THE COLOSSAL POTATO TOWER VENTURE - "UPDATE"

 More on how Tru's potatoes grew

THE COLOSSAL POTATO TOWER VENTURE - "UPDATE": "So my potato tower has gotten a resurgence. In fact there are more flowers on now than there were before. As I need some potatoes, I just dig a couple out, and leave the rest. I figure until it get too col, the best place for them is in the ground. They are elevated, so are well drained and should not rot in the ground where they are situated. I am; however, getting a little anxious to break that baby open!

"

THE COLOSSAL POTATO TOWER VENTURE - "UPDATE"

THE COLOSSAL POTATO TOWER VENTURE - "UPDATE": "

I haven't taken any pics of my potato tower for a while. It's been so hot, I didn't feel like doing much. Anyway, here's what it looks like today. Some of the plants have died back, but some are still growing.

From what I've researched on this, it says you can rob a few potatoes from the died back plants. So, I harvested a few for supper tonight. These are from the top layer. They look good enough to eat! I think I will, thank-you very much!

May15,2010 May27,2010

June8,2010 June18,2010

June29, 2010

July 11, 2010

"

THE COLOSSAL POTATO TOWER VENTURE - "UPDATE"

THE COLOSSAL POTATO TOWER VENTURE - "UPDATE": "I haven't harvested any potatoes for awhile, but today I decided to dig a couple up for supper.
This is the first potato I dug up. I put a coffee cup next to it, just to give a perspective of the size. It is the size of


2 large potatoes.

Hubby was with me and we both started to laugh. I said, ' I guess that's supper .'







Anyway, I'm still debating whether or not to break the whole thing open 'cause there is still quite a lot of green going on up top. We haven't had a killing frost in our area yet, so I guess that explains why these tater plants are hanging on for dear life. I'm also waiting for my horseradish to turn brown to harvest that. I suppose it will all come at the same time.


Have a Great Evening !

"

POTATO TOWER...THE REVEAL!!

I want to try potatoes in the garden this year. This looks like a fabulous way to plant them.

Potato Skyscraper/Tower here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rGWZAIjsTU

POTATO TOWER...THE REVEAL!!: "

This is what it looked like when I first planted it...

This is at peak growing...

And this is just before I broke that sucka open. It really shrunk down.

It didn't exactly all fall out, like the guy said it would, but close enough. I could brush the soil away with my hands where the potatoes were growing.

I don't know if you can tell or not, but I raked about 2/3 of the soil back into the spot to compost over the winter. That way I'll have my first layer for next spring already there.

Here's my harvest. About 7#. Add to that about 5# we harvested earlier, it comes to about 12# or so. So, I doubled my input, 'cause I planted 6# originally. So It comes to about 25 cents a pound for fresh potatoes. That's not too terrible. I did expect a better harvest, but this is certainly better than the none I was able to grow in the ground before. Add to that no digging to harvest and I think we have a winner.

Here's my largest potato...

And here's the smallest!

So, to recap:

Pros

It didn't take up much space

It looked pretty good as an architectural planting

It was pretty maintenance free, except for watering and a couple of 'wheat' weeds from the straw

The harvesting was easy

I actually got a harvest

Cons

Not as good of harvest as I would have liked

I plan to do this again next year, but I think I'll skip the Kennebecs. We weren't real thrilled with them and prefer the Reds and Yukons.

On This Day in Christian History: 365 Amazing and Inspiring Stories About Saints, Martyrs, and Heroes

On This Day in Christian History: 365 Amazing and Inspiring Stories About Saints, Martyrs, and Heroes: "

On This Day in Christian History: 365 Amazing and Inspiring Stories about Saints, Martyrs and Heroes by Robert J. Morgan is a unique new resource. I received it to review a few weeks ago and I'm excited about the possibilities.



About the book:



Amazing stories of faith from twenty centuries of church history.



From the Roman Empire to the Reformation, St. Valentine to St. Francis, Martin Luther to Billy Graham, On This Day in Christian History introduces readers to a parade of preachers, popes, martyrs, heroes, and saints from 2,000 years of Christianity.



