Neat and Tidy

I've never been a neat and tidy person . Sometimes I feel like I crave chaos , it feels comfortable in an uncomfortable way .
  I dream of being one of those moms with a large family whos' super organized having everything labeled and put away right where it belongs . So , I'll go crazy and clean the laundry room for four hours only to have it all piled on top of the dryer two weeks later . I've gone through stages when my house was kept really clean but I found I didn't have time to play with the kids , and do the other things I enjoy . By the time I was done cleaning from floor to ceiling feeling anxious the entire time , I was exhausted .
  Lately I have been scouring other gardeners blogs , I'm especially interested in seeing photos about the process in which their  garden grows .Its so interesting to me to see others artistic talents .It helps me to look at things a different way . Are you a " neat and tidy" gardener, does everything have a place , Is it well planned out ahead of time  ? Or are you more like me , I'm a spur of the moment gardener . I see something in a greenhouse , store , or online and decide I have to have to have it , Get home find an empty place in my garden , plop it in and hope it flourishes. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't .

   I don't always have a ton of extra cash for gardening and I suppose I could be planning things out better , But the impatience in me wins out most of the time .Maybe someday when I'm retired and my kids have grown and moved out  ( insert crying jag here ) my house may be clean , It may be well planned out , But I'm kind of hoping I'll be one of those quirky , artsy grandmas . Slightly unorganized but fun .

Old Macdonald had a farm

Usually once a week in the summer we go on a little " day cation" as we like to call it as a family , either to pick strawberries or a picnic by the lake . Basically just spend the day together enjoying the outside .
 This past week we decided to go to Shelburne farms . Check it out at  http://www.shelburnefarms.org/
   Its a great family place they have a variety of farm animals , its hands on so the kids can milk a cow, collect eggs from some very friendly chickens , groom sheep, see baby pigs,etc.

 
   My kids especially loved being able to hold and pet the chickens and milk the cow .

The farm is huge , The scenery is really beautiful . My two youngest boys are really into tractors so we took a tractor ride and the kids sang " Old MacDonald had a farm " on the way .

The whole family really enjoyed themselves !

Stepping stones

When I was around the age of nine my parents bought a ranch style house with a great yard for us kids.We created some wonderful memories in that house . The previous owners must have also made some great memories ,On moving day I watched the dad chiselle away at a block of concrete in the sidewalk that led to our new  basement , His daughter had left her footprints in the cement when it was still wet and he couldnt bear to leave them behind . This memory has stuck with me , Recently I was scanning through gardening blogs and pinterest searching for fun inexpensive  projects to do , I came across the idea of making stepping stones out of poured concrete , pressing a large leaf in it before it dries to make an imprint . So I decided to do this same idea but with my childrens handprints .I figured I would put some vegetable oil on thier hands and press thier hands into the cement , making some adorable stepping stones for my garden .

         I had my husband stop at the local hardware store and purchase a container of anchoring cement , It cost me $12.99. I love doing projects but im very impatient and never read directions , Im usually too excited and jump in head first , Sometimes it works out ok and sometimes it doesnt .With a little "help" from the kids , I mixed the cement according to the dirctions , the first batch was way too hard and crumbly  the second was just right , pouring out easily and making a nice round shape when I poured it out onto a piece of plastic . It was really messy but I think they turned out really nice ! Im now waiting for them to dry I'll post more photos after I get them in the garden!

Lily gives us a look at how our veggie garden has grown . Its doing great!!

                                         

T

Today we enjoyed the beautiful weather and went strawberry picking at a local farm , There were some sweet animals there including a cow that Lily fell in love with . The cow kept rubbing up against her and Lily fed her grass and called her " My sweet baby girl" When we were leaving Lily asked me if when we get a bigger house with more land if i promise we can get a cow as sweet as this one . I have to admit I do daydream about owning a small farm , living off of the land and enjoying the simple things . we'll see.....

Life has been very busy this week with work , playing with kids , visiting with family and gardening .  
     The gardens are really looking nice this year and even though they are very full I can't help bringing home new plants every week . I get butterflies in my stomach choosing which plants to bring home . This week it was Mona lisa lilies , lavender , mini roses , and foxglove .
     We have eaten fresh lettuce , green beans and cucumbers from the garden and we are anxiously awaiting the peppers, tomatoes, and cabbage that are growing so well . It feels so rewarding and exciting to be feeding the family healthy food we grew ourselves!

 Next projects are building a sandbox for the kids and a wattle fence for the gardens . I had never heard of wattle fencing but I often get inspired looking at photos on pinterest and that's where I discovered it .I can't wait , I love summer !!!