Fun updates all. I've got a bumper crop of weeds too, lazy. Great pics, Jon, love the Eucalyptus blooms, and the action shot with the hummingbird, great stuff. That agave is beautiful too! I've definitely got a bumper crop of lemons and oranges this year, and my first THREE grapefruit fruit, lol, on a very young tree. I do love citrus! I'm having a bumper crop of leaf lettuce (autumn planted) and cherry tomatoes too. Here's the cherry tomatoes yesterday morning. Obviously no frost at my garden yet this winter--quite a change from last winter! Jack Frost and I ripped out the parent plants of these popcorn cassias a few years ago (they were just getting too rangy), but this summer some seedlings appeared and I'm glad I let them go as they're providing a nice bright spot of yellow on the south side of the house. Being winter blooming means they're susceptible to frost damage, but so far this year they've been unbothered. Finally, this Eremophila carnosa emu bush has been absolutely covered in flowers since October, and they're ORANGE, my favorite color. I need to plant more of these! Keep the pics and updates coming all. Happy gardening! Grant

Renee- welcome! What part of the Midwest are you in? I'm in MN and we were encouraged to pick out everything very early too. It actually helped the process a lot. We also did white perimeter cabinets (white dove) and a stained center island, which is a few shades darker than the floors. Akshars & xc60- I really love those ceilings. Wow! So half of the appliances were delivered today, but not the exciting ones :) apparently the delivery driver missed half of them. Good job!! Ugh! Cleaning went great last night, but they will for sure have to come back. There was still a mess with people in there again today. The mantle was installed today. I didn't get any other pics because I was in a big rush after work before I had to get the kids. I'm getting very anxious about finalizing this process. Making sure all added expenses are in line, etc...and dealing with overages is becoming a reality. Even though we are supposed to close Tuesday, my husband coaches basketball and has literally 4 evening games next week. The other nights he has practice and I have a work event on Saturday...so I'm not sure how we'll make moving a priority.

I'll continue the Mexican food theme with braised pork tacos I recently made courtesy of Rachel Ray. I made it last week and Chris and I really enjoyed them. I am not usually a huge fan of her 30 minute meals but I searched for braised pork tacos and the recipe sounded good with 5 star reviews. Plus it's not a 30 minute meal. I prepared exactly as directed my only critique is I would have liked a little more heat but I like my food spicy and that can easily be fixed. Oh and I used green jalapenos instead of red chilies because that's what the grocery store had available. Maybe that was my heat problem. I was thinking of not making the pickled onions but I was very happy I did. They really balanced the flavor of the tacos and were super simple to make. INGREDIENTS 1 (4 to 5 pound) boneless pork shoulder Salt and freshly ground black pepper 2 tablespoons vegetable oil 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 2 onions, cut into wedges, root end attached 4 large cloves garlic, crushed 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped oregano leaves, half a palmful 2 red chiles, thinly sliced 4 bay leaves 1 (12-ounce) bottle Mexican beer 2 cups chicken stock 4 oranges, juiced about 2 cups 1 chipotle pepper, seeded and finely chopped, plus 1 tablespoon of adobo sauce 2 limes, juiced 1 1/2 cups white wine vinegar or white balsamic vinegar 1/2 cup sugar 2 small red onions, thinly sliced 1 cup drained sliced store-bought pickled jalapenos or banana pepper rings 1/4 head red cabbage, shredded 1 cup crumbled queso fresco or 2 cups shredded Monterey jack 16 corn or flour tortillas, charred over open flame and kept warm in tortilla warmer or towel DIRECTIONS Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Season the pork generously with salt and pepper, to taste, and let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Pat the pork dry with a paper towel. Heat a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over high heat with 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, 2 turns of the pan. Put the pork in the pot and evenly brown the meat all over, it will take about 10 to 12 minutes; remove the pork to a plate and reserve. Turn heat down to medium-high, and add the extra-virgin olive oil to the pot, a couple of turns of the pan. Add the onions and garlic, salt and pepper, to taste, the oregano, 1 sliced chili pepper and 2 bay leaves and cook for 7 to 8 minutes. Deglaze the pot with the beer, scraping up the bits stuck to the bottom of the pot. Stir in the chicken stock and orange juice. Add the reserved pork back to the pot (the liquid should come about 2/3 the way up the meat) and bring to a simmer. Cover and put the pork in the oven, turning the meat halfway through cooking, until the meat is very tender, about 2 1/2-3 hours. Remove the pork from the pot, to a cutting board and tent with foil to keep warm. When cool enough to handle, pull the meat apart with 2 forks. Simmer the braising liquid over medium heat until reduced by half. Add the chipotle and adobo sauce and the lime juice. Add about 2/3 of the shredded meat and stir. Cool the remaining shredded pork and chill for another use. While the pork is cooking, prepare the pickled red onions: in a small saucepot, bring the white wine vinegar, sugar, teaspoon of salt, remaining chili pepper and bay leaves to a simmer over low heat. Put the sliced red onions in a small sealable container. Carefully pour the hot liquid over the onions, cover and give it a shake. You may need to lift the lid to release some of the pressure. Every now and then, give it a good shake. Refrigerate to cool. To serve, put the chipotle pulled pork on a platter and garnish with pickled onions and pickled jalapeno slices. Serve with shredded cabbage, crumbled cheese and tortillas for wrapping.

Good Friday all, From frigid frozen and bitterly cold NH!! Wow, so much for our little January thaw. She's going out like a lion with a vengeance for sure. Yesterday we had just enough snow to cover the ice making things really slick and dangerous. Many accidents and one death locally after the truck when careening into a river during a white out. So sad. Temps plummeted 30 degrees overnight....and the wind is howling. It's so windy and cold today that I closed the doors on one side of the barn to give the animals a break. Not nice. I saw on the news that we are not alone with these conditions - out in the mid-west is crazy too. Ah Winter. As cold as it was before dawn this morning (3 degrees) I must say I was taken by the beauty of the full Wolf moon setting over the pasture. It has illuminated our nights for so long. Jan and Dee, the winter months bring out the interior decorator in me to so I am thinking of repainting the downstairs bathroom and making some other significant changes there. Cabin fever brings this on I am sure. DH is home this weekend so that will be fun. I will probably not be riding the horses!! LOl no way, too icy and cold. Last Saturday was dream to be out and now.... Marci, Milkdud, thanks for the ideas. I will have to just dig in and start organizing the letters and figure it out. It's fun but I always have a slow start until I get truly inspired. Has anyone read Food, Inc.? It's a must read for those who truly care about where there food comes from and how it gets onto the table. Fascinating and disturbing too.