Toby & Ezekiel

More pictures of these unlikely friends.  As I watched them hanging out on the back deck, I thought how much better the world would be if we could all be like them.  They are expected to be enemies or at the very least not get along.  That means nothing to them though.  They set their differences aside and choose to live as friends.

Weekend Book Reviews

Crochet in a Day by Salena Baca, Danyel Pink, and Emily Truman features 42 crochet projects.  The projects are divided into themes.  While there are many great projects, my favorite is the puffy dishcloth.  All of the sections have several projects that would be great to make for yourself or gifts. The patterns have clear instructions and prominently displayed yarn weight.  I prefer crochet books that give a yarn weight along with a suggested brand.  It makes it easy for me to substitute with what I have on hand or can easily purchase. Another bonus for me is the visual index at the end of the book.  I can see myself turning to this book over and over when I need a quick project!

Janice Thompson's book The 5-Minute Bible Study for the Anxious Heart breaks Bible study into four steps.  Each section gives you a passage to read, questions to help you understand, a short devotion to apply the message, and finally a prayer.  Readers are given a longer scripture passage to read in additional to the short passage included in the book.  I have enjoyed using this book for my daily devotion time.  The short time required helps anyone with daily Bible study.

Deadly Vows by Jody Holford is the second book in the Britton Bay Mystery series.  Molly is happy with her new life in Britton Bay as well as her carriage house home at a bed and breakfast.  The entire town seems caught up in the upcoming wedding of a former resident's daughter.  A murder puts everyone on edge and threatens to derail the wedding.  I loved the first book and liked this one.  The second book in the series seemed more romance than mystery.  If you enjoy romance novels, that is a good thing.  I am not a romance fan.  While I can tolerate a bit, this was a bit over the top for me.

Leslie Karst's latest book in the Sally Solari Mystery series is Murder from Scratch.  Sally is busy with her restaurant but still takes in a family member whose mother died.  Evelyn is blind, but even she can tell that her mother's death was not suicide.  She and Sally team up to investigate.  The characters is this series continue to be strong, and the mystery kept me guessing until the end.  I continue to enjoy this series.

disclosure:  I received these e-books through NetGalley but was not otherwise compensated for these reviews.  All opinions are my own!

Weekend Book Reviews

Pinot Red or Dead? by J.C. Eaton is the third book in the Wine Trail Mystery series.  Between holiday preparations at the winery and finishing her screenplay, Norrie has her hands full.  She does not need the headaches of hijacked distributor trucks or sabotaged wine, but she gets those as well.  When the owner of the wine distributing company is found dead near the winery, Norrie dives into the mystery.  Even though I have no interest in wine, I like this series.  The mystery kept me guessing until the end.  Norrie is a strong character with some common sense.  This series is always on my reading list. 

The Mermaid Cookbook by Alix Carey is perfect for any mermaid lovers.  I was pleasantly surprised that the recipes were fairly simple.  The decorating tips made me confident that I could recreate the items.  The mermaid toast is fun and easy enough to do anytime.  This would be perfect for an impressive mermaid theme party or just for an extra special dessert for the mermaid fans in your life. 

Bookies:  Bookmarks to Crochet by Jonas Matthias features 17 bookmarks to crochet.  I wanted to make them all, but my favorites were the flamingo and sheep.  The directions were easy to follow, and pictures/explanations of the stitches were included.  I appreciated that plenty of pictures of the work in progress were included.  My only issue was the specialty yarn used.  It is not something that I can pick up in stores or even easily order online from major retailers.  I will keep searching for a better purchase option as these are too cute not to make.

disclosure:  I received these e-books through NetGalley but was not otherwise compensated for these reviews.  All opinions are my own!

Weekend Book Reviews

Murder Lo Mein by Vivien Chien is the third book in the Noodle Shop Mystery series.  Lana is settling into her job as manager of her family's Chinese noodle shop.  The restaurant takes part in the local best noodle contest with high hopes of winning.  After one of the judges receives a threatening fortune cookie, he dies soon after.  Lana cannot resist being pulled into the mystery.  I enjoy the characters - especially Lana - as well as the setting of this series.  I look forward to the next installment.

