Latest Craft Project

Since we don't have much use for long sleeves here in Texas I've been plotting to convert some of my less exciting long sleeve shirts into short ones. I'm pleased with my first attempt though sewing on knit fabric turned out to be a battle. Inspiration came from this pin on Pinterest.

Before

After

Close up

We Did It! (the MS150 that is)

Jen and I successfully completed Day 1 of the MS150.  We biked 85.5 miles in about 12 hours.  Here is our approximate route: http://g.co/maps/yd29n http://www.ms150.org/images/2009-BP-MS-150-Maps-2.pdf

Thanks to everyone who donated to support this great cause, thanks to the Laws and the Blanks for letting us borrow some real road bikes, and especially thanks to Jen's parents for coming down to watch the boys so we could do this ride.

Team Pariveda

Getting Ready

Important business.  There were this many port-a-johns at the start (and every rest stop) and usually there was a line.

 The sponsored photographers actually got some pictures of me, as opposed to Jen who they thought was a middle aged man.

It was great to get out and ride, even though Jen smoked me on most sections of the trail.

Tomatoes, Peppers and Peas - Oh My!

I was "on the bench" working from home between projects at work for a little while at the beginning of March, so I took the opportunity to build a little garden bed out of some of the extra bricks piled on the side of our house.  

March 7th

Having good drainage is important in Houston, so slightly raised garden boxes work well.  Growing season starts early enough that you can get 2 harvests in of some plants if you are ambitious. (We're probably not)

March 16th

The position on the south side of our house and the slope of our neighbor's roof provide good sunlight for most of the day.

April 4th

We planted: (in this order from left to right)

Tomatoes

Bell Peppers

Onions

Peas

Basil

And in the pots:

Cilantro

Zucchini

Oregano

The onions are mostly non-existent, and we had to supplement the basil with starts, but everything else is growing pretty well.  We also have aloe and mint in pots on our back patio.

Still April 4th

April 7th

April 18th

May 2nd

Zach's favorite are the peas. They are starting to burn out though.

Did we spend more setting up this garden than we will save in food costs from its yield?  Probably.  But it's fun to have a little horticulture to tend, and fresh home-grown vegetables sure are tasty.