Been a long time, friends

Wow - how many cliches could I insert here!

I've deciding to rekindle the old blog - and to start things off, how about a little catching up, shall we?!

(By the way, if you're in my blog feeder, I've been lurking.)

Last we spoke, I was starting seeds from scratch. That turned out well. Very well!  We actually were up to our eyeballs in tiny plants. I couldn't give them away fast enough.

But since then, lot's has changed. Here's a quick run down:

My marriage has ended. No need to elaborate. It was a long time coming and something that had to be done. For me and my sanity. For my kids. If you were to encounter us together, we get along fairly well. Dare I say we make better friends than spouses? Yes, yes we do.

I have had another baby - mmm hmmm. Mom of 6 now. Delaney is almost 6 months old.

The kids and I had to move.  It was quite traumatic for all of us, yet we had no choice in the matter.  7 months into the "new" house and we've settled in quite well. Sometime soon I'll be writing about the new house and why it's such a blessing. The chickens moved along with us... the labradors didn't.  They are happily running on 13 acres - lucky dogs!  We do have a new dog, a pug named, Pug.  Or Buddy. Or Bugsy. He has many names and responds to them all.

I coupon, a lot. I photograph, a lot. I love on my kiddos, a lot.

Looking forward to getting back to blogging and chatting again.

Seed Starting Basics

It's nearly spring and everybody I know has Spring Fever. We ALL want to get outside and dig in the dirt. Lucky for us, we've had a lot of moisture, but digging in mud isn't good for the garden or the gardener.

How about starting a few plants from seed this year? It's really not as hard as you might think. Let me share a few tips that I've learned over the past few years.

Step 1: Choose your seeds. I realize this could be an entire blog post and I may write up something. What you need to know is: your growing zone and what you want to grow. I prefer growing Heirloom seeds (i.e. not genetically modified) because I can save seeds from this year's crop and grow them again next year, and eventually, it will be a zero-cost garden.

Most seed packages will tell you if you should direct sow or start indoors. Finding the last frost date for your area is a simple check of google. Count backwards the # of weeks indicated and then you'll know when to start your seeds indoors. Suffice to say, don't wait until May to decide to grow tomatoes from seed - there's just not enough warm season left to do this (well, it CAN be done, but it takes more work!)

Step 2: Now that you've gotten your seed, what do you grow it in? A few years ago, I stopped at the seed store and picked up several flats: sealed bottom, perforated bottom, divided and clear dome lids. Now, you don't need to go to this expense. Prior to that, I started seeds in leftover plastic containers (think salad bar to go boxes) and plastic wrap. ANYTHING that will hold soil will be fine to grow seeds in. I just upgraded so I'd have the uniform flats to re-use. All I need to do is wash them with a bleach/water solution prior to using. For growing medium, I use a mixture of Peat Moss and Vermiculite. You can see that I buy the X-LARGE bags of each. I use a lot of growing medium as we start over 600 plants each year. You may be fine to get the smaller bags, but for savings, get big bags and share w/ other gardeners. I mix at a 50/50 ratio in a large rubbermaid tote and wet it down as I go. TIP: mix outdoors! It's a very dusty!

Depending on the seed, I will use different inserts. For tomatoes and peppers, I prefer the 9-holes. For onions, I prefer an undivided tray. My son prefers the peat pots (we also were intrigued by the cow manure pots - but that's for another year.) After you fill your pot/flat with the peat/vermiculite mix, tuck the seeds in. Spray until the surface is dampened and cover it. I do not use heat mats of any kind as we have a large picture window that is south facing. It heats up quite nicely and I've not needed heat mats.

TIP: Leave one spot open in the middle - it'll be very helpful for watering later on. You can also leave a corner spot open. It's just easier to water this way vs. lifting the edge of the tray. (The growing tray is inserted into a sealed bottom tray to contain the water overflow.)

TIP: Use old mini-blinds for plant markers. Just cut to fit inside the lids and mark with a sharpie.

