Maybelline Product Testing!

 

Well, Thanks to being a BzzAgent, I got to sample the new Maybelline products!  I've waited to do a review until I had used them quite a bit (because in my opinion first opinions of makeup aren't always the ones that last).  So, let's get this party started!

I personally tested the lots of lashes mascara and the peach kiss baby lips lip balm. 

My first thoughts on the lip balm was that it wasn't flavored.  I'm not entirely sure why I thought it would have some flavor (maybe it was because of the name) but it didn't.  That right there is the downside to my baby lips product.  It has a very "lotion" taste occasionally.  That being said, the more I used it, the more I really did come to enjoy it.  One of my best friends commented when I shared some with her to try that the name Baby Lips wasn't appealing to her.  I do appreciate the tinting.  It's very pale so it's more along the lines of when you wear sexy underwear just to feel sexy, but it's still nice.  

The test between the make up and no make up.

As you can see in the above picture, the lip lip balm does have a really nice sheen.  (Please forgive my overgrown eyebrows >.>  We're in the middle of moving and I haven't had the chance to really mess with them).  All in all, the reviews I've had are good.  The Baby Lips balm doesn't get sticky (a pet peeve of mine when it comes to lip products) and it really does seem to make my lips softer and smoother.  The size and design of the tube is really nice as well.  It's easy to keep track of and to find in my purse or pocket and it is quick to apply and makes me feel all pretty!  ;)

Now, on to the Mascara.  I'll start with a disclaimer.  As you can tell by the side of the picture that has no make up, I already have long eyelashes, they just need more definition in my opinion.  I was a little nervous about testing mascara because I knew I would be forcing myself to use the product instead of my normal product for several weeks to get a good opinion of it.  The applicator looks like a pink cone almost.  That seemed very odd to me and that best friend I mentioned earlier.  It was almost scary.

The comparison between my old Mascara and the new.

But, I really did like it.  The Lots of Lashes Mascara was the smoothest formula I've used yet.  You know how most mascara (at least in my experience) tends to resemble a thin sludge before you put it on?  Not this one.  It almost looks like an ink.  That being said, it is extremely light when you put it on.  I may be the only person who's experienced this before, but I really hate when my eyes water just after I put on mascara because my eyelids are adjusting to the weight and feeling of it on.  (That is why I normally stick to water proof)  I didn't even have to worry about that this time!  Lots of Lashes also didn't go on clumpy.  I didn't have to use my eyelash comb and seperate the lashes at all.  It was an astonishing feeling!  The last big seller for me was the fact that it didn't make my long eyelashes look nasty or fake.  Very few mascaras can sit on long eyelashes nicely and this one did.  Will I make the switch?  I'm thinking so.  I might keep some of the Maybelline Falsies around in case I want that wispy look, but I'm pretty darn impressed! 

Now, don't think I'm just tooting their horn because I got to test them.  I will point out the bad things, but I was extremely pleased with these products.  I'll also admit right now that even though I really love make up and am enthused about it, I don't have the most experience with the application of it.  This was the perfect product for me to test because these are things I wear most regularly :D  and this test has inspired me to wear them more often ^.^

Want to try them for yourself?  Head on over to Maybelline's Facebook Page and like them for a free coupon!  I hope this answers your questions and helps any one curious about these products :)  Feel free to comment with further questions or email me and I'll be more than glad to assist! 

Kyokin

Puppy Kyokin

Well, we've done it again. :P  Just kidding!  We did finally find the pup that's going to be our little Harclave's companion and friend.  Everyone, meet Kyokin.  He is a black lab/bull mastiff mix.  He's going to be a big baby one of these days, but he's such a sweet heart that I'm not worried about it in the least!  

This does bring up house training and *shudders* teething again though.
Harclave was not easy to house train or get through the teething stage.

Harclave for those who don't remember.

These last few days have been filled puppy love.  We've also added another kiddo to the house.  (We really are growing these days).  Fana and I are massively out numbered now :P  With all this growing, it's time for us to start looking at moving.  We're in a month to month lease (well technically there is no lease at this moment but that's for another day) so we're looking around and saving money.  I'm hoping that since we're moving anyways we can be moved by Thanksgiving (we host every year).


It looks like we may actually be moving to the Jackson, Michigan area.  It's about the same drive for my husband (if not a little shorter) and it's a cheaper area where we can rent a bigger house to fit us all.  I'm excited and a little anxious.  Moving is always a big deal.  There are more of us to do the packing this time around, but that does mean more stuff as well.

The two of them playing in the back yard.

All in all, things have been busy, but a good kind of busy.  I'm sure there will be more surprises around the corner!  Tonight the Knitting Ninja's of Michigan are over running my home to throw a birthday party for one of our own :)  And Halloween is just around the corner!  The only thing that gets me this year is that I didn't get pictures of our pumpkins before the frost destroyed them :( but maybe we'll sneak in some carving time and make some more!


Well, Happy Fall everyone!  :)  And I'll be back soon with more updates!

 

Bzzagent

Well, I recently discovered a product test site called Bzzagent.  It's very confusing on the surface, but I'm still learning my way around!  Today I got invited into my first test group.  It's for product called Smarterer. 

I've taken a few quizzes now and I really like it.  They have quite a few different quizzes and "challanges" that range from topics like Facebook and Twitter to topics like Php and blogging.  The interface is extremely simple to use and I really like how it rates you as you take the quiz with other people.  It even allows for you to share your score directly on facebook or twitter :)  It's got my recommendation!  So I suggest you folks all check it out :)

In other news, Saturday was another larp event.  It was cold and windy but everyone had lots of fun.  I'm kinda sad at how cold it's gotten and how quickly.  Yes, I'm excited for snow, but I don't want to have it in October!  My ketchup turned out really nicely :).  Sometime this next weekend we're going to try and finish our halloween decorations and carve pumpkins so I'll take some pictures when we're finished for you all!

Fall is here!

Things have been crazy around here.  I've been running like a headless chicken!  The garden is still producing a small amount of produce but is slowly dying off with the light frosts we've been having.  Tonight (hopefully) I'm going to try my hand at home made ketchup.  Wish me luck folks!






The best part of this time of year here in Michigan however, is the leaves!  We joined some friends camping last weekend (we were only able to stay into part of Saturday) and look at the beauties I found on the walk!  I really love this time of year.  The colors are so vibrant and dazzling.  To celebrate, I've made a new coupon for my photography!  You can get $5.00 off an order of $10.00 or more at Ashley Di Iacovo Photography by entering the coupon code FALLPROMO .   This coupon is only good until October 26, 2011 so take advantage of it while it's around!


As far as outside of photography and cooking goes, things have been just as busy.  My knitting group I'm part of has turned into a huge success!  (And to think I was so terrified of getting one together) and I love hanging out with each of the girls.  Our home has a new resident :)  and things are moving smoothly with that as well. All in all, things have been going well it's just been super busy.  Until next time folks!

To Delight and be Delighted in

I've been reading Captivating. This book is an excellent read for woman! I can't recommend it highly enough. At one point, they discuss that deep down feeling all woman (at least as far as my knowledge goes) have to "delight and be delighted in". The words were easy to read, but the concept ended up being more difficult to understand. I passed through taking my notes, I'm reading this and keeping a journal with a good friend, and thought no more of it. That was until this past Sunday.

 My husband spoiled me and took me out to take pictures this past Sunday. We made our way back out to the Parker Mill Park. If you are in Michigan, you should really visit this park. If you are there during the right time (Sundays 1-5 during the fall it seems) you can get a tour of the mill and see how it worked when it was opened. We were lucky enough to find the mill open. Normally we take our dog with us out on these "Picture walks", but it ended up being a good thing we didn't have him with us this time.

 Now, after we visited and went on the mill tour, we once again got rained out. The skies thundered and rain poured on us. I'm really beginning to feel like it's tradition to get rained on when we go out to take pictures. As we, with a few other people, ran under the car bridge (there's a walking path that passes beneath it to get to the other side of the park) we found a heron snacking on the fish the rain was washing down stream. It was amazing! We spent an hour or so under the bridge taking pictures as the storm refused to let up. The majesty the bird had while eating was spectacular. This was the first time I've ever seen a heron before. Once the rain began to lighten up (only slightly) we continued on the path in the rain.

 

 Here are the pictures from my trip

 The first thing we found when we arrived at the pavilion, (It's a really neat set up, the pavilion is designed with plants growing on the top.) was a massive rainbow spreading through the nearby trees. Much to my surprise rainbows are in all actuality very difficult to photograph. (I've had very few chances to try and capture rainbows on film to this date). As the rain stilled, my husband reclined and began to write in his journal. I moved to and fro around the small pavilion, called Poppy's Place, taking pictures of spiders and flowers and the beauty surrounding me. I couldn't help but to drink in each beauty in it's own turn. It was marvelous. It was glorious.

