A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see. {inspired by amanda blake soule}
Here is our Front Yard Farm, to date.... and I can't begin to tell you how astonished I am by how well everything is growing! Really, astonished! I'm sure I've mentioned that neither my Mister nor I have very much {ANY} experience with gardening, especially on a bigger scale like this! So you can imagine that there was a wee bit of unspoken nervousness that our investment in building materials + plants might be for naught. Would we be able to invest the time? Would we have the green enough thumbs to make our garden a success? I can't help but wonder if these same thoughts have kept other families from embaking on "Farming Life"... 
But alas, I stand before you a believer! Embarrassingly enough, I am reminded of that line from that 80's Kevein Costner movie, Field of Dreams. Costner's character is being told to build a baseball field; "if you build it, they will come", a mysterious voice says again + again. Well, that is kind of like our experience with gardening: If you build it, the plants will GROW! 
Indeed, all of this growth is entirely possible without the use of pesticides or magical green thumbs! Infact, we have done little more than water daily {when it doesn't rain}, deadhead flowers + weed occassionally. In truth, while we are still reading + learning as we go, most of our "work" was done before our garden was even planted; getting advice from friends who are fellow gardening enthusiasts, reading...+ doing some research on ye olde internet on Companion Planting. {This is when you find out which plants grow well next to each other by either enhancing the others growth, flavor and sometimes serving as a repellent for certain insects. For example: Plant Basil near Tomatoes as the Basil repells insects that will eat your tomato plants. Marigolds in your garden, while encouraging bees which help with pollination, are also a repellent; thier pungent smell helping to keep away pests. Who knew!} 
Right around now, you are probably thinking, "Geek!" And so what if I am! What an adventure this has been! We have been able to harvest our first 2 raddishes + some swiss chard. I can scarcely wait to see what Mother Nature has in store for our garden as the season rolls foward!
The Blogger site kind of crashed today, erasing my last post on my Mama's Day...so I'm just gonna give the Cliff's Notes version in Photo form...plus the last paragraph I was able to recover!
::: Flowers for Mama above...:::
::: and my Blessing Basket...One of TWO wonderful gifts. {Thes 2nd deserves it's own post...will be up soon!} But how perfect is this for the Farmer's Markets! ::: 
::: A Flower Pot...by the Fif at a Mama + Me craft class we attend...and below, a gift from My Mama...seedlings for my Front Yard Farm!! :::
::: and a 3rd gift from my Mister...a day {...or so} of hard labor on said Front Yard Farm! :::
::: ...we all lent a hand in the work, even ME! And below is a Mama's Day BOARD GAME made by The Monks! We all enjoyed playing it after our Mama's Day meal! :::
::: And finally, the fruit {...or veggies?} of our labor. It took us a few days past Mama's Day to finish en total {which is why it took me SO long to post this post in the 1st place!}, but alas, here it is! :::
{Front Yard Farm Completed 5/11/11}
Ah, I wish I could say that the day was perfect, except that my tiniest babe is teething in the biggest + baddest of ways. I think I ended up with exactly 1.5 hours of sleep Sunday night. Yes, on Mama's Day, I was swiftly reminded of exactly why it is that we celebrate Mama's + all that they do! My post from yesterday jested that {when it comes to Mum's} "Not all superheros wear capes". You know, years ago, I never imagined I'd be able to function on such little sleep, going to work and caring for 3 littles...all with a smile on my face + a song in my heart! Well, almost...but all the same, there is not a doubt in my mind that Motherhood irrevocably changes a woman....into a Superhero! Well, maybe...that or a lunatic? Because, even on the toughest of days, there is no where esle I would rather be than with this wonderful Mister and 3 littles. This Mama loves them more than words can ever say.
Again, the glitch here is that most mammals go through this phase during the winter {...or when pregnant which I am NOT!}. During the winter, the days are cold + short...traveling about with littles in tow is a challenge {with all those clothes!} and the floors are forever in some state of muddy. Part of me adores the winter for the beauty, the multitude of clothing options + the lack of sweating {which plagues me in the warmer weather}...but this year, the colder months just made me feel kind of restless. If you asked me, I would have to say that the Spring is probably my least favorite of the 4 seasons...but this year, for some reason all the little seasonal changes that bring me closer to spring have me feeling...inspired!
