The most expensive tomatoes ever

All that I want is some juicy tomatoes off the vine.   My two tomato plants died after the cold snap a few weeks ago so I had to replant them.  I've decided to try 3 different growing methods:

Original Rona bucket.  I’m glad the plant died because I think it would have died anyway.  When I dug out all the dirt I discovered that the soil at the bottom of the bucket was soaking.  It would have drowned for sure.  I drilled some extra holes in the bucket to try to improve the drainage before replanting the new tomato plant.  

Initial observations re: upside down tomato plants – replanting a seedling in an upside down container is a heck of a lot more difficult than replanting a traditional tomato because you have to remove all of the dirt.  Hopefully I won’t have to do that too many times this season! 

Topsy Turvy.  My dad gifted me a Topsy Turvy planter so I decided to test it out compared with the Rona bucket.  I have planted the same variety of tomatoes in the Rona bucket and the Topsy Turvy (Celebrity tomatoes).  The Topsy Turvy  has several small drainage holes at the bottom (that’s how I got the idea to drill some in the Rona bucket).  The material of the Topsy Turvy is woven plastic.  I wonder if that improves the ‘breathability’ of the soil.  We’ll see how it goes.

Rona Bucket (left) & Topsy Turvy (right)

Traditional Pot.  I’ve planted one tomato plant in a traditional pot.  This won’t be a true scientific experiment, because I’ve chosen a different variety for this one - “Early Girl Tomatoes”.  I had some success with this variety last year, so decided to try it again. 

New knitting project

I’ve started a new knitting project. 

Check out the beautiful hemp that I’m knitting with. 

I won’t tell you what it is yet…it’s a surprise for somebody I know.  

New Westminster Tour

The Crafting Widower and I had a good trip to New Westminster yesterday, as part of our inaugural 'Jar of Fun' tours.  We took the seabus/skytrain to get there, which was quite easy.  Then we wandered about for a few hours.  

According to the City of New Westminster website, they are the oldest city in western Canada!  It is on the north bank of the Fraser River.  

Apparently they did some development around the Quay for Expo 86.  Check out the giant tin soldier at the Quay!         

We stumbled upon a multicultural festival at the Quayside.

And tried some yummy treats (Bosnian meat sandwich and Polish Cheesecake).

Then we wandered through Antique Alley.

Where we saw all sorts of interesting treasures.

(We resisted purchasing the black bear and the vintage the commodore 64 computer.)  

And we couldn't leave without having a pic taken with the tin soldier in the background!  

Yeah New Westminster!  

Artsy Sis

Check out what my Artsy Sister made!

I have two sisters – Crafty Sister and Artsy Sister.  Artsy Sister painted this for our newest niece.  Isn’t it sweet!  A lot of thought went into planning it.  You’ll notice that she painted the background, then added the colourful bits and after it dried she added all the black outlines.  Very tricky – e.g. placing green dots that eventually become the leaves.  Lucky me, surrounded by so many talented people!

Jar of Fun

After dinner last night, I told the Crafting Widower that I had a good surprise for him.  He was immediately cautious and commented that if I had to preface a statement saying that it would be a good surprise then it probably wouldn’t be a good surprise for him.  I assured him it would be.  He was hesitant. Then I did the big reveal...  the unveiling of the “Jar of Fun” or our “Discover Vancouver” Jar. 

Let me explain…

A while back, I was lamenting the fact that I’ve been living on the west coast for nearly 2 years now but there are still many neighbourhoods in Metro Vancouver that I have never visited.  So, I suggested to the Crafting Widower that we should try to ‘be tourists in Metro Vancouver’ this summer.  Hence the inspiration for the creation of our very own “Discover Vancouver” Jar. 

I typed out a list of 28 names of different neighbourhoods and printed it off, then cut and folded the names and put them in a Jar.  My quick and easy craft.  Yes, I think that this counts as a craft.  FYI - in some cases, neighbourhoods have been split into more manageable chunks (e.g. Vancouver – Chinatown, Vancouver – Commercial Drive, Vancouver – UBC Area, etc.).

The Rules of our “Discover Vancouver” Jar:

1. One person draws the name “the Puller” and the other person plans the itinerary “the Planner”.
2. The Planner has the right of one redraw.  So, if the Planner isn’t pleased with the first neighbourhood the Puller draws, the Planner can ask the Puller for a re-draw.  There is only 1 refusal allowed per turn.
3. The Planner has to do the research and must include at least: 1 interesting attraction unique to the neighbourhood and identify two restaurant/cafe options.
4. Roles are reversed on the next draw. 

I volunteered to be the Planner on our first try.  So, after establishing the rules, the Crafting Widower made his first pull.  He opened it, laughed, and asked where I got my list of neighbourhoods from.  What did he draw?  Abbotsford.  (FYI – the Crafting Widower commutes to/from Abbotsford every day…a 140km round trip…and in his opinion, not the most interesting destination).  I decided to invoke rule #2 and asked for redraw.  Drum roll please………and the exciting destination for our inaugural “Discover Vancouver”, tourists in Metro Vancouver is ………

Yeah!  I actually cheered when he announced the destination.  It just seemed much more appealing than Abbotsford.  Let the planning begin!

FYI – The Crafting Widower agreed that it was good surprise.  Much better than what he was thinking…hmm…I should have asked what he was thinking. 

Garage Sale Find

I hit a couple of garage sales this past weekend when I was visiting my parents.  I couldn’t resist buying these games. 

Check out the fine print on the yard sale box.   

Too funny!   

Upholstery: Outdoor furniture

I’ve started my next upholstery project...

One cushion down, 5 to go!