"Natural cobwebs"

Welcome to my home...

It's necessary to bust through cobwebs to enter or exit. Below, a mailbox the postal carrier approaches with care.

Below, a scene that comes alive (literally and figuratively) at night.

A young child is disturbed by what she sees.

A porch that invites no neighbor to call.

You might not have needed so many pictures to get the picture. Now if you know me, you know I'm an independent woman, but the idea of any insect or arachnid's "sac" falling on my head and breaking into a billion babies brings me to ask the hubby to sweep the cobwebs. Now, this is a man who creates a lot of frustration for me as he typically makes half-assed attempts to capture gigantic spiders to relocate to the outdoors. I'm usually left angrily standing on the couch while he remarks, "Awwww, sooorrry. He's too fast". I don't know if he's just being lazy about it, slow about it, or is trying to emulate the Addams Family philosophy of design.

So when I pushed him to sweep the cobwebs THIS WEEKEND (damn it!), he convinced the kids to believe they were "natural cobwebs" and necessary for an authentic Halloween. In the end, I got my cobwebs swept, but ended up being the bad guy - the person cruel enough to destroy the "natural cobwebs" and possibly even the holiday they represent. He and the kids also insisted that beginning in September, any cobwebs need to stay until at least after Halloween. Have you ever heard of such a thing?!

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BY THE WAY...Don't forget the first weekly Garden to Table Challenge begins this Saturday! I hope you're ready with your post! I'll be posting even if I'm the only one, but what fun would that be for anyone? I want to know what YOU'RE eating this week! You know it's fantastic and delicious and fresh from your garden, now brag about it!

Garden to Table Challenge (are you up for it?)

What do I need to do?

1) Ideally, grow your own fruits and vegetables (if you have a legit reason for not growing your own, you may use what your farmer's market is offering right now - what's seasonal is the key).
2) Brag on your blog about the journey of your fruits or vegetables from GARDEN TO TABLE by featuring a photo and recipe.
3) Starting this Saturday, and then every subsequent Saturday, link your post, and see what I and others have been harvesting and eating.

But wait, I harvest and cook all the time anyway, what's the challenge?

IF you want an extra challenge, cyber nods for: food that involves lots of seasonal ingredients (particularly if you've grown your own), creativity, originality, and food photography that makes our mouths water. BUT...I know I would also appreciate ideas for fresh food that can be tossed together on a Monday night, so I want simple recipes too! IF, you're not able to harvest or don't feel like cooking one week, I'll even welcome posts about a great seasonal meal you enjoyed at your favorite bistro. Lots of options.

What else you got?

There's more... just to make it more fun. You might be a food-loving, gardening nerd excited about this Garden to Table Challenge, but if you're not TOTALLY pumped yet, as an extra incentive for participating (like food-loving, gardening nerds REALLY need incentives!), at the end of the season (around November), I will randomly award 3 people with fabulous prizes (to be determined later). 1 contest entry per week for every post you link here beginning THIS Saturday.

It can be as simple as what you see below. So what say you? You in???

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Panzanella - a summer favorite that even my tomato-hating kids enjoy (and even ask for!). I've seen a few different variations, but I just use the ingredients I love most. No need for exact measurements, just saute the bread in oil and garlic, then put the rest together to taste! Ingredients: my own Japanese black trifele tomatoes, my own basil (snipped with scissors into ribbons), my own ajo rojo garlic, thinly sliced red onion, a crusty/hard bread, fresh mozzarella, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar. The bread will soak up the juices from the tomato and the olive oil and balsamic vinegar. This makes a delicious light summer lunch!

GBBD August 2010

The tough blooms below have survived not only my typical neglect, but the summer's earthquakes, thunderstorms, flash floods, and record breaking heat. This IS Maryland though, and as much I'd like to say I'm being melodramatic, it has been a rough few weeks!

The Gaura 'whirling butterflies' (in the foreground) have been wonderful (and aptly named). It's really sprawled out - perhaps from the excess rain, but I like the look. The flowers open each morning and close as it gets hot in the afternoon. It's been blooming for weeks and weeks. I'd say this perennial is a must have.

Strawberry fields gomphrena and oregano in bloom.

Alstroemeria 'sweet Laura'

Old reliable below, attracting a family of goldfinches lately.

I'm a hosta lover, but must admit I like to hurry the blooms along and snip them off. They're usually just such a mess and often detract from such beautiful foliage. BUT...the fragrance of this new hosta (must have been from some bargain bag I bought in the fall) almost knocked me over. I swear it's as close to jasmine as I'll ever grow in my zone 6/7 garden. I'm in love with it.

Can you guess the plant that these cute little yellow blooms below belong to?

Didn't get your fix of blooms on this Garden Blogger's Bloom Day? See May Dreams Gardens for more.

P.S. If you've been following the saga of my seasonal battle with
mosquitoes, I'll give you an update. Mosquitoes 27, me zero. I
thought I was being smarter than the mosquitoes by tucking my pant legs in my
socks and even tucking my shirt in my pants. Totally. Tucked.
In. I was wearing regular jersey knit pants and when I was
bent over weeding, the mosquitoes must have been able to feast on my butt
through the stretched out fabric. Sounds crazy, but I can't think of any
other way I could have gotten 27 mother freaking bites on my butt, and nowhere
else. I'm using Benadryl like body lotion.

The juice was worth the squeeze

...literally. Yay for our new juicer! Wow, juicers have come a long way. Our new Breville comes with just a few dish-washable pieces that a child could put together. I remember as a kid, the rare times my mom would break out the juicer, it'd be an all night affair - cutting up the fruit into little pieces and forcing them through with the pusher thingy. This new gazillion-horsepowered baby sucks down and pulverizes a whole apple in one second flat.

Below, a concoction I personally found really nice for our first try - grapefruit, my funny carrots, and apples. I'm attempting to ease the kids into fresh juice and will try more complicated recipes later on. Unfortunately, they weren't too keen on the grapefruit. The sip the little one is taking is just about all she had.

The following week, the juice was a huge hit. The orange, carrot, and beet combination was not only sweet and delicious, but the most gorgeous shade of bright PINK - something that always sweetens the deal for the little one.

If you're a juicer - please pass along some good-tasting recipes!

Vaca photos - the low country

Please indulge me by allowing me to share some vacation photos! I'll start with my only gripe. Not much bothers me about our perfect little island oasis near Charleston, SC - except for what you see below...little landscaped patches of dense grass. The purpose of this strip of green, typical on the properties of island homeowners, I do not understand. See all the sprinklers? This was early in the day. Come mid-afternoon, when the temperatures are at their highest, the sprinklers come on and stay on - much to my chagrin, often through each late afternoon thunderstorm! Humpf. I wouldn't consider myself an anti-lawn Nazi, but this sprinkler behavior really irks me.

Below, sweetgrass roses sold on the streets of Charleston, South Carolina. The groomsmen of my father in law's mate's son (I tried a few times to describe this relationship!) will wear these in their lapels at the February wedding.

View from the deck...

View from the beach...

Scenes from the island...

Last year, I posted about a story of Spanish moss, as well as the Angel Oak, a gigantic oak near where we stay. I think the scene below looks prehistoric.

At the marina boardwalk, near one of many serene low country marshes in SC. Here you see my adorable niece, who obviously has a unique way of taking it all in, and her adoring DaDa - as always, camera ready!

Bye Sun, see you tomorrow!

Brookside Gardens and more on the storm...

View from the Japanese Tea House

A few weeks ago, we had an unusually mild summer day, perfect for an impromptu visit to one of my favorite places, Brookside Gardens. I did not plan to take photos, but there were too many pretty scenes to leave unphotographed.

When my 5 year old saw the border in the photo above, she exclaimed, "Mom!! Sister's pie!!!", recalling the rhubarb pie we baked for her older sister's birthday last year. Have you ever seen an edible border like this??!!

Funny story about the photo above. When I saw this lovey-dovey couple, hand in hand, chatting away, I remembered RoseBelle's post about an older couple which reminded her of a Debeers commercial. I watched this couple in adoration, admiring how they had so much to talk about after what appeared to be a good lifetime together. They sat on this bench near us and when we finished with our little rest and walked past them, the woman was on the phone. I overheard her talking about how she and her dad were taking a nice walk at Brookside Gardens!

Do you remember the sniper shootings maybe...7-8 years ago that happened in the DC area? They were targeting innocent people pumping gas or cleaning cars at gas stations? That was right in my neighborhood. I was teaching at the time (the uncle of one of our students was shot and killed by the snipers). We were in lockdown for weeks. Our entire area was freaking out. Quite a few people I knew would literally run from our cars to our homes. The memorial above speaks to this time.

Photos from the Children's Garden below...

I wasn't quite sure what the dark red plumes above were - larger and showier than astilbe, but certainly smaller than ornamental amaranth. The gardener said it was amaranth grown in pots. This is what accounts for the smaller than typical size. She indicated that this might not have been her intention, but a good tip for someone like me who loves amaranth but hasn't the space for it - stunting growth on purpose.

Above and below: I love the shapes, textures, heights, and all the interesting things going on in the Children's Garden. This is totally done right. You could explore this area for hours and make all kinds of pretend.

I am beginning to really take advantage of this beautiful garden. I've posted before on another visit, and also on the landscape photography workshop I took. I love that Brookside Gardens offers beautiful seasonal interest, a greenhouse full of interesting specimens, special exhibits, and children and adult programs. Their Wings of Fancy butterfly show is also an annual event my kids look forward to. We can do the whole thing in a day, or spend the whole day on one thing. Best of all, it's nearby and free. Any of these spots near you?

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After composing this post, I received an email from Brookside Gardens updating the serious damage the recent storm had on the gardens. Brookside will probably leave one of the many fallen trees so that visitors can peek into and learn about the underground structure of a giant tree like this one below that ripped up the boardwalk on its way down...

Photo via Brookside Gardens Facebook fan page

Near the end of the message from Brookside:

...While it won't be long before we clean up every broken limb, the long-term effect of this storm will be felt for decades by way of the holes in our tree canopy. While we mourn the loss of our trees, we look forward to the opportunity their loss provides. You gardeners all know that insatiable desire to add new plants to your gardens - you feel it every time you stop at your local garden center, or visit a public garden and find a cool plant you've never seen before..

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In my last post, I detailed some of the fun the girls and I had indoors during
the exciting, very brief, and fairly unpredicted storm, but it actually killed
several people in our area, including a neighbor who was the president of our
civic association, an environmental activist and from what I knew, an all-around
amazing guy. Carl was with seven local families near their community garden
plot. They were having a picnic celebrating their second harvest and also to
thank Carl for his leadership in attaining the land and creating the garden.
Carl rode his bike everywhere, including the 2 miles to the picnic. He used a
push mower and helped lead our neighborhood attain a more effective recycling and less
wasteful trash service. He was killed by lightening during the storm.

*I'm purposely not using Carl's full name because I want any searches to direct people to articles written solely about him.

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On a lighter note, if that is possible after this fairly depressing post, I am off to a magical land of Spanish Moss and Angel Oaks. Photos will probably follow, as will the opportunity to do the regular blog reading that I have missed so much!

Storm's a-brewing

If this doesn't make you ache for a rain barrel, I don't know what will! Within the first few minutes of a very severe (yet brief) thunderstorm, the rain barrel was completely full. If we have a dry week, this volume will keep my vegetables watered. You would not have wanted to be caught outside during this very short storm we just had!

Edited to add the photo below: 20 minutes after the storm started, the sun's rays beat down upon us once again (we had another 100+degree day today). Out and about, the storm appears to have been more serious than I thought!

Below, the 12-year old bracing herself with her skateboarding helmet during the thunder and power outage. After she realized I was taking pictures, she began running around avoiding my camera. Maybe because she still had that nasal strip on her nose that we were playing with earlier in the day. Maybe because she was frantically busy preparing a "disaster pack" (canned food, her favorite stuffed animal, her cell phone, etc.).

Here she is, running upstairs to avoid the camera because she's not too old to pack her favorite things during a scary thunderstorm, but too old to want any physical record of it! Too precious.

Here's the 5 year old, not too embarrassed to show us what she put in her disaster pack. She's wrapped in Nana's blanket (which prevents bad dreams), and in her box - a wind-up flashlight, 2 cheese sticks, a juice box, and a picture she'd just drawn. What else would one possibly need?