BT: 6/5/12

Thought I'd post some pics of the newish garden here:
First these are the home-owners babies I get to keep an eye on (aka e-n-j-o-y:) while the hubs is rebuilding her house.  We repotted a couple of onsite rose bushes, so we will see how they do. 

I can see these from the front porch of our guest house, and I do enjoy them.  Pretty pots too:).

This is the 'shabby-chic' garden  in the back of our guest house:).  I think it was her Nana's spot.  The homeowner's have had this place for over 150 years, I love the view of the hill country.  Currently the edging is just propped up.  Notice hubs rock ditch?  This really is a construction site:)

The fellas decided they needed to move her Nana's flowerbed, so I suggested the flower go in the spot Mrs.H (homeowner) had just cleared in the garden.  Easy right?

Little did I know that she had not only cleared, BUT had planted!!  Luckily the little plants had popped up leaves or I would have dug them up when planting the re-located flower plants!!

She has asparagus, beans, winter squash and Nana's flowers (Iris, mum, lilies, etc), on the left; zucchini, summer squash, in back right: and peppers and tomatoes on the right front.  One grape tomato plant is in the process of taking over the world.  It has a large tomato cage in its near future.  The soil here is so different, ours at home is sandy loam with clay or iron-ore under it.  Here it is either dried out or muckly and limestone is about a foot deep. 

These are my grow-pots from home.  I didn't know Mrs.H had planted a garden to share.  The beans and squash and cucumber are doing great.  I moved them off the front porch to get more sun, I just have to remember the sprinkler doesn't water them like they need.

Besties, Basset: Ladybelle, and Chimix: LilDog chillxin in style..

I waited too late this morning to get those flowers in the garden, got hot fast, and I tell you I felt like my girls here...one tired puppy!!  I'm going to wait til after supper to go hoe some more, and hopefully get the hubs to make me that large tomato cage!!
Blooming Tuesday

South Beaching, phase one, week two

Small bounty from our little garden

Week TWO!!  (Woohoo!!)

~
5-28 Mon: up early, GOOD walk
B: milk
S: cucumber
L: Italian veggie soup
S: cucumber, boiled egg
D: Italian restaurant chicken, sauteed onion and squash,
S:
~
5-29 Tues: moved lumber
B: milk
L: Italian veggie soup
S: string cheese
D: pork chop, mustard Brussels sprouts, summer squash medley
S:
~
5-30 Wed: moved lumber
B: milk

L:  Kopy-Kat Olive Garden Minestrone Soup
 S: string cheese, cucumbers
D: baked chicken, seasoned veggies
S: cottage cheese and sugar free jelly
~
5-31 Thurs: power walked Walmart;)
B:
S:
L: Outback Cobb Salad w/mustard vinaigrette
S: string cheese
D: baked chicken, green beans w/onion and garlic, salad greens with mustard vinaigrette
S: vanilla ricotta creme
~
6-1 Fri: gardened
B: choc milk
L: minestrone soup
S: string cheese and pickles
D: steak and grilled veggies
~
6-2 Sat: gardened
B: choc milk
L: veggie chili
S: string cheese and pickles
D: pork chop and lemon roasted veggies
~
6-3 Sun:
B: choc milk
L: left over soup
S: string cheese and pickle
D: morrican lemon chicken w/summer squash and olives, green beans
~

Monday review: We FINISHED the two weeks with out starchs!!!  My before mentioned jeans are a little looser (WOOHOO!).   I realize all the exercise I've been doing has not affected my tummy much, I'm really going to try to do some tummy exercises starting today.

Today we add back in healthy starches and fruit, one serving per meal. 

Hubs was SO happy to have an egg, bacon, cheese, toast sandwich this morning.  I still need to work on breakfast and snacks (especially with the hubs), and planning out a menu.  Tues-Mon we will be on the road, and that may be tricky, but I think I can figure out a way to be healthy-cheap-and most of all-full. 

STILL have MORE recipes to try!!

Meal Planning Monday

FF: 6/1/12

While the hubs is working out in west Texas, we are staying in a neat little guest house, with a nice front porch.

Front porch of our little guest house, home owner's cool rockers and table. 

I was planning on bringing my orchids (that sit in the kitchen window planter box at my mom's) because I water them daily and didn't want my mom to have to do it for me. 

Peek-a-boo frog holding mini Sharry Baby orchid in planter box.  Notice the shriveled up orchid to the right of it?  That is my big Sharry Baby orchid that I nearly killed during our move last year. Since the little one bloomed and the big one survived, I really wanted to keep an eye on them
(and daily tell them how much I love them:).

