Enjoying the Garden Blooms

It’s been a whole month since my last post, but the fact is I’m quite busy. 

Summer is the busiest time for my family because of all the outdoor activities such as taking kids to the swimming pool, picnics, hiking and forest walks, going to the beach, as well as small travels to visit extended family... Oh, and I do a lot of crocheting too!

This year I’m not spending as much time gardening as I did in the previous years, but nonetheless my yard rewards me with some beautiful flowers to enjoy.

The best time to be in the garden is after the sunset as the air cools down and the life around is slowing down as well. I like just to sit on my patio for a short while and simply take pleasure in all things blooming in the yard.

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. 

Calla Lilies

This year my calla lilies are blooming later than usual. In the previous years they bloomed in January-February. We are now more than half the way into March, and only now the flowers appear.

I enjoy having fresh cut flowers on my dining table or dresser. So I picked two calla lilies and put them in a vase in my bedroom.

Nowadays I rarely buy cut flowers from the stores. Most of the cut flowers sold here are grown in Latin America, which does not really make sense to me.

I understand that lower production costs lead to higher profits, which are good for the economy, and yet…

Besides, being snipped off days or perhaps weeks prior, they don’t last long outside of the refrigerators. 

But as I said, I like having flowers in my home. And my own tiny yard is where they come from.

Now I have calla lilies, and my roses will start blooming soon too. I only have a few rose bushes, but even a single rose on my dresser looks luxurious to me. Later in the summer I will have gladioluses, which make lavish bouquets. I’d love to have some tulips too, but so far I haven't had much luck growing them.

Birthday Cake

Earlier this week we celebrated my husband’s birthday. I’m making it a tradition of baking his birthday cake myself. Last year I made him Black Forest cake, and this year he asked for a chocolate one.

I used the recipe called ExtremeChocolate Cake that I found on All Recipes website.

The cake turned out pretty well and I’m definitely saving the recipe for future use, but there are a couple of things that can be improved.

First, I need to learn better ways to decorate it. In the recipe instructions the cake was simply frosted on the top and sides. But since my cake was for a special occasion, I wanted it to look fancier.

Well, it didn’t work out that way. I couldn’t come up with any decorating ideas other than putting some chocolate dipped strawberries on the top. Even though they were a delicious addition to the cake, they didn’t look right there.

Some time ago I pinned an image of a cake that was decorated with swirl roses using a piping bag (you can see it here). I think that could’ve worked on my cake, but unfortunately I didn’t remember about it at the time. The good thing there is always a next time!

Despite the less than perfect appearance, the cake was very delicious. It reminded me the cake my aunt once made back in Ukraine many years ago. The only difference was she used some kind of sweet liquor to soak the layers a bit.

I would like to try that next time too, but I have no idea what to use. Could anyone suggest what kind of spirits can be used for soaking cakes?

In addition to the cake, I made Linzer Torte Cookies for my husband to take to work for his co-workers. I had used the recipe a few times before, so I didn’t have any trouble. These cookies look very pretty, so they are perfect for special occasions.

First Spring Blooms

It’s always fun when the first blooms appear in my yard. Of course, California winters are warm, and it’s possible to have flowers year round. But then the spring time in the garden wouldn’t be so exciting!

My grape hyacinths are now blooming. This is the second year I have them in this terracotta pot. They originated from a single plant that sneaked in my yard from the neighbor’s side of the fence. They spread like crazy and don’t require any care at all. I think when they are done blooming I will thin them out a bit and perhaps plant in another pot. 

Here are my cyclamens! The pink ones are in full bloom, but the white and red ones are only appearing. Again, they take care of themselves and come out every spring.

A few Bermuda Buttercups showed up here and there. Many gardeners wouldn’t want them in their yards because they are so invasive. But I don’t mind. They don’t have much chance to spread over in my yard, and having small splashes of yellow in spring time is nice.

It's been a long time since I joined Tootsie for her Fertilizer Friday / Flaunt Your Flowers link party. I'm gladly joining her today. 

Cube Ottomans

Do you have any cube stools/ottomans in your home? I have four! They came with the coffee table my husband and I bought several years ago for our family room. 

They are wooden with soft leather tops in dark brown color. I like how they provide extra sitting when we have visitors. When not in use, they are tugged under the coffee table. And as a bonus, they have some storage room inside them!

I have a small space in my bedroom that needs something. But I couldn’t think what piece of furniture or decoration to get for it. The space is too small for a chair. And I don’t like faux plants. And then I thought a small cube ottoman in white (my bedroom furniture is white) would be perfect. And I even found one a few days ago at reasonable price. Unfortunately, it had black legs, so I didn’t buy it.

I am now on a lookout for a white cube ottoman for my bedroom.

Here are a few cube stools/ottomans that I like in bright colors. Too bad there isn’t one in white.

                  

The blue one would be perfect for my oldest son’s room as it’s painted and decorated in blue colors. I like the green one because it’s my favorite color. The lilac one is lovely and would be nice for a girl’s room.

The pictures of these cube stools are from Viking-direct web-site.

Our Soup Menu

In our family we love soups! The other day, I was wondering exactly how many different kinds of soups I can cook. Count with me!

1. Carrot Soup 

2. Potato and Leeks Soup

3. French Onion Soup 

4. Mushroom Soup. This is my favorite as it reminds me of my childhood back in Ukraine when my cousin Katia (who is six years older than me) and I would go to the forest, pick porcinis, and make soup with them. I don’t follow any particular recipe for this soup; just make it the way Katia made it back in Ukraine. 

5. Split Pea Soup

6. Ukrainian Borscht. This is something I grew up eating almost every week. I don’t follow any particular recipe; just make it the way my mom made it (but without meat).

7. Chick Pea Soup

8. Lentil Soup. This is my husband’s favorite. 

  

9. Red Lentil Soup

10. Bean Soup

11. Butternut Squash Soup

12. Acorn Squash Soup

13. Spinach and Ravioli Soup. This one is the favorite of my oldest son Viktor for he loves everything pasta! The recipe was from somebody’s blog, but I can’t remember whose blog it was.

14. Minestrone Soup 

15. Cream of Broccoli Soup. We added this one to our menu just a few days ago.

Fifteen different soups! I can’t say which one is the favorite of my youngest son (who is now almost two), but when he eats his soup, he loves dipping his bread into it.

Many of these soup recipes call for chicken or beef stock, but I substitute it with vegetable broth to make it vegetarian. 
Can you recommend any other soups to add to my list?