Step 3: As soon as the seeds sprout, REMOVE THE LID and water from the bottom only! Let the surface dry out. If you don't, damping off can occur. See above plant - the roots are literally growing above the soil line. There isn't much hope of saving plants when this has occurred. It's best to chuck them and start a new batch of seeds. Watering from the bottom will encourage plant roots to grow down. A lot of seed growers use oscillating fans to help keep the surface dry. Fans also strengthen the plant as it gets blown around (similar to outdoor conditions.)

Step 4: Once the plant has it's leaves formed, it's time to get them under a grow light. You CAN grow in window light, but you'll have more spindly plants and you'll want to turn the trays daily to avoid the hard lean that develops.

TIP: You can make your own grow station. I have this wire rack shelf I got from Target for around $35. It hold 6 flats on the 3 shelves with lights hooked to underneath shelf above via S-hooks and tiny chains. I can raise/lower the lights as needed. I set my lights to about 2" above the plants and move them up as needed. I purchased the lights from Walmart and have grow bulbs in them - not florescent bulbs.

In a few weeks, I'll share updated photos as this is not the only grow station we'll have. Our living room gets so stuffed with plants that by April, I'm stir crazy to get them outside. I do have a mini-greenhouse plus a cold frame where they all hang out until it's time to plant.

Happy Growing!!

Happiness Project: Aprons

Miss Aubrey modeling my fave apron.

When I cook, I make a mess. I don't mean to, but I work in a very small kitchen, usually with a few helpers & various pets wandering about. It's inevitable that I flip around too fast and knock something over. LOL

That's why I started wearing aprons. I have a few I've bought at estate sales (and a few of them have been swiped by the girls). But, my favorite is a cherry red apron with the cutest crocheted cherries on it. Problem is, it's just a half-apron. (What is the correct term?) What I need is a full apron, one that covers my shirt too.

Apron courtesy Flirty Aprons

So, when I saw this contest over at The Suburban Jungle, I knew I had to enter and share my love of aprons with you. My choice, if I were to win, would be the Sassy Red apron, because, I LOVE red and *ahem* have been known to be sassy. :D


Which one would you choose?

Happiness Project: Photos

It's already 2/3 way thru January. I had intended to post more often *ahem*. Well, let's just move forward, shall we?!

Sticking with "things that make me happy", you may have deduced that I enjoy taking photos... of my kids and pets. What I really love, is taking photos of things people usually don't see.

Radish Flower

As we missed pulling a few radishes, we decided to let them grow, just to see what would happen. These delicate blossoms were the result. They grew on very long stems and waved gently in the breeze. So pretty!

I really LOVE photographing buildings and their details, especially windows & doors. Here's an old warehouse. I always wonder what was manufactured in them. Who worked there? When was the last day of business? What does the inside look like? Who painted the awesome antique themed mural on it's north side? If the building could talk, what would it say?

This is a photo from one of my favorite buildings here in town... it's an old train station. When I was a little girl, our family traveled via train to go to our home state. Plus, my grandpa was a train conductor, so I am still enamored by all things train related. :D

If you've ever traveled via train, you might recognize the platform. This place amazed me with all the people bustling on and off trains, the smoke, the smells and most of all, the anticipation of the trip. Even though we no longer have a train station in Wichita, the platform is still there. :D I think I may have to have this one blown up and hung in my office. Looking at it always makes me smile.

2010: The Year of HAPPY

2008 was the Year of Loss

The year I lost my idyllic mom-life. The year I lost my business. The year I lost dear friends. The year I lost my trust in the system. The year I lost so much.

(In way way, it was the year of gain: I gained 35 pounds by not dealing with the loss.)

2009 was the Year of Grief

When I suffered one loss after another, instead of dealing with the emotions that surrounded the events, I stuffed it down, way, way down. Buried deeply so I could just motor on, moving thru life, dealing with the day to day stuff that consumed me.

But when you stuff, eventually, it has to come back out. And it did. Hard, fast and overwhelming. Over and over, the grief came out. It made me physically ill. It brought my life to a grinding halt for months. It was the most painful year of my life. One that I vow I will never repeat.