This introduction to 365 of the most interesting men and women of faith brings a year's worth of inspiration and spiritual challenge and offers an enjoyable glimpse into church history. Each day includes a related Scripture reading and a simple, colorful story about history-making events in the lives of people who loved God wholeheartedly.



My thoughts:



What a fantastic resource! I can think of multiple ways this book can be used by different people. Pastors and teachers will find it a great source for illustrations, it makes a wonderful addition to history studies for homeschoolers, and it works well as a daily devotional too.



Author Robert J. Morgan explains why he wrote the book:

'Contemporary Christianity is interested in recent trends, current challenges, and modern methods. So am I. But nothing braces me to face these days like visiting the cloud of witnesses that comprise church history.

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn observed, 'If we don't know our own history, we will simply have to endure all the same mistakes, sacrifices, and absurdities all over again.'

'How shall we labor with any effect to build up the church' asks Philip Schaff, 'if we have no thorough knowledge of her history? History is, and must ever continue to be, next to God's word, the richest foundation of wisdom, and the surest guide to all successful practical activity.'

This is one of the reasons I'm providing this armchair tour of the chronicles of Christianity in a devotional format-to inspire, amuse, challenge, and deepen the soul with two thousand years of anecdotes from an alphabet of characters from Ambrose to Zinzendorf.'

I've mentioned before that a knowledge of our history is a priority for me with our children:

'I think being familiar with the history of the church and major figures in it's history is incredibly valuable for children. It's important for them to understand how we got where we are now and give them a sense of heritage. Not to mention the incredible examples some of the church fathers, missionaries and other figures set for us!"

The same applies to adults! A lack of knowledge of church history seems to be the general rule in many churches today. A resource like this is step in the right direction! The entries are short...each date takes up just one page, so each one provides just a brief snapshot. Still, there's a broad range covered here, from ancient to recent times, that will certainly whet the appetite to learn more. Just flipping to a few significant dates for our family for a sampling covers these:

• The origin of the King James Bible


• Martin Luther at the Diet of Worms


• Scottish giant of the faith Robert Murray McCheyne


• The Spanish Inquisition


• Missionary Eric Liddell of Chariots of Fire fame


• The Great Schism between the Eastern and Western Churches


• Jonathan Edwards

Our entire family has enjoyed what we've read so far. My plan is to add it to our daily reading and make a timeline as we go through it using our History Through the Ages figures. I look forward to continuing to use this as a resource for a long time. I highly recommend it!



(I received a complimentary copy of On This Day in Christian History from Thomas Nelson to review, but all opinions expressed are my own.)

"

DIY: Long Necklaces, Managed.

Cuter than mine is, better frame, burlap and coffee hooks - mine plain ole generic cork bulletin board and clear thumb tacks. It works but doesn't look as cute as this.


DIY: Long Necklaces, Managed.: "

I had a cute necklace holder a few years ago that broke, and a new one has been on my shopping list ever since. I have looked at several in different stores but never found one that I like or that would accommodate my looong necklaces. Those are the ones that have been tangled up in my drawer and really need to be managed in the first place, so that’s the priority. Last week, Chris ended up detangling a knot of necklaces while I finished getting ready to leave the house, and I decided that I would just take matters into my own hands and make one for myself.

I made it a priority to get to the thrift store on the day that the artwork was 50% off, and walked home with this cool frame for about $5.

I removed the glass, picture and matting and pulled out some old foam board that I had never used. I cut the foam board, wrapped it in some heavy burlap (of course) and hot glued the edges around the back.

I picked up some padded hooks from Walmart for about $1. They started off white, which was just a little too stark for the frame, so I spray painted them beige and then rubbed on a little wood stain. This was a better color but left them tacky and messy, so I put a coat of matte Mod Podge and they sealed up nicely.

I wanted the hooks to be exactly 2 inches apart, so I got out the measuring tape and marked the back of the foam board in pen before I twisted the hooks through. I put 2 smaller hooks at the end of the row for shorter necklaces, and 2 at the bottom for bracelets.

