guest post- meet Lisa

Good morning.  Or afternoon.  Whenever I guess; according to my stats, most readers visit me at night...   I spent the whole weekend outside getting the garden ready and then at night I was finishing up some sewing projects that had been stacking up in my 'to finish' area.  The weather has been to nice and I've have too many plants to more to make room for my veggies.  I spent 0 time blogging. Ok, like under a half hour.  Thankfully, I have a guest blogger today, Lisa Shoreland.   Thanks Lisa.  Thanks for sharing with us today about gardening so I could be out in mine.

photo credit

Lisa Shoreland is currently a resident blogger at Go College, where recently she’s been researching student loan forgiveness as well sharing some good financial aid tips. In her spare time, she enjoys creative writing, practicing martial arts, and taking weekend trips. 

Stay in bloom with Perennial Flowers

If you’re sick of spending hours upon hours planting flowers in your garden each year, or if you’re looking for an easier, cheaper option in how you decorate your yard and/or garden with colorful, vibrant flowers, perennial seeds may be the answer to all of your problems.

Perennial flowers tend to grow back each spring, and depending on the type of seed you purchase perennial flowers can be quite easy to maintain as well. 

But before choosing what type of perennial flower you want to plant in your garden, it’s important to do the proper research beforehand and make sure you have the right texture of soil, and the perfect amount of sunlight in order for the flowers to grow back year after year. 

Sunlight

Full-sun perennials, like Lavender, Boltonia, Chrysanthemums, and Poppies, usually require six to eight hours of sunlight each day, so make sure you plant them away from any trees or large brushes in your garden and/or yard. 

Part-shade perennials, like Primrose, Bergenias, and Bleeding Hearts, should be planted under trees in your yard. This way the flowers are still in the shade for the majority of the day, but a minimal amount of sunlight will still shine past the tree branches and give the flowers the perfect amount of sunlight needed in order for them to bloom.

Full-shade perennials, on the other hand, must be planted in an area that receives little to no sunlight or they will die immediately. Because of this, there are only a few plants that are considered full-shade perennials, like Ferns or Pulmonarias. 

Soil

Another important factor to consider before planting perennial flowers is the type and texture of your soil.

Cardinal Flowers, Goat’s Beard, Primroses, Bergenia, Bleeding Hearts and the Foxglove are all perennial flowers that require moist soil, thus must be planted in a yard or garden that has moister-than-average soil.

Perennial flowers that require dry soil, on the other hand, may thrive in a drier climate, but still need to be watered in order to survive. Some perennial flowers that should be planted in dry soil include Lavendar, Butterfly Weeds, Artemisia, and Amsonia. 

Once you’ve considered the texture of your soil and the amount of sunlight required, now it’s time to research the different types of perennial flowers that you would like to plant in your yard or garden.

There are many different types of perennial flowers to choose from that come in various shapes, colors, and sizes, but the majority of perennial flowers may be quite easy to maintain, but still require a great deal of TLC just like any other flower or plant.

Coneflowers, for instance, are known to be incredibly low-maintenance, but they still require a great deal of deadheading. They come in a variety of different colors like pink, red, purple, white, orange and yellow and tend to bloom in the summer. 

Poenies are not only a popular perennial flower because of their unique color, but also because they pretty much take care of themselves. They bloom throughout May and June, and come in all sorts of different colors like pink, white, and red. 

So whether you’re hoping to spruce up your garden with colorful, vibrant flowers, or you’re looking to cut down on the amount of time and money you spend decorating your yard with flowers each year, there is bound to be a type of perennial flower that will suit all of your gardening needs.

Thanks again Lisa for this great information.  Go say hi to Lisa at her place.

potato soup, I do like you

I've been invited to participate in something called "I Canned a whole LOTT, Now I'm Baking in my Bistro." It's being organized by the two gals who did the canning week that I participated in two weeks ago.



Here's how it works. On Tuesdays for the next two-ish months, I will post a blog showing how to cook something using at least one ingredient that I canned. Then, I will also share links to other bloggers who are participating.

Here are all the participants for today:
a Latte' with Ott, A
From Mess Hall to Bistro
A Happy Valentine
Gourmet Meals for Less
Frog Belly Soup (who was my last minute guest- see recipe specifics)

My recipe uses canned chicken broth. You can use store bought or frozen too, but since I've joined the meat co-op, I have all these whole chickens... resulting in all this chicken broth. Yummy delicious chicken broth. (This jar must be from my first batch, where I did not take heed of the 'skim the fat' step before processing)

And here's the soup. It's topped with crumbled bacon (we like ours extra crispy) and served with focaccia bread. (Here's the recipe for the focaccia and a 'how to ruin dinner' episode)


I don't like potato soup. No thanks, not me.

But wait, what is this? Potato soup.... Oh dear, it's delicious.

