You've Got Mail Monday

It was a busy weekend followed by a busy start to my week. We celebrated my mother-in-law's birthday on Saturday. I worked in the garden on Sunday planting second season vegetables, taking in some of the earlier harvest, and restaking the tomato plants that have grown like gangbusters this year.

This week, the Lil' Princess has soccer camp and the Lil' Diva is making up two days of golf camp she missed because of last week's rain. I have a couple of hours to myself while I wait for the inspector to come check out the new roof. Yep, the house needed a new roof. We had hail damage from the 2011 tornado.

This is a picture close to completion. We changed from a drab black and brown colored shingle to a reddish brown called Burnt Sienna. Love the new look.

There's so much that needs doing around the homestead right now, I'm not sure how we'll pay for it all. We're not handy people, so we have to hire out to accomplish almost everything.

Okay, now on to the mail. I was able to plant the second season vegetables because Burpee® shipped the beets and salad greens I ordered. They arrived on Wednesday. As I mentioned, the tomatoes are growing like crazy. I've never had such tall tomato plants. The pumpkins are doing well and so are the watermelons. It looks like the leaves are picking up that Powdery Mildew disease. I have to see if I can get rid of it. I cut off the infected leaves--not sure if I should have, I'm learning as I go--but just learned I should not water them at night because the humidity makes the condition worse. I'll see if I can save them. Next year, I'll plant them in a different location and water at a separate time. We've had several green beans and potatoes so far, and my crop of onions came out great. I replanted lettuce and carrots, so hopefully they will come up with the beets and the salad greens.

My latest issue of All You arrived this week. The August issue talks about spending less on everything: groceries, beauty items, and Back-to-school. They have chicken recipes in this one, which is good because we eat a lot of chicken. I'm also drawn to the "easy organizing ideas."

We received a catalog from dElia's and it has a 20% off entire purchase coupon on the cover. The prices look good and the styles seem to be what the Lil' Diva would like. Maybe I'll get her some school clothes from there. The other item in the mailbox this week was the Olympia Sports catalog. We get the Lil' Princess' sports equipment there. Sometimes we visit Dick's Sporting Goods, but Olympia is closer and the staff is great. Olympia is also offering 20% off entire purchase (including sale and clearance items). It might be time for a new pair of cleats before fall soccer kicks off.

That's it for today. Hope you have a great week.

You've Got Mail Monday

The holidays are almost over, so the inbound mail has slowed down a bit. Not a lot, but some. I've been thinking about next spring's garden, which sounds kind of silly because we have almost a foot of snow on the ground right now.

I blame the mailman for it. My Burpee and Gardener's Supply Company catalogs have already arrived. I also received a new catalog from Frontgate, which is where I bought the hubby's iPad caddy from. I can't afford much of what's in there, but it's still nice to look.

I also recently received a shipment of copies of my latest book, A Christmas Kindness, which I wrote under the pen name C. C. Gevry. Not sure if I'll keep the pen name going forward. Seems like it might be more of a pain than it's worth with separate websites and social media accounts that need tending to.

Other books that have come my way are The Lincoln Conspiracy by Timothy L. O'Brien--thanks Patty, The Last of the Seals and Deadly Plunge by Greg Messel (I'm reading the first one now), and Iconic Spirits by Mark Spivak. It looks like this year is destined to be just as busy in the book review department. Most of my reviews appear at The Book Connection, so I hope you check us out there: http://thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com/

Hope this last day of 2012 has been a good one for you. Thank you for your readership. Wishing you a happy and healthy New Year!

Getting Ready for the Growing Season with Burpee

The raised beds for the garden came in on Monday, so now my mind is focused on what is going in those beds. Handled correctly, you can plant a significant amount of food.

Whenever I think of seeds, I think of Burpee®. In the years we've been in the house, I've never been disappointed with the seeds I've gotten from them. I receive their emails, so I am thrilled to learn of the great sales they run. Today's offer allows you to save 10% on tomato and pepper cages and supports. Promo code: FLW86 is good until midnight on March 30, 2012. I don't plant a lot of tomatoes, but I usually have two plants. The only spaghetti sauce my husband likes is the one I make from scratch, so I don't mind having a plentiful harvest, and then freezing the sauce.

I also learn about new plants and flowers in my newsletters; and while I don't usually have time for it, Burpee's Backyard is an online community of garden lovers for those who like to chat and share with each other.

The Lil Diva (10) has her selection of seeds all set. Now the Lil Princess (8) and I need to get moving before all the good ones are gone.

What are you planting this year?