I love it! Of all of the things that I have made, this was certainly the easiest. A perfect combination of cheap, fast, functional and pretty. A+

I’m linking up to The Girl Creative, Cottage Instincts, Making the World Cuter, Made it Monday, Sumo’s Sweet Stuff, Make Your Monday, A Soft Place to Land, Talented Tuesday, Today’s Creative Blog, Toot Your Horn Tuesday, Show and Tell,Works for Me Wednesday, Somewhat Simple, Thrifty Thursday, Transformation Thursday, Show off Your Stuff, Creative Cats, Finding Fabulous, Design-Aholic and Funky Junk Interiors.

"

50 Healthy Foods for Under $1 a Pound

50 Healthy Foods for Under $1 a Pound

Good idea here.

Educational Travel

What follows is a fabulous post about learning while traveling. It amazes me all the things that this family has been able to do in teaching her children while traveling the country. The life skills alone are great but also the experiences, the hands on, eyes on, feet on work is breathtaking. When we travel with our son, we always try to go off the beaten path, to take the time to really get into an area and not worry about cramming all there is to do in one area all at the same time. Who says you can't go back to the same travel destination more than once? While our son is not homeschooled, every child is homeschooled in one way or the other but man oh man, I'd like to be a child in Diane's family. What a great life.

Her entry is below, but make sure to hop over to her blog and read about homeschooling, visit her store and realize all that you can teach you child if you just try.

At the Lincoln Memorial

We just got home from a spur-of-the-moment week-long educational field trip to Washington DC! Since we live in the West, being able to see our American history memorials, sites and documents is a really big thrill for my kids . . . and for us parents too! Louisa is studying the American Revolution right now in her homeschool history studies, so this was a perfect learning tool. We had a chance to go for cheap, so we jumped at it, and off we went! The White House, the Capitol building, Smithsonian museums, the National Archives, the Lincoln Memorial, Mt. Vernon, Library of Congress, Smithsonian museums . . . hurray!

In my opinion, an educational trip counts for about a year of book-learning, so we travel as often as we can manage it. In the botanical gardens of Florida, snorkeling on the reefs in Mexico or sitting in on a Supreme Court session—real education happens! Most importantly, we change. Every experience cranks our minds open. We aren’t a big fish in a little pond anymore. The wider the world gets, the more we see how we fit into it and that is humbling. We come away asking, “How can I contribute to this big world?”

Being a homeschooling family, we are always looking for opportunities and nothing packs opportunity like travel. Seeing new people, new types of houses, unfamiliar lifestyles, unique cultures, trying new foods, traveling on forms of transportation we are unaccustomed to—they all are mind-expanding.

We travel light and cheap. We eat plain. My kids say we went through Europe on foot, on bread and water—and it is true! We are hungry for history, thirsty for adventure! We figure we can eat more lavishly and dress more fashionably when we get home. Going light and cheap means we can make it happen! As soon as our kids can pull a rolling suitcase, they are in charge of holding their own. We aim to go to bed early, get up early and pack each day when we travel. We have to get along in close quarters. (Yes, there are rough moments.)

Going cheap: We search for ultra cheap flights, use Priceline to bid for crazily inexpensive car rentals (our trip to Washington DC landed us a luxury van for just $15 per day). We’ve stayed in 5 star hotels for $40 a night by “name your own price” on Priceline. Although staying in a 5 star hotel is a fabulous experience that is super-fun for kids (and adults), I would recommend bidding for the 2.5 star hotels, as they usually have free breakfast, which helps a lot! We use the grocery store instead of restaurants. As soon as we arrive and pick up our rental car, we go to a grocery store, buy a cheap $3 styrofoam cooler, fill it with inexpensive, simple and wholesome food, and load it from the hotel ice dispenser each morning. We go light. Every family member is allowed one small rolling suitcase (carry-on size for clothes) and a lightweight shoulder bag which holds his reading book, card game, activities, water bottle and food pack. Less stuff = less work.

