Saturday Meanderings
As we near the end of the month (can you believe it?), this will be the last Saturday Meanderings in October 2024. I love this month and we continue to get glimpses of Fall temperatures, but Mother Nature keeps reminding us we live in the Valley of the Sun. Looks like it will officially cool down next week with our typical autumn weather of low 50s at night and low 70s during the day. Thanks for joining me today for Saturday Meanderings, where I try to write about all good things this week.
Fall Garden is Planted
Finally, my fall garden is complete! Even with Finn’s excessive digging, we are able to get the planting finished! By the way, if you are in the market for a fabulous gardening hat, this one from Farmers Defense provides perfect protection from the sun. A UPF 50+ rating will protect you from harmful UV exposure.
I have 5 raised beds and this season I decide to group like plants together. There is a greens/lettuce bed; an only-tomatoes bed; an herb garden with parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, tarragon, chives and garlic. Half of one of the longer beds is strawberries, happily protected with the strawberry cage my husband built a few years ago. The other half will be sunflowers but I’m guessing many of my tomatoes from last year dropped seeds in this very location so it could be a mixed bag. Sugar peas, snap peas, Swiss chard and shishito peppers occupy the final bed.
Nearby is a small raised bed flower garden. The color theme is purple so I am excited to see how the following flowers fare: snapdragons, stock, carnations, delphiniums, and Sweet William. I am hoping this will be a small cutting garden as I also planted Baby Blue and Lemon Bush eucalyptus.
Discipline is Best
After a summer of travel, irregular eating patterns, lots of socializing, we are ready to buckle down and get back into a healthy routine. You have heard me talk about The Fast Metabolism Diet before. In my opinion, it’s not a diet. It’s a healthy eating program by a nutritionist that helps you rev up your metabolism. No counting calories or fat grams, but a way to induce a precise physiological change to speed up your metabolism.
The recipes are tasty and the food is plentiful. Even my husband enjoys being on it (trust me, that’s a big deal!). For example, this chicken and barley soup is full of yummy goodness : chicken, barley, butternut squash, zucchini, yellow summer squash, broccoli, fresh mushroom, onion, garlic, both chicken and vegetable broths.
We are also trying to get our sleep cycles back in line so after 6 days of this, we are feeling the good results so far.
I realize that I am much happier when I am on a disciplined schedule as my productivity sky-rockets. Do you like a structured day or do you prefer to be more care free?
Holiday Styling Workshop
I am busily getting ready for the Holiday Styling Workshop on November 9th. We are sold out and look forward to having a lovely creative day with our guests. For example, in addition to holiday decor and crafts, we will be making these delicious festive cocktails.
Looking forward to sharing the details of that day with you. By then, our weather should be perfect as we will be doing events both inside and out. If you would like to see photos from last year’s Fall Styling Workshop, click here.
Have You Voted?
This week we went to an early voting location to place our votes for the November 5th election. The experience was so uplifting and encouraging. People in line seemed excited to vote and there was a sense of patriotism. Since the volunteer staff at the polls were down a few people, the line was slow, however everyone was patient and kind.
What most people don’t realize is that in Arizona, if you drop off your mail-in ballot at a voting site on Election Day, your ballot will not be tabulated immediately. It can take up to 10 days to verify your signature. So if you are using a mail-in ballot, please send it before Friday, November 1.
If you vote in person on Election Day, ballots are tabulated on-site at the voting center. Tabulators are not connected to the internet and the data is stored on memory cards. After the polls have closed, these memory cards are delivered to the tabulation center. The results are posted throughout the evening for the public.
How do I know this? I worked at our local polling site in the 2022 election and will be working both Monday and Tuesday, November 4th and 5th.
Castor Oil
I need some advice here. Does anyone use castor oil or castor oil packs? With a few lingering and nagging injuries, I hear that applying castor oil can help reduce inflammation.
An inflamed hamstring, bicep and my finger is healing slowly since it got caught in Finn’s lease~as you can see I probably need a castor oil body suit. Honestly, I would love for a natural remedy to work as I am not a big pill taker.
Any advice will be greatly appreciated!
Colorful Cottages of Minden
I dream about buying a little cottage and making it burst with color. Cottages and Bungalows recently hosted a tour of the Colorful Cottages of Minden (Louisiana). Just looking at some of the photos makes me happy and I know you will enjoy them as well.
You can see take the virtual tour here.
A New Book and Support a Friend
My dear friend, Kristin Lenz from White Arrows Home has published her first book. So exciting! I just received my copy in the mail and cannot wait to start it. Here is a brief overview:
Drawing from her own experience in creating her popular decorating blog and lifestyle brand, Kristin Lenz offers a roadmap for finding the things that truly energize and enrich you. You’ll encounter advice on how to identify your passions, how to make those dreams a reality, and how to connect with others in meaningful and fulfilling ways.
Breath-taking photography of the Minocqua Northwoods creates a peaceful and compelling invitation to rest, rejuvenate, and give room for dreams to grow.
Do you have a friend that has a calming, loving aura? Well, this is Kristin and I know I will learn alot from her book.
We are having a few friends and neighbors over tonight as the weather is finally cool enough to entertain outside. Still debating whether I will decorate with a Halloween theme so I better get on it!
Wishing you a wonderful weekend filled with laughter and fun. Stay safe out there.
Just a reminder that any words that are italicized bring you to the source. If it is a product on Amazon, please note that I am an Amazon Affiliate. If you purchase something through my website, I receive a small (very small!) stipend, which doesn’t affect the price you pay at all. My goal is to make sourcing the items easy for you. Thank you for your continued support.
You might want to try a product called Arnica gel from a company by the name of Boiron, also the Arnica Montana pellets( in conjunction with the gel) taken sublingually, these are available at Health food stores and Sprouts or Whole Foods. This works sooner and I believe the castor oil packs are more for gall bladder or liver or more internal issues. You might want to check the Edgar Casey writings. I find the gel works quickly to relieve pain from injuries and to
dissipate bruising
Thank you for the important election information. There is so much misinformation out there and while not pertinent to me (I live in Northern California), I appreciate knowing the facts.
Your garden is lovely and you look so cute in your flowery hat! As you know, I love the Fast Metabolism Diet – it’s about time for me to give it another whirl I think. Hope you have a lovely dinner party tonight. I’m sure your decorations will be wonderful, whichever direction you go. Happy Last Saturday in October my friend!
I can give advice on the finger because I damaged the tendon in one of my fingers a year ago. Horribly painful. What helped was a visit to an orthopedic clinic and a cortisone shot. Then he gave me a splint to wear while sleeping or resting. We tend to curl our fingers while sleeping. Who knew?? Ice packs are helpful. I get great relief for my arthritis in ankle with Bigeloil. Rub on and use a sock or cover to warm area. Or is homeopathic and wonderful.
Not sure if this will be too woo-woo for you, but Lars and I use a MagnawavePEMF when we get any injury. Lower back, twisted ankle, etc. We have found it really helps with inflammation.
Thanks for all the great inspiration this weekend.