N's First Bike Ride

We got E the tiniest little bike when she was 2. She rode it a lot until it was outgrown and then we lent it out. Well, it's back in the hands of another 3-year-old... One who strangely enough is content to pedal at a snails pace. Just like his sister though, N's is having a little bit of trouble with the pedaling direction and often stomps back to a jolting halt. I have no doubt that very shortly I'll be screaming at him from the front porch to slow down, and stop playing chicken with oncoming traffic.

This clip is almost 2 minutes long and mostly placed here for posterity. Please forgive the gushing motherly instruction and encouragement.

Knee High by The 4th of July

Our popping corn is plugging right along, and if the forecast is correct the next stretch of sun will really help things along!

Happy 4th!

Conversations With a 7-Year-Old

Setting: Backyard; I'm in our shed cleaning and organizing and she's swinging on her tree swing near the door.

E "Mom, if you could have just one wish what would it be?"

Me "Probably that we wouldn't have to ever worry about money."

E "Ok, what if I add you up to 5 wishes?"

Me "Whoa, well that's a lot to think about."

E "Ok I'll minus you down to 3."

Me "Ok, no money worries, health and safely for those I love, and...well peace I guess just about covers it."

E "Well, what if our car could fly? Like a rocket button?"

On the Receiving End of a Video Chat

As I mentioned before E got to tag along on the last leg of her daddy's tour. Kinda awesome, right? Not too many kids get to take a week and a half off of homelife and drive from Atlanta back to Seattle in a tour van. She's loving it. I've had a harder time not having her around. I think there were 2 consecutive nights I spent away from her last year sometime, but nothing like this type of separation. Our family is equally divided down the middle; 2 away and 2 stay. Of course we have our multiple daily conversations when I have to interrogate her on teeth brushing and vitamin taking. Every once in a while my phone let's me know there is a video chat afoot; let the silly face making contest begin! Her and her N could have hour long spells doing this: 

We miss her, and cannot wait until next week when we're all back together again.

The Definition of an Orchard

The definition of an orchard as spelled out by wikipedia is "an intentional planting of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production." My guess is that my front yard won't look the way it does for many more years. I am slowly replacing ornamental's with plants that give a little bit back. Last fall I planted a 4-way cherry, a 4-way pear and a Gravenstein apple. In years past I put in blueberries, raspberries, rhubarb and strawberries. Everything is growing and looking very healthy (except maybe save for the strawberries, can't figure out why they only want to make pea-sized berries). I wasn't sure I would get anything this season from my fruit trees what with it being their first year in my yard and the flip-floppy weather we're so famous for in the lovely Seattle area. Here is a little peek at my orchard.

The apples are right now about the size of a 'shooter marble' and my mouth just waters when I think of the pie and homemade sauce in my future!

This is on the Bartlett branch, disappointingly no D'Anjou this year (which is kinda the reason I got the tree in the first place)

I have exactly 3 cherries growing this year; have to put up the bird netting soon I would die if birds ate them!

Loads of raspberries comin'; these are the epitome of summer fruit in my mind, nothing better.

Blueberries makin' their way too!

Here are my funny little strawberries, the smallest things I have ever seen (but darn tasty when ripe)! Anyone know what's happening here? I acquired them from a neighbor and his berries were 'normal' - they're Alpine which are a more petite berry, but come on; I'd need 100 of these things to call it a snack!

My Garden Defines Me

So this is the 3rd/4th year I have worked/expanded our family vegetable garden. I started with a pretty foundational love of plants and working in the dirt and have now turned over most of my southern facing side yard to food production. In past years I've grown some family standards and then also thrown a few "hmmmm...that would be interesting" cultivars in the mix. This year I decided to stick with only things I know my family will eat (maybe with a little coaxing). I started everything from seed (mostly using Territorial Seed Company mail order) except the tomatoes came as 3" starts. And cartwheeling greenhouse aside, this is looking like my best year ever (knock on wood). A huge thanks goes out to my dad for opening up the sky for me, with the branches gone my yard and food budget got a great face lift.