 I took my time taking pictures of these little marvels and when I had collected a few, I would return to share them with my husband. Being surrounded by all these little blessings filled me with joy and sharing them with my husband only furthered that. It was then that I understood what the book had been talking about.  I felt so happy looking at what was around me and in turn I was even happier sharing it and seeing the joy on my husband's face.  I think this is what the book meant.  It's hard for me to describe in words, but the fact that I was able to share something so precious to me with him and please him with it as well felt inexplicably good.

I just really wanted to share this with you all :)  That being said, my impatience is driving me insane.  I can't wait for my Scentsy shipment to be shipped and I'm still waiting for my ion bracelet to be shipped.  Overall, I'm disappointed with this purchase.  It was free, so that is the plus side still, but when I ordered there was nothing stating a time range before the product would ship out.  Normally, this means that the order will be processed and shipped in a few days.  Two weeks after I placed the order and had heard nothing, I contacted the company only to very rudely be informed that there is a 10-14 BUSINESS (yes they capitalized it) day processing delay.  That in it's own wouldn't be upsetting, but the manner and tone the response was given really soiled the transaction.  This Friday will be their fourteen business days, so we'll see if they redeem themselves, but I have this bad feeling I will be contacting them via email once more.
So, if you are ordering one of these, it might be better to find a different place to order from than http://www.powerbands.tv/ .  I most likely won't be ordering from there again.

Well, that's it for now.  (At least all I can think of).  Hope you all have a wonderful week!

Weather, Weather, and more Weather

Well, I believe the zucchinis have produced their final fruits.  The other thing I learned this week in gardening is that honeydew plants are cousins of cucumbers.  So that cucumber disease that I couldn't find a treatment for online spread to my honeydew :(  I've gotten a handful of melons, but I don't think I'll be getting many more.  The tomatoes are growing well as well as the bell peppers and jalapenos finally started taking off.

The weather around here has been crazy!



This is from a storm near my mother in laws house.  We kidnapped her puppies so our little  guy would have playmates for a week.  It ended up being alot of fun for us and the dogs :)  But when we went and picked up the pups, she was going on day 2 of no power.  That being said, adding extra puppies to my schedule (it's already been pretty packed) made internet and pictures all but impossible.  For the pictures it didn't really matter though.  It's been drizzling rain here.  No cool lightening or thunder where we live, just rain.  I'm sure the garden loves it though! 

That being said, I have been working on reading Captivating and taking notes.  It's such a good book!  Other than that, I've been working on LARP rulebook pieces.  I finished a pair of socks.  The yarn is really awesome.  It's a Hobby Lobby home brand, but it's a wool mix (I tend to be allergic to wool occasionally) that I can wear!  They are so nice and soft and warm.  I'm going to have to pick up more yarn so I make me some more!  My current knitting project is a pair of Norwegian mittens.  My hubby picked me up a book called Norwegian Handknits that's full of awesome designs.  The only sad part is that it looks like my first pair of mittens will be too small for me.  Well, it's a good Christmas gift in the making then, right? 

I just got a group of my good friends together and we're making a knitting circle.  I'm really excited about this and we're going to meet for the first time next Wed.  I hope everything goes well because this will  be fun if it does :).  One of my friends is going to pick up Letters to Juliet (I think that's what it's called) for us to watch while we craft!

Now, I did want to take a minute and mention this.  I've recently discovered Scentsy and the woman who's introduced me to it is super nice.  I'd like to take this chance to direct you to her and encourage you to look around.  her website is here.  She does a scent of the month club to let you sample things and is over all just really nice.  I'll let you all know how we like our products (we loved our samples) when they come in!

Well, I know it doesn't seem like much, but besides running around this has been what I've been up to.  Today we're getting NomNoms (awesome cupcakes by us) to take to my husband's step brother and I'm sure we'll visit with them all for a little while before coming home.  Next weekend we go to the Ren Faire so I'll take lots of pretty pictures to share ^.^  Have a blessed and safe week everyone!

Maybury State Park

We took a break this past weekend.  We've been so busy lately that we have barely even slept (or at least it feels that way).  So Saturday, after the cable guy came earlier than expected, we decided to take a day adventure out to Maybury State Park here in Michigan. You can find out more information about the history of the park here.  It was simply beautiful! 

One of the trails we walked on.

