The Asters Finally Bloomed!

They finally bloomed!!! I've been growing these from seed since about March!

Asters and Bags and Cooking

ASTERS
The other day, my asters I have been growing from SEED! wilted in the scorching sun. I thought they were gonners, but today they perked up again and are about to bloom!!! Finally! I planted them eons ago!



And eons later, they look like this:



I'm thrilled!!! :-)

BAGS
I started ice skating lessons again last week and this week I start school. That keeps life pretty busy scrunched in between volleyball, work, small group, church, and other various activities. I don't have a spouse and children to tend to, so keeping organized is pretty simple. But I don't like packing and unpacking everything weekly, so here's how I organize. I am the bag lady. Each activity has a bag that is just the right size for all the needed items. I place the loaded bags by the door before bed so I remember what I'm doing when I crawl out the door in the morning. Below are: my school bag(with books, calculator, pen, pencil, and notebook...I usually shove a pain of jeans in there too to change into after work), ice skating bag (ice skates, guards, hair clips, comb, mittens...easy to forget in June!), my purse (everyday necessity), and my lunch bag (though I usually use a cotton green one so I can throw it in the wash more often...but its in the fridge at work). I also have some larger bags for less frequent travels and a sturdier backpack for road or airplane trips. This system saves me a lot of time and sanity!



COOKING
Ok, its probably more along the lines of baking, but I made these granola bars and brought them into work today. They were a huge hit! They're probably more cookie-ish than granola-ish, but its an easy recipe to tweak to your liking.

My Garden

One of my favourite things about where I live is my balcony. It is a fairly large balcony. I have a table and chairs out there, perfect for reading or dining. It faces south so gets great sun all day. Some of my neighbors have gardens in a plot out back, but my landlord didn't expand it this year, so since I didn't have one last year I'm out of luck.




Earlier this year my friend Kari and I went to Wal-Mart to pick up some things for her job. We noticed the plants were being dropped off right then and looked very healthy (especially for their inexpensive price). I picked up chives, strawberries, basil, and a tomato plant. I wasn't expecting much from these little plants, but they've grown and just this week the strawberry and tomato plants are flowering with fruit expected soon! I can't wait! There is nothing like eating food you grew right in your own garden. I'm also surprised they did so well growing on a balcony! Horray! I'm excited. My next adventure will be to compost my own dirt this winter. That may prove tricky.