This years garden list is as follows:
Dutch Fingerling, Yukon Gold, Red and White Potatoes
Sunflowers (for seeds)
Red and Golden Raspberries
Green, Burgundy, and Yellow Bush Beans
Garlic
Storage Onions
Broccoli
Brussel Sprouts
2 Varieties of Kale
Spinach
Romaine
Salad Mix
Dual Purpose (baking and carving) Pumpkins
Sugar Snap Peas
Tomato's 8 Varieties
Zucchini
Cucumber
Purple Bell Pepper
Purple and Orange Carrots
Easter Egg Radishes
Flat and Curly Leaf Parsley
Popping Corn
Some random squash from seeds I saved from last year.

Photos of above mentioned deliciousness:

Realizing that this photo doesn't really do the space justice this is a  5x17 foot bed

4.5x15' bed

9x17' with 2 foot walkway divider

To put it all in perspective, I have a close-as-I can-get-aerial-shot of the garden. Because this is taken from the furthest perch on my deck the bed against the house is not pictured nor the popping corn rows just behind the tomatoes and wooden raised bed.

As for my goals:

1. I really want to continue to replace and repurpose my existing ornamental beds with ones for food. I am visualizing a blueberry hedge just in front of the apple and pear trees in the front and ripping up more lawn for over-wintering raised beds.
2. I want to save the seeds of things that we loved (just one tomato offers so many seeds!)
3. I want to continue my investigations in succession planting to have a constant harvest.
4. I want to do a cover crop for the first time.
5. I really want to pay attention to what grows well on my plot and what we will eat. I have wild dreams of wheat and quinoa in years to come too. We'll see.

1st Grade Art Appreciation

I have had the pleasure to teach an art class to E and Kaela this last year. We've dabbled in many areas but none so satisfying as our slow intro into the world of drawing. My guide: Drawing With Children by Mona Brookes.

This has been my teaching bible and given me the confidence to have the ability to impart these foundational skills to these two girls that love to draw. After weeks of drawing duplication and mirror imaging warm-ups, and then abstract designs we were ready to attempt our first lesson. The gals did fabulous, and I felt so inspired to have imparted some grain of knowlege to them, however small.

The girls were instructed to listen silently to each step, complete, and then wait for the next instruction; i.e. draw a dot anywhere on your paper, make a small angled line in front of the eye, etc.

Here is what we got!

by Kaela

by E

Garden Update

Last night I was able to snip off enough baby spinach for the kids and I to enjoy a side salad with our pasta. Then this morning I was really happy to find little first fruits on my cherry and pear trees!

Hi Ho Cherry-O

N's first Family Game Night

Sunny Game

Oftentimes after I pour my cup of coffee I will nestle myself into the rocking chair situated by our windows and enjoy the warmth. A while back I had my phone out and the sun caught the face of it and projected a concentrated reflection onto the wall and N went nuts! He loved chasing it around the room and frequently collapsing from laughing so hard. E took over this morning while I grabbed this video.

Duet

Caught the two boys in a little post breakfast jam session this morning. D on acoustic guitar and N on a cardboard accompaniment.

(whew)

Thank you to all of those that have shown your support in my near catastrophic day Monday. After watching those seedlings under the cloche for the last few days I do believe everything will be fine. I lost a few, yes, but enough survived to have a really nice and plentiful garden. Jen came to help sort out the starts yesterday and to ease my mind; I will be able to eat from my garden earlier than I had feared on Monday.  You know you're kindred spirits when your friend comes to walk along side you and treat your seedlings with such loving care it makes you cry. My zucchini's did make it, and I'm now busily planting them out in my covered raised bed!

