So far so good....

I know I do my fair share of complaining when it comes to Arizona weather... but, and I hope I am not jinxing myself (and everyone else in the state)  so far so good...  Tomorrow its to be in the 90's.  That's  common for late April.  Thursday we have a forecast for... wait for it....  Low 70's.  It seems to good to be true.  Often things seem to good to be true.  Maybe I am too cynical?  Maybe.

My lettuce has decided that the heat is here to stay. Its changed from short frilly and sweet to this new tall and lean physique.  Its very pretty.  Its horrible, and bitter, but very pretty so it gets to stay a while longer.

Just behind my leggy lettuces we have my rebellious flowers.  This season we have branched out (so to speak) and added a few more non edibles to our yard.  Delphinium, and this pretty little pink Easter gift below.

I am really glad to have them.  They go against our original plan of only planting edibles or workers, like the marigold who helps to keep the bad bugs away.  But its ok with me.  I feel a little reckless.  I mean to say, I live in a desert.  Its one thing to use minimal water to grow things to eat.... its quite another to grow them because they are pretty.  But they are pretty.  They add such flair!  And truth be told, I am a little reckless these days.  I've been letting my children play with one of my cameras just because I like to see what they take pictures of.  I skipped a neighbor girls birthday party, and sent Matt with the kids, so I could just rest.  I ate the frosting (and centers) off of three pieces of cake in one day. (eating a good portion of cake in the process)  I am blaming this on third trimester pregnancy.  Every other part of me is effected by pregnancy so it stands to reason that my practicality is too.  I didn't even recognize Earth Day this year.  (usually it involves crafting, singing, and community projects)

So that's me.  That's the weather.  We both are a little out of character these days.  And I think its going to last a little longer.  We'll come around eventually.  We always do.  But for now...

Here's to being reckless!  So far so good!

Friday's Nature Table....

We love our garden bugs around here.  Most of them, anyway.  This season we have been very fortunate to have a plethora of little friends to observe, and care for.

The honey bee is Queen, of course.  We give her space, and she provides us with a garden to be proud of.  We are ever grateful for her hard work.

With all do respect to the bees, its the babies in the garden that have gotten the most love these days.  Baby Ladybug Larva!

These larva have been watched over since the day we first discovered them.  Sometimes moved from one plant to another to provide our yard with maximum protection from aphids (of which we have many).  Both Ava and Cyrus love to carry them.  Maybe love it too much.  We had to put a stop to the larva rides... too many "opps!" were heard.

Soon the larva were replaced with pupa.  Not as much fun for my children, they don't transport very easily.

 The pupa is on the left in red, and the larva is on the right wearing stripes.

After a few weeks our babies are starting to grow up.  A lovely selection of ladybugs now live in our gardens.

The gray one is my favorite.  Ava prefers the black with red spots, and Cyrus loves them all.  That's his way.

I would be remiss if I failed to update you on my little friend the grasshopper.  Do you remember I mentioned him a few weeks ago?  My how he's grown.   He's doubled in length, and changed his colors with a few moltings.  He also decided to move across the path from the lemon tree to the artichoke plant.  I think he feels more protected there by all the bees, or just the sheer size of the artichoke, its a beast.  I am truly fond of this little guy.  He's like an old friend, or a bug that... I see a lot.

The newest thrill in our gardens are these hard to find, biiig eaters....  Caterpillars.  We'll be keeping an eye on these babies.  Hoping for more, but not too much more.  I'll let you know how that works out for us! 

So there you have it.  Sixteen pictures of bugs.  I swear I do still take pictures of my children...

Here's to getting out in the garden and enjoying the little guys who make it all possible.

A special thanks to The Magic Onions for bringing us all together to enjoy nature every Friday.

Changes....

A few weeks ago (3.5) we put in a garden just for my babies.  In these last 24 days we have tended and cared for this garden.  Every morning, and all day, this garden is loved.   Thanks to all the love and care, plus some good Arizona sunshine, our little garden is flourishing.  As it grows, so does the love of its smallest gardeners.

The Sun Flower House is  raising up her walls...

The little flower and vegetable garden is blooming and fruiting.....

 

 

Checking for strawberries int he mornings...

 

 

 

 

Finding our first zucchini....

