As far as increasing strength in the muscles supporting the spine: these exercises and these exercises
As long as they don’t cause you pain. I’ve had a broken vertebra in my low back for over a decade and these exercises help me manage the pain.
He promises just one more row and he’ll stop for the night
Looks like a Yellow Warbler to me. They like to be near water and are almost pure yellow with light reddish streaks on their chest, which I think I can see in the bird in your photo. Great shot! Warblers don’t like to sit still for long.
Photos 4 and 5 are a yellow-crowned night heron. Very nice capture, they can often be elusive
I like Faber Castell and Black Widow brands. Not Crayola cheap but also not super expensive either.
laughing kookaburras as background “monkey” sounds in the Amazon jungle also get me
using a red-tailed hawk call whenever a bald eagle is shown
also I like to try and figure out where they filmed based on the birds I hear in the background
If you’re going to be in national forest land, the Forest Service has maps you can use in Avenza Maps that are geotagged - probably the wrong term but they work in areas of the forest with no cell service and it still shows where we are and even when we’re moving.
Other federal agencies (BLM, FWS, etc) may have them too. You could even see if the area’s counties have some? I only have direct experience with USFS maps that do this but I doubt they’re the only ones.
Eta: After looking at some iGo screenshots, Avenza probably won’t be a good fit. It doesn’t offer turn by turn directions nor does it automatically center on you. If you drive out of frame you do have to manually move the map.
So true. There’s a post-it on my car key right now because I need to remember something in the fridge when I leave for work
regular but infrequent things like birthdays
And for friends’ kids’ birthdays I put the year they were born because I definitely won’t remember how old they are
I will set things I need to bring with me right in front of the door so I cannot leave without picking them up
This came up unexpectedly and I’m waiting to see what it’ll be. I didn’t plant any squash or pumpkins this year. In fact I’ve never planted either in this garden bed. We affectionately call it our “pumquash” while we wait.
I have it under a greenhouse because we had our first frost warning this weekend, and I’d really like at least one fruit to mature so we can solve the mystery. This is the furthest along.
Today’s our first frost date, and I haven’t had a single ripe tomato yet. Time to break out the plant covers and cross my fingers.
I usually make green tomato relish. What are your favorite green tomato canning recipes?
Edit: Here’s the recipe. I couldn’t find a recipe that didn’t use already-made dill pickles, so I combined several recipes instead. I used the National Center for Home Food Preservation’s vinegar solution ratios for sweet pickles to make sure the pH was safe. Then I used a combo of spices from a sweet dill recipe and a sweet horseradish recipe.
My dill plants didn’t do well this year, so I used dried. It’s important to note, I’ve never made this recipe before and since I just canned yesterday I don’t know yet whether it’s good.
Makes 4-5 pint jars
Between earwigs and wildlife this year, the only plants producing are the ones in my porch boxes. The cucumbers are gherkins so I’ve been picking them small so I can make them into sweet pickles. I have 3 jars put up already and enough cucumbers to make #4 this weekend. I just wish I had a small deep pot to can in, it’s such a waste to pull out my big canner. But until I can find one that at least fits pint jars I have to keep using the big pot.
I planted more peas this week and plan to do some more fall planting this weekend. I’m about 2 weeks behind but better late than never.
Edit: I forgot to mention, the leaves in the photo are just for our bunny’s breakfast. Although I will soon be drying some raspberry and blackberry leaves for her to enjoy in the winter.
Fewer people at home this week, so I made a half recipe of my usual Soft French Bread (that’s what the recipe calls it) and baked it in a sandwich loaf pan. Forgot the egg wash but it’s still tasty!
Edit: here’s the recipe
Earwigs or some other insect have been voraciously nibbling on my bean and radish leaves. I saw it mentioned in several places to put out a dish with oil and a little soy sauce. I figured it’s worth a shot.
Do you have a favorite way to keep the tiny critters away from your leaves?
We’ve noticed we don’t find monarch caterpillars on milkweed plants that have ants on them. We’ve also noticed if ants start coming on a plant with a caterpillar on it, the caterpillar disappears. It doesn’t seem to show up on a neighboring milkweed plant either.
I’m wondering if anyone has a way they keep ants off these plants so the caterpillars can continue their life cycle in peace.
Didn’t spot this one right away so it got away from me. They’re gherkins, I plan to make sweet pickles. Not with this monster though, we ate it fresh and it was delicious.
First try at making hot dog buns today. Next time I’m definitely going to do 8 buns instead of 6. Other than that, do you have any tips or tricks to shaping them?
Just have to vent, because I’m struggling to finish this sweater. The body was knit with US 17s (12mm). Now I’m doing the sleeves on US 19s (16mm) because my gauge was too tight with the 17s. I have discovered I don’t like knitting with these size needles. They’re uncomfortable for me to hold and knitting with them feels like a chore.
Vent over. Hopefully I’ll get this sweater off the needles today or tomorrow, and now I know to avoid any more projects using these needles.
He’s the master of using all the eyebrow muscles, especially when you have cheese