Halloween in the Kingdom

I haven't seen the black cats tonight, but I'm sure they're avoiding the commotion. A neighbor left the porch light on and house decorated, so LOTS of kids have stopped there to find no-one home. We are lit up, but not in a line of lit-up homes, so we get passed by a lot. We just got "missed" by a whole HORDE of what appeared to be middle-to-high-school kids, so it is just as well. Most of them were not even wearing costumes. It is O.K.- I didn't buy huge loads of candy this year, anyway. It was too expensive. There are some smaller groups, usually a few quiet teen girls with small children you know to be their own, that I would really rather offer GROCERIES rather than chocolate bars and fruit-flavored candy. But they want the candy, and we give it, so they get to be the kids they are again, for a night.

I wore my Spanish outfit today to work. It got a few compliments and a lot of quizzical looks. I like it, and it is comfortable and functional. I like dress up days- you get to be a kid, again, for a little while. Letting your inner child out to play once in a while is important. I remember one of my best teachers always seemed to have a bit of the inquisitive little boy in him, even though he had 5 daughters and was approaching retirement. You could see it when he took apart capacitors in front of the class, or he watched a sunrise through the window during an early-morning review session. I hope you (and all the little people you know) enjoy the evening. Little blessings mean a lot.

It Ain't Over Yet

The garden does not appear to be dead, even though we had 2 nights of frost. The wind has turned to the south and the day seems really nice (as I press my little nose against the glass of the window at work, staring at a gorgeous blue sky). We may get more beans yet out of those plants. OH! And I'll soon be harvesting my 3 lemons from the dwarf lemon tree! They're turning the appropriate yellow-orange color. It is exciting. Above is a picture of the lemon tree in bloom (Lemon tree, very pretty...). This was back in February. Lemons take a long time to grow and ripen. Patience is a virtue, and gardening helps you develop it.

Sweet Potato Harvest

Here are the sweet potatoes I harvested this year. I only planted 4 slips, and I'm still in the process of improving the soil. Compared to the pinkie-finger-sized nubs of last year's experiment, this is a real improvement! Even the rootlets are good peeled and roasted with beets and red potatoes, with olive oil, rosemary, and pepper. 

Rescue the Perishing

There was frost on the garage roof this morning. More due tonight. I showed my husband this shelf of immature tomatoes I harvested last night before the frost, and he said, " You rescued the perishing!". Hence the title. They'll ripen with time, because all of them are at least a little red. They wont be the same as vine-ripened, but they'll still be better than grocery-store orange cubes.

Beans in my Pocket

Pain in my Heart... (Strange misquote of an old song). The low is due to be in the mid-to-low 30s tonight. Frost likely. I harvested so many bean pods that my basket was full, and so were the pockets of my oversized jeans.The limas produced A LOT of beans. If all the plants had the room and light of the ones along the fence, I would have had to ask for a "300 Ways to Fix Lima Beans" cookbook for Christmas.
I brought in lots of tomatoes (any with a sign of pink on them- pics when I have time). I will miss those plants. I will also welcome time to do some sewing and repair my clothing. I have learned so much from growing food this year! And it has been a wonderful opportunity to get to know my neighbors. I'm already planning next year, Lord willing.
Here's the Perfect Sunday Afternoon picture from yesterday. May we all relax like that tonight. God bless you.

A Perfect Sunday Afternoon

A Wonderful Sunday afternoon was spent napping and making apple butter for christmas presents. Except for my poor chapped, calloused hands I'm as happy as a cat napping in the warm afternoon sun. Every warm day as we head into winter is a gift from God. Can't upload the pic of the sleeping cat, but it says it all. Maybe tomorrow.

Harvest Time

Today was one of those Little Piece of Heaven days. Cool in the shade, comfortable in the sun with sweaters on, today was the day to bring in the sweet potatoes and the basil. We are getting close to frost time (avg first frost date November 6). Here are shots of the basil:

Before the harvest, being smothered by tomato plants.

Look how huge the plants were this year!

I don't know how purists do it, but I strip the leaves off into a bowl (with a cat warm from the sun snuggling up to my back as I sit on the ground), swish in water to clean, spin in salad spinner to dry, wrap in wax paper or parchment paper in recipe-sized increments, and freeze. When I go to make tomato-basil soup, I just remove the right-sized packet, crumble the frozen basil, and dump it in the soup. It works for me.