F is for Freezing!

I am not sure what I was thinking. It is freezing up here in North part of the US! I arrived to rain, that turned to freezing rain, that turned to ice covered roads, that turned to snow! their first big storm of the season.

Rain turning to freezing rain

I don’t seem to mind all that, but the temperature really dropped and it hasn’t been above 10F in 2 days.

The rain turned to snow throughout the night.

So, F is for Freezing and Frigid temps. It is also for Family (I am visiting family right now)

How is the weather where you are right now?

Sincerely, Emily

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Sunday Photos – Landscapes: Rivers

It is only in appearance that time is a river. It is rather a vast landscape and it is the eye of the beholder that moves.
Thornton Wilder

While the river of life glides along smoothly, it remains the same river; only the landscape on either bank seems to change.
Max Muller

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What lovely sentiments. Serendipity Farm is perched on a hillside that flows down into the Tamar river. Where we live, the river is salt water but further inland it’s freshwater. The locals in Sidmouth call themselves “The River Rats” and I guess Steve and I have a few more years to go before we get to swim with that esteemed pack but for now we don’t mind having to wear our water wings and tread water alongside. The first thing that I see when the sun comes up outside my kitchen window is the river. It’s become an integral part of Serendipity Farm life.

One of the small tributaries that flow together to form our river

The river always has “just one more” picture left in it…I could photograph the river all day and still come up with more. The tides here are rapid and regular and you could set your watch by them. The river swirls and near the banks it forms little whirlpools that unhappy kayakers spend ages trying to get out of. The river has a sense of humour.

Swans on the river

When we walk the dogs in the morning we are reminded constantly of just how lucky we are to be living in our neck of the woods. The river has become part of us now and we have developed a deep respect for it’s ebb and flow.

Early evening river shot

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Rivers…. hmmmm. All I (Sincerely, Emily) can say is that It is drier than dry here in South Texas. While there are some rivers flowing, they are very very low, most have dried up. But, not so long ago (4 years) our front and back yards were a river. When it rains here, Texas-style, it can come down inches at a time. The dry earth cannot soak it up and it runs off very fast. Things can get exciting around here.

River in our backyard (Sept 2009)

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I (Alexandra) love “wild” water– not white water, but rivers and steams in nature. One of my life’s biggest thrills was stepping into the Mississippi. Last week I swam in the Youghigheny (Yak-a-gainy) in southwestern Pennsylvania with my buddies Holly and “Corndog.”

Are there any rivers in your area?

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What’s growing in my garden

This past Sunday a few of us shared some photos of things that are growing in our gardens. In my garden a few things are winding down and a few other things are hanging on.

Spineless okra. I am saving the larger one for seeds.

It too hot for things like tomatoes to flower in my garden, so I have cut a few of them back to give them a rest and re-sprout in hopes of a fall harvest from them.  The pepper plants flower here and there and if I can keep them watered they will really take off in a few months and I will have lots of great peppers to eat and preserve.

I had pickling cucumbers planted at my neighbors, but they had a hard time this year so they have been pulled up. His Armenian cucumbers are still happy, and growing and producing a lot.

I planted purple tomatillos for the first time this year. They are growing and are putting on flowers. I am just seeing the little tomatillos starting to develop. That is very exciting.

purple tomatillo flowering

I planted a spineless okra this year. It seems to be growing slow and is very short compared to the Star of David I have grown in the past. It is starting to slowly produce and as it flowers I am enjoying the blooms. The fire ants have been enjoying the booms too! grrr. I have hopes of pickling the okra, but for now there isn’t enough so we are adding it to stir fry’s or slicing and collecting it in the freezer for later.

Monday and Tuesday we had some beautiful rain come down. My rain barrels are overflowing and the plants and trees are just smiling out there right now.

I am very excited to watch the tomatillos grow.

Did you plant something new in your garden this season?

Sincerely, Emily

You can see what else I am up to over at Sincerely, Emily. The topics are varied, as I jump around from gardening to sewing to making bread or lotion and many things in between.

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Sunday photos: Rain

Easterners, are you sick of all the rain yet? Just remember last year, when we went 4 months without a drop.

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Here in Chicago I (Xan) actually couldn’t ask for a better rain schedule– it’s been a reliable 1-2 inches per week since mid April. I’ve barely had to water at all. Now if we could just get some warmth…

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Down here is South Texas we are seeing more rain than we have in years. Some areas to the west and South of San Antonio really got dumped on again Thursday and Friday…. all of it has managed to miss my yard (Sincerely, Emily.)

On May 24th & 25th we managed to get over 10″ – that is a lot of water….

Nope, not going to get out of the neighborhood that way.

We were unable to get out of our neighborhood for a while. we didn’t “need” to get anywhere, so that was fine.

No way out here either!

Things are dry here in our yard, so I have been back to watering. Storms keep popping up all around us, they just dissipate over our house (it seems) then build back up and continue on… I am glad someone is getting the rain in our area.

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Are some of you doing rain dances to bring the rain in or send it away?

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Sunday Photos: Grateful

Everyday there is something to be thankful for. Take a deep breath and just look around you.

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American Thanksgiving has come and gone, but I (Sincerely, Emily) do not think that is the only time that we need to pause and reflect on what we are thankful for. Everyday I look around me and can list many things I am thankful for. This is especially helpful when I am just plain having a bad day. I have been wishing for rain for many days, many weeks, many months. I know the saying, “be careful what you wish for” and I have to be really careful about wishing for rain in Texas because usually when it rains, it pours Texas-Style to the tune of 8″ + at a time. When it does rain “Texas-style” it comes down hard and fast giving the ground no opportunity to soak it up. What does that all mean? It means, that I live in Texas and we live in drought, with occasional flooding.

A few weeks ago my wish came true. We were blessed with rain. Three inches according to my rain gauge over a period of 24+ hours. For the most part it came down nice and slow, allowing the ground to accept it and start soaking it up. What a dream come true. The rain barrels are overflowing and the plants and trees are smiling. I am grateful.

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Two weeks ago my former junior coaching student and friend Dee had her second child, and is potting training the first. She’s not getting much sleep. My virtual friend Jo is in the throes of early tweendom. I just spent the afternoon with my grown children (24 and 27). As I told Jo and Dee,  new parenting and toddlerhood and the dread tweens is like childbirth– there’s an amazing person at the end of all the pain.

What are you thankful for today?

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