Tag: what’s new today

Our Gardening Journey week 11

Our Gardening Journey week 11

by alexa parisi ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

I have so many things to update you guys on. I have had both good and bad things happen over the course of the week. This week has been a whirl wind of things going on.

So to start off with the bad. I think that I may not be using the fertilizer right or maybe my plants just don’t like it. Every time I fertilize my plants die a few days after. I’ve already lost a basil plant. My plants outside are doing fine but it’s my indoor plants. Not only did that happen but I accidentally killed my large tomato’s. I made the mistake of not putting them in a pot with drainage holes. All the rain last week killed them. I’m so mad at myself for doing that. Also, if your probably wondering why I didn’t post anything last Wednesday it’s because I was sick for a couple of days. No it wasn’t covid and I know this because I was tested. Now I’m okay and almost feeling 100% myself.

Ok so onto the good. Where to start is the question. Well, let’s see my cucumber plant is doing really good so far. No cucumbers but is it growing like crazy. It’s flowering like crazy now. The next awesome thing that is happening is that I’ve got more green beans growing. I’ve seen a difference with those ever since I put the netting on. The new leaves are not as eaten up as the others. I think it took literally a few days for the leaves to be eaten up without the netting on at the beginning. Literally my mouth dropped this week when I saw the green bean plants. The leaves have come back to life and they aren’t half eaten. I don’t think that I will get a lot of green beans this year so I’m probably going to use the seeds for next years harvest.

So what is new around here you ask? You can kinda say that I got bit by this thing called the gardening bug. I ended up also sowing some new vegetables and herbs into my garden this past weekend. I’ve also become inspired by watching some YouTube videos of people who grow everything in their garden and have become somewhat self sustainable. My goal is to cut down on grocery costs. I’m also trying to get my husband, the accountant, into it as well. For one thing I think once he sees that it will make a difference in the long term then he will be more involved. Plus I think it’s a good hobby for us to do both together and eventually with our son. However, I also like the fact that it gets me focused on something other than just being a working mom. I don’t have to think about work and it is relaxing for me after putting my son down for bed. Plus it counts as a workout for me too.

So what new crops am I growing? Well, since our first frost date is for the end of October I’ve sowed crops that I will be able to harvest in about 75 days or so. I mostly tried to put out crops that we eat like cauliflower, lettuce and carrots and more tomatoes. Yes we have a obsession with tomatoes. We have to have them every Tuesday night for taco Tuesday. However, I did try to plant some crops that we also don’t normally eat as well like radishes. I also put in some new herbs such as oregano as well.

Also, last but not least I’m trying out a little experiment of using sandwich bags as a mini green house to make my super sweet 100 hybrid tomato seeds grow. I’m also thinking of maybe trying this on my basil as well. I still have my jiffy plastic container box started but I ran out of starter pods. I figured hey I have soil and I have all these pots why not do a little experiment.

Overall, I learned some new things this week that are both good and bad. I may not be the best gardener but I do have room to improve. I am determined to get my grocery costs low and to eat a over all healthier diet.

How to harvest and properly store basil?

How to harvest and properly store basil?

by alexa parisi ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

So as a new gardener I came to this bump in the road and questioning what is the right way to harvest basil? So I’ve scoured the internet and also asked my father on what’s the proper way to harvest and store basil. These are the steps that I’ve learned on how to do just that.

Materials:

Paper towels

Ice water in a bowl or plastic container is fine

Scissors

Gallon size bag

Basil plants

Step 1: Go through your plant and take out all the dead leaves that have fallen on the soil.

Step 2: Start cutting the stems right after the first node of the mature basil. The mature basil will have two big leaves and two small leaves on it like the one in this picture. You want to make sure you harvest the basil before those two little leaves form seeds. Once it starts forming seeds it will die. Doing this will also help encourage new and more growth. You will see more stems growing and sprouting.

The node is right above my thumb. So you want to cut between where my thumb and where the two stems shoot off of the main stem.

Step 3: once you have harvested your basil go through them and take out any leaves that are starting to become diseased. You don’t want to eat those.

Step 4: cut off and discard the stems of your basil.

Step 5: take your leaves and run them under water to take off any soil or critters that may still be on them. Pat them as dry as you can get them with paper towels

After I harvested one of my two basil pots

Step 6: Put them in the ice cold water for 15 seconds. This will shock them and help stop them from going bad.

Step 7 pat them dry with a paper towel and fold the paper towel with the basil in it and store in a gallon sized bag.

The ones on the left is right after the ice bath and the ones on the right are about to be put into ziplock bags.

