This Is How My Garden Grows

Have you planted a garden this year? If so, how is it doing?? I have been rather surprised at how well ours has taken off this spring. We actually are already benefiting from our hard work!!

The jalapeno peppers are tiny, but they are there! Can not wait to make hot sauce out of these.

Our Roma tomatoes are really coming on strong too. We have lots of green ones, just no red ones  yet. We need some warm sunny days and they will be ready to pick and enjoy.

But........we do have some cherry tomatoes almost ready to pick and eat off the plant!! These are so sweet and we really do have great luck with the cherry  and grape tomatoes here.

We have Squash!!! This plant is the yellow summer squash. I find it hard to believe with the cooler weather that we actually have squash....and almost ready to pick too!! YUM!

Don't know the name of this funny looking squash, but I can attest to how wonderful these are sliced, breaded with bread crumbs and fried....oh, my. Southern home cooking at its finest.

We planted 3 bell pepper plants, and we have lots of bell peppers almost ready to pick. We have not been able to try any of these yet, and would you like to know why??? Dora seems to have learned that there are fresh veggies served buffet style right off the vine, she picks tomatoes and I caught her with a bell pepper in her mouth.....seriously folks....she is fed well....she does not know she is a dog and if she has to have salad fixins instead of meat...well...she is all for it! All she knows is there is fresh people food right out in the back yard, so it must be for her!!

The corn is coming along too!! We planted some for the birds and squirrels and some for us! I have no idea which is which, thank goodness my husband remembers!! I really love the corn stalks.

We also have zucchini squash......I will be making zucchini bread as soon as these are ready!!

Yes siree....our little garden is really coming along this year! We have onions too, and we have had some of those....and they were wonderfully delish.

My hanging plants are enjoying this nice cool weather......now if only the wind would die down a bit, they might like it much better!

The plant on the left is another pepper plant.....and well, every garden needs a warning sign....this is what we have to warn off evil varmints!! So far, it must be working!!

I really enjoy our garden? What about you.....what types of things are growing in your garden this spring???

Last Minute Easter Centerpiece - Super Easy

Thought I'd post this fun, fast, and easy project I put together this afternoon. Are you in the middle of cooking for Easter Sunday and all of a sudden you realized you forgot the centerpieces? Well, take a look.....super easy.

All you will need is a clear glass vase, some jelly beans, some peeps, a little plant, a swatch of fabric and some Easter grass.

I took the jellybeans and filled the bottom. Then, took the fabric and covered the little petunia plant. Once the plant is placed in the glass vase over the jellybeans, I added the peeps. Not only are they cute, but they help hold the little plant in place. Lastly, I added some paper Easter grass on top at the base of the plant and added a little fabric strip bow. If you have a cute little spring plant pick, you can add that like I did. Possibly, you might be able to find all these things you need already around your house. I just bought the plant and the glass vase.....I could not find the vases I have stored safely in our shed!!!

I think it is cute, simple but cute. I am taking this with us tomorrow as we are going over to my niece's house for Easter dinner. I think she will like it, at least I hope so. She can plant the petunia in her flowerbed after Easter. Serves double duty that way!

Now, I need to get in the kitchen, I have a dessert to make and a side dish!

Happy Easter.....enjoy your day!!

Vintage Thingie Thursday: Vintage Quilt Blocks - Can you identify the block??

Today, I'd like to share with you some vintage quilt blocks that were a Christmas gift from my mom this year. Now, I have got to say, I was surprised she picked these out for me, but I can honestly say, I truly love them. They are unique in design and the fabrics are wonderful.

Each block measures about 10 1/2 X 10 1/2 square. Of course, the blocks need to be squared and they will be ready to be turned into a quilt. There are 33 total of these blocks, each different.

The fabric is in wonderful condition. Each block is hand stitched and very detailed. I need to decide how to finish them into a quilt. I wonder if the original quilter would have sewn them together, like shown, or sashed with fabric then join the blocks together. And if sashing is used, what color would she have used? Such decisions.

I have never seen this block before.....so if you are reading this and have any idea on the name of the block, I'd love to hear from you. Also, any suggestions on finishing this quilt top would be great too. Don't you love all the fabrics?

Thanks mom for a great and thoughtful gift. These blocks just make me happy and I can not wait to turn them into a beautiful quilt.

