Up and Down the Road--gotta have a kid fix

I have neglected writing to you  for a few days because I have been visiting my kids and the punks.  Now before you think I am a horrible person, I refer to my grandkids as my punks in a very loving way.  They are absolutely the best thing that every happened to me.  My husband and I headed up the road last Friday to spend some time with the family.  It was the most perfect weekend, that is if you don't count the rain.  We don't!!!!  Rain has been pretty scarce in these parts for almost a year, so when it rains we are extremely happy.

Saturday we went to watch Bella cheer at the Pee Wee football game.  I am not a huge fan of cheerleading for 7 year olds but they sure are cute.

Then it was off to lunch and the mall to return some clothes at the GAP that I bought for Bella.  She grew a whole 2 inches at the end of the summer.  I told her, she needs to stop that growing thing right now.  She is growing up way too fast, it seems like just yesterday that I was kissing that sweet child's bald head.   My daughter, Melanie and Zach (the youngest of the punks) met us at the mall and of course GAP was having a great sale plus I had coupons.  Zach got a few things that he desperately needed.

It was 6:30PM by the time we all got back to Chris' and Candice's house, so it was pizza and salad for dinner. The evening went by quickly and it was time Bella and Zach to head for bed.  I would have liked a little more time to spend with them.

Sunday was State Fair Day.  We all got out of the house and to the fair by 10:00AM.  That is really good considering 5 adults and 2 kids had to take showers, eat breakfast and get all their gear together to spend a whole day at the fair.  Our son-in-law, Dennis and our punk Matt met us there.

The morning started out terrific.  I took them on the huge ferris wheel and I got suckered into taking Matt on one of the roller coasters.  Needless to say, I couldn't walk when I got off the darn thing and I really thought I was going to lose my breakfast. It was not pretty!!!  The rain came just as we were about to go have lunch; it was perfect timing.  We say the animals, new cars, mounted police horses, had our share of junk food  and of course the rides!!!

 Now if there is a puddle to be found, my 2 punks will have to play.  I was just waiting for one of them to fall in!!   By this point, we were all soaking wet and the adults were ready to call it quits.  We went on just a little longer.  We still needed to go see the new cars.   For all you Transformer fans out there, they had the Bumble Bee and Side Swipe cars there from the movie.  And Matt was not going to let us leave till we saw the cars. 

By the end of the day, we all were pretty tired and broke.  It was time to go home.  Zach didn't fall asleep till mid-afternoon; such a good kid.

We headed back down the road on Monday and it's always good to be home.  By Tuesday morning, I had a cold and was missing the punks alot. For all of you, Nanas and Grandmas out there, you know of what I speak.  There is nothing better in the whole world than being a Nana.

I miss you, my dear friend. 

Till the next post, have a good one.
Ro

What's in a name? Having the name of the most beautiful flower.

"Half the interest of a garden is the constant exercise of the imagination." CW Earle

My imagination can virtually run wild when it comes to roses.  I would plant every rose available if I could afford it.  They simply move me more than any other flower, the colors, the fragrance and the look.  The rose to me is the most perfect flower.

Roses have a long colorful history and have been symbols of love, beauty, war and politics.  Fossils of the rose have been found around the world, dating back 35 million years.   Greek Mythology tells us Aphrodite gave the rose its' name and the goddess of flowers, Chloris created it.   There are frescoes dated 1700BC, which illustrate a rose with 5 petals and pink blooms.   Discoveries made in Egyptian tombs revealed wreaths of flowers including roses.

Garden cultivation of roses began some 5000 years ago, probably in China.   Roses were grown in the Middle East during the Roman Empire.   The Romans and Greeks worshiped this aromatic flower.  They were known for throwing rose petals all over their floors for special events.

Some believe the early tea rose got it's name from the early tea clippers that transported tea from India and others believe it got it's name from the scent of the rose.   The Damask rose got it's name from the ancient city of Damascus.   The Persians were the first to find a way of extracting the pure rose oil from the Damask rose.   Rose oil is still the key element in toiletries around the world.

The Crusaders brought back many species of roses to Europe from the East.   The rose form has also been used as a heraldic emblem.   For instance, the red rose was used as the symbol for the House of Lancaster and the white rose used for the House of York .   This was the War of the Roses, 1455 to 1487.

In the 17th century, roses were in such high demand, that the rose and rose water were used as legal tender. Napoleon's wife Josephine established an extensive collection at Chateau de Malmaison. The garden contained more than 250 species.  Botanical illustrator, Pierre Jospeh Redoute completed his water color collection, "Les Rose" in this garden. It is still considered the best botanical illustrations.

Cultivar roses were introduced into Europe from China in the late 18th Century.   Most modern roses can be traced back to this ancestry.   This was the beginning of repeat blooming roses and made them important to hybridizers setting the stage for breeding work with native roses for hardiness and longer blooming seasons.

The rose also has been used as a religious symbol.   The Catholic rosary was originally a string of dried roses.   The white rose is associated with the Virgin Mary and the red rose represents the blood of Christ.

Today, the rose count is over 30,000 varieties and remains among the all-time favorites in the garden.

Are roses important to you?   Do you love seeing them in your garden or in a vase?

Hope this day is wonderful for you.  Go out and take some time to smell the roses.   It will  make you smile. Time to go and weed the garden and get my hands dirty.


Till the next post. Have a good one.
Ro

"

Good-bye Summer

Spent yesterday taking down the gardens with more to do.  I normally hate to see summer end but this year is a different story.  With little to no rain and water restrictions, the gardens really suffered.
Let's bid summer a fond farewell with a look at a few photos.

