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Fair Trade Coffee – Better Quality for All

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Fair Trade Coffee - Better Quality for All

As most people that read this blog know I’m an organic gardener. I don’t grow a lot of veggies in my garden, but I do take pride in knowing that what I grow is organic and thus all the healthier for my family.

When I’m out shopping I try to either buy organic products or products that have been produced with “green” means or sustainability in mind.

As the information above states most people probably don’t think about where their coffee comes from, or at least they didn’t a decade or so ago .. but that’s slowly changing. I’m happy to say that Green Mountain Coffee is fair trade coffee which means that it’s a quality products and the people who produce it are making fair wages, and the coffee is harvested ethically and sustainably.

I haven’t actually had a chance to try Green Mountain Coffee, but the next time I go shopping I’m going to look for it and pick some up if I find it. I’d certainly be interested in tasting it.

Have you tried Green Mountain Coffee? What did you think?

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What is your home furnishing style?

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Home furnishing styles

Every few years I get the urge to redecorate my home, but of course, who can afford to complete refurnish a home? Pretty much no one these days, I’m sure.

I’m sure you know I don’t redecorate my home every few years. When I was much younger than I am now it was much harder than it is now to overcome the urge to go out and buy new furniture.

What I did do was to try to purchase furniture that I thought I could love for many years after carefully thinking about what styles I really like in my home. The information above discusses several iconic American home furnishing styles such as Beach Cottage, Shabby Chic, Deluxe and Classic and Lux and Modern.

The style my home is furnished in is a cross between modern and shabby chic. Yes I know it’s an odd mix, but we live in a house built in the 1920’s that we’ve been renovating ourselves.  We’ve opened it up so it has a very modern open concept and half of our furnishings are very modern and the other half are the exact opposite – antique or vintage.  We get quite a few compliments about our decor and even people walking past our house when our doors are open stop to look and comment so I guess it must work.  The main thing is that we like it.  I satisfy my urge to redecorate by moving the furniture around rather than going out and buying new furniture.

What is your decorating style?






Interesting flowers

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Join Green Thumb Sunday

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I grow a number of different flowers and plants in my garden, but you’ve probably guessed by now (if you’re a regular reader) that there’s more roses than any other type of plant. Having said that I do enjoy my more unusual flowers like my Black Hollyhocks:

Black Hollyhock

This picture doesn’t do this large open flower justice.

The color of the petals appear black from a distance, but when you get up close you can see that the petal color is really a very deep maroon. If you look at the petal in the top right you can see some of the deep maroon color that I’m talking about.

I love these flowers velvety appearance too.

Another flower that I like is the Balloon flower. In particular I enjoy looking at the flower buds before they bloom.

Balloon flower bud

The buds look like balloons that are about to float away.

I must go now and close the doors and windows. A skunk must be walking around the neighborhood. The pungent smell is coming into my house. Stinky! I’m surprised my dog hasn’t reacted to the smell yet!

I thought I’d take a moment to highlight a few of our Green Thumb Sunday participants recent posts.  There are some fantastic photos on these pages as well as stories to go with them!

Check it out:

Green Thumb Sunday – Orange roses. Moonstone Beach, Cambria, California.Gardeners, as well as plant and nature lovers, can join Green Thumb Sunday every Sunday. Visit As the Garden Grows for more information.

Green Thumb Sunday – Join Green Thumb Sunday My Mom loved her Cactus plants and shared with everyone, even potting them to be sold at the local thrift store. The plant receives very little care and attention from Pop and I, other than occasional watering, …

Green Thumb Sunday – Frost! – Supposed to be between -1 and +1 C. I have to go uncover what I did manage to cover, in a few minutes. I picked some beats, an onion, a bell pepper, potatoes, tomatoes, purple and green beans, squash, and zucchini.

Green Thumb Sunday ~ Echinopsis – Gardeners, Plant and Nature lovers can join in for Green Thumb Sunday by visiting As the Garden Grows for more information. Join. Some rights reserved. See Creative Commons License on post for details.

Green Thumb Sunday! – I always leave volunteer sunflowers. Here’s why…

Gardeners, Plant and Nature lovers can join in every Sunday, visit As the Garden Grows for more information. GTS participants remember to check in at As the Garden Grows each week so that we’ll know you made a new post!

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