Excuse me, just a Tabby? I think not!

My name is Pippin.  I am more than just some plain old tabby cat!  I'm a fearless hunter.  I can run like the wind.  I'm strong and capable of great feats.  Or at least I was until someone shot me.  This is my story and I'm sharing it not so much for me but for the human I own, Mama Cat.  We'll call her MC for short.  MC loves me dearly and was horrified when she found me with my gunshot wound.

This is what I looked like before.

So what happened?  Well, I don't really remember.  I remember asking to go out and that is about it until MC found me 2 days later.  Actually, I helped her out and crawled up high enough for her to see me cause I'm so clever.  She started calling and calling for me to come in that night.  She didn't worry really bad until I didn't show up in the morning.  Like I said I'm really smart.  I hid in places like this when MC couldn't find me so she wouldn't worry. 

Told you I was smart.  One night I actually pushed that screen out and got in the house by myself.

Um, on to the hard part.  When MC got me to Doc, he just looked at her and asked if I was a stray.  As if!  MC took the news pretty well about my leg.  Bones completely shattered.  It would never work again.  MC had to decide to amputate my leg or not.  I guess lucky for me she decided she could do without some stuff and said, "Yes, operate."

WARNING!!!!! These next pictures are rather harsh.  They are after my surgery!  The incision is long and the stitches are big!

I just got home and MC let me out.  She was worried how I would get around.  Geez, I'm great!  Let me out!

OK, it is great to be home too!

MC had concerns about my rehab so she had fixed up the basement for me.  I didn't think I needed it but she was right .  I'm sitting on the the huge dog crate that has a vey soft blanket in it.  She covered it so I would feel safe.  She also thought of food and water.  Even put a short litter box next to it for me.

I thought I was ready to go but being upstairs for awhile sends me back downstairs for long naps.

See I can get around.  It hurt MC to watch me stumble in the litter box and it hurts her to see me forget I don't have a leg anymore.  I still want out in the fresh air.  MC thought if I could sit and look out the window that would be enough.  It was, then I was tired again.

MC looked at all kind of websites to see if she could help me.  Someone named cheepchick sent her a great link that got her ready for me.  The other sites gave her some info.  One of them suggested sunshine would be helpful in the healing process.  YES!  Finally!  She is going to let me out.  OK, so it is MC we're talking about.  We went out into the fenced backyard.  MC hovered and I discovered I wasn't so sure it was a great idea to be out.  Something might go wrong again.

 No!  I'm not hiding like a scaredy cat.  I'm merely being cautious.

MC grows herbs.  Lots of herbs!  So she picked some catnip for me and let me enjoy it in the sun!

Yum!  And MC says it has healing properties for me.  She has really been great.  She even poached a boneless skinless chicken breast for me to have as treats after my meds.

Don't worry I'll look so much better when my fur grows back.  And if you see MC give her a hug, she worries too much about me I  think.  She just wants me to be happy.  I catch her crying when she thinks I'm not looking.  She's just a mom worrying if she did the right thing, she doesn't really care at all how I look.  Good thing cause you ought to see her in the morning before coffee.  Well, maybe you shouldn't.  It's scary. 

Till the next time MC let's me use the computer.

Happiness is a state of mind.
     Pain is inevitable but
       Misery is optional!

Food, flower, herb or dye. Which am I?

That's exactly what I wanted to know when I first spotted this plant in my sister's yard.  It was strikingly similar to a houseplant I'd given my Mom on her 70th birthday.  The big difference being it was outside and had self sown.  Mom's plant would be a goner if it tried to over winter here and root cuttings propagate it.  What did my sister know about her plant?  She knew where she bought it and she thought the seller said Native Americans used it as dye.  It grew well, self seeded, had a very pretty color, and a tassel like flower.  It got bonus points for easy removal if it grew where she didn't want it.  OK.  I wanted some but I also wanted to know more about it.  So my search began and I thought I would share what I discovered.  Why?  At this house cooking and gardening go hand in hand.  My gardens provide everything from fresh produce to a wide variety of seasonings for my kitchen to turn into tasty meals.   And any plant that can say, "I'm all of the above", I consider a winning garden plant and definitely worth sharing!

