Dahlias, impatiens and roses still blooming on December 6th in Tribeca

I've had a community plot in local park, Washington Market Park for several years. It is the park, where I have served as a volunteer on the board of directors for seven years. Usually by mid-November the flowers are long, long gone. But with the unusually warm November and December weather we're enjoying in my neighborhood here in Tribeca, the mini-purple Dahlias and the purple New Guinea Impatiens in my plot are still going strong.
Here are a couple of snaps I took yesterday when I did a walk around the garden with the park gardner, Chris. (Clearly I have to go back with my good camera with the flower shooting mode.)

New Guinea Impatiens plant in my community plot at Washington Market Park is still producing new flowers! 

Elsewhere in the park, this pretty pink rosebush has dozens of flowers on it, and the white rose bush in my other area of the park, the children's garden had two perfect white roses blooming yesterday.

--Monica Forrestall

Our Film Noire doorway

One of the most old world film noire looking areas of our home is the landmarked doorway to our apartment. At night, when the street lamps cast shadows through the transium window and the door onto the interior wall, it looks like a set from a 1940's film. Romantic, old world New York at best.

You Can take the Boys out of Tribeca...

Autumn in New York means leaving the somewhat treeless area we live in to go to a park, famous for its trees. In the slush storm on October 29th, 1000 trees were damaged in Central Park, but we went up with wiffle bat and ball and soccer ball to enjoy the 65 F degree day when leaves are starting to turn in the big park.

BOO! The annual school Halloween Bake Sale in Tribeca

Working the bake sale at Max's school is fabulous fun, because the treats are so creative. Plus once the 8:30 crush of customers come and go, the volunteers get to buy!

Some of the outstandingly cr-e-e-e-e-e-e-py/ delicious baked goods at this years sale below:

My friend Erica and her 48 cupcakes with gummy bloody fingers, teeth and other body parts.

Stitched mouth ghoul cupcakes.

Spider and Fly infested cupcakes. 

I loved these mummy cupcakes, I bought 2. 

Ghost, bat and pumpkin cookies.

Simple and clever: Dracula brownies.

Elaborate chocolate cupcakes with RIP cookie tombstones, candy skull and bones coming out of the grave.

Bucket of (sugar cookie) bones.

Simple, spooky chocolate ghost cookies with orange eyes.

Ghost chips made by the same mom/volunteer who made the bucket 'o bones cookies. 

Soy, nut, seed, gluten free and vegan section. Great that kids with allergies aren't excluded
from the FUN of a ghoulish treat!

Lovely organizers of the Halloween Bake Sale, Stacie and Melissa.

---Monica Forrestall

DIG IN: City Gardening with Kids

Twice a year I head up a children's gardening event at Washington Market Park. This fall, it happened last week on October 15th, to coincide with the NY city-wide It's My Park Day. I worked with Chris, the park gardner, who gave a nice, helpful talk to the kids about how to plant bulbs.

Living in Tribeca