AHHHHH My ROMAS!!!!!

Last night we had some bad storms blow through here.
Tornadoes to the south and west and lots of heavy rain and wind.

This morning I woke up and peeked out my kitchen window to the garden.
I notice sometihng between the two back plots. I call charles over to investigate.

ME: Charles, what is that? Is that a tomato bush on the ground or is that a branch from a tree?
CHK: Where?
ME: Out there in the garden
CHK: Where?
ME: OUT THERE!! IN THE GARDEN.
CHK: well I cant see anything i am sorry. I dont know how you expect me to see anything around your big head.
ME: Back there, between the long tomato plot and the plot closest to the house/
CHK: Oh, I dont know. i THINK I see what you are talking about.

He then plops on the couch to watch the series finale of Pushing Daisies that was on DVR(Curse you ABC for cancelling the show and trying to wrap things up with a final episode. Ridiculous.)

So I head out to the garden to find one of my roma plants playing on the ground. The cage had fallen over and our plants could not support themselves.
So I had to pick it up and realized why it had fallen. My tomato plants are KILLING it this year. I have more tomatoes than I will know what to do with! The romas were so heavy and abundant, no wonder it fell over.

so i am off to Lowes to get some tall bamboo stakes to make sure our plants have plenty of room to grow and have some support so we dont have another mishap.
I need to do it this morning because we are expecting heavy storms and rain again today.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PETER

Saturday was Peters birthday.

#9.

where has the time gone?

Peter did really well this year.

We are 6 months between biopsies. He did well in school. He worked extra hard with his PE teacher (Thanks Coach C!!) to increase his stamina, endurance and athletic prowess. He really improved!! He was a terriffic kid in school for the month of march, and had a great make a wish trip back in October. What a great year he had.

so Happy Birthday King! I love you!!!

Will post pictures later.

criss angel trick

I am not a huge criss angel fan. In fact I think he is a bit of a tool.
However, I watched this and couldnt figure out how he did it. every now and then he comes up with stuff that makes me shake my head.

It's alright, 'cause I'm Saved By The Bell

Jimmy fallon is probably the un-funniest man in the late night talk show scene, let alone hollywood. Although every now and then he has a bit of genius. This is one of those moments. Mark Paul Gosselaar is a great sport and very funny.
I am not embarassed to admit that I have seen every single episode of Saved By The Bell, including college years.
My friend Anna Marie sent this to me.



please to enjoy Zack Morris.

goopy eye

How old am I??
for crying out loud, it drives me crazy.

I woke up on friday with a really watery itchy eye.
saturday it was goopy and itchy and kind of painful.
Sunday was worse. It was really itchy and painful and goopy.

I think I have pinkeye.

I still have drops from my last bout, so I started using those and they have actually helped immensely. I get these things and feel like a child all over again.

So I have my contacts out and have to wear my glasses, which give me a headache.
come on drops, work your magic.

Gardening Monday is Back

Technically this is sunday. But I wont have time to do this tomorrow, so although it is gardening monday, I am posting it a day early and calling it monday...

Yay. I love to garden and I have missed it this entire winter.


But it is back. A few weeks ago Charles and I planted everything and have been working hard.We tested our soil (average pH where it needs to be, but SORELY lacking in Nitrogen and a few other elements you test for. So we had to get some special compost and fertilizer to help the garden soil get back to normal.)

This year we cut out the squash. We have had nothing but trouble with them. We would get one or two and then the plant would die and we just couldnt figure it out. So although I love summer squash and zucchini, it just wasnt worth the heartache. I would see these plants grow all big and beautiful and be full of flowers and get a dinky fruit here and there. Or they would start to grow and then the fruit for some reason would just mush up and die and fall off.



We decided to only plant jalapenos this year. Last year we planted jalapenos, anaheims and poblanos and had so many peppers that many went to waste.
So this year our garden consists of the following:

• sweet 100 cherry tomatoes(really sweet round red cherry tomatoes)
• yellow cherry tomatoes(sweet yellow cherry tomatoes)
• roma tomatoes(perfect for bruschetta)
• Juliet grape tomatoes(perfect for salads and snacking. SUPER SWEET)
• celebrity tomatoes(larger red slicing tomato)
• Texas white Sweet onions
• Green Bell Peppers
• Kentucky Wonder Pole Beans
• Jalapenos
• Basil
• Blueberries(we bought two bushes, but wont see anything for at least 2 years)

I LOVE tomatoes.(can you tell, 1/3 of our garden is tomatoes.) I make salsa by the gallon practically. And believe it or not the sweet 100s and grape tomatoes grow like crazy and make a fantastic salsa. Just mix them in with the other tomatoes of your choosing.





But this morning I went out and took pictures of everything and made this little montage of the plants.

I also included a picture of the honeysuckle along the back fence, just because I like it(top center)

so yay to gardening, yay to perfect garden weather and the lots of rain we have gotten!

Cook It Blog it-another entry

Last monday, for memorial day, I braved the torrential downpours and grilled out.

I made Brushetta, with Basil from my garden, and grilled a really nice steak.

The bruschetta recipe :

3-4 roma or plum tomatoes

1 clove garlic, minced(about 1tsp from a jar)

1/2 TBSP extra Virgin Olive Oil

3-4 Basil leaves

1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar

salt and pepper

french baguette or italian loaf.(use whole wheat baguette for healthier alternative)

In a pot of boiling water let the tomatoes boil for 1 minute. Drain off water and rinse with cold water. Peel skins off of tomatoes.

Cut tomatoes in half and dig out the seeds and discard. Chop tomatoes fine.

Wash basil leaves, roll up and slice thin(chiffonade). Make sure basil is chopped fairly fine.

In bowl combine tomatoes, chopped garlic, basil, 1/2 TBSP Olive Oil, 1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper to taste.

Take bread and slice. Brush olive oil onto the tops of the bread. Place oil side down on a baking sheet. Bake at 450 until golden brown. Top with tomato mixture and eat! YUMMMMMM!!

STEAK:

Preheat your grill, you want about a medium-high flame. Bring your chosen steak up to room temperature. If you start with a cold steak it will be tough.

with a knife make slits in the surface of the steak, just a few per side. Brush on Extra Virgin Olive Oil and massage in gently. This will help tenderize the steak.

sprinkle with Lawrys Seasoned Salt mixed with equal portions of McCormick Montreal Steak seasoning.(I use about 1/2 TBSP per side, I like a little zing.)

Spray a little pam on your grill and place steak. SHUT THE LID AND DONT MOVE IT FOR AT LEAST 6 MINUTES!!! Turn and cook 6 minutes on other side.

Depending on how pink you like your meat you can either take it off, or cook it longer.(It also depends on how thick the steak is. The thinner the steak, the less amount of time you want to put it on. I like my steaks medium, still pink in the center)

Less pink, leave it 8 minutes per side. You dont want to be flipping it over and over, that will dry it out.

Put it on a plate and LEAVE IT ALONE!!!! Dont cut into it for at least 6-7 minutes. If you cut into it right away it will dry out. By letting it settle it will stay moist and juicy.

ENJOY!!!