All in all our visit was cut short, but we really enjoyed it.  About 20 minutes into us walking the winding trail near where we parked, we started to hear rumblings of thunder.  We decided to continue on the shorter trail and head to the car.  About 10 minutes later, we came across the site above (near the old water tower consequently) and it started to very lightly sprinkle.  We found a pavilion and restroom.  As we got our poor puppy, (he was exhausted.  He hasn't been on walks like this in a while) something to drink, we waited out for a bit.  Once the rain calmed down to a light sprinkle again, we headed to the nearest map.  We headed in what we thought was the correct direction and passed a couple walking their large dogs who were very upset to see our little one (he's half Shih Tzu and half *insert crazy name* poodle).  We got to the next map (not more than a 5 or 6 minute walk) to discover we had gone the wrong way.  As we turned around and headed in the correct direction, the storm began to pick up.  The pavilion that we would need to pass again seemed to be our best bet.  What did we find when we got there?  The couple with the large angry dogs were there (and shooting us dirty looks!).  At that point, we knew we were maybe 10 minutes walk from the car.  We continued on.  As we walked quickly, a crack filled the air.  Turning, to our horror we saw a tree branch fall to the ground we were had just passed.  The rain was so heavy at one point that it was better for me to remove my glasses and walk than to try and see through them.  Our clothes were soaked through (and so was our poor little puppy).  At about 8 minutes into our walk, we got to an empty pavilion and waited for the storm to calm down a bit.  It was on the outskirts of the walking trails and had no tree cover to speak of.  (It was cold).  Once it was lightly drizzling again, we continued to our car.  I feel bad because we walked by the Rice family picnic sopping wet.  My tank top and pants were stuck to me and I felt ashamed to be seen like that.  Finally seeing our car and getting there, we discovered my husband had left the sunroof down!  (That shows you how little we were expecting the rain and storm when we went in!)  All in all, it was a fun, scary, wet experience.  Now now, before I get lectured on anything.  We are not normally risk takers.  The storm was fast and hard hitting.  Everyone is safe and fine (Thank God!).  I'm excited to go back (on a nicer day hopefully) to take more pictures.  With as fast as everything happened, my camera was in it's case to protect it more than it was out to take pictures.  As always, what few other pictures I took can be found here. 

In regards to the garden, the green bean and cucumber plants are no longer with us :(  They produced like troopers though so I'm glad we planted them!  We are starting to get some red tomatoes (although for the most part they stay stubbornly green!).  Corn is beginning to form in our squirrel planted corn plants and the honey dew is getting larger!  We also discovered that the jalapeno plants we thought had disappeared and died actually have baby jalapenos.  Hopefully in the next week or so I'm going to take updated garden pictures for everyone :)  Until then, Stay safe!

Busy Busy Busy August!

July has come to an end.  Kind of sad, isn't it?  With August comes the beginnings of harvests and to me (I grew up in Texas *shrugs*) the beginning of school and fall.  My mind has been a flutter with thoughts of Carmel apples and pumpkin picking.  The rest of me however has been occupied with friends, work, and food preservation!  I've made stewed tomatoes, brined pickles, plum sauce, frozen zucchini, frozen green beans, frozen corn, and dried zucchini.  Yes, I know it doesn't sound like much but add in my half-brother's passing (rest in peace Jeremy :( ) and all the day to day work I do as a housewife and I'm impressed with my accomplishments. 

I think one of the more exciting parts of this past weekend was finding my dehydrator!  I've been wanting one, but they add up in cost quickly and I wasn't 100% sure I would even use it all that much.  I have fallen in love.  We found my dehydrator at a garage sale brand new and never opened for (now get this) five bucks!  I was extremely excited to take it out and play with it all day Saturday (we had other errands we were doing while we were garage sale shopping and then guest for dinner).  When I finally did get a chance to open it, I pulled it out, read the cleaning instructions and tossed the book aside (not literally).  I cleaned it and started slicing some of the zucchini in my fridge to put on there.  I looked in my Ball's Canning guide for their directions on zucchini drying and began.  After I had started the process, I then took the time to read the instructions for the machine.  It was a special edition one (apparently packaged for Wal-Mart specifically) and it came with a starting jerky maker set.  I'm not that brave yet, but one of these days I will be!

I got an order for some more of my blushing peach jam!  I'm really excited :)  I love making it (and eating it).  Two jars are ordered and the rest will go in the pantry for now.  I still have to find raspberries for it though.  When I was out and about picking up tomatoes and things to preserve, each place I went was sold out.  I'm going out to look some more tonight.

Things I learned this weekend about food preservation:

1. Two people cutting up 10 lbs of tomatoes goes a lot faster than one
2. About two ears of corn blanched equals a pint bag half filled in the freezer.
3. 5 or 6 hours of dehydrating time seems epic when you are excited and anticipating the process, but in reality it's really not that long.

