Beautiful Hills in My Backyard

I often dream of living in the countryside. Open green spaces, endless fields, and wild flowers make up my image of content and peaceful life. Luckily, I live on the outskirts of the city (a big city with almost a million residents), and I can enjoy a bit of countryside almost in my backyard.

There are beautiful hills and a wonderful county park with infinite hike trails right next to my home.

These are the hill views from my backyard. Also the first photo is what I see from my dining room. I love that view in winter times when I have my cup of morning tea or coffee. And in spring and summer, I get up early to enjoy my coffee on the patio looking at those hills and trees. That’s the best way to start my day!

 

The hills are at their prime beauty in early spring. After the winter rains, they are so lusciously green. And it’s when the wild flowers bloom.  

Oh how delightful it is to walk paths such as this one!

The orange flowers are California poppies – the state flower of California.

Another delight that the hills offer is meeting wild animals – mule deer, wild turkeys, hares, and California quails. Once on a hike, my husband and I even saw a family of feral pigs – a mommy and three piglets, but they were far away off the trail and didn’t even notice us. Our hills are also the home to more dangerous residents – mountain lions and rattle snakes, so special precautions should always be taken when hiking.

As the summer arrives, and in California it arrives early, the hills change their appearance dramatically. Green color begins to disappear and yellow begins to dominate the scenery.  The wild flowers disappear, and the hills remind me of the African Savannah, which brings the danger of wild fires.

Right now the hills are in the transition from green to yellow. A few more weeks, and they will look almost lifeless. My family and I try to enjoy their beauty while it’s still here. We go up the hills to the county park a few times a week. Sometimes we have a picnic there; other times just take a short walk with the kids. Staying on the main ground of the park is safe; mountain lions don’t come there, but other harmless wild animals can be seen in the distance, which fascinates the children.

I especially like being there at and right after the sunset. At that time the place has such a tranquil and calming feeling.

My Roses are Blooming

Finally, my roses began to bloom.

The Cecile Brunner arch is the most beautiful spot in my yard at the moment. Those small but abundant blooms smell heavenly.

 

I love this red rose. It has very big and fragrant blooms. 

This rose is called Bewitched Hybrid Tea. I have it my front yard, so occasional pedestrians can enjoy it too.

This one also grows in the front yard. It's not very fragrant, but has a beautiful color.

Herbal Tea from the Garden

Occasionally, I treat myself to a cup of herbal tea from my own garden.

I pick a handful of raspberry and blackberry leaves, as well as some mint and lemon balm. Rinse them well and brew a pot of tea. I like adding a bit of honey from my dad’s apiary to my tea. I get an organic, delicious, and fragrant drink. I also find it very calming.

Take a look at my new teapot. I found it at TJ Maxx. I love the little birdie design. Also, it has a big opening, so I can fit my hand inside, which makes it quite easy to wash.

The tea cup was a tourist souvenir that I brought home from my visit to Copenhagen, Denmark a few years ago. I bought it for a dollar at a flea market there. I love that darling tea cup.  

Ten Thousand Steps a Day

I once heard or read somewhere that to stay fit, a person should make about ten thousand steps a day. I thought it makes sense since it seemed like awfully a lot to me. But I doubted that I was meeting that requirement myself.

About a year ago, I received a free pedometer from my husband’s company that has a special health incentive program, and since then I’ve been wearing it every day. What is more, now it is my daily goal to walk ten thousand steps. And surprisingly I meet this goal most of the days without any extra sweat!

Here is how I do it:

I get 5,000 to 7,000 steps just by doing daily activities and house chores such as:

vacuuming

doing laundry (I hang it on a cloth line to dry)

picking up misplaced items and toys around my home

gardening, swiping walks, and watering outdoor plants in summer (I water with a bucket, not a hose)

washing my car

grocery shopping

I get another 2,000 to 3,000 steps by playing with my children in the front/back yard or in our local park. 

I also made it a part of my daily routine to take a short evening walk (15-30 minutes), which provides me with additional 1,000 to 3,000 steps.

It is easier to walk 10,000 steps a day during spring and summer months as the days are longer and I spend more time outdoors.

To get a bit of extra exercise during the short and rainy winter days, I exercise on my indoor bike. For a bonus, I read while pedaling.

Do you have a pedometer and keep track of your steps? Do you think you make 10K steps a day? How do you do it?

Things to Get for Baking

I love baking because of two reasons: First, the appreciation and praises from my family and friends is a great reward! Second, I have a sweet tooth myself and hardly ever decline a piece of cake or a cookie!

I’ve been baking bread, cookies, and coffee cakes for quite a while. But I also would like to master the skill of baking pies, pastries, and special occasion cakes.

Especially special occasion cakes as I want my children to grow up with the memories of their mom making their birthday cakes. 

I made myself a list of some baking utensils that I need to get because even a skillful baker wouldn’t be able to do much without tools.

I bought a plastic icing syringe for ten dollars about two years ago. Since I didn’t know back then whether I’ll be able to learn how to use it or if I’m going to use it often, I thought an inexpensive one would do. I found out it’s simple to use and I do use it often (not only for decorating cakes), but two plastic nozzles already broke. It’s time to invest into a good quality icing syringe with steel nozzles.

This patterned rolling pin would be valuable for special occasion cake decorating.

I also need a cake stand. 

A cake tin would be useful when I need to take my cake somewhere else. I have a plastic cake carrier, but it’s not very attractive. Since I’m investing time and money into making beautiful cakes, I should care to have a beautiful packaging too.

I also need to add some cute cookie cutters to my collection. It’s quite boring to make cookies the same few shapes over and over.

There is one more thing that I really need, but I don’t even know what it’s called. I tried to find it on the Internet, but I didn’t see anything even close. And yet I know it exists!

It’s a special tool for splitting a baked cake into two layers. Right now I’m using a serrated knife, but I’m never able to split the cake in halves; the thickness comes out as 1/3 and 2/3 of the original cake. And using a dental floss for that purpose gave me even worse results. Does anyone know what it’s called?

There are still other tools and utensils that would be nice to obtain for my baking needs, but a few things at a time.

All the items featured in this post are from Collectables website.