Order-Caryophyllales  Family-Amaranthaceae  Genus-Amaranthus  Species-cruenthus X A.powellii  Common name-Hopi Red Dye Amaranth

Mom's houseplant.  I learned during my search that quite a few members of this family are tropical.  Explains why this one doesn't like being outside during Missouri winters!

Family-Amaranthaceae  Genus-Iresine  Species-herbstii  Common name-Gizzard plant or Blood leaf

Yes, the color really does look like that and that is what caught my eye when I bought the Gizzard plant so long ago and again when I saw the amaranth in Sis's yard.  Discovering the 2 were in the same family was a search bonus.  And yes, it was quite a quest since I didn't have much to go on but prior to this I'd gone on a similar hunt for another plant so I was prepared.  An invasive that someone had introduced to my yard which went on to choke out my hyssop and several varieties of thyme.  I'm still waging a battle against it but I know what it is now!  Plus, I've gained a growing interest in botanical classifications of plants because the invasive's common name is used by other plants not in its family.   Little did I know when in college I'd be so interested in botany later.  Sure, I've alway enjoyed growing things but now I find the twists and turns in their family trees, so to speak, rather fascinating.  Did you know a rose is related to the apple tree?  They share Division, Class, Order and Family.  There's ever so much I don't know about the levels of plant identification but the cool thing about not knowing it all is knowledge can always be added to!  Sometimes it's even fun and you score bonus knowledge!  Like I did when I discovered yet another plant in the Amaranthaceae family.  A subfamily-Chenopodioideae.  Wait till you see what it is!

Back to my food. flower, herb and dye plant.  While the food, flower, and dye uses are pretty easy to show and explain, what about its use as an herb?   Yes, it is called an herb.  Webster tells me an herb is a seed producing annual, biennial or perennial that does not develop persistent tissue but dies down at the end of a growing season.  It is a plant or plant part valued for its medicinal, savory or aromatic qualities.  OK.  Again I'm not a botanist but I'll accept it as an herb.  A very pretty and tasty one!

I've included pictures of my attempts to grow it in a window box so I could harvest leaves for salads.  What a colorful way to dress up a salad!  In a container with nasturtiams and coleus.  I really like the color of this plant.  So vibrant in the sun!

Here it is out in the butterfly garden.  Did I mention the finches loved the seed heads?  Which you can also dry for flower arrangements.  The seeds are edible for us too.  However, it would take quite a few to consider yourself having had a snack of them.  Just wait till you see its bigger cousin (for lack of better word!).

I reseeded the window box and then got to look at those bright leaves all winter in the sunroom.  Rather cheery when the sun would shine between snowstorms.

Since this plant is used to make dye, I thought why not?  I'm not at all familiar with making my own dyes from plant products but the attempt was fun.  I was hoping to dye cupcakes with it but I don't think I made it strong enough because they were only vaguely pink.  Still tasted good though!

I've included links in case you'd like to read more about this plant and its family.  I never would have guessed a plant I found growing in my sister's yard would have so many uses and be good to eat.  Not to mention healthful.  Compared to some of the cousins I read about maybe not as high on the nutritional scale but I'd give it bonus points for being easy to grow!  You can toss the young leaves in a salad.  Wish this had been around when I was trying to get my son to eat salads.  I'm pretty sure he would have liked eating it for its color alone.  Its taste I'm not sure how to describe.  The only word that comes to mind is clean or fresh.  It doesn't remind me of spinach.  For my "Birthday brunch" blog, I had it steamed.  Worked pretty well and I liked it.  It could have a counterpart in another cuisine but my palate hasn't had the chance to extensively sample other cuisines.  I still chuckle when I think of Good EatNZ's attempts at broadening my culinary horizons during our joint blog effort.  Speaking of Laurie, I'm so glad to have made her acquainance and I truly hope the future gets brighter sooner rather than later for her and all those that have been affected by New Zealand's latest quake.  It is truly sad to think how permanent some of the damage to lives and property has been there.

