This Is My Year! I Just Know It!

After months of careful planning and researching and seed propogating, the garden is in!  Not as early as I would have liked, but still, it is in.  Everything is planted.  Some things are even sprouting already.

Good Mother Stallard pole bean sprout.
I spent enough time in the garden to watch it
actually open and unfurl yesterday.

This year is something completely new for my veggie patch.  I built raised beds.  Nothing fancy. But, raised beds nonetheless.  Next year, I hope to add a few more so that everything is planted in beds.  I have four so far and plans for four more.  I have wanted to do raised beds for some time, but have always been talked out of it for one reason or another. 

 

There it is.
 Probably should have taken my dirty gloves out of the fence
before I snapped the picture.

Raised beds aren't for everybody.  For myself, I know that I don't have a reliable tiller.  And tilling is quite a procedure even when we have one to use.  The weather has to be just right.  Both of us need to be home.  Seriously, the stars have to align for us to get a decent till in.  Thus the desire for raised beds.  This year, I just decided to go for it.  Power tools and everything.  

Natalie and I built the plank rectangles.  Matt and our neighbor hauled in a trailer full of compost from our community pile.  All the kids (ours and the neighbors) hauled in sticks and leaves from the yard.  I hauled in countless wheelbarrows full of composted chicken manure/bedding.  We dug and picked weeds and sifted out rocks and filled the beds. 

Then the planting started.  Lettuce, spinach, carrots and zucchini in the first bed.  Sweet peppers and pie pumpkins in the second.  Peas and broccoli in the third.  Cucumbers, parsnips, and turnips in the fourth.  Potatoes were carefully tucked into haystacks.  In between all this, bean teepees were constructed and planted.  Marigold and zinnia seeds were sprinkled into the corners and between crops.  Tomatoes were the last to go in.  They were planted yesterday.

The garden from the other corner.
The green in the front corner there is
my little strawberry patch.
Lots of berries this year!

During all this steady, sweaty work on the garden, I read an article about another MN woman who constructed huge raised beds with a method called Hugelkultur.  I thought it sounded cool and like it would help our very heavy, clay soil.  I didn't know it was a thing.  Like hipster gardening.  I don't want to be a hipster.  I look terrible in skinny jeans.  Good thing I didn't know that when I started.  Anyway...

So I dug a small trench, hauled in some rotten board chunks (plain rough sawed pine leftover from a long ago project.), sticks and lots of old leaves.  

Trench with sticks and wood scraps.

Same trench from farther away to give an idea
of scale.

  

Toss some leaves on top.

Once I had a decent sized mound, I put the excavated dirt back on top.  In went my shrimpy little tomato plants.  Then went on a light layer of hay. (It was what was left from my little potato beds.  Time to hit up my neighbor with horses again.)   Once the plants are a bit taller, I will add some more compost & manure and another layer of hay, just to make the soil thicker.

Shovel the dirt back on.
Also make sure to pick out the unwanted green things that
may start growing again.

I  pinned it all in place with about 15 tomato cages.  Then applied a good amount of water mixed with fish fertilizer.  I put the fish emulsion fertilizer on everything.  Now my garden smells like somebody farted.  I'm told that goes away.

The tomato mound.
With our super fancy scarecrow watching over it.
Ok, not really, she's actually facing the other way.

All I can do now is cross my fingers, say my prayers and hope that these little plants have the decency to grow and be fruitful.  It would be rude of them not to.  

Sugar Pie pumpkins are coming up nicely.  So far, so good.

Every year, I think this is going to be my year.  Bumper crops.  Veggies coming up everywhere.  This year, I really hope I'm right.  Organic heirloom veggies will abound or I'm gonna die trying!

I think I Might Be A Hippie

Isn't this a neat daisy?  It is 2 stems & blooms fused and growing together.

Spring is finally here in all of its rainy, blustery glory.  We've had lots and lots of gray days lately, but we've also had a few beautiful sunny days.  Sunny days are not to be squandered indoors.  That said, its been mud boots on and everybody outside as much as possible.

My snappy purple flowered mud boots.  Good for tromping.

Being outside means that I am giving the chickens and rabbits a little extra care, getting gardens ready to go and hanging laundry out on the line.  The first load of wash went out to dry in the breeze yesterday. Line dried sheets, my favorite!

Saturday's eggs in a pretty blue bowl. 

Yesterday Matt built me a cold frame YAY!!!  I have been dreaming about one of these babies for YEARS.  He just has to hinge the roof and put it on and then watch out.  My trays of dirt are just waiting to have spinach, kale and leaf lettuce in them and under glass. (Hippie clue #1, I want to grow kale. in a cold frame.)

