Garden, Yard Sale Prep and Other Things

Garden

Our garden is in thanks to Russ and a number of key players. We went the Mel Bartholomew's Square Foot Gardening (SFG) method because it's efficient for small spaces and it works well to produce just the right amount for small families. If it works well with these two, and we need it, we'll add a bed or two later. Russ used the garden as his project for his management class he was taking toward his graduate degree in Mechatronics at DU. Our yard gratefully slopes away from the house to provide natural drainage so we started with that in our favor.  

We begun my removing the grass in the area with a sod cutter, removing the rocks by the downstairs window (special thanks to Mom, Mary Kathol, for giving us a great start on that) and laying down weed cloth.  Russ made two raised beds ala SFG specs from cedar, which are supposed to deter pests. We placed them so there was a good pathway between and filled them with Mel's mix, 1/3 peat moss, 1/3 vermiculite, 1/3 compost. Russ topped the beds off with square food spacers.

We then took a family trip to the plant store and got some seeds and seedlings to plant. We left two slots for our vining plants according to the SFG method.  After planting Russ and his dad (special thanks to George Peck) put in mulch and attractive railway ties to border the garden and around the house.

Everything is now up and thriving (except our poor watermelon plants, which, planted as seedlings slowly declined over a two week period and whose space will likely become home to brussels sprout seeds. RIP delicious watermelon. You left us too soon.

Seedlings

• green peppers
• hot peppers
• strawberries
• tomatoes
• watermelon (deceased)

Seeds

• beets
• cantaloupe
• broccoli
• cucumber
• spinach
• brussels sprouts
• lettuce (gourmet pack)
• winter squash
• pumpkins
• zucchini

Potted

• parsley
• basil
• potatoes/sweet potatoes
• garlic chives

Tobin likes to waddle over to the pots on the deck, squat, point at the plants and laugh at them. I think they're determined to prove that they will grow gangbusters despite the insult. All except parsley, who is more sensitive, and just started to peak out.


Plant Rotation: SFG is also Wonderful because it is conducive to multi-season growing.  After the plants are exhausted or harvested, we'll plant seeds of plants that work well in the next season to get the most out of our area.  This provides a natural crop rotation which helps keep optimal growing conditions in the soil.  We'll add soil as needed.  I'd like to also get some deeper pots or a large ceramic long pot to grow carrots and other such longer veg eventually.

Success
We are all excited by the success of the project. The kids enjoy learning about how the plants grow.  We started jar planing to see how the roots grow and seed begins under ground, but I over watered and the seeds molded.  Doh Mama, doh! A good lesson on over watering. We will not be discouraged and will try again. We've got plenty of seeds.

Future Project Additions / Future Projects
Netting Cover: I'll be making and adding a netting cover for the gardens. We've gotten two strawberries out of a dozen due to either birds or those bastard squirrels who stole our pine cone bird feeders.

Trellises: We'll be adding trellises for our tomatoes. We're thinking of just wire ones either straight, or more likely the circle ones.

Deck Railing: So our kids don't fall off and our dog, Sadie, doesn't jump directly into the garden.

New Fence: We'll be putting in a new fence either this year or next. Our current fence is a trooper, but after that snow storm, looks a little like a toothless smile.

Kids Area: Behind our deck we've started to remove some grass. We'll finish that area off by removing all grass, evening out the ground, adding weed cloth, laying down kid soft mulch, and putting in our kid equipment.

Getting Seeds From Our Plants: I'm looking into how to get seeds from plants that we have so that I can replant a few w/o buying seeds again. Sustainable and economical.

Yard Sale Prep

We're taking time to go thru Everything we own over the next week to either put into a yard sale, throw out, or give away. We've been feeling squnched for a while and this is a good time to get rid of the things that have been bogging us down.  We are trying to be practical about things we're going to use in the future and not just pack ratting. We just don't have the space for it, and I'm/we're both sick of pushing around things in the crawl space or dusting over random extraneous things. Hip hip for yard sales. I'm so excited to streamline things around here.

Other Stuff

Jillian starts school on Monday!!  Our big girl, our social butterfly.  I'm so happy, but can't help tearing up anticipating this milestone.  She'll be going to the Montessori of Lakewood, M-F from 8:30-11:30.  Tobin's nap hits right when we get home so, I may get some time to myself for working on house or graphic design projects. Or, *sigh* to finish one of the four books I'm reading.

