Garden 2013: Time to Get Planning

Last year started off with a great plan. I was going to attack the yard, do a major overhaul, and get one step closer to having the garden of my dreams. Darth Husband and I did attack the yard.  We practically gutted one flowerbed and rearranged another.  One just needed a decent weeding.

Then the hot weather hit.  The Chicago area ended up hot, humid, and that gross stickiness that makes kneeling in dirt less than enjoyable. I got out there as long as I could but I am NOT a hot weather person.  If it is too hot, I don’t want to be outside digging in the dirt. I was happy to have some of my plan done but there was a lot that wasn’t.

This year I’m starting early and starting slowly. Jess and I were recently talking about how March crept up on us and Darth Husband just mentioned how some of the flowers were starting to come up. Now I just need a few warmer and dry days so I can actually get out there.

Since it is still cold and snowy/rainy, I won’t be outside for a while so my plan of attack is still in progress.  I have a few plant catalogs that still arrive from the old owner of the house. I’m a bit hesitant to buy plants without actually seeing them but maybe one day I will get something. I’m also using my Garden board on Pinterest for ideas. Some of the board will actually work in my zone which is 5 and some won’t but still are pretty, interesting, or are a good color/color combo.

Color combinations are what I am focusing on right now.  The photo as the beginning of this post is a flowerbed I walked past last summer.  I loved the bright colors and it made me stop and turn around to get a picture.  It is a non-edited iPhone photo too. They were that bright.

We already have a lot of yellows in our garden. Coreopsis are one of my favorite flowers.  We have several areas that have them and they do pretty well.  I’m hoping they made it through last summer’s heat.  However, if some didn’t it won’t be too much of a problem since the plants are on sale quite often and I can start some from seeds.

Source: bhg.com viaKrista (Yarnalone) on Pinterest

I broke down the flowerbed photo into colors I think will work with our current flowers and stand out against the lighter brick of our house.  I know that they won’t be exactly the same colors when I’m looking at plants but I think it will be a good place to start.  Plus, if I want to be really specific I can pull this up on my phone to check. Realistically though I don’t foresee myself pulling out my phone in the midst of the Garden Center at the various Home and Garden stores in my area. Maybe if I decide to go to a nursery to find something specific. Then it would be easier than just saying “I’m looking for a flower with a darker red in it but not red red, more of a maroon but not too brownish.”

I know we will end up within something new outside of this breakdown.  I don’t want a fully color coded yard so that works for me. The main goal is to keep it bright.

A garden, a mine and a side of scrubs

Lately my free time has been a mix yardwork in small batches when it is not 9oo degrees out, Minecraft, and Scrubs with a bit of laundry mixed in.  There were some days that I didn’t even fire up the laptop. True, having an iPhone makes it so I’m still connected to the digital world, but it is still not the same. I was up and somewhat moving.

Tiger lilies

I can sit outside and enjoy this or hack at dig work at the surrounding flowerbeds depending on my mood. I’ve honestly never gotten excited about bags of mulch being on sale before this summer.

Since this is only one section and I know even with both Darth Husband and I working on the yard, it will take a lot of hard work to get it to where we want it to be. Honestly, it will take years or a chance to be on Desperate Landscapes though it probably wouldn’t qualify for it to really be done. Then we’d have a new idea and it would start over if not somewhat all over again.  This I don’t mind since I know things will die, things will go crazy and need to be thinned out and we will continue to find more of the awesome dark maroon/purple-ish lilies that we both like.

Another tiger lily and an unknown purple flower

When I wasn’t out in the garden, I’ve gotten hooked on the pixelated land of Minecraft. Darth Husband is a gamer but the kind that moves, bathes, and interacts with real people and I’m a fan of video games as well unless it is Halo since I play it like a drunken penguin. I’m more of a puzzle person if we are talking non-Mario or Mortal Kombat era of games. Several people started talking about Minecraft and then Darth Husband downloaded the demo.

It all went downhill from there and by downhill I mean us both “fighting” over the Xbox. Realistically, I don’t play that much but it seems like when I’m all geared up to play he has a game time set up with a friend or two. (Please read “game time” as a somewhat pre-determined time to meet up online and not mix it up as a “game night” which is a whole other animal, vegetable, mineral.) When I have played though, with the game on peaceful, I’ve found it quite relaxing.  I just need to wear my glasses because the pixelated graphics make my eyes a bit wonky – not really hurt but a little “off” for a lack of a better word.

