Pizza Night

A couple of times a year we get the family together and make pizza. Everyone has a job. I prepare the dough, Vicky and Kurt prebake the individual size crust, I make the sauce and sausage, someone else cuts up mushrooms, green pepper, onion, fresh cheeses, basil and garlic. Everyone gets to put there own pizza together and put it in the oven. Its a fun night. My sons friends appear out of the wood work on family pizza night. We usually end up playing board games or telling stories.
Its always a great night, its fