we picked all of the green tomatoes from our garden this year before the first big freeze and they finally ripened. now we have a bowl full of nice red tomatoes to enjoy!

– ryan & gub

we were recently in ellijay, ga for fall festivities and stopped by r&a orchards for some country apple dumplings. they were amazing to say the least! you can find their recipe below if you want to try it at home.

– ryan & gub

r&a orchards

5505 highway 52 east
ellijay, ga 30536
706-273-3821

country apple dumplings recipe:

ingredients:
2 large granny smith apples (peeled and cored)
2 x 10 oz cans crescent roll dough
1 cup butter
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 x 12 oz can mountain dew

directions:
– preheat oven to 350 and grease 9″ x 13″ baking dish
– cut apples into 8 wedges each
– separate crescent roll dough, and roll each apple wedge up in the dough
– pinch the edges to seal and place in dish
– melt butter in a saucepan and stir in the sugar and cinnamon
– pour mixture over apple dumplings and then pour mountain dew on top
– bake for 35-45 minutes or until golden brown

gub’s mom converted an old playground in her backyard into a super cute gardening shed! it was a gradual renovation, but it turned out great. we were impressed with her clever re-use of the playground, which hadn’t been used in ages. here are some photos of the process!

– ryan & gub

clementine worked great as a printing press! we wanted to stamp her hands and feet in her baby book and decided to make a few cards while the ink was wet. they turned out really cute!

– ryan & gub

we made a vintage paint by numbers grid on a wall in our family room. we think it turned out great!

the two cutout paintings were made by stephen & shauna from something’s hiding in here. check out our post on vintage paint by numbers for more details on them.

– ryan & gub

we finally got our flor tiles for the finishing touches on clementine’s nursery! the rug really ties the room together.

our good friend debbie also loaned us this folk art painting by mose tolliver. it was recently included in the “we are folk” exhibit at the hudgens center where gub works. it’s perfect for the nursery and clem really loves it!

we also added a mirror over clem’s changing table so she can look at herself when she’s getting her diaper changed. we took a vintage frame and had a piece of glass cut for it and hung it angled down a bit, so she can easily see herself! she LOVES it!!!

to see how the nursery transformation came together, check out our previous nursery posts: week 1, week 2, week 3, week 4, week 5, week 6, week 7, week 8, week 9, week 10, week 11, week 12 and week 13!

– ryan & gub

hudgens center for the arts

6400 sugarloaf parkway #300
duluth, ga 30097
770-623-6002

we recently fried up some okra from our garden and it was delicious! we ate the tasty treats with ribs and collards from maddy’s and cole slaw from chik-fil-a. it was a hodge podge of our favorite southern delights!

fyi, maddy’s collard greens recently won best overall at the east lake farmers market collard greens cook-off and they are pretty awesome!

– ryan & gub

maddy’s ribs

1479 scott blvd.
decatur, ga 30030
404-377-0301

fried okra recipe:

ingredients:
5-8 large okra sliced

egg wash:
2 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup milk

batter:
1/2 cup corn meal
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp parsley

directions:
– clean okra and slice
– heat oil in a frying pan at medium heat
– dip okra slices in egg wash and then in the batter
– gently place battered tomatoes in frying pan and fry until golden brown
– flip okra and fry the other side until golden brown
– place on okra guard to let cool and drain the oil
– serve with bbq or other southern treats

here are some progress photos of our summer garden! as you can see, it’s moving right along.

– ryan & gub

we had a nice 4th of july! although the storms prevented many activities, like parades and fireworks, we enjoyed baking a tomato pie and hanging out with clementine!

recipe to follow.

ryan & gub

tomato pie recipe:

ingredients:
pie crust
3 large tomatoes sliced
1/2 onion sliced
1 cup cheddar cheese shredded
1/4 cup mayonaise
pinch basil

directions:
– preheat oven to 350 degrees
– sprinkle flour on crust & place in a pie pan
– poke holes in pie crust with fork
– bake crust @350 until lightly brown (about 10 minutes)
– slice tomatoes & onions
– layer tomatoes and onions on pie crust
– put cheese spread on top of tomato & onion layers
– sprinkle with basil
– bake for 20-30 minute
– let cool, slice and serve

a couple of months ago we planted our summer garden! we became quite swamped with clementine shortly afterwards, however, and never got around to writing about it. well, here we go!

back in may, we spent a nice saturday afternoon with gub’s mom getting our garden ready. we weeded and prepped the soil and planted our summer crop. we planted various tomatoes, green & red bell peppers, okra, corn, cucumbers, basil and mint. we can’t wait!

more progress updates to follow!

– ryan & gub

ps…in case you were wondering, our corn is knee high by the fourth of july!