I have lots of plans for later in the fall. I need to move some "Texas Sage" shrubs to the back garden.
I also have some grafted roses I need to get in the ground.  They have been a pots since spring and they are big enough now to go in the ground. 

Some of the Hostas are big enough to be divided. They are going in the side bed under the Photinias along with a box full of Daylilies that is sitting in the garage refrigerator.  Daylilies do very well here, so I use them alot to fill in large areas.  They really do tolerate the heat nicely.  I have a great source for Daylilies: www.gilbertfwild.com  They have great prices and their products is very good.

These wonderful Mallows have done beautifully in the back of the front garden and they have reseeded all over the place.  There are now several that I can move to the back garden.  I am so happy with this little sweetie. 

Lillies do OK here but they bloom very early. I have a few varieties but my favorite Orientpet do not grow here, way too hot.  I have more to put in the ground this winter.  I usually keep them in the refrigerator till late December.

Now that the days are getting cooler, I am back outside alot more. I can actually put in a full morning without feeling over-heated. I am still praying for rain!!!!  Hope you liked the photos.  Drop me a comment and let me know how your garden is doing.  Are you getting ready for winter? 

Till the next post, have a good one.
Ro

Favorite Magazines

You know, I love my magazines.  There are 10 magazines that come into my house monthly and at least 6 that come bi-monthly (I can already see you shaking your head).  OK, I admit it; I have a problem.  I am a addict, junkie and totally happy.  The problem is the piles that seem to accumulate that drive my husband crazy.  I do eventually get around to cutting out all the pictures and articles I want to keep but sometimes it takes awhile.  This particular magazine I don't cut up.

The magazine that I truly like for the articles and not the glossy photos is Cook's Illustrated.  This magazine's layouts are all black and white, easy to read and contains information such as best products to buy for a featured recipe.

  I was reading the recipe for 'Chicken Cacciatore' in their 'Italian Favorites' issue and there is a segment about diced tomatoes.  The author wrote, "Unlike most canned produce, a great can of diced tomatoes offers flavor almost as intense as ripe, in-season fruit."  The article recommended Hunt's Diced Tomatoes and Muir Glen Organic Diced Tomatoes.  Now before you start telling me that nothing beats fresh, sometimes fresh isn't always available.  

 Regular articles in the bi-monthly magazine, 'Quick Tips' and 'Kitchen Notes' are full of great information that any cook needs to know.  From Rescuing a Broken Sauce to Easy Zesting, the tips are helpful and a quick read.

 Over the years, I have discovered that beautiful photos of food aren't necessarily important to cooking.  A recipe I make very rarely turns out like the photo because of the all "doctoring" the artists do to make it look perfect (somewhat similar to what the artists do to models to make us all wish we looked like them, snicker snicker).  As long as the food tastes good and the recipe is fairly uncomplicated, I am happy without the glossy photo.

I plan on doing a review of one of my favorite craft magazines in the near future. Maybe we could compare notes on some favorites of yours. Why don't you leave me a comment on your favorites.

Till the next post, have a good one.
Ro

Journaling

This is the "Remains of the Day" journal I made for Melanie.   Remains of the Day refers to what the journal is made of.   Scraps of left-over fabric, ribbons and do-dads make up the cover.   This one reflects Melanie's love of the beach.  The fabrics I chose for this cover were remnants that I got at the fabric store for under $1.00 and the ribbons are ones that I already had.

The inside pages can be made up of anything; maps, sheet music, scrapbook wallpaper.   The nice thing about using scrapbook wallpaper is that it has enough weight to hold up when stitching in other pieces.  As you can see from the pages,  I chose to highlight places she has been.  Old postcards are fun to use, as well as stickers, buttons and fabric flowers.

Old photos are also stitched in.  The thing I love about stitching things onto the pages is the added dimension it gives.  There is plenty of space on the pages for her to write her own memories and add more photos.

This journal is 30 pages but they can be done with less pages or more, just depending on what one might want to put in the journal.  The journals are easy to make for anyone with just a little bit of information.

I have made several for different trips I have taken.  I knew there was a reason I saved every piece of paper and every card I received.  Now, they come in handy for these lovely journals. 

Hope you enjoyed seeing this journal. I will highlight some other ones in the future. Thanks for reading my notes today.

Thank you-Our visit was wonderful

Sitting on your back porch, having dinner and chatting, reminded me of how much I miss you and our daily visits to each other's gardens . Five years is too long to go without seeing you. Katy girl has really gotten sweeter with age. She really is a wonderful dog. And I was truly happy to see all the cats surviving and thriving.

Your gardens look fabulous and I was amazed at all the tomatoes you were able to can. I miss those days when you would come to the back door loaded down with tomatoes, green beans and peppers.

I miss our parties with great food, great wine and everyone talking at once about all kinds of things. It just makes me smile when I think back to those days.

Tom and I talked very seriously about our future plans. We have decided we are definitely moving back to Maryland at least 6 months out of the year. We both miss Maryland more than we can say. The other six months we will live in Dallas so we can be near the kids. It's only 3 years till Tom retires and considering how fast the past 5 years have gone by; 3 years will go by in a flash. 

 It was terrific that Diana could join us and her Gorgonzola/Portabello dip was fab. I love meeting people I have come to know on Facebook.  Do you think she would share her recipe? (fingers crossed)

Till the next posting....

Ro