Finally, what was my bonus plant in the search?  Order-Caryophyllales  Family-Amaranthaceae  Subfamily-Chenopodioideae  Genus-Chenopoduim  Species-quinoa.  Yes, indeed!  Quinoa.

Just what little I have read has been very interesting.  One site called it a puesdo grain since it is not really a grain but a seed.  So far everything I have read rates it high on the nutritional scale.  Plus, it is gluten free.  After I saw a request on the buzz about it, I decided to try some myself.  It must have been very popular at  the store because all the red was gone and there was very little white left.  Enough for me to try, though.  I know we are supposed to include more veggies and grains in our diets.  The veggies not so much of a problem for me.  A variety of grains more so.  One of the favorite grains they tell us to add I hate.  Yep, I hate oatmeal.  I'd rather eat it straight out of the box than cooked.  My poor mother would lament my lack of proper oatmeal for her breakfast when she came to visit.  She was just sure sure if I got the right kind I'd learned to love it.  Nope.  If you are a mushroom hater is there ever going to be a kind of mushroom you like?  I rest my case! 

I didn't try anything much with the quinoa.  Soaked it in chicken broth and heated it to see if I'd like it.  I did!  I like the consistency and the flavor.  So much so, I added the rest to homemade barley and mushroom soup.  This will be something I certainly try again and I look forward to seeing what else I can make out of it.

I hope you enjoyed the blog and I'm going to leave you with a picture that has nothing to do with it.  It happened to appear while I was taking pictures of the amaranth.  I thought I'd see who knew what it was especially Doug Matthews.  Yes, I do know what it is! LOL!

About Amaranth and Hopi Red Dye.

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/18481/Amaranthaceae
http://science.jrank.org/pages/278/Amaranth-Family-Amaranthaceae.html
http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=10031
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/93690/

About Quinoa.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quinoa
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chenopodium
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/cereal-grains-and-pasta/10352/2

I saw this request and copied it for myself since I wanted to keep the info about quinoa. I thought anyone else interested in quinoa might find what these AR members were sharing interesting too.
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe-Exchange/Recipe-Request.aspx?requestID=218668

How plants are classified.
http://faculty.fmcc.suny.edu/mcdarby/animals&plantsbook/History/02-Explaining-Life-Classification.htm
http://theseedsite.co.uk/class.html

Morning has broken....

The golden sun brushes the trees with first light..

Touching and stirring all creatures to life

Brightened and colorful the air turns....

Dew weaves itself into silvery lace.......

Catching the dazzling sun in millions of drops.....

Through the wooded line is there one perfect ray?

Yes, morning has broken and given us a new day!

The New Kid is Here!

He has arrived! Or should I say, we (DH & I) went and got him then we all arrived together. Yes, we drove all the way from Missouri to Tyler, Texas to get a puppy. Certainly not something I ever saw myself doing since there has never been a puppy living in this house. The dogs that shared our household were older refugees of life. Our last girl, a Chow mix that passed in June 2010, was with us for 14 years and must have been at least two when she dropped in. She didn’t look kindly on training of any kind but she adopted our son and thought it her duty to watch over him. She was also very good at announcing visitors be they human or animal. HID (husband in doghouse) had already decided we were going to replace Spot (the kid named her) with a pedigreed puppy when she passed from old age. I thought it should be a shelter puppy. About the only thing we agreed on were the breed and obedience classes. However, I was not sure I even wanted another dog let alone a puppy.