The second book in the Chef-to-Go Mystery series by Denise Swanson is Leave No Scone Unturned.  Dani is glad to see classes starting back at the local university so her lunch-to-go part of her chef-to-go business.  Things at the university town seem to be out of control with multiple car jackings and a murder.  The book also tackles the issue of homelessness and veterans.  Normally I find things like that annoying, but the author handled it very well.  The issue was discussed on both sides and did not come across as preachy at all.  It added depth to the plot yet did not stray away from what makes cozy mysteries enjoyable.

The Hidden Corpse by Debra Sennefelder is the second book in the Food Blogger Mystery series.  Hope has transitioned from reality cooking show contestant to successful food blogger.  To further her new career she takes part in a food photography course taught by a local man whose wife is missing.  When the missing woman's body is found along with Hope's elderly neighbor in the neighbor's burned home, Hope decides to investigate.  The story and mystery are strong.  My only complaint is that Hope is a weak character.  She spends very little time on her job as food blogger.  I also wish she were smarter overall.  Hope is supposedly use to small town life but seems to have forgotten that nothing in a small town is a secret or even taken at face value.  I enjoyed it overall and will read future books.

disclosure:  I received these e-books through NetGalley but was not otherwise compensated for these reviews.  All opinions are my own!

Furry Friday

I jokingly call this picture - A Boy & His Cat.  I tell Toby that he is my little boy.  His best friend is Ezekiel the cat.  I caught them hanging out on the back deck last week.

I had to take the pictures through the back door.  One crack of the door would have made both of them come running to me.  Ezekiel just appeared in our yard.  I have no idea where he came from, but he does great with dogs.  Not only does he adore Toby, but he loves my parents' dog as well.  

Weekend Book Reviews

The Best of the Best Rice Cooker Cookbook by Beth Hensperger offers 100 recipes for your rice cooker.  I found several recipes that would help me better utilize my rice cooker.  The best recipes to me were the basic ones for cooking different types of rice.  I was not certain that some of the hot cereal recipes would work in my specific rice cooker.  The author gave thorough and clear instructions for each of the recipes and will be a useful addition to my kitchen. 

Phillip Schmidt and Todd H. Bol's book Little Free Libraries & Tiny Sheds features 12 examples to build.  Everything from standard to artsy to whimsical is shown through both the projects and the multiple photos of finished libraries and sheds. Step by step instructions are given to help beginner builders feel confident.  This is a fun and inspiring book!

Kawaii Origami by Chrissy Pushkin is full of creative origami projects.  My favorite was the tiny trash can.  The pictures are amazing and bring the book to life.  The projects are for advanced origami makers or those with a better grasp of directions.  Once I was shown how to do a few of the folds, it was much easier.  With a bit of patience this would be a great book for any origami lover.

disclosure:  I received these e-books through NetGalley but was not otherwise compensated for these reviews.  All opinons are my own!

Garden Plants

I planted some dollar store flower seeds and was pleasantly surprised at how well they have grown.  I have zinnias and sunflowers.  My plan is to collect the seeds and expand the flower garden next year.

I bought some lime and red zinnia seeds.  I planted them in a raised bed, but the baby chicks got into it right after I planted.  I was happy to find a couple of seeds survived and grew.  I will definitely be saving seeds from this variety.

The banana peppers are growing well.

The popcorn fell victim to a recent storm and the animals.  Next year I will put fencing around it.  I still think that I will be able to harvest several ears.

Finally the bay tree is putting on piles of new growth.  It is exciting to see how well it is doing.  I love having fresh bay leaves to use in cooking.

Digging

Every morning before it gets too hot I go sit in the yard to crochet a bit so Toby can play.  Since our yard is fenced, he is allowed to run free when we are home.  Still he is happiest if someone is outside with him.  We have a little routine where I work and he plays.

One day last week his play involved digging a hole.  I am guessing he was after a mole, but he gave up on that area.  Before he moved to another part of the yard I caught a great photo of him in action.

He was very serious about sniffing out whatever was hiding in the dirt.  Oftentimes stuff in the yard is more interesting than anything on television.

Turkeys

Wanda the mama turkey has four teenagers now.  They are no longer the tiny chicks from a few months ago.  They wander a bit on their own but are never too far away from her and the three males.