When I was home sick last week, the pace of our life slowed by what seemed like 100%. Now that we've been back into the swing of things this last week, I find myself longing for that family time {minus all of the hustle and bustle that often leaves me wondering where entire days have gone?} I'm hoping that the little farm of sorts that we are begining {whcih also has me ever so excited for this season} will keep us closer to home than we have been. The days staying lighter longer, the kiddos being able to play out-of-doors, our cooking outside, going for walks + to the parks all make me feel like we are getting back to basics. I feel more energized to do, create, and build. I can't wait to share some of what I've been stitching up this past week!
But getting back to the topic at hand, I have to admit that these days I am finding myself to be far less tolerant of most things electronic. During the winter months, it is easy to cave in and allow more televison + video games than usual {I am guilty of this too}. The transition from winter to spring {...and the transition away from all things battery operated or connected to an electrical socket} used to be more simple...but as my kiddos get older, I find them resisting more + more. I understand that computers and the like are the way of the future, but I am also a believer in preserving the ways of the past and enjoying the simple pleasures in the world around us. It is times like this that I really envy families that have choosen to live a more simple life { farming, homeschooling , etcetera}, who live this life 365 days a year. For my family, well, I try to walk the middle line between the old + new...but as my little folk get older, I find them not only resisting, but also questioning the necessity of these transitions. That's one of the intersting things about parenthood...we are forever kept on our toes! I remember thinking that I was just the bees knees for my skillful ability to incorporate everything, {both old + new} into our family life so seamlessly. That's not to say I still don't...but it was niave of me to think it was easy, especially when at the time, my littles were barely old enough to attend school, let alone put up a well developed proposal on why they should be allowed to play their Nintendo DS or watch a certain TV show. Ah, only our children can make us so proud, yet also so aggravated simultaneously!
I think it is this transition, {and not so much the farm + chickens} that I believe will be my challenge this Spring season. Luckily for me, nice weather + many a playgroup = mischief enough to revoke most video game playing privileges! Perhaps this is why after years of toying with the idea, we decided to pursue our little "farm life" so aggressively this year? Was our desire to have this little farm taken to the next level because we needed to "raise the ante" to get our kids to move away from the glowing-box-entetainment and instead, get back to nature? Perhaps. Another fact I know all too well {being a mama to a 7 year old} is that littles grow up way too fast as it is, without any help from being overprogrammed with activities or having time sucked away in a video game. My tiniest of guys {photo above} is on the verge of walking, the Fif will begin PreK next year and the Monks...well, I think we are on the cusp of his activities during the school year exploding! Soon enough, these little people will have little friendships of their own as they should....but this is mama's time! I am ready to do a bit of hibernating around the homestead this season, enjoying a more simple way of life. I'm feeling really great about this upcomming Spring + the hot, lazy days of Summer; for time spent out-of-doors, creating, playing, growing, eating, spending time with friends + family. With all that, who could want {or have time for!} anything more?
Wishing you all a most wonderful + inspired weekend with all of those you love the most.
xo.
Strep Throat it is! And a most vicious case at that! I was so disappointed to not be able to attend the lecture by The Front Yard Farmer I had planned on attending this past Saturday...and I have been feeling super guilty about having my Mister outside transplanting bushes + preparing our own "front yard farm" {aka: this season's project} pretty much solo. However, I don't know if it is the pain medication I am currently taking or the aundance of carbs I've been allowing myself {...after sweating off about 6lbs in my sleep this weekend, bring on the home made bread baby!}, but I suddenly felt really centered this afternoon. The sun was very warm + bright on this rather cold March afternoon and as it poured in through what seemed like every window in our home, I felt so peaceful...grateful for this time I was forced to take to sit + do absolutely nothing...except for knit! The babe was napping, the older 2 kiddos were outside helping daddy with farm perparations + there was bread baking in the oven. Gosh, it really doesn't get much better than that!*************
Ofcourse, just seconds later, someone slammed a door, waking up said babe...and there was some yelling by daddy about dirt on the floor, the bread not comming out right...and something about a Nintendo DS not being played. Hey, nothing stays perfect forever...but I am ever so happy to have been present to recognize that little moment for just how wonderful it was. I thought, "how silly it is that it takes me being sick + in SO much pain to get me to just sit on the couch?" Many a "Stay-cation" have gone by, leaving me feeling less relaxed than before they started...but I think there has been a lesson learned for this mama. SLOW DOWN. {Sure, the bread + percocets really help with that...} However, I think fors, the expression "In like a Lion, out like a Lamb" applies better to the shift in our family's mental state of being this month than it does to the weather. I'm so happy with the direction this change in seasons is taking us... hoping you + yours are all healthy, safe + happy!
