"The Italian"

After a long battle with cancer my beloved husband a/k/a "The Italian" passed away peacefully this past Monday.


                   

A Sad Day for our Neighborhood

Tuesday morning we were wakened at 4:30 AM by the sound of sirens. They really didn't sound that close to our home, but they were. Through the dark, we could see smoke in the distance and some flashing lights less then a block away. "The Italian" thought it may be our lovely neighborhood restaurant.....and sadly enough it was. Some of you may have read this post. Not only we were sadden by the thought of this 105 year old restaurant burning. We were also sadden by the thought of all of the bee hives that were most likely lost.

We sat and talked about what we could do to help. "The Italian" decided to offer to donate his services to help our neighbor get through all the bureaucracy that lies ahead. After I left for work, he walked down and talked to the owner. "The Italian" is meeting with planning and zoning today to start the process of variances that will be needed to rebuild this historic restaurant in our neighborhood which is now zoned residential.

The fire early

You can still see the tops of the bee hives here

Our brave firefighters in the frigid cold

A later picture of the fire. The section on the right is where the bee hives used to be. Most of the building was torn down later in the day due to structural instability.

At our last Community Garden meeting, we had discussed getting some hives at the garden. I was planning to talk to the owner this winter about putting a couple of hives at the Community Garden. If the owner would like to start some new hives and the committee agrees, we can help each other and have his hives at the Community Garden.

Our Neighborhood will not be complete until this sign is hanging once again.

 

Out with the.......

OLD!!!!!

Yep, this old baby is gone!!!

I think this was the first Jenn Air Range manufactured!!!

It was old and weary......maybe even older then Granny!!!

 

 

It's been a long time coming.....but, I finally got a new range!!!

This baby is Dual Fuel with Two Ovens..... 

and Five Burners!!!

 

Look out.......Mama's got a new stove!!!

Boy What a Year!

I finally got most of my gardening "things" organized! The seed inventory is done. My Excel Gardening Journal is updated. I ordered my onion plants and a few seeds. I sent in my order to Wintersown. I have most of my pics organized on the new computer and I'm starting to figure out how to use this new Windows 8. Truthfully, I don't like it.

While organizing everything, I started looking at my photos. Boy, what a year it has been!

The Community Garden move was unbelievable! Who would have thought that it was go from.....

this in March........

 

to this

 

in April.....

 

to this in May...

 

and this in July

 

to this in September

 

and this today.

 

 We had a lot of great ....

Harvests!!!!

 

and our Cupboard

 

 is well stocked

 

"The Italian's" daughter graduated from college

in May

Isn't she just beautiful??

And as happy we are....no more tuition!!

 

 

"The Italian" and I had a couple of wonderful trips!

 

We took his daughter to our favorite place

 

New Orleans in May

the sounds on the street

 

our favorite place to sit!

 

We had some Garden Bloggers visit

from Spring Garden Acre

and they made homemade Ice Cream!

 

In October we

saw some beautiful sunsets in Florida and

 

then headed to Mexico

and saw the Mayan ruins in Tulum

 

just amazing!

This stuff is older then Granny!!!

what a wonderful view!

 

Then we headed to Belize.....my favorite place on the trip

and saw the Mayan ruins Altun Ha

when we got back from the ruins we have some wonderful Adult beverages and listened to these two sing. They were great!

 

Next we headed to Honduras

and were greeted by a rainbow

we saw some beautiful scenery

 

 and we walked this bridge

we saw some amazing wildlife

and the female monkeys could keep their hands off "The Italian"!!!

He became know as "The Monkey Man" on our ship!!!

 

While we were on our trip we got to see

how a lot of the world lives

this is a very big home

and how the lucky ones make their living

And we are grateful

 

When we returned to Florida

we saw the after affects of Hurricane Sandy and were stuck in Florida for several days

 

we celebrated the Holidays

with some good food

and Santa brought me a Pressure Canner!!!

and the seed catalogs keep coming in!

They are so beautiful!!!

 

"The Italian" and I wish all of you a  Happy, Healthy & Bountiful New Year!!! 

 

We're Back and Safe!

We finally made it home a few days ago from our extended vacation due to Sandy! We had a wonderful time! We were stranded in a lovely hotel on the beach in Florida for several days once we got back to the USA. By the time we got home, the power was back on. All of the frozen stores from the garden are OK since I always keep blocks of ice in the freezers downstairs.

We were very lucky that the storm didn't damage the house. It's just a big mess out there. Some of our city is still without power and a lot of traffic lights are still out. The damage around here is very bad. I watched a video on-line from our local TV station while we were stranded and couldn't believe the damage. It was taken one block from our home! Maybe I will have some time today to go out and about and take some photos of the damage almost one week after the storm.

Now, I need to get caught up on my work! Thank heavens I can work from home! I hope all of you are safe and sound!

