frost on the leaves

we woke up to this this morning. doesn't happen often.

cold cold cold

fall in Florida

It has been very cold here lately. Very windy too, which makes it feel even colder. We had a wind chill advisory last night and had to bring some of our plants in and cover them. The kittens have taken to staying inside also. At least there is some sun. This doesn't help our winter vegetables much. I haven't checked on the onions lately, but since they are bulbs in the ground, I think they'll be ok. 

happy holidays

best wishes for a peaceful and prosperous new year

break in the weather

The weather was a little better today. I actually had the chance to uncover the fish pond and add some water. All the fish are there, thank god, they have all survived. It most recently looked like this photo above, taken at our famous Lake Eola downtown. No rain today, and no chance of rain anytime soon. I am hoping we have a better rainy season this summer. We didn't get much rain this past year. We need it or the threat of brush fires grows. That we don't need.

rain today

It looked like this for most of the day today. It wasn't as cold, but the rain was biting, so it didn't make for such a great day. At least the plants got fed water, and they didn't freeze. I uncovered a bit of the fish pond, for some fresh air and possible sun, and all the fish are they. I bought a plant for the pond in the hopes the plant would provide some shelter and warmth and fun for the fishes to swim through. I just got one. The last time we had this plant it took over the pond, but we bought, like 6 of them. A little overboard with the plants at that time, but now we know better. The kittens are enjoying being outside again, but not the rain so much. Rain makes it difficult for the kittens to slide gracefully off the top of my car. 

bus stop foot

I thought of riding the bus today, since I understand that Santa Claus may be my bus driver any day, and that means my ride is free; but it's still too cold. I couldn't talk myself into it. I would definitely NOT be wearing these shoes today. Nope, no flipflops for me for a couple weeks now. It's supposed to be warmer by weekend. We'll take another look at the plants then. I know the tomato plant is a goner, and not sure about the red hot pepper plant. On a bright note, the onions are doing well!

cold cold cold

Wolfie and Moses

We have been especially cold here lately. We woke up to 28 degrees this morning and it's only supposed to be a high of 50 around 4p. We have covered the plants in the container garden and moved some of the hanging ones into either the shed or tool room for cover. I know that my wedelia in the front yard has been killed off. Not to worry, it's a low maintenance native plant and will come back in no time. Nate wanted to take it out, but I like it because it has yellow flowers. I like to have a little color in the yard. 

The kittens have been staying inside all day lately. I can hardly wonder why. It's unusual though, because as soon as they eat in the morning, they head right back outside. Although, this cold hasn't kept them from doing their job. Nate found rat parts outside our back patio door this morning. yuck. 

cat on a cold fish pond

It's been really cold here. And when I say cold, I mean it has been close to freezing at night for most of the week, and not much warmer during the day. Oh yeah, we get sun, but that doesn't necessarily make it warm. Now, I must admit, for us, it's not so bad, considering this is Florida, but we aren't used to such cold weather so early in the season. Our garden has faired fairly well (can I say that without sounding redundant?), without much loss to vegetation. The cats have stayed indoors most evenings and even in the morning after they have been fed. The fish pond I covered with some wool blankets. These are army blankets, so you know they are heavy duty. Nate put some 2 x 4's over the pond, then we put blankets over the 2 x 4's. I'd rather not have my fish freeze to death. Poor things. It's tough enough taking a cold shower, can you imagine living in it constantly? No, I say.  I've been feeding the fish, so I've seen them and know they are there. Wolfie here, likes to drink out of the fish pond. I think she's trying to eat their food. (She loves to eat, we call her our fat girl.) See how it looks like she has no feet? And she almost matches with the blankets!

Winter Park Harvest Festival

The Winter Park Harvest Festival is tomorrow! This is a day long, and I mean day long 8a -9p, event celebrating our local farmers, gardeners, entrepreneurs and non-profits. I am excited! The weather has been great lately which adds to the awesomeness of this event! I can't wait! I'm so excited! 

spool down end of year time

This is Rogue. She lives with us, well, actually, she lets us live here, we just share the house with her. She and her sister, Wolfie, let us live here. Rogue is the prissy girl, but a tough ass prissy girl as she is the one that does most of the killing of rats around here. She is very soft, has beautiful color, and walks like a princess. She does, really. She likes to be looked at and adored, not so much touched and petted. Only petted when she says so, as most cats go. 

Wolfie on the other hand, is queenie of the house. She doesn't do much killing, although she has, I just don't think she likes to get her paws dirty too much. She, unlike her sister, LOVES to be petted. You start petting her and she goes into auto purr. No kidding. And it gets so loud too! Then if you dare take your hand away, she reaches for it. Yeah, she doesn't want you to stop petting her. She does run outside from time to time, and I have seen her climb a tree or two, so she is not totally devoid of animal instincts, she just thinks she's queen of the house. She really doesn't like her brother bothering her.

This is Moses. He's our foster turned adopted cat. You can tell from this picture that he only has 3 legs. He's missing his back right leg. He gets along just fine without it. He is one fast cat! He's a little over a year now and LOVES to be outside. He is always looking for lizards and squirrels and birds and rats. He's caught a rat too. I am very proud of him. He has come a long way since he has been with us. He is my baby boy. 

We are spooling down to the end of year here. This time of year I start to wind down, relax, and look forward to having some time off. I clean out the closets, the attic, start raking the leaves (since mowing season is over until June next year), brushing the kittens and dog, and clean out the psyche too. Getting rid of things that don't serve me, whether that's physical or mental. It's all good and I feel refreshed and ready for whatever the new year brings. 

cauliflower

the leaves look great, but where is all the cauliflower? 

rain barrels, and composters, and compost, oh my!

There is a local organization, Mills50, that is hosting a green fest tomorrow. I really like this area of town. It's very quaint, is walkable with many local businesses and has a unique culture. There is a big asian influence in this part of town. Some of the best peanut sauce you can find anywhere! Anyway, at the greenfest they will be selling composters and rain barrels, and these are exactly the same ones that I bought through work for a charitable organization:

and the prices are even cheaper than what I paid for originally. We're getting there early tomorrow to buy 4 rain barrels. Since we didn't have much rain this summer, we have used up almost all of our water from the barrels. One is empty and the other only half full now. These will come in handy next year during summer, if we don't get any rain over the winter. Sometimes we have a short rainy season in winter. Not as much as the summer downpours, but enough to get us some usable water. Hope to see you there!