What's up with this weather?

Spring refuses to spring....the wind, the low temps, the sideways never ending rain, it seems to be going on forever. The ground is drenched, so going outside is not an option. I walk the dog because he begs me with his eyes and I come back drenched, ugh!!! very depressing. The only thing to do in this weather is sit inside, eat copious amounts of food and watch a movie or better yet watch moviesss.



As much as I like to eat, I'm not always in the mood to cook but eat we must. I had some leftover bits of this and that like black beans, sour cream, cherizo....



I think nachos and movies sounds just about right as the rain beats against the windows.



On the way home I stopped for tortilla chips and the rest I had on hand, leftover nachos....



I topped the chips with chopped cherizo, shredded cheese and black beans, served it up with a side of fresh salsa and sour cream and dinner was served.







The fresh salsa I make is also called "Pico de Gallo" and it's really easy, here is how I do it:



3 tomatoes, seeded and finely chopped

1/2 small purple onion, finely chopped

1 seeded jalapeno, finely chopped

1/2 cup firmly packed cilantro, finely chopped

the juice of one lime

salt to taste

1 teaspoon chili powder



Mix all ingredients well and serve.

Are you coming for a visit????

Picture courtesy http://www.muditajournal.com/archives/434.php#

Then there are a few things you need to know.


First, you are always welcome...


...and now here is the rest of it...

1. My floors are not so clean that you can eat off them...I have a very good kitchen table that we use for eating.

2. There is a 50/50 chance that my kitchen table is cluttered, if it is, sit down, clear yourself a spot and get comfortable, coffee and warm conversations await.

3. Help yourself to anything in the fridge...but be warned...stay away from the back. I have not visited the back part of the fridge for some time.

4. I'm cheap, so those yogurt containers may in fact not have any yogurt in them and again avoid them if they are at the back of the fridge.

5. I am not vegetarian, my husband is not vegetarian, neither is my dog, cats or chickens and I will not cook two separate meals.

6. I'm not Dr. Doolittle but I do speak to the animals...relax...I'm the only one doing the talking.

7. Oh yes the animals...they are of utmost importance to me and I love them dearly, best you get used to it. The dog will smell your crotch, the cats may walk all over you or they may never make themselves known to you, that's just the way it is.

8. The animals shed, all the time, but not to worry, you can keep the fuzzy slippers once your visit is done.

9. The bathroom is cleanish...

10. And finally I am thrilled you came for a visit, I really am. Can't wait to see you again. Ciao for now.

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***PS. I almost forgot about the dust bunnies...they are gentle, very gentle but look for them and they attack...please let them lie in peace.

New gate post

Last summer Art found an interesting piece of wood washed up on the shores of Powell Lake. We were not sure what we would use it for but it was worth keeping. It's use became very apparent after a wind storm...the rotten gate post fell over so this interesting piece of wood is now the new and improved gate post. Can you see the perfect spot for hanging basket? And won't the honeysuckle look wonderful as it winds it's way around the post? I can see it so clearly....and I can't wait for summer.

Shrove...Fat...Pancake... Tuesday

Final chance to finish off all that butter and cream before lent...well that's how the story goes...

So how did I celebrate Fat Tuesday??? With banana, chocolate chip pancakes and blackberry syrup...at the diner and at home, yum!

Start with your typical buttermilk pancake recipe...buttermilk, egg, brown sugar, butter...

Add flour, baking powder, salt and chocolate chips, mix, but not too much, lumps are fine...

Melt some butter into a frying pan or grill, pour pancakes, slice some bananas and place on top...and flip when bubbles start to show...

Serve banana side up, add a dollop of butter, a dusting of icing sugar and some warm syrup....

These are so yummy...give them a try, fat Tuesday or not!

Snowdrops

We seldom have big snow storms out on here on the West Coast. We get a dusting here and there and sometimes we will get a foot of snow, for a day, then slush and muss for several days as temperatures rise. So instead of snow we are blessed with snowdrops. These little beauties show up very early, sometimes even late January, cheering us up with their cute little white flowers promising us that spring is just around the corner.

I have never had any but that has now changed. Wendy Devlin, a fellow garden club member, passionate gardener and farmer, has snow drops all over her farm. She kindly invited garden club members out to her farm to dip up snow drops...several of us took her up on her offer.

Snowdrops do multiply but stay in clumps so they are very easy to manage. I took several clumps, divided them up and dug them into my garden, I think I might now have about 20 clumps.

Here are some pictures from Wendy's farm.

Three preagnant goats

One of two calves.

Snowdrops

More snowdrops

And another early bloomer but can't for the life of me remember it's name.

Tough...

This little iris is quite amazing. It came up a little early because the beginning of February was quite mild and we were all fooled ... but it all changed on Feb. 15th, since then this little iris has withstood -8C temperatures for a few days, several windstorms, snow, rain, rain and more rain and all in the last two weeks and still it shines.

This little iris is tough but oh so beautiful!

seed starting

If you are a gardener and start your transplants from seed you have already started some or you getting your seeds and seed starting supplies in order.

I mentioned before that I started broccoli seeds and I wanted to share how I did it without buying new supplies, except for the seed starting soil.

At the diner I'm always buying plastic boxes of spinach, berries and lettuce. I noticed that some of the plastic boxes have holes in them, usually the berry boxes, while the spinach and lettuce boxes don't, all have lids. I was recycling the boxes until the light bulb switched on last November...

Why not place a box with holes inside a box without holes, this would allow for watering from the bottom and allow for drainage. I started collecting boxes.

This picture does not show it but I did add some pebbles in the box without holes to allow for drainage. I filled the box with holes with seed starting soil, watered it, and planted groupings of 3 seeds about 4 inches apart, 18 in all. Put the box in a warm spot and when the seeds germinate I moved the box to a bright window and/or under growing lights.

I'm going to keep the seedlings in the boxes until it's time to harden them off and then transplant into the garden. I'm trying to avoid potting them into little 4 inch pots...hope this works.