My Revue on REO Speedwagon's album Hi Infidelity!

Today I decided to do a revue on REO Speedwagon's album Hi Infidelity. I remember the first time I heard this album I could not believe how good it was. This was back in the 80's and I was still in high school. I just really like the lyric's and the music. To me this band is awesome.

Right now still listening to the music I think they are still really good. I know they have gone through there share of changing the line up. I will always like this album.

This is what I like about each song-

Don't Let Him Go- The way they start it out is awesome with the drums. The music on this is just so awesome that it makes you want to get up and dance to it. The lyrics I like to because it is just telling you not to let someone go that you really care about.

Keep On Loving You- This is more of a ballet to me. The music is great on this song. The lyrics are really good on the song too. But the only problem I have is this song was really over played on the radio.

Follow My Heart- This song is really good. I really like the music on it. I really like the slide on the guitar.

In Your Letter-  The music in this song sounds more like the 50's music. But I do like it but not one of there best songs.

Take It On The Run- This is my favorite song by them. But like the other one they over played it on the radio. I do still listen to it. I just like the way the music is on it.

Tough Guys- At the beginning they have a child talking that is neat. The music is really great on the song. This sounds more like them.

Out Of Season- This one sounds more like a ballet to me. This one I really don't like.

Shakin It Loose- This one the music is alright. But just doesn't sound like a song for them.

Someone Tonight- I really like the music on this one. This is a great song by them I could sit here and listen to it all day long.

I Wish You Were There- I love how they start this song off with the music. Yes this is a ballet but the music is great on it. The lyrics I really like too. This is a great song all the way around.

This album is just great with the music and the songs on it. I hope everyone likes the revue. I would really like to hear your comments to this album. I am leaving you a video from the album!♥

Recipe redo: Gluten-free pancakes

These pancakes are so delicious that there's no need to make them from wheat! It could be the natural sweetness of oats. I don't know, but these pancakes are wonderful -- and good for you. This recipe is gluten-free, egg and milk-free but it does contain cashews.

Thanks to my daughter who developed the recipe and took a photo of her finished work.


Oat Pancakes

2 cups gluten-free oat flour (some oat flours might contain small amounts of gluten -- we used Bob Red Mill gluten-free oat flour)
2 tablespoons arrowroot powder
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup cashews
1/4 cup flax seed
1 to 2 tablespoons canola or olive oil
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups water

If you have a good blender that will grind the cashews and flax seed finely just put all ingredients in the blender and mix until smooth, around 1 to 2 minutes.

If your blender does not grind things smoothly, soak the cashews and flax seed in the water overnight, pour into the blender and then blend until smooth. Add the remaining ingredients and blend for 1 to 2 minutes or until well-mixed.

Heat a non-stick griddle or pan. Add small amount of oil. Pour batter onto griddle or pan and cook until bubbles form (it should take several minutes), turn and cook several minutes on the other side.

Serve with real maple syrup.

My Revue on Little House on the Prairie!

Yes I have finished the next book. This on is really interesting and I learned more than I thought I would with this book.

They are still by Plum Creek and Ma, Mary, Carrie and baby Grace all have scarlet fever. So Pa and Laura are taking care of them all. The Nelson's have it too so there is no one to help Pa and Laura. The doctor is coming by everyday to check on everyone. The scarlet fever went into Mary's eyes and she went blind.

Then one day there is a horse and buggy coming up to the house but Laura can't tell who it is. It stops in front of the door and it is Aunt Dorca from the big woods. Ma is still very weak and she came to the door to say hi and let Aunt Dorca in. Aunt Dorca came to see Pa to let him know that Uncle Hi was out west with the railroad and he had a job for Pa. It is keeping books and running the store if Pa was interested. Pa was very interested but Ma said Mary was to weak to travel. So Pa went to see if Mr Nelson could keep an eye on Ma and the girls and in a couple of months bring them to the train station. Mr Nelson said yes. So Pa left with Aunt Dorca the next day. When Pa left he told Laura to be Mary's eyes and tell her what she sees. Laura told him she would be Mary's eyes.

In the couple of months Ma and Laura had packed up the house. Mr Nelson is going to send there things to them. Mr. Nelson came to the house to pick up Ma and the girls it was time to go to the train station. When they got there Ma told Laura to watch the girls while Ma went to get the tickets. Laura was telling Mary everything she could see. The train was very loud as it was pulling up to the station and the horn was so loud it hurt there ears. When the train stopped a man came down the stairs and helped Ma up into the train Ma was holding Grace in her arms and he asked if that was her satchel and Ma said yes. He grabbed the satchel and brought it in the train to Ma. Ma told Laura to help Mary up the stairs and in the train. The girls were so excited to be riding the train.

