In the Spring, I have counted 136 different kinds of weather inside of 24 hours. Mark Twain

As I watch the effects of snow storms, nor’easters and bomb cyclones in other parts of the country, I am grateful to live in an area with a more mild winter.  Though I do miss the stillness and peace a new fallen snow brings, I remember not liking the variations in weather between winter and spring.

Here at Bella Terra, we are just now noticing the changes that spring brings. Our morning temperatures are out of the 30s and into the 40s.  Duck dating has arrived at our pool.

Last week there were 6 gorgeous mallards vying for the lone female’s attention.  She appears to have settled on the last two.  Who will be the lucky guy?  Her suitor will stay by her side for the next few months.  Soon she will bring her little ones, teaching them how to swim here.

When I walked into our living room yesterday morning, I noticed how the eastern light has changed.  Bathed in softness, the subtle difference is a reminder that spring is on its way.

There is evidence of spring in the yard.  Stretching along the eastern side of our property, we planted Lady Banks Roses, R. Banksiae Lutea.  These roses can vigorously grow to a height of 25 feet and produces pale to deep yellow flowers.  It is not strongly perfumed and the wood is almost thornless. This makes the perfect privacy fence.

Just this week, we are seeing the very first of its blossoms. These roses only bloom once a year, but shortly will provide a stunning wall of yellow.

In the orchard, it is nearly time to glean all the citrus fruit from the tree.  We are prodded to do so when we start seeing the early blossoms for the next cycle of fruit.

The apple and apricot trees are budding and even though I am tempted to cut these gorgeous branches to display inside, I leave them alone and let nature takes its course.

Due to our extreme summer heat, I have only had success in growing Anna apples, which will be ready to pick in June.

The apricot tree is in its 3rd year of production, so I am hoping for a great yield this year. Look at how delicate these blooms are!

One of our peach trees is just starting to show spring growth, due to its “less sun” placement in the yard.

Even the chickens are sensing the change in season.  Our Araucanas have started laying their blue-green eggs again.  Chickens need 14 hours of daylight in order to have egg production.  Some chicken breeds lay more than eggs others.

In front of the guest cottage, the first jonquil has shown its beautiful trumpet.  A member of the daffodil family, the jonquil has six outer petals and slender, hollow foliage.

The flower beds in the front of the house are just starting to come to life. Here the lavender flowers are showing off.

March 20th is the official start of Spring, only 2 weeks away.  I am looking forward to a spring of hope and renewal, and more time to enjoy the great outdoors.

I am salivating as I write this because I’ve just discovered the easiest, most delicious appetizer!  One of the benefits of cleaning out my pantry (see post here) was the chance to organize piles of recipes I’ve collected….and finally making a few.

Inspired by the huge cherry tomato crop we are now harvesting, these 4 simple ingredients (tomatoes, garlic, mint and olive oil) are fabulous together. There is nothing better than a super easy recipe that gets rave reviews.

Here’s a selfie I took of the tomato plant (I thought the perspective was interesting).

There is always so much mint in the garden.  It’s one of those incursive plants that you just can’t kill. I was skeptical of mixing mint with tomatoes (yuck) as it seems like an unnatural combination.

I love the oil container my son bought me for Christmas (from Williams Sonoma)….it’s so handy vs. the large bottles.

The recipe calls for 7 cloves of garlic, but I always add more.  You can never have too much garlic. Also, try and make sure the tomatoes are roughly the same size and uncut so they bake evenly.

A little salt and pepper….

Toss it all together. Isn’t this beautiful?

And slow roast for 45 to 60 minutes.  I let mine roast for the full hour.  Ahhhh…the aroma! My kitchen smelled so good!

Look at these little gems, bursting with flavor!

I don’t know what the mint does to the tomatoes, but the flavor was so spectacular.  Tastes nothing like mint, but enhances everything else. Toast some slices of baguette, spread some nice soft goat cheese and top with the tomato mixture.

Absolutely heavenly!

I had some leftover roasted tomatoes and I added them to scrambled eggs.  I think you could spread this on cardboard and it would be divine.  When I finished the tomatoes, I poured the oil over a chicken breast before I popped it in the oven.  Again, it was superb and made the kitchen have that “what are you cooking that smells so good” smell.

We recently had friends over for dinner.  One of our guests, a Navy SEAL said he didn’t like cherry tomatoes but LOVED this recipe.

