Garden Project 2012

 

In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;

 

It’s nearly February!!!! So it’s time to think about what crops we want where, to give in to my daughters desire for flowers and get out in the garden and be an Earth Mother.

I quite like the planning bit, given a cup of coffee and a quiet hour to work out what we are planting, where and when it needs to go in.

This year I have been much aided by Sutton Seeds, as a bit of a novice to the gardening world, I have found their seed packaging to have been most helpful. (Yes, it’s all down to the packaging, clever people!) We don’t have an allotment, just some large vegetable boxes and this year we are enlarging one of the side beds for a bit of extra room, plus potatoes & tomatoes in large bags… It’s quite a lot of space when you add it up!  But it is area restrictive, so the fact that Suttons clearly label their seeds so well is a win/win for us.

I am of the attitude that if you can’t eat it, don’t grow it, vegetables have such lovely flowers that I don’t feel I need to cultivate flowers for aesthetic purposes, my 5 year old daughter is of a different mind, she badly wants LOTS of flowers, so we let her choose some seed packets, I told her to look out for the packets that said “Easy To Grow” but we will see.

We have a bed in the garden that is along the edge of the Koi pond, during the summer we can’t see it from the house due to the mammoth  trampoline, just now it can be seen and will be until after Easter, so we had a bit of fun choosing Spring flowering bulbs; snow drops, crocus, daffs, tulips and the like, all dwarf varieties but in a few weeks we should see a splash of colour.

 

 

My hands were shaking from the cold a little there…

So we have begun, right now the potatoes are Chitting. I’ve gone for First Earlies and a Main Crop this year instead of our usual just first earlies, mainly because I love digging up the spuds and they taste so much better!!!

My next job is digging the hell out of the bed!

Summer Diary W2 D2

A slower start today *sighs with relief* the Little Man slept in until 7am!

We had arranged to meet a friend and her smalls in the park and so set about bundling our needs into a blue ikea bag, I did think twice about taking the wave boards but the Little Lady was insistent, I do a fairly good impression of a pack horse it has to be said.

After a mad couple of hours splashing around and a game of spot our friends in the supermarket, during which the Little Lady convinced me we needed to have a BBQ this evening, sausages were chosen (the ones Daddy likes) and finger buns, I managed to convince the Little Man we already had plenty of Ketchup, we got home in time for lunch.

Once home they did some ‘quiet drawing’…

and had lunch.

and then Mummy got brave and allowed finger painting!

A quick trip to the shops with Dad to buy coals gave me a breathing space, they came home with a new game of Connect 4, we found this in a pub recently and the smalls adored it.

The BBQ was lovely, the smalls love ‘sausage ina bun’ with the last of the home grown potatoes in a potato salad, the Little Lady diligently cut some chives for it from the pot in the garden and then snipped them like Katy does with Mummy’s big scissors.

So another day successfully negotiated, I find myself sitting quietly this evening as the OH has crashed out asleep, feeling quite calm. It’s been a good day.

Silent Sunday

Carrot…

I use carrots a lot…  It is one of the few vegetables that Daddy will eat happily.  Our home grown carrots were a bit of a disappointment this year there was loads of greenery but not much carrot, I think I shall choose my seeds with great care next year.  I cleared the vegetable beds out at the weekend, here is the last of this seasons harvest…

Although the little man is having a vegetable standoff at the moment there are ways to get him to eat some occasionally, he will quite often have a good go at a soup.

As the winter days are drawing in, soup is a great way to get some warm nourishment into the smalls, they are especially keen if it appeals to their sweet tooth…

Carrot and Honey soup.

2 tbsp Butter

2 small leeks

800g Carrots

2 tsp clear honey

1 bay leaf

2.5 l vegetable stock

small pinch of dried chilli flakes or a good grind of black pepper (optional)

sour cream or yogurt to serve

Method

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Add the leeks to the pan, then cook for 3 mins until starting to soften. Add the carrots, honey, chilli (if using) and bay leaf, then cook for 2 mins.
2. Pour in the stock, bring to the boil, then simmer for 30 mins. Blend the soup in batches, return to a clean pan, then season to taste. When ready to serve, bring back to a simmer, then ladle into mugs. Add a swirl of soured cream or yogurt and serve.

Please stop by Chelle’s Place to see some other great carrot ideas.

Food! Nonononononono…. #The Gallery

Just over 4 weeks to go until my birthday and I’m doing well, 14 tiny weeny little pounds left until I hit the target weight I set for myself and I’m beginning to think of food in a good, nurturing my body is a temple kind of way that will make this journey easier for me…

So dear blogging community please forgive me if I don’t visit your bacon sandwiches or blueberry muffins this week…..

This food is truly mine, one of my favourites that I grew myself from seed.

I expect this month to be a droolathon for all the foodies out there so pop along to Sticky Fingers to get your fix

Peas Please

Week one of the holidays from nursery, like every Mum everywhere in the country I have been trying to think of ways to amuse my smalls and more specifically my little lady during the afternoons when the little man has his nap.

Yesterdays activity was more successful that I could have dreamed, she loved it!

Shelling peas….

A £1 packet of peas, rip the tops off and pop out the peas…

Have a couple of races with Mummy to see who can do it faster

Try counting them to see how many there are, hard when 20 is about your limit…

So, then we cooked them and had them for our dinner.

Smug Satisfaction (The Gallery – Emotions)

Courgette

Dwarf Bean

Tomato

Dwarf Pea

Cauliflower

Grape

Cranberry

Little seed, falling from my daughters tiny hand.
Carefully covered with soil, patted to keep you safe and warm.
Given a drink with such joyful relish.
Forgotten.

Little plant, a cause of excitement and wonderment,
small fingers pointing and much squealing,
water sloshing out of a forcefully wielded watering can.
Watched.