As for my garden (I really need new pictures up >.>) we went ahead and bit the bulled and pulled our potatoes up.  We had the mole living in a burrow in them (it finally made it's way to the garden) and between the June bug problem we had and the hail from the storm earlier this year, the plants themselves weren't looking too spiffy.  We got 5-10 lbs of potatoes from our little plants (even with the pulling up early and everything else that happened to these poor guys) and there were still lots of tiny little baby potatoes we could have had if we had let them keep growing.  Oh well!  We're excited with what we have and I'm planning on turning them into freezer french fries (the kind that normally cost an arm and a leg in a store that you bake in the oven to eat!).  We also thinned out our green bean plants.  Some of them were looking worn so we went ahead and pulled them up to make room for the ones that aren't as beaten up.  The honey dew melons look like little fuzzy green baseballs!  I love them!  I can't help but rub my fingers over them when I'm out in the garden at least once.  I hope it doesn't hurt them!  The main reason for the garden work however was that our tomato plants out grew their cages!  We had to buy stakes and tie them up over the weekend.  I didn't know they would/could do that!  I guess we should chalk it up to another lesson learned!  Of course, after we spent a few hours in the garden, another severe storm rolled through!  Thankfully we didn't get any of the hail they had predicted with it.  I still have more pickles to make and a few beans to freeze and the french fries to prepare, but besides that, I think one of the next things I want to try is home made hot pockets!  In the Ball's Canning Guide they have directions for making ham and cheese ones, so I'm going to try and adjust it for peperoni ones!  Wish me luck folks :)

I don't think there's much else really worthy of posting about (I'm sure after I finish this I'll thing of 101 things I should have said but that's just how it goes) so I'm just going to wish you all a wonderful weekend!

Hello World

Some of the tomato plants are now taller than I am!

Well, I'm back.  I went to a funeral in Texas this last week or so for my half-brother.  He will be missed.  :(  When I came back however, my garden had grown quite larger! 

I had to add more growing room for the cucumbers.

My husband and I are starting to think that maybe the "suggested" planting guidelines are a bit inaccurate because everything is just growing everywhere!  Is this much growing normal or are we just extra blessed this year? 

Baby Honeydews like this are popping up everywhere!

There's lots of catch up work to do in the garden.  I think it'll be good for me.  I've had quite a bit on my mind and not alot of time to go over each thought.  The trip was nice enough, but I had forgotten what a drive it is.  On the way home we saw tornado touch down.  (We were in the Texas panhandle so we were able to see from far enough away to not be in danger) but that was the most excitement we experienced on the trip.

A growing cucumber.  I'm not sure why some of them do this, but I think they are still good to eat.

I've updated my gallery with a few pictures from the trip, so go and check it out! 

Updates and a coupon :)

Well, I feel terrible.  Every day life has taken a nose dive into the deep end it feels like!  I've been busy as a bee.  Over this last weekend I did Senior pictures for the daughter of a woman who works with my husband (well isn't that a mouth full?).  They  turned out extremely well!  I've also been working on getting a shop set up for my photography!  Now you can buy prints of my photos :)  To celebrate with you, my wonderful blog viewers, I have made a coupon just for you!  Visit my photo gallery and store front here!  After selecting your purchases, enter the code michwife11 and you'll get 10% off your entire purchase!  This coupon expires 10/31/11 so enjoy it while it's here!

What my harvests are beginning to look like!

The garden has gotten huge!  It doesn't seem to stop growing these days!  (this makes for a happy me!)  Both my zucchini plants and my tomato plants (the non hanging ones) are getting to where they reach near my shoulders when I walk into it!  This heat wave here in Michigan has made spending time out in the garden a bit harder (plus I have to water every single night! and twice a day for Lulu), but the plants seem to love it so I can't really complain too much.  I've been freezing green beans and zucchini.  I even made zucchini bread (at the request of a friend) and zucchini and ricotta tart!  (This recipe can be found on Rachel Ray's website and is divine!)  This is the first harvest where cucumbers have been high in number so I think tonight or tomorrow I'll be working on making my first batch of pickles to store.  I think my green bean plants are coming to an end in their production, but we certainly have gotten quite a bit of them if you ask me!  Once this heat wave ends and I'm not so busy (my schedule exploded a bit for this week) I'll go out and try to get some pictures of how large the plants are getting.  It's a very pretty and comforting (for me anyways) sight.  The only complication we've had lately are June bugs (nasty buggers) and the zucchini near the potato plants are having blossom rot issues.  I guess that's it for now!  I'll be back soon I'm sure :)  Good luck everyone and have a great end of the week!