However, the one thing that has been running via the Xbox that we both agree upon is Scrubs. I had only seen the show in bits and pieces of later episodes. It sorta made sense but I had a feeling it was one of those shows that I had start over and watch from the beginning.  This was on my “to watch” list but I hadn’t put too much of a priority on it.  Darth Husband started the first season and I ended up getting hooked. Yes, I know this is an old show but for some reason I never watched it when it was new. The safest bet was that it was against something else that I did watch. Luckily through the beauty of Netflix, that’s not a problem.

We just finish watching Season 8 and started Season 9 but it’s ok. I also started Supernatural from Season One…

Music for this post: Fun.

Wordless Wednesday

Days of Dirt, Mulch, and Broken Fingernails

I have been on a gardening kick lately. (My poor fingernails are taking a beating.) While, I know it probably was from throwing my plan out into the universe, I know a recent conversation with Darth Husband really hit the nail on the head. I was looking at the entire thing and focusing on the end result (a really awesome perfectly planned garden/flowerbeds/yard.) What I should really be doing is focusing on the smaller elements OF the larger picture since no matter how much I dream and wish, I do not have the time and energy and several grand to do it all as once.

Breaking it down into specific sections means I can check them off the main to-do list. I checked on section off that list today and it feels so good. A future plan is to eventually move a plant and maybe add one more but this isn’t something I have to do. Once the main list is all set, then I just need to figure out a follow-up routine so the weeds don’t take over.

While this is specifically for the yard, it’s pretty much an approach that works for anything and everything. It is so obvious but I too often forget this or focus on the too specific like cleaning out the junk drawer when the entire kitchen is a mess. Working out… start small.  Fancy cooking… start small. Knitting… start with a small stash of yarn.

Oh who am I kidding?!?!  Knitting stashes never starts small especially when you have a box of yarn in the unused bathtub.

Keep It, Kill It, Move It, Remove It: Gardening 2012

Normally May is when I start to think about the garden and the imposing doom of future plant chaos. This year, due to the unusual warm spell, everything is several weeks ahead. Everything, that is, except me. I have a plan this year and I really hope it ends up well. I enjoy working in the yard but there is always that point where I get a little behind and then it gets crazy. In an attempt to not get overwhelmed or rather not as fast, I am trying to first set things up as Keep It, Kill It, Move It, Remove It.

KEEP IT:
The prior owners of our house, especially the woman, were serious gardeners. We lucked out that they had a good amount of perennials including daffodils, hostas, sedum, phlox and hostas. We have a few rose bushes including one that wants to climb on the roof if we don’t keep an eye on it. There are a few tulips, one peach iris, and a clematis that have kept going as well. If we can split anything to move elsewhere, it will save us money and as long as it takes, it will be less stress in the future. I don’t like matchy matchy gardens but having the same elements here and there looks really nice.

KILL IT:
Goutweed. Snow on the Mountain. Bishop’s Weed. I Hate You and I Want You to Go Away Plant. If anyone offers you this and you don’t want it to try to take over EVERYTHING, say NO!  The yearly attack on this plant is aggravating. I think it is a reason why my tulips never came back fully. This choked them out!

We also have wild violets that like to come back every year. While they are pretty, they can get HUGE and take over.

MOVE IT:
Tiger Lilies are one plant that do extremely well, sometimes too well.  I love the flowers so this puts them in the “move it” category.  If they don’t take, it isn’t that big of a deal since we have many many more to use for a second try.  I have a few places that need a pop of color and I think these bright orange flowers will work perfectly.

There is a section of our yard that is looking a bit Jurassic Park-ish with all the ferns so those will get thinned out and moved as well. Last year we even had one pop up in the grass though the little plastic dinosaur looked hilarious that was moved before it got really huge.  I never knew just how crazy big they would get. We had one last year that was almost hip height. It is safe to say that wherever they end up, they will work and eventually get moved again.

REMOVE IT:
There is one shrub that you can find at our home as well as homes of family and friends, Rose of Sharon.  We have ones with pink, white, and purple-ish flowers. I love them all. What I don’t love is all the ity bity little trees shrubs that pop up.  I do keep some if I want to make a bit thicker hedge, if there is a gap needing to be filled, or to plant elsewhere. Otherwise they get pulled while they are small and I don’t fall over trying to pull one out.

Now I just need a weekend of nice weather or a few days when I have the energy in the evening to get going.  The first serious push will be a lot of work but it will totally be worth it.

