tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-53944609351816785852020-02-28T11:33:50.515-08:00Life is awesome here homesteadDiscussing the importance of being healthy, having wholesome home, eating good and how to improve the quality of our life.Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.comBlogger155125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-47595351883663858112018-11-07T14:33:00.002-08:002018-11-07T14:33:32.677-08:00Fall Garden Tour Part 1Although some people consider fall to be a slow time in reality it's as pact with activities but the days are shorter. We wanted to share with all of you our video of our garden and what is going on here this fall. I hope you enjoy it. <div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/M-BT5Waxc_E/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/M-BT5Waxc_E?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div><div><br /></div>Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-59309861511541748512017-05-07T10:58:00.000-07:002017-05-07T10:58:10.335-07:00How To Grow Hanging Basket Tomatoes<b><i>This year we are trying a new way of growing tomatoes by growing them in a basket on our porch. We had some haanging baskets left over from our previous year so we decided to grow tomatoes in them instead of flowers. Here is our video on how we planted them and started the process. I hope you enjoy it.</i></b><br /><b><i><br /></i></b><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe width="320" height="266" class="YOUTUBE-iframe-video" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/TLpedku_vxE/0.jpg" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/TLpedku_vxE?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe></div><b><i><br /></i></b>Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0Vancouver, WA, USA45.6318397 -122.6716063000000145.4542072 -122.9943298 45.8094722 -122.34888280000001tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-23581028477851714572016-02-11T15:43:00.001-08:002016-02-11T15:43:06.033-08:00Garden Prep <a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Shybj3bCBQg/Vr0ZxFImI_I/AAAAAAAATLs/OGiGtyRmL0g/s1600/20160211_151434.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Shybj3bCBQg/Vr0ZxFImI_I/AAAAAAAATLs/OGiGtyRmL0g/s320/20160211_151434.jpg" width="320" /></a>It's been just over two years since we have moved to our new property and it's been a pain to get it under control. We planted our garden in the same place where it used to be before us but the soil there is not ideal. Some years back someone brought a bunch of soil mixed with gravel and dumped it in that corner and over the past 5 years it has been a constant battle with removing the rocks and slowly adding layer after layer of compost to improve the soil. Each year I want to just remove a layer of dirt and bring some fresh soil to the garden. I think we should have done that the first year, but now there is so much compost, and good nutrients that have been added there that plants grow pretty well.<br /><br /><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jEhkF863g4U/Vr0ZVFxmqCI/AAAAAAAATLg/i8iyxZ-Rblo/s1600/20160211_085139.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-jEhkF863g4U/Vr0ZVFxmqCI/AAAAAAAATLg/i8iyxZ-Rblo/s200/20160211_085139.jpg" width="112" /></a>The radish has already sprouted and we are prepping the rest of the garden for the spring to come. Rain or shine the work got to go on or else we will fall behind and than it's a rush and things don't ever get done the way you want it when you are in a rush. So this year I have decided to start early and prep the garden ahead of time. After two years of gardening on the plot it's time to rotate some plants and clean up the old cedar fence walk ways between the beds. When I was putting them in our friends were smirking at me and now they think it's a good idea and would not mind them in their garden, they definitely make it easier and neater especially with all the rain we get here, and best of all you can get some free old cedar boards on Craigslist and they will last you for good 4 to 5 years.<br /><br /> If any of you have any Ideas on how I could improve the soil faster please let me know I'd love to see this soil get nice and healthy.<br /><br /><br />Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-63924302471723745822016-02-08T11:40:00.002-08:002016-02-08T11:40:42.659-08:00New year New plans<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tHAlmfaYeME/Vrjhmcrdk-I/AAAAAAAATKM/vqanE4A60CQ/s1600/16%2B-%2B1" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tHAlmfaYeME/Vrjhmcrdk-I/AAAAAAAATKM/vqanE4A60CQ/s200/16%2B-%2B1" width="111" /></a>As the 2016 rolled in many people had goals and plans and so did we. Our new born son has turned 7 month, and is up and crawling around so it's time to go outside and get our garden, and yard cleaned up before he will be walking and getting in all the mud. Although our plans are simple but they are not easy to accomplish. Living on 1 acre inside city limits have there own challenges. With our home situated the way it is we need to have all the property manicured since it's all visible, from the main road.<br /><br />So we started with a new pathway to our Garden, Sauna and playground. Good thing there is Craigslist, we were able to score a deal on some pavers at $50 for 133 pavers. It should be enough to make the pathway, we wanted to have it low maintenance so we decided to grow grass between them that way we can just mow it with the rest of our yard.<br /><br />One thing is for sure though, no matter how small the project is and how inexpensive your purchases are they add up and before you know it you are spending hundreds on just a small portion of the yard.<br /><br />As a start that is where we are and I hope to update you on our progress and where we are at transforming our acre property to a small city farm in Vancouver WA.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-15954825119952816162014-08-15T13:12:00.001-07:002014-08-15T19:02:24.610-07:00Our Homestead Since we have moved to a new place I wanted to take a bit of your time and show you what we have currently. I decided to call our place Mishchuk Garden, humbly referring to our last name :))) As our project evolve with time I hope to have an impression not only on our life but on people who we are connected to. Some people ask us why are you guys doing this? is it even worth it? and my 4 year old son told us that we can just go buy the food in the store, why bother with all this gardening. You know it's not the same, the food that is growing in your garden is always much more healthier and is full of flavor. This post I'm going to share with you what we have going on now and invite you to follow us on our journey of developing this 1 acre in to a true Garden.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hGzuilfCXwc/U-5j8Kj_lyI/AAAAAAAAIho/AY0jy0p1J_s/s1600/20140815_095609.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hGzuilfCXwc/U-5j8Kj_lyI/AAAAAAAAIho/AY0jy0p1J_s/s1600/20140815_095609.jpg" height="358" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our Garden, we planted here for the first time, the soil has lot's of gravel in it so our main efforts for the next few seasons will be focused on improving the soil.<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4KkZi5NxVDc/U-5i5NM8MII/AAAAAAAAIhI/bjE_nzY4i4Y/s1600/20140815_095830.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4KkZi5NxVDc/U-5i5NM8MII/AAAAAAAAIhI/bjE_nzY4i4Y/s1600/20140815_095830.jpg" height="360" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Raspberry rows, we currently have 5 rows of raspberry, when we moved here they were growing all over and had no system going, in late spring we had to move them around and replant them into rows, this year we had a small harvest and the plants are not very vigorous after the replanting shock.