My back corner flower garden

We had a wet spring, with lots of these:

Thunderstorms and lots of rain came with those clouds. And rain makes the flowers grow J. My garden looks better than it ever has. The Calgary growing season is so short, making it tough to get a really good garden - this year has been great since the snow left early (for us).

Here’s a picture of my back corner – it’s shady, so hostas, astilbes and lilies thrive there. Oh, and my ligularia is growing like crazy too. I can’t wait to see how tall he gets this year – he’s nearly 3 feet tall now.

My Asiatic lilies are in full bloom – aren’t they gorgeous? My neighbour Karen gave me a few extras from her garden a couple of years ago, and they love this spot.

My hostas have loved the wet weather and are doing really well too: 

And my rhubarb is still growing (front of this photo). So I’m still cutting rhubarb to eat – and it’s mid-July J

I love looking at all the texture and colour and contrast right now – it’s almost like I knew what I was doing when I planted this! J

Enjoy!

Kim

Meals - Week 25 - and some recipes

This was a great meal week – lots of variety. And these meals were all quick and easy to make, which makes it an even better meal week! J

Sunday: Balsamic-Marinated Pork Chops & Grilled Peaches – we didn’t make the grilled peaches, but  this is a fantastic meal. The pork chops are tender and have a great flavour. 

Recipe and picture from Clean  Eating

Monday: BBQ Sausages and Baked Potato – a standard around here (as I’ve said before, we like to BBQ in the summer J)

                      

Tuesday: Chicken Skewers with Apricot Glaze – we had no idea for dinner and I’d seen this in a recipe book on the weekend. The chicken was tender and the glaze was a really good addition. 

Recipe and picture from Fine Cooking

Wednesday: Salmon pasta with peas and dill sauce – I made this entire meal up. I didn’t use a recipe because I couldn’t find one. It turned out really well, if I do say so myself J

Recipe and picture from - Me!

Thursday: Black Bean Cheddar burrito – I added ground beef to this (I should read the recipe first – oops), but I don’t know how this recipe would feed four people otherwise. This was a HUGE hit with the boys, which surprised me. It could be their love of eating without a knife and fork J

Recipe and picture from Fine Cooking

Friday: Pork tenderloin with baked potatoes – the BBQ to the rescue again!

My Mom is here next week, so the food will be even better (and not only because I won’t have to make dinner every night J)

Cheers!

Kim

Meals – Week 24 – and two recipes – soup and shepherds pie

Life sure is crazy busy for us these days – busier than usual. Menu planning (or sort-of meal planning) has kept us eating healthy, balanced meals, and mealtimes have been enjoyable around the table.

The boys spent hours at the edge of the water, trying to catch dinner. Even though that didn’t work and they had to eat steak, they loved every minute of it.  

 Boys - doing what boys love best - fishing

Have a great week!

Cheers! Kim

Sunday: Chicken Stir Fry – a home made concoction with teriyaki sauce and lots of veggies

Monday: Garlicky Tortellini, Spinach and Tomato Soup. I love this soup and have made it many times before. The boys liked it and enjoyed the spinach J (that’s what they said, anyway)

Recipe and picture from Fine Cooking

Tuesday: Swiss Chalet – the boys finished writing their Provincial Acheivement Tests (PAT’s), so it was their choice for dinner

Wednesday: Shepherd’s Pie with Buttermilk-Chive Mashed Potato Crust. This is a great, healthy version of shepherds pie that I've made before. And I made two, so one went in the freezer for another day.

Recipe and picture from Clean Eating

Thursday: Spaghetti and meatballs – quick and easy, but a family favourite.

Friday/Saturday: We went camping for the weekend, and our gracious hosts prepared everything and made sure each of us were completely full all weekend J