The train started heading out west to the Dakota's by Pa. While the train was going the conductor came and punched a hole in everyone's tickets. Then they got to the city that afternoon and Pa was not there by the train. So the man helped Ma and Grace off the train and he said he would take them to the hotel when he was done with the train. The man had to help turn the train around because that was as far as it went. The man grabbed the satchel and walked Ma and the girls to the hotel and a girl told them they could wash up around the corner. Then when they were done to come in the dining room and have something to eat. When they got to the dining room it was filled with a lot of men eating. So Ma and the girls sat down and had something to eat. When the men were done they left and the girl asked Ma if she was waiting for someone. Ma said yes and the girl said that they could wait in the sitting room. So they went to the sitting room and waited for Pa to come. He didn't come until late that day and he said it was to late to start out.

The next day the left for camp and it was a very long ride. It took all day to get there. They stopped to have lunch on the way but the girls were so tired of being in the wagon. It was dark by the time they got there and all you could see coming up to the camp was a little spot of light. Pa stopped in front of this one shanty and Uncle Hi was outside and he helped Ma and Grace off the wagon. Aunt Docia said come inside I have supper waiting for you. They only stayed at this camp for a couple of weeks. Then men were starting to break the camp down. Pa couldn't leave until the men were done breaking the camp down.

Then it was time to leave there and go west more to Silver Lake. This took another whole day to get to. The girls were tired of bouncing in the wagon. But like always Laura was telling Mary everything that she sees. They stopped to have lunch and then on the road again. It was late when they got to the next camp. Pa seen the dot of light and he said they are almost there. When they got there a man was outside holding a lantern. It was Uncle Henry from the big woods with cousin Charly. Ma was so surprised to see them all the way out here. Then Uncle Henry helped Ma and Grace off the wagon and cousin Charly helped the girls out of the wagon. There was a voice inside saying come in and it was cousin Louisa she said she had supper keeping warm for them. Then when they were done eating Uncle Henry took them to there shanty. The next morning it was loud with all the men getting ready to leave to go to work.

It started to get cold and the men were getting ready to leave Silver Lake to go home. Pa said that the shanty would not be warm enough for them to stay there. Pa wanted to get homestead there for them to live on but never had enough time to go and look. He said they would have to go back east for the winter and everyone was upset for traveling this far. Uncle Henry was going back to the big woods to sell his land. Then the surveyors came to talk to Pa about them staying in there house because they had to leave in a couple days to go and take care of something and would not be back until spring. Pa told Ma about that and she was really happy. They left everything behind dishes, pots and pans, beds and food and coal for the winter. They said they could have all the food and cool for the winter. It was a big house two floors and it was huge. The next day they moved into the house. The only thing the men asked Pa to do was watch the tools.

The next day that they moved in there Laura ran ahead and checked the whole house out. She couldn't believe how big it was. She was running through the house. When Pa got there with the wagon she ran outside and told Ma to come in there to look how big it was. Then the next day there was a knock on the door and it was Mr. Boast coming to say good bye to Pa and telling Pa he was going to get married and come right back. Pa said it was going to snow and be real hard to come back in the snow and Mr. Boast said he would make it back.

Then on Christmas Eve they were singing and all of a sudden you could here a voice outside calling for Pa. It was Mr. Boast and his new wife outside. Pa went and helped them and Mrs. Boast came in the house and Pa and Mr. Boast went and put the horses in the stable. Mr. Boast said that his sled was stuck in the snow down a ways. Ma made them some supper and said they could spend the night there. So they spent Christmas with Mr and Mrs Boast.

Over the winter Pa found the land for the homestead. So in the spring he went to Bookings to put money on the homestead. There was a big crowd and someone else wanted the same land as Pa. Pa seen Mr Edwards in Bookings and he bought land north of them. Pa spent the night on the door step so he could get the land. In the morning Pa put the money on the land and came home.

The camp was starting to turn into a town and Pa went to make a little house on the land for them to move into. The surveyors were coming back to the house. So in a couple of days it was moving day onto the new land. This was the last move for them. Pa promised Ma he would make the home bigger when he was able to.

I hope you enjoy this revue on this book. I would really like to know what you think of it please leave your comments. Thank you for taking the time to read this!♥

American Idol Judges!

Yes I decided to write about the judges from this season. Because they are a big part of this show and what they have to say about the contestants is very important.

Randy- He has been on this show since it started in 2002. One thing I can say is he does not pick his favorites. Yes he did say to a couple of them that he really liked them. But he was saying to a lot of them that they are in it to win it. I really like Randy because he really does tell you how it is. If he don't like you he will come right out and say it and not beat around the bush. I think he is very honest with them. He is an awesome judge!