It took a weird incident to make me finally look at an ad because for months I’d been steadfastly ignoring all the ads HID kept finding and presenting. I refer to this incident as the “Old lady and the Loo”. We have a rural fenced property with a security gate but that did not stop a complete stranger from walking into my house while I was home and using the bathroom. I kid you not! While in the basement, I heard knocking at the front door. I started up the stairs and the next thing I know I hear a voice, “Hello, anyone home? Sorry I need to use your bathroom”. An older woman walked in uninvited and proceeded to use the bathroom. I swear I cannot make up stuff like this cause it would never ever occur to me to walk into a stranger’s country home no matter what kind of bathroom distress I was in! At first, I was more surprised than anything. Then later when the “what if’s” sank in, I decided it was time. I did need a companion like Spot who would have announced our uninvited guest and made her think twice about stopping here. Oh, Spot would not have hurt her but Spot really looked like a Chow and some can find those looks very intimidating. Our old girl had kept bigger men than that lady in their cars, honking the horn to announce their arrival.
As it happened, DH announced another ad one Sunday. I hesitated then something made me ask to see it but he’d thrown it away. Not to be thwarted in his attempt to get a puppy, he found it online. I emailed the puppy’s owner. She sent pictures and info. The decision was made. I puppy proofed the house and prepared for a new addition to the family, all the while, knowing full well this would not be a family dog. Oh no! I knew puppy duty and all that goes with it would be all mine.

Puppy potty training in the middle of winter was so not my original plan but it was a good time for my fur child to come. It has been rough to watch my only son prepare for his future. Some of you know just how hard it has been for me and I want you to know how much I’ve appreciated your practical advice, mother-to-mother words of wisdom and the virtual hugs. Between you and the bouncing ball of fluff, it is getting easier to see the young man who has replaced my little boy. As it happened, while we were driving to Texas, he was entering the second stage of joining Navy, which meant he would be gone also. So the timing of the trip was perfect. We left MO in the morning. It was cold (19 degrees) but it was beautiful outside. The sun was golden bright, the sky a deep early morning blue and the air crystal clear. Fingers of fog drifted pillowy white over the snow. I would have stopped for pictures but when DH is in journey mode, he bonds with the car and stopping is not an option. The only time it is either he or the car needs fuel. I have learned that the hard way. The weather that greeted us in Oklahoma and Texas was unseasonably warm and a very nice change for us. The weekend after a blizzard hit them and us! Our trip down went smoothly. The return trip was a little different however. I think I’m really going to like traveling with a dog not only did the puppy travel well but I was able to shock DH out of his glaze-eyed steering wheel clenching driving zone by saying, “If you don’t pull over at the next rest stop both the puppy and I are going in the car!” Not one word of protest came from that side of the car as he slowed down and pulled in. Even the puppy’s former owner said she felt sure he was the perfect dog for me when we picked him up. And he is. Introducing my new Chow Chow puppy, Katzen’s Bane.

My feline pride is less than enthusiastic about his presence.  They hover near the steps since they can slip through the baby gate and Bane can't.  My old cat, Josie, hasn't let him rattle her world too much.  She brings up socks from the laundry room forming a little sock conga line for Bane to play with.  She did it for her kittens and doesn't understand it is a "no no" for him to play with them.  Bane tries with his best puppy manners to engage the cats in play.  He tries to entice them with his toys.  Pip and Houston have declined the offers in no uncertain terms.

Yep, that is Pip lodging a protest from the cabinet above the refrigerator.  A big "No No" for him but he still filed the protest anyway!

Houston is an orderly cat and is not happy about the disturbance to his household.  Especially his food bowl arrangement since it is his duty to tell me when any of them are low on supplies.  He spends most of his time now telling me to take the fuzzy beast back from whence it came!

Bane loves the snow and the walks we are taking in it.  I, on the other hand, am waxing less than poetic about all the snow especially during the potty training phase.

I can tell where Bane is by where the cats are perched.  They sound like broken air hoses while hissing their cries of, "Don't touch me you mangy cur!".  I try to intervene before the war cries get too loud.

