too quickly as a result.

Here is a picture of my beige iris. The friend who gave it to me said it used to be blue. Then she transplanted it and it came up this color. Interesting. I was hoping it would change back to blue when i planted it in my yard. But noooo.

I also have a blue iris that i purchased a few years ago when i was in Holland Michigan for the annual Tulip Festival. Everyone should go to Holland Michigan for the Tulip festival at least once in there life. imho. Ok, if you've been to the Netherlands in the spring that counts too, or i suspect it would. ;-)

I'm back!

Not that i actually went anywhere, but a friend mentioned a few weeks ago that there hadn't been many posts on my blog of late. True true. We talked about it and decided that i'd pretty much given up on it since spring arrived. hee hee hee.

Ah yes, spring in Michigan... crocus... tulips... lilacs... flowering trees - ornamental and fruit-bearing. It looks like my friend's cherry trees are going to have an abundance of fruit again this year. My rhubarb is amazingly prolific - woohoo! And my raspberry bush has now expanded into three, yes, three bushes and is taking over my lawn. I saw a blossom on my clematis today. It's the first of the season. :-D The trees are green and so is the grass. The iris are beautiful! Tho' my iris are beige or brown - not a very popular color, but very unique. I'll have to see about getting some pictures of these lovely things up on my blog.

I hope that spring is as lovely in your corner of the world as it has been in mine so far.... be back soon!

No Snow - phew!

So we didn't have any snow after all. phew!

But it was chilly last night and it's supposed to be around 27 tonight. The dogs haven't even started blowing their winter coat yet. I'm amazed!

Tomorrow it's supposed to be in the low 60's and then in the 80's on Friday and Saturday. Possibility of T-storms on Saturday and Sunday.

This year, I'm going to try really hard not to complain in July and August when it's really super hot.

:-P

Spring???

It's supposed to snow tonight through early tomorrow morning. No accumulations. Driving home might be a bit interesting. I think i was too optimistic about spring actually coming back in March. However, my daffodils and hyacinths are blooming.

Spring!

We made it! It's Spring!

We won't say anything about it really having been in the teens last night and not a peep about the possibility of snow this weekend. ;-)

Oh and just so everyone knows... a comment was left to check out a flower called "snowdrops". I did and that is the mystery "white non-crocus" i reported on earlier.