'twas a Frosty Morning

Frosty mornings are just a prelude to the mighty winter that lays ahead. Grass is often white, crunching under foot, easy to slip on I remind myself. On Saturday I drove to Mahone Bay, a beautiful historic town here in Nova Scotia, and as I parked the car at the old school, the scene above took my breath away. One man had a black belt and the others white...bare feet on slim flip flop soles, looking all the world like ghostly warriors on the icy grass, weapons held high or wielding. Bright morning sun beamed down... and for just a minute, I was transported; held in awe.

The garden has had its ups and downs of frost, snow sprinkles and icy patches. The soil heaves up a bit, then settles down, crunchy on top..soft below. We await the big white blanket.

I am happy for the greens we are still harvesting from the cold frame covered raised bed...oh so happy!

Baby chard, bulls blood beet leaves, one lonely but delicious hot radish, tomatoes from summerhouse, parsley, bronze fennel, greens from baby garlic, baby spinach, tom thumb lettuce, baby leaves of celery, mustard greens, tatsoi, pak choi and a few tiny brussels sprouts which didn't grow very big this year (the stink loves them as treats).

Included in that gratefulness, the fact that in spring we planted three tomato plants in the summerhouse incase we were wiped out by blight as we were in 2012. The Captain suggested, in honor of Christmas, we put tiny ribbons at the top of each one. Nope..they are too precious to be decorations.

These are Inca, shaped like a pepper and almost hollow inside but bursting with flavor!

The dependable pumpkin and squash are turning into hot flavorful soup, so all and all, it's a joyous few weeks heading into Christmas still using what we grew in the garden. Merry merry to you and yours.