anaritaiam
- Aug 26, 2021
- 5 min read

Photo Dump 2021

It's 172 degrees outside and I'm inside dreaming of autumn. And by dreaming, I mean surrounding myself with autumn/fall instagram inspiration! Okay, so it's not really that hot, but it's the hottest week of the year right now and no one wants to be outside🥵

So how have you all been? I know many were wondering if I was still here, still breathing, still blogging. Thank you for the emails! I'm sorry I didn't reply. To be honest, I just didn't know what to say because I wasn't real sure when I would be blogging again. In light of everything happening in the world and specifically in our country, it has taken a HUGE mental blow to my otherwise optimistic outlook I normally carry. I've used the time to research, and basically, find bunches of rabbit holes that I fell in. About the beginning of July, I realized it was time to make some changes at least for my mental health. Fortunately, I've had our gardens to keep me occupied or give me inspiration for the future. So yes, I'm here, yes a lot has happened since March (my last post!), and yes, my research has me on a healthier path both physically and mentally!

So let's start with Spring, shall we? We stayed busy with the gardens this year. Bill dug out our previous herb garden located against our basement wall on the one side of the house and built these wonderful raised beds. We removed a bunch of overgrowth and decided to use the beds for vegetables, herbs, and flowers. I did a lot of companion planting and we made sure that everything planted wouldn't be tempting to the deer or other backyard visitors.

He even built me two tomato cages and two trellises. One of the trellises I used for sweet peas, but it's not pictured. And because we couldn't plant those tender leafy veggies the deer would eat, I decided to turn our deck into a potted garden of greens!

I feel like this post is going to be nothing but a photo dump, but at least you can see firsthand what's kept me sane! And by the middle of summer this is what those raised beds looked like!

We harvested kale, some cherry tomatoes, peppers, herbs, lettuce varieties, arugula (my favorite!), beets, cucumbers, more lettuces, even a few green beans. And of course we had to make Bill's famous pickles and this year I made pickled beets for the first time! We've loved cutting the lettuces for salads and just eating them fresh like that tastes SO MUCH DIFFERENT. I hate salads, but have grown to really like the different variety of greens! So much so that I'm now starting the fall batch of lettuces and beets...if this heat doesn't kill them first!

This year we also decided to try ONE LAST TIME with the dahlia garden. Again, I invested some money in buying some tubers. I spread out the buying process among different growers and I will tell you, do some research about the growers you intend to buy from if you are going to spend the money. All but two of my tubers from one grower took off, but I bought several other tubers from other growers and got NOTHING! Very disappointing and expensive. However, a majority of the tubers did thrive and I'm excited to be able to dig up these tubers and hopefully split them for our garden next year! Bill did an amazing job creating his spiderweb with stakes we bought. This helped them to grow and be supported. There is a lot of work involved and he has such a green thumb!!! Ironically, I cut the flowers and put them in vases and take pictures, when the true work is actually done by him! Once I start the tubers, he takes over until cutting time! So I can't take credit for anything but starting them and displaying them!

And it has been so fun cutting and creating little vases of these beauties for around the house! Be ready for more photo dumping!

But I absolutely love sharing little bouquets with the people we love! Just like receiving a homemade gift, homegrown flowers are the same!!! Anything that comes from the heart and the home is perfect!

My sweet niece's 17th birthday!❤️ They're almost as pretty as she is!

And look at these zinnias! This is my new obsession! The LIME family! The all lime, the lavender lime, the wine and lime, and the orange and lime. I'm collecting seeds from these beauties so I can grow a plethora of them next year! As they "fade", they take on so many colors, they're gorgeous!

Besides the gardens, I've taken a deeper step into my Norwex business as well as my Etsy business. I concentrated first on the Norwex, to get things organized and develop a "plan". I ABSOLUTELY love putting Norwex into the hands of so many people. One of the uncountable entities I've researched has been the use of chemicals in our home, the foods we are putting in our body, and the long term effects we are all experiencing from these choices. It has been a baby step journey, but let me tell you...I have been feeling GOOD (physically), motivated, more energy, & no more afternoon naps (that's big thing) If I had to break down everything without getting political (because remember, this blog isn't about politics) I will say this....I don't trust anything government related...and that means the FDA , Big Pharma, etc. I believe God insured us with the perfect earth to supply all we would need. Man and money has redesigned and broke it. We need to find it again and we need to look hard. It doesn't stop at buying just organic food or by not using Windex or Clorox wipes. It goes deeper, a LOT deeper. Remember, there's no money in healthy people....sick people=💰 You're the only one who cares the most about your health. It's never too late to take charge! There's a lot of information out there for you, some you may have to dig into! If you interested about Norwex I created a tab above⤴️ for you to check out!

My Etsy shop is currently going through a makeover. The makeover hasn't been published yet, but it's currently being worked on. Nothing fancy, just re-doing some things! Can't wait to share with you all the 'new stuff'.

But for now, I just wanted to let you all know I'm still here, I'm still breathing, and I'm still blogging! Thank you for reaching out and checking on me! And I hope that all is well within your walls as well as your head and heart. Now, I'm going to photo dump some more! Enjoy a photo diary of the year since March! Take care! Until next time...