If you'd like to join in today, below are the instructions for Vintage Thingie Thursday!!! Have a great week everyone~~
Welcome everyone to Vintage Thingies Thursday. If you have a love for vintage things, well....you have come to the right place. We have a "dog-gone" good time each and every week!!!
If you are new to this party, please take the time to read and follow the instructions for participating in Vintage Thingies Thursday, click HERE. I try and keep things fairly simple, so  please make sure you follow the instructions. Please only ONE link per week. Lastly, if you link in, LINK back to my blog, so everyone can see all of the vintage goodies being showed that day. If you don't link back here, they won't know who to visit......thanks so much.

Be Careful What You Wish For

Because it just might come true.........


I'm not saying that is a bad thing....but just be sure you are ready for "come what may"......sometimes when wishes come true....reality and the dream are totally different.

What Next ??

All the time I have people ask me what I do with all of my plates and dishes. Well, the obvious answer would be I use them, enjoy them, and entertain with them. I have such a fondness and a rather large quantity of vintage dishes, that it seems they have spilled out from my cupboards.....literally.....

.....and into my yard......as an edging for a flower bed in the corner of my backyard. Now, this was a very easy project, with the exception of deciding which plates were moving from the inside of the house to the outdoors. I used the ones that had nicks around the rim of the plates, just buried that part under the soil. My inspiration came from a Spring magazine I looked at a few weeks ago. I saw this in a home and garden magazine and knew I was going to be doing this in my own yard.

A mismatched group of dinner plates and saucers make a rather charming border in my opinion. Granted, not everyone in my house shares this sentiment, my son especially......but it is my yard, my flowerbeds, and I like it.....my husband just shakes his head and leaves it at that. I really think he is just happy SOME of the plates are out of the cabinets. When I explained that this was in a brand new home and garden magazine....he stated......the magazine surely had fallen on desperate times for sure. Men....what do they know?


By adding a couple of very vintage chairs I had on my patio, they are serving as a planter holder for some of my pots. I then added a few of the chippy iron pieces, and a few statues from various other places in my yard.

This part of the yard gets a lot of shade, my hosta plants are coming up nicely, so I just added some inpatients flowers to the bed and pots. I may add a few more plants in a couple of weeks, but for now, this is all I have planted.

There you have it, my vintage little corner of the yard. Protested by various members of my family.....with the exception of the dogs...they were looking and sniffing the plates wondering where the food was.....after all, it is not everyday they freely see plates sitting on the ground at their eye level....they were just confused that there was not a single morsel of food on any of them.

I guess it is good to keep them guessing, and let them wonder....what will be next?
.....the family and the dogs.

Finished For Friday: Don't Throw Away Your Wrinkled Silk Flowers

This is a great tip if you have wrinkled, messed up from storing silk flowers and you really just want to toss them, and go buy new, fresh ones. Save your money folks....this is a great tip that will save you lots! I used these flowers almost three years ago, and they have been stored ever since. I took them out of the sack and started to just throw them away.

These were mashed, smashed and I thought there was little hope for them. But...I stopped myself. Why? Because I remember these were a little pricey when I purchased them, and two, they really were perfect for a project I am working on, and three, I was short of time. The Time factor will get me everytime.



The Fix: Bring a pot of water to a rolling boil. Hold your flowers upside down over the boiling water and let the steam do its trick. Be careful, not to get the flowers wet from the boiling water. Note: Be careful, as the steam gets really hot quick. You should hold the flowers over the steam for about 1 minute or longer if they are really bad.



Once the steam has released the petals, shape if needed and lay on a flat surface to dry. I am amazed, really. I was going to throw these away and start all over. I am so glad I could not being myself to do that. I will say this..I tossed the flowers into the clothes dryer first to see if that would do the trick. Don't waste your time....did not work one bit!


Wall-a! all my flowers I saved to reuse, which I was sure were going to the landfill, now are refreshed and drying on my kitchen table. I saved lots of money, and time with this little trick. Not only is it economical, but environmentally smart too, reuse, re-purpose and keep as much "stuff" out of the landfills as possible.

I am happy to say, that of my long list of to-do things this week, this is one I can check off the list as finished. I am linking up to Lit and Laundries, Finished for Friday. Stop by for a visit and see what projects smart and talented bloggers have finished for this week....trust me, you will be inspired.

Do You Have It???