But in the grief, I did find joy. I found many things to celebrate and I found my self. My true self. The one who deserves so much more.

I no longer will be a people pleaser. I will no longer go with the flow, not questioning what my gut is screaming about. I will no longer suffer silently. I will no longer give to others at my expense. I will re-frame my life and my dreams. I will rebuild what was lost. I will reclaim what is mine. I will rise above and soar.




On New Year's Eve, I declared 2010, the Year of Happy
I will only do things that make me happy.




Before After

As a tribute to my resolution, here are a few things that made me happy in recent days:

I re-did my laundry room. No more ugly yellow wallpaper, in stages of removal. No more reminders of the project I abandoned 5 years ago. I chose a gorgeous shade of purple plum, despite what others commented on, because it makes me happy.

I grew loofa.

I took photos.

I raised puppies.






In the upcoming year, I will share other things that make me happy. Stay tuned.

Photo Op

We have an incredible nature park just a few miles from our house. It's my go-to place for peace and quiet. Stick to the paved path if you need civilization (i.e. other people/dog walkers). Or, do what I do and follow random paths.... randomly. You never know when you might come across a horseback rider or raccoon. It's also an excellent place to go for geo caching.

I took Emma and my camera (that I am still trying to master) and snapped a few pix.

We rested for a bit at the picnic pavilion, couldn't resist this shot.

Here's my sweet Miss Em

Ahhh, the roads these toes have traveled so far...

This one is one of my favorites... total fluke how it happened though...

As we were walking back, I heard a distinct crackling to my left and caught this doe by surprise.

Emma kept chattering away and calling to her even though I was shushing her as loudly as I dared. I was hoping to see a baby, no luck. Just this guy:

Yeah, I KNOW!! What do you think? 6 or 8 points? (I'm not sure how to tell.) Then, I totally missed the next shot, an even bigger buck!! I love seeing wild life up close like this.

What I see Out My Window

Ah, Fall... such a gorgeous season!!

This is the view out my front window (ahem, it WAS the view, until the wind/rain dropped all the leaves.)

I absolutely LOVE red leaves! We planted a Red Maple and a Red Oak the first month we moved here. 5 years later, the color is fabulous! About the time the Maple looses all it's leaves, the Oak turns. Ah, fall. :D

Public Service Announcement

When the house gets too quiet, all moms know to check on the little ones. This is why:

Here's the "artist" providing today's makeover to the lovely Honey. (It only took 4 days for the blue to wear off.)

I'd like to thank everyone for their kind emails and comments. I'm doing much better and hope to be back to my regular self very soon. It's been a tough road, but what doesn't kill me, makes me stronger. (All props to Kanye for the quote, which has been my song of inspiration lately. :D)

Still here, I promise

Hi~~ This is me, waving at you!

I've not fallen into a crack in the road - just hit a speed bump that slowed me down a little. :D

Remember when I posted about the volunteer potatoes ~ the ones that came up from last year? Well, I needed to mulch the garden and also plant things that needed to go in, so I dug up the volunteers. 12 pounds of potatoes - all because during last year's harvest, some potatoes got left behind. That's frugal gardening, I do believe!!

I'll be back posting soon ~ thanks for checking in

Independence Day Challenge Week 5

Raspberries blooming.

1) Plant something:

Okay, I had to re-plant the yellow & butternut squash and the loofa. The ones I started indoors didn't survive the transplant, even though they were hardened off. The ones coming up from seed look 1000% stronger anyway! I also had to re-plant 2 tomatoes that didn't survive. I'm still not done planting tomatoes or peppers because this new garden spot is just not cooperating. Also, another row of radishes (what's the secret to getting them to form a bulb?), lettuce, spinach and my 3rd and final attempt at peas. Plus, sunflowers, watermelon and cantaloupe.

