Summer Flowers I will plant again!

Back on my gardening / planting kick this summer.. picked a variety of plants and flowers to see what works out best so eventually my flower beds will be the talk of the town :)

The flower above is Convolvulus which was listed on the tag that came with the flower however upon researching through wikipedia would be known as Convolvulus tricolor - Dwarf Morning Glory.
I love the bright colors in this flower!  This is the only flower that has bloomed in this particular plant so far and i am really looking forward to see more!

According to the information this is a perennial which is good to plant in pots or at the gardens edge.  (i have it planted in a pot)  You should plant in sun or part sun and it will grow to be 6 - 8" tall.

This beautiful pink flower is a zinnia, the type i have is considered a profusion mix, here is what wikipedia has to say about them: "The Profusion series, with both single and double-flowered components, is bred by Sakata of Japan, and is among the most well-known of this hybrid group. Zinnias seem especially favored by butterflies, and many gardeners add zinnias specifically to attract them"  Zinnias flourish in full sun and will grow 10 - 12" tall.

This fantastic bright yellow beauty is a snapdragon (also known as Antirrhinum) the mix i chose is called freesong which will produce pink, white, yellow and red flowers.

wikipedia says "Snapdragons are perennial plants often sold as cold-season annual plants and do best in full or partial sun. They are available in a range of heights:"  mine says plant in sun or part sun and they will grow 14 - 18" tall.  

this lovely flower is called a Eustoma Lisianthus and the variety i have is Florida Blue.  wikipedia says this "
Eustoma is a genus of 3 species in the family Gentianaceae, found in warm regions of the Southern United States, Mexico, Caribbean and northern South America. They are mostly found growing in grassland and areas of disturbed ground.
They are herbaceous annuals, growing to 15 – 60 cm tall, with bluish green, slightly succulent leaves, and large funnel shaped flowers growing on long straight stems."

mine says grow in full to part sun and they will reach 8 - 10" tall.  I love the bright purple/blue color of this flower and it has very unique leaves.

This lovely purple-ish / red flower is called a cosmos.  i really like the leaves surrounding it, and it seems to bloom really well.  the flowers are big and bright and the contrast with the light green leaves is really beautiful.  These are to be planted in full sun and can grow up to 24" tall!

Such a delicate yellow flower is called MiniFamous™ Double Lemon Calibrachoa -  I actually bought these from a person selling them at his home.  he would get them from an amish farmer and i only paid $1 per plant!  Unfortunately i only bought 2 and wished i had purchased several more! These flowers trail out of the pot and would work great for hanging baskets.  They are very easy to grow!  the tag i have says this:  Best in fertile, well drained soil, water as needed to keep soil evenly moist.  trailing 40", height, 4".  i highly recommend these.. very lovely!

I dont know very much about this plant except that i got it at bachman's and its called Ornamental Oregano.  It's so beautiful and works well in a container with other flowers.  It's a perennial and will come back over and over again so im looking forward to seeing if it works next year!

My lovely Spearmint plant!  I adore these plants, they smell amazing and the leaves are such a bright green.  Mint is good in full sun and fairly easy to grow.  they can get about 24" tall! 

these tiny little blue flowers are absolutely darling!  They are called Forget Me Not's or Myosotis.  

And Wikipedia says this "Forget-me-nots may be annual or perennial plants. Their root systems are generally diffuse. Their seeds are found in small, tulip-shaped pods along the stem to the flower. The pods attach to clothing when brushed against and eventually fall off, leaving the small seed within the pod to germinate elsewhere. Seeds can be collected by putting a piece of paper under the stems and shaking them. The seed pods and some seeds will fall out."  --- i think i'll try shaking the stems and collecting some seeds for next year!  i absolutely adore these dainty little flowers!

