A beautiful morning for a walk

Bustin' out

"Don't mind us, we're just passing through."

Peanut Butter

Still funny looking at six weeks old.

Colors

So many choices!!

Sweet Potatoes

We have Sweet Potatoes!! Evidently, the bugs and nematodes did too!

Hubby Rocks!!

Hubby was busy, busy, busy this weekend; he built the first of three raised vegetable beds for me (thanks, honey!) and started work on the new chicken coop. It's humongous looking, but this way there will be enough room for all the chickens. We're gonna keep them separated with the big girls in the old coop and the chicks in the new one for a week or so.... that way they can get used to each other and hopefully that'll keep the pecking and fighting to a bare minimum. Laverne is really my main concern, her nickname around here is Little Ms. Meanie Pants, so I'm sure you get the idea.

Beautyberry and Goldenrod

My Beautyberry and Goldenrod plants are so pretty this time of year, reminding me that even though it's still so hot out, autumn is on it's way.

Thank you so much

I just wanted to thank all my family and friends who have contributed to MDA this year. Because of your help and others, MDA raised over 65 million dollars. This helps my family and others so much. Costs alone for my leg braces is over 2,000 dollars and then you get into therapies and medications, you can see how this adds up. So again, I thank you all so much.

Sick chicken and seed planting

A little stressful this week around the house. On Thursday our little chicky Vera come down with an upper respiratory cold. And has just been miserable, and of course that makes me miserable because I feel helpless. But I have to say the hour and a half that we were at the vet on Thursday my chicky girl was a SUPERSTAR! The vet techs were at least nice paparazzi, no pushing or shoving, just sweet words and lots of petting for Vera.



When we were outside last night she seemed alot better, so the seafood flavored antibiotic seems to be doing the job. (I don't quite know why they chose the seafood flavor, should have been earthworm, but I guess they don't get chickens as patients that often.)


In some garden news this week, I started doing seed trays for the autumn garden. This is the list so far:


1) Sugar Ann Snap Pea

2)Sunset Lettuce

3)Mignonette Bronze Lettuce

4)New England Sugar Pie (winter squash)

5)Collective Farm Woman (Asian melon)

6)Prescott Ford Blanc (french squash)

7)Golden Delicious (winter squash)

8) Fennel

(I was feeling optimistic about the melons, I'm sure they will all end up with mildew.)


I hope every one has a nice weekend and stay safe out there. :)

Fossil Treasure

With the Gulf waters all churned up, it makes for a perfect time to go hunt for fossils. (We're nerds like that.) I didn't find any, but hubby did. Not a bad take for an hour out.

We have an egg!!

Woohoo, my little Vera is laying eggs!

(As you can tell, I'm easily amused.)

Cotton plants

The vegetable garden is awaiting work right now, so I've just been snapping pics of my flowers in bloom around the yard. This beauty is the Cotton plant in some of it's different stages. A neat plant to have around, especially if you have little kids.

Rattlesnake master

This isn't quite what you would expect with a name like Rattlesnake master. At one time, people thought it treated venomous snake bites, and I assume that's how the name came about.

Happy 7th Birthday

Happy Birthday to You,

Happy Birthday to You,

Happy Birthday sweet Little One,

Happy Birthday to You.



It doesn't seem that long ago that she was just a little baby....

Where does the time go?

The New Chicks

LuLu and no name buff Silkie

Peanut Butter is a Japanese Bantam (buff with black tail )

Cotton is a Polish (white crested black)

LuLu is an Easter Egger (don't know what color)

I picked the chicks up yesterday morning from the post office. And all four of them made the trip and are now eating and drinking lots. We have 3 of them named so far, but can't figure out what to call the little silkie yet. Hopefully it will come to us soon. As always, we are just loving the new babies and we hope that they all will make it.

Cassius Hairstreak

Hooray!! I was finally able to get a picture of this little one on the Scorpion's-Tail. Such a beauty!!

The Girls at four months

Wow! I can't believe the girls are already four months old. It's so fun just to sit outside and watch their goofy antics. Laverne (gray one) I have to say, does goofy the best. She is just so darn funny! Yoko and Vera have turned out to be our good little flyers, with a trip up on the roof of the house and a visit with the neighbors on the other side of the fence. Thank goodness there's wing clipping.
So now we're six days away from our new shipment of four chicks. We can't wait! (Hopefully this time they will all be girls like we ordered.)
If all goes well, I'll have some pictures up come next week.

Wild Coffee (Pyschotria nervosa)

I just love my Wild Coffee plants. I've got six planted in the shade under my oak tree and they're just thriving. I particularly like them this time of year when they are blooming. Such pretty clusters of tiny white flowers and with the texture of the leaves, it really makes them stand out. Native plant nurseries usually have these in stock if your interested.

Golden Mane Coreopsis

This is such a pretty wildflower. I picked up the seeds last year and it wasn't until this spring that I got around to planting them. I'm so glad I did. Every time I walk by them, they bring me a little smile.

Madira Bickle Mound

We had to drive over to Palmetto on Sunday and on our way back we saw a sign for the Madira Bickel Mound Archaeological Site and decided to stop and look around. The site is small, about 10 acres, but the mound and the area around it is just gorgeous! There was lots of Spanish moss and Resurrection Fern on the trees, all very lush from the rains we've had and a couple nice large Gumbo Limbo trees at the top of the mound. A nice little stop for a Sunday morning. Check it out sometime if your in the area.

Critters

We have new critters in the house this week. Some coquina that we brought home from the beach. And a couple tadpoles that hubby got. I like the colorful little coquina, it's always so neat watching them open and feeding. Very graceful. In a couple of days we'll move them into our larger tank to live or back to the beach.

Our poor kitchen table, it's always covered with some critter or another. And don't be alarmed by the orange goo you see in the corner, it's just slime.

Root- Knot Nematode

My eggplants and tomatillos have been looking pretty rough lately, so I pulled them up, and as you can tell by the photos it's root-knot nematodes. ( I had really been looking forward to those purple tomatillos ) I had some problems with the winter garden and I used a product made from chitin and right before planting this spring I applied it again. So I don't know ....... I'm going to plant some marigolds around the garden and see if that might help some. If nothing else, it'll bring some pretty colors to the vegetable beds.

Summer fun and book meme

The little one and I, have been enjoying our summer so far. We've been playing at the park, going to the library for their summer reading program,(it's all about bugs, cool!) painted rocks to look like vegetables for some garden markers, started painting a birdhouse, and built a volcano. I was expecting a huge eruption of water, baking soda, and vinegar. But as you can see it was more of a ooze. Hubby told us next time to just use the baking soda and vinegar and see how that does. Hopefully that will be more dramatic.

On another note, my friend Laura tagged me for a book meme. The rules are:

1) Pick up the nearest book.
2) open to page 123
3) find the fifth sentence.
4) post the next three sentences.
5) tag five people and acknowledge who tagged you.

Dang, I don't know 5 people to tag!!!!

My book is The Animal Dialogues, written by Craig Childs:
Okay here goes...

" He watched. His head moved as if it had the fluid suspension of a gyroscope. The female finally came."

It's about owls.

Really.

I swear.

" This male did not take our mouse. He glided between trees, his voice growing irritated. I had to run out and grab the mouse back because he wouldn't dive for it. He watched. His head moved as if it had the fluid suspension of a gyroscope.The female finally came. I posed the mouse on a broken branch and stood behind a tree, extending the branch from my arms."

I just started this book last night and I only made it to the third short story. Good reading so far and I'm looking forward to reading some more tonight.

Florida Scrub Jay

This article is from the current issue of Nature Conservancy.

Aloe and Vera