More produce!

This is an older picture but look at how big it's all getting! 

I'm really done with this whole "being sick in summer" thing.  It stinks and it's keeping from being out in my garden as much!  (as well as from updating this). 

I really like to look back at a little more than a month ago you can see how far things have come!  The cucumbers were tiny for example!  Then if you look at a little less than a month ago you'll still see how fast they've grown.  I find it surprising and shocking.  It's nice that it grows fast!

An adorable baby cucumber.  I love how cute these are!

Even with me being sick (I caught what my hubby had over the fourth), things have still been crazy busy!  Just this last week (on days I was feeling somewhat good enough to go outside) I moved the sage and rosemary inside.  They are now sitting on my desk next to me.  The reason for moving the rosemary was that it never could seem to be happy in the garden.  At least in a pot I can monitor it a bit more closely and move it to accommodate it.   The reason for moving the sage was that we have discovered a HUGE June bug infestation!  They were devouring my sage plant and with the dill and cilantro next to it getting so big it was having a hard time recouping.  (The infestation isn't gone, but we are spraying plant leaves with a soap based organic spray to keep them from eating the plants.  We also put out a June bug trap (a jar with about 2 inches of oil inside with a solar light pointing in and surrounding it since they are drawn to the light and will then die in the oil) )  At first we thought we had slugs since all the research I had seen was pointing to that.  We put out our beer traps and tip toed outside with a flashlight in the middle of the night to catch the traps in action only to find no slugs but June bugs over everything!  Keeping our porch light off at night in the backyard also seems to make a huge difference.  Our mole/groundhog also finally did the evil unforgivable act and has tunneled into the garden.  As much as the traps appall me, I may let my husband put one in.  I don't want to kill whatever it is, but I also don't want it in my garden :(  I'm going to put up more of the pop bottles on poles (my husband was playing with them and didn't put them back in correctly or the same spots so I'm thinking this might be why the sudden "ohh garden" from the creature) and hope that it decides to go on it's merry little way!

My first harvest of green beans.

My garden is producing produce!  (see what I did there?)  I'm so excited!  I've always enjoyed cooking with fresh ingredients, but having my own grown veggies definitely rocks!  My first harvest was enough for my hubby and I to eat with two meals, my second filled a Wal-mart bag half way full (I ended up sharing with my friends down the street and gave them half) and my third has added even more to that.  I think I'm going to start freeze canning them (I sadly do not have a pressure cooker :(  to regularly can them yet) so that I don't run the risk of losing them!  They are really yummy! 

My first two zucchini and three cucumbers!

Even the zucchini and cucumbers are starting to come in now!  I'm extremely excited :)  We used the zucchini in this Rachel Ray recipe.  We first made it last year when it came out in the magazine and fell in love with it!  It's a very good recipe and I highly recommend it!  The cucumbers I'll be turning into cucumber sandwiches today.

My First Quilt.

I finally finished my quilt (in between being sick) and started my husbands.  To see more, visit my Crafting Blog: Something Crafty This Way Comes! 

Overdue Update ((July 2, 2011 storm update!)

Sorry for the long overdue nature of this update.  My hubby took time off for the 4th giving him essentially a five day weekend.  Of course, he ended up sick for the entire time and I ended up sick towards the end of it.  So finding time and motivation has been a little difficult :( . 



July 2, 2011 a big storm moved through!  They had predicted rain for us, but nothing like this!

Hail falling in front of our house.

A picture of the melting hail. 

 The wind was blowing rain and hail so hard at points that we couldn't see out our front door!  The hail was on average golf ball size.  Of course, not thinking fast enough or of pictures, I didn't grab my camera until the worst of the storm was over.  Half way through the storm we went out and tried to do save work on the garden.  All of our potato and zucchini plants were flattened to the ground.  Thankfully we had just put cages around our tomatoes and the honeydew so those were a bit more protected. 

Here are some pictures of the damage from the storm:

Our onions were pummeled and many lost shoots to the storm like this one did.

The types of holes the hail left in the cucumber leaves.

You can see some of the holes in the zucchini leaves.  The zucchinis had to be tied up to support them.

There were downed branches everywhere when we drove around.  Here's one at a local gas station.

There were whole sections of town without power (thankfully we missed that part) but some people are still cleaning up the mess this storm made!  There were no tornadoes in our area, but sirens did go off for other counties near us I believe.

