Friday, June 27, 2014

easy ~



Can you feel the quietness in this picture?

Yesterday was the most perfect day.  If I had to describe it, these would be the words I would use:  breezes, quiet, swings, blanket, knitting, calm.  What sometimes can seem like a day full of stress, can turn out to be a day of much needed respite - a day of ease.





Hanging outside with my two littlest ones turned out to be just that.

Friday, June 20, 2014

this moment ::

Inspired by Soulemama's {This Moment}

{this moment} - a single photo - no words - capturing a moment from my week.  I want to pause and savor this moment.

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

My Herb Garden

Earlier in the Spring, Daniel encouraged me to clean as much out of the side of the house which had been a make-shift herb garden the past couple of years and redo my herbs.  I had a few herbal plants that were well established so I decided to keep them, prune them back, and work around them.  Those were my lavender, sage, mint, and lemon balm plants.  I decided to make the sage plant a focal point of the garden, and used some various sizes of quartz rock to line the bed.







I made a list of herbs I wanted in the garden and over the course of a few weeks, the seedlings were ready to be transplanted.





A month later, the herb garden is flourishing.  The lemon balm was growing so well, I decided to prune it back the middle of May and make my first herbal tincture.  My intent with this herb garden is to learn to use the herbs medicinally as well as for cullinary uses.  The lavendar blooms were harvested last week for our annual lavendar cookies we all love.













My list of herbs in this garden:

Lavendar
Tarragon
Valerian
Stinging Nettles
Chives
Oregano
Thyme
Comfrey
Sage
Basil
Plantain
Fennel
Cilantro
Chamomile
Mint
Lemon Balm
Dill
Rosemary
Calendula

Growing any kind of garden is an experiment.  I'm very excited about this one, hoping to learn more and more how to use these herbs.  I have hopes of making salves (Calendula, Comfrey), tinctures,  and teas later this season!

Happy growing season everyone!!


Monday, June 16, 2014

This year's garden





















Our garden is coming along nicely this year.  I have to give all the credit for this garden to where it's due - my husband.  Each year we rotate our crops to a different location in the garden, there are more sunnier spots than others, but this year is looking very promising for everything we've put in so far.

This is what is currently growing:

Sunflowers
cucumbers
beets
parsnips
carrots
corn
beans
potatoes
onions
garlic
limas
peppers (red, banana, Jalepeno, Cayenne)
tomatoes
brocolli
cauliflower
cabbage
kale
zucchini
yellow squash

I think I'm most excited about the beans this year.  The bamboo tee-pee's are already getting covered with growth.  Last year we didn't have any luck with them, they just wouldn't grow.  New to our garden this year are the onions and garlic, and so far the broccoli, cauliflower and  cabbage are doing well and look healthy.  The squash plants have been blooming for a few weeks and we have our first squash growing this week.  We're looking forward to a bountiful harvest this summer.  I'll keep updating here as our garden evolves this season . . .  a record of this year's garden.




Tuesday, June 10, 2014

outside

From the very beginning of Spring, we have enjoyed being outside.  We eat outside, play, and garden as much as we possibly can.  Our garden is growing leaps and bounds, but I couldn't go forward with sharing about it without retracing the beginnings of it all - how our Spring began.