A Change is in the Air

I am officially no longer retired! Yes, I got a job in my profession! I have been looking a little here and there. Last Wednesday, I received a call from one of my contacts regarding an open position. Today, I signed my contract! I'm sure those tomatoes will start ripening by the bucket loads now!

A Proud Day for Sophia

For those of you who read this blog on a regular basis, you have heard me talk about my neighbor Sophia. Earlier this evening Sophia was inducted into the National Junior Honor Society and Honors Program at school!!!

You Go Girl!!

We are so so Proud of You!!

Next step......Harvard!

That's her goal!

I will tell Sophia that I posted this when she comes home from school today. I'm sure she will appreciate all of your comments!!

She has come a long way since arriving here from Ghana just 7 years ago! I'll never forget that day. She was very tiny and had on the most beautiful dress! She just looked at me when I talked to her, since she didn't speak one word of English. In a few short months she was very fluent in English and is now learning German, Japanese & Spanish!

The State of the Plots Mid-May

It seems like it has been non-stop since we got home from vacation! I spent a few hours at the plots on Saturday and then we had to go shopping for Sophia's BD Bar BQ on Sunday. We always seem to be away on her BD. So, I told here we would have a BD Bar BQ on Sunday after we came home. After shopping there were important things to do, like bake a cake and start the homemade baked beans. Sunday was packed full of putting the cushions on the outdoor furniture, cleaning up a bit, cooking and then putting up a canopy since the temps were in the 90's! The Bar BQ was a great success and Sophia was very happy!

Yesterday I had planned to catch up on blog reading and visit everyone's Harvest Monday posts. In the morning I decided to clean out the refrigerators and some canned peppers that I was not happy with. All went well until I managed to clog the plumbing in the under-slab in the basement between the main pipe coming from the kitchen and the floor drain. The remainder of the day was plumbing related, including a visit from the Roto Rooter man!

I was going to post the pics I took on Saturday. But, this morning I ran over to the plots in the misty rain to cover the strawberries that the birds think is a buffet! So, I took some more pics. There are lots of pics in this post!

Click on any picture to enlarge.

Before we went on vacation, I planted all of the Tomatoes, Eggplants & Peppers in the rain!! It wasn't the perfect time to plant them. Although Sophia is perfectly capable of taking care of the plants, I really didn't want her to have to tend to them. She does have school and track, which is very important.

Bed#1 The Potato Bed

The potatoes really took off while we were gone. Some of these weren't even out of the ground when we left. Hopefully, I can get over there tomorrow and mulch them with straw.

Bed #2 Tomato Alley #1

The tomatoes are doing very well with the exception of Aphids. I found aphids on some of the plants on Saturday. I was hoping that the pests wouldn't find the new garden the first year. I am going to make a spray today with potato leaves and see how that works.

The new growth looks great and so do the weeds!! Mulching to do!

Bed #3

The empty front section of this bed will have a Three Sisters Planting and some trellises for beans, cucumbers and cantaloupe

Toward the other end of this bed is Cauliflower, Eggplant and Hot Peppers. 

There is also space for another trellis at the end.

The cauliflower was really small when I put it in. I didn't think I would have the plots ready in time to plant spring cauliflower. We shall see if they produce. If not, I have plans for a fall planting in another space.

New growth on the Eggplants look great!

The Peppers also seem to be doing very well.

Bed #4 Tomato Alley #2

Not the best pic, but the tomatoes are doing just fine. There are two though that are struggling a bit. 

Bed #5

The empty section at this end will have trellises for more Beans, Spaghetti Squash and Korean Melons. At the far end is where the Zucchini will be planted.

This is toward the other end of Bed #5. 

I have planted Broccoli, a few Cabbage, 4 Chinese Cabbage and the Sweet Peppers. There are also some tiny Leeks planted in front of the Chinese Cabbage. Hopefully the Broccoli will produce since it was started earlier then the cauliflower. If not, there is a fall planting planned. One of the Chinese Cabbages bolted from the heat over the weekend. So, it will be removed.

Bed #6

The Blackberry & Raspberry transplants are doing very well. Since the blackberries won't get too big this year, I planted onions & celery around them. There is also space for a trellis on the end where I will plant Lima Beans.

Bed #7 The Strawberry Bed

The plants that I covered were transplanted from the old site. The new strawberry roots that were planted this year are at the far end mulched with straw. They are all doing very well.

Bed #8

This bed is along the right side of the plots. The Asparagus beds are at each end and there are onions and a few celery plants in the middle.

As you can see, the asparagus is going to ferns. I am so pleased that they made it through the transplant. Even though we did not have much of a harvest this year. The Fava Beans in the front are doing much better with the exception of ants. Last year I had the same problem with them. As soon as the rain stops I will try using cinnamon on the plants as a pest control.

That's the "State of the Plots" right now. There is still a ton of work and planting to do over there. I haven't decided what I am going to do with the paths. The gate is not up yet and I also have to sow the popcorn and beans along the front. I really think the worst part of the work is over. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate and I can spend a few days over there sowing some seeds and tidying up a bit!