Enjoy!!!

Here is the Recipe for Slow-Baked Tomatoes with Garlic and Mint (originally published in the September 2010 issue of Better Homes and Gardens)

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Happy New Year’s Eve….hard to believe it will be 2018. I want to push a big brake pedal on life…it’s is going TOO fast!

We are having a nice dinner this evening with no plans for anything formal tomorrow. When I made my Thanksgiving centerpiece (to see the post, click here), my friend Tracy, wished I had provided more information on how I did it.  As a result, I created a similar one for our New Year’s Eve dinner table.

You can really use any tray or container that will hold plants and flowers and is somewhat waterproof.  For Thanksgiving, I used a wooden tray I lined with foil and plastic.  For this one, I went to the Garden Shop at Whitfill Nursery and purchased an oval, galvanized tin one with handles.  I had them fill it with water to make sure it didn’t leak.

It was nearly waterproof, but leaked slightly on the side edge. I can work with that. While I was there, I selected a variety of green plants with white flowers-geraniums, ornamental cabbages, variegated ivy, and dusty miller.

I lined the tray with a black plastic trash bag, covering the seam where there is a slight water leak.

I removed the plastic containers and arranged the plants in the tray.  I did not need to add additional soil, since I will be removing them and planting them in the garden next week. I really like the ability to re-purpose these plants after they have served their time as a centerpiece.

Next, I added some cut flowers for color and texture~~using 2 dozen white roses.

I inserted plastic cups in the bare spots, filled them with water and added the cut roses.

There were still some holes so I filled them with leftover fresh greens from the Christmas tree (that were sitting in a bucket of water for the last few weeks). Again, I can’t say enough about the quality of Christmas trees at Whitfill.  Our tree and these greens are still so firm and fragrant.

At this point I thought the centerpiece was completed.  I really like how it looks against the natural wood table.  However, when I placed it on the white linen tablecloth, I felt it still needed something.

Initially, I wanted my New Year’s table to be whites, greens and silver.  But at the last minute I changed my china to this for a burst of color.

By adding gold and green balls,  it help to spice it up a bit. I love the shape of this tray, however, I feel the galvanized tin is a bit rustic for the formal place settings.  I’m hoping with the candles lit, it won’t be as noticeable.  But again, it’s fun to mix and match!

Thank you for your inspiration, kind words and loyalty in 2017.  From everyone at Bella Terra, we wish you and your family a safe, healthy and prosperous 2018!

Resources:  Silverware: Wallace Napolean Bee purchased from Horchow; China:  Royal Worcester Greek Urn with Flowers; Roses purchased from Safeway

Food seems to taste much better when served in a beautiful setting.  Even though I didn’t have an extravagant childhood, my mother always set a lovely table for the holidays, using her Franciscan Ware apple pattern.

This year, I took one of my English china plates, Windsor Ware by Johnson Bros. with me to select the plants from Whitfill Nursery and flowers from Safeway for the centerpiece.

I wanted to purchase items I could use again~~plants and herbs.  Of course, I needed a few flowers for additional color.

We are having 10 for Thanksgiving dinner so we extended the table.  I wonder why they are called leaves?

It was a worthwhile investment purchasing a table pad to protect the surface of the dining room table.  One side of the pad is felt and the other is a protective plastic.  This one was custom made by Guardian and it has 3 parts.

Next, I layered my table cloths, starting with a Battenburg lace one, and adding 3 smaller muslin sheets on top.  I purchased the vintage muslin sheets from one of my favorite bloggers, Miss Mustard Seed. The lighter ivory tone and texture of the muslin matches the background of the dinner plate.

For the centerpiece,  I lined a rectangular wooden tray with both plastic and foil, and then filled it with the plants, herbs, and pomegranates, pears and flowers.  The brass pumpkins were on sale at Safeway ~~and add a bit of sparkle.

Since, at the time of writing this post, I had not finalized my menu, I was experimenting with adding different plates/bowls in case we have a first course salad or soup. The wooden charger is from Pier 1 Imports, providing a great back drop for my china pattern.

The glass, gold trim salad plate is from Lesley Roy. I like that the design in the center of the plate is visible.

I love these pumpkin soup tureens from Williams-Sonoma, but I rarely use them.

