What did I plant???

I have been meaning to document what I have planted and just never got around to it! I need to know for next year so now is as good a time as any right??


I bought:
15 tomato plants
(1 hybrid, 2 grape, 6 plum, 6 beefsteak)
12 green peppers
6 jalapeno peppers
4 cukes
2 basil, oregano, rosemary, dill, sage, tarragon

I also started seeds of:
spinach
carrots
radishes (or REDishes as they are called here!)
a variety of lettuces
and broccoli

I don't hold out much hope on the seeds but they are almost out of the seedling stages so we will see!!! The overwhelming amonts of a limited variety of plants come from the fact that the place I went to sold what I wanted in packs of 6 and we are not so confident on our ablilty to grow things ;) Since they were cheap we decided if we planted more we'd have a shot of at least one producing veggies... makes sense right?? Heee Heee!!!

It rained and poured then rained some more!!

Wow, it seems like we've had our share of summer thunderstorms lately!! My larger plants are loving it however, my seedlings are just trying to keep their leaves afloat!! I guess I shouldn't complain, I pray for the farmers in Ohio and I'm glad I'm not one of them!!!

We have had such a burst of growth that we've finally gotten around to steaking the tomato plants... nesessity overuled procrastination this time!!

Today has been a wonderful sunny day! No storms in the forcast today and my garden can soak in the rays. Dry out a bit before the next round tomorrow!

We are loving it as well!! It's one of those days that give mom's who work a reason to hate stay at home moms ;)... I don't blame you today... I sort of feel guilty myself!

The kids and I got our chores done early (didn't even have to water, LOL!!) then we were in our little pool all day, had picnic lunch, and then I spent a good portion of the afternoon reading the Jodi Picoult book I picked up at the library yesterday. Doesn't get much better than that!!!

I take life as it comes, and I'm cherishing today!!!! Who knows what tomorrow will bring??

I could sell baby maple trees!

Things are really taking off in the garden! More tomato plants have flowers, I have counted 8 baby tomatoes, the cucumber plants are getting bigger, the peppers have little bud like things in the centers and those seedlings from last week look like real plants now!!

I did get a little sad thinning the seedlings... all that potential food... if I had room I would have replanted them, it seemed like such a waste ;). I also had to pull about 50 baby maple trees out of my garden!!! Those "helicopters" that have been spiraling through the air for the past two weeks from my beautiful maple tree have sprouted in my garden. They were really cool looking, the helicopter part was sticking straight up as the seed started rooting into the ground. The seedlings were beautiful too... I felt they would have made great trees!! I should have planted them in pots and sold them on craigs list!!! LOL!!! I just might next year, watch and see!

Things are growing!!!

Gardening is a rollercoaster of ups and downs.


The last two blogs may have been downers, but I'm now excited!! The seeds the twins helped sow have sprouted!!! The rows are not perfect and the experience left me humbled... but we have plants!!!!



More great news, When trying to take a picture of the blossoms on my large tomato plant, I found a baby tomato!!!! Wooo hoooo!!!! I'm serious, I'm taking a camera with me to the garden every day from now on!!

Things are also progressing nicely in the flower beds! All the plants the children planted in the boxes have taken off (I guess God was smiling on them afterall). My peonies have blossomed... and they are pink!!! Wow, were they worth the wait!!! They look great with my purple irises!!

Darn bugs!

Man! some nasty bugs ate my tomato plants! We've been taking them off and killing them for days now. Today however I went to take them off with a camera in hand (to post their mug shot) and there are none. I guess it's a good thing... I'm thinking I'm going to take a camera to the garden every day!! LOL!!

Gardening with kids... what was I thinking???

Have you ever had a fustrating moment when you throw up your hands and say "WHY????"

Lately I have had more and more of these moments!!! For instance: planting the seeds for the lettuces and carrots. Twin 2 decides she neeeeedddddsss to do it by herself so she opens the seed pack and it goes everywhere! They know exactly where they want things (and it's not exactly where I wanted them!) When planting the planters boxes on the back deck they did it "themselves" which is fine but hard to watch! If those plants survive god was smiling on them!!

Gardening in general is fusturating too! It is a lot of work and good exercise which I would love but I keep getting interrupted (the kids only love it for so long and I like to get lost in my work). PLUS, everytime I use the hose the holder falls into my irises... I think my DH put it there as a cruel joke... it must be moved!!!!

To add to my stress... I think the soil is wrong... it doesn't seem to soak in water unless I put in a ton. I even watered in the rain yesterday. It's just the soil from the ground... maybe I should have added something besides compost????

So, honestly... I have no idea if anything will grow!!! I have used time release fertalizer and fish emulsion. Compost and lime went in when we tilled the beds. But along with all the other issues... the plants went in soooo late!

Boy what a cranky blog! Reading it over I guess it could be worse :) I really do know that whatever will be will be and the kids are just being kids!! It's a learning experience for all of us and it's not always going to be easy!!! Isn't that just life???

"Mom, that scarecrow is too funny to scare anything!"

The rain sprouted my creativity this morning! Daddy had told the girls we needed a scarecrow for the garden. Well, I only make stuffed scarecrows in the fall so I got out the girls art supplies and we had a blast!! Two pieplates used as a head will make noise to scare the crows away and strings of beads added for the hair will bang away too! The fun foam body, hands and feet are just plain cute I had originally thought the beaded arms and legs would bang against the pole but it's further away than I had thought.

The twins cut out the arms and legs, punched the holes, and beaded the hair and arms but got bored so I did the legs... it was a lot of work!

I can only imagine what my hubby will think of our girlie scarecrow! Sunshine came home from school and thought it was so cool but gave me the quote for my title "Mom, that scarecrow is too funny to scare anything!" Hey, it bangs around, it might work???

Garden is in...pretty much

Well, it's been a while since I last blogged. I'm sure I've lost the few readers I had but it's been busy here!

The twins graduated preschool! It was a fantastic ceremony!! I'm so proud!

I have had the opportunity to accompany Sunshine on her field trips and field days at school... I am so thankful for that!!
When we are not doing all the school activites or visiting family and friends we've been in the garden!

How exciting it is to watch the plants grow and the flowers bloom! I have found that the previous owners planted some wonderful perrinals... I have flox, lilacs, peonies, irises... plus wonderful wildflowers like lilly of the valley and columbine...even a lady slipper! I'm fusturated with the violets that have taken over the ivy they had planted in one corner... boy that stuff grows everywhere... I thought dandilions were bad!!!









My veggie garden is in and growing as well! We did cheat and buy plants of tomatoes, peppers, cukes, and herbs. I'm trying to grow the lettuce and spinach from seed....LOL!!!! Wish us luck on that! I haven't seen any progress yet but it's still early ;)