 

My special thanks to this little garden.  You are loved.  I look forward to watching your changes this season, as my children grow and change with you.

Finding Rainbows....

 l

Enjoying the colors of our backyard.  The broccoli has been pulled and the first strawberries have been tasted.  Its a time of transition here.

A time of peaceful reflection.

(Also a time with a lot of weeds.)

Gratitude Mondays...

What I love today.....

~28 weeks, 12 ish to go...

~Third trimester!  There is so many wonderful feelings that come with entering the third and final stage.  That helps to balance out the not so pleasant ones....

~Fresh from the garden carrots....

~Delphiniums, geranium, mysterious pink flowers, tarragon, white and yellow corn, watermelon, cantaloupe, more carrots and dill all were added to the gardens this weekend....

~Blessingway for a friend who will go into labor any day now....

~Finding out I have great credit, even though I haven't worked since 2004....

~Fruit Pizza!

~A partner who takes the babies on day long adventures (train park, ice cream, pizza, mall for a wedding gift, and grocery shopping!)  while I have some time spent just with women...

~A girl who made an announcement  "I think that every morning we should all have jobs that we need to do.  Mine will be; exercising with daddy, drinking smoothies, and maybe I should watch some tv.  What should yours be?"

~A little boy who is now making requests... One four hundred dollar crane, a space shuttle ride, and a hot air balloon ride so he can go up up up, and get hot.


The weather is heating up here in Phoenix.  That equals more effort on part to remember all the things that I love, and am grateful for....  Here's to remembering!

Easter Morning...

My last post about eggs...

We woke up early to find our baskets of treasures.  This years baskets were actual baskets. (I tend to rebel against Easter baskets, choosing instead to use dump trucks, camping chairs, whatever)  Wicker bike baskets filled with new (used) spring books, bike bells, paint, chalk, fabric and sewing supplies for her, a real soccer ball for him.  We watched Molly and her owlets while I picked up and Matt napped, then they worked out with Matt while I napped.  Good stuff!  We had a lovely breakfast with big fluffy waffles, fresh whipped cream, red ripe strawberries, and warm maple syrup.  Mmmmmm.

This years traditional egg hunt was in our back yard for the very first time.  Every year previously we've used our front yard for lack of hiding places, not this year!    

(Love the tongue sticking out)

This was just the first of many egg hunts, and many variations on the theme.  The last photo is actually of Cyrus looking for the hidden 'spools of ribbon'...  We will probably play this game out through the rest of spring, and why not?  I say why not dye eggs all year, hide them too if you feel like it.  Easter is still special.  The traditions are still made on that day.  

Here's to all of us enjoying our holidays, and making them last through the seasons!

Easter Eggs from the kitchen....

We love to dye eggs.  I don't wait for a certain time of year, I don't wait for much.  If I am going to boil eggs, I dye 'em.  Usually I just reach for the food coloring that I inherited from my mother in law when she retired.  (apparently she used it in her class rooms)  This year, for the first time, we made our own dyes!  So fun.  Why haven't I done this?  Maybe because the process took up a better part of the day?  Ya, that's probably it.

We made three dye baths.  One from beets for pink, one from turmeric for golden yellow, and one from London Rocket (weeds) for yellow green!

I started first with the weeds...  I should have boiled the dye for much longer than I did, but it turns out I couldn't stand the smell.  With all the windows open, the vents on, it was still over powering.  I was just much to pregnant for the odor.  I should have just used spinach, but I thought I was being resourceful (possibly just selfish).

The beets made a lovely aroma.  I love beets!  I used too much water for the amount of beets that I was willing to part with.  Next year I'll keep in mind that I want something more concentrated.  Either way, it was very pretty to work with.

Our third dye bath was turmeric.  Yummy to both my nose, and my eyes!  Its pretty much the rock star of natural dyes, or so I'm lead to believe after some quick googling.

I tried to keep us occupied today so we could keep the eggs in the dye for as long as possible.  Some lasted longer than others.

The end result of our home made dyes left us with subtle, pretty shades.  Next year I'll change a few things, maybe even follow some directions... maybe.

Or maybe I'll just keep doing things my own way... 

Here's to all of us finding the line between 'their' way, and our own!