Spring Tulips in Utah!

There is nothing more beautiful than bright red tulips blooming in the Spring! My yard has splashes of red and yellow in Spring! I love being a master gardener and enjoying the fruits of my labor! God created a beautiful world and I am happy to be living in it and working with the earth.

Colorful Garden Veggies

 Fresh...delicious...colorful...delightfully home grown garden veggies. 

After having my fourth child 2 months ago, I thought I wouldn't ever see my own veggies grow to maturity. By some miracle they survived and I eat the tasty vegetables each day. My body has been craving the important vitamins in these organic garden veggies. 

Years ago, my Aunt Mary created a stunning centerpiece on her table by using garden carrots. What a creative idea! I have always loved the way the carrot stems flop and are so beautiful, not to mention the eye-catching vibrant orange color. This centerpiece would add such charm to an Easter Party wouldn't it? 

Sometimes a simple centerpiece makes a BIG statement. 

Storing Garden Onions

 I found a cheep way to store and prolong the life of my garden fresh Walla Walla onions. 

You got it!.........Pantyhose! No kidding. I purchased bran new hose at Walmart for $1.00 and cut the legs apart. After inserting each onion I tied a knot so the onions wouldn't touch each other. I don't want them to spoil each other by touching. I tied a loop knot at the top and suspended the onions in my basement food storage room.  It is a moderately dry area to store my onions. I really want them to last!  

Ahh...no more onions sitting on my counter.

 This variety of onion will only keep stored this way for a few weeks, 

but hey... It beats eating 30 huge onions in one day right?

 Hanging the onions separately and not on a surface allows for air to circulate through the onions. 

Now, whenever I am cooking with onions, I cut the hose right below the end of a knot and I have a delicious home grown onion ready to eat!

Concrete Column Flower Planter

This beautiful column flower pot used to be a bird bath. My sister gave it to me because I have loved it for years. I love her!!! I used the top of the pillar for months as a holding ground for my succulents. When I became brave...I decided to spray paint both pieces.

Here is the column before it got a fresh coat of primer. The column was pretty amazing how it was, but I wanted something more dramatic looking for my front door.

Here it is with a fresh coat of Kilns Primer. I love that stuff! I can already see a whole new look.

This column has primer on it then I sprayed a light coat of American Accents Stone spray paint on the right side. You can see the difference. I love what beautiful texture it adds to the column. It also ages the piece and makes it feel more Tuscany.

I really enjoyed this spray paint. The price of the paint was a bit steep. I am all about saving money, but it turned out to be worth the price once the project was completed.  I think the newly painted planter looks  lovely.

My husband glued the 2 pieces together with tile mortar. I sprayed it and left the garage and waited for it to dry. When I came back to the garage the planter was on the cement in 2 pieces, the column cracked around 8 inches and the bottom was chipped. I about died! I stood the 2 pieces up and decided to walked away for a day to think about what I would do with it now.

Soooo pretty!

The next day I thought I would use my limited skills to repair it. Using cement mortar I glued it back together and filled in the cracks with cement using a toothpick. That was a bit tedious so I lathered it on my fingers and  filled in the holes that way instead. I wiped the excess off with wet wipes. Did I mention that I love wet wipes! What did I use before I had kids. I can use wipes for just about everything! Then I spray painted it with a few extra coats of textured spray paint. It turned out in the end and I still love it.
Here is the finished project below.

 Here is the beautiful Tuscany column and I love it.

Simple and elegant! Just what I like.

 So the moral of the story is....don't give up when things don't go your way. There is usually a way to fix the problem if you think on it for a while.

Canning Chopped Tomatoes

Here are the beauties! My garden keeps on producing tomatoes like mad. I am loving it! My husband will be happy I am saving him money by canning these babies! Bring on the Red delicious tomatoes.

I mixed the Beef Stake, Roma, and Lg. Cherry tomatoes to make this batch of chopped canned tomatoes. You know me, I can't waste a thing! 

Here is my lovely canning pot on the stove. My husband gave this to me as a gift last year for my birthday. Who knew I would become a domesticated canning woman. 

Here are the beautiful chopped tomatoes nicely preserved in pint sized jars. I can't wait to eat them in the fall when I am craving tomatoes again :).

Awe....delicious tomatoes!!!

Zesty Garden Salsa

My garden is overflowing with tomatoes! Yikes....I have tried to make every meal possible using tomatoes and I am running out of creative cooking ideas so I canned salsa today with fresh ingredients from my garden.

I usually spend time canning with my sister, but I wanted to see if I could do a batch all by myself. I did it! The truth is canning is better with someone to talk to :). Okay, I did have cute little kids around to talk to so I wasn't completely alone.

Here are my unwashed tomatoes straight out of the garden. I used a mixture of tomatoes for the salsa.

 After blanching the tomatoes for 30-60 seconds I placed the peeling tomatoes in ice water. 

I used the BALL Blue Book Guide to Preserving and followed the Zesty Salsa recipe inside. I love that book. My sister gave it to me for a gift and I know I will use it often in the years to come.

I combined tomatoes, green peppers, onions, garlic, salt, cider, and hot pepper flakes. 

After it came to a boil, I reduced the heat and simmered for 10 min. 

I processed the pint sized salsa jars in boiling water.

Here is one of my canned beauties! I can't wait to serve this salsa up with some delicious corn chips!

Zesty Garden Salsa

6 pint sized jars of zesty salsa.

August Sunflowers

Ahh.....the beginning of a garden sunflower in August. 

My kids and I have waited for this mammoth Sunflower to mature for months.

It looks like the sunflower is basking in the sun with windblown hair.

These sunflowers face the sun every day.

Mackinac Island, Michigan

I went on a lovely trip to Michigan this summer and here are a few of the beautiful things I saw. I hope you enjoy these pictures taken in Michigan. 

Frankenmuth, Michigan

A perfect German styled town with awesome places to eat and shop.

Not to mention the worlds largest Christmas store, Bonner's! You can really get lost in that place. It has so many Christmas ideas and decorations it is unbelievable! 

For those of you who are Christmas lovers....that is a store for you!

Doesn't this farm look dreamy?

Perfect sand on to walk in on Lake Huron. It felt so good on my feet. 

Lake Huron, Michigan

A frog jumped up on the screen door of our cabin. What a cute little guy.

 I think he wanted to join in on the fun.

Mackinaw Island, Michigan: "Somewhere In Time" the movie was filmed here. It is a very romantic island.

There are bike shops all over the island. Horse and bike are the only means of transportation on the island. We rented bikes and peddled around the entire island. What a view. No cars are allowed on this picturesque island. I think it makes the island a bit more cozy and friendly feeling. You have to see it to believe it.

I hope you enjoyed some of the pictures that captured my heart while I was in Michigan.