Jennifer- She just came on the show this season. She did have a couple of favorites on the show and she did let them know that. To me that is not how you should be on this type of a show. I also don't think you shouldn't be debuting your own music video on the show. Maybe I am wrong in this part but that is how I think. You are there as a judge not for your own music. But yes she did let the contestants know if they were doing something wrong with there songs. I do give her that. She was alright for a judge!

Steven- He just came on the show this season. He was so funny on here and I loved it. Yes he did have his favorites on here too and he did let them know that. But yes he did let the contests know if they were doing something wrong and he let them know if they were awesome. Sometimes with how he would say it I was sitting here laughing so hard. I just hope he comes back next season I think he made the show with Randy. Steven is an awesome judge!

Ryan- He has been on the show since 2002 as the host. I think he is awesome as the host. I really like when he starts to pick on the judges about what they say to the contestants. When Simon was there they would really go at it and I would sit here and just laugh at them. But he is really good with all the contestants. That is what I really like about Ryan.!

Jimmy- He just started this year as a partner to the show. But he has been on here before as a mentor to the contestants. He does an awesome job helping the contestants with there songs choices. He will let them know if that is a good song choice for them or he will let them just do the song and see how it goes for them. I remember one song for James he didn't want James to do the song but it ended up being a great choice for James. Jimmy is also a producer for a lot of singers. I really hope to see him next season on here again!

I hope you enjoy this about the judges, host and mentor. I just thought I would write about this and see what everyone else has to say about it. Please feel free to leave your comment on here! Thank you for taking the time to read this!♥

American Idol!

Well this week was Season 10 finale. I can say this was an awesome finale show. It was the best one that they have had. So many special guests this year a lot of great songs for the finale.

Over 122 million votes for the finale and for the youngest finale finalists.

On Tuesday's show they said that Lauren had blew out a vocal cord and was on medicine for it. This happened during rehearsal.

Round 1- There favorite songs
Scotty sang "Gone" by Montgomery Gentry. This was awesome like the first time he sang it. He has so much fun with this song.
Lauren sang "Flat on the Floor" by Carrie Underwood. It was alright but not her best. You do have to consider about what happened during rehearsal.

Round 2- Celebrity Picks
Scotty had George Strait to pick for him and he sang "Check Yes or No". Another awesome performance with a great song. He can sing any song that you give him.
Lauren had Carrie Underwood to pick her song and she sang "Maybe it was Memphis" by Pam Tillis. She had a really good performance with this song. She did do better.

Round 3- A Single for the person who wins.
Scotty sang "I Love You This Big". This performance was great and I really love this song for him.
Lauren sang "Like My Mother Does". This was a good performance. I really like the song for her.

The Judges picks are Round 1- Scotty, Round 2 Lauren, Round 3 Lauren. Jennifer did not pick for round 3.

To end the show David Cook sang " Don't you forget about me". I just enjoy listening to him sing so much. He has an awesome voice.

Then on Wednesday was an awesome show. To get it started the top 13 sang "Born This Way" by Lady Gaga.

James with Judas Priest sang " Living After Midnight" and "Breaking The Law". This was really awesome.

Jacob, Kirk Franklin and Gladys Knight sang "I Smile". This was really good.

Casey and Jack Black sang "Fat Bottom Girls". I really liked this. They had a lot of fun with the song.

Top 13 Ladies and Beyounce sang a mixture of different songs.

Haley and Tony Bennett sang "Steppin Out". This was awesome. You could tell that they both enjoyed singing together.

TLC, Top13 Ladies and Lil John sang "Scrubs". This was alright but not kind of music.

Scotty and Tim McGraw sang "Live Like Your Dying". This was awesome to see them sing together. Tim is the most played artist on the radio for the last 10 years.

Marc Anthony- He was singing in Spanish. I don't know the name of the song.

Top 13 Guys sang "Kiss", "She's a Lady", "What's up pussy cat" and with Tom Jones "It's not Unusual".

Lady Gaga sang "Edge of Glory".

Lauren and Carrie Underwood sang "Before He Cheats". This was really good. I love this song.

Beyounce sang "1 plus 1".


Reeve Carney, Bono and The Edge sang "Rise Above" from Spiderman. Bono and The Edge are the composers for the song.

Steven Tyler sang "Dream On" as always he is awesome singing. I really love Aerosmiths music.

The Winner is Scotty and to end the show he sang "I Love You This Big". He was laughing and crying while he sang the song. I was so happy that he won.

American Idol will be back on in January. So I hope everyone liked my revue for the show and I will be back in January to start all over.