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wDeBg9HfHg0/U-5jenMkfuI/AAAAAAAAIhY/ZbQ2iHo-Gxk/s1600/20140815_095716.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wDeBg9HfHg0/U-5jenMkfuI/AAAAAAAAIhY/ZbQ2iHo-Gxk/s1600/20140815_095716.jpg" height="360" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our Chickens, we currently have 7 hens and 1 baby duck. We had a pair of ducks and 4 ducklings that hatched, unfortunately a raccoon got in and killed all except 1 baby duck, she is the only survivor till next spring.<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8i_oB_WrYUI/U-5jL7REquI/AAAAAAAAIhQ/8r-tCUgTTq0/s1600/20140815_095730.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8i_oB_WrYUI/U-5jL7REquI/AAAAAAAAIhQ/8r-tCUgTTq0/s1600/20140815_095730.jpg" height="360" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is our chicken house, OK I know it needs a lot of work, maybe in the next few year we can get it updated, but it does keep them dry and safe for now.</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ewpQhzBpFuY/U-5jrTPq6kI/AAAAAAAAIhg/jLe9Q-QDtuY/s1600/20140815_095647.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ewpQhzBpFuY/U-5jrTPq6kI/AAAAAAAAIhg/jLe9Q-QDtuY/s1600/20140815_095647.jpg" height="360" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The rabbits home. as you can see we have replaced part of the covering over the rabbits and have another side where we plant to have quail. This was about the same condition as the chicken coop eventually we will get it done. </td></tr></tbody></table><br />Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-2707936539475772182014-08-14T20:53:00.000-07:002014-08-14T21:01:55.715-07:00Our Tomato Garden<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qt_x0RSR0vk/U-1kRQfg3nI/AAAAAAAAIg8/hCyD_TteXA4/s1600/20140814_180320.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qt_x0RSR0vk/U-1kRQfg3nI/AAAAAAAAIg8/hCyD_TteXA4/s1600/20140814_180320.jpg" height="177" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">33 lb of Tomatoes </td></tr></tbody></table>Tomato Harvest has begun, and although some people are just starting to get their tomatoes we have been enjoying them since the first week of July. There are many things you can do to promote an early start to your tomato harvest, and one of the most important things you can do is to plant an early variety. The other as important is soil prep and sufficient Nitrogen for the plant to have a healthy start.<br />There are other factors that come in play as well from pinching off suckers to having a good trellis system. Many things come to us through trial and error and that is how I have come up with my system as well. Raising tomatoes on a single rope and wrapping the tomato around it, I found to be the best method for production as well as taking care of the plant itself. When I had my tomatoes in planter boxes I build a 10' tall trellis across each box, now that I have more room we have a frame from a carport that had no tarp and we just tie the ropes to the frame and down to the plant. This is a simple yet effective way to trellis your tomato. I'm posting a short video of our garden and specifically our tomatoes you can see how our tomatoes are growing and we will have more posts on this. Enjoy the video, feel free to ask any questions.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><object class="BLOGGER-youtube-video" classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=6,0,40,0" data-thumbnail-src="https://i.ytimg.com/vi/CsbzMouWs_M/0.jpg" height="266" width="320"><param name="movie" value="https://www.youtube.com/v/CsbzMouWs_M?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><embed width="320" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/v/CsbzMouWs_M?version=3&f=user_uploads&c=google-webdrive-0&app=youtube_gdata" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object></div><br /><br />Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0Mishchuk Gardens45.662046892179866 -122.623901367187545.484418392179869 -122.9466248671875 45.839675392179863 -122.3011778671875tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-25739614132004308392014-08-13T09:20:00.002-07:002014-08-13T09:20:51.993-07:00I'm Back<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nhvzJx25ILs/U-uOBJvy6cI/AAAAAAAAIgs/5XPVRmakPH8/s1600/PhotoGrid_1407943926720.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nhvzJx25ILs/U-uOBJvy6cI/AAAAAAAAIgs/5XPVRmakPH8/s1600/PhotoGrid_1407943926720.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>After an extensive time off from writing on my blog, today I decided to renew this blog and share with all of you the exciting things that are happening in our neck of the woods.<br /><br />Many things have changed since my last post. We have moved to a new place where we have more land and now we can grow our homestead even more, of course it will require a lot more work now since we are starting all from scratch but it's always fun to get things changed to your liking and see it take shape just how you in vision it. So this post is going to be short and to a point, all I'm saying is that I am back and will be sharing what is going on with our place. I hope that this will also give you all some ideas how you can become more self sufficient and have more of a wholesome life.<br /><br />Till next time.Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-2578016777974657072013-06-27T14:34:00.001-07:002013-06-27T14:34:30.721-07:00Aromatherapy Bath Bombs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yTiUb-4te6E/UPSIiyQcOHI/AAAAAAAAByY/Fm41xEeAQ60/s1600/2012-12-29+19.56.48.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yTiUb-4te6E/UPSIiyQcOHI/AAAAAAAAByY/Fm41xEeAQ60/s200/2012-12-29+19.56.48.jpg" width="200" /></a><br /><br /><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">This is a great project for kids as well as adults, the best part of this project is that you can have the kids do all the work and you enjoy a great aromatherapy bath, who does not like that? With short days and extra time at hand in the evening now is the perfect time to do this with your kids or by yourself. I found the recipe online and there is only 3 different ingredients not counting water.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Citric Acid </span></b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">can be found in any store usually in the canning or baking section usually next to your baking soda. Citric acid <span style="background: white;">is a </span>weak<span style="background: white;"> </span>organic acid<span style="background: white;">. It is a natural </span>preservative<span style="background: white;">/conservative and is also used to add an acidic, or sour, taste to foods and soft drinks.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lXK_7D6G7oQ/UPg_FUHJSxI/AAAAAAAAByo/1-kHiF3NxH4/s1600/2012-12-29+18.53.45.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-size: large;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lXK_7D6G7oQ/UPg_FUHJSxI/AAAAAAAAByo/1-kHiF3NxH4/s320/2012-12-29+18.53.45.jpg" width="240" /></span></a><span style="font-size: large;"><b><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">Baking Soda </span></b><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">is usually easily accessible from your kitchen cabinet and is said to be a great detoxification bath ingredient. Detoxification Baths are intended for drawing toxins out of our Bod, </span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;">according</span><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;"> to Dr. Graham Simpson and colleagues in the book, "Spa Medicine: Your Gateway to the Ageless Zone" The authors des</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;">cribe a two-week series of detox baths that involve using a 1/2 cup of baking soda in a tub of water that's a comfortable temperature. The detoxification bath method consists of soaking in the bath for 10 to 20 minutes twice a week, with at least two days between each bath. </span></span></div><h3><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b><br /></b></span></h3><h3><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><b>Bath Balls Recipe</b></span></h3><div><h4><br /><ul><li><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">1 cup Baking Soda</span></li></ul><ul><li><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">1/2 cup Citric Acid</span></li></ul><ul><li><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">15 drops of Essential Oil</span></li></ul><ul><li><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Water in a spray bottle</span></li></ul></h4><div><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><ol><li><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Mix all the dry ingredients in a large bowl using your hands some people use a mixer I found that it makes to much dust and it's sufficient when you use your hands.