 

 and these are wave petunia's ... love love love!  they come in so many different colors and are the easiest thing to grow. 

and im FREE...... Freeeeee Fallin'

This was one of my favorite skydiving pics... we jumped at about 12K feet!  it was really scary looking down but i tried to look out instead.  Initially the shock of the wind and that i just jumped out of a plane made me freeze and my ears really hurt making me think i should defo get some ear plugs when i do this again.  after the chute was pulled it was much more relaxing... going another time would put me more at ease i think.

Another fav.  the parachute looks so beautiful.  crazy to think i was up there..

and the landing!   -- not really scary as i thought it would be... actually quite smooth.  i was just to put my legs out in front and land on my bottom.  easy peasy.

worry.

I dropped oliver off at the dog cutting place this am and im waiting for him to get finished ... worrying huge!

I know, he's just a dog but honestly i dont have kids and he is my baby.  he's the type of dog that has to be right by me all the time.  at the dog park when he's racing around playing with the other dogs he checks to make sure i am still in the same spot often and if he doesnt see me he wont continue to play.  getting him groomed is the only time i leave him with anyone else that i dont personally know.  i dont kennel him anymore, since he's been potty trained i dont feel the need to punish him in puppy jail.

anyhow... this place is new to us and she was a bit awkward.  i was leading the conversation the whole time and she just kind of dazed off into space... mkay.  you own a business yet you dont have any people skills?  whatever maybe thats what makes her good at her job?  he was shaking the whole time i held him and talked to her about what he was like and how to cut his hair.  i told her to call me as soon as he was done.. she'd told me i could pick him up by 3p otherwise!  3p!! wtf.  why do i have to drop him off so early then!!?  i dont know if we're going back to this place.. ohh yah, and when i walked in her house/shop there was some loud noise going on downstairs that sounded like a vacuum.  so she walked up the stairs with these huge head phones on and the noise continued.....  right away i said he doesnt like noises like that it scares him.

ugh.  this sucks, i just want to pick him up and make sure he's okay.  maybe i should just drop in early and say i was in the area.  i hate stuff like this.  poor boujee. 

I bougt a vivitar camera at toys r us today as a b-day present for matt's neices, i wanted to play around with it so i took a few pics and thought id share my thoughts in case anyone is thinking of getting a kids camera.

The camer is a Vivitar ViviCam 5022 (they also have it in red and its on sale only thru today for 29.99 reg. price 49.99)  -- i dont think i would have parted with the 49.99 after dinking around with it but i think the girls will be happy with it anyhow.  i did purchase an additional warranty on them for 5.99 which covers accidental damage for 15 months, i thought this was well worth it!  

so here are my thoughts:

Positives:

• feels light yet sturdy like it could be dropped a mess of times and not suffer.  
• good price
• easy to use
• takes fairly decent pictures
• takes pictures quickly 
• comes with a cd for software installation, usb cord and a little hand held cord to attach.
• good size screen for viewing 

Negatives:

• picture quality seemed better in outdoor light than indoor.  and with pictures far away vs. up close. 
• takes 3 triple AAA batteries, i dont know how fast those will go but id say kids with tend to leave them on and i dont think there is an automatic shut off?  -- no manual included?  could probably find it online, have to check.  
• you have to buy an SD card in order to take any pictures.  
• i didnt post about 3 of the pictures i took because i must have took them to quickly without holding the button down or moving to fast?  -- those turned out blurry.  hopefully the girls can figure out how to avoid that after using them a bit. 

bzzzzzz. ribbit.... ribbit.

i cant believe how close i got to this bee to take this pic.  he was HUGE.  i guess if i were allergic to bee stings i probably wouldnt be so brave!

i thought this frog was so cool looking.  i was trying to get a view without the vines in the way but he hopped away when i shifted the leaves.  i wish he had little baby frogs with him.. i love little baby anything really.

punkin butt

Boujee as a pumpkin... he really doesnt like costumes but he just looks so cute in them!