Last week, our local grocery store had tons of fresh produce on sale.  I stocked the fridge with fresh button mushrooms, cilantro, spring onions, red, yellow and orange bell peppers, cucumbers and carrots.  To be cooking with fresh ingredients is just so pretty and enjoyable to me.  Its really kind of ridiculous how excited I got to make a big pan of eggs scrambled with fresh mushrooms, tiny chopped spring onions, red peppers and ham.  Even more laughable is that the next night I used all those same vegetables plus some julienne cut carrots in a saute with kielbasa and served it over couscous.  I've never made couscous before and it has kind of an exotic/earthy feel to it for me.  (Hippie clue #2, I'm all jazzed over fresh veggies and tiny pasta.)

My couscous/sausage/veggie concoction with some of my canned peaches from last fall.

Recently, I ordered a few essential oils.  Just a handful of small bottles that seemed to be the most common.  I've used them a little bit so far, but not much.  I read that lavender oil and lemon oil are good for chapped skin, so I mixed some up with coconut oil and put it on my face hoping to get rid of a dry patch by my eye.  And, I made some bedtime bath salts for the kids.  We are big fans of "salt baths" around here. (Hippie clue #3, I am collecting essential oils.)

My tiny collection of essential oils.  I'm pretty excited about these babies.

I'm really trying to be mindful of what I put into my home.  I try to buy the best quality food with the fewest ingredients as I can.  I'm also pretty picky about cleaning products and plastics.  I almost solely use glass food storage, plant-based cleaners, cloth napkins and non-paper plates/cups.  I was proud of myself for finding a deal on granola cereal at the store last week.  They also had a smokin' deal on pudding cups.  I have not purchased these things in years.  The kids have never had them before.  I thought oh what a fun treat for Natalie's lunch and bought four packages.  Then after I got them home I started to panic that I bought my children tiny bowls of poison.  I got over it and let them eat it, but probably won't buy it again.  (Hippie clues #4, 5 & 6 Plastic is pretty much banished from my kitchen. I bought granola cereal on purpose.  And pudding made me panic.)

Have no fear, I'm not going to stop shaving my legs or anything like that.  I have found as I have gotten older that I am very interested in the way our bodies respond to chemicals.  I also like the challenge in finding out just how many things I can do for myself.  Living in the country means that we can't run to the store for every little thing.  I mean, I could, but then I'd just spend a lot of time driving which completely defeats the purpose.  Hence, the quest to find what can we do on our own and what basic ingredients/tools will be most useful to us.  So, I guess there's worse things.  I'm ok with being a little out there...

Thinking Spring

We've all been getting a little antsy for spring to come.  Layers of bulky coats and boots are getting old and we're ready for bare feet and t-shirts.  It is looking like a long wait still.  We have snowbanks about 8 feet high all along the edges of our driveway/parking area with paths to bird feeders and the critter houses.  The rest of the yard is pretty much inaccessible.  

But, we're being positive.  We're thinking Spring.  We're sorting seeds and making plans.  Last weekend Natalie and I started some seeds.  

I just love these little yellow pots.

We've never had very good luck with starting our own plants, but this is going to be my year.  By the way, I say that every year.  I just know this is really going to be the year that my seeds turn into healthy little plants by the time all this ever loving snow goes away.  

Natalie watering the seeds

After we had the seeds all planted and watered, I was talking to my father-in-law on the phone and he advised that I cover the pots loosely with plastic wrap and set them on top of the fridge until they sprout.  The top of the fridge is always a little above room temperature and will help the soil warm up.  The plastic wrap keeps things from drying out.  That way, I only had to water them when they were first planted, then not again until after they come up.  He was right as he always is about these things. Unbelievably within a few days we already had zinnias, bachelor's buttons, pansies and cucumbers sprouting. Now we're starting to move seedlings to the windowsills during the day (putting them on top of the fridge at night since it gets cold still.).

My tomatoes and Natalie's flowers all lined up in the sun.

Keeping my fingers crossed that spring will indeed come.  Soon.

Homemade Laundry Soap & Countertop Spray

It was a hot hot day here in the woods.  After our morning of outdoor chores, I retreated indoors to my air conditioning.  There is hardly ever a shortage of  things that need to be cleaned or otherwise set in order, so I stayed busy.  Or at least occupied.  It was a good time to refill my trusty all purpose spray cleaner and laundry soap supplies.  

