Greenhouse Day!

Well, truthfully, knowing I have a bit of a habit when it comes to gardening, today was the first of probably a few 'greenhouse days'. I actually only ended up with 20 little plants, and most of them are BedHead's. She decided this morning to come with my girlfriend and I along with the little ones. And then she promptly came home and liberated a little piece of lawn for herself! She is going to grow a tea garden, in the shape of a circle, and she set about picking out her plants all on her own. Today was definitely one of the homeschooling perks. Impromptu field trip! Everything is/can be a learning experience if we open ourselves up to it.

Every spring, for the last 3 years I have made the trip to an organic greenhouse an hour away. They technically aren't certified organic anymore, but they haven't changed growing techniques from when they were. And that is good enough for me. Seeing how the proprietors live is an inspiration to me. There were 2 WWOOFers working there today. There is a straw bale guest cottage on site. It just has a great energy. The little ones see sawed for the first time and jumped on the trampoline. I mostly watched them while BedHead and the friend shopped. The friend bought 4 flats! I only ended up with 1 but I totally attribute that to the hardiness of these little plants...they keep coming back, so I don't have to buy as many!



We packed a picnic lunch and did the tourist thing. We also happened upon a liquidation sale at a business that was clearing out the previous owner's stock. We filled a bag for $30, and when BedHead added it up, it would have regularly cost $726! We ended up with some nice suede type winter hats, mitts, sandals and dressy boots for HannaBanana and Bedhead, boots for Peeper and a dress shirt, capris, a skirt and a couple sweaters for me. Score!

So much cheaper and healthier than eating out.

On My Mind

Thank you Rhona Jean at www.down---to---earth.blogspot.com for encouraging us readers to steal her brilliant idea. Really, if you could look inside my head today, it would look something like this...


This is my very cluttered coffee table, which seems to sum up what goes on daily in my life. None of this is staged-only snapped from above. You'll see my lap top open to my blogs, which I read every morning over a cup of tea. Peanuts from bedtime snack the night before, and a little Tiny Maniac's spelling test. 10/10!!! A couple of books my eldest two are reading; notice how one is by L.M. Montgomery. Girls after their mother's heart they are. To round out the menagerie is the PS3 remote to control the SpongeBob movie little Peeper is watching while I read, and my textbook. Last night at midnight I just had to look up the word for sharp, localized abdominal pain. I couldn't for the life of me remember beyond starting with a p. I knew the definition, the word had just escaped my cluttered mind and I couldn't sleep until I looked it up. Pretty nerdy that these are the things I think about at night.

Happy Friday!

P.S. Parietal. A localized, intense pain that arises from the parietal peritoneum, the lining of the abdominal cavity.

So Far...

The weather has only cooperated with my attempts to get stuff done outside a handful of times. So far this is what I've gotten done.

The playhouse we started last year still needs to be finished.

New digs! The Lumberguy and I cranked this out pretty quick.

New raised bed. So excited! And new (dirty) truck.




HannaBanana's first deep bed. The little fence she picked out makes it look like a tiny cemetery.

Looking out the front door at the whole menagerie.

Because of my very limited picture taking ability and attention span, for now you'll have to imagine the little one foot wide strip around the yard. Maybe I'll have a pic once the peas start. And of my garden in the backyard. And my cold frame. And the wildflowers and garlic planted in old tree stumps. And somehow I'm going to fit a little hen house into all of this. I hope to keep track of everything that I grow in this yard to show just what a single gal can do with her own little piece of dirt.

Happy Belated Easter!

I hope everyone's Easter was a smashing good time. Ours was. Chocolate breakfast, yard work, kite flying and a traditional Sunday feast is how we spent our day. I think I'm still full...

Life's Detours

It is funny how even when you know what you want, and are driven to do/get it, there are always little bumps in road. Its never smooth sailing, well for me anyway.

For a short while I decided to take on a full time job. This was in addition to my part time evening gig and taking a course. Yes, yes, I am certifiable! This job did not last long, but it was nice to see the bank account not depleted at the end of the month. Now, being home during the day, I feel even more blessed. This truly is where I want to be.

Just a few more things to catch up the blog before I start some substantial posts (and maybe even start taking pictures again):
-Bought a truck! All by my little self. Crazy, maybe. One step closer to farm life, for sure.
-Ordered chicks! Backyard chickens. YAY!
-Started tomato, watermelon, pumpkin and sunflower seeds.
-In the process of ripping up a strip of lawn around the perimeter of my yard. I'm going to put
up a little fence and grow peas (the kids' favourite) around the whole thing.
-State of emergency declared in the Village of the Damned!
-Made yogurt. And after a month and a half of not baking, everything I make is appreciated by
the little makers.

Its Official!

For the first time in 13 years, I'm a student again!

Feels good to be using the ole noggin.

Ramblings of a Mom

Its funny how a smell can transport you right back to childhood. To me Crayola crayons still smell like childhood.. But they have to be Crayola brand. Weird.

Anyway as PoopyPants and I were walking home after picking up take out the smell of a wood stove burning somewhere was evident. The cool, crisp winter night. Snowflakes the size of dimes falling from the sky. Certainly one of those 'life is beautiful' moments. I closed my eyes and was reminded of being a child again, a little girl of about 8 years. Before the complexities and inequities of life had revealed themselves to me. To that sweet spot in the cycle of existence when the world is a good and wonderful place, and your mother is the smartest person that ever lived.

Its moments like these that remind me how important the role of mother really is. And I wouldn't trade this job for anything.