I would like to hear what you have to say about the finale so please leave your comments. I am leaving you with Scotty's new single.

Using diatomaceous earth in the garden

No, this is not frost on my green beans but diatomaceous earth. I am trying to protect my beans from insects, particularly Japanese beetles. We always seem to have a problem with these beetles and according to what I have heard, diatomaceous earth is very effective as a natural insecticide. We also had a problem with bean beetles and this natural substance is suppose to help protect plants from all crawling insects.

Crawling bugs just don't like the way it feels and will go elsewhere for a meal. Apparently, it also works like boric acid to dry up slugs and other insects. Some people use it in construction to preempt bugs crawling in walls, foundations or crawl spaces. It is evidently catching on because it is safer than boric acid and other insecticides.

I heard before that it is volcanic and I have also read that it is made from some kind of crustaceans that are mined and finely ground. It is very fine and also very powdery. I use a powder sprayer to apply it and it is still a messy job.

 

Interestingly, when I was purchasing my bag of diatomaceous earth the other day, I asked if they had larger bulk bags and they said they did have it and wanted to know if I wanted the "food grade." Evidently people eat it because they feel it has health benefits and the food grade diatomaceous earth is safe for people and animals. Some use it as a safe pet-de-wormer. I was blown away when I read that. It can also be used to control ticks and fleas.

I didn't buy the food grade kind but I am a little awed that something that can kill insects in the garden can also benefit animals and humans.

So far, it has been very good and it is something that will wash off of vegetables and is not harmful to boot. I don't know if this is the best answer for organic vegetable gardening but it is nice when you find something that is safe and also helps get rid of pesky bugs that eat your food. If it is effective as I hear it is, I think it will really help in my garden this year.

FREE Lowe’s Kids Workshop! {5/28} ~ Build an Airplane!

By Heidi on May 24, 2011

Don’t forget ~ the FREE Lowes Kids Workshop is back again on Saturday, May 28th, 2011!
Your kiddos will each be able to build a Free Airplane at Lowes!

Go here for more information and to pre-register your little ones for this fun, FREE event!

This post was obtained from www.thefrugalgirls.com.  

For similar posts, visit cjrlkidszone.blogspot.com. 

More from Charlotte Nelson's garden

Straw bale gardening is one of the things Charlotte has worked to perfect but that is only one of her successes. She also grows potatoes underneath straw. Instead of covering her potatoes with dirt she tucks them under the straw -- they grow the same as normal potatoes but they just don't get dirty. They are harvested by pulling back the straw to get what you need. They can be covered again and harvested as needed. It's the clean way to grow potatoes.

As  her potatoes grow above the straw, Charlotte covers them with more loose straw on top and they grow above, and below the straw. Eventually the plants will die back. 

She has grown some very nice strawberries on top of straw bales.

Containers, like the one above hold her crop of sweet potatoes. I had never seen them grown in pots like this but Charlotte has had good success with container planting.

Above, asparagus is growing in a raised bed surrounded by railroad ties. It will take the asparagus several years to produce a crop, but this is a good way to keep them separate and protected from other plants.

Charlotte grows blueberries along her fence. I am telling you, she has everything.

I can't wait to see how her garden grows during the summer.

My Revue on Journey's Album Frontiers!

I was thinking of an album to do today and Journey came to mind. This album is one of my favorites from Journey.

This album came out after I graduated high school. It has a lot of memory for me. Because I had just broken up with one of my boyfriends and I would sit in my room and just listen to the songs. I will tell you what each of the songs on here means to me.

Separate Ways- This song is tells me that no matter if you break up with someone that you love you will find true love along the way. Yes my boyfriend back then hurt me but now I found the love of my life.

Send Her My Love- I had gotten married back in December 1983. My now ex husband was in the Army and he was in basic training. He told me to listen to this song and I would know how much he loved me. It was like with this song he was sending me his love.

Chain Reaction- This song I do like it. But it is the music that I like for this song.

After The Fall- I love the beat of this music and what it tells you. It tells me that no matter what happens in a relationship to pick yourself up and move on.

Faithfully- This is my favorite song on the album. This song is how I am in a relationship. I am always faithful and tell my boyfriend the truth. The music in this song is so great and yes I know it is a ballet but I love it. It basically is telling you to be faithful and true. That is what I love about this song.

Edge Of The Blade- The beginning of the song just listening to the music you just start to get into the music. This is great it just makes you move with it. That is what I like about this song.

Troubled Child- This song I really don't care for. It just don't so anything for me.

Back Talk- This song at the beginning gets you moving to the music too. I like the beat of the music.

Frontiers- This song I really don't care for. The music is alright but it just don't do anything for me.