The napkins were a recent purchase (on sale!) from Ballard Designs.  They are the perfect creamy color and the plaid trim complements the brown tones.

A fresh sprig of rosemary from the garden is tucked in the napkin ring.

Looking forward to spending the next few days baking and cooking. Funny how Thanksgiving dinner takes hours to prepare and such a short time to eat!

The well tower is a unique fixture on our property. Originally designed to pump and house the equipment for the well, it was in a deteriorated state when we purchased our property back in 1999. But over time we did restore it and it serves multiple purposes now in 2021. It becomes a topic of conversation because the first floor is the potting shed, which is pertinent to my fall gardening.

I found some original pictures of our well tower during a recent cleaning and organizing spree.  The well tower was built to do just that~~using a pulley system to draw water up from the well back in 1912, long before there was city-wide water availability.

When we bought our home in 1999, the well tower was dilapidated and quite the eyesore. When I look back on these early photos, I am always astounded about its poor and decayed condition.

The building has been restored and with the permission of the City of Phoenix’s Historical department, we were able to put in 2 additional floors and adjust the architecture to allow for a viewing area at the top. These are connected by way of two circular staircases. I added the fireman pole at the back of the 2nd floor as an alternative escape method.  A new well was added and provides all the water for our 2+acres.

The first floor functions as my potting shed, where I store my garden tools, seeds, soil, and pots. 

This great old double porcelain sink is actually from the original house kitchen and is being repurposed in the well tower.

A large tub is installed at counter height as a convenient way to wash the dogs.  We used leftover Waterworks tile for the countertop.

My favorite go-to place is Whitfill Nursery for my flowers, vegetables and herbs.  I plan to return for more flowers as they were getting a larger selection in a week. 

But I have good start on kale, lettuces, broccoli, cauliflower, a variety of tomatoes, and many herbs. Happily, these new plants are sitting in our own homemade composted soil. For more information on Whitfill Nursery, click here.

I’ve neglected my flower garden last year, but am hoping to abundantly plant so I have cutting flowers available. The flower garden is located next to the vegetable garden.  Here’s a picture of it 2 years ago when it was full of flowers and colors.  I’m hoping to achieve that again.

Here’s a glimpse of my first group of flowers purchased from my favorite nursery!

As soon as the flower garden is fully planted, I will snap some photos for you.

Happy Fall and happy planting!

A year ago today, I sent my first blog post of Life at Bella Terra.  It was an intimidating moment, because I thought “who would ever want to read this?”  I don’t consider myself a very good writer and I’m really trying to improve upon that.  But your words of encouragement have brought me back to the computer to post again and again.  If it wasn’t for your kindness and support, it would have been easy to just quit.  Thank you for your loyalty and feedback and comments. Truly. From the bottom of my heart.

Each time I send out an email letting you know I’ve created a new post, I am praying you find it interesting, enlightening or even motivating.  I try to share a small piece of loveliness in hopes that I can brighten your day. As I look out into the world, I believe we each need to find sources of joy and create our own beauty.  Whether it be feeling the warmth from a freshly picked tomato, or the scent of a homegrown flower, these moments of perfection can only help feed the soul.

Blogging for me, is a chance to stop and capture a sliver of time, an exquisite photo or a recipe that bursts with flavor. Plus it is forcing me to attack those cluttered corners of the house or undone projects while showing you my progress. But I can honestly say, I am still a long way from feeling confident about creatively illustrating that to you. But I will keep trying.

So here is a look back at the year and some of my favorite photos and posts.

My very first blog post was about the New York Times Bestselling author, Rhys Bowen and the fundraising English tea we had here at Bella Terra.

And other events we happily hosted here…..

Recipes shared…..

My Renovations and Restorations….

Travel and leisure…..

Decorating and Design…

The holidays….

Cleaning, Organizing, and Updating…

Sharing our home and yard….

My attempt at art….

Flower arranging..

Our pets…

And a few DIYs….

My online store….

There is still so much to learn, especially better photography, writing and getting my watermarks the same size on every photo.  So thank you again for following me and sharing my blog with others.

PLEASE send in your comments~~What area of interest would you like for me to expand? What are your favorite topics? How often should I post (trying to do a maximum of twice per week)? What can I do to be better for you?  My goals for the next year are to do a contest or giveaway and conduct a real survey into your likes and interests.

Here’s to one year and onto the next!! I couldn’t have done it without you.

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