Doing Our Part~ Earth Day!

In years past Earth Day has come and gone with a lot of guilt in my gut... I have always felt that there is so much we could do, so much I want to do, but haven't. This year I feel like our family is really making strides in this area. It's all baby steps, mind you, but any steps forward in this area are good ones, right?! We are making simple choices like shopping with cloth bags, recycling, drying clothes on the line, eating more consciously, our newly started compost bin... All those add up, I know, but I think the biggest strides are being made in the learning that is taking place. Remy and Halle are diving head-first into our garden 'experiment', and we are all learning together how things grow and how to take care of the earth. Rem is also my chief recycler and is constantly chattering about how we can recycle this or reuse that. I love that!

My plants, by the way are still doing great. (I know you were just dying to check in on them...) I moved them into larger pots and have definitely become a bona fide 'crazy plant lady', checking on them and taking them out for a little sun.

My girl eating breakfast in her Princess garden gloves... that's normal, right?!

So what do you have planned to celebrate today? enchantedlearning.com has some great Earth Day printables, so Remy and I may do something from there. Other than that, I think we will just try to get outside a bit, if the Indiana weather permits. God created this earth, so we should enjoy it! Have a great day!

Signs of Life

Happy Thursday!  I know you are going to get tired of these shots, but the thing is that I'm not yet... =) so here they are! I am completely amazed at this gardening thing. Remy and I have been 'oohing & ahhing' several times a day over the growth of our little seedlings. I don't know who is more impressed.

This is yesterday morning

Then this morning~ Impressive, right?! It really is causing me to reflect on God's marvelous work in a way that I hadn't before. I am feeling very attached to my little plants. (and I'm also beginning to wonder whether or not I'm a little more crazy than I originally thought.)

Other signs of spring things are popping up all over around here. Storm windows have been removed and windows flung open. I love hearing all the mowing and smelling the neighborhood grills in the evening. The littles are spending more time outside with less clothing (It's been in the 80s here, I think!).  I am spending my time working at the kitchen table, just off the back yard, and I love listening to their imaginations come alive and the narratives that ensue outside. Much drama takes place around the bird bath~ soup is made, parties are held for birds who have been away for the winter, and many things get lost in the ocean that must be rescued.

Halle has also discovered 'flop-flops', which are necessary every time she goes out the door. She is my girl!

I am trying to just take in every lovely, time-standing-still moment that seems to be happening all around me. I have fleeting seconds of guilt for not tying myself to my sewing machine and making some more for the shop or get to making Halle's curtains for her poor bare windows, but then I see or hear or smell something fantastic literally in our own backyard and I forget about my guilt. I just enjoy... and I hope you do too! So what are you enjoying about spring right now? I'd love for you to share!

Tuesday

Today is seeming just a bit 'daily'. Nothing major to speak of, but we're loving this sun, especially the kids. I had to find the sunscreen, which was no small task, but I did, and fortunately it's still good. They are in the newly filled sand box at every spare moment. I love that they are happy, but it is proving that this is going to be one dirty, sandy warm season. I have swept twice already today and the sand just keeps showing up. (Sigh.)

Then, I guess there is this bit of GIANT news:

Upon inspection of my seedlings this morning, I discovered that a handful of them are showing sprouts. I am doing the happy dance over this~ There is hope for this garden yet!

And one last picture. This is Halle in the new Bubble Suit that will be in my shop later today. My mom gave me a bunch of vintage patterns, and this is adapted from one that I adored. I did change it to that the shoulders would simply tie at the shoulder (eliminating buttons) and took out the snaps at the bottom. Simple, easy dressing is definitely my key to summer wear, and I am assuming y'all feel the same way. You can bet that she will have bunches of these this summer!

Something to Prove

"She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks." Proverbs 31:17

Let me begin by saying I have the most wonderful husband. He supports me in every crazy thing I do... and I'm sure you realize by now that there are many. I like to try many new things like infomercial work outs, new craft projects, fad diets and plans, etc. and each time he lets me do what I'm going to do with very little being said. (Okay, for those of you that know Trace know that he does usually have a few sarcastic things to add, but he always supports me...)

So let's just say that with this garden I am feeling some pressure. Not necessarily imposed by him, but I don't have what anyone would call a 'green thumb', so I am really wanting something to grow here. After several years living in an apartment, it's like I am just stretching myself to the limits in this beautiful back yard of ours. It feels almost like I am rebelling against everything I have thought of myself before, being an 'indoor, prissy, city girl', and maybe it's what I have always thought that others, including Trace, think of me too. Does that make sense?

I truly would be happy with anything growing at this point! This weekend we went and bought a bunch of seeds (my ambition is showing... 16 varieties at this point!) and I got my little greenhouse thingy (yes, that is the technical name) to start them all. Remy loved this part of our little 'experiment'. If all goes as planned, we should start seeing some sprouts in 7-10 days. I also spent quite a while out back trying to get the dirt ready. Man, that really works your arms~ it's no wonder the Proverbs 31 woman's arms were strong!

I would love your help on something~ I am attempting to go the organic route on my garden, from seeds to soil, to whatever comes next (can't you tell I am so well-informed!?). I'd love to know of any resources y'all might have for organic gardening: websites, books, whatever. Please leave 'em in the comments!

I really am feeling like a pioneer woman or something. This prissy girl loved digging in the dirt and seeing my clothes hanging on the line. And by the way, seeing sheets drying on my new, husband-built, clothesline is one of my favorite things in the whole world~ isn't it so lovely!? Add in the rockin' way the sheets smell on our bed, and this girl is positively in heaven!

And one more picture from a different angle~ isn't she pretty?