Cooler temperatures means I’m back to being a pet bed

I’m typing over the cat who is sprawled across my lap… again.   My feet are half off the couch because of the dog who prefers to take the majority of the couch… again.  Realistically I don’t care since it has been below 75 for the past few days. While I didn’t mind our mini time travel style break into summer, I really don’t mind having an actual Spring. Last year we had Snowmageddon. This year I didn’t have to dig out of waist deep snow drifts.

See. Photo proof… missing a yardstick for actual height verification but believe me. It wasn’t pleasant.  I will take mid-summer temps for a few days in March over dangerous snow any day.

The warmer weather did give me a kick that I was expecting later.  Warmer temps means the garden starts taking over coming back. I can walk around barefoot and drive Darth Husband crazy by doing so. It’s only around the house/yard though since wandering everywhere else would just be odd. I start planning out what veggies and herbs will be added to the norms of tomatoes, bell peppers, and basil.

It’s a good feeling over all. I’m starting other plans to get my butt even more in gear (possibly joining a gym,) getting my frivolous spending in check (an upcoming month challenge,) and focusing on how I can balance out my knitting (still same work in progress  aka WIP) with my general crafting (too many great idea on Pinterest.)

Music for this post: Florence + the Machine

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

Yarny yarny quite contrarny how does your garden grow

Yes, yes I know that’s a pretty cheesy title but my actual name doesn’t really rhyme with anything. The bananafanna song always sounded silly too.

I grew up in a fruits and veggies household. My mom had told me before that when I was really young she’d put the veggies in front of me first. Hungry kid = eating veggies. True there are kids who are the absolute opposite and won’t touch anything green and then grow up to be our one friend who rarely eats veggies. Luckily I wasn’t one of them.

For years summer meant getting the garden ready.  We had a space set up in the back yard with timbers and a fence that would be put up to keep any rabbits as well as my childhood dog from getting in there.  It was a pretty good sized space and so could fit a good amount of plants.  There’d be cucumbers taking over one section, green beans in another and tomato plants at the other end. I remember too we would get something different some years and add that to the mix. Kohlrabi was one that I definitely remember especially since I thought the name was really cool.

The back of my parents property had a cherry tree when I was a kid as well as numerous raspberry bushes. After awhile being brave and eating the berries FROM the bushes without washing them was a daredevil thing to do. YUM! BUGS!  The tree that I used to hang from since that is what kids do or should do – hang from trees and climb trees just not break bones doing so isn’t there anymore but the bushes are still there. Their dog now loves to eat the raspberries right off the branches too! YUM! PRICKLIES! (If you are not familiar with raspberry bushes, they do have thorns/pricklies that DO hurt and can scratch you.)

When Darth Husband  and I started looking at houses the mention of “oh we could put a garden here” or “not really a lot of space to put a garden” was included more times than not.  Being with someone who also understands the greatness of fresh picked produce makes this even easier.  It didn’t have to be a huge spot. It just HAD to be A spot and we ended up with one.

The people who lived in the house before us were MAJOR gardening people. The lady clearly enjoyed working in the yard.  Flowerbeds are all over the place with perennials and rose bushes.  It was and still is though there is a bit of plant chaos going on pretty cool.  Several places could work perfectly for a decent sized planting bed. We would just have to add a few timbers and fencing to keep the dog out.

The dog soon became DOGS when Molly joined the CSYA family not too long after we were married.  The addition of the cute puppy that would grow up to be the still adorable dog led to the unofficial world federation of dog wrestling. Two 50+ dogs chasing each other around the yard as well as barking at the furry little bringers of annoyance squirrels changed our plans.  The amazing location for the garden is now AHHHHH SQUIIREEREEERELLLL WOOF WOOF ARFARF ARAFARAFARFARF BWAAAAAAAAA edged in timbers and covered in woodchips for the time being.

Did I get upset? Nope. I got self watering planters.  They have little spaces at the bottom that you fill with water and as long as that has water they don’t wither and die as quickly are happy.  They work PERFECTLY for veggies as well as flowers. We have already had tomatoes, jalapeno, and bell peppers.  This year the plan was tomatoes and bell peppers again since we eat them all the time.

I was given a new addition to the garden/yard this year – my awesome new cart.

Awesome Cart to the rescue

It makes hauling bags of dirt and numerous plants that the store clerk insisted on putting in plastic bags  much much easier.  The worry of dropping a bag or plant container and watching it explode is very very low.

Flowers are much happier now . Yes that is a little chair plant stand.

