Today I’m so excited! When I planted my little tomato and pepper plants, I wasn’t sure if enough sunlight would reach them to survive and produce.  
But this morning I picked three banana peppers, three jalapeno peppers and two green tomatoes!
My hubby loves fried green tomatoes, so he’ll get a few for lunch today!
My tomato plants have grown to about 5-6 feet tall and have a ton of blooms. However, there’s a tropical system in the Gulf, so I’ll have to wait and see how they weather the storm.
If you’re thinking, “I wish I could grow vegetables and herbs,” just know that you can!
My herbs are still doing good, except the oregano, and it didn’t like all that rain we had in Texas recently. 

Here’s a look at the tomatoes and peppers in my tiny garden!

Herb gardening in patio pots is fun!

  Other favorites in my pots are minuature roses rescued from another spot in the yard; gardenia start-ups from one of the huge gardenias here (one for each of my two granddaughters, Emily and Anne); a peach tree sapling that I’m nursing for Emily and a pot of cockscomb seeds just now peeking through (which my sis Sonja mailed to me). 

 Recently added to an island by the patio are three tomato plants, two bell pepper plants and two hot pepper plants. I had help from hubby, although I didn’t really need it but he enjoys gardens, too. 

Cockscomb seeds are coming up!

Wish me luck and sunshine!

That’s all for now from Trilla’s Garden.  

I’m excited to see what appear to be Monarch caterpillar eggs on one of my milkweed plants.  

I’ll keep a close watch to see if, indeed, a baby caterpillar hatches. 

This discovery reminds me of the passion I have for watching the miracle of  this ultimate life-changing event. God does amazing things in our gardens. 

A few years ago, I wrote a fun blurb about how to do butterfly farming with your kids. Maybe it will inspire you.  Here’s a link: http://ourtribune.com/article.php?id=7532  

 I had no idea I was starting an herb garden. Have you ever just spontaneously decided to start a new hobby?

Actually, I was on a trip to the local grocery store, when I had this epiphany!

I brought home plants of coriander (cilantro), sweet basil, apple mint and oregano.  Oh, my, do they smell good! 

As my plants grow, I’ll need to find bigger pots or make a garden spot for them. Just getting started is exhilarating. 

So now I’m looking for easy recipes to incorporate them.

It’s no problem finding mouth-watering uses for cilantro. Here in Texas we use it like Italians use oregano – on everything. When I think Tex-Mex, I think jalapeños and cilantro.  I especially love to cook Charro beans using pintos and throw on some cilantro when serving. Also, it’s an excellent garnish for black beans, tortilla soup, quesadillas or enchiladas, just to name a few. 

Of course, here in the south, there’s always a place for mint in our tea or maybe a mint julep. I’m happy just inhaling the aroma!

I’m asking for any favorite recipe you have for sweet basil or oregano. Just post it here in my blog in your comment, if you have one to share. 

With tons of information online, here’s a link to help you start an herb garden:

http://diyhomedesignideas.com/garden/herb.php

On what was to be our second outing for The Three Foodies, Arceli, Shalni and I had our taste buds set for Filipino food!

Arceli said she knew just the place right in our own community. So off we went to the Sarap Pinoy Restaurant in Humble, Texas. This place offers Filipino-American cuisine for casual dining and take out! It was perfect for our lunch, as it is located on our direct route to shopping at the outlet mall on Rt. 290! Bingo!

This restaurant is indeed very casual — a small steaming hot buffet with aromas that drew us in as soon as the door opened. We sampled all the items on the menu, and some of us even ate the adabong posit, or squid!

We had to try the “Halo Halo” for dessert, and it did not disappoint! Just look at the photo — it is heavenly!

Our shopping trip this time took us to the Houston Premium Outlet Mall, where some serious shopping was about to take place. We all were happy that Arceli brought her fold-out cart for our purchases! We browsed the shops for designer purses, perfumes, shoes and you name it! Finally, we took a break for a drink at Smoothie King, before heading home before dark.

Now, that was a fun day!