Thrift in the garden

We experimented with tomatoes this year. They looked pretty tame back in May when we finally built the greenhouse (it used to be the sandbox) and got them planted.  I tried starting tomatoes from seed, and that was a bust. They sprouted on my kitchen counter no problem. And then the cat ate all the sprouts. TWICE.  I gave up and bought 11 established seedlings...2 cherry tomato, 2 "early girl", and the rest a variety of heirloom and different colour varieties.

 The "early girls" are thriving...

I bought 2 plants by accident. But since they're my top producers, I guess it was a happy accident.

One plant died early on, the ones at the back have been shaded out by some big producers up front, and the heirloom varieties don't produce much at all.

This "Sunset Falls" variety spidered out like crazy and grew close to the ground. I was not having any of that staking business. We've eaten a few of them and they are very much like a roma.  Its a great producer, but next time its going in a planter or hanging basket.

Rogue tomato! I didn't plant this! This crazy mess sprouted sometime this spring, near where I'd had (and failed to produce) tomatoes last year. I had no idea what it would produce, since its parent was likely one of 5 hybrid varieties and you can never be certain what a hybrid's offspring will look like. I didn't bother staking it because I didn't think it would live

So I was happy to see the start of some yellow pear mini tomatoes!

Speaking of rogue veggies. Every year it seems we get at least 1 'bonus' potato plant. This year we got 3. I guess I'm not thorough enough about digging every last tuber out of the ground when I pull a plant.

There is no better garden veggie than cucumbers. 3 of the 4 plants I bought thrived (the one that got shaded by the rhubard didn't stand a chance) and we've been eating 1 cuke at a time. 

I suspect any day now I'm going to have to make pickles because the rest are all going to be ready at the same time.

This is truly 'heirloom' rhubarb.  We dug it from my grandpa's garden at the lake, and its probably at least 35 years old. The root was as long and as thick as my arm! The sunflowers were started from seed by the kids as a school project.

Remember those tiny tomato plants????

The only other things I've planted in any quantity or with any success are: green beans, swiss chard, peas and beets.

This year's failures include: lettuce from seed (slugs ate it), spinach (planted too late, bolted in the heat), carrots (they're in there somewhere but got shaded out by bigger plants), strawberries (everbearing my ass! Ever rotting is more like it)

Happy Birthday to Me!

Received this in the mail from my darling little brother today!

Collections within a collection.

One of the biggest dilemmas I have when it comes to my Pyrex, is how to organize it.  At this point I have enough storage and display space. But WHAT do I put WHERE to suit my needs and keep track of all the seemingly random pieces?? It seems that my collection has grown by size and shape, not pattern.

I say "seemingly" random because I don't have alot of any single pattern, outside of Butterprint and Friendship. The Butterprint and Friendship - not currently in use in my kitchen - have display niches in the entertainment centre in the living room.

I have alot of 401 and 441 mixing bowls . I just love this size...

And I have an addiction to divided casseroles...

Can't pass one up if its a pattern I don't have and it's under $10. Slightly less if it's lidless. I pay up to $1 for lids too. Clear and patterned. The matching bottom will come along eventually. (kicking myself for selling a Verde casserole lid back in January).

They make great potluck appie servers...

 

And can someone explain where all these carafes came from?

Ok, ok, I know where they came from...this photo doesn't even begin to address my weird obsession with tea pots and coffee pots. That's a collection another day.

Disgusting THRIFT experience...

Maybe once or twice a year, for the last 5 years or more, my travels have taken me on a route past a 'junk' store, geographically sort of in the middle of nowhere.  Hubby is never interested in stopping, and my work trips are always pinched for time. This week (spring break!) the kids and I took an overnight trip to a historic tourist destination, and I knew THIS would be the chance to check out the store. Today was the day! I was jazzed.

Oh. My. God.

The smell of years and years of cigarette smoke hit you the second you walked in the door. I'm not talking about one freshly butted-out cigarette. I mean it was like it was infused in every surface of every item in the store. One child visibly held their breath, the other one proclaimed loudly "it smells like CIGARETTES in here!"  It was so overpowering that it distracted me from my mission.  We did a quick loop and headed back out the door, while the owner -- laughing in that raspy, hacking way that smokers do -- was helping another customer.  Even if I'd found something to buy, I don't think I could have bought it because it would have stunk up my car.

I was raised by smokers, who smoked in the house and car until we were teenagers, and until a dozen years ago, smoking in public places was legal...and common. You just got used to it drifting into the "non smoking" section.

But this was far, far worse than anything I remember.  I wonder how many other customers they've lost because of the smoke smell...

scrapbooking and thrift together again

How lucky was I to get to design a project using a sticker that says "I Love Vintage" ???

Have you ever seen a GREEN Etch-A-Sketch before??



Rocked the sale at value Village last week

Did you know it was half off for club card members last Monday? So glad a Good friend remind me of the sale!

I ended up with 26 items of clothing under $100. Something for everyone in the family. I wouldn't be able to dress my kids in such extensive wardrobes if it weren't for thrift.  Most importantly, they have multiples of all the outdoor gear they need to stay warm and dry at school, for a fraction of what *new* Columbia and MEC would cost. 

I also picked up a little bit of Pyrex, a little bit of vintage...i can't post photos yet because something is a birthday gift. I'll get a photo with the birthday girl tomorrow.

I was going to buy the cute little primary blue 401 bowl on the left...

...but it fell and smashed to bits before I got it out of the store. A sad day for Pyrex.

Christmas Pyrex

No, I didn't receive any Pyrex for Christmas.

But I did cook and serve with it.  If only I'd remembered to take a picture of the table before we sat down to eat!  Oh well. Pyrex was just as purposeful for leftovers.

And it is the BEST for baking Pioneer Woman's Cinnamon Rolls on Christmas morning!