xo.
The best place to begin a story is at the begining... While we have a "corner lot" {which is a bit larger than many of our neighbors' properties}, it is still a little on the small side when we have considered trying to plant a garden while still allowing room for our littles to play. The other issue has always been that the back yard is nicely shaded, which is wonderful for relaxing, but not so much for growing veggies! The front yard, on the other hand, gets loads of sun...the idea has been nagging at me for some time.
*************
You may already have noticed that I'm kind of a...not so much "all-or-nothing"...more of a "Go-Getter"? When I get {what I consider to be} a good idea in my mind, it is really hard for me to write it off. {Like the Chickens it took me a year to finally get!} Persistence pays off because this year, I am getting my little front yard farm! At present, we have a brick patio in the space where the garden will be and a border of perennial shrubbery. The shrubbery will be transplanted a short distance to the center front of the house {where they are very much needed!} and the bricks will be used to finish the walkway we have in the back yard.
Savvy thing that I am, I rationalized that with the $ we saved on NOT buying more bricks, we could purchase posts, chicken wire + even a pretty little arbor with a gate {much like the one photographed above} for the front of our little farm! Our actual garden will be half the size of this one shown, but it will give us enough room for atleast 2 really nice sized vegetable beds. This week, my Mister is on "Stay-cation" from work + we plan to build our farm. I should say that while I am hoping to learn alot from the Front Yard Farmer at this seminar + the manual labor of building is covered, we aren't going this completely alone as my step-father is a wonderful gardener. I'm willing to take all the help + advice I can get though. To me, the only thing worse than a visible failed garden {and what can be more visible than the front yard!} is chipped red fingernail polish! However, I think that it will be a huge success because of the help that we have + the investment that we are making by jumping in with both feet. So I hope that you will excuse me if my posts are a bit less frequent this next week...I'm so excited to get moving on our project and am looking foward to posting what we have completed asap!
Have a Great Weekend!
xo.
xo.
I personally, have a horrible reaction to anesthesia and I have to confess that after being poked + prodded at through pregnancy after pregnancy...well, I got such satisfaction that for once, it wasn't ME who was about to undergo a "procedure". Here is where the chicken coop comes in. While my Mister's tooth extraction was a success, once we got home the combination of not eating, his minimal experience with having been "put under" and perhaps too much anesthesia...well, he got up from a nap, his blood pressure dropped and passed out he did hitting the back of his head on the kitchen island. This kitten lost a couple of her 9 lives when I found him fumbling amongst the pools of blood on the floor {sorry for the TMI}. Thank God my neighbor just happened to drop by and having been an intensive care nurse, she took over. 
So I'm getting my chicken coop...and chickens! I had been wanting them for a while but I think my Mister felt so bad about what happened with the head thing, he just caved in. Actually, he jumped to say yes, knowing that it would make me so happy! Traditionally, a Vegan doesn't eat or use ANY product that comes from an animal...but as I had written before, I do indulge in the occassional egg and I do not raise my littles on a stict vegetarian diet. I am so excited that #1, when I do have an egg, it will be my own, organic-fed/ pesticide + antibiotic free egg. #2, my littles will be able to bond with the chicks and help raise them, care for them + collect eggs, etcetera. And #3, that my littles will have the experience of seeing + developing a respect for the food that we eat, where it comes from and the animals who provide it. For not living on a farm, I think it is a pretty awesome experience. I'll be sure to post more on this new adventure of ours soon!!
xo.