Salvia (purple on the left), geraniums (white on the tiny chair), coreopsis (yellow) and autumn joy sedum (wavy leaf on top right) is this years mix.  All are perennials except for the gernanium and they will eventually be planted in some sort of flowerbed so we can enjoy them next year.  I wish I had a large budget for gardening but I don’t so I try to pick things that we can enjoy more than one year. PLUS it is fun to see them come back year after year. I get happy excited!

Now is the waiting game. Last year we managed to wait until some of the peppers turned red. It was worse than waiting for water to boil.  I may or may not have said “Hurry up!” to the plants more than once.

 

Bell peppers

 

Two kinds of tomato plants this year and one is already flowering

 

There will be more garden related posts this summer and maybe a veggie related recipe post as well.

Reality check: Yoga edition

In case anyone was looking for this yesterday,  post ended up delayed due to a busy day. Dentist trip incl drilling (YUCK hot tooth smell!) and having 1/2 a numb jaw for hours where it was weird to put on lipgloss, visit w my mom & gram, trip to let’s-spend-2-hours-wandering-land Hobby Lobby w my mom (MMMMMMM Hobbbyyyy Lobbbyyy), and a friend’s 30th birthday BBQ/party.

Friday ended up being yard day.  I was able to spend the day home and work on and off rather than attacking it while the mosquitos attack me for a small amount of time in the evening.  It was hot to the point where everything started sticking to my legs but I played it safe with lots of water breaks and being inside to eat during the midday sun. Overall a good section of the yard was weeded and we are one step closer the goal of getting everything the way we want it to be… for now. (Yard/gardens are always a changing thing for me at least…oooh pretty flowers! OOOH lawn GNOME!)

Once I was done working in the yard but still all hot/sweaty/stinky/gross, I figured why not take the opp to work out a bit before cleaning up. The first plan was to do the kettlebell DVD but after sitting down a few minutes with yet another glass of water, it didn’t seem so appealing. Then that quasi-guilt/quasi-wtf kicked in. I was worn out but not that worn out.  I had a crazy busy day planned for the following day and didn’t need or want a migraine.  Then I decided to just shut up the inner dialogue and do SOMETHING.

I had the time and energy as well as the house to myself as long as the dogs weren’t in my way.  If  I didn’t take the opportunity, I wasn’t going to allow myself to complain about whatever aggravating weight/body image thing that decided to plague me.  If I didn’t do something it was my fault and so I did something.

I decided that yoga would be the best idea. Figuring being hunched over/stretched out funny pulling weeds would possible lead to my body revolting somehow the next day. Yoga stretching should help at least somewhat as long as I chose to do a mellow version of it. I decided to try the Crunch: Candlelight Yoga that I recently added to my Netflix cue once I managed to get Molly trying to do her version of downward dog off my yoga mat.  I like yoga of the more mellower style and so it was a perfect fit.

Sort of.

Yoga had been a class that I had taken on and off for a good number of years. I don’t like hot temperatures or hanging upside down from fabric which brings back bad memories of wall climbing in high school so they have all be pretty plain jane style but it works for me. Due to financial reasons, I had to cut all of my group classes.  Rather than putting on the DVDs or dragging out the old yoga book given to my by my mom ages ago (hers from the 70s) and doing something on my own, I did nothing. I was stressed and aggravated and pretty much every other result of the changes that we had to deal with. I walked. I read. I did other things to deal with what was going on but I didn’t go back to yoga.

So when I started up the “DVD” (in quotes since it was streaming – we only have that option,)  I got a reality check. My flexibility that I had was totally shot. Before it wasn’t that great anymore but something was there. Not. Happy.  I was the person who could do a good number of the crazy twists and scare friends in high school and balances like doing random tree poses at whatever moments  and there I was wobbling barely managing a downward dog. Not. Cool.  I pretty much made myself keep up with it rather than becoming aggravated (opposite of the goal of mellowing out) and finished the routine.

I am planning to do this routine more to slowly get back to where I was before  or at least not do a wobbledog.  I know it won’t be overnight as is any change. (I always remember someone talking about weight loss. She said it didn’t take her a week (or some other short amount of time, can’t remember exactly but the main point) to put the weight on and so it wasn’t going to take that short of time to take it off. 

I know this isn’t technically about weight loss but it makes sense.  I want to get back into a better routine to help me feel better. The feeling better will also come with the better health and as a result back to my happy weight. (But that’s a topic for another day.)

Have you recently had a fitness related reality check?