Step 8: repeat steps 6 and 7 if necessary.

Step 9 date and freeze your bags for future use.

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Our Gardening Journey week 10

Our Gardening Journey week 10

by alexa parisi ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

So this week I’ve made some changes in my garden that have both were positives and negatives. You can say that I’m still learning from my mistakes. I do have a lot to tell you guys so let get on to it.

The first thing is that I’ve made a few changes. The first thing that I did was I fertilized my plants so much so that some of the are dying. I know now that I over fertilized them. I literally killed my smallest basil plants. I also repotted my bell pepper and tomotes. I have two types of tomotes growing. One of them is a small type of tomato and the other is a larger type of tomato. I had one small tomato plant left inside and so I added that one to the black container outside that I already had of the same kind. However, the larger tomato I put in a pot that I had outside. I also bought these nettings to put over them. You can buy these nettings here. I love them so much I have already seen a difference in my other plants outside and the amount of vegetables that are coming in. The best part about these netting is that they keep out those pesky bugs. They aren’t just good to keep out pesky bugs but also animals like birds, squirrels and dogs too. The best part is that you get a set of 3 for under $10.00. I also have so many green beans that are growing now it’s insane. I’ve also cleaned up my cucumbers and green bean plants from the dead leaves.

My small tomato plant.
My large tomato plant that I transplanted outside. These were getting too big for this container.

The second thing that my husband and I are working on is getting rid of the vines that are growing on our hill. Ok so it’s just my husband working on it. In Georgia we have what is called kudzo that grows here. If you know what kudzo is then you know that it grows back fast. Like really insanely fast. That is what is mostly growing on our hill. We have cut down a lot of the shrubs that were growing but now he is tackling killing the roots. We have found a solution mixture that has been killing it. So make sure you sign up for my email news letter and watch out for a new post on that.

The last thing that I did was I cut back some of the dead leaves on my green bean and cucumber plants. I saw a lot more green beans budding out and I didn’t want any more of my green bean plants to get sick. My cucumbers plant had a lot of dead leaves so I wanted to clean that up as well. I also tied some of the vines to the trellises with some special wiring that I got with the purchase of the trellises.

My green bean plant
My cucumber plant.

Overall, this week has been a crazy week over in our garden. I’m excited to be expanding our garden. I still cannot decide whether I want to grow my vegetables above ground or make a in ground garden. I do know that I really am enjoying doing this. Make sure you subscribe to our email for more weekly updates!

NEW BLOG POST ALERT!

NEW BLOG POST ALERT!

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NEW BLOG POST ALERT!
Our Gardening Journey week 9 This is what I used to keep pesky bugs away.

Our Gardening Journey week 9 This is what I used to keep pesky bugs away.

by alexa parisi ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Disclaimer: Their are affiliate links that I may or may not receive commission on at no cost to you.

So this week is going to be a short but exciting post. I’ve made a few changes that have helped the growth of my plants. Keep on reading to find out what is new around here.

The first thing that has changed is that I bought more self watering plants. I ended up finding these pots that are below. I think they are a great value. You can get a lot more pots for the price. The total number of pots that I received is 6. It’s been a couple of days since I’ve transplanted my tomatoes into them and I can tell that they are making a difference. I can see more growth and my plants look more livelier. I didn’t want to buy pots that were expensive. I wanted something where I don’t have to worry about watering them everyday. A plus side to these compared to the other ones that I have is that if you place them near a window you can see through them and see how much water the plant has.

The light part of the pot in this picture is the water.

The second thing that I’ve done was Ive transplanted my small cherry tomatoes from a white pot to my trellis pots outside. I’ve also added these netting’s as well. All I can say is that wow I’ve seen a huge difference in the over all health of my vegetables outside. It has kept a lot of bugs off the plants. So much so that a green bean popped out! I’m so excited that I’ve already had a vegetable come out. My cucumbers are also flowering like crazy too. In fact I had to tie more of the stems onto the trellis because they were hanging over each other. I’m kicking myself that I didn’t get these any earlier. I 100% recommend these to anyone that has trellises outside.

Look at that little great bean!
I actually had two green beans pop out this week! Can you spot the green bean in this picture?

The last thing that I did was I harvested my basil. I had to do this because I have a ton that is over growing in my pots. So much so that the roots are coming out the bottom of my self watering pot. Make sure you subscribe to my email list and watch out for a post in the near future of how I saved my basil harvest.

My cucumbers
My cucumbers are flowering!

