My addiction to painting flowers is being fueled in major ways.
The heat just appeared yesterday like fireworks.
Warmth shooting through trees, as leaves unfurled madly.
Flowers popped up like magic.
As delicate ruffled frosting roses sat in shock.
So of course, I had to bring some in.
Any excuse to sneak off with a few.
Remember how I said I wasn't planting in the flower garden this year?
I couldn't help my greedy self.
I spent all Saturday driving around like a mad woman.
I was on the hunt for Cleveland Sage.
OH MY, a new fave.
It smells sooooo good and doesn't even like water that much.
I saw it growing at a church rummage sale.
I asked everyone there if they knew what it was.
An old man was so excited for me to have some cuttings.
But the ladies almost had my head when they saw me with it, haha!
Eventually someone knew what it was.
And in the midst of holding my sister hostage on my hunt, I found about 10 other perennial plants I could not live without.
By the by, I finally found Cleveland Sage at a local nursery called The Great Outdoors.
(in Catalina, Arizona)
They have some of the most beautiful plants I have ever seen.
I so recommend them.
Anywho, all the petals below now have new siblings 🙂
I can't ever get over roses.
They just always amaze me to pieces.
You?
Oh and, did I tell you?
I spied a few berries.
I had my second strawberry today.
Why do such things amuse me so?
Actually, I only had 1, because I gave half of each to Mister Lovee.
They are so sweet this year.
Mmmm.
Helooooo Grasshoppa!
I am a happy girl.
Petals on the table.
Pepto and corals a plenty.
Yellows too.
Ready for treat time.
I made about 5 dozen pumpkin empanadas.
(Mexican hand pies)
Only, if I dare share the family recipe I might mysteriously disappear.
So, I will have to find you one that is just as good.
There's just a bunch of secret natural ingredients that make these super flaky and lovely.
And butter too, no shortening.
Yumm yumm.
One of my hugest fairy tale pumpkins was used in the making of these.
I still have a couple more and a bunch of little orangies too.
These were the first good fairy tale pumpkin seeds, so it was most excellent to grab them before pumpkin planting begins tomorrow.
(Some are coming to you soon Ms. Misantropia)
The flavor and sweetness of fairy tale pumpkins is unlike anything I can describe.
The best for eating for sure.
Roasted and pureed.
Yummm yummm!
I put some orange zest in my filling which took the empanadas from pumpkin holiday flavor, to a bit fresher spring version.
So now, we get to munch away.
And can you believe…
I only just yesterday washed the Christmas greetings off of my homemade chalkboard.
I know.
Pretty ridiculous 🙂
It is 90'F here today.
(32.3'C)
Are you floored?
I am.
We got catapulted straight into summer my friends.
Weirdness weather patterns indeeeeedy!
Love, Vanessa
ps: My sister and I had a great laugh (on our journey of belly laughs til we scream in pain) when she playfully suggested that my Metamorphosis post the other day, had an air of me sampling some serious shroom nog. Just for the record, I was not, nor have I ever partaken in funny fungi 🙂
(Partaken? Is that a word?)
All this wackiness is natural my friends, hee hee!
Yikes, gulp.
I don't even feel wacky though.
🙂
Okay, maybe just a little.
Yes indeed….summer has hit us too. 95 yesterday and the day before. 90 degrees today. It has been a very weird winter and early spring season so far this year. My wildflowers are blooming bit by bit and my aloe is crazy this year!
Pumpkin…..I adore pumpkin! Those empanadas look heavenly.
xoxo
Kim
Gerushia’s New World
OOh I LOVE pumpkin empanadas, they are my favorite. Anything pumpkin really.
Beautiful pictures as always.
Take care,
Tracy M.
I bet we are in for a real whopped with this odd winterless year? Luckily the plants will love it, as long as they get enough water, poor things. The empanadas were unreal!! I gifted most of them 😉
I am with you Tracy, pumpkin is one of the bestest things ever 😉
Oh I am anxiously awaiting roses, but in the meantime there are tulips and the lilacs are almost there and I noticed lily of the valley coming up – this is new in my garden. Oh it is so exciting. Then empanadas too with pumpkin you grew in your garden, how very special. 90 is definitely summer weather, which I would prefer skipping; but loving our 70’s and soon to be 80’s. Happy Spring time/ Summer!
