Sunshine…

Despite now being officially autumn it really doesn’t feel like it. We’ve still been spending lots of time outdoors and even picnicking our dinner in the park…Earlier this week we were graced with some rain – the first in over a month. It’s remarkable how just a little rain has perked up (maybe I should say greened up) my garden already. I thought you might be interested in what’s growing right now… it’s a little difficult to tell in my vege jungle exactly what’s weeds and what’s food:

Due to inconsistent watering (we can still hand water here every second day) almost everything in the vege garden has gone to seed… and blight/powdery mildew has set in all over the show.But the sun lovers like marigolds, zinnia and this beautiful calendula have thrived in the dry. Like little rays of sunshine…On the crafty front, I’ve been working on a new wrap. This time it’s my own design (yes, there will be a tutorial and pattern soon), in a lovely yellow. It is a simple design, but rather effective and I am extraordinarily happy with it.

I think it’s going to be called my sunshine shawl…Hope your week is sunshiny! ♥ Janette xxx

Tomatoes, tomatoes and more tomatoes

Here’s what I picked in the garden TODAY. I have a serious tomato glut… not to mention zucchinis and cucumbers. I’ve given up on both of those crops, we can’t keep up and I can’t give them away to anyone! Pretty though aren’t they?  Ive got a whole red/green/yellow color scheme going on. The big ones on the left are Black Krims… I should have added something to the picture to give you a sense of scale (because those are giant marrows and cucumbers in the background). These are hands down my favourite tomatoes. The yellow-green tomatoes in the middle are green zebras (that’s their color when ripe – actually a little over-ripe they shouldn’t be so yellow) and the front right hand truss tomatoes are black cherries.In between birthday parties this weekend (we have two to attend) I am going to be preserving these and the few dozen others already scattered around my kitchen. I think Ill just cook them up into a pasta sauce to freeze in small portions… unless you have any better suggestions?

Pretty in the garden

My garden has plenty of pretty right now… flowers and an abundance of summer veg. Before it all starts to go downhill (water restrictions are now in place and even though the nights are cooling, the day time heat keeps on coming), I thought I’d share some photos. These were all taken this afternoon:

My tomatoes have grown to an unbelievable height (they are almost touching the roof!), but thankfully it’s not just all plant and we are getting an amazing crop too. I have a feeling in a few days we are going to have so many ripe tomatoes we wont know what to do with them all…  Any special recipes you have please send them my way! How is your garden faring? Hope you are having a wonderful weekend… Janette xxx

These summer days…

I’m sitting here typing this in a lather. It’s past 8pm and still very very hot.  But although the mercury has been rising, this summer has really settled into holiday mode… which I love.  No routines, no racing out of bed in the mornings. No rushing breakfast. No screaming at kids to eat, get dressed, brush hair, teeth, the cat…  you get the idea. It has been blissfully relaxed and we have had no set agenda.

I’ve spent mornings in the garden, and with plenty of rain in the past couple of months its really looking beautiful and lush. The vege garden is plentiful, my tomatoes have grown to triffid like proportions… and although we have had a few ripe ones, with more than 20 plants in, there are plenty of monster tomatoes which wont be more than a few days away. I’ve made zucchini relish, pickled zucchini and frozen zucchini, I think Ill have to make a zucchini cake next!

If you’ve been reading for a while you may remember Ben our pet blackbird?  He is raising his second clutch of babies for the season and is never far away when we are outdoors. He also follows me around the windows of the house when I’m inside just in case I might throw him a tidbit! No idea where he learned that…

There has been plenty of time for many many cuddles from my two favourite little people…Maia is right into cooking (Carter enjoys the role of official taste tester)… she got a new cookbook for Christmas and is working her way through the recipes.

Although they both manage to get their hands in the bowl before the mixture is even in the oven. Ive noticed Maia is quite generous in the amount that is left behind to sample!

We’ve visited every park in town. Twice…

And the zoo… The only thing worth doing in Hamilton in the afternoons, when the weather is like this, is swimming.

And every meal is alfresco.  With this hot weather I wouldn’t dream of turning on the oven past lunchtime so even this delicious boysenberry sponge was cooked outside in our pizza oven, and aside from spilling all over the oven stone (oops), it turned out remarkably well.

This boy loves his desserts! And I love summer!

In the garden

Oh how I love my vege garden in early summer… the zucchini have started fruiting but the tomatoes still have a wee way to go:And Carter is all about peas this year… he thinks they are lollies in pods, you have to be fast to get even one when he is around!

