As promised, here are a few pictures of the Tree modeling his newest Quick Change Trousers, along with a onesie that I decorated by making a freezer paper stencil. Goodness gracious, would you check out those arm rolls! He was born with all of them, but they've plumped up in these last months.
At nine months my little chub-o-love has passed the milestone of equal amounts of time out of the womb as in, and everyday we see more of his personality emerging. He's earnestly trying to communicate with us, and what he lacks in syllables, he makes up for with that infectious smile and those bright, expressive eyes. Standing up is getting easier, he's beginning to cruise around the furniture, and he scales the steps at every opportunity. Basically, he's into any and every thing within his reach. And with eight teeth, he's growing more and more interested in what we're eating, too.
Oh, this little boy is such a light. Now, if only we could work on that five o'clock wake up time...
Ah, the first tomato. Is there anything sweeter (tangier, juicier) than the first bite of a garden-ripened tomato after all those many months of waiting? I think not. We each have our own harbinger of summer, whether it be the first trip to the pool, the first camping adventure, the first firefly spotting. For me, it's the first tomato that signals that summer is here.
This one was picked last week, and it was split four ways. And for the third year in a row, the Flower had the honor of first bite (tomato flashback here and here).
With sixty or so tomatoes in the ground, this is the first of many! Bring it, summer. Bring it!
Last Sunday was the kind of day that started way too early, but because of it, I found pockets of time throughout the day when the rest of the family was playing or resting to work on these trousers for the Tree. The joy of working with this pattern so often (see here, here and here) is that the cutting, piecing, and sewing comes together effortlessly now.
Pictures to come soon of the boy modeling these. Yesterday's quiet time was spent with a cool beverage in hand, and a few quiet minutes in the sun.
And this is how I stayed cool: black tea mixed with fresh mint, apple slices, a squirt of lemon and a few drops of honey, served over lots of ice.
I'm so proud of our new garden. It's quite breath-taking to look back on this post from last year, when we were first planting the figurative seeds of our cross-country move to our very own homestead. And now. Here we are.
The garden has already been a labor of love. Building the infrastructure took weeks of work. And then, there was the planting, and seeding. Now we're in that glorious down-time of the gardening season where we can sit back and enjoy our efforts until the work of harvesting and preserving comes around.
We are loving the climate here, in our new home state. Having spent twenty years in the West, where the rain is scarce, it felt completely counter-intuitive to be putting in this large of a garden without irrigation but, we're regularly reminded that it actually rains here! I'm loving it. Truth be told, the weather up here on the divide (so far...) is about the best that I've experienced. It rains, but not so much that it feels gloomy. It snows just enough to make winter interesting, but not enough to impede travel. It's sunny, but not enough to scorch. The mornings often start veiled in mist, as the clouds resting on the mountains slowly burn off with the warmth of the rising sun. And the evenings, are cool and breezy. My mood is very much tied to the weather, and I tend to thrive best under mild conditions, no matter the season. Well friends, I do believe I have found my happy place here, in the these hills.
Now, how about a garden tour?
In the foreground is our greens bed: mustard, arugula, collards, chard, kale and mesclun. This area gets the first shade of the day, and everything is thriving. Did I mention that it rains here?
How do you like that arbor? The Man built it for me. I say it was a surprise. He says I should have known all along since I was with him when he bought the lumber, and since I asked for it. Well, yes, those things are true, but I ask for many things and I'm often willing to let most of them go. And, while I was with him when he bought the lumber I truthfully was not paying attention (at all) to what was on his cart, you see, I had my own cart full of seeds, and children, and such. Anyway, I love my arbor, surprise or no. This year it will be draped in pink morning glories and lemon cucumbers, and next year I'll plant lilikoi (passionflower) which I hope is a perennial at this elevation.
And quick! Look below. Do you see what I see? Yes, several green tomatoes, but do you see that red one hiding toward the bottom? I'm totally picking it tomorrow. The Man has been tending and fretting about these tomatoes since he seeded them back in January. I think they have taken to their new home beautifully. And check out all those chiles!
That corner, the one with the yellow chairs, that is what I call our Garden Lounge. The yellow chairs are held together by approximately sixty-eight screws each, but I love them so (and the dear one who gave them to me). Meet us here for happy hour, any 'ol afternoon.
My dad built this little tee-pee for the kids. It's planted with pole beans, morning glories, and hummingbird vine from his garden. You can also see our decorative corn planted amongst the butternut squash. The corn seeds came from my dear friend Jules's dad. He grew the corn in Michigan, then drove the stalks out to Colorado, we then drove the seeds to North Carolina. How's that for food miles?
The lower bed: greens, corn and butternuts. The middle bed: tomatoes, lemon cucumber, basil, lemon basil, red baron onions, radishes, zinnias, okra, tomatillos, japanese eggplant, beans, carrots (purple and orange) and beets (red and gold). The upper bed: tomatoes, chiles, zucchini and beans. And the three sunniest corners of the garden are planted in different pickling cucumbers.
Above is a finished tray from the worm compost, full of sprouting butternut seeds. I have mixed feelings about this composting process, mostly because the worms are not eating as much as they're supposed to, and because the bin attracts fruit flies. Now that the weather is warm we're also using the outdoor compost pile, but the verdict is still out on whether or not the neighbourhood bears will consider this a food source. It is fenced-in but not yet electrified. And just moments ago, as I was sipping my coffee, a bear sauntered by the front door. Hmmm.
Last on the tour is the children's garden, located in the Lounge area. As to be expected, it is seeded and dug-up almost daily, and still there are peas, beans, marigolds and mustard growing.