Someday, I'll have a camera that takes amazing shots. Until then, please admire this blurry jar of jam :D

2) Harvest something:

Just a few handfuls of lettuce and all the rhubarb (about 1.5 pounds). OH! And, the meat birds!! 55 pounds of chicken. Jerry, his dad and the boys processed the 10 birds in about 2 hours. Boys said it was gross, nasty and smelly. Jerry said it wasn't too bad. His dad didn't say much, other than my MIL said he better NOT bring home a chicken. Ok, more for us! I refrained from showing you a before and after. I LOVE before & after photos, but I know that not everyone is fond of home grown meat. Seriously though, it looks just like supermarket chicken.

3) Preserve Something

I went to the Farmer's Market in search of strawberries, and I found the last of the harvest. $4 a quart. I really wanted to make jam this year, so I forked over $8, happily. They were so good!! I stopped by Dillon's on the way home and found the above strawberries on clearance for $.79 a pound. I bought 14 pounds. They ended up in a strawberry rhubarb crumble, strawberry rhubarb pie and JAM, glorious, ruby red jam. My children have already tackled the first jar and declare it's the best jam ever. I know it wasn't local (strawberries were grown in the U.S.) but I saw the bargain and had to have it.

4) Prep Something

Remember that giant, 5' x 5' compost bin I had? In the middle of the garden? Well, I was soooo tired of looking at it smack in the middle of the garden. It was too big and hard to reach in and turn the compost. Jerry was convinced that it could be cut down and repurposed. He spent an afternoon chopping thru the free pallets and re-making them into this wonderful, 2 holer!! WHOOT!! I'm so excited!! I've now got hinged doors!! That makes it so easy to pop open, and flip the compost from one bin to another. We still have the old, black composter, sans lid to hold the excess. It's now hidden behind the shed. In it's old place, I planted watermelon. Hope it's not too fertile there. We shall see. :D

5) Cook Something:

Making jam was new to me. First year to harvest and cook the rhubarb. Surprisingly, it was so simple. Why was I worried? The jam set up nicely too! And the crumble? It didn't last long. It was SO GOOD! We are having the pie tonight. It may be all we eat, but that's how we roll. :D

6) Manage Reserves:

Still washing jars in anticipation of more canning sessions. Added more toothpaste, toothbrushes, deodorant & razors to the stockpile. Stockpiling is so new to me... it feels weird to have excess stuff. But, I'm learning that combining coupons with sales really DOES save a lot of money.

Knee-high by the 4th of July? Yep, I think it will be!

7) Work on Local Food Systems:
Planted extra Row for the Hungry. Donated some tomato plants to community garden.

Chooks in the garden, eating bugs, earning their keep. In a few weeks, I hope to have the garden fenced in so that the free rangers will stop eating the good stuff that I'm trying to grow. Seriously, we've gotten ONE strawberry ~ they've devoured the rest. They'll have 1/2 acre to roam and I do have 2 raised beds full of greens for them that they haven't discovered yet.

Etched In Stone

Yesterday, in my fine town, a man walked in to a church and shot another man, in the forehead. He killed a husband, a father of 4 and a grandfather of 10. He killed Dr. George Tiller. An abortion doctor.

No matter which side of the issue you are, this post isn't open to debate.

It is, however, my story. A deeply personal one.

Have you ever heard the theory that we are all born with a chalkboard? Everytime something is said to you, good or bad, it gets recorded. Sometimes, the writing fades over time if you don't hear it enough. Other times, what's said over and over eventually gets etched in, deeper and deeper until it makes you who you are.

I believe this. I've struggled for years to erase things on my slate that others thought about me and said to me, things I know to be untrue. But, there are some things that are etched so deeply, there isn't enough spackle to fill in the fissures.

On an ordinary summer day, when I was nine, my mother turned to me and casually said,

"Did you know that you were supposed to be aborted?"

My earth stopped and I was in some kind of a vacuum. What? What did she say?

"Yes," she went on, "your dad only wanted one child, so when he found out I was pregnant with you, he wanted to have you aborted, but I said no."

She went on to say that there was a doctor who was in agreement. Supposedly there was a sonogram showing me as having no arms or legs - just a torso and head. This was used to try to convince her that an abortion was a good idea.