Little flower, delicately unfolding to the light
gazed upon with respect an awe
scooped up water from the paddling pool administered.
Admired.

Garden project…

This weekend we kicked off our horticultural project in the garden. It all started with a discussion about the need for a wall/fence along the edge of the grass, our son is not always aware of things around him and we were concerned he would fall off or run off the edge – he could make that happen easily! So rather than just putting in a fence we thought we would put in a long box to grow veggies in.

I’d like to throw in a disclaimer about here – I have no idea what I’m doing and I’m referring to websites and library books left right and center and I feel totally out of my depth – It will probably all be planted wrong, too close together in the wrong soil and fed all wrong and won’t grow but hey ho, I’m trying!

We are not going all “Good life” (I could never be as glam as Felicity Kendal in wellies) because in our semi detached estate house you just don’t get enough garden for that, of course if Daddy hadn’t built a 6ft deep Koi pond across the back we could have had a bit more veg!!! Still, I thought it was important that our children knew that vegetables and fruit doesn’t magically appear at Morrison’s but takes care and time to get there.

The boxes themselves have been constructed out of old pallets that Daddy accumulated via work so they were free, which is just as well because the compost has cost a fortune! They look very rough at the moment because he didn’t quite have enough to finish them and he intends to sand them and stain them (not holding my breath btw..) Some of the soil has been shipped up from the Mother in Laws (MIL), Daddy and the Little Miss have been working hard digging her a pond recently, the rest and majority of it is compost and well rotted farm manure.

My daughter loves planting seeds, we have some tomato, cucumber and pepper seedlings from her sowing activities, the more tomato plants the better as I need plenty of green ones for green tomato chutney later this year. We also have various lettuces, sweetcorn, cauliflowers, sprouts, courgette and pumpkins to go in and have sown potatoes, carrots and beetroot. Little Miss loved the beetroot seeds they look a bit like cartoon moon rock – bizarre! We have 3 gooseberry bushes, due to limited pace we have to keep them trim hence having 3, a raspberry cane and a tayberry, A cherry tree hidden behind the trampoline which means the birds leave it alone. In pots we have Rhubarb and the most gorgeous patio Blueberry which I have to say is my favourite, if chocolate could grow on trees it would be as good as that. There is also horseradish, chives and mint and I have basil to sow too.

Hopefully I should be able to potter out there for 30 minutes to an hour a day to keep on top of it all and I’m really looking forward to the children picking something they have helped grow and then helping me cook it. Yum yum!

Sink or Swim? No Wallow!

This is my first prompted blog – thanks to Susie at the Kindness Club for reminding us we all need me time.

I once told my Mother ” we have a great life style, it would be great to share that with a child”  she smiled at me but didn’t say anything, of course what she should have said was “you can kiss that great lifestyle goodbye once you have less income and a baby to look after!” I would never have believed her though, I don’t think anyone really grasps the impact a child makes on your life.  Of course it’s all worth it, they are fabulous but they do encroach on your “me” time somewhat and for the first 3 years (or so) at the end of the day you are too seriously tired to want to do anything but sleep.  Without a constant supply of babysitters near by you are tied to your little darlings every one of their waking moments no matter when that might be…

So what was that me time of old?

In my twenties I had a hectic social life, I worked in hotels and socialized with the staff at any available hour off shift, I lodged with some great people my age and there was lots of going out and about, I took up skydiving for a few years which tied up many weekends camping at the DZ and that is where I met my husband.  Once we moved in together things did slow down of course, we were in a new town and I was commuting to work, he would go out every Thursday night and I would have a quiet night with an indulgent curry and a chick flick.

I loved books, demolishing my way through 2 or 3 a week barely able to exist without some story of sci fantasy or passion winding it way through my brain, baby brain put paid to that, although I am pleased to say that I have recently experience a resurgence in the reading department.

I used to cross stitch too, that started on the DZ waiting for the wind to drop or the clouds to raise enough to jump, there are after all only so many parachutes that need packing at any one time.

I have never been a beauty salon babe, I love saunas, steam rooms and swimming, Bath Thermea Spa is paradise on earth for me and yet in my pre children life when I had the free time I didn’t  indulge that often, I had no need.

We bought our hot tub when we were DINKY’s, It was one of those things that we really wanted but normally would never have justified but my husband had a small lottery win and we thought why not… Thing is with the rise of Electricity costs and the reduction in available time we invariably shut it down from November to April every year even though it’s a really pleasant experience to be outside in the hot tub in the cold, especially surrounded by snow…

So the me time of now? That would be anytime spent without any noise or worry, rare indeed!

Last weekend, whilst constructing my new vegetable boxes for our “where does my food come from” garden the husband said “Why don’t you fire up the tub?”  I didn’t need to be told twice.  Little Miss and I washed it out and filled it up.

The tub takes 24hrs to heat up to 37 degrees, which is about time the chlorine takes to wear off from the first “flash” then you have to balance the ph so it’s safe, we usually use bromide when the smalls are getting in too.  So it wasn’t until Monday night it was ready and by then I’d forgotten about it – dafty!

Tuesday, little miss and I had a good splash in the afternoon whilst Daddy was back at his boxes and little man was asleep, later that night Daddy and I had a relaxing soak together once the smalls were in bed.  It is sooo good for a marriage to have some time together where you can’t watch mindless car programs, you are not stuck with your head in the lap top tweeting or blogging and there are no smalls demanding attention, in the tub we have to sit and read, sit and talk or sit and do the stuff married couple forget to do once they are not courting anymore ;-P

In the interest of Susie’s Kindness club I have made sure that I have chilled out in the hot tub every night this week, either with himself or just me and a book, no other reason you understand…. And it’s been REALLY hard to do, (not).

Thanks Susie!