Just One More Thing

The lovely etui and accessories came with one more gift.  I saved the best for last on a day when I can savor it. 

It is this delightful homemade plum jam.  It was made earlier this year and looks marvelous and tastes delicious with these biscuits.  The only thing that might be lacking is some real Devonshire cream. 

Stitching Progress

This is my newest stitching project.  It is not necessarily what I would choose to to right now but more a case of must.  It is not that I do not like it because I do, just that I would rather stitch something else.

I actually moderate the Christmas in July Exchange.  Wouldn't you know it?  It is not certain that one of the participants will successfully complete her exchange responsibility.  It happens more often than I like to think.  I always feel very bad about the participant who is left out so I prepare a consolation gift.

This time the participant finally checked in after the due date and said that she is behind.  Well gee, we already knew that because it is past the due date.  Prior to hearing from her, I had begun a consolation gift.  Because I do not have complete confidence in this person, I will continue to stitch until I know that her giftee has received her gift.

This is the project, Pink Carnations from The Sweetheart Tree.  If the original person comes through, I will have this to decorate a fabric pocket for a friend.

Cannot Wait to Show You

Please take a minute to look at this lovely etui and stitching accessories.  Do you remember the silk covered box with the poppy on the lid?  That was my gift in a Christmas in July Exchange.  This is what my giftor gave me.  The stitching and finishing are exquisite.  It is such a treasure. 

We Ate the Whole Thing

Last night we ate the cauliflower.  We served it with shrimp in dilled cream sauce.  We also had a cucumber fresh from our garden.  We served cucumber slices in sweetened vinegar with dill.  Summer dining seems so extravagant with so much fresh produce from our garden.

I have been a little busy today.  I continue to experiment with the project bag idea.  I like the appearance of this mesh. 

 

Cauliflower and Broccoli but Primarily Cauliflower

Roger planted the cauliflower.  I told him that if he wanted nice heads he had to pull the leaves up and cover the heads with the leaves.  Today he picked the first head of cauliflower. 

Needless to say, Roger heeded my advice.  In all the years we have tried to grow cauliflower, this is literally the first successful head that looks like something you might want to eat. 

We have 6 to 8 jalapeno peppers ready to pick and one sweet green pepper that looks almost ready to pick.  Maybe we should begin to think about making fresh salsa. 

Raspberries from the garden

We had hoped to have blueberries from the garden too but something that wanted the blueberries more urgently got into the garden and stripped the bushes.  These blueberries are from the grocery store. 

Something or someone has been busy in the garden.
It looks like a deer has eaten some of the cucumber vines.  Something was in the broccoli and flattened the plants in the center of the broccoli patch.  To tell the truth, it almost looks like a deer bed in the garden. 

I wonder if the triffids were the inspiration for Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors.  I think that our squash and pumpkins are not diabolical.

The Great Escape

Last week a squash plant, but maybe it is a pumpkin, escaped.  You can see it climbing out of its fence cage and going into the apple tree. 

Frequently the squash and or pumpkins that are planted under the apple tree go airborne and latch onto a branch in the apple tree. 

Sometimes it works but sometimes the squash or pumpkin is not successful and drops back into its cage. 

This is what it looked like last week.   I had wanted to show you on Sunday but out DSL went out during a heavy storm Saturday night and was not completely restored for 48 hours.  In addition, we had a little trouble with our cable. 

The squash or pumpkin is still clinging to the apple tree.  Right now it looks like there may be a blossom between the top of the cage and the apple tree.