Food packs: I got tired of being the food dispenser, and all-over-my-lap-in-the-car sandwich maker, so it is fabulous having everyone take charge of themselves! The “food pack” is just a zip-lock bag with each family member’s name on it. All of the day’s food goes into this zip-lock bag, making everyone self-sufficient between breakfast and dinner. Each morning after a simple breakfast (fruit with yogurt, bread and peanut butter or cream cheese), the food packs are loaded with the goal: “only pack what you will eat”. Family members are assigned to make up the individual components (a baggie of baby carrots, or nuts and raisins, sandwiches, etc.) and they are laid out wherever convenient (you have to get creative in a hotel room). Each person takes what they will need and hauls their own food pack. Then during the day, everyone helps themselves when hungry or thirsty, giving mom a vacation too, and saving the budget from hunger-induced purchases or eating in restaurants. On each trip, we make sure to go to a local restaurant once or twice and eat what the locals eat—be it yucca root, okra and green tomatoes, crab cakes, bread pudding, poi or alligator! We look forward to that new adventure, and usually order one of each unusual traditional food and share our plates. Eating unusual food alone expands our experience greatly! And gives us some startling memories to laugh over: fried dill pickles, ugh!

Daily journal writing preserves the fun memories, the learning moments, and gives expression to the many questions and pondering that takes place as you learn something new. They are also a great evening activity in a hotel room, as well as reading travel brochures and planning the next day. We don’t watch TV in hotels, but we definitely swim! Anyway, those travel journals pack great memories!

We read all the plaques, stop at all the museums and points of interest, go wherever we want to go, and study whatever piques our curiosity. Education at its most sublime! We plan each day loosely and enjoy lots of spontaneity. My husband gets the all-time-award for being the most versatile driver! I am known to call out suddenly, “turn here!!!” as I see something of interest. And he does! From tiny crowded one-way alley streets in Italy to dirt trails up steep mountains in the Rockies, he amazingly responds to my “let’s go there!” and we’ve had some marvelous (and scary) adventures! And seen wonderful off-the-path sights too, like a bubbling mineral hot spring hill formation right out in a field in Colorado that we took off our shoes, rolled up our pants and waded around in. And concrete WWI Nazi bunkers on the cliffs of Normandy, France that we climbed down in and felt sobered by. That spontaneity has paid off and we’ve had amazing learning experiences!

Think about educational travel. It is possible. You can do it for cheap. It teaches your kids so much! Those experiences bond your family in wonderful ways! The world can be your campus.

As we were unpacking from Washington DC, my kids were already talking about where to go next . . .

"

The Hardest Mysteries

For about a year, I wrote a daily prayer out and found it to be very helpful in my faith life. I stopped doing that when I ceased being involved in the organization that I was actually doing that for which was not a Catholic organization but rather a protestant one (I left the organization when I converted). For some reason, I didn't carry over this journaling prayer habit after my conversion. I think because everything was all so new and different. I appreciate Sarah writing about this in her blog entry that follows as I believe it will help me out of the spiritual rut I have been in for a while now. Her thoughts on the Rosary and Eucharistic Adoration and the links she provided are going to be very helpful as well.

The Hardest Mysteries: "
I’m back in a prayer routine that is comfortable and well-worn: getting up really early and spending the quiet, dark time in my kitchen, refilling my mug of coffee while using Divine Office, iPieta, and a variety of rosary resources.
A couple of weeks ago, as I struggled, yet again, with mental distraction while praying the rosary, I had a moment that had to be inspired by the Holy Spirit: why not journal while praying the rosary? When I go to Eucharistic Adoration, I have been in the habit for years of writing my prayer–it feels more natural, more like a real conversation instead of me sitting there and dozing (because that is what happens when I sit still).

Why not use my writing-praying technique for my morning rosary?

It does make it take longer. It is a little unwieldy for an admitted klutzy-type person. It’s changing my prayer experience, though, and it’s also helping me pay more attention and battle those mental distractions. (For now, anyway. It seems I have to change it up and keep it fresh or lose my mind while trying to pray the rosary.)

It has also helped me as I’ve continued my rosary meditations on Catholic Moments. I’ve been struggling with the set I’m working on right now, the Glorious Mysteries. While I was battling writing a reflection for the Ascension last week, I wondered “out loud” (on Twitter and Facebook, since my three-year-old was the only one with me and her answer is likely to involve horses and pink sparkles) what the hardest mysteries are. . .

My morning rosary writing is helping me, though it was in Adoration that I found myself able, finally, to write about the mysteries I still had to prepare for my upcoming Mary Moment segments.)