My Beautiful Garden!

So far I've weeded and put up a net canopy and gate. We planted two bushes: raspberry and blueberry. I hope they grow!! The amazing thing is, most of this stuff was found. Some of it in that very spot, such as a pick tool, zip ties and rocks (to prop all the stakes up and keep the gate and net securely in the ground). Other things that were 'found' were all those wooden slats (from the broken part of the patio) the 2x4, the broom handles and the wooden rod (on left), the gate and the ribbons. We bought the net last year and the seeds and plants were bought as well. We also bought gloves and borrowed a cultivator (human-powered). That's it! I hope to plant in a week or two! I'm excited to see what grows! :)

The New New Addition to the Green List!

Compost!!!

Compost bin.

Compost bin.


Compost bin.

Compost bin!


We are starting a garden. These are my professional rock removers.

Here you can see the garden, complete with gnomes, in the background. All the way to the left in front of the fence is a pile of rocks. We are planning to go to that bush on the right. There are already some flowers there. Can you tell how far I weeded up to this picture? Lol. I did some more work on it after going to Home Depot. We really have to get started on planting NOW. I bought a few seeds such as tomato, cucumber, string beans, watermelon, radish, and lettuce. I also bought a sprigs that are supposed to grow into a raspberry and blueberry bush! We'll see how it goes! I hope I have enough room. If not, we'll skip some seeds this year. I'll try to post updates if anything grows! Wish us luck! :)

The Dilemma of Forever

I, like most parents since the 1960's or so, like to capture moments of my babies life on film. You really can forget about the little changes that happen over time; even in a few short months one picture brings back memories you didn't know you'd forgotten. Their daily funny antics can be shown to family members who are far away. It seems to be such an amazing gift to be able to do this in modern times. But I wonder if it is not without trade offs.

The main thing that worries me in this digital age is that by jumping for the camera we might miss what is actually there. I feel this way with vacations too. Sure, we are there and can split our time, but having to stop to aim and shoot seems to take away that in-the-moment feeling for the fact that sometimes, we vacate to get away from all our daily technology. Some times we just want to be and feel.

This world is too image conscious. So even when you do take those pictures, and you are in them, you have to wonder how you look. Even if you don't care in the moment, which I think is sometimes just hidden away in the backs of our minds, we might care afterwards. Its not so much for the fact that we always have to look amazing, but because we want the image to portray the sentiment that was there when it was immortalized. And more often than not, the picture can come out looking cold or badly shot because real life isn't a portrait studio with perfect lighting. When we try to worry about getting the best shot during a 'moment' it is precisely the time that we trade off the moment for the picture, or we then try to recreate it artificially to look better than the real thing felt or looked at the time. Or sometimes, we miss the moment totally, in person and with the camera, when we run to grab the means to capture it. It doesn't always happen this way, but it does often enough that it makes you stop a bit.

Lately, Lyla has been super attached and lying on my chest very often, at night before bed, in the middle of the night or in the morning. Even though it can be a huge task for me to deal with so often, it is still sweet. I've thought of trying to take pictures of it, but I think its better to just enjoy it. I'm not about to give up my camera either, but some things just won't be in the family slide show. Thankfully, we have enough that is.

A quick tip.

When cutting your veggies, take the bits you would normally throw out, such as carrot tops, scallion bottoms, and these


And put them in a ziplock in the freezer.


You can then use these to make a soup broth for free without having to waste any new veggies! Just strain and chuck* the bits when you're done!


You can keep the broth in the freezer too, in a container you were going to have to throw away! Look at you, being so green! :) (This one actually has the left over "marinade" from my zucchinis. Its garlic, olive oil and spices, but the zucchinis give off some water too so you can totally use it as/with a broth!)


*A quick edit: Just strain and compost the bits when you are done! :)