Changes for 2020!

Here we are settling into a new year. Wow, how time flies. It's 2020 already - can you believe it? 

Roses to Rainbows turned 10 last September and hasn't been remodeled in years. Because it is not only a new year, but a new decade, I figured my space should reflect that so I decided to tackle the long-overdue chore of updating of this blog. It will be a work in progress for a while as I patch test new paint, rip out the carpet, work out the technical kinks and then haul the debris away.

But wait there's more! Along with the new look will come a new name. I have not decided on that yet - I'm still contemplating the possibilities and the direction of the blog. 

The URL, however, will remain roses2rainbows.com for now as that is my domain name.

Stay tuned as I muddle through this much-needed renovation.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year Everyone! I'm not much for New Year's resolutions, but as I pause to reflect on past years and the new year ahead, here are a few things that come to mind.

• Smile more.
• Laugh first at ourselves instead of laughing at others (unless they are comedians).
• Say please, thank you and excuse me - manners y'all.
• Hold doors for others, especially folks with mobility issues.
• Don't be so easily offended, not everyone is out to get you.
• Do things without being asked or told, it will be appreciated.

In other words, just be nice. It doesn't cost anything, and everyone reaps the benefits.

Now back to the real purpose of the internet...puppies and kittens!

Welcome to 2020! Many blessings to you and yours this coming year.

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Roses To Rainbows Turns Ten

Well y'all it has been ten years! Can you believe it? This blog has been a lot of things over the years. It has been a place for me to share my cats, trips and other adventures. It was where I learned I could write fiction (at least to some degree), waxed poetic on occasion, cooked, cleaned and chased clutter six ways from Sunday. I quoted famous people and then told you what they really said.

Last year I started an online store, Rosie B. Designs, and made the announcement here with occasional promotional posts.  The store is where I get to explore the other side of my creativity. It is tough getting a new venture going in such a competitive market, so I would greatly appreciate it if you would stop by and look around. Pictured below is a sample from one of my collections.

As you can see from the rest of the pictures and the past few posts, I have gone off on yet another adventure, gardening. My garden is very small scale, consisting of a few beds and containers. However, we did have green beans and squash a plenty this summer, and some of the best parsley I've ever had.

These are a couple of my sweet snacking peppers and my plant still has lots of peppers on it. They are ready when they have turned orange. Aren't they pretty?

Also, given my love of all things potato, I planted potatoes in buckets. I made the mistake of planting too many taters per bucket and they didn't have enough room to grow, so this is the sum total of my crop. Live and learn, and I'll do better next year...I hope.

In the ground for fall are some beets. It has been so hot with no rain so they may not do well. They have just sprouted and I do keep them watered, so we'll see. I plan to get a bulb of organic garlic to plant next month.

In conclusion, this blog turns ten years old today and has been through a lot of phases and seen a lot of changes. It has also been woefully neglected of late. In fact, I dropped out of the "Chill" writing challenge last January because I was just not inspired. That was a first! I like to write fiction and fun posts for challenges but the topics just didn't work for that. 

So what does the future hold for Roses to Rainbows? That is TBD, but feel free to explore the archives and dig up some oldies but goodies!


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Mid-August Garden Update

It has been a hot summer with what little rain we got coming in fits and starts. Four inches here, a half inch there, and plenty of sunshine. This meant lots of watering, and I was nearly as wet as the garden when I was done. It would have been nice of all that rain we had back in the spring had been spaced out a bit.

The second run of beans is still producing and we had a great dinner last night of fresh squash and beans, and a pepper from the garden cooked in with some fried potatoes. I should also mention that fresh-from-the-garden-parsley is amazing. Now I know that parsley actually has a fragrance. It was so good in my parsley, garlic, anchovy and olive oil sauce for our skirt steak. Yum! If you don't grow parsley, you should.

The squash have had a good run, but they are winding down and will soon be removed to start the fall garden. 

Hubby's tomato now has 5 tomatoes on it and we are hoping they will survive to ripen. Did I mention we are not seasoned gardeners? In my other bed, I have three zucchini and another pepper. The tag says it is ancho/poblano. Could be one or the other or a mixture. Doesn't matter to me...it's all good. After the yellow summer squash, I am looking forward to some late summer zucchini.

Still to come are beets and maybe some more radish, and I hope to get onions and garlic in around the first of October.

What's in your garden now?


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Can You Believe It's Already July?

So where does the time go? The older I get the more often I ask this question. Time is flying by faster than a spaceship from childhood cartoons. That said, the garden is growing by leaps and bounds. At least the squash is. It is finally producing! We picked two and I counted nearly a dozen more tiny ones just set on. Thank goodness, I was beginning to think I was the only poor schmuck on the planet who couldn't grow squash. And guess what? That third (and last) row of radish actually produced a few radishes for hubby's dinner.

That may all be in jeopardy because while I was watering this afternoon with the hose attached to the newly reconnected spigot, I was startled to notice that the tomato was somewhat shorter than yesterday. Now wait a minute, they are supposed to grow upward, right? I looked closer to see that the very top had been chewed off (at least they left the blossoms). Then the beans...nearly a half dozen of my beans had been chewed off as well.

Now folks, this garden isn't in the country. Nope, it has been in the city for nearly 30 years and even when it was squarely in the county, there were rarely ever any wildlife spotted except for the usual birds, hoppy toads, as we called them, and the occasional garter snake.

Well, it appears that we may have deer munching our veggies. We've heard about deer sightings in the neighborhood, but haven't seen them. We have seen deer where we live a short distance away and also in the city, twice this year late in the evening.

Whatever it is at least they haven't show a preference for squash...yet. Fingers crossed.

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