Growing something other than babies - it's harvest time

So my husband escaped from the inside chaos in our house for a little bit of time out in the yard this Thanksgiving weekend. Yardwork in the shape of mowing the lawn is his usual shtick, however gardening?  Not so much.  That said, I think he enjoyed pulling up what we had and 'closing out' what was essentially his garden this summer. 

I thought it would be a great year for the garden, but I think the lotus tree in the middle of the garden is finally sapping the nutrient levels too much, as most of our produce suffered.  That, or the fact that momma gardener was completely MIA this summer stunted the growth of the poor little veggies... However, we still got some great stuff.  Check it out....we still had a large pile of runner beans that taste great.

And although we have clay soil, I keep trying to grow carrots - of both the purple variety and the usual.  Love the look of purple carrots on a plate...

We, of course, have a myriad of various peppers - of the sweet, hot and VERY hot variety. 

And finally, a wider shot of the baby onions, other peppers etc.

So vibrant and lovely, fresh and fragrant.  Thinking we'll do some roast BBQ veggies with a nice big roast and yorkshire pudding this coming weekend.  MMMMMMMMM......delish!

Growing things feels good

I can't say it much more plainly than that: creating things is fun, and growing a garden from seed is no different. A little over a week ago, I planted a wide variety of the 'early' seeds (meaning they don't totally love our short growing season, so we cheat it a bit and trick them in our little greenhouses inside our toasty heated homes). Heirloom tomatoes, romas, beefsteaks and yellow grapes. Sweet yellow and green pepper, jalapeno, poblano, serrano, habanero, fiery ember (we like things spicey!). Herbs - Lime, cinnamon, thai and sweet basil, thyme, rosemary, parsley, celantro....I'm sure I am forgetting some. And, of course, some Marigolds (they are great to ward off pests).

My camera is busted...warped the lense, so can't show you my baby sprouts, but each day I come home and there are new little plants coming alive daily in my kitchen, and not the moldy sporey kind.

Yay for spring. Yay for gardens. Yay for creating life. Good times.

Oh!  An idea...here's a shot of my garden from the spring of last year, just for visual interest....!

Bloomin' ell!

Wha's that, then? It's my newly renovated garden, chip chop full of growing things. And it was my soul reviver in recent weeks. Nothing so cathartic as digging in the dirt and being responsible for helping plants and vegetables grow. Regret that I didn't take a 'before' shot, but the after are the real point, anyway, so here we are!



The grass still needs a LOT of work, but when doesn't it, really? While out there, I snapped a few shots of the early blooms, but there are many others on the way.




And more...




And so all that now remains is to see the veggies pop up. Cucumbers, carrots, spinach, beets, shallots, spring onion, three kinds of tomatoes, snap peas, snow peas, 8-10 various herbs, and pepper plants - loads of pepper plants! Sweet orange, green and red peppers, habanero peppers, hungarian wax peppers, serranos, poblanos...the list goes on.

So...salsa, gazpacho soup...fresh fresh fresh food is on its way - as long as we have some heat and lots of sunshine. So..BRING IT Mother Nature, just BRING. IT.

NOW is good.

Selling the farm

Well, no, not really. But we ARE selling old (but good) furniture to make way for the new. We have lots of great little pieces (and other, not so great items) that were for the most part either hand-me-downs or donations scattered here and there in our home, and the way I see it is that we are a two-income professional home with more than enough to afford some nicer damn furniture! So yeah...time to transform our home bit by bit, and I am excited.

And did I mention that the work week is almost over and I will be at the Nordik scandanavian spa at this time tomorrow night? That's what I am talkin' about, people!

And...I got more of my gardening done tonight, which also feels good. I can see the spinach, the beets, the beans, the snap and snow peas, the cucumbers, the shallots, the onions all coming up, and already have great tomato and pepper plants (Of any and all variations) on the go. And lettuce! I have planted a pot with arugula and mesculin mix that are coming up alongside all my herbs. Coolness. Will take pictures soon of the garden and post. Should have taken some before shots!!!

Just call me the workaholic hermit

At least I am ready to collapse into bed each night, too exhausted to think too much. The dreams haven't been pleasant, though.