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Slowly add Essential Oil to the dry mixture, 1 drop at a time mixing it in slowly with the dry ingredients.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">This part can be a bit tricky, because if you add to much water the mixture will start fizzing and it will be a large volcano project. Using your spray bottle mix the mixture while adding one spray at a time. </span></li><li><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Form, you can form the fizz balls using your hands or finding a form that can be used. I used Easter eggs as forms as well as just using hands to make them in to small balls.</span></li><li><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Store your finished Bath Balls in air tight container and use 1-2 balls by adding them in to your bath tub.</span></li></ol><div><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div></div></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-67539402752254907062013-06-27T14:34:00.000-07:002013-06-27T14:34:14.347-07:00Petition for Tesla Motors<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-o9mal5UZaZg/UcyvfY8dyQI/AAAAAAAAD-c/BnkHQEHVXUw/s1500/tesla.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-o9mal5UZaZg/UcyvfY8dyQI/AAAAAAAAD-c/BnkHQEHVXUw/s320/tesla.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Many of you have heard of the new high end electric vehicle Tesla, and if you have not heard of it than you should definitely look in to them. Besides the innovating technology that they bring to the market they are changing how cars are sold to us by selling vehicles directly with out a middle men. I think it's a good idea to let car manufacturers sell directly especially the ones that are trying to create something new and different than what is out there. Well some people don't think that they should be able to do so. There is currently a petition to the white house asking them to allow Tesla to sell to all 50 states directly, I would like to ask you to take a minute and go out and sign your name for the petition. <br /><br /><a href="https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/allow-tesla-motors-sell-directly-consumers-all-50-states/bFN7NHQR">https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/allow-tesla-motors-sell-directly-consumers-all-50-states/bFN7NHQR</a>Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-70839006097007318812012-12-30T20:51:00.001-08:002013-01-03T16:00:31.318-08:00Power of Lemon <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pVf0CcMdbZ0/UOEWLO70ypI/AAAAAAAABx4/X_3Kd1kJij4/s1600/2012-12-30+19.46.58.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pVf0CcMdbZ0/UOEWLO70ypI/AAAAAAAABx4/X_3Kd1kJij4/s200/2012-12-30+19.46.58.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>After making this at home I read an article about the health benefit of Lemons, it's one great supper fruit that people should consume more. I want to share this article with all of you so you will know the power of lemon and in case you are wondering what's on the picture, it's a great way to consume lemon in a lemon tea or just take a spoon in the morning. I take 4-5 lemons and blend it in a blender seeds, skin and all, than I take honey and add it to lemon to taste, but don't make it to sweet kind of defeats the purpose of having a healthy supplement. Next time I will add something special to this but I want tell you just yet. :) The following article was taken from earth in common.<br /><br /><br /><div align="center" style="background-color: white;"><h3><span style="color: #669933; font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: large;">Lemons for Health</span></h3></div><h3 style="background-color: white;"></h3><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Lemon is widely grown all over the world. Lemon grows in abundance in India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Mexico and West Indies. Unripe lemons are green in color. When they are matured, the color is changed into yellow. Lemon is a must in the kitchen. It is a universally favorite fruit.</span></div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><b>Benefits, Qualities and Uses of Lemon</b></span><span style="background-color: white;"></span><br /><div style="background-color: white;"></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The Ayurveda has regarded lemon as a valuable fruit and admired its properties. Lemon is sour, warm, promoter of gastric fire, light, good for vision, </span><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">pungent</span><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"> and astringent. It checks the excessive flow of bile and cleanses the mouth. It dislodges phlegm (cough) and expels wind from the digestive tract. It helps in digestion and removes constipation. It prevents vomiting, throat trouble, acidity and rheumatism. It destroys intestinal worms.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Though lemon is acidic to the taste, it leaves off alkaline residues in the body. This is why it is useful in all symptoms of acidosis.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Lemon-juice is a powerful antibacterial. It has been proved by experiments that the bacteria of malaria, cholera, diphtheria, typhoid and other deadly diseases are destroyed in lemon-juice.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">It also contains some vitamin A. Natural vitamin C is much more effective than the synthetic one. Vitamin C of lemon-juice is very effective because it is combined with bioflavonoids (vitamin P). In addition to Vitamin C, lemon also contains niacin and thiamin in small amounts.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">One should not take concentrated lemon-juice. It should be diluted with water before taking it. Pure lemonjuice contains acid which is injurious to the enamel of teeth.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The body is well cleansed if lemon-juice mixed with cold water and honey is taken on an empty stomach early in the morning. Warm water may be used occasionally to get relieved of constipation.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Lemon-juice prevents or restrains influenza, malaria and cold.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Lemon-juice gives good relief in fever. Lemon-juice mixed with water is useful in quenching the thirst of the patients suffering from diabetes. It gives immediate relief in abdominal disorders. Lemon acts as a sedative for the nerves and the heart and allays troublesome palpitation.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Lemon is especially appreciated for its Vitamin C value. When Vasco da Gama made his voyage round the Cape of Good Hope nearly two-thirds of his crew died of scurvy. But at present the recurrence of such a disaster is no longer possible owing to the widespread use of lemon. Innumerable boatmen moving in sea have saved their lives with the use of lemon.