Making A List

And checking it twice!

Or, at least, a hundred times because it's my to-do list for my life. Lol.

I figured out that I should blog quick posts when I have something to talk about but no one to necessarily talk to about it at that very moment! :P The household is ogling Man vs. Food on the telly at the moment even though we're incredibly full from having spaghetti with an organic spicy chunky meat sauce. Oh, with salad, roast garlic bread, and a fruit salad for desert. Mmm... Some of the food the host is eating does look awfully good but it hurts my heart and stomach in so many ways seeing it in volumes 5 to 10 times more than is necessary in any meal.

It does make me really think about how I want to learn and practice cooking. My mom has said a few things about how people tend to obsess over items/ hobbies/ talents that we never are able to accomplish/ achieve. When I hear something like that, I acknowledge it as a truth and then stubbornly try to pursue learning about said subject. I'm pretty good about learning the basics in most crafts that I tackle and often that's as far as my skills go.

I have a ton of recipes to try but on top of that, I want to make fresh smoothies, learn how to make pasta from scratch, and learn how to garden! Oh yes, I often get ambitious like that. My three biggest enemies are: money (Duh! Lol), my knack of grossly underestimating the time necessary to conquer/ work with my obsessive-compulsive neurotic behaviors, & my natural lack of ability. XD We really are our own biggest critics but I totally speak these truths about myself.

To bring my ranting around full circle, my pepper plants have been progressing nicely! I was super worried I was managing to screw them up because I was having a difficult time learning about proper gardening techniques and timelines, but have recently found a wealth of amazing information. I strongly believe that my peppers are the Bird's Eye Chili Pepper/ Thai Hot Chili Pepper. The website I'm now using as my Chili growing bible is Chillis Galore! I love how they have tried different products, varieties, and methods throughout the years and chronicle their experiments complete with pictures!

Here is my update about my pepper plants so far. They have really exploded in terms of leaf size since our trip to Texas over Memorial Day weekend.

This is what they looked like about a month ago:

 Right after I upgraded their living space:

Nowadays, only the biggest one survived in the pot with six plants in it. 

I must had done it too soon. :(

I'm also holding the ruler upside down. X(

This is about 2.5 inches tall in terms of stalk height.

 This is the next biggest one at 4 inches in the biggest pot.

Go figure, I am so wise sometimes... /eye roll.

The second biggest at a little over 4 inches but it's leafs are bigger.

The biggest in it's snug pot at a little over 4 inches.

Good gravy, right?

It really kills me that the little one is off-center. The rest of its friends drowned and barely had any roots when I moved them. My bad. :( I'm trying to give them plenty of water without drowning their feet and have pinched the two biggest plants in an effort to get bushier plants. That's my current experimenting. I'm also trying not to use tomato-plant fertilizer like some of the growers have suggested and done. I'm trying to see if this hardy pepper plant can survive being tended by me. LOL.

Ooo! I just had the brilliant idea of making a mini scrapbook album about my pepper plants! Teehee. Finally! An excuse to make one! Ooo, I'm so excited now. Lol. Because I don't already have enough projects going for me.

The plants are so funny. Because they are inside and by the sliding glass patio door, they reached towards the sun every day. I felt so bad for the plant being weighed down by its overgrown leaves that I turned them 25% away. It's now gotten to the point that I turn them 180 degrees away from the sunlight each night and watch them through out the day as they grow straight up and then tilted towards the light by the evening.

I have also started to accumulate some makeshift supplies. A rag to mop up after I've over watered, a spoon to even out the dirt that's displaced by watering, a water bottle for easy pouring (sometimes I'll add old coffee water and grounds if there are any available because it makes for decent fertilizing and insect repellent), and an old plastic pot container to hold the supplies. FMIL even gave/ donated a little garden guardian on a stick to the cause:

Sheldon the Snail!

He keeps an eye stalk or two on things. Sorta. I find him just as funny as the pepper plants. :P

I need to get back to cleaning up the mess I made with card making. It's literally covering the dinner table. >_< Whoops. Creative chaos, indeed. 

See you soon! <3