Knowing the narcissist that is my mother, I wonder if she said it for shock factor (probably) or to get me to hate my birth father (probably), to garner sympathy (of course) or to hurt me.

I didn't know how to respond. I mean, I was 9 and I just heard that I was unwanted and should have been dead. What do you say to that?!?!

Over the years, she has said it a few more times, each time, forgetting that she'd already told me. Everytime I heard it, it etched deeper, and deeper. She even said it to me during my pregnancies.

Had I been aborted, I would not be here. My five wonderful, delightful, blessings from God would not be here.

When I hear the word Abortion, it etches this even deeper into my soul.

I wasn't wanted. I wasn't supposed to be alive. The pregnancy was to have been terminated. I was to have been terminated. Eliminated.

Choices.

I believe that every human is on earth for a reason. It's up to each person to make their own choices and discover what they need to. I'm not here to judge. What you choose is your business.

I just wonder, who was eliminated, by choice? What futures will never be?

I don't wish to open this up to discussion or debate. Yesterday, my world was a firestorm of personal opinions and debates and I sat by, quietly watching, listening and praying.

All I ask, is if you have people in your life that you care about, look deep into their eyes and see what has been written on their slate. See what's been etched and what you can help to erase. It's never too late to change the slate.

Changes

Jerry changed his work schedule last week and we're just not settling into a routine... at all. His hours are shifted as are his days off. Consequently, all my routines have been thrown into a swirling pot. The kids are out of school for summer. And, for the first time in 8 years, I'm working from home.

It all adds up to upheaval. Not that's it's bad.... I LOVE having him home, even if he is asleep when we're awake. I just can't get a grip on a new schedule.

I'll be back when things aren't so upside down.

Rain followed by Sun

Less than 2 weeks ago, the potato patch was spotty, at best.

Then it rained and rained. Finally, the sun shone. And, now you can practically watch it grow. Sadly, the weeds are growing just as fast.



Emma turned 3. She has discovered Barney so Gma got her 2 Barney videos. She also noticed, for the first time, that we have a Barney beach towel (was Dalton's ~ 12 years ago!). It's hers now. She's the most singy of all the kiddos, so we belt out the ole "I love you, You love me" song at the top of our lungs, and we don't care how much eye rolling occurs ~ secretly, we know they are singing too. :D

Inspired by Paul, I begged, pleaded, asked to have one so Jerry built this trellis system for the yellow squash, butternut squash and loofah. He used scrap lumber and also t-posts for anchors. I've got to tie the string on, and it's good to go. I have to decide if I'm going to want more for the cucumbers and tomatoes. How does one stake 75 tomato plants while on a limited budget?! Suggestions, please!



I can not stop taking pictures of the chix. They make it easy by hurtling towards me where ever I am. LOL That never gets old!!

Speaking of chicks, I have been letting the meat birds free range outside in the afternoons. What does this shot look like to you?! A daisy? Yeah, me too. One week to go til butcher date.

I should do updates to the challenges, but I don't feel like it. LOL So much is going on right now in the garden - doubling it has been a bit of a pain. Grass turf is a bugger to get thru. The ground underneath hasn't seen the light of day for 35+ years (back when it was farmland/tilled fields.) So, we are transplanting the turf, double digging, adding compost to holes, mulching between plants and looking forward to this fall when we can plow it all under.

• Blackberry and blueberry bushes arrived, yet to be planted.
• Lettuce is slow coming up, so are radishes.
• Peas are a total loss thanks to the chickens for scratching them up, twice.
• Rhubarb should be harvested.
• We got asparagus in small spurts, never enough all at once, but I planted 10 more.
• Planted another peach tree ~ Elberta.
• Jerry & I shared the first strawberry of the season.
  

Cole, Braden & Dalton

The boys had a Father/Son fishing trip this past weekend. While they were gone, the girls painted nails, went shopping for coloring books & stickers and had a sleep over in mom's bed.

We have an entire week of balmy, breezy spring-time-in-Kansas weather forecasted (which translates to highs of 80, lows of 60, winds 10-25 mph and low humidity.) Paradise on the prairie!