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Vitamin P in lemon strengthens the blood vessels and prevents internal hemorrhage. It is, therefore, extremely useful in high blood pressure, in which cerebro-vascular accidents commonly occur.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">The most valuable ingredient of lemon, next to vitamin C, is </span><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">citric acid</span><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">, of which it contains 7.2 per cent. Lemon contains more potassium than apple or grapes, which is beneficial to the heart.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Lemon is very much useful in maintaining the health of the teeth and the bones. The vitamin C content of lemon helps considerably in calcium metabolism.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Lemon has been used for many years in gout and rheumatism. Lemon-juice is a diuretic. It, therefore, gives relief in kidney and bladder disorders. It has been used in destroying intestinal worms. It prevents vomiting and helps to cure hepatitis and other innumerable diseases.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Lemon has been proved to be a blessing for mountaineers. In the cases of insufficient oxygen and difficulty in breathing lemon comes to their rescue. Edmund Hillary, the first man to put his foot on the top of Mt. Everest, has admitted that his victory over Mt. Everest was greatly due to lemon.</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><iframe bordercolor="#000000" frameborder="0" height="250" hspace="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://ad.doubleclick.net/adi/N7433.148119.BLOGGEREN/B6534699.1653;sz=300x250;ord=[timestamp]?;lid=41000613802463797;pid=21111;usg=AFHzDLvjODqMZ3H3pKkL7ZNwxarDHpLQng;adurl=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.chefscatalog.com%252Fproduct%252F21111-breville-elite-juice-fountain.aspx%253Futm_source%253Dgoogle%2526utm_medium%253Dshopping%2526utm_content%253D21111%2526utm_campaign%253DBreville%2526gdftrk%253DgdfV23800_a_7c2214_a_7c9504_a_7c18149;pubid=554710;price=%24299.95;title=Breville+Juice+Fountain+Elite+-+Breville+Die-Cast;merc=CHEFS+Catalog;imgsrc=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.chefscatalog.com%2Fimg%2Fproducts%2F500x500%2F21111_500.jpg;width=135;height=135" vspace="0" width="300"></iframe><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: verdana,arial,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></div>Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-26253189644760894742012-12-30T09:28:00.000-08:002012-12-30T09:28:29.340-08:00Why I drink ShakesWell this year is almost gone, we have few more days left and so much was left uncompleted. As we age it seems that time runs faster and faster; when I was a teenager I could not understand how time flew by for my parents when it practically stayed still for me, but now it's all clear. With this year coming to a close I already have things planned for next year, my Google calender is filling up with trips to Ghana, Family Vacations and meetings.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: right;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-17FWhzAWJ-E/UN9gfTOxNZI/AAAAAAAABxo/pdVAYAm-_Cw/s1600/2012-11-27+07.41.27.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-17FWhzAWJ-E/UN9gfTOxNZI/AAAAAAAABxo/pdVAYAm-_Cw/s200/2012-11-27+07.41.27.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>Being busier as we age forces us to make some hard choices and it's not a surprise that our health tends to starts going downhill and the quality of food that we consume becomes worse as our schedules get busier; we tend to eat dinners later at night, eat more fast food, and less fruits and vegetables. That is the reason why I decided to start having Shakes and Juices to supplement my meals.<br />With all the holiday food and fast-paced life these meal supplements are a great way to stay on a healthy side and feel better at the end of the day. Not long ago, I came back from a steak dinner party that was late in the day, after going to bed tired I could not fall asleep I just felt like my stomach was over filled and it was working hard for most of the night to process all the meat that I shoved into it. In the morning I got up and made myself a shake for breakfast, I was filled and felt great for the rest of the day. So if you feel like you need to feel lighter on your feet or you have no energy - than it's time to drink some shakes. We will be posting some of our shakes that we drink to give you some ideas of what to make.<br /> .<iframe bordercolor="#000000" frameborder="0" height="200" hspace="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://ad.doubleclick.net/adi/N7433.148119.BLOGGEREN/B6535997.1188;sz=200x200;ord=[timestamp]?;lid=41000613802464048;pid=22413764;usg=AFHzDLubTdN9MTC6-8b54FAbWYy4kv99Nw;adurl=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.officemax.com%252Foffice-supplies%252Fappliances%252Fkitchen%252Ffood-preparation%252Fproduct-prod3210448%253Fcm_mmc%253DPerformics-_-Office%252520Supplies-_-Appliances-_-Kitchen%2526ci_src%253D14110944%2526ci_sku%253D22413764;pubid=554710;imgsrc=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.officemax.com%2Fcatalog%2Fimages%2F397x353%2F22413764i_01.jpg;width=200;height=177" vspace="0" width="200"></iframe><iframe bordercolor="#000000" frameborder="0" height="200" hspace="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://ad.doubleclick.net/adi/N7433.148119.BLOGGEREN/B7095141.2761;sz=200x200;ord=[timestamp]?;lid=41000613802463546;pid=6174515460507mk0%257E0;usg=AFHzDLsYr7EXS_wedGWaQ82v2cFBr0l8tA;adurl=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.brylanehome.com%252FProduct.aspx%253FPfId%253D98624%2526ProductTypeId%253D1%2526affiliate_id%253D017%2526mr%253AtrackingCode%253DBAD4C698-A92C-E111-8116-001517B1882A%2526mr%253AreferralID%253DNA;pubid=554710;imgsrc=http%3A%2F%2Fmedia.redcatsecom.com%2Fbrylanehome%2Fmm%2F1546_61745_mm_0507.jpg;width=200;height=200" vspace="0" width="200"></iframe><br /><br />Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-69392130129461123192012-10-11T08:11:00.001-07:002012-10-11T08:11:31.494-07:00Click here to support Homabenase water project (Ghana) by Dimitry MishchukHello friends this January I'm planning a trip to Ghana and need your help raising money to get there please take look at the inclosed link and see what we are planning to do there and support me in anyway that you can.<br /><a href="http://www.gofundme.com/166cn0">Click here to support Homabenase water project (Ghana) by Dimitry Mishchuk</a>Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-48924582383175260592012-09-24T13:32:00.000-07:002012-09-24T13:33:38.609-07:00Tomato trellis update<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KHZArVvvl44/UGC70LRhbdI/AAAAAAAABko/cLdkMMixpGQ/s1600/DSC_0507.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KHZArVvvl44/UGC70LRhbdI/AAAAAAAABko/cLdkMMixpGQ/s320/DSC_0507.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tomato are about 9 feet tall</td></tr></tbody></table>This years tomato trellis experiment was a partial success When we try new things we always learn something and that is the case with me and my trellis system. You have read my previous post about how I build <a href="http://www.ourwholesomelife.com/2012/07/tomatoes-trellis.html" target="_blank">my tomato trellis</a> and my desired outcome from them was achieved with a great harvest all season long.<br />With that said I must say that there were a few things that I learned along the way that I will need to change come next year. And for all of you who will decide to give a try to this system I would like to share them with you so you will not have the same outcome as I had this year. With that said let me stress that over all I was extremely happy with this system, we had great harvest of clean, easy to pick tomatoes as well as a simple low maintenance system throughout the whole growing season. Now to the changes that will have to be made.