I love ...

                            I love summer, because i can wear my old worn jeans shorts...

                             I love summer for all the beautiful flowers in my garden...

                          And for the wonderful vegetables i have in my verggie patch ...

                  I love summer because of my rows of fresh basil...my mouth is drooling...

                                        Beets and parsley...so lusciously yummy...

                              I love summer because my girls enjoy being outdoors ...

                I love summer because i take the time to crochet...I am making a giant granny blanket. i decided to join in the fun and take part of the Giant Granny Challenge.  I am up to 31 rows so far !

                                            Potholders or coaster? I can't decide...

 Giving a try on the wonderul african flower... I still haven't made up my mind ...a cushion cover or a blanket ?

                                                        Luscious colors...love, love, love!

Hope your summer is filled with color, love sunshine and fun ♥

Glorious Basil

Do you love basil ? That is not a question one would ask me. I litteraly drool as i pick fresh leaves in my garden. A friend even used to call me crazy basil lady. I have a tiny veggie patch, but i managed to save enough space to grow 2 rows of basil. Hubby says i got carried away. " you don't need so much, he says ". At my previous house where i lived for so many years, my garden was huge and the basil rows were even bigger. At one point, i grew 4 different varieties. Lemon basil, purple basil,the genoa kind and my all time favorite, leaf lettuce basil. The large, crinkled leaves, which grow on the short, wide plant, have a very strong licorice smell. I just love this herb in pasta or tomatoe and bocconcini salad. ( yummy ) Many years ago, when my daughter Geneviève was still living with us ( these were the happy times ) she found this recipe on the web and since then, it has been one of our favorite summer dish. We improved it and this is how it turned out.

In a large bowl add:

- A 796ml can of tomatoes ( or fresh tomatoes from the garden. Around 6 cups diced )
- 1/2 cup cold pressed olive oil ( I know, it looks like too much, but beleive me, it will be very tasty )
- 2 or more chopped garlic cloves
- At least 2 cups of cubed old cheddar cheese ( you can add mozarella if you prefer )
- 2 cups or more if you wish of fresh chopped basil ( the more the better )
salt and pepper to taste.

Cook spaghetti, enough for 4 to 5 portion, strain and add to your uncooked sauce in the bowl. Toss to mix and devour ! This is suppose to make plenty for a family of 4 or 5, but since this is sinfully delicious, two can easily eat the whole bowl !
Summer is nearing to its end and so is my veggie patch. I cannot complain, summer was wonderful and i had a plentiful crop. My basil is still growing strong, but i know it is just a matter of a week or 2 before the first fall frost will kill my crop.
I will miss you, glorious Basil ♥

Summer days

Summer days are finally here and it feels so good. Yesterday the weather was just perfect and i was driving home with the window down. I was feeling completely happy just by feeling the warmness of the wind and the sweet smell of the fresh cut grass. I live in the countryside and the scenery here never stops to fascinate me. We decided to sell the house because we feel the urge to live in an even more remote area. I want to wake up every morning and see beautiful rolling hills, not collected trash in our neighbour's yard. I am not a hermit, of course, i do enjoy being with people. But i do need my peace and tranquility. My little neighborhood used to be a quiet and pretty place to live in. Unfortunately, over the past years, new people came and things changed. They don't really care for pretty flower beds and cleanliness. Moving away was a hard and painful decision, because i have so many beautiful memories of my life there with my family. But 2 of my daughters left the nest and i feel i am ready for a new beginning.

Sunday is father's day and i decided to offer my little boy hubby a box filled with little surprises. One of them being knitted dishcloth. ( What ?! ) Yep ! He's been asking for some handmades to use at the sailboat. We have a 36 feet Pearson Ketch ( very pretty and comfy ) and we like spending weekends there sailing at the lake and relaxing. Anyway, speaking of knitted dishcloth, i do hope he likes them. The girls at work thought it was a pretty funny gift to offer to a man, but in the end, one even offered to crochet an extra dishcloth for him. I have another one on the needles that is almost finished, so he will have four pretty dishcloths. Spoiled hubby ! I am also working on a decorative pillow ( for the sailboat of course ) and will post some more pictures later for everybody to see. So many things i have been working on this past spring. From knitted socks, to pretty coasters, to sewing lovely dolls, aprons, totes and pincushions. I will try and post all these pretty things i have been working on as soon as possible. In the meantime, i better get on with my day. I have a long list of chores waiting to be done. And that includes cutting the grass. Yuk !

See ya !

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