Thankfully these four little ones stay inside the fence.  We lost half of the incubator baby turkeys as they wandered farther and farther away.  They were seen by several people going into the branch (creek) on a neighboring property.  Unfortunately there are several fox dens there, and a mama fox most likely used them to feed her babies.  

Some animals stay in the fence area, and others do not.  Honestly it does not seem to matter if they have a bird mama or not.  Hopefully these four will continue to stay in the safe area and raise their own babies in a year or two.

Weekend Book Reviews

Drawn and Buttered by Shari Randall is the third book in the Lobster Shack Mystery series.  Tourist season is drawing to a close so things are slowing down at The Lazy Mermaid, a lobster shack.  Interest is renewed by the arrival of a giant lobster which is stolen overnight.  The lobster turns up unfortunately near a dead body.  Allie finds herself in the middle of another mystery while her Aunt Gully gets an offer that seems too good.  The mystery is good, and spunky Aunt Gully is easily my favorite character.  This book stands alone, but I recommend reading the entire series.

The eighth book in the Witch City Mystery series by Carol J Perry is Final Exam.  Lee is busy with her job at the news station in Salem, but she still has time to check in with Aunt Ibby's 45th high school reunion preparations.  When an old car containing a body is pulled out of the water, the two things become even more entangled.  The story flowed well even with the multiple story lines.  I like the Salem setting of this series.  I have read previous books in the series, but this one can be read and enjoyed on its own.

Chocolate a la Murder by Kirsten Weiss is the fourth book in the Perfectly Proper Paranormal Museum Mystery series.  Maddie owns a paranormal museum even though she is not convinced any of the paranormal things are real.  She features a magic of chocolate exhibit to take advantage of the town's Wine and Chocolate Days.  One of the items is a haunted chocolate whisk.  She begins to rethink her beliefs when two people at a local chocolate shop are found murdered.  The paranormal theme is a background story rather than the entire focus of the book.  It is written well and without being gimmicky.  The mystery is strong offering several suspects.



disclosure:  I received these e-books through NetGalley but was not otherwise compensated for these reviews.  All opinions are my own!

Pets in the Garden

Wrapping up my animal garden posts is pets in the garden.  Many times the animals just like for someone to be out in them yard with them.  Toby has a nice wallow hole underneath my lounge chair in the garden.  He loves laying in the cool dirt in the shade.

Often times one of the cats will come hang out there too.  They often find a higher place since Toby assumes they always want to play.  Ezekiel found a pan I had set up for his bed.  Unused pots and containers must be out of Toby's reach otherwise he swipes them.

Chickens in the Garden

I decided to keep on with the animals in the garden theme this week. 

We have several mama bantam hens at the moment.  When the chicks are young, mama keeps them close to the chicken house.  As the get older they venture further away and into the garden.  The oak leaves I mentioned yesterday give them a nice place to scratch for bugs.  

Many of our chickens free range on our property.  I make sure to keep bowls of fresh water all around for the birds as well as Toby and the cats.  The chickens quickly learn where these are and will stop throughout the day for a drink.  I have one just outside the garden fence and one inside too.  With so many baby chicks around, the containers are either shallow or tipped to prevent drowning.

Garden Visitors

I guess this is turning out to be garden week since I have various garden photos on my phone.  In one corner of my garden I have been working to create a frog sanctuary. My thoughts are the more animals that are eating bugs the healthier my garden will be.  I am not a fan of spraying pesticides simply because we and most of the animals eat the garden produce.

This little fellow was hanging out near the frog sanctuary.  He was well camouflaged in the leaves.  I add oak leaves in between the garden beds to keep down the weeds.  I guess it makes a nice area for frogs too.

On Guard

I generally work in the garden every morning.  My work is a bit of garden work but mostly crocheting in my lounge chair in the shade.  Most of our chickens are tame and quite spoiled so they come in the garden with me.  Last week I noticed a rooster and his two hens.  They were busy scratching for bugs.  He was on guard and climbed slightly higher to keep an eye out for danger.

I always keep my eye out for good roosters.  They are the ones that keep watch while the girls are around.  They also let the girls eat first. We always throw out plenty of scratch feed and other treats so there is plenty for everyone.  It is nice to see a gentleman rooster in the yard.