Cleveland Sage is *GORRRRRRGEOUS*! Lucky you, finding it. I haven’t been able to locate any here in Florida, but I might try to order some online.
Your roses are just divine, too. You might remember I planted two Don Juan climbing rose “bushes” last spring? Well, they are doing just fine, but you know that saying about how “the first year it sleeps, second year it creeps, and the third year it leaps”…sadly, it’s true. Hahaha. I wanted to have a yard full of deep red roses and have the air permeated with the scent, but nope, not yet. I must have patience. Gardening is teaching me that, if nothing more.
Those flowers are all so beautiful!!!
I have one question about your p.s.!
How does Kristen know about such things anyway? ; )
Are you supposed to get that temp. drop next week by you? It’s in the 60s here today, 70s tomorrow & then drop to the 40s!
I guess the bright side is that 40 above zero is sooo much better than the 40 below zero we just had here!
You have to look for that silver lining!
Shroom nog? Well that sounds like an interesting idea HAHA. I love that you actually drove around town like a mad woman. Gardening and Vanessa = Obsession! That rose looks delicious though. And strawberries aren’t berries, they’re a member of the rose family! So maybe it makes sense that I thought the rose looked delicious?! Oh gosh, now i’m on shroom nog HAHA.
Misha, maybe give them a little fish emulsion??? That might make them grow faster 😉 Look into it though, haha!
I don’t know!! Hahahaha, I will have to look into this on the double 😉 Oh Miss Laura, this is funny…. instead of being 95′ we will drop to 78′ for a day or two, hahahaha! I am just loving warmth as I get older. I just wish it would stay mild spring with a few sunny warm days here and there forever. Although, this no winter and higher temps than norm is weird indeedy…..
My tulips came and went so fast. I think it was simply too warm this year for them. I love the sun! Yay sun! Mister Lovee wants to build me a big pool for our outrageous summers, as I always had a pool and not having one is killing me. I am a water lover. HOWEVER, he has curious plans for this so called pool. If I say yes, it will be some sort of natural self cleaning pool that he is into. With plants and fish that do all the work of cleaning and balancing the water. And really, I don’t know if I want to swim with plants and fish in a hole in my backyard, hahahahaa! It’s one thing to visit a pond, but in my garden… not so sure 🙂
Hahahaha…it sounds like you and Mr Lovee are both whacky…ahem, eccentric ;)Plants and fish should do wonders for the skin though, don’t you think ?
Absolutely the most enchanting garden…beautiful.
I spied those pumpkins next to your mantle and thought to myself, “pumpkins still?” Pray tell, didst they end up in your empanadas? They look delish by the way!! And your flowers are so beautimus too!
We are having warm weather too and my flowers have gone bonkers!!
Much love to you, my Fanciful Friendling!
Coricakes
You are so smart! Adding spring to your punkin empanadas…YUM
Everything is so pretty here…I’ve had to pin a few things! Your roses in milk glass and your dressed up doggies…I’m kind of mad we aren’t neighbors. And Kristin, too….my Instagram friend.
We are along way off from roses yet…strawberries don’t happen until May, either.
Heavy ice broke half my cherry tree 🙁 split down the middle. Do you have one? I make homemade maraschinos which are thousands of times better than store bought!
In high school, at break time, before lunch, the snack line used to sell beef and potato empanadas which were out of this world. They were made in a small mom and pop facility in Alhambra, California and somehow, our high school ordered the delicacies for the snack bar. I wish I could find that scrumptious recipe, but I think it was also ‘a family/company secret’! I don’t blame you for guarding your recipe!
And the secret is using COLD butter if it is to be flaky. When I make my biscuits from scratch I use both cold butter and shortening.
Every living thing in our yard when crazy with growth this past week…All the trees and bushes greened out so fast. I think it is wonderful as the growth acts as a filter and purifies the air.
I don’t need Magic Mushrooms to get crazy/silly either…it comes by me naturally…in fact my siblings and I have laughing fits when we are together too.
We live in Wonderland most of the time…well? Why not? When Alice in Wonderland was our favorite book growing up! This is how we keep our sanity, it keeps us young at heart.
*NODS* – yes. Sean is a firm believer and user of the fish emulsion. Good stuff! 🙂