Mosaic Mom

Here is a photo of me at the FNATS nursery trade show checking out the new Mahindra Tractor.

Mahindra is the largest supplier of tractors in China and India.
I thought that would make the company a first rate stock investment, so I looked it up. It used to be on the NYSE but it was delisted due to ...uh oh...accounting irregularities! Oops.

But at the trade show I had a chance to check out the product. In many markets they are beating the pants off the other tractor companies. The price of this model was right. Only $11,000 and get this...there is a dealer right here in Eustis!

So I asked, "Well, if I need parts, do you have to wait till they are shipped from Calcutta?"

"No," replied the salesman. "We warehouse them in Chattanooga."

Yesterday I installed 2 new leaves just to the right of the orange. I was going to add the light purple color there, but I found I had completely used up all the purple tiles. So I made some leaves instead.

My goal today is to grout everything north of the snake nose, then move the scaffold to the left to finish the top of the orange.

Mosaics get exciting when you get near the end and you can finally see the picture.

I got a good chunk of grout applied in the upper right corner today.

The Bluebird of Happiness came out just fine.

But more important, I really like the way the purple tile is performing so I am going to use it over by the snake.

Today I also sprayed for roaches in the house, did 2 loads of wash, paid the cable bill and the internet bill and cooked mac n cheeze. I am tired now.

Will be glad to clean the kitchen and sit in front of the TV.

Sweet Potato Casserole

Step 1…Go to your backyard and harvest 4 medium sized Sweet Potatoes fresh from the garden…or buy some at Publix.

Step 2. Bake them and clean enough to yield about 3 cups of cooked sweet potato in a large bowl.

Next couple of steps…Add…
1/3 cup of milk
½ cup of butter
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs (which you might have to temper if your potatoes are too hot yet)
1 Tablespoon vanilla

Whip with the beater and pour it into your nice pie dish and bake uncovered at 350 for about 25 to 30 minutes.

This photo was taken right before it went in the oven. It didn't last long enough for a photo after it came out. We were on it too fast.

Step 3. Be sure you are wearing elastic waist pants or unbuckle your belt cause this is good, baby! OMG!

Do Not Adjust your sets…I’ve just been a bad blogger lately. Life picked me up and took me for a ride and I am just now having a moment to catch you up!

On Thursday I finished all but this much of the upper deck portion of the mosaic wall.


To reach this, I put a step ladder on the scaffold and stretched. When Plant Daddy found out I had done this Cirque de Soliel acrobat movement, he immediately took my scaffold away!
But then he built me a new higher one so I could reach without double stacking.

As soon as I get this much tiling done, I will grout all that can be reached up high. That will probably take 3 or 4 days. Then I can finish the pink bunny…which requires sitting cross legged on the concrete…but hey, pick your pain. Over reaching way up high or crunching down at the bottom.

On Friday, Plant Daddy and I met up with LME at Olive Garden for the soup and salad lunch followed by 3 hours of shopping at the Sanford Mall.

I hurt myself at Coldwater Creek, but got a great outfit for the trade show next week. LME scored at the Clinique event at Dillards. Plant Daddy was on his own at Sports Authority, but bagged nothing. Amateur.

Then the three of us made our way over to World Market and scored curry sauces, hot sauces, sushi ginger, and exotic beer.
Note: the pumpkin beer looked good; tasted bitter. Bad. Blech!

Friday evening after resting from shopping, PD and I harvested 14 cucumbers.
Today I turned them into 7 pints of relish. Just in time…we were on the last jar we had.

I also made 3 pints of strawberry jam from the berries we froze in the spring.

So we’re in pretty good shape, but I need to look up a recipe for sweet potato biscuits. I can see the writing on the wall.

This morning I gathered my coupons and I collected my gift cards and drove to Target…only to turn right around and drive home! They are not going to start selling fresh foods until October 9th. Grrr. Couldn’t the flyer have said that?

(It probably did, but greedy me just clipped the coupons and assumed…)

After I got home, I did laundry and cooked chili and harvested a giant cucumber.
No mosaics today, but tomorrow fer sher!