I just can't do it. I just can't get out and back into my life yet. Crazy how heavy and onerous it feels to contemplate. It's my life, and it is a great life...so why so hard to face?

But holy crap, the garden is looking better and better, the fence is getting painted (but after 4 full days of painting still not done - ! - so a word to the wize for all those contemplating repainting your fence with a brush, DON'T DO IT. Rent a sprayer, buy a sprayer or hire. Seriously.), and the new toilets are now in. Nothing like a need to keep busy to strike big items off your to do list, I guess!

I have incredible family and massive amounts of friends all offering love and support, and it is wonderful, and yet I can't reach out to them. It's like all I want is my man, my home, my garden and time. So if that's what I want, I guess I have to listen to that...

Day three

I guess today is communication day. Time to get on the phone, and talk to key people about what has happened and buy some time to work through it. It will be the first day (hopefully) where nothing too hideous happens - it SHOULD just be status quo, which is something I can handle. Blessedly (but not happily) the belly seems to be flattening out a bit, which can't happen fast enough for me right now, and I guess it is time to eat breakfast. Total lack of interest in this, of course, but we're going to go to Home Depot this morning in order to keep 'doing stuff' while the sky is overcast. If the weather forecast holds up, I will be back outdoors a little later, and just keeping busy.

And maybe, just maybe, tonight I will have some wine, since that is now allowed.

Time marches on!

The catharsis of gardening

After 2pm today, I was finally free to think of this latest news as being on its way to over. And then...I planted. And weeded. And moved perennials. And felt better knowing that I was surrounded by life and sunshine and getting my hands dirty in order to feel cleansed. It truly succeeded in soothing me; it was remarkable.

I don't begin to know why this happened to us. Again. I also don't really know what to say, feel, think, do with myself. I certqainly can't even contemplate going back to my usual life again. It's a daunting prospect, and I think I am going to need some time in relative solitude to cope. My husband, who is hurting and so very frustrated at being powerless to help or do anything, is all I want, and even when he hugs me, I feel like I just can't get close enough. I wish I could just meld into his skin and just not be me for a little while, you know?

And now that the sun is setting and I can't distract myself anymore with gardening, I am SO FRIGGIN' THANKFUL that there is something to watch on tv to help me stay distracted - So You Think You Can Dance (SYTYCD) - and so here I go, watching beauty in motion and emotion. Should be good...

And tomorrow will be another day.

I never thought I would be this woman

What happened to me? I became one of those people who allows all the small little jobs and messes to exponentially explode into a vast, intimidating mega-list of TO DO's.

And I don't know how to handle it. Really. It's like my personality doesn't allow me to see where to begin and how little efforts daily will get me to the end goal. I just don't know what to do. And, frankly, I don't have a husband who is helpful at all in this regard, as generally, he doesn't see the issues I see.

My mother, who comes back this week from Arizona, will be so disappointed that her own daughter let her home and garden get to this point.

Is it perfectionism? Laziness? Is it possible to be someone who can only be the idea girl and not the grinder? Am I just making excuses?

HELP!!!!

Time of the month

I love March. Yeah, I know that the trees and bushes are still brown and lifeless, and I know that everywhere you look the snow has turned a brilliant shade of yuck, but what it is is GROWING time. Time to witness the earth come alive again. Time to plant the seeds that will become baby plants that will then become lovely, luscious greens and reds and oranges and veggies (I don't do pink). And of course, it is my birth month. Great month. Love it when things grow...what a great sunny day!

Happy Spring everyone!

Summoning Spring

Each year, I consider the day that I drag my greenhouse and garden seeds out to be the uplifting first sign that spring is on the way. Because I love to plant sweet and hot peppers, I have to get started especially early in order to be sure that the peppers mature before the frosts of September/October (and that isn't a guarantee at all).

But is it an incredibly good day when I can enjoy the prospect of sunshine, warmth, and juicy, ripe veggies and lovely aromatic herbs from my summer garden...

I know that true warmth is still quite a ways away...but one can dream, right? And early forecasts for our weekend getaway to Prince Edward County next weekend indicate that things will be warming up, so that's great also.

So. Do a little raindance or whatever you feel you need to do to summon the sunshine and warm temperatures so that we can wash away what is left of what has been a long winter!