Saturdays in the Garden - Wait, What? It's been a whole week already?!

OUTSIDE

Ahhhhh.... I feel surrounded by a sea of lawn mowers.  I'm sure I'll resent the noise pollution soon enough but for now I'm okay with it because it is more than anything the signal that winter is firmly behind us AND that it's a lovely Spring day outside.  

There were thankfully enough breaks in the copious rains this week, that a lot was accomplished in the garden.   I've been eating salads out of the garden and been able to harvest the first radishes which were super delicious.  They are an heirloom variety called Early Scarlet Globe and they are tender, mild flavored and a brilliant pinky red.   Lots of plants got snuggled into their forever home outside this week including: green onions, marigolds, kale, chard, beets, green beans and zucchini. Also my two new climbing roses and a couple of wacky columbines.  I've still got some clean up to do in the yard but it feels livable again after the winter. 

LIFE

Time never flies so fast as when I take a week off from work.  Even with the less than perfect weather, it was a stellar week.  As per usual, I did not get all I was hoping to accomplish done but things at home seem a little more under control and I am definitely feeling more relaxed.   Not exactly excited to be going back to work on Monday but content.

One of the things I wanted to do this week was make up some healthy meal plans and meals to go in the freezer.  One of the biggest challenges to eating well is the fact that 2-3 times a week I don't feel like cooking or really doing any kind of food preparation at all.  So I made some whole wheat pizza dough, some banana pancakes and a couple of soups for the freezer.  I also stocked up at Trader Joe's with tortillas, whole wheat pitas, and whole chickens.  I've really slowly started to use my freezer much more effectively in the last couple of years.  Do you have a favorite trick with the freezer to eat healthier and be more efficient in the kitchen?  More importantly does soup = a meal to you?  I've always liked a soup, salad and bread meal but I know some folks see soup as only fit to be a starter.  I refer them back to the whole Stone Soup folk tale. 

WATCHING, READING and BLOGGING

This week's binge watching has devoted to the 4th season of Downton Abbey!  I know!  I'm atrociously far behind but I have enjoyed sinking back into the intrigues of the English Country house.  Why does period soap opera seem so much more refined?  It must be the costumes.  And Maggie Smith.

Because I've been off this week I've been a reading fiend!  I finally finished The Fall of Hyperion by Dan Simmons (It was really great, though I don't think I loved it as much as Hyperion).  I also finished Mister Slaughter by Robert McCammon which I had doubts about while reading but upon completion, I decided I loved it.  I also finally picked up a Sarah MacLean romance, Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake, and I ADORED it and read it very quickly.  I picked up and finished Volume 20 in the Fables Series by Bill Willingham, Camelot, and I was actually pretty disappointed with it. Finally, I started and finished listening to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl which was good but was probably less charming because I already knew the story by heart from the Gene Wilder movie version which may be one of my favorite movies of all time.  Gene Wilder  = Willy Wonka - anybody disagree?  Phew!  Finishing five books this week was a lot for me and helped me get caught up with my Goodreads challenge.  I'm hoping to keep on the reading train with Bout of Books 13 next week! 


What I've started reading:  Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe (a gap in my classics reading), The Lewis Man by Peter May (a mystery set in the Hebrides), and The Likelihood of Lucy by Jenny Holiday (a Regency Romance  - it's an ARC and the second in the series that starts with The Miss Mirren Mission which I LOVED).  I am also still listening to Turn Coat by Jim Butcher.

Last weekend it was apparently Bookstore Day declared by I'm not sure who but it had a twitter tag and that's all I needed to convince me that I needed to go spend some money at my local book store:

Did I go overboard?  Okay, maybe a little.  But look at all the goodies!

On the BLOG LAST WEEK:
SUNDAY: Review of Fingersmith by Sarah Waters.  I didn't like it as much as I think I would have if I'd encountered it at another time but still a great read!
TUESDAY: Top Ten Tuesday - Books I shall probably never read.
WEDNESDAY: Devil's Bride by Stephanie Laurens.  This Regency romance was definitely not for me with the extreme Alpha hero.  I'd really like a recommendation for some other Laurens books to try though....
THURSDAY: Tough Traveling: Moms.  Happy Mothers day to all you moms out there!
FRIDAY: Sign up for Bout of Books 13 which is happening next week!  It's a fun and low key read-a-thon.

On the BLOG NEXT WEEK:
SUNDAY: Re-Read of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
MONDAY:  Bout of Books Goals Post
TUESDAY:  The Top Ten Tuesday topic is authors you'd most like to meet. Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.
WEDNESDAY: Check in for Bout of Books 13 and a mini Review of The Mysterious Howling by Maryrose Wood.
THURSDAY: The Tough Traveling Topic this week is Weasels.  You know the sneaky shifty guys (or gals) in fantasy land.  Hosted by Fantasy Review Barn.
FRIDAY: Bout of Books Check in and mini Review of Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins.

That's it for me this week.  Hope you have a good week full of adorably napping puppies and no stress.