Also in other bandwidow garden news I was given another wonderful gift 2 weekends ago! My dad came over once again and skirted 2 more huge firs to give way for more sun, it's made a huge difference already. Thanks dad, you're the best!

before

after

(sigh)

At first I thought Molly or a raccoon got a little rambunctious out by the garden, then I was leaning toward maybe some stupid kids on their way to school walked through my yard with a mischievous mission...but then it struck me:

high winds + a small greenhouse (made of materials not unlike that of a winged box kite) = one heart sickening moment.

My future veggie garden cartwheeled across my yard at a surprising speed. 3 weeks of careful watering and monitoring heat levels inside were turned on their head. Delicate seedlings were littered all over my front lawn. The raccoon and hoodlums were subconscious wishful thinking...it was all my fault. I had moved my little veggie hothouse this weekend to take advantage of the gorgeous sunbeams and left it out in the open. I salvaged what I could, but I'm not holding out much hope they'll survive their trauma. It's difficult to tell the difference between brussel sprout and broccoli seedlings in the maze of soil and shoots. The sunflowers and corn fared well, but my zucchini seeds were crazy expensive I didn't see any survivors. My hardy cucumbers and pumpkins had just poked through this week so they were still relatively packed in tight, but the spinach and romaine starts were like replanting wet toilet paper in soil.

To make myself feel better I planted all my sunflower survivors in the proper garden, got all my bush beans going and redid my brussel sprouts and broccoli this afternoon. I anchored my tiny classroom-style greenhouse to the fence, and fingers crossed I'll have better luck this time.

** Thank you for the grace you gave me family, and for letting me vent, Jennifer I was in a very bad place this morning and doing better now.

S-P-R-I-N-G

Fun with acrostic's

Can you tell we have gardening on the brain?

Garden Tootsies

The sunshine kept me out in the garden all afternoon, N loved this little patch of sun heated earth right next to my garlic and would slid down the tarp covered mound and do a little jig before doing it again and again.

Puddles

This boy never tires of a stomp in puddles.

The Bee's Knees

Gravenstein Apple

4-Way Cherry

4-Way Pear

I like the idea of keeping honeybees, but I'm not ready for the work. Some year I'll take a class, invest in a swarm, give that golden sweetness away to friends and family, blah, blah, blah. But for now I'm trying out Mason bees. They're docile, solitary, and really hard workers. I threw in a small orchard last fall and my trees are starting to bud; it's crazy exciting! I have high expectations for these little saplings and my duty is to help them and by extension me out in every way possible way; water, weed, feed...and now pollinate!

box-o-bees

La Casa

I purchased a small starter house, tubes and matchbox sized cardboard box with 10 cocoons inside (that are now patiently waiting in the back of the cheese drawer in my fridge). Apparently these things multiply like rabbits, and maybe I have a few hibernating out round the yard already, but I wanted to start out with a few mating couples now. This bee crisis seems to grow while the EPA looks the other way, my favorite pastime threatened, and the good food on my childrens' plate in jeopardy, I'd like to say I'm doing my part.

Crown Bee is a local information source check them out. Help out your garden and our food supplies!

Now, if only the weather around here would stop the massive rain showers and warm up a bit, we'd bee in business.

The Urban Farm Handbook

Here's my new favorite read. It came highly recommended by NW Edible, and I remember hearing quite the buzz about it over at the Seattle Farm Co-Op message boards as the co-author's are both quite involved over at the Co-Op. I borrowed it from the library, and admittedly returned it overdue only after I purchased my own personal copy.

It's a narrative with recipe's of 2 families slowly finding ways to feed their family and cutting out the middle man. And can you guess? I'm in process now of pricing out my own grain mill now...

Wait, When Did She Turn 15?

It didn't take her long to make a few new rules after her brother moved out.

Breakfast of Champions

N would beg and beg his sister to portion off a few bits of grapefruit those mornings she and I would sit in front of him happily slurping away. Finally I broke down and cut him his own half this morning. 

He was in heaven.