These two handy products are my favorite things in my arsenal of weapons against grime.  I have nothing against buying laundry detergent or spray cleaner in the store.  I make my own because they are gentler on our clothes and skin, more earth friendly and very importantly, cheaper.  I didn't just wake up one morning and decide to make some kind of statement by "going green".  Making my some of own cleaning supplies was a way to trim some off our household expenses.  All the rest was just a bonus.

Now, I  make no claim of having invented these concoctions.  I found them on the Internet.  Somebody else invented them.  I use them faithfully though and felt they were worth mentioning.  Because I have that kind of time on my hands today and there must be a need for one more blog with a post about homemade cleaning supplies, right?

To make the spray, you will need a glass 2 cup measuring cup, measuring spoons, a clean spray bottle, white vinegar, borax and some nice smelling dish detergent.  I usually use natural liquid dish soap, so I substitute this in for the castile soap that the original recipe calls for.  I have nothing against castile soap.  It is not as hard to find as it once was.  However, for the price of a small bottle of castile soap, I could just go buy ready made all purpose spray cleaner.  A little bit of dish soap works nicely and is a fraction of the price.

Put 1 1/2 cups hot water in the measuring cup.

Add 3 Tbsp. vinegar & 1 1/2 tsp. borax.

Mix well to dissolve borax.

Pour into spray bottle.

Add 1/4 cup liquid dish soap.

Gently shake to mix.  Then add a bit more water to top off the spray bottle.

I use this on my dining room table, counters and stove top.  Works like a charm.  And it is pretty darn cheap to make, which is the main reason I started going this route anyway.

For the laundry soap you will need a big bowl, a fairly fine cheese grater, 1 cup measuring cup, baking soda, washing soda, borax, Zote (or Fels-Naptha or Kirk's castile soap), and oxy clean (optional), a long handled spoon and a big jar or bucket to store your soap in.

Start by mixing 2 cups each baking soda, washing soda and oxy clean (if using).

Add 3 cups borax and stir to combine.

Then you will grate what is about 2 cups of soap flakes.  This is approximately 1/2 bar of Zote.  The finer you grate your soap, the easier it dissolves in the washer.  It should look something roughly like the texture of shredded coconut. Add this to your powders and stir well to combine. Then just scoop it into a big jar with a lid. Use 2 Tbsp. per wash load.

*Safe for HE machines as it does not bubble at all.  In case you don't have and HE machine, do not be alarmed when you see that it produces no bubbles.  It's not supposed to.  

**The oxy clean is totally optional, but I like to add it in for summer time laundry.  Our clothes just get dirtier in the summer and I'm all for a little boost in the laundry.

Yes, I know the lid is off my jar.  I put it on after I took the picture.

Cloth Napkins

I have seen a few articles on the amount of money we spend on paper towels and napkins that wind up in landfills and the solution to the problem was cloth napkins and cleaning rags.  Re-usable cleaning rags, done.  That was easy.  I just demoted my grungiest dish towels and washcloths to the cleaning supply cupboard and use those most often when I'm going to clean up a spill.  Napkins took a little more effort though.  If you know me, you know that I just can't go to the store, buy a nice set of matching cloth napkins and maybe even a few nifty little napkin rings.  I feel compelled to do things the hard way.  As in, make it myself, just to see if I can.  And, tell you that if I can, you can.

I am by no means a seamstress.  I only barely passed 8th grade sewing class and didn't touch a sewing machine again for almost 20 years.  But my dear aunt Iris gave me her old sewing machine a few years ago and my adventures began.   I have made a few respectable projects, but they all tend to be in the shape of a rectangle.  So, when I found a tutorial on Pinterest for cloth napkins, I thought hey, right up my alley, and within my comfort zone.  And, the lady who posted this had them in a basket on her table.  Yay! another use for a basket (just had to throw that in there for my basketophobe friend ;) ).

I ventured to the fabric store, found some fun prints and a couple of months later, finally got around to cutting and pressing that fun fabric and sewing my napkins.  I have made ten so far and have fabric for six more.  We have four people in our family, and though I do a load of laundry almost daily, I'd like to have enough for a few days worth of meals.  I fully anticipate that they will also serve as blankets for beanie babies, barbie dolls and probably the cat.  So, extras are probably not a bad idea.

Here's a link to the tutorial.  how to make cloth napkins  Here's a quick picture of my basket o napkins.

If you feel compelled to count, you'll notice that there are more than 10 napkins in the basket.  That's because I started writing this post before I was done sewing and waited until the basket was full before I took its picture.

We have been using them for close to a week now, and they are a big hit with the kids.  Especially Natalie who has a new found interest in setting the table.  I can also happily report that due to the cloth napkin usage, our paper towel consumption has significantly decreased.  Mission accomplished.