Yesterday, I changed the color of the beak and added leaves to the nesting materials the Bluebird of Happiness is carrying.

I think it looks great!

I worked all the background around the bird and on the other side of the wall, I finished the Orange.
Now all I have is to finish the background around the snake and I can grout everything above the black line!
Yay!

Q: Why is my High Speed Internet Provider just like the U.S.Post Office?

A: The rates are going up and the service is going down.


I didn't have internet service all morning. Grrr. What if I really needed to pay a bill on line or check the stock reports?

As it was, I could not research an article I want to write, so I went back to work on mosaics. Sigh.

I’ve been up the ladder finishing the top right flower. I think the point of view went a little kilter, but what the hey.
I made a lot of progress on the bluebird of happiness, but I still have about 5 tiles to take off and re-fit.

That re-do probably won't happen today. It's damn hot. It'll hit 92 again. I think it will be a pool day not a mosaic wall day.

While I finish some tedious cutwork on the upper right side of the wall…


I amuse myself with the first of the grout application on the lower left side…

Today in the fall garden, I planted one row of yellow Granex onions and one row of purple red granex. Tomorrow I will get a variety called "Candy" planted. It will be a new one for us to try.

Also planted 6 broccoli plants.

Found some seedling zinnias popping up so I transplanted them over to the south fence.

Plant Daddy and the Kitty helped.

Tomorrow I have to set the irrigation on the sweet potatoes; they wilt severely every afternoon. It's so dry. Some sweet potatoes might "accidently" get dug up tomorrow, too. I'll have to see if they are sizing up for their normal harvest in October.

Here's a shot of my coleus this summer.

They have really done well; almost 6 ft tall.

I planted 2 yellow squash and 2 more Zucchinni transplants today. I can taste the roasted veggies now. Yum!

Mail service on this route is ridiculous. Sometimes it comes at 10:00AM. Sometimes it comes at 4:00PM. As a business person, I find this totally maddening. I have to drive important documents to the post office and I keep a PO Box for important items.

Today I got my neighbor's mail.
I wonder who the hell got mine?

And they want more money?
Pshaw!

Don't ya love it as a Mom when your kid comes home and says, "Look what I made in school today!"?

I am a Robert Olen Butler fan. His book about how to write fiction arrived via UPS about 6:ooPM last night. I was up half the night digging in.

This book was written as Janet Barroway sat in on Bulter's graduate level lectures up there at FSU and tape recorded and took notes.
This is going to be one amazing text book.

Here are the first two fall zucchini.

You will note the Herculean efforts to keep the bunnies back.

Over the summer, the bunny population has increased. We now count 5 bunnies daily.
The killer cat chased one out of the greenhouse 2 nights ago, but couldn't catch it.

So fences are our best strategy in the bunny wars.

Tonight we are going to rototill the south garden. Yay!
Broccoli time.

Catnip takes the priority this season...for the magnificent squirrel master.

Here's a look at the Green Beans in my fall garden.

The variety is Early Contender. Should be enjoying them in about 40 more days.
I will be planting another batch the weekend of the 18th so as to have some for the Thanksgiving table.

Now here's something to be thankful for...this squirrel won't be burrowing in to my attic and eating my electrical wires and burning my house down thanks to my killer cat.
I love that cat.
I told that squirrel to move on.Stupid squirrel.

Seventeen Acres of Trees around here and where does the sum bitchin' squirrel decide to build a nest?


Let me tell you, you little fluffy tailed rodent, you are outta here!

Plant Daddy and I sealed up his access route across the beam there and just to be mean I put my squirrel garden statue on the roof as a warning!
Grrr!
Go Away!
Find a nice tree...we got plenty.

Of course, maybe he's an art lover and wants the nice mosaic view?

After being without power for nearly 4 days, Aunt Terri has called to say she survived Hurricane Irene with little problem. She had to get an electric box repair, and still has a lot of yard debris to clear but no on going saga.

Tropical Storm Lee is aimed at Georgia at my Mom's! Sheesh! We expect storms in Florida, but they are getting all the hits north of here.

I will have to stock them up on Spam and pork n beans at Christmas!