Rubicon- This song I get into the music. I like the beat of the music a lot but that is about it for me.

Yes I do have my favorites for this album and some that I really don't care for. To me this is a really great album. I will listen to the albums with Steve Perry singing. To me it just isn't Journey with him singing. I would like to hear what you like and dislike about this album. Thank you for taking the time to read this. I am leaving you with my favorite video!♥

Charlotte Nelson's 2011 Straw Bale Garden

Each year I show you a peak of Charlotte Nelson's straw bale garden. We ran a story about Charlotte in Newnan-Coweta Magazine and there was so much interest in her garden methods. The link for how she did it is here. I know there are so many people who ran out and bought bales to make their own, easy-care garden.

I think it is really amazing, especially for a person who might have limited space or limited mobility. Charlotte said that she just adds more bales each year (plus she has so many great ideas) and everything I saw was well-cared for and looked very good. It really looks to be a bit ahead of schedule, compared to my garden. It is probably because of the heavy fertilization you do with the straw bales before the first plant is planted, or in this case, inserted into the bale. Also, they are easier to water -- and that makes a huge difference.

 I love the way Charlotte utilizes her space. She has a nice, well-cared for back yard but you can immediately see that she doesn't have the perfect space for a conventional garden. Her back yard has a pretty deep slope and I doubt she would get as much out of her garden if she used traditional methods. She certainly uses her space wisely.

I think the photo above is of her cucumbers. She has a fence along the plants so the vines can run up the fencing.

Her eggplants look marvelous.

And yes, those are green pole beans on top of those bales with the fence in the background ready for the vines to climb.

This is a new area for her that is beside her house. She said that she worried about what her neighbors would say when she put them out, but instead of being angry, they asked questions and were fascinated by what she was doing.

These big tomato plants get their own bale. In between, she often plants basil or other herbs. She told me she was always trying something new with her bales.

Her tomato plants do look good.

And I love the way she can just pour a little potting soil on the top of the bales and plant entire "rows" of okra or squash.

I will be going back, later in the summer to take some more photos. I am anxious to get a look. It is sure to be beautiful.

Tomorrow -- we will finish up with some of her other garden projects.

My Revue on Little House on the Prairie!

Yes I have finished this book last night. I hope everyone is enjoying my revue's as much as I am writing them. So far for me this book is more like the show. There are a couple of things in the book different from the show. I will let you know when I get to that part of the book.

The family had left the Indian Territory headed east they went through Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and came to Minnesota. They came to a town called Walnut Grove. Pa had asked if there was land for sale here and someone told him about some land. A man was going to move and wanted to sell his land. Pa took the family to the land he was looking it over and a man came up to the wagon and Pa asked if he was Mr. Hanson. The man said yes.

This house was built into the bank of a hill. There was a stable already built there too. The house was built of sod and had vines around the doorway. Ma said the house was very clean Ma told the girls that Norwegians are very clean people. You could walk on the roof of the house and not even know it was there. The house was only three miles to town now.

Pa had met a neighbor his name was Mr. Nelson. Pa had bought a cow from Mr. Nelson and she had a wreath of roses on her. The Nelson's called her reet but that is a Norwegian name but it means a wreath of roses. The cow has red spots in a circle.

In the spring Pa was working in the field to plant the wheat and also Ma's garden. At night time he was working on there new house he was building. This was with wood that Pa was buying. The house was going to have lots of windows, an attic for Mary and Laura's room, a bedroom for Ma and Pa and Carrie. Pa also bought Ma a brand new cooking stove for the new house. When Pa was done with the new house they all grabbed some stuff and walked to the new house and they couldn't believe how beautiful it was. Then Ma seen the new stove and was very happy.

For there first Christmas there the girls prayed for new horses. Because the ox were real slow for Pa in the field. The ox could not do the work of horses in the field. So on Christmas day they went to the stable and Pa brought out two new horses. The girls were so happy that Pa got his horses.

Then in the Spring the girls had to start school in town. This was the first time they would be going to school and seeing the inside of a school. Mary was nine years old and Laura was eight years old. Ma was a school teacher so she was teaching them there school lessons. But Ma said when they come to a town that has a school the girls will go to school. There is no school in the winter time.

At school is when they first meet Nellie Oleson. Nellie called them country girls because Nellie lives in town and her Ma and Pa own the store. Nellie was having a party and she invited all the girls in town. When they all got there she said no one could play with her things they had to play with her brother Willie's toys. Nellie was very mean and nasty to the girls that lived in the country. Then two weeks later Mary and Laura had a party and invited all the girls. Nellie didn't like it in the country she was even nasty to Mary and Laura's Ma. Nellie had a fur cape and she was showing it off.

