Peas Please Come Up

I am thrilled, no elated, no overjoyed (well you get the point)...at being in my garden again.  This winter I filled my time looking at heirloom seed catalogs and researching everything and anything associated garden.  The day was hopeful with a slight breeze and the sun peeking through the clouds.  Travis and I zipped up our jackets and made our way out to the garden.  I gave him a shovel and some toy cars to keep busy.  Sowing seeds can be time consuming, especially when one is dealing with the attention span of a not yet two year old.  

The peas went in first, spinach next, and broccoli right behind.  This is the earliest I have ever planted.  All my research this winter has me determined to feed my family through the Summer and Winter off this plot of land.  I question the stability, safety, and nutritional value of our food system.  I wonder about the organic broccoli I bought from Costco.  Examining the package I see it is from Mexico.  How was this floret grown, what what was put on it, who picked it, what facility packaged it....you could say I obsess a little bit.  All I do know is when I grow, cook and preserve food myself I can answer all those questions.  

Back to the garden...the peas are heirloom and called little marvel, broccoli is heirloom Di Cicco, the spinach is from last year Bloomsdale Longstanding, and the hybrid broccoli is called gypsy.  All these seeds are early season and can be planted when soil can be worked in the spring.  I have also noticed dandelions and grass emerging.  As I was planting my seeds I noticed something pink in the ground.  My rhubarb returned!  I planted them last year and had great doubts about them making it.  Hopefully they will be full of stamina and make my garden glow with pink.  

Purple Cherokee Tomato 

you go Rhubarb

Learning through digging

Pretty peas all in a row

Second rhubarb i discovered

Bogs I received for my Bday

Fast zinnia seedlings popped in 2 days

lettuce and kale 

Baking and Quilting

Tyler is quite concerned about when the bread will be cool so he can eat ALL of it!

What the boys create when I am busy...can you say chaos

I have been filling my days with baking, quilting and some drawing.  Also the never ending obsession of planning my garden, but that is for another post.  I have alway been interested in making my own bread, but to be honest I really really don't want to knead.  There were a few attempts in the bread maker, but bread like rock is difficult to consume.  I found a recipe using my kitchen aid and my 4th batch is currently rising.  It is beyond my abilities to get my bread to rise as much as the bread maker (as in actual person not machine) in this recipe: http://joyinmykitchen.blogspot.com/2011/10/31-days-cooking-from-scratch-sandwich.html

Other daily obstacles include my almost 2 year old and refusing to eat.  He get so hungry he transforms into a starving monster that refuses all food attempts.  Stubborn Stubborn Stubborn.  Sometimes (rarely) he will decide to eat as above a combination of lentils, yogurt, and blackberries and that makes me really happy almost joyous.

A pie book came from amazon a few days ago.  After all I had to get free shipping and get my order over $25.  Pie crusts and my attempts have been epic fails until.....this one!  The pie crust rolled out so beautifully and baked up golden.  Success tastes so delicious.

The cranberry oat muffins also went over well.  A batch a twelve disappeared before 4:00 that afternoon. The recipe was a generic fruit oat one.  I swapped half butter for applesauce and replaced half the white flour for whole wheat.  Travis actually ate a whole muffin so I might keep this recipe on a rotation.

My friends ask me how I make time for quilting with my young children.  Well...I pay for it as in they destroy my basement (picture above) and I clean it up...  I also stay up way too late cutting, binding and ironing.  I love it every bit of it except the part of cleaning up!  Currently I am really really into scrap quilts.  I believe these quilts trigger past memories.  I used to tell my high school art students that the imperfections in an art piece make it more interesting. Perfection is boring.  The imperfect scrap quilt not only makes the eye travel across the piece, but also pulls and forms memories.  One quilt is finished, another is almost done, and the last is not even close.

Little criminal

Oooh la la what a lovely drawing Travis

Found the perfect blank canvas

Tyler attends preschool Tuesdays and Thursdays. Those days are supposed to be days I get a break...Yea right.  Travis has other ideas that includes drawing on walls, drinking and spitting out juice, covering my carpet with crushed pretzels and half eaten apple slices, throwing all my neatly folded laundry on the floor, playing with all food (especially yogurt), demanding his mother hook up toy trailers again and again and again..., climbing up on top of table tops,  biting his sweet mother, terrorizing his brother's room, and other nefarious activties.  I am always reminded on these days how much Tyler entertains his little brother.  We do have sweet moments but I do fantasize (obsess) about nap time.

sweet brothers

I have been remiss when it comes to updating my blog.  I have been inspired by a few bloggers out there about updating weekly.  What is going on in our lives kind of update.   Do you think I can keep up....I know I know I have serious doubts too.

We had a snow earlier this week.  We bundled up and headed outside.  That is a feat in itself due to the fact that it take 15-20 mins to put on our snow gear. The snowflakes were fat and heavy with moisture.  The windless plains allowed the flakes to float down and land softly on the boys.   Each point of the snowflake stood out on their dark snow coats.   I always like documenting snow because it is so rare lately.  The drought is still in full force.  Yesterday the temperature reached 66.   It was nice to air out the house and spend a few hours soaking up the vitamin D, but I would truly wish there was a few inches of snow on the ground considering it's only January.

On another and much more exciting note I pre-ordered my chicks.  Do I detect some eye rolls...Chickens are cool!  I went with the multi-varitey approach.  My selections include Buff Orpingtons,   Rhode Island Reds, Speckled Sussex, Easter Eggers, Barred Plymouth Rock, Columbian Wyandotte, and Welsummers.  Despite continuous internal debate I decided to get roosters, a Buff Orpington and a Barred Plymouth Rock.  We are to receive them the week of April 22nd.

I am also researching gardening techniques.  I am interested in companion planting and having a winter garden (cold/warm frames).  The simplest website I found about companion planing is here: http://simplehomemade.net/companion-planting/  I am basing placement of veggies and flowers on the websites advice.  Also reading a Self Sufficient Life by John Seymour.  Hopefully all this work will pay off.  Travis will be two by that time and maybe just maybe will be manageable in the garden.  I am planning on having a digging and excavating area in the garden filled with diggers and trucks.

Today I walked in on the boys and they were being so sweet.  Both were laying in Tyler's bed.  I like to capture these moments because they are so fleeting and very rare.