Bane is such a great little guy.  He definitely won me over at "hello" with a kiss when we first met.  He is smart and learns quickly.  He has a great personality and I enjoy watching him explore his universe.  It is almost like watching a human child.  This may be how the cats like him best but I love him all the time!

Apple Strudel's blogs and Good Eat NZ inspired me to try my hand a making my own doggie treats.  Being snowbound I didn't have all of their ingredients on hand so I checked out all kinds of sites and came up with my own recipe with what I had learned and what I had to use.  Terrie called during this fun process to schedule a visit from Bane since he had been sound asleep when she came to visit him.  When I told her what I was doing she said, "Now why doesn't that surprise me that you are cooking for your new puppy?"  Bane loves the treats and we took some to share when we went for our play date with Terrie's canines.  They were pretty happy with them too!

Bane's Barkin' Bites

2 cups grated carrot
1 T EVOO
2 eggs
1/2 cup soy flour
1 cup cracked wheat
2 cups whole-wheat flour
2 T homemade turkey broth
1/2 cup chopped Italian flat leaf parsley.
Mix together in the trusty Kitchen Aid.  Roll out 1/4' thick (Yep, Magnolia blossom, I used the cookie cutter you got me :)  Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.  Turn off oven and leave overnight to dry biscuits completely.

Gardens in the snow

Predictions of heavy snow and cold temperatures have come true and schools have been cancelled today.  The snowplow is valiantly scraping down the highway trying to remove packed snow morning commuters left behind.  Its success seems to be in better packing the snow for their evening return.  A miniature swirling snowstorm is pulling along behind the truck almost blocking it from view.  Snow is sprinkling off my roof like sugar from an overturned jar and the hardiest of my feline pride is ready to venture out yet again.  Earlier the jaunt out the backdoor was short-lived and very unsatisfying for him.  Pip is hoping a different door will show him a changed climate.  So the front door it is this time.  Much to his slit eyed dismay, he finds he still must go out into the blustery snow filled winds to escape the confines of the house.  And no the temperature has not improved either, something he seems to note with a backward glance at the closing door.  So while Mother Nature is dropping Missouri into a snowy deep freeze how is it I can be thinking about my gardens or gardening?  Warm sunshine.  Nope not today, I think a blue-colored 12 degrees is our expected high.  Do I see plants and herbs vigorously stretching their way up out of the soil towards a bright blue sky?  Afraid the potted herbs and houseplants in the sunroom are in scrawny hunker down and wait for spring mode.  Are there freshly harvested vegetables and fruit bursting with summer's bright flavor sitting on the counter waiting to be fixed?  Naw, but last summer's spicy pickled Blue Lake beans I'm snacking on are still crunchy with a modest green hue enhanced by turmeric.

Unlike my displaced California friend who swears Missouri only has 5-7 actually nice days and who at this minute is talking to her travel agent trying to arrange a trip to Cancun because she is so sure there is absolutely nothing good about a winter here, I am appreciating this chilly time for several reasons.  True, if I still had to commute home after a long day at work with the drive stretching from 35 minutes to an hour and a half or better due to snow and ice, I might not be thinking anything nice about the fluffy flakes.  I'm not cursing the cold and snow since I don't have to trudge through drifts or suit up against the bone chilling temperatures to feed and water livestock either.  Winter is like a vacation for me now so I can have the luxury of appreciating it.  A break from the never ending weeding.  A ceasefire in the battle of the bugs.  No nasty little creatures trying to take a bite out of me or my produce.  No critters to outsmart or keep from sampling my sweet corn and stripping my blueberry, blackberry or raspberry bushes.  No hot days in the kitchen canning my carefully gleaned produce.  No muggy hot weather.  All the not so nice things that can make a Missouri gardener's life less than fun filled.