Then Pa heard that every Sunday there was church. So on Sunday everyone put on there best clothes and they all went to church. The Reverend Alden was there and he remembered talking to Pa. Pa had told the Reverend the girls names and he remembered. He called the girls his little country girls.

Pa said the wheat was growing real good. When he would harvest it he would be able to buy new things for everyone. Then all of a sudden the next day a very different cloud came over. This looked like a storm cloud but it wasn't. It was a big cloud of flying grasshoppers. They all landed and started to eat everything including all the wheat in the field. The grasshoppers even stuck to your clothes. This lasted until winter then they started to walk to the west. It is really surprising that they knew which way was west.

Then one night the family put on there good clothes and there was a surprise in town. It was really cold outside but all the town people were asked to come to town. Reverend Alden has another church out east and all the people in his church had gotten together and brought presents for everyone in Walnut Grove. There were presents on the Christmas Tree in the church. Some of the presents were wrapped and some weren't. Ma had gotten a new shawl, Pa had gotten a new coat, Mary had gotten a new blue coat, booklet with bible pictures, bag with candy and a popcorn ball and blue mittens. Laura had gotten red mittens, a bag with candy and popcorn ball, china jewelry box on the top was a tea cup and saucer and a fur cape with a muff. Carrie had gotten a bag with candy and popcorn ball, rag doll with a china head, china dog it is white with brown spots.

Pa had to go away at harvesting time so he could make some money to pay the bill for the wood. So the girls had to be on there best behavior while Pa was gone. He was gone for a long time when he came back it was starting to get real cold. He said he would be able to make a new crop in a couple years. The grasshoppers had laid there eggs all over the land.

Then a real bad blizzard came and there would be three days of real bad winds with the snow then one sunny day. This is how bad it was all winter long. On one of the good days pay walked to town he said he would make it back before it snowed. But he didn't come home for three days. He was stuck out in the bad weather for three days and he survived it. When Pa came home it was Christmas Eve. He had gone for oysters, crackers and candy for the girls stockings. But he was so hungry he ate the crackers and candy. The girls said they didn't care as long as Pa made it home.

Well that is the end of this revue I hope you all like it. I hope to hear your comments on this revue. The next book will be about By The Shores Of Silver Lake. Thank you for taking the time to read this!                                                                                

My Daughter's Graduation Party!

This past Saturday was my daughter graduation party. Our place was to small so my ex brother in law said we could have it at his place which is about an hour away. I am so thankful that my ex in laws still consider me family.

This past week was on very long week for me. Tuesday my daughter had her graduation. Before the ceremony we had a cookout here at the house for everyone that showed up. The people that were here is my mom, my ex father in law, my son, both of my girls, my sons girlfriend, my boyfriend and I. That was one real long day with people here from 11am to about 8pm.

Then Friday I had shopping to do in the morning. Then I went to see my boyfriend for his lunch. Then I took my daughter to my ex brother in laws house.  After that I had to pick my boyfriend up from work. We got home about 5pm and had dinner.

Then Saturday was the party it started at 3pm. We got there at 2pm. It was all of my ex in laws there. The whole day turned out great. I thought it was going to rain but we had a few sprinkles here and there. They cooked out and everyone brought side dishes. My ex brother in law has a little farm he has horses, chicken and dogs. There was about seven dogs at the house Saturday. They played horseshoes and they had a bee bee gun to target shoot. Everyone was talking and had a real good time getting caught up with what was happening.

I couldn't have asked for a better day for my daughter. She had a great time Saturday. She is spending a week with her brother then a week with her sister.

Charlotte Nelson's Hosta Collection

The past couple of years I have given you an online tour of Charlotte Nelson's straw bale garden. (I will get to that.) Everyone who has read about her knows that her gardening methods are amazing. To see what she can grow on some straw bales is very impressive to me. This week I am planning to show some photos I took on a recent visit to her garden. First I will share something I found out during my visit that doesn't have to do with vegetables. Besides being a great vegetable gardener, Charlotte has a passion for collecting hostas.

Each year, she collects the Hosta of the Year and plants it among the other hostas in her shade garden. It's a beautiful place and I think such a great idea to add annually to her hosta collection.

I was particularly interested because I have a mostly shady yard and I am always wondering what to plant there. Charlotte recommends hostas and I will have to agree with her that it is a perfect fit for a shady spot.

I wish I had gotten the names of her hostas but I didn't do that. I would have loved to be able to say, "This is the plant of the year," but she has so many and I am afraid I will mix up the names.

I think it is such a great idea to collect plants like this. It is so interesting to see what will come out next year. I never had a clue that there was a plant of the year. I do love hostas, too, with their deep green and sometimes variegated foliage.