Russ made a lovely home brew recently based on Dry Dock Brewery's Breakwater Pale Ale.  We compared his version to theirs at the brewery in Aurora on our last date night.

He's been been running more, biking more. I've been coming up with a lot of good excuses not to bike, but think that any store trips will be biked next week.  Unless it's raining ;).

Spencer and Sara Kathol just moved into their new home in Ft. Collins.  The kids and I went up and did our best to contribute to the effort.  It's such a lovely home with good open space both in and out, nice layout and wonderful old trees in the yard.  Congrats to them!!

Other than that we've got a downstairs bathroom filled with clothes washer components awaiting a new belt. We'll pick one up at Sears on the way to or from Golden to play with Cousin Tyler, Regina, Aspen and Kenna.  We haven't told Jillian who we're meeting.  I expect excited squeaking to happen when we get out of the car.

Quick Update

I have 20 minutes so this is going to be a quickie.

We are working on the garden landscaping.  Russ' is using the adventure as his management class' project, so has a smooth timeline.  He'll have pictures I'm sure to contribute, before and after.

We are working on getting Jillian into a preschool so she can learn and build friendships. Brief park friends just aren't enough anymore. In anticipation we're all excited and working on our consistent potty habits. She's doing wonderfully, just sometimes needs a little hint if she's wrapped up in playing.

We hit the Denver Children's Museum last week.  It was a nice change, but will be back to the Zoo on Thursday. Jillian Loved the full sized fire engine (bee bou). We discussed 911.  There was a practice phone that she could dial and they had automated questions. I've decided not to have an emergency until we have time to practice some more.

Tobin liked crawling around and loved the stuffed animal basket and of course the stairs. He's eating, growing, and into everything... especially Sadie's water dish.

A bit over time...

Hip Development

Quick update: We had Tobin's hip appointment on Wednesday the 11th and his hips are as to be expected given he had hip dysplasia. That is, his left hip is developing slightly slower than the right. Hopefully it'll catch up. We'll keep tabs with the help of Children's Hospital in Aurora as he grows to make sure things stay on track. The issue hasn't slowed him down and shouldn't.

South Valley Hike Thursday

Jillian, Tobin and I went hiking at South Valley last week. We ate a snack in the entrance shelters before starting out. Jillian was totally gitty running around taking it all in at full speed. We saw birds, ants and played in the dirt as we walked. You could see sad burnt trees from the North Fork Fire on the ridge behind the Lockheed building. It was such a wonderful time for everyone, we'll be heading back for sure.

Painting Outside Friday

We ate lunch outside and I tried to do a little light yard work as the kiddos painted and enjoyed the outside. Tobin wasn't too into hanging solo in his chair, so we ended up watching Jillian create a masterpiece and eating Cheerios.

Easter Sunday

For Easter after the Easter Bunny's treats had been discovered, and all our eggs had been found we went to Ft. Collins to have brunch and hang out at Aunt Jen's house. We had a wonderful time with Jen, Ron, Tyler, Regina, Aspen, Kenna, Spencer and Sara. Easter Bunny Ron hid eggs around the yard for the kids and Jillian, Aspen and Kenna all had a fantastic time running around finding them and then playing together.

Should be working...

Oh my, has it really been over a month? It seems every week I think I'm going to get something in, but alas here I am writing on an unprepared whim to avoid doing client web updates. So, what news?

Our little hipster Tobin

I finally got in to take Tobin's 10 month hip x-rays on Thursday and there was a little asymmetry. Supposedly this is normal for kiddos who've had hip dysplasia, but they are referring us to Children's Hospital. We have an appointment on April 11th to check him out.

Other than that he's in Great shape, eager to get his hands on and explore Everything! He stands with little effort, holding onto things as he vines around the room. He seems ready to take his first steps any day now.

We went to the zoo yesterday and he got such a kick out of the animals, reaching out for them, waving, wanting to join in on the rope swinging or hay munching. He especially enjoyed riding the carousel rhino.

Jillian is Jillian

She's perfecting her 'silly dance', which is basically sticking out her tongue, pushing out her ears and shuffling.

I'm currently eating the lace red licorace we got to practice letter shapes (they're their own reward). She wrote her first A a couple days ago. It's amazing how much she picks up. I really don't practice with her all that much and she did it all by herself... in orange!