<br /><br /><br /><ol><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nx9FF6Qpnd4/UGDAmCQV1VI/AAAAAAAABk8/0oRAEqM4Cpw/s1600/DSC_0510.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nx9FF6Qpnd4/UGDAmCQV1VI/AAAAAAAABk8/0oRAEqM4Cpw/s320/DSC_0510.JPG" width="320" /></a><li>The wire that I used between the two posts sagged from the weight of the tomato plant, there are two solutions that can be done to fix this problem. One of them is to use a piece of wood instead of the wire, preferably the same size as the posts. The other solution is to have a tension wire from the top of the post that will prevent it from bending, in my case it will be hard to do that in all the boxes as I have walk ways that are next to them so I will have to use the first solution.</li><li>My twine that was used to run the tomato plants on apparently was not strong enough, with constant watering it started giving way on some of the plants and they fell to the ground. In the beginning of the season I fixed a few of them but now with the season coming to the end I have decided to just live with it. The solution is obvious just use a stronger twine next year and the problem will be solved.</li></ol><div>Well that's it for the problems with the my trellis now here are a few more images of them and feel free to share your thoughts and ideas.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g4bUZuaJbXw/UGDCnZ3qSzI/AAAAAAAABlE/6BT5uIfd9EQ/s1600/DSC_0502.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g4bUZuaJbXw/UGDCnZ3qSzI/AAAAAAAABlE/6BT5uIfd9EQ/s320/DSC_0502.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HCOcY3zT7Y8/UGDC8Ons3LI/AAAAAAAABlQ/nJHGLFxvgSQ/s1600/DSC_0503.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HCOcY3zT7Y8/UGDC8Ons3LI/AAAAAAAABlQ/nJHGLFxvgSQ/s320/DSC_0503.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ahp7syGkDQs/UGDDN7nH52I/AAAAAAAABlY/AfKmWWG3OSo/s1600/DSC_0504.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ahp7syGkDQs/UGDDN7nH52I/AAAAAAAABlY/AfKmWWG3OSo/s320/DSC_0504.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div><br /></div><br />Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-20841762492909008242012-07-20T15:58:00.001-07:002012-07-20T15:58:17.269-07:00New Cottage food Operation Law in WashingtonIt's great news for all the Washingtonians, the new law will allow all the small home bakers to sell their product legally. The following is an article from the local paper where it talks a bit about the new law. Thanks to The Colombian.<br /><br />After reading this I have decided to get my license and start baking more, since one of my issues was that I had large quantity of bread left over after each bake, now I can bake it and sell it legally. Here is a link as well if you would like to obtain a permit in Washington state. <a href="http://agr.wa.gov/FoodAnimal/docs/CottageFoodApplicationPacket061712.pdf">http://agr.wa.gov/FoodAnimal/docs/CottageFoodApplicationPacket061712.pdf</a><br /><br /><br /><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">Business prospects are a whole lot sweeter for Washington's home-based bakeries, thanks to Felicia Hill.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Hazel Dell cake maker and stay-at-home mother of two will be honored Monday in Olympia for helping cook up a new state law that allows small, home-based bakeries like hers to operate legally. For her work last year outlining the rules behind Washington's Cottage Food Act, Hill will ceremoniously receive the first legal permit to sell low-risk foods made in the home.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Washington state Department of Agriculture expects more than 1,000 potential small businesses across the state to apply for permits to sell baked goods, nuts, jams and jellies at farmers markets and through other direct-sales avenues. The permit is available for bakeries that generate no more than $15,000 in gross sales annually.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">"They really wanted it to be a person-to-person transaction, from me, the baker, to the person who is going to eat it," said Hill, who testified before the state Legislature three times last year on the growing cottage food movement, with its hyper-local emphasis.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">Hill also stuck around Olympia to hammer out stipulations of the law, pushing to raise the original $5,000 gross-sales cap to $15,000. The increase could help unemployed and underemployed Washington residents generate money to live on, one of the key purposes of the law, according to Hill.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">"Ideally, an appropriate amount would be $30,000. That would give someone the ability to live comfortably," said Hill, who has vowed to push for the increase next year.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">"I have had numerous people thank me and say, 'This has helped us to possibly start a business,'" she said.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">Although the law was signed by Gov. Chris Gregoire last year, the agriculture department just started accepting permit applications this week.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">Washington is among three states to recently enact a cottage food law, putting the rule in place just before South Carolina and Colorado, which both passed similar legislation this year. In all, 26 states now have cottage food laws, breaking away from traditional models of production in which food is sold to consumers who have little or no idea where it came from.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">"Knowing the person who made your food is not that common anymore," said Hill.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">Her business, FH Cakes, bakes and sells peanut-, gluten- and dairy-free cakes. It's a specialty she developed in 2008 after trying to order a peanut-free bakery cake for her son, Luke, now 6, who has a severe peanut allergy.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">"I could not get a guaranteed safe cake," Hill said.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">She decided to make the birthday cake herself, taking a few classes that uncovered her hidden talent for whimsical cake design. The artful and allergen-free cakes quickly caught on among family and friends, said Hill, who sold her cakes "under the table" for about one year.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">She wanted to grow a legitimate business to supplement husband Jeff Hill's income. But Felicia Hill found it prohibitively expensive when she attempted to follow the old Washington state law mandating that bakery businesses operate from a commercial kitchen. The overhead of leasing a commercial kitchen wiped out her modest profit. It would have dipped below the bottom line with child care, which Hill did not want to consider.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">"A lot of this stemmed from the fact that it was very important for me to be at home with my children and not have somebody else take care of them," she said.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">So, Hill researched the cottage food industry, work that ultimately led to her support of the Cottage Food bill introduced by Sen. Phil Rockefeller, D-Bainbridge Island, whose daughter is an artisan baker.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">Hill anticipates every state will have some type of cottage food law at some point, enabling artisan food makers to channel their energies and earn income.</div><div style="border: 0px; color: #222222; font-family: Helvetica, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; font: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; margin-bottom: 10px; padding: 0px 0px 5px; vertical-align: baseline;">"This could help get our local economy get back up and productive," Hill said.