Church in La Crosse

I love this building... and when the sky looks beautiful it makes the world appear to be a better place.

albino spiders... EEEK!

i HATE spiders.  not as much as snakes but pretty damn close. they creep me out, move too fast, all i can  think about is how many ive swalled thus far in life..im sure there's a fact somewhere about ppl swallowing a large percent of spiders in their lives.  sick.  i wonder how much it costs for a company to come in your house and spray toxic chemicals to assure those little suckers are gone... i wonder if thats even safe.. or how often you'd have to do it so they dont come back?

the other day i was doing a re-org of the kitchen cos the weather has been getting pretty chilly in the am  and concerning the saftey of my beloved plants this become priority.  i was in a panic state to find the ideal spot for maximum growth as to further my status as the best gardener ever.  

there are only 2 windows in this dump of a rental townhouse we've got (the only plus side is cheap rent.. well and its not quite a total dump it just lacks a dish washer and matt refuses to take on the job himself.... pfft, i totally would do it myself however i hate the soggy hand feeling of sticking your hands in that nasty soap water and it takes SO long, besides after meals is the perfect time for me to do sudoku while matt does the dishes, duh) nevermind, so i moved the kitchen island in front of the window as a plant stand.. this was not exactly the purpose as we truly have about 1 sq. foot of counter space.  this palce was defo designed to appeal to the microwave chef. and those who use all disposable silverware. thats a whole bucket of issues im not going to carry on about now.  

 

i decided to bring this plant in  

just to see what it would look like cos i have to try it out for my dose of immediate gratification,...just as i set the heavy beast of a plant down a HUGE, RABID ALBINO SPIDER WITH DEATH FANGS AND A RAGING ANGER PROBLEM came racing out on the table.. this thing was massive, at least the size of a quarter.. or a pie plate, i cant remember exactly but i know its somewhere in between the two.

I freaked.. if i had been holding my newborn child over a hot stove of boiling water i  defo would have dropped the poor thing to grab whatever closest to me guaranteed to flattened him.. i suppose this is partly why i dont have children... i hope i dont have a child and drop him and end up getting protective services after me and then the little bugger would end up in foster care and probably become a criminal because of the neglect and anger about his parents being suitable enough to care for him, yikes.

did i get him you ask.. the spider... i know the suspense is killing.... i sure did!!  flat as a pancake! no, flatter than that.. pancakes are kind of puffy so i guess more like flat as hair after you use a straight iron and not just any straight iron but the type that cost a ridiculous amount of money cos they work super well!  

so i tell matt this thinking he is going to be as disgusted as i am .. i mean obviously this place is infested with rabid albino spiders!  clearly he will immediately call the landlord asking how to get rid of these beasts!  and if they wont take care of this issue he will threaten for us to move out or call some type of higher authority to get them in trouble and never find any renters again!  To my shock and dismay none of that happend!!

his response?  "you've got the patio set up like a rainforest, what do you expect"  ... well ive been to the rainforest and i did not even see one single albino spider, not even a regular black spider.  -- obviously he is confused. besides, i didnt know all these plants would attract spiders?!  ugh.

Sunset by the big fish

I took this in June by the big fish view point on lake onalaska... it was one of the best sunsets ive seen.

Toaster Pie

Matt and i got our toaster oven the other day and i really wanted to bake something in it only because it has the option to do so.. and some type convection bake setting which im not all the way sure what that does but i wanted to do it.  I've got apples coming out of my ears from the orchard and figured this was the perfect opportunity to make a yummy apple dessert... so, here's the recipe:

No Crust Apple Pie

4 tbsp butter
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt 
1 c. flour
6 large apples - peeled, cored and sliced.

mix all the shiz in that order and then plop it on a pie plate, kind of squish it together so the crust holds the apples when its done.  bake for 1 hr on 350.

this was simple after getting the apples sorted, that kinda sucked actually, i made a huge mess as usual when baking.. but i feel like i need to express my creative side and creativity does not like clean and neatativity.  When adding flour the consistency changes a lot and i didnt like how tough it was to stir but realized upon completion it didnt matter how perfectly it's mixed, delish!

now this is why i love wisconsin.