Overall, I’m really ecstatic about how far my plants have come along. The next thing that my husband and I are going to try and tackle are the flies because we have a bunch of them that we’re trying to eat my plants outside and they are coming inside as well.

Using this is what helped my son as a newborn

Using this is what helped my son as a newborn

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Disclaimer: Their are affiliate links that I may or may not receive commission on at no cost to you.

So when my son was born I thought I knew it all when he was a baby. I had ten years of experience of teaching infants and toddlers. I thought I was so ready and prepared. Little did I know that his first two months were also the hardest.

When you become pregnant as a new mom you get all sorts of different advise from everyone and you read tons of books and blogs and you might watch a ton of YouTube videos. I thought that I had it all planned out because of my background in education. Well, none of it prepared me for the first few months. Yes even if you are a teacher yourself nothing will prepare you for your own child.

Nothing prepared me for the first month when he had tummy and gas pains. Almost every child gets this the first month they are born. It’s like buying a brand new house that has just been built. You hear all sorts of new noises and are praying that you don’t have a blocked pipe or a over flowing one. You want everything to run smoothly.

The first few days he had jaundice and it took his little system a while to start moving. That was a contributing factor but when he started to wake up and cry randomly at night we realized that something was not right.

I went through every possible scenario. At first I thought it was my breast milk. Then I thought it was the supplemental milk, which we changed anyways, and then I thought it was the bottles. I was also even pumping(bicycling) his legs to different songs and rhythms after a while to keep it fun and interesting.

I knew it wasn’t my milk because he was fine during the day when I gave it to him. However, at night he would wake up and scream a few hours after drinking the supplemental milk. So then I changed him from similac to enfamil gentle ease. He seemed better but still was getting bad gas pains. If you are going to supplement or skip breast feeding altogether then get the premise bottles and not the powder. You have to be careful with the powder and adding in water because even though you can put in the right amounts you can still make more or less formula in the bottle. Down below is what I used for the pre-made formula.

So finally I thought it was the bottle. I noticed one night that he was literally putting air into the bottle. So I did my research and the first switch that I made was from advent bottles to the anti colic Philips bottles. I thought that it would be the end of that. Nope! I was wrong again! Those didn’t work either. So I then did more research and found dr browns bottles.

Finding those bottles was like the heavens opened up again! He cried a lot less and was so much calmer! I’m saying this because sometimes it can be so simple such as a bottle switch. I thought that buying philips was the way to go because it was a wide nipple and a better fit. Boy was I wrong!

I sure am glad that I switched. He became a happy little camper and to this day at 13 months old he now opens his mouth up wide for that bottle. Figuring these little guys out is like a jigsaw puzzle and once you find that one piece that fits then it all comes together.

Overall, if your baby has colic it might be that they need to switch formulas or to a different bottle or even both. Just remember momma you got this and this too shall pass!

My 4 top items to have on hand after a C section

My 4 top items to have on hand after a C section

by alexa parisi ♥ 1 Comment

So this post is going to be for those new mommas who just had a elective c section or a emergency c section. I just wanted to get this off my chest and say that baby is going to come the way that it wants to come. Ok rant over. So now you are probably thinking what items do I need or need to get for my c section recovery ?

First, I just want to say that I was an emergency c section baby and my son was sort of an emergency c section. What I mean by sort of is that I literally told the doctor at the beginning of my pregnancy however he wants to come is fine by me. So with that being said I kinda packed for both a vaginal and C section birth and afterbirth. The items that helped me out the most both during and after are below.

1. The first item that I bought is depends underwear. Those are literally the best things that mankind ever gave to women. The amount of blood you will pass after is unreal. It doesn’t matter if you had a c section or not. I bled for weeks and I kid you not that those hospital pads or pharmacy pads will not help you one bit. In fact here is a little secret. I still use them at night because I hate waking up finding out that I bled through. Not only are they comfortable but now they have different colors and designs.

2. The second item that used were hot/cold packs to help with the pain near the incision site and the cramps that happen afterwards. You will have some cramping happen afterwards. These will help with some of the pain you will have from the doctor stitching you up. This is especially helpful to have after the nurses check out your stomach.

3. The third thing to have handy in both a vaginal and c section are compression socks. If you end up having a c section you will be in bed until the day after surgery and until after all the medications have worn off. Not only do they keep you somewhat warm but they are good to have if you have had any serious health clotting issues in the past. I had these on the whole time in the hospital.

This picture is from my own c section.