</div>Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-74052623790856321322012-07-04T12:09:00.001-07:002012-07-04T17:56:49.566-07:00Tomatoes trellis<div><div style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></div>This year I'm giving a try to a new tomatoes trellis, usually we just have cages around them and then just try and control them from creeping out of the cage. Even with all the effort it's still hard to control them and by the end of the season they are falling out and the fruit is not getting enough sun hiding behind the leaves.<br /><br />Some time ago I spoted a trellis that intrigued me and I made a decision to build it at my garden. It's a simple trellis that is build out of 2x2 in both sides of the garden box and a whire attached at the top, going across the whole box. I attached a garden string to the wire and the base of the tomato plants. <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i731.photobucket.com/albums/ww314/dimitry1/20120703_150253.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://i731.photobucket.com/albums/ww314/dimitry1/20120703_150253.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>As the tomatooe grows I twist the string around the plant this way supporting the plant vertically.<br />Here are some pictures that i took with my phone. I will update as the plant growth and share my thoughts.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div></div>Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-78971258886190597542012-06-24T06:40:00.001-07:002012-07-04T22:49:43.800-07:00Healthy Road Meals<div>Our family enjoys taking road trips and with a road trip comes a long tradition of taking certain food with us that we eat. Personally I am not a fan of going to fast food restaurants during the trip I prefer something from home. With this short blog today I just wanted to share what our lunch was. We stoped at a rest area about 10 miles in to California to have lunch, to my surprise the weather was not all that good and we had to even hide from the rain at one <u>point</u>, but the kids had fun running around in the grass and stratching there legs. <br />Our meal was simple.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i731.photobucket.com/albums/ww314/dimitry1/20120623_130236-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://i731.photobucket.com/albums/ww314/dimitry1/20120623_130236-1.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>Boild quail and chicken eggs, beef smoked sausage, organic tomatoes, rye bread, horseradish sause, and red pepper spread. We made small sandwiches and enjoyed them with some plain water. I tend to think that it's a healthier meal than going to some fast food and having lots of fatty food and it's faster as well. O and I almost forgot the main meal smoked bacon.<br />Tell us what do you eat when you go on road trips.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i731.photobucket.com/albums/ww314/dimitry1/20120623_130232-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://i731.photobucket.com/albums/ww314/dimitry1/20120623_130232-1.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br /></div>Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-68817726307471268912012-06-23T12:00:00.001-07:002012-06-23T13:39:52.734-07:00Oregon Farms<div><p>Driving on I-5 south gives you a great opportunity to admire Gods great work, the rolling hills the green and lush valleys. With the abundance of rain and cool climate everything is grean and pleasing to the eye. </p><p>While driving we saw a lot of farm near the highway and it makes me wander do all those fumes from the cars and trucks get absorbed by the plants and eventually make it on to our tables? Probably. Just another reason why growing your own food makes a lot of sense. </p><p>Share with us what you think about this.</p><br/><img src='http://lh6.ggpht.com/-Kr7NhkJEwGY/T-YV3eyeZaI/AAAAAAAABjA/dZektERZ7yU/1340478871162.png' /></div>Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-43063283427313340282012-06-22T23:44:00.001-07:002012-06-22T23:46:42.183-07:00Our Vacation<h2 align="center"> Vacation Time</h2><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h64FGJ-0Huo/T-VlOH9IxcI/AAAAAAAABi0/EeBGJywoTyo/s1600/World+Mark+Indio.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="146" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h64FGJ-0Huo/T-VlOH9IxcI/AAAAAAAABi0/EeBGJywoTyo/s200/World+Mark+Indio.jpg" title="Indio California World Mark" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">World Mark Indio California</td></tr></tbody></table><div align="center"><br /></div><div align="left">Summer is here an it's time for our annual Vacation, it's 11:36pm and we need to be on the road at 7:00am so this post will be short. A while back me and my wife decided to take our kids to South California for a week of vacation, so Palm Springs here we come as always it's a hassle to get our self ready and prep all the garden and animals that they will be taken care of. Well we are taking off in just over 7 hours. </div><div align="left"><br /></div><div align="left">I downloaded the app for my phone so will try to keep you all readers up to day with what is going on. </div>Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-47450330842504501872011-09-30T09:02:00.000-07:002011-09-30T09:02:05.665-07:00Fall planting in the NW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kb5L5bY77to/ToXjBZ8KFtI/AAAAAAAABP0/uAPTvN_Ez5w/s1600/DSC_0826.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kb5L5bY77to/ToXjBZ8KFtI/AAAAAAAABP0/uAPTvN_Ez5w/s320/DSC_0826.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Our first attempt at fall and winter gardening. <br />With the colder days here to stay it's time to try out something new in the garden, why let the soil sit there with out producing any thing if you can harvest fresh food through the winter, or so is our hope. This year we have decided to try out growing greens in the fall but since it's our first year we can only hope that we can harvest something out of it.<br /><br />We have started some greens in pots that we had and than transplanted them into the garden boxes as the space came available, with some of the summer harvest coming to the end we are able to use the space year round, of course one important step in this is not to forget to add a good layer of compost to feed the soil.<br /><br />This year we started out with basic Cabbage, Cali flour, Broccoli, Mixed salad greens, Kohlrabi and Spinach. So far they are all growing nicely and keeping our hope up but the cold weather is just around the corner and we shall wait and see how they do.Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-48773750828101076732011-09-23T21:46:00.000-07:002011-09-24T08:23:27.326-07:00Gardening Joys and Challenges<span style="background-color: white; color: white;">Urban homestead, gardening in NW, How to start a garden, Living of the grid.</span><br />This post is a dairy entry/ notes for next year as a blog seems to be the most reliable place to keep the gardening notes.<br /><br />This year we had some joys and challenges in the garden arena that are worth keeping a note on. We started our seeding in early March, and that seemed like a pretty darn good date, need to remember that for future references. Our first seeding was of radishes, peas and dill; followed by cilantro, parsley, arugula and salad greens. Dill and cilantro seeds were bought in the spice section of the Whole Foods Market, for under a dollar you get a lot of seed, thanks to my sister for the tip(!!). Will continue to buy there.