I had it at one of the teacher days a few weeks ago and had to make it for hubby. He loves potato soup. I had to change it just a bit because it called for chicken bouillon... that has MSG, so a substitution was needed. Insert need for canned chicken broth/stock.

Potato Chowder
3 c potatoes chopped
1 pint chicken broth (or 1 can)
1/2 c water
2/3 c onion, finely chopped
1/2 t dry mustard
1/4 t pepper (or not-pepper= "blak")
3 c. milk (divided)
1/4 c. flour
3/4 c swiss cheese (shredded)
1/2 pound+ bacon (cooked)

Cook potatoes in a large stockpot with chicken broth and water. Add onion, mustard, and pepper. Bring to boil. Reduce heat. Simmer 20 minutes. Remove from heat. Mash potatoes (I used the immersion blender), don't drain. In a small bowl blend 1 c. milk with flour until smooth. Add to potato mix and blend well. Add remaining milk and also the cheese. Stir well. Cook over medium heat until soup begins to thicken. Top each bowl with cooked bacon. You could substitute ham if you prefer.... but why pass up an excuse for bacon. Invite last minute guests over to dinner. Devour.

I used whole milk and I think added to the deliciousness. There was also the fat on the chicken broth (see above photo) that may have added a little something. Doubled it served at least 10. I put some back in the freezer, we'll see how it does.

guest post- Hanky blankey

You met my guest blogger earlier this week with her clever post about bookmarks. Today she is sharing a new item she's sewing and ready to start selling. It's called a Hanky blanky. She's apparently an inspiring entrepreneur. I interviewed her this morning at breakfast.

Mama Bee: How long have you been sewing?
Bee: 12
Mama Bee: days? 12 days?
B: maybe
M: What kind of fabrics do you like to work with?
B: flamingo, princess, zebra, flower
M: How did you get the idea for the Hanky Blanky?
B: My brother has blankys and so I just thought of it.
M: Are the hard to make?
B: No
M: How long does each one take?
B: 1 hour
M: What is your favorite part of making the Hanky Blanky?
B: They are my favorite job.
M: Have you though about selling them?
B: yup
M: How much will you be charging?
B: They used to be $33. Now they are $2.
M: Are they selling better?
B: Oh yes.

M: Do you have an etsy shop.

B: not yet, I need business cards first.
M: Where is your favorite place you like her get your fabrics?
B: Where ever my mom gets her fabrics- I take her scraps.

M: Do you have any projects you are working on for the future?
B: Yes, I'm thinking about painting my fingers and doing some finger stamping art.
M: OK, thanks, that will be enough to write.

B: Can you read it all back to me, I wan to make sure that you got everything?

M: (I read it word for word)

B: yea, that sounds OK.

With out further delay, here is the hanky blanky. Right from my 4 year olds little sewing hands.

She finds a piece of fabric from my scrap box and squares it up with her little sewing scissors (she and Lou are both surprisingly good at cutting. They also both enjoy cutting fabric- which is enough to make a mama proud). She gathers the fabric up at one corner. Then she takes a threaded needle and sews the tip together.

Occasionally she experiments with fleece, which has proven thicker and a little harder to sew by hand. She added a ribbon tag for her brother since he has to have a tag to hold onto.

Here she models the correct holding of a hanky blanky. She insisted that she pose with her thumb in her mouth and laying in bed. "Children will sleep with their Hanky Blanky, so we should take the picture there."

I just love having a sewing friend, or two really. She and Lou love to go through my scrap fabric box and cut fabric and remember what projects they came from. They play in my yarn, they sit on my lap when I'm at my machine. Lou uses the play iron to iron doll clothes. Bee has a children's machine, but it doesn't really sew well, but they both take turns pretending to sew with it. I just love that they show some interest and are content playing in my sewing room with me while I get some much needed work done. Bee may be ready to take over Mama Bee Designs soon.

guest post- book holder

Have you met my guest blogger yet? If you've been around here much, I'm sure you've read about her. She is very artistic and super talented in a number of ways. If you ask her what she's good at she says it's "climbing trees and keeping my room clean." I've seen her room... I would have to disagree.

Here's our guest for the day. Her name is Bee and she's 4. She likes princesses, jumping, and fancy jewelry. She is excited about kindergarten (which isn't for months) and says she's ready for her own etsy shop. She is mine and rather clever.


She was pretty proud of herself recently when she came up with a clever idea for holding your spot in a book if you can't find a bookmark. She showed me and then said, "I bet some people online would like to know about this. Can I put it on your blog?"

She came up with this in the car one day when she didn't have a book mark. She explains how it works: "You just open you book and lay it on your lap.

Then, you find another book and also open it.


Fold your book over the other one and there you go."


Cleverness from a 4 year old.


She is sharing a craft project on here soon. It's also pretty neat. In the meanwhile, here is a recent flower picture that she painted for me. It's my favorite so far.