As of 20 March

It's been a while since I last posted...and I just started this! Unbelievable. Anyway, since the last post about three weeks ago, my strawberries have grown up a bit. Taking advice from Kayla to use a florescent light, a leaf grew within one week (it kind of looks like holly from this angle):

Since then, I've had done some research on the internet on how to take care of them properly. I spent about two weeks going back and forth about whether I should use fertilizer and what kind. I never knew there was such a dizzying array - greensand, liquid seaweek, fish emulsion, balanced vs unbalanced fertilizers - it's all very overwhelming. But I referred back to my handy-dandy book, and decided to use a very diluted solution of liquid seaweed when I first plant them and a balanced fertilizer on a regular basis throughout the growing season.

Last weekend, I decided to re-pot the oregano that was residing in a very large pot all by its lonesome self into a smaller pot. I was using some the liquid seaweed, and used some leftover solution on the strawberry plants. By that time, my plants had very healthy second and third leaves growing (sorry, I forgot to take a picture to commemorate). I then left town the next day for a business trip.

Thomas took care of them while I was gone, mindful about doing it carefully, since I have developed an odd obsession for them. One of them had apparently gotten "soft" (an adjective he used) around Tuesday, and so he stopped watering fearing that he was doing too much of that. They recovered, and he sent me this picture on Thursday:

I couldn't believe it, they got so big! I was really thrilled. I couldn't wait to see them up close when I got home. And now that I am home, as ecstatic as I am that they had gotten significantly bigger, I also realized that they were starting to look a bit droopy. I picked one up and saw that the roots were beginning to grow outside the peat pellets they were in - they were at least an inch outside the pellets. I hadn't readied the large pot for them, so I decided to temporarily pot them in disposable cups with holes poked at the bottom (for water drainage) to give them more room to grow. It was too soon for any fertilizer, so I just added moist potting soil and am letting them do their thing by the window:

I am keeping my fingers crossed that my plants will do better now that they have more room to grow. I am really thrilled at the progress the strawberries have been making so far. I am on furlough this week, so it's probably the best time to prepare their final home sometime soon rather than later.

And a side story, the act of moving my oregano has resulted in getting it killed. I don't know if it was because it was unhappy being in a smaller house or that the fertilizer was too strong. Either way, may it rest in peace and know that I appeciated the wonderful flavor it imparted.

I will try to be better about posting the next update soon. Pray that I don't accidentally kill these plants too!

American Idol

Earlier this year, we were invited to a French house party with the theme "American Idol". Everyone was to dress up as a musician celebrity and perform an act. I was hesitant to do any performance, but the hosts said that as long as I dressed up, they didn't care. So Thomas and I were trying to think of ideas as to whom we should go as... Sonny and Cher was thrown around, except Cher was the taller of the two and as you all know, that is not the case with Thomas and I. As a joke, I said John Lennon and Yoko Ono, but didn't really mean it because surely we would have better ideas than that. Well we didn't, and arrived as the infamous couple, and I have to say, we did quite a good job:
I realize that Yoko is not known to smile a lot, but other than that, we did a good job , no?

Other notables that showed up were the Spice Girls:


And Marilyn Manson:

As of 28 February

About two years ago, I started getting interested in gardening. Why, I am not completely sure. I've never thought that I had any shade of green thumb, and one of things I hated the most growing up was mowing the lawn. Ugh.

But with my interest in cooking, it was becaming more important to me to use fresh ingredients, and so I've been trying my hand at growing herbs for the past two years. This year, I am ready to branch out.

What helped me branch out was a post I read on one of my favorite blogs, Get Rich Slowly. The author lives in Oregon, where he and his wife keep a garden of fruits and vegtables. His wife wrote a book review on The Bountiful Container by Rose Marie Nichols McGee and Naggie Stuckey. I went to the bookstore to check it out, and I was completely sold on the informative format and the fact that one could grow zucchinis, apples, and peaches in a container. I picked up a copy and decided on what to try this year - strawberries.

I had to make a choice between buying starts or growing them by seed. I wanted to buy starts but I couldn't find a store that sold the variety I wanted and if I purchased over the internet, I had to buy about 25, which is way more than I need. So with the encouragement of Kayla, my gardening-expert friend, I purchased a packet of seeds of the variety I wanted and decided to grow them myself. I planted them on 15 February, since the packet said that it took about three to four weeks for the seeds to germinate, and then would need time before being transplanted to it's final home by the last spring frost.

Well, to my surprise, I started to see green flecks one week after planting (see above). I was so excited, I took pictures even though it was 11pm and I was traveling for work the next day.

Thomas took care of them during the week and by the time I came home, they had grown their first set of true leaves!

I had planted extra seeds for insurance, but I ended up with too many. I cut some at the soil line today, so the ones left over have room to grow and not compete with the others. I still expect that I may have more than I can care for, so if anyone is interested, let me know and I can give you one!

I am completely excited at my progress, and I can't wait to update everyone on how it's going next week!

Welcome!

Yay! My first blog!

I wanted to start this blog to have an outlet that everyone can get to and be updated on what I am currently doing. My life really isn't that exciting, but I want share stories about things that happen and what I learn on the way. If anything else, it may help you sleep if you are suffering from insomnia.

I also hope to hear from everyone else. Let me know when you think I've posted something dumb, if you have any ideas for me, have some exciting news or generally whenever you want. I always look forward to news.

Without further ado, welcome to Fraise et Crème, which means "strawberries and cream" in French. I wanted the title to be in French to emphasize the French influence I have in my life, and I chose strawberries and cream because I just like sweet things. I hope you enjoy reading and coming along on my life happenings. Can't wait to hear from you!