<br /><br />THINGS PLANTED THIS YEAR<br /><ol><li>Arugula*</li><li> Asparagus</li><li>Basil</li><li>Beans-Shelling/Dry* </li><li>Beets*</li><li>Cabbage*</li><li>Carrots </li><li>Cilantro*</li><li>Cucumbers </li><li>Dill</li><li>Eggplants </li><li>Garlic* </li><li>Green Beans </li><li>Green Onions</li><li>Jalapenos </li><li>Nasturtiums* </li><li>Onions* </li><li>Parsley</li><li>Patty Pans* </li><li>Peas</li><li> Peppers</li><li>Pumpkins*</li><li>Salad Greens* </li><li>Sorrel* </li><li>Spinach* </li><li>Strawberries </li><li>Tomatoes</li><li>Winter Squash </li><li>Zucchinis</li></ol>* indicates first year/attempt <br /><br />ARUGULA<br />Very glad that we tried the arugula this year, I was officially introduced to it this year, I may have tried it before but did not realize what that nutty spicy thing was and excused it for a good dressing... I allowed some to go to bolting- it produces a lot of seeds and in the process has self seeded and we are enjoying that harvest as well. May try the wild arugula for next year as it is said to be slower to bolt.<br /><br />ASPARAGUS<br />Have put some compost on it after we allowed it go to growth, something to remember for next year, to put a good amount of compost in February so that the root system would get a boost. The asparagus has been neglected for some time, so this is probably our first year of decent harvest, hubs got so exited over it that he is now planning on multiplying it via the red seeds it puts out.<br /><br />BASIL<br />Love, absolutely love the basil, seeded the sweet big leafed basil along with a pack of a variety pack of basil, not too impressed with the variety, besides the fact that it had deep purple basil- good looking, but for our taste buds nothing overdoes the big leafed sweet italian basil. Want to try covering it with cloches of some sort next year, so that we could enjoy it earlier...<br /><br />BEANS- Shelling/ Dry<br />So exited to grow my own beans, I really enjoy beans and don't mind eating them on regular basis, however not everyone feels the same in our house; nevertheless beans are good for you and we are now growing them! The ying-yang beans are a great bush bean variety to grow again next year. The other two types are not yet mature, but because they are pole beans the harvest is expected to be larger. Minus the ones that the chicken scratched out and ate....Want to try the cannelloni beans next year.<br /><br />BEETS<br />Seed of success has been planted for me with this superfood, but I cannot yet state that I have mastered properly growing them. I did the mistake of trying the interplanting of green beans with beets, even though all sites state that it's a perfect harmonious marriage between the two as the beans fix the nitrogen for the beets, I strongly feel that my harvest would have been a lot better if I gave them both more room, thus sunlight. Dad seeded out the remaining beets in his garden and harvested roots that were two to three times bigger than mine in the same amount of time. I like the variety I planted, just need to give it more room, also want to try the golden variety.<br /><br />CABBAGE<br />The pleasant surprise goes to cabbage this year, something I haven't ever tried, and bought a pack of seeds because I was in one of those seed buying modes. Up to this year most of my vegetables came to me in a form of a transplant rather than a seed; I gave it a try, it germinated, than I transplanted them, without much faith of having this delicious, versatile, superfood making it, to my surprise a head after head was harvested, I even ended up making sauerkraut (twice!) all from the garden, with this particular vegetable I really do feel like a success!! As a bonus our rabbits LOVE to munch on the nutricious outer leaves. Just read that cabbage is extremely heavy feeder, so will need to keep that in mind for next year. I should try the red cabbage in addition to the green cabbage next year... <br /><br />CILANTRO<br />Would like to start timed seeding of cilantro next year, as all of it went to flower right around July 1, and I wanted some for the tomato season for the fresh home made salsas. Seeding in mid July did not produce any harvest, must have been too hot for it to germinate, despite the fact the July this year was below average to say the least. Cilantro was seeded in the herb box along with salad mix, parsley and dill.<br /><br />CUCUMBERS<br />There was a time that I could never have our garden produce any edible cucumbers, then there was a time I didn't plant any because the previous year's harvest had me scared, there was so many that I didn't know what to do with them... I think I've achieved a perfect balance this year, that is first (!) with the cucs, we had a comfortable planting of slicers and pickling kinds, which kept the fridge full and the canning going. Also in the mix were the european cucs and the midgets. European, I absolutely loved, but there extra gentle skin is extremely easy to bruise. I kept on forgetting that my tiny cucs had to be picked when they were the size of a pinkey and they ended up looking like baby blow up fish. For next year, not so many Orient Express- they were too crooked this year...<br /><br /><br />DILL<br />Dill was definitely success I even had the opportunity to harvest all the abandance and freeze it, by rinsing, shaking off the excess water, finally chopping the dill weed, and then I put it up in bags and threw it in the freezer. Dill was planted between the parsley in the herb box, the only problem I did not remember in which row I have seeded so dill and parsley ended up sharing a row. Dill was first to mature thus shadowing the growth of parsley, but I had the other row of parsley to rely on. After the dill was drying as the weather got warmer, that gave way to parsley.<br /><br />This does it for the ABC and D; hopefully I will feel like make notes on the rest.Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-39581057706439561962011-09-13T14:17:00.000-07:002011-09-13T14:17:05.238-07:00Home made sauerkraut<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YWonz89EHjs/Tm--HN1aXdI/AAAAAAAABPs/rj-3VXzpe2o/s1600/Sauerkraut.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YWonz89EHjs/Tm--HN1aXdI/AAAAAAAABPs/rj-3VXzpe2o/s320/Sauerkraut.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Our first year of growing cabbage is starting to pay off, now that we were able to consume few heads of cabbage as salad, my wife decided to try and put some up as sauerkraut. In our culture (Easter European) we have grown up consuming sauerkraut with carrot and a bit of sunflower oil as a salad, as well as other great meals which I hope I can share with all of you in the future. Before we can get to that we have to make the sauerkraut.<br /><br />Having an organic home grown cabbage is a plus for any recipe and the health benefit is great as well. There are a few different type of sauerkraut that are out there and the one we are making today is more like the one that Russian or Ukrainian people are familiar with, it's a bit milder than the German one and it's not as sour, that's the one we grew up with so called Russian Sauerkraut (kislaya kapusta).<br /><br />The recipe is simple.<br />5 Lb of cabbage.<br />3 tablespoon of sea salt.<br />Mix it well in a food grade bucket and wait it with a rock so the cabbage produces juice. After about 2 days pack it in a glass jar and put it up in a fridge. If you like to can the cabbage increase the salt to 4 spoon. Simple but tasty.<br /><br />Till next time.<br /><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=nwadvren-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=B002UUT4CI&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe>Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-81398530237889121752011-09-12T10:17:00.000-07:002011-09-12T10:17:31.251-07:00August Harvest tally<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FMIhdULL7rU/Tm46lUXrGWI/AAAAAAAABPk/IXwFlcq8bAU/s1600/Tomato+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FMIhdULL7rU/Tm46lUXrGWI/AAAAAAAABPk/IXwFlcq8bAU/s320/Tomato+%25282%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>On August 3 I decided to keep a tally of everything that our garden produces, including the meet and the egg count that we get. At first it was something that we had to remind ourselves on daily bases the we need to do but by now it has turned in to a habit and not a chore. <br />Here in the NW we had a cold July and somewhat of a cool August, it was not till the end of August that the temperature started rising and we finally started to get our tomato to ripen but other vegetables had no problem producing a great harvest for us so here is the August 3 through September 3 harvest tally.