Betty and Bam Bam

Betty, the cantaloupe, was finally ready for our stomachs. She was about to fall off the vine, so I took her inside. Sadly, I have no pictures of her flesh because I gave her to my little sister to take back to her dorm at Vanderbilt University.

Below: Beautiful Betty

My sister reports that she was delicious and beautifully orange and sweet. Good-bye Betty. I had a lovely time raising you.

Below: Bam Bam, the watermelon

With a ton of watermelons, we decided to harvest another one for a summer's day treat. The flesh was pinkish, but it was sweet.

Betty has other brothers and sisters that are growing. I say about three little ones (more about them next week), but I don't know how will survive and who will die. There used to be five little ones, but two of them withered away. I guess the vine was not strong enough to support that many fruit. I'll keep you all posted on the cantaloupes' development.

Luka and a Tomato Update

The tomato plants have slowed down their production, but there are new flowers and tiny fruit that are growing. It's just slower than it was. I suppose that has to do with the fall weather. I'm enjoying what I can before they die on me.

Below: My latest tomato harvest

I also harvested some oregano from the garden. I didn't use the tomatoes for spaghetti, but I did use fresh oregano instead of dried. I may need to dry some herbs for summer.

Anyone have any good ideas on how to dry herbs? (Natural (or old-fashioned) ways without buying any extra machines).

Now onto Luka...


I believe that I have the strangest cat ever. I love my little Luka, and she is a tad feisty. I believe she’s between 5-6 months old and growing strong… into a beautiful black cat. I wanted to dress her up in a pet outfit for Halloween, but Cam said, “she’s already in her costume.” SADNESS! LoL.

As she’s gotten older, she’s sleeping a bit more… but not as much as an adult cat. She still wrecks havoc in the house. Let me list her “bad” deeds this week (so far):

(1) Knocked over two potted plants—dirt splattered everywhere
(2) Killed one of those plants
(3) Knocked over my favorite rose vase and broke it. The vase smashed into millions of pieces on the ground
(4) Sunk her teeth into me… A LOT! Biting seems to be an every day thing.

Here’s how I’ve tried to punish her… unsuccessfully, I might add.

(1) Time out in the bathroom for 30 minutes
(2) A loud “NO” with a clap of my hand
(3) Moved her to the hallway and closed the door for 1 hour (withholding attention)

Yup, she doesn’t care what I do. Oh well. I still love her. She does have many lovable qualities:

(1) She has never scratched the furniture or couch with her claws. She is loyal to her scratching post
(2) She cuddles with me at night
(3) She wakes me up at the right time every morning, purring. She gets lots of rubs and kisses, and she likes to lick my face and give me a "bath" in the morning.
(4) She loves every single toy that I've ever given her.. Has never disliked one single toy.
(5) Loves every type of cat food that we've tried.

And tada... Her strangest habit... When she's on the bed, she likes to sleep on her back with her paws in the air... Isn't that funny? I've never seen any other cat do this...

Below: This picture was taken right when she woke up. She was already moving her upper body a bit...

She does have a cute little white belly. But anyway, I thought I'd share. I love my little kitten, despite how bad she can be.

My parents say that she's only fiesty and hyper when I am home. When I am away for the day, she is very quiet and is very docile.

Hmm, I guess she just misses her mommy.

Watermelon Everywhere

I hope everyone had a great weekend. I'm going to try to post 2-3 times a week instead of Monday through Friday. Because my garden isn't producing as much, there's not much to report.

The weather in Nashville is getting bit colder. It was in the 60s yesterday, and I had to wear a sweater when I went out. (I am very sensitive to cold, so anything below 70 is chilly to me). I wonder if the chilly weather is here to stay or just the reminisces of Ike. I hope it is Ike because I really loved the summer weather, and my veggies love it too.

I am prepared for the fall though. (I'm not a fan of these high gas prices though. All of the gas stations near where I live are all out of gas! And the next closest gas station charges $4.25, ridiculous!)

Anyway, the good news is my plants are still producing, even though the chilly weather is here. The watermelons are out of control. They are everywhere!

Below: The watermelon







Each and every of those pictures show a different watermelon! It's like a watermelon party out there. We've tasted two watermelon, and even though they aren't that red inside, they still are very taste and delicious.

Btw... There's also a watermelon growing on our porch...

I'm thinking next year that I will only plant one watermelon plant instead of three. And maybe I'll have the smaller variety of watermelon instead of these huge ones.