The sky took on a weird butter/green color after the storm.

After the storm the sky was a weird butter/green mix color and everything was cast in this creepy light.  My husband loved it because he said it felt like special effects.  As night fell, another part of the storm moved over us (but didn't hit us) so we got quite the lightening show for once!

Lightening from that night.

Other than illness our long weekend was good.  We spent a lot of time together.  We did light fireworks off in the backyard (because what would the 4th be if you didn't?)  My husband bought some mammoth smoke bombs for the larp (because they are really long smoke bombs) and decided to test them.  He is a fireworks pro and has done this man times, but as he lit it and threw it, the smoke bomb (let me repeat smoke bomb) exploded and set his clothes on fire.  Thankfully he was not hurt he just lost a shirt and a pair of shorts.  (they were new, but at least he is okay, right?)  The rest of the evening went smoothly.

With us being sick and not much to do, I did get to finish my quilt!  Now I've started my husbands.  I'll be posting more details on that at my crafting blog http://somethingcraftythiswaycomes.blogspot.com/

Here are some pretty fireworks to leave you all with!  Until I feel better and take pictures of the garden to update with, be safe and have fun :)

Fountain Fireworks

Getting Ready for the 4th of July!

Things have been crazy around here.  I've had a bit of a bug (sick when I eat or drink but otherwise fine) that finally seems to be going away and we've  had a friend in the hospital.  I finally got to get out to my garden to take inventory and to really look at it!  Lulu is so much happier now than she was before!  Look at this picture!

Look at all the new baby tomatoes!

I'm excited.  the one tomato I've been nursing on her (you can see it in the background) has some pretty serious blossom rot.  Is it bad that when I look at this guys I see fried green tomato blts? 

At the end of the yellow blossom you can see the beginnings of the first baby zucchini!

While on the topic of baby produce, I've found my first baby zucchini!  I'm very excited to see these taking off so well!  I haven't dug around through all of them yet to see how many "baby" zucchinis I have, but with as many flowers as I've seen, I should get a good turn out!

A Honey Dew Blossom

The Carrots

My honey dew is growing like crazy!  It keeps sending out little vine tendrils like the cucumber plant does, so in order to contain it, I'm considering putting it in a upside down tomato cage so it can grasp onto something and grow up a bit instead of just out.  I'm not sure.  This is the first time I've grown a melon.  I just watch it grow up, up, up, fall over from the weight of itself and do it all again with the little vine tendrils just laying next to it straight.  I'm going to do more research, but that's my best idea at this time. 

The carrots are so happy!  I'm really excited to eat them!  Well, I guess I can say that about my entire garden.  ;)  Me (being the strange person I am) can't help but look at carrots and be reminded of cilantro.  The leaves just look so similar to me!

Alona is beginning to have leaves bud!

Our little rose bush is finally growing leaves of her own!  I'm glad.  I was really worried about her.  She wasn't in the best of shape when we brought her home from the store and then I was worried that she wasn't getting enough light, but she's growing.


Our friend who was in the hospital was mugged and attacked early Monday morning.  He's out of the danger zone after the surgery to see how bad the skull fracture was and to fix it, but he sadly has no health insurance to pay for this and (since he was mugged and his car stolen) now has to deal with a stolen identity, and a slew of other very hard things.  We're working on getting a charity/benevolent organization together for him to help him.  I'll update you all with more once that happens.  In the meantime, This is my crafting blog and the craft I put together to cheer him up while he's in the hospital.  I'll post again soon everyone!  Have a safe and happy holiday to those of you here in the US and everyone else, have a great weekend!  (if I don't post again before that)

Attack possibly solved, first "fruits", and an update!

Well, we're leaning toward it possibly being a gopher or something similar that ate our poor pinwheels (if confused see my previous post!).  This morning we went out to the back yard to get ready for company and there little raised "tunnels" all over the yard towards the house (no where near the garden thank goodness!).  The good news is that we already have the pop bottle on stakes in place.  This keeps gophers and tunneling creatures away because they don't like the vibrations.  :D  So it works for bunnies and tunnels!  We did reposition our bottles (and may be adding more).  We have one of each of the tall ones at each long side of the garden and then I moved the small one to the center of their little tunnels under Lulu.

The salad made from lettuce grown by us!  With cheese added of course ;)

We finally got to eat something from the garden!  I am so excited :)  Our lettuce was finally big enough to go and pick it all and (I chopped it up because I was excited) make a salad.  It was really yummy!  Some of the lettuce had a really nutty flavor when we ate it and when I was cutting it and then other types in there had a bit of bite.  It was really good.  I also pulled up one of my spring onion plants to go in there because I figured it was a good time to celebrate :-D.