"It's spring fever. That's what the name of it is. And when you've got it, you want - Oh, you don't quite know what it is you do want, but it just fairly makes your heart ache, you want it so!"
~Mark Twain

Well....there you go....at least there is a name for wanting to play hookie from work, leave dirty laundry in the laundry room, dirty dishes in the sink, turn the other way when you see dust everywhere. Forget that you do not have a maid to do the housework.

I am glad to know it is not an illness that causes me to want to forget about all my responsibilities and dream of being in the bright sunshine, buy flowers for the beds and vegetables for the garden. I am glad there is a reason for me wanting to design a new flower bed that is bordered by vintage plates....yikes! For a minute there, I thought I was coming down with something....I guess I am.....Spring Fever!!! Yes, I have it in a bad way......What about you???

Simple Sunday

Imperfectly Perfect!

This One Is For You.......

"I'm selfish, impatient, and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control, and at times hard to handle.
But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best."

~Marilyn Monroe

This is intended for just the right person. If read this today, it is not something that I posted about myself....but for someone else......you will know who you are! Hope it touches your heart today.

The Signs of Spring ~ Floral Splendor

With my work schedule the way it is, I find it very hard to find the time to do things I really enjoy most in life. This week, I decided to just close my eyes to the unfinished housework, dishes, laundry...you know the things that are a must do...sigh.

I headed to two local garden centers in our area, and did I have a field day....a flower field day. I spend way more than I would have liked, but I think the money was well spent.

This red columbine is so lush and beautiful. This requires shade according to my Know all garden center man, so I am trusting he knows what he was talking about.

The plants have blooms in all colors and I think they are rather pretty. I planted these in my backyard, the part that is all shade, most of the day.

See what I mean about a great variety of color that comes from one plant? I have only seen columbines in Colorado and they have been blue/purple in color, so you can just imagine how excited I was to find these plants.

Inpatients are a must for my backyard as well. I love these plants..sometimes, I love them so much I tend to kill them with too much water. Sighs again.

But I will try my darnest to keep these alive this year. I have planted them in my front yard and they have really done well. I usually forget to water the front yard, so that might explain it.

Another addition to my backyard this year was some beautiful Wood Fern plants. I know these like shade, and under trees, so I added these to my back yard for some pretty texture and color to my garden spots.

Can you think of anything other than honeysuckle vine announcing spring is finally here? I can not. I have honeysuckle vines that are growing all along a fence on the back side of the house, the smell is so sweet and wonderful. I just wished these little buds would last all summer long.

Please forgive me, but I can not remember the name of this plant. Another shade lover. I think that they are in the impatient family, but I can not be sure. Lots of pretty color and I love the small delicate flowers.

And this is my all time favorite flower. The gardenia. I have killed every gardenia bush I have ever planted. Sad but true. However, the trusty ole' garden center man assured me if I planted it on the east side of my house, afforded it about 3 hours of morning sun, it would live....better live, this one cost me a arm and a leg...it is shaped as a little topiary tree...it is adorable and the blooms are heavenly.

Another summer favorite of mine is the bougainvillea plants. I understand these grow wild in California...lucky ducks. I have never seen a white and pink one before. I usually find the hot pink variety or the orange variety. I did not even ask the price...I just loaded it in the cart. At the checkout, I thought maybe I should have asked...Naaw....I love it.

This is hanging in my backyard where I get a lot of afternoon sun....Don't you just love the colors?

This mandevilla is new too, love the pink colors. I stopped by a local church that was having a plant sale to support missions to overseas....well, lets just say, I gave a hefty donation.....I will show you in another post soon what other lovely gems I got....beautiful.

This is a new flowering shrub...it is going to help hide my neighbors unsightly yard in a few years...at least that is my plan.

Here is the last of the azaleas blooming. I kill these too, but I am determined to let this one live. I love these plants and always get so jealous in the springtime when I see how beautiful they are in other yards.

Well, that is about it for this little look-see at what I have been doing. I transplanted and thinned a lot of my plants, bought new ones, and reworked most of my flower beds this week. Nothing is more satisfying to see all these lovely flowers in bloom. Even if requires lots of soaking in epson salt and hot water to take care of the aches and pains.

I have just noticed that on Thursday...for VTT....that will be my 200th post...I can hardly believe that. Please stop by, I will be having a giveaway for celebrating that accomplishment...I can't tell you what the giveaway will be...because, well...I have not figured that part out yet!