Why didn't anybody tell my 17-yo self that THERE IS STILL SO MUCH TO LEARN!?! Well, someone probably did. So why didn't I listen? Nevermind. There's still a lot I don't know, but I think I've figure that one out, at least.
So, we're gardening the garden of the Ambitious, this year. Cucumbers, eggplants, tomatoes, okra, okra, and okra. Kentucky pole beans and black turtle beans and sunflowers. Yellow squash, zucchini, watermelons, pumpkins, canteloupes and okra. Cayenne peppers, bell peppers, Blue lake green beans, tomatoes, and some okra. Honestly, we're just hoping to get some okra out of the deal.
And there's baseball. And school. And Scouts. And baseball. (EmBaby *hated* t-ball, so we are down to only two players, now. It feels so manageable!) And more gardening.
We're expanding the tea garden into medicinal plants.
The boys keep asking if I've blogged an update on each of them, yet, "with my pictures in it, Mom". But then they won't hold still long enough for me to get pictures to post. (I'm guessing they may not listen when we tell them how much there is still to learn, either.)
Did you know you have to have register with the State of Alabama to grow ginseng here? Not only to sell it (that's a more expensive license), or to harvest it (though they charge you less if you're collecting someone else's ginseng), but just to GROW it. Something that grows wild, without your help, anyway. Unbelievable.
We've got chicks. Yes, little birds. They're in the basement, with the Basement Frog, for now. This was our impetus to get the coop done. (Ya think?) The kids are ecstatic. I'm trying to find a way to develop a full-body second skin dip that will provide prophylactic support against salmonella, mites, and the willies.
EmBaby had her first major tricycle wreck, which also earned her her first shiner. It looked absolutely horrific for the first four days (she was fine, but we all went around cringing and moaning in empathy), and then this morning, *poof* it's nearly gone. And she's still on the tricycle every chance she gets. May she always be blessed with that kind of healing ability and fortitude. If I were more Irish, maybe I could come up with a catchy way to phrase that.
The figs are growing! Or, rather, one of the figs is growing. The other one seems to be holding very, very still, in the hope that neither Jason nor Sally will ever make contact with it again. We've built cages for all of the balcony plants (the two figs, and the three earth boxes), but I think we may have been too slow on the draw to do that one any good. The other one, though (the one that hasn't been uprooted and thrown off the balcony more than twice), is thriving and putting out vibrant, beautiful green shoots! So exciting!
And, there is baseball.
And gardening.
And the smell of sunshine and dirt on little heads.
It's Springtime in the South, y'all!
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
6 comments:
Stop worrying about chicken germs. On the other hand, since you've got them indoors, I recommend investing in pine shavings as bedding, available at your local farm store as horse bedding. It really keeps the odors down, and one bag lasts quite a while. (Don't use cedar; it's toxic!)
I'm not... a bird person, Jennie. :-) Really, really *not* a bird person. (Aviaries? The stuff of horror films! Feeding the birds... why? No. ACK.) This is more of a practical/educational/family endeavor that I'm along for the ride b/c I'm part of the family, and so forth. (That, and we couldn't quite swing the fencing this year to get water buffalo, or a one-month stay in, say, Scotland, to study History this year... which, really, would have been my first pick.) :-D
It'll be fun. But I'm, um, yeah. Gonna just focus on the germs and not the fact that I have avian creatures (with no conscience!!!) living on my property... germs, I can handle.
Don't chickens eat ticks? Or is that guineas? Anyway, just think of the eventual eggs, and all that great fertilizer! And chicken meat! Yay!
I can't wait to see pictures!
mere
What kind of birds did you get? We've got NH reds and they're great chickens, very friendly and personable. Not the roosters, of course. We keep one for each dozen hens, and we have to regularly put them in their place AND protect the little ones out there.
Let me know when you get that trip organized; we'll join you!
PS: I'm not a chicken expert, but I play one on my blog. If you want my phone number, just e-mail me. :-)
Meredith, *that's* what's motivating me! The guineas eat ticks more readily than chickens do, so maybe we'll add some of them, at some point. :-D
Jennie, we got Welsummers, Americaunas, Black Australorps, Dominiques, Rhode Island Reds, two I cannot identify (James picked them out while I was helping Smidge with his), and two random quail. I'm hoping we'll have a really good rooster out of the bunch. The gentleman we bought them from said his Welsummer was his best rooster - as far as fertility rates, and how he looks after the ladies. :-D
Springtime in the south, oh how I miss it!
I will live vicariously through you, it's a good life to do that to. :-)
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