Wisconsin.  this photo was taken by a 4 year old, to me that makes one very clear point... no matter where you're looking its lovely.

Ecker's Apple Orchard in WI

I was kid sitting matt's neices this summer and wanted to take them to an apple orchard..  I came across Eckers Apple Farm and decided we would go there as the girls were off to school soon and i wanted to take them!  If you click the link and go to the website you will see they opened August 21st!  Which is exactly why we went on Aug. 21st at approx 10am when they were said to be open... they were open however not for pick your own apples :(  I was sad... they let the girls pick their own from one tree, they didnt seem to mind that much which i guess was the idea however i was disappointed.. i felt misled!  I explained that the website told a different story and basically the ladies in the store said it didnt matter than i should wait for the sign (picture posted) to read "Pick Your Own Apples"  --- i explained we drove at least 45 minutes and it was hardly worth to drive back just to see if the sign said so... jeesh!  I guess i should have called.. i guess they should update their website properly!!

anyhoo... sorry for the complaining... i ended up buying a few ginger gold apples which i had wished id bought more after trying them!! they were spendy at $2.00 a lb however they were amazing.. crisp, juicy... all you dream an apple to be. 

Last weekend matt's sister in law and i went to an apple orchard in the general area of this one called Fergusons Morningside Orchard.  It was HUGE!!!!  we walked into a big barn that had apples out to test, jars of pie filling and apple related products, a counter with carmeled apples and some pastries, you could smell the excitement of the early apple season and all its possibilites. 

After walking through the shop area you come to a bunch of bins with apples next to some bags hanging with prices a small bag is $10.00 a large bag $19.00 (i believe the lrg to be equivilent to 1/2 bushel)  -- we wanted to pick our own instead of grab out of the bins so i picked up the small bag and off we went with a map of the orchard... up the path, around the bend.. and..... its all the way up THAT hill??!  no one around to point you in the direction if you appear to be confused and because of the map we set off up the long long long exhausting jaunt of a hill.  when we finally reached the sign reading "wealthy" i gasped a sigh of relief and hurried to find a decent tree to pick some apples and get moving!  Filled the bag and trekked down the hill.  as returning to the bin area i ended up choosing a larger bag and was able to add different types of apples to it.  i also purchased a can of cherry pie filling (matt's fav).  I havent used the wealthy apples as of yet to tell you how amazing they are... on the other side of the map you would find a chart telling you which apple to use for what... wealthy seemed to be good for baking, pies and sauces.  i plan to bake a pie, attempt apple butter that doesnt taste like lemons and maybe research a few more ideas.  I did however try the ginger gold apples and they were TERRIBLE!  so mushy ... i was discouraged.. the price was only $1.00 a lb and i knew why... i should have paid $2 for the better apples! 

do you have any good apple recipes?  where is your favorite orchard?  what's your favorite apple and why?

Como Park - St. Paul, MN

This is a pic in the conservatory at como park in st. paul, mn that i took about 4 weeks ago.  I dont know much however i know they change the flowers to match the seasons and i know you can get married in here if you want to but its very small so you would want a very personal ceremony for this to be your choice.  i love the beauty, the culture and that you can get in for free (with a donation)  I highly recommend going if you are in the area.. there is also a zoo where you can see lots of diff. types of animals like tigers, gorilla, monkeys, seals, zebra, giraffe... many more.  there are loads of kiddie rides, the prices are a bit high but if you get an  unlimited wrist band its a better deal than going to valley fair where your kid can only go on a fraction of the rides and you have to pay $40 bucks to get in also! 

Big Green Limes!

I love limes.. the color, the smell.. they look so beautiful as a table decoration in a nice dish!  I don't really know what to do with them aside of sqeezing a slice into a bottle of corona and drink away :) 

what do you do with your limes?