I like to plant close (saves on weeding) and I like to let at least one plant in each variety go to seed… which is great for attracting bees, and purely for aesthetic reasons of course! I like to mix up my veges with lots of companion plants (or as I like to call them, flowers)…This pretty petunia has been a bumble bee magnet – it must be the colours:

We’ve eaten plenty of artichokes so far already, the one on the left became the starter on Saturday night… the one on the right got too big too fast so Ive let it bloom.Speaking of blooms, in the flower garden, my hydrangeas are all coming into bloom now. They only last for a short time as cut flowers, but I can’t resist picking some to bring inside and display on the table… Not exactly a plant, but our first monarch of the season also just hatched. The children were mesmerized by it drying its wings in the sun. I took it outside because it had spent its chrysalis life in the kitchen because I was worried the nights are still too cool, and so we could keep an eye on it…

I love this time of year. So what’s growing at your place? Jxx

Simply beautiful

My lovely, luscious peony is in flower! This is a flower I simply have to share….These photos were taken in the late afternoon with the light filtering through the larger trees behind them, creating a beautiful effect on the petals. Three blooms this year – one more than last… I’m still hopeful that one day I’ll get a huge bush full! I hope your week is beautiful too, Love Janette xx

PS. In a complete coincidence, it’s exactly one year to the day since I last posted about this beautiful flower!

Is orange for you?

Now see the beautiful sunset ore the ocean blue
Fiery colors due abound of poems there are a few

I wish that I could write one, about that perfect hue

But nothing rhymes with Orange.

Jeff Opperman

Its true, nothing rhymes with it, but I’ve personally always loved the rich warmth of orange. It seems to be a color of strong opinions, either you love it or loath it! For me its definitely love, and serendipitously I have two projects on the go right now… both in orange.

While it’s normally a color I would associate with autumn and winter, this afternoon as I was wandering around in between the spring squalls we have had today, there was plenty of orange to be seen (and snapped to share with you). Thanks you for all the lovely comments about the tea cosy- you are all so special! I hope you are having a bright Tuesday. Cheerio! xox

At home…

My focus this week has definitely been at home.  As you will probably recall Maia was sick last week, and since then Carter and yours truly have both been struck down with the dreaded lurgy (do you all know what that means, or is a New Zealand only phrase????). We have been sick, well Carter still is. Literally the only one still standing is my husband and he is almost bathing in hand sanitizer in an effort to stay bug free! So to say the least we haven’t been out much, and I can only hope that with spring firmly taking hold we can put our winter ills behind us and things will pick up health-wise.

Before it all turned to custard (another NZ euphemism?) this weekend, we put in a family effort and wallpapered the newly renovated (was baby room/Carter’s old room) spare room.  I’m in love with the print – I have a thing for glorious big wall paper prints like this, I think they really transform a room.  Although it’s looking a little bare, I think I need to bring out a collection to display on the blanket box. We also made a new headboard for the new bed (it’s one of these), using plywood and covering it with left over wall paper. The room has come together beautifully… The other neat thing about the room is that now we have a fold up bed, it means we will be able to put the space to use when its not occupied. I’m thinking sewing room, the kids are thinking play room and Paul is thinking media room. Watch this space!

In another home fix up this week we improved the art corner. One of my parenting ‘philosophies’ is that I believe the children should always have access to creative tools to enable them to create whenever the mood strikes.  So right in our dining room there is a little corner where we keep a ready supply of arts and crafts supplies. I’ve been dreaming of a little peg board to reorganize our craft area for some time, and this weekend my handy husband knocked one up for me

We need to take a trip to the hardware store and pick up a few more hooks, but as you can see its already revolutionized the children’s crafting space (I’ve never seen it so tidy!). Fortunately this photo doesn’t give away the big pile of cereal/food boxes which I store under the table (perfect for all manner of houses, boats, cars, trailers, robots….). I don’t have a plan for tidying those up.  Yet.

On the outside (just) the garden is a bloom with spring…  These flowers have all popped up in my ‘vege’ garden, making such a beautiful show.

Because Ive been a bit under the weather (three in one post- not a bad effort) the tomatoes and beans are still waiting to be planted, but I’m loving that these self seeded violas have managed to thread their way up through the parsley and lettuce. Finally, Ill leave you with this stunning purple acquilegia (again, I can take no credit- its self seeded too). Take care xx

Violets

Yesterday while the kids and I were out on a ramble we came across a huge patch of violets.  I love violets, they remind me of my grandfather and this was a patch of those old-fashioned beauties with long stems and an intoxicating perfume.  They were his favourite flower and every time I smell their sweet scent I am transported to my childhood, my grandparents house and a lot of happy memories.  I picked a huge bunch which is now scenting my kitchen – and I also pulled up a small section of vine with rootlets (is that a word) which I have in water in the hope that roots will grow and I can grow some violet memories for my garden…

Pots of colour

It was a drizzly grey day yesterday and after spending some time trying to make amends in my garden I planted some pots of colour to brighten our deck.

Pretty polyanthus, and beautiful pansies…Not to mention a couple of pots of lovely cyclamens….Which I hope will brighten even the dullest of winter days!

I also harvested a huge bucket load of yams, I grew these from tubers I kept last year; and probably increased my yield by about 400%. These are a selfish crop because Im really the only one in the family that likes to eat them- although I have to say that both of the children were enthusiastically talking them up as we collected them. Maybe since they had a hand in harvesting them they will eat a few more?But regardless, these colorful beauties will be gracing our dinner table tonight- if no one else eats them I know I will! Ill be back tomorrow with another flower (crochet this time) to share with you. Jxx