Charlotte has them lining her shady spots and I am sure the area will become even more lush with the showy plants growing to their full size.

I do know that deer love hostas and consider them tasty treats. Charlotte surrounds her hostas with fences to protect from the deer.

Tomorrow, I will have photos from Charlotte's 2011 straw bale garden.

American Idol!

There are only three contests this week. I can't believe it is almost over. They each had to sing three songs this week. I did miss the first songs for Scotty and Lauren. I am really sorry.

There was 95 million votes this week. 

Haley's first song " What Is and What Should Never Be" by Led Zeppelin. She did an awesome job on this song. She also had fun singing it. Her dad was on stage with here playing the guitar.

The second songs that they sang were pick out by Jimmy.

Scotty sang "Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not" by Thompson Square. He was playing his guitar and he did an awesome performance. I really liked that song for him.

Lauren sang "If I Die Young" by Perry. She had a good performance not one of her best ones. This did show her voice really good.

Haley sang " Rhiannon" by Fleetwood Mac. This was another awesome performance. She hit the notes just like Stevie Nicks. I really loved this one.

The third songs the judges picked.

Scotty sang " She Believes In Me"  by Kenny Rogers. This was another one of his awesome performances. I really liked this song for him.

Lauren sang " I Hope You Dance" by Lee ann Womack.  This performance was alright. She did do a good job with the song.

Haley sang " You Oughta Know" by Alanis Morissette. Another awesome performance by her. She had a really great time with this song on stage.

The judges picked someone from each round that they thought was a winner.
Round one went to Haley.
Round two went to Scotty.
Round three went to Lauren.

Beyounce was the mentor this week.

Guest singers were Il Volo and Italian group. Nichole Scherwwzner with 50 cent.

Haley is from Wheeling Illinois.
Scotty is from Garner Texas.
Lauren is from Georgia and Tennessee border.

When Scotty was back home singing on stage Josh Turner surprised him and came up on stage and they sang together.

The Top Two are Lauren and Scotty.
Eliminated was Haley.

Next week is going to start on Tuesday night and on Wednesday will be the finale.

Low-Fat Cheesecake

Ingredients
9 whole low-fat cinnamon graham crackers, broken in half
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Cooking spray
2 8-ounce packages Neufchatel cream cheese, softened
2 8-ounce packages fat-free cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup reduced-fat sour cream
2 large eggs plus 3 egg whites
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
Assorted toppings


Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Pulse the graham crackers in a food processor until crumbled. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons water and the butter; pulse until moistened. Wrap the outside of a 9-inch springform pan with foil to prevent leaks. Coat the inside of the pan with cooking spray and press the crumbs onto the bottom. Bake until browned, about 8 minutes. Let cool, about 10 minutes.


Meanwhile, beat both cream cheeses and the sugar with a mixer on medium-high speed until smooth, 5 minutes, then beat in the sour cream on low. Lightly whisk the 3 egg whites in a bowl, then add to the cheese mixture along with the 2 whole eggs, flour, vanilla and lemon zest. Beat on medium speed until fluffy, 3 minutes. Pour over the crust.


Place the cheesecake in a roasting pan and add enough warm water to come one-quarter of the way up the sides of the springform. Bake until the cake is set but the center still jiggles, about 1 hour 10 minutes. Turn off the oven; keep the cheesecake inside with the door closed for 20 minutes.


Remove the cake from the water bath and transfer to a rack. Run a knife around the edge, then cool completely. Chill until firm, at least 8 hours. Top as desired.


SOURCE

Tomatoes: Determinate or Indeterminate?

When I attended my recent gardening class, one of the questions someone asked was how to raise great tomatoes. One of the tips given was to first know if you have determinate or indeterminate tomatoes. I had no clue about this. I had never heard that term and I thought a tomato plant was a tomato plant and that the variety might be different, but I didn't know the plants were different.

If you have a determinate, or bush tomato you just let it grow without pruning until it reaches maturity. Determinate tomatoes grow to a certain size and for a certain amount of time and just run their course. A good example of determinate tomatoes are patio tomatoes like Celebrity.

Indeterminate tomatoes are true vines and will grow as long as you pull off the "suckers" that grow between the limbs and they can grow until the weather becomes cool. You should only have about two main shoots that grow very tall. They will also put out fruit clusters as they grow. If they have too many vines on one plant, the fruit will be small. The indeterminate plants will put more into developing the vine than the fruit if you don't pick off the suckers or new vine growths. At least that is the way I understand it.

Up to this point I had always just pulled the suckers from all my tomato plants, but now I am checking to see which are determinate and indeterminate and my "sucker-picking" will depend on that.

