A Relic from the Past

I felt that I just had to make a record of this ancient artifact from the town house renovation project. This item was a fixture at both of my grandmothers’ houses. This tiny paper cup holder graced the wall by the sink, providing the user with a tiny paper cup to rinse after tooth-brushing or, I assume, to swallow pills. This one, of course, went with the pink bathroom in the town house. note the color-coordinated cups. My other grandmother’s tiny cup holder was beige.

I don’t recall ever seeing these aside from my grandmothers’ houses, but I could have just been to young to remember.

Do you have any memories of weird old things like this? Do tell!

Summer Harvest: Corn

Here is the first harvest of corn from the garden! This variety is a sweet corn called Silver Queen. I like it because, while it is sweet and delicious, it does not have the overly sweet taste that some newer varieties such as Incredible have. I tried some Incredible from the farmers’ market recently and I didn’t like it at all. I don’t want my corn to taste like someone dumped a cup of sugar into the pan!

Do you have any favorite varieties?

Onion Harvest

The traditional date to harvest your onions is the fourth of July. Since it was raining so much, we were a few days late getting it done. We fortunately did manage to get them pulled close to that date, though, so now we have our little crop of onions drying out in the garden house. We usually don’t have much luck with onions, so for us, these are pretty good and big!

Tennessee State Facts

Here is a lovely example of the Tennessee state wildflower, the passionflower. These extraordinarily exotic-looking flowers grow on small vines pretty much anywhere you will let them. This is one of a few vines growing along the side of the driveway.

After the blooming period ends, these vines will produce small green fruits with a smooth, tough rind that are mostly hollow inside. They are shaped a bit like watermelon, but obviously much smaller. You can usually find these pretty wildflowers in the same places each year.

Please Sir, Can I Have Some More?

If Florence feels that she isn’t getting fed when she should be, she goes and gets her bowl and sits down in front of you with it.

Poor abused doggie! Nothing to eat since lunch! I hope she can forgive me.

Note: As you can see, there has been some insistent scratching on the door in the past (mostly by the other dog). Another thing to add to my to-do list.

Window Frog

In the summer, the many insects that live out here in the country are drawn to the light coming from our windows at night. These, in turn, draw these cute little frogs. They stick to the window, as you see here, and crawl along munching the insects. It’s pretty adorable.

A Familiar Face

If you look closely, you can see a bird in this picture. That is a red-bellied woodpecker. They are a fairly common species here in the South, but that doesn’t make them any less enjoyable company. This fellow is a familiar sight in my back yard; he (or a relative) has been here as long as I can remember. While catching a glimpse of unusual wildlife is a thrill, a lot can be said for old friends like this one.

The Other Side of the Fence

This was my view out back today. It gets a bit rustic outside of the yard, I suppose, but how could I complain about those beautiful spring colors? I think even the old barn looks rather picturesque.

Easter Eggs!

I LOVE deviled eggs, and feel that they are crucial for Easter lunch. So simple and easy, but so delicious! Just be sure you have one extra yolk to add to the filling so that you have plenty – extra filling is always welcome! There is usually one egg that ends up getting a little mangled when you’re shelling them, too, so you can use those whites to scrape the filling bowl.

Can you tell I have had lots of practice maximizing my egg enjoyment?

My Cat Should Be an Ad Star

Doesn’t Walter just look like the perfect poster kitty for Pottery Barn?

(I must admit that the chair isn’t actually from Pottery Barn – it’s an old wingchair that my mother found at an antique store. The upholstery was in pretty bad condition, so she slipcovered it.)