I Love Dirt!

I do...I just love dirt; the smell, the way it feels between my toes and fingers....my cabin fever dissipates rapidly on that first encounter with my dirt, usually in March sometime.

Well, today was that day! The raised bed has been tilled and the site for the new raised bed was made ready as well. My wonderful husband was very patient with me today as I tried to make my final decision on where to put some new beds I've been thinking about all winter.

We dug a new blueberry patch (the old one was empty of the 4 plants I planted last year...no idea what happened to them), a melon patch and a long 16 ft row for my heirloom tomatoes, Brandywine. They were awesome last year; hoping for a great crop this year.

I plan on moving my peony bushes this year; soon. I wonder if anyone reading this knows how to properly move peony bushes. They are just starting to come up along the south side of the house. I'd like to move some of them to thin them out. Hence a good reason for yet another new bed. Didn't get to this bed today. Hopefully the rain holds off tomorrow and we can dig one more bed for my peony bushes.

Well, all this talk about beds is making me tired. My husband and I enjoyed our first of many, long days of garden work...oh I love that phrase...Thank you Lord for SPRING! It's been a long, hard winter. Hello spring!

Good Night All.

NOTES FROM HOMESCHOOL TALK ON FRUGAL/ORGANIZED LIVING - details upon request. :)

Grocery Shopping Organization = Savings
Gather:

• All newspaper grocery circulars/grocery mailers
• Coupons from Sunday paper/other sources (internet etc., costco, sam’s)
• Scissors, pencils and a Sharpie (that works!)
• Coupon holder/organizer
• Planner/home organizer (I use “Amy Knapp’s Family Organizer”)
• Recipe books/magazines

Organizing Food/Refrigerator = Savings
Needed:

• Medium sized dry erase boards (a couple will do)
• Dry erase markers – packs that have magnetic markers are GREAT!
• Notes from your grocery shopping “system”
• Your refrigerator

Organization in Cleaning Your House = Your Sanity!

Monday: Heavy cleaning – de-clutter house, bathrooms, dusting, sweeping
Tuesday: Wash day – if it isn’t in the hamper it has to wait until NEXT Tues.
Wednesday: Touch up bathrooms, Floors (mopping, washing) every other week
Thursday: DONE or special projects/specific areas needing attention
Friday: DONE or special projects/specific areas needing attention
Weekend: Sat. extra wash day if needed, otherwise SPEND TIME WITH YOUR FAMILY Monday’s coming!

Starting Seeds!

Just got back from the depot with my 72 cells and some seeds. Also picked up various onion sets and a garlic pack. Drooled over the Topsy Turvy NEW Strawberry planter, you know the planters that dangle from your porch...had to pass up - keep focused, keep moving....

So, looking forward to this weekends seed drop into my new "greenhouse". Someday maybe I'll have an actual GREENHOUSE...awesome, I can place it next to the homemade wooden chicken coop....still, chickens on the brain..no dice yet.

Anywhoo, have to write up a speech tonight for the upcoming homeschool conference this weekend. I'm sharing time with another woman and we're talking about ideas to stay frugal in today's economy and practical organizational skills as well. I'll post the notes..once I write them...gotta go - duty calls.

Good Night and God bless - good dreams too...cluck, cluck!

St. Patty's Day - Anniversary too!

26 years with the same guy! He is awesome and it's been a great 26 years. I thank the Lord for providing me such a blessing in a husband. We are still very happy after all these years and are committed to the future together whatever it may hold. Happy Anniversary honey! I love you.

Well, he still is saying no to these chickens...tried last night over an early anniversary dinner to get him to agree...no dice. I'll have to keep trying. I'll keep you posted.

Planning on heading to the depot tonight to look at some seed starting kits...have to see what's out there. I think I'd like to start some radishes, beets, and some swiss chard.

I looked out in my herb box yesterday and the german chamomile is coming back! I did have some spring flowers coming up around my mailbox but I believe something ate them last night. darn deer....I gotta come up with a plan this year to defeat these grazers. Any ideas out there that don't involve a gun...I would, but I live in the suburbs, remember. Backyard farms don't allow guns... maybe a be-be...no don't think so.

I'm a BLOGGER; I think...

Oh my goodness! I'm blogging...what pressure - now I have to say something great....um....um....gee...well..

Welcome to Backyard Farmgirl! My purpose for this blog is to learn about this blogging thing AND to share and gather ideas from other "backyard" farmgirls.

Backyard Farmgirl really needs no explanation, I hope. I live in the suburbs but always wanted to live out in the country...you know, city girl with her heart in the country...I don't see us moving out to the country any time soon with the economy the way it is...better to stay put where we are at the moment and learn to use what we have already. So, the journey begins. Well actually, we've been on the journey for a little while, transforming our backyard into a place that I can call my little farmhouse!

Right now we have a large raised bed with plans for another one this spring. We grow beets, carrots, lettuces, onions, radishes, herbs, tomatoes, zucchini and sugar snap peas...oh ya, broccoli and swiss chard.....I try new things every year. We constructed our first rustic grape arbor last year...that was so much fun..we made it completely out of trees we found on the floor of the woods nearby. My husband and I hauled everything out of the woods and loaded it in our CAR! You gotta work with what you have....we do now have a little used truck which will come in handy this spring. I did plant 4 blueberry bushes last spring but I'm still lookin for them...not sure where they went. Last time I saw them the deer found them before me. Looking for larger more mature blueberry bushes to plant this year.

Contemplating chickens...yes dear, chickens. Trying to talk my husband into chickens - just 4; no roosters.