I didn't know that my Celebrity tomatoes were determinate before I started the seeds but I probably would not have grown them for the garden. At least I know that my bed with those plants will just be bushy and I will stake it well and not worry about the suckers.

The other two varieties I have in the garden that are determinate are Romas and Green Zebras. I will let them grow as bushy as they want, too.

The rest of my plants are indeterminate, my red heirlooms, Jubilee, Kellogg Breakfast, German Strawberry, Big Rainbow, Purple Calabash will all need to have the suckers trimmed or plucked.

Trimming them is easy. Just look for the new growth between the main stem and the branches and pull it off while small. Below is a drawing I made to show how to pick off the suckers. The little growth shown below, between the stem and branches is the sucker.

Just pick it off or trim it with scissors, being careful not to cut the main stem, branches or the fruit clusters. I hope this helps. I am going to work hard at making sure my plants are properly identified and cared for in a way to give me the highest yield. I think knowing what kind of plant I have is the first step in knowing how to care for them.

My Revue on Garth Brooks Box Set!

I decided to do a revue about this box set today. My boyfriend and I found this at a thrift store for five dollars. I couldn't believe it when he showed it to me. He asked me if I would like to have it and I said yes. So he got it for me and all the cd's are in perfect condition the box is in great condition.

This box set is The Limited Series. This has all of Garth Brooks first six cd's in it. They are Garth Brooks, No Fences, Ropin the Wind, The Chase, In Pieces and Fresh Horses. These are all great albums by him. I love his music.

I have seen Garth Brooks in concert and he does a great performance. He is all over the stage so all the fans can see him. I remember watching a concert on t.v. he rigged a cord so he could go up in the air and go swinging above the audience. He also has a light show for some of his songs too. When I went to see him in concert I has my son with me and it was indoors. My son was about six years old and he was so excited to go and see Garth Brooks. He got so scared when Garth sang The Thunder Rolls.

I am going to write a little about each c.d. of how I like each one.

Garth Brooks- This is the first album and there are a few songs that are good on this one. The ones I really like are If Tomorrow Never Comes, Everytime That it Rains, Much Too Young To Feel This Damn Old and The Dance.

No Fences- The second album and the songs I like are The Thunder Rolls, Two Of A Kind Working On A Full House, Friends In Low Places, Wild Horses and Unanswered Prayers.

Ropin the Wind- This is the third album and the songs I like are Rodeo, Burning Bridges, Papa Loves Mama, Shameless and The River.

The Chase is the fourth album and the songs I like are- We Shall Be Free, Walking After Midnight and Learning to Live Again.

In Pieces is the fifth album and the songs I like are- Standing outside the Fire, American Honky Tonk Bar Association, Ain't Going Down Until The Sun Comes Up, The Red Strokes, Callin Baton Rouge, The Cowboy Song.

Fresh Horses is the sixth album and the songs I like are- Cowboys and Angels, The Change, The Beaches Of Cheyenne and She's Every Woman.

Garth Brooks has a way of his own to get his fans to really like his music. Some of his music he writes himself and some of it he don't. If you are collecting Garth Brooks music this is a box set you should have. His music is great.

I am going to leave you with a video. I just would like to know what you have to say about Garth Brooks.

My garden: the nickel tour

This week has been so crazy. My husband had minor surgery today and there was a little bit of garden work and English peas to shell. I have been so busy, I only have time to take you on the nickel tour.

It is beginning to look like a summer garden. We still don't have it fully mulched, but we are making some progress.

 

We have a higher fence, at left for our cucumbers. We did have to fill in a few bare spaces but I am hoping the higher fence will keep the cukes off the ground.

Cabbages are beginning to head. We sprayed them with BT and are hoping to keep the worms at bay.

Carrots! We actually have fingerling carrots. They look and taste wonderful. We do need to let them grow a bit larger. These are our best carrots ever.

We fertilized and pulled dirt up around our corn after we saw this photo. The corn looks top-heavy and hopefully we can keep it growing straight and tall.

Pole beans. It is filling in and running up the bamboo poles. I love the way they look.

We still have lettuce. Some of it is flowering but that is a good thing because we want to attract bees and good insects.

Pepper blooms ...

On our sweet pepper row. We have the sweet peppers caged. The hot peppers still need the cages.

I love shallots but I really don't know when to harvest them.

Our squash looks wonderful. We have been trying to protect it from bugs using BT and we have been handpicking squash bug eggs.

The yellow squash are setting fruit.

The zucchini, too.

Our tomato beds look good but we will be working on a staking system soon.

And our beefmasters have some nice tomatoes already.

That's the quick tour -- maybe worth a nickel.