Showing posts with label herbs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label herbs. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 4, 2017

Blogging Vlogging Maid

Don't expect the title to have some serious or deep significance. I was trying to think of a title, said "blogging vlogging" out loud and segued to "She's just a woman!" :D

I haven't been blogging lately and I will point the finger at the baby (He's two! But as you know, the youngest will always be referred to as the baby until he raises a fuss about it.) and rightly so because the main reason it was so hard to blog is that he had finally succeeded in his wicked attempt to pick off all the keys of my laptop keyboard. It was a losing battle. As soon as I'd replaced the keys, off they went again. I finally just asked Mark to let me use his old USB keyboard.

I blogged about corn dip on Our Lemonade Days and there was supposed to be a follow-up post, but it occurred to me that nobody's that interested in corn dip - not even me, so, yeah, that second post's not happening. I did make a second batch following a more common recipe, but I soon realized that the only difference was in the fact that I used diced tomatoes and not tomato sauce. There was no noticeable difference in flavor. Here's a pic of the second batch and then I'm done talking about corn dip for now. Honestly, it's tasty, but I'd probably order good ol' salsa con queso y carne if I had to choose.



We've been back to Palaya, btw, and we plan to return on the next market day. Last time, Mark and Midge lost a flipflop each in the river. The day started off rainy so it was pretty foggy in Tanay, but it fortunately cleared up in the afternoon. I bought a few herbs and pepper plants. The only one that failed to survive was the cilantro. I've never been able to make that plant live. Any tips?

We also participated in a multi-family "garage" sale held by the Antipolo Homeschool Group to help raise funds for a fellow homeschooler who recently fell gravely ill with meningoencephalitis. Praise God that the little boy is now on the mend.

Midge attended a pottery workshop, which I thought she'd enjoy, considering her penchant for salt dough. She has been working a lot with it, making tiny toys for her collection of LPS, Shopkins, etc. We don't have the saucer and whatnots she made in class as they are still to be fired, painted, and glazed by the teacher, but we're excited to see what they'll all look like when they're finished.

I actually managed to capture a few videos from these events, and Midge was able to put them together to create a vlog episode. I'm afraid the video clips are grainy since I used my phone to take them. I swear I'll get around to using a better camera. In the meantime, please watch this video and like it if you're so inclined. While you're at it, please subscribe to our channel as well. :)

Tuesday, February 21, 2017

View Bingeing in Antipolo

I love nature - love, love, love it. But. I don't seem to be cut out for it. It usually triggers violent sneezing fits or the onset of hives. And then there are the bugs. They love me. They ignore the rest and flock to me. That is, unless my kids are around too. They seem to have the same tasty blood, so they luckily inherited my appeal to the bloodsuckers.

My husband and I like to take the kids for long car rides. We usually park somewhere with a nice view and eat our lunch in the car. This means that the car enjoys more than its fair share of spills and crumbs. It can get pretty disgusting. Fortunately, my husband is a car nut and is manic about maintaining our vehicles.

Recently, while we were parked along Marcos Highway, somewhere between Cogeo and Paenaan (I don't know what that spot is called, but people often stop there to take in the very green vista of the valley below and the mountains across), I suddenly felt a bite or a sting, first on my neck, and then another a bit later on the cheek. We had the windows down so we could enjoy the nice, cool breeze. I didn't see a mosquito, not even a fly. Basically, some noseeum got me. Funnily enough, there was actually a Midge in the car; she's just the human, visible kind. ;D

The good thing about those bites though is that they didn't bother me for long and they didn't leave any lasting welts. They were red while I could feel them, but the color and bump subsided when they stopped being uncomfortable.





After lunch, we took a turn and went up Sumulong Highway. We checked out some properties for sale in a couple of subdivisions up there. We spotted lots of pretty birds, black-naped orioles and many I can't recognize yet.

It's frustrating not to be able to identify the birds. I plan to remedy that and be more knowledgeable about birding. I've been saying that for the past twenty years, but it's not that hopeless. I got a little better. After two decades.

My husband also went a little crazy with all the dill out there. I don't know why he loves the plant so much. It's not like he uses dill a lot. I'll have to ask him because it's obviously a real mystery. I may never rest until I get answers.

It was a good excursion. I've found that I'm willing to suffer through bites, hives, and sneezing fits to get my kids to see nature. The rewards are definitely worth the discomfort. 

Saturday, February 18, 2017

Birds Menacing My Herb Garden


I love birds, I do, but not enough to just let them devour my herbs. I discovered the other day that the two rosemary cuttings I had just started cultivating were missing. The rooted rosemary plants were fine. The cuttings, I suppose, were easily plucked out from the soil.

And then I noticed our new dill plant starting to bald - is that the right term? - but the leaves were definitely much fewer, and then yesterday, a stalk was actually broken.

I'm going to roast the culprits if I ever catch them!

Relax - that's just an empty threat. I don't have it in me to hurt a bird.

Those birds are also the reason why we don't bother with sunflowers anymore. They finish up a bloom in just a couple of day, the little gluttons!

Before they make off with every herb in my garden, I need to take steps to thwart those sneaky thieves. Some of the recommendations I've found are:

  • Making a tunnel of bird netting.
  • Using cut soda plastic bottles.
  • Putting up a scarecrow.
  • Hanging or sticking shiny ornaments (CDs, mylar, etc.)
  • Hanging wind chimes.
  • Getting a cat.

I'll probably do the soda bottle and the wind chimes. It might also be fun to put a little scarecrow out there. I'll let you know soon how effective they are.

Do you think they'll leave the plants alone if I install a bird feeder? In any case, if you have any tips for stopping birds from eating up the garden, please comment below.