She loves making friends wherever she goes. At drop in gymnastics the other day she met a girl named Zoey and they danced, jumped and hugged their way thru the whole hour. She made friends at her cousin Aspen's birthday party in Ft. Collins too. I really want to get her into a morning program so she can make some more consistent friends. She'd love that.

OK, Tobin's awake. Work successfully thwarted.

Oh, I think I've convinced Russ to help make entries so maybe next entry won't be so long.

Snow, Potato Stamps & Dryer Balls Cont.

We did get out to fly our new kite on Wednesday. It was a real treat. Jilly held the kite a few times, but it was chasing the kite when it fell and lifting it up so it could catch the air again that she really loved. Tobin observed from his stroller and was sad he couldn't walk.

Snow

Yesterday it was Thursday and it snowed. The wind was so strong it knocked over several fences in the neighborhood including the one in between our neighbor in back and our houses (see picture).

Our fence post got pushed inward and a second beam fell off the top (see picture).

Potato Stamps

After lunch we had an hour before nap time so we took a potato and cut out hearts in relief for stamps. Jillian used red and green water color paints for them and then painted around the stamps she'd made. She learned about smearing the stamps vs. up and down technique to get a clearer image. She likes smearing the best. Tobin provided moral support sitting on my lap.

It took some convincing to get them to agree to go to nap as Jilly does Not like to leave her work unfinished.

Project #1 Continued: Felted Wool Dryer Balls

I found wool yarn in my yarn tub so I started rolling some balls. I did some research on the best way to make the balls and there are several techniques. The first I read about, and what I ended up doing, is by rolling the yarn into a ball slightly smaller than a tennis ball to make a core, sticking it in a sock or pantie hose and hot washing, drying to felt. Then, adding another layer of yarn, felt it again until the final result is about 9 inches in circumference. It's supposed to be more durable to have a core than if you just make a ball and felted it. You can also put fleece in to make a core, but I didn't have any of that. One creative woman put tennis balls in as a core and felted a layer over them. I don't know how well they'd soak up the static from the clothes, but maybe since you use between 3 and 12 balls (yes, this is the range I heard - all the same type ball, I guess it's personal preference) I could make some and mix 'em in. So far I've made 4 core balls.

Jillian shows the original size of the balls (which are wrapped in black pantie hose) in the picture to the right. I've washed them once in hot with our towels and was a little disappointed that they hadn't felted more. I stuck them in the dryer on high to see if that's the ticket. The end result will be felted between 3 and 5 times. I'm thinking I'll do the core once or twice and then put it thru the 3 to 5. I suppose the more it's felted the better it'll hold up.

I would like to add that a box full of yarn isn't, by it's nature, a great project to leave out with kids. I ended up giving Jillian a 'project yarn'. She interpreted her project as being unwinding the whole ball and winding parts of it back. Her handiwork is below.

Fort Peck & Wool Dryer Balls

A bit of a break since last time. Here's what's new.

Fort Peck

This morning Little Man Tobin, Jillian, and I along with Sadie the dog made a fort under the kitchen table. We swept the floor first which didn't stop us getting dirt and dog haired. Sadie desperately wanted to come and lay down on the comfortable pillows we had stacked in the back, but she is big and it was already crowded, so she was sent packing after a very uncomfortable attempt. Fort Peck was a great spot to snuggle up and read a couple books, but was dismantled before Tobin went down for his first nap. We have a kite I picked up at Toys R Us while getting spoons and crib railing teething protectors. It was so lovely earlier, but it's getting a little grey out. I hyped the kite up, so I hope it's not too cold to go out after the kiddo's naps.

Project #1: Felt/Wool Dryer Balls

My friend Laura suggested making one positive change each month. The idea in doing one per month is to make it easy to settle into the changes. She suggested one easy start is getting some wool dryer balls, and Etsy was a great place to find ones. I think this is Awesome - a great investment and way to cut the icky toxic chemical exposure from dryer sheets, but I'm poor enough to try and see if I can save a little, so I'm going to make my own using a tutorial I Googled online. This weekend I'll be hitting Joann Fabrics, 40% off coupon in hand and heading straight for the yarn aisle. I'm really excited about this project. I'll likely let Jillian pick out the color.