Baby Corn Plants

As I was replanting the lettuce (the kit we bought came with lots of different types of seeds and you're suppost to harvest and replant as desired) I decided to weed around the area as well.  As I was pulling things up, I found that the squirrels have been planting some corn kernels from their feeder in the garden and now they are growing!  0.o  I didn't even think that would be possible!  I identified the baby plants and planted the new lettuce around them.  I'm excited to see how they turn out!

My cucumber plants

The cucumbers (and honey dew for that matter) are growing like crazy!  I'm trying to train them to grow up the string but they're a little set against it.  Some of the cucumbers (just like the honeydew) already have little buds.

I had originally meant to take pictures next to a ruler for this post, but maybe the next post.  I'm so excited by how big it's all getting!  The zucchini is starting to flower (I also had flowers on some of my basil) and the potatoes are flowering.  It looks like Lulu is going to be getting a few more tomatoes soon (the food and compost really helped her) and even the pepper plants are looking up.  Eating the salad was so much fun and it felt good to enjoy all my hard work.  This weekend is nice (so far anyways) and I'm hoping at some point we'll go out to a park and walk around with our dog so I can take pictures :)

A picture that almost includes the entire garden.  Before I moved the pop bottle stakes.

A view from above where the lettuce is planted.

I hope all of you have a blessed weekend!

An Attack!

In between 2 am and noon today, there was an attack on my poor garden!

Evidence One

Evidence Two

In the long run it's good that none of my plants were hurt.  I am very sad however to see that my pretty little pinwheels have been eaten.  We aren't sure exactly what caused this, but we're working on finding a way to keep them out.  

I also tied back my zucchini leaves to give the pepper plants more room to grow.

A view of my garden from the door.

The good news in all this is that plant food and compost seem to be helping.  Our tomato plants no longer have blue leaves and everything is growing once more.

Lulu's tomato is growing :)  I'm so excited to eat this tomato!

That's all for this update folks :)

Father's Day Weekend

Well our original plans were to go camping, but when we checked the weather to finalize (it was a bit of a spur of the moment plan) it showed nothing but storms all weekend.  So we decided to instead stay home and spend time together.  Of course, the rain didn't come, but we did get work done in the garden!

Left section of the garden.  You can see the green beans, cucumbers, some tomatoes, cilantro, rosemary , potatoes, and dill here

Middle section of the garden.  You can see the dill, basil, potatoes, tomatoes, green bell peppers, onions, and honey dew melon plants here.

Right section of the garden.  You can see the zucchini, bell peppers, onions, garlic, bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, and lettuce plants here.

I think the best news of all we found while working in the garden was this!

The potato plants are starting to bud!  Flowers means no more burying them all!

My photobombed cilantro picture :)  Isn't it growing well!

All in all it was a great weekend.  We went to Howell, Mi and the outlet mall there Saturday to find shoes/clothes for my husband.  It was a nice day (once it stopped being humid and I changed from a dress into some pants) and we had Olive garden for dinner.  Sunday we played video games with one another and then did our garden running.  We came home, worked in the garden and smoked a small brisket!  It was delicious!  The work we did in the garden was: 1. Add in the cage and strings for the cucumbers to grow up  2. Tied small stakes to all the tomato and pepper plants in hopes of making them stronger 3. Added more dirt to the potato piles 4. Planted Alona, our new rose bush 5. Added organic plant food and compost to Lulu, the hanging tomato, and the entire garden.  I hope everyone else had a nice father's day!

Sad news and updates

Well, our lettuce patch had an accidental incident with the person our landlord hires to mow, so we're most likely going to have to replant the lettuce :(  The good news is that the garden is still doing well :)  Here's pictures to prove it!

Lulu's first baby tomato!

My dill plant :)

Green beans, cucumbers and the herbs.  Look at those green beans!

zucchini

A close up of a potato plant

The weather's finally cleared up a bit, not too hot, not too cold, I just haven't been out taking pictures of wild life as much.  I finished making curtains for my mother in law :)  I think they came out really nice!  She also recently found me some old sewing books (some of which have bra patterns and such) so I'm sure I'll be playing with that soon too :)  Over all, things have been busy with the LARP (our online event ends tonight) and just life.  My house is a mess and I'll have to fix that soon :/  but we're looking at trying to go camping this weekend!  Just have to figure out who will watch our puppy!