4. Most of all have a helpful and handy support system. You won’t be able to move the first day or two so having someone to help with diaper changes is helpful. I have to brag on my husband as a new father he was a rock star while I on the other hand was not in any shape or form to get up and move.

Overall, that baby is going to come the way that it wants. It may not be the way that you envisioned or liked but having these things with me helped me a lot. Honestly, I would 100% do a c section again.

Our Gardening Journey week 6

Our Gardening Journey week 6

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So this week I had made some major changes to our garden. I not only managed to repot some plants but I somehow ended up buying more seeds to grow more flowers and vegetables.

The first thing that I did was I repotted some of the vegetables and flowers. Weeks ago I bought some special trellises that came in a pack of 3 and can hold up to 40 quarts of soil. So far they are holding up really well. I desperately needed to replant the green beans and cucumbers. However, my tomatoes are taking some time to grow so those won’t be getting transplanted for a while. I also replanted the Jumping Junipers and Sweet Williams into two flower hanging pots. Every thing that I bought off of Amazon is linked below. If you click on the Amazon link you will be directed where I bought my items.

The second thing that I did was I somehow ended up back at home depo to buy more vegetable seeds. This time however I bought purple coneflowers, bell peppers, and a different kind of tomato called a cloudy day hybrid tomato.

Overall, I’m excited to see our little garden grow! You can certainly say that I caught the gardening bug! I’m hoping to make our backyard into our own little piece of heaven.

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My top advise for new moms

My top advise for new moms

by alexa parisi ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

So one thing that I really want to talk about and get off my chest is advise for new moms. This is something that I dealt with my whole pregnancy and the first year of my sons life. Everybody is going to give their own two sense about your child. When I mean everyone I mean everyone. While some advise is great, however, some of it is not so great. At first it was irritating but I’ve learned a few things a long the way.

The first thing is that you don’t have to please anyone. What I mean by that is you don’t have to say yeah I will do that. You can say flat out say no or say sorry but that doesn’t work for us parents. For example, when I was pregnant a lot of people told me oh you should get him pacifiers. I flat out said no because for one thing it will mess up his teeth and for another it will be a power struggle to get him off of them. However, when I had him he had to have a pacifier when he had jaundice to keep himself “occupied” so he wouldn’t pull down his mask while under Billie Rubin lights. I only let him have it then and after he came off of the lights I took away the pacifier because it was causing all of us sleep issues. It took him a few days to adjust but he was fine without it and we all slept better without it.

Secondly, you are the parent you know your child best. If you don’t like what someone is doing to your child or the unsolicited advise that they are giving you just say hey I’m the parent I’ll decide what is best for my kid. Better yet I would say that’s something that is between me and their pediatrician.

Lastly and most importantly follow your gut. If you agree to whatever advice is given to you then that’s great but if you don’t then that’s okay too. Just remember at the end of the day that you are the parent.

Overall, that is your child. As mom to mom and parent to parent no one knows how that kid is better than you. Take every piece of advise with a grain of salt.

How to make edible paint

How to make edible paint

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So this week I wanted to do something really fun with my son. He is still too little to hold paint brushes or crayons and I didn’t want to spend a ton of money either. So I decided to try out finger painting with him!

The first thing that I did was I bought poster paper from CVS. No it wasn’t a big poster board but it was poster paper that was cut down. I wanted something that was thick. I didn’t want to buy construction paper because I wanted the paint to really pop on the page. Poster paper is thick enough to put on a lot of paint and it not be totally soaked though.

The second thing that I did was make the paint. Buying the paint would have been much more simpler but you don’t always know what manufacturers put in those paints. Plus this paint is a lot easier to clean and it doesn’t stain like most store bought paints do. Below is the recipe that I used to make edible paint.

1/2 cup of flour

1/2 cup of water

1/2 cup of salt (optional)

Food coloring of your choice

Ziplock bags

Containers to store paint

First, you mix the flour and salt until they are well mixed. You don’t have to add the salt but I did because it adds a sensory experience for children. Then you add water and mix until it’s smooth. Then you divide up your batch into ziplock bags with how many colors to want to use. Then you put the food coloring into the bags and you shake them up! Then store it into containers. I slipped off the end of the bags like I was going to pipe a cake and let the paint come out that way into the containers.

Lastly, have fun with it! For my son it was his first time painting and he did get it all over him. I do have to recommend making your child take a bath afterwards! My sons facial expressions were so funny too. He was looking at me like what is this stuff mom? I wish I did take pictures of him painting though!

Over all this is a fun activity to do with the littles! They get to have fun and learn about colors. I would recommend doing this activity when they are young!