<br /><br />200 lb of Vegetables and fruits.<br />5 lb of meat (2 rabbits)<br />107 chicken eggs<br />4 quail eggs.<br /><br />Our quail and rabbits are still young so we are not able to butcher them yet but perhaps in the next month they will be butcher weight and our 20+ rabbits can add some protein on our table.<br /><br /><br /><br /> Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-37847543566965713102011-09-11T14:01:00.000-07:002011-09-11T14:01:53.566-07:00Our Duck is Laying Eggs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s7xUgHUf5ko/Tm0fBVlMZFI/AAAAAAAABPc/4CNI15g5n10/s1600/Khaki+Campbell+Duck.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="269" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s7xUgHUf5ko/Tm0fBVlMZFI/AAAAAAAABPc/4CNI15g5n10/s320/Khaki+Campbell+Duck.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Yesterday on the 10th of September our Khaki Campbell duck laid it's first egg, and today it's her second. Finally we are starting to get duck eggs with our small flock of 5 chickens and 3 ducks we hope that we can start having plenty of eggs for our family.<br /><br />I got the duck on April 2nd and she started laying eggs on September 9th about 23 weeks after we got her which is normal for them to start laying, I'm glad that she started laying this year this way we might have eggs from her through out the winter and perhaps some baby ducks in the spring or so we hope.<br />It's a long process to <a href="http://www.ourwholesomelife.com/2011/07/gardening-in-nw.html">becoming self sufficient</a> from our small 12,000 sq feet lot but with one more egg a day we are a step closer.Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-72711655927281003302011-07-19T16:21:00.000-07:002011-07-19T16:40:50.883-07:00Gardening in the NW<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-D0mJya8wfuk/TiYAmq9VQoI/AAAAAAAABOI/LC9lU131abA/s1600/Egg%2Bplants.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-D0mJya8wfuk/TiYAmq9VQoI/AAAAAAAABOI/LC9lU131abA/s200/Egg%2Bplants.JPG" width="200" /></a></div>Finally I had a chance to take some pictures of our garden and share them with all of you. This year summer has been on the colder side and that would be an understatement, although living in <a href="http://www.portland.vi/">Portland</a> OR metro area has it's pluses the weather this year would not be one of them. I guess I should stop complaining and share the pictures with you.<br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Home-Vegetable-Gardening-Vegetables-Illustrated/dp/1611043719?ie=UTF8&tag=nwadvren-20&link_code=bil&camp=213689&creative=392969" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;" target="_blank"><img alt="Home Vegetable Gardening: A Complete and Practical Guide to the Planting and Care of all Vegetables, Fruits and Berries Worth Growing for Home Use (Illustrated Edition)" src="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?MarketPlace=US&ServiceVersion=20070822&ID=AsinImage&WS=1&Format=_SL160_&ASIN=1611043719&tag=nwadvren-20" /></a>We finally are gaining control over the weeds in the gardens and having the boxes surely helps to fight them, the other day I was pulling weeds out of our gutters so you can imagine how they spread on the ground. <img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=nwadvren-20&l=bil&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=1611043719" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />The only good thing with this weather is that there is no need to water anything since the rain does it for us, but honestly I don't know how the harvest is going to be this year. Take a look at some of the pictures of our garden and if you have any questions feel free to ask. <br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xTAqw4BxA4s/TiYIrasuBeI/AAAAAAAABOQ/nByGmNsPHuo/s1600/Tomato.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xTAqw4BxA4s/TiYIrasuBeI/AAAAAAAABOQ/nByGmNsPHuo/s640/Tomato.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Our tomatoes have been doing great this year they grew so nicely but I need to build something around them for support before they will be all over the dirt.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0vLd1O8FnxI/TiYI0tAet9I/AAAAAAAABOU/AD-Jwgrkr5Q/s1600/Camping+in+our+Garden.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0vLd1O8FnxI/TiYI0tAet9I/AAAAAAAABOU/AD-Jwgrkr5Q/s640/Camping+in+our+Garden.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> It's not enough that we don't have room in our yard to walk through my kids decided to set up a tent and a volleyball net, o well kids will be kids.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ciUd38pxMBs/TiYI--JC35I/AAAAAAAABOY/XSmJbxe-vTQ/s1600/Part+of+our+garden.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ciUd38pxMBs/TiYI--JC35I/AAAAAAAABOY/XSmJbxe-vTQ/s1600/Part+of+our+garden.JPG" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> My wife is preparing preparing room for winter crop and the lettuce has grown from a seed it's amazing how much can grow from a tiny seed.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OWPUsdtwQR0/TiYJJDTOWsI/AAAAAAAABOc/UmxNcQCAwwA/s1600/Gardening+in+the+NW.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OWPUsdtwQR0/TiYJJDTOWsI/AAAAAAAABOc/UmxNcQCAwwA/s640/Gardening+in+the+NW.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Another view of the garden it's a nice way to landscape your yard.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pqh1o2w_d5g/TiYJa1cSexI/AAAAAAAABOk/XRKivi5qesk/s1600/Irish+moss.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pqh1o2w_d5g/TiYJa1cSexI/AAAAAAAABOk/XRKivi5qesk/s640/Irish+moss.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Having the rock walk ways with Irish and Scottish moss growing in between helps to keep our bare feet clean when we enjoy s'mores in our back yard fire pit and the Tiki torches definitely add to the whole experience.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WxQ-m0Sp2GY/TiYN7DAjmmI/AAAAAAAABOs/MAGSsat9ui0/s1600/Strawberry+patch.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WxQ-m0Sp2GY/TiYN7DAjmmI/AAAAAAAABOs/MAGSsat9ui0/s640/Strawberry+patch.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">This strawberry patch produced a lot of strawberries, plenty for our family to enjoy, and now we will probably expend it next year.</div><div style="text-align: left;">I hope you enjoyed the pictures of our garden I know that it's still the work in progress but with each year it gets more and more manageable. Thanks for reading till next time. </div>Dimahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16794432412708938761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5394460935181678585.post-65997909235898903112011-06-15T11:59:00.000-07:002011-06-15T11:59:20.263-07:00Mexico Insurance<a href="http://sb.iigins.com/quote/?aff_id=9562&agtdst=4613086-00&office_code=" target="_blank"><br /><img src="http://sb.iigins.com/images/banners/flash_banner.gif" style="border: none;" /><br /></a><br /><br /><br />If you’re planning a trip to Mexico, make sure your only worries are which sights to see first. Enjoy your drive and your visit and leave the details of vehicle insurance to the experts in Mexican law.<br />If you drive in Mexico, your U.S. insurance policy isn’t enough. You need an approved insurance policy from a Mexico-based insurance company. 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