Gardens are in view out almost every window.  Not bright and blooming, the way my California friend prefers to see her landscape.  No, in the wintry snowscape my gardens are showing me such a different side of themselves.  Colors that don't appear except at this time of year.  Shapes and forms only the snow can make appear.  Don't believe me?  Just have a look.

Spent bronze fennel blooms cupping the snow to make a new flower.  The center a fluffy white instead of the sunny yellow and pollen heavy bracts of summer with their developing licorice flavored seeds.


The Japanese maple still holding onto a few faded crimson leaves.

Euonymous vines snaking up a tree with almost black green foliage.

Summer's self-sowing Opal basil, leafless now but holding tiny cups of seeds for foraging birds.

Yellow twig Dogwood, limbs changing from cheery yellow to spears of scarlet for the season.

The twisted and stiff architecture of trees constrasting darkly against a cold skyline.  So different from when wrapped in summer's Kelly green while warm breezes brush through their leaves.

Stone structures in the garden squatting against the snow.

The birds at the feeders.  The rising sun brightness of cardinals sitting on the red twig Dogwood with cinnamon brown oak leaves behind.  The mourning dove's fanned v-shapped flight.  Finches no longer a cheery sunshine yellow but wearing winter's dreary garb.

There are other things to see if you have the time.  Spent summer grasses showing butter cream yellow against the chocolate colored richness of a creek bank where its steepness wouldn't allow snow to stick.  Rushes that escaped the mower showing Beef Burgandy brown against the white.  The whiteness of the snow looking violet blue in the predawn.  Frost brushed trees their tops glowing pink with the rising sun their trunks a blue gray.  The sky's horizon a gently washed shade of yellow.  The sky promising with the sun's climb to become a bright blue similar to the hard candies my Grandmother used to have in her candy dish next to the cellophone wrapped cinnamon and butterscotch ones.

After coffee and contemplating my cold season views when there is not so much to do, it is time to slip into a garden planning frame of mind with the help of these.

Seed catalogs with their kaleidoscope of color.  Gardening magazines showing me all the things I could possibly grow.  Page after page of brightly colored luscious fruits and vegetables beckon me.  Articles full of information about all that is new on the gardening front!  I will sort through my seeds to see what I need to order.  The mini greenhouse will soon be filled with new sprouts-peppers, tomatoes and whatever else I chose to start.  This will be the perfect gardening year!

Already I 'm thinking of freshly picked asparagus with sauteed wild Morels.  Sweet corn picked at is peak.  All colors and flavors of tomatoes gently warmed by the sun.  Strawberries bursting with unsurpassed sweetness.  Fresh just begging to be eaten peas.  No mater how tired or dusty I am from my gardening pursuits, I will take the time to pluck a pod of ripened peas to eat and I will remember the first time I did that in front of my then 6-year-old son.  I will sit on the stone wall in my garden and think back to that day when a skeptical child asked why I was eating raw peas from a pod.  "Because I want to.," I said.  "I'd let you try them but you don't like peas."  My child's reply, "If I want to try them you will let me?"  "Of course, here take this pod. I believe it is quite ripe but don't forget you don't really like peas."  And yes, I said that with a very straight face as only a mother can who is trying convince her child veggies really are good.  There is nothing like a surprised young face when they discover a disliked food's flavor is really quite nice.

So again, this year I plan the perfect garden while watching it snow.  There will be no weeds.  Every row soldierly straight.  Everything well labeled so no year-end confusion of "Is it hot or mild?"  I just know my team of 3-me, myself and I will get it all done.  This year I will not see the "Perfect Garden Ship" weigh anchor in March and set sail out of the harbor in April.  Disappearing over the horizon in May while I gaze at the quickly growing weeds and hastily planted rows.  No, not this year, it is a new and different year.  A perfect garden year!  The calendar says spring is more or less 9 weeks away.  Are you thinking about gardening where ever you are?  What will be in your garden?  Where ever it is and whatever you grow, I hope you too have a perfect gardening year!