Mini Sharry Baby Orchid re blooming for me!!! The blooms lasted a very long time.  3/12 

Kitchen window sill planter at my mom's 3/12

Mom said to take the whole thing so she wouldn't have to worry about it.  So, I did.:)

Peek-a-boo frog planter that holds mini Sharry Orchid

Behind this planter box is my newest purchase, an perennial  vine, Mexican Flame Vine.

Mexican Flame Vine Senecio confusus, Mormon Tea in front

The orange is amazing.  Nursery guy said it likes water, sun, heat, and is not hardy below 30 degrees. 

I also brought two 'grow boxes' from my uncle's estate.  I just couldn't resist them, then I couldn't resist planting them, knowing I would have to bring them 8 hours on the road to where we are staying.  (I'm on a veggie kick and I can't stand the prices.)  This is my first serious food gardening, and I say it's going well.  I have two more planters to bring next time we come.  Wind whipped, I lost a few leaves, but the blooms are still on the plants.  They are planted with zucchini, summer squash, beans, and greens. 

Silver beacon ground cover and privet from Maryland

Since they are self-watering pots, I decided to try starting some cuttings.  This side has silver beacon vines, and privet my son helped me gather when we went for a walk together in Maryland.
(Yes, I FLEW home with these cuttings in my carry on bag, why wouldn't I?)

thornless locust trees

On this edge are baby Thornless Locust trees from home. I want a grove of these. Love the precious babies leaves. I'm thinking of using bush cuttings to prop up my bush beans. 

I couldn't pass this cutie up. This is my souvenir, meet Sonora, the groovy one. 


Have a groovy Fertilizer Friday.

South Beaching, week one, phase one

Decided, with the hubs, to go on a diet and stick with it.
The hubs is a diabetic, and my jeans, which were loose, are now too tight (and it really bugs me, I do NOT want to go up another size).
I've done the first two weeks (detox) of the South Beach diet before and it worked great.
This diet has you cut out all sugar for the first two weeks. 
My plan is to eat about the same thing for breakfast (no brainiers), soup and roll ups for lunch, and meat and two vegs for dinner.
First I plan on cooking a lot of different things so we can create a menu.
Because my in-laws gave us so much produce, I have LOTS to work with. 

These are the recipe books I'm using, and only picking things that go with phase one. 

Sooo...here 'we' go:
B: breakfast, S: snack, L: lunch, D: dinner

5-21 Mon: up later :(
B: milk
L: scrambled eggs w/cheese, bacon, V8
D: pizza (fail ;)
~
5-22 Tues: up late :(
B: milk
L: scrambled eggs w/cheese, bacon, V8,
D: Dijon/ginger chicken, ranch beans, sauteed summer squash w/onion
~
5-23 Wed: up earlier :), took a good walk
B: scrambled eggs w/cheese, bacon, V8, sauteed spinach
L: chock full of veggies chili
S: cucumber/string cheese
D: taco salad
~
5-24 Thurs: up late :(  (bad habit), good walk, moved lumber
B: milk
L: chicken and spinach soup
D: skillet pork chop, Italian garden veggie saute, cucumbers
~
5-25 Fri: moved lumber, loaded truck to go home
B: milk
L: tomato basil Lima bean soup
S: pickle, string cheese
D: curry chicken stir-fry
~
5-26 Sat: mowed
L: brisket, green beans, salad, black eyed peas
D: fried chicken (fail:), deviled eggs
~
5-27 Sun: loaded truck
L: fried chicken (fail:)
D: chicken salad, w/nuts
~
5-26 Mon: sulked ;) (does that eat up calories?)
S: lunch
L: chicken salad, w/ nuts; and tomato basil Lima bean soup
S: seedless sunflower seeds, string cheese
D: Italian oven chicken, broccoli, sauteed squash w/onions

Summary: need to work on actually having snacks.  We have eaten very well, and I still have more recipes to try.  I'll post pictures and reviews of meals later.  Hubs has 'helped' review each dish and so far all are awesome.  You heard me right, Awesome. 

So, off I go to create today's menu and move forward another day:).
Currently I'm doing 'after the fact' menus, but as I compile recipes, I can do 'plan ahead' menus:).

Menu Plan Monday

Isn't this too cute?  Using a spice bottle to hold a small flower arrangement.  Just darling.