That's all folks! I'm heading out, with a baby on my back and a girl on my heels for my morning stroll amongst the vegetables. If you have a minute, link up with a recent garden post, or tell me what you're growing. I do love a good garden tour.
Do you ever look back on an hour, an afternoon, a day of your life, and find yourself reflecting on the richness of a few ordinary minutes? Do you ever feel completely and utterly blown away by how awesome an afternoon can be?
Sunday was a fine day here on the divide. My family and I woke (too early, as usual) and for the second day in a row headed out just after breakfast for a forest adventure, exploring the neighborhood trails. The afternoon found us piddling happily around the house, and in the garden as the children rested. As the day progressed the thunderstorms started rolling in, one after the other, and we were all drawn to the deck, with its big covered porch-area to watch the rain fall.
Over the next thirty-minutes, this took place...
:: Puddles and popsicles as one storm passes.
:: Roaming chickens, finding their way up to the deck.
:: The little Tree, stretching his limbs, and pulling up to a pot of zinnias.
:: Tenderness, and a helping hand.
:: Wandering toward the forest, and along the way a four-leafed clover, and a foxglove beg us to pause.
:: Tree climbing and exploring under the canopy as the rains begin to fall again.
:: A soaking-wet adventure as we run back to the house, and return to the shelter of the porch.
:: The exhilaration of his first rain-play.
Some days the ingredients for a happy, joyful life are freely given to us. If we get off the porch, step into the rain and play we may just stumble upon the best thirty minutes of a weekend.
I'm not the only Mama doing chores with a baby on my back. The Flower is serious about mothering her babies (pictured is Garcia, the bear), and tending to her chicks. A few days ago, as we were dressing to head outside for our morning chores, she asked to me to help her put on her babies so they wouldn't cry while she was working. She's a wise one.
I made this little baby carrier last summer when I was pregnant with the Tree. Based on a Mai Tai design, it took not time at all to sew, as it's basically a rectangle with four straps attached. But most importantly, it's comfortable for keeping those babies close while she goes about her work.
It's in! The 2013 garden is finally in. We are exhausted. And over-worked, and seriously needing a break. The Man can barely walk from all that fence building, brick laying and mulch shoveling. And I haven't managed a chore without a baby on my back in weeks. If I didn't know better I might believe I'm delaying the Tree's development by wearing him so much. Did I mention we are tired?
We're super-excited and absolutely loving how this new garden is coming together. Fifty six tomatoes, seventy two chiles and sprouts of all our favorite vegetables popping up all over the place. I still have to seed some cucumbers and mulch everything with straw, but most of the back-breaking work is behind us. Er, except electrifying that deer fence so the bears don't steal our tomatoes!
We managed to get away last weekend for a few days to play at my aunt and uncle's lake house. They shared their amazing home and pool and loving-hospitality, and in return, we shared our head cold. (Sorry guys!)
Life is full. With warming spring days, most of our time is spent in the garden, building beds and fences and arbors, seeding and planting. All of our in-between times are spent loving up on these children, and cherishing small moments of quiet.
Here are some favorite glimpses from the last two weeks (left to right):
Hole digging to replant our peace pole in the garden.
Toby, one of the neighborhood bears, waltzing through our front yard.
The Flower and the Tree, playing in the clover.
My Man, cooking me Mother's Day dinner.
Baby wearing while gardening, the only way I get it done.
The Tree in the tunnel, showing off all those new teeth.
Nap time snuggles.
The Flower, barefoot tree climbing (oh, is she determined to climb trees!).
My girl just can not get enough baby love.
Couch-reading with Dada.
Ahh, the smell of lilacs, right out my back door.
Our resident chicken whisperer.
Blooming azaleas, a tell-tale sign that we're in the South.
Sleeping baby squishiness.
On the swings. She's learned how to pump.
In the garden, sowing seeds.
I'll be back soon with more stories from the homestead.
It's salad-eating season again! Do you crave fresh salads this time of year, too? Soon we'll be harvesting garden greens, but for now, I'm making do with store bought spinach, because the craving for greens can not be ignored. I've made my own salad dressing for years. It's the easiest thing to make and get right, and it costs a fraction of what the store bought stuff goes for. Also, I can keep the ingredient list short and clean. My go-to dressing uses three parts extra virgin olive oil to one part apple cider vinegar with several dashes of herbs, salt & pepper. Sometimes I add yogurt or homemade pesto, too.
In addition to loving some fresh greens around here, we also seriously love us some Michael Franti. Love. Just the other day the Flower came up to me and asked "can you play some Michael Fwanti so we can dance Mama?" Naturally, we danced. A few weeks ago Mr Franti posted a photograph on Instagram of his homemade salad dressing, and it sounded delish. Two nights ago, I gave his recipe a go.
Using his inspiration I came up with this:
1/4 Cup raw, unsalted cashews
1 clove garlic
5 cherry tomatoes
2 Tbs apple cider vinegar
1 tsp dried parsley
salt & pepper
Throw it all in your blender with a few Tbs of water to help it blend, and pour it on your greens.
(This dinner also included frozen ravioli, because sometimes life requires frozen food, am I right? Our own canned tomato sauce, our own butternut squash roasted alongside one giant beet.)
I swear, if Michael Franti and Jamie Oliver could rule the world, everyone would be happy, in love and well-fed. Let's dance!
I'm Lisa Coffee :: Wife to the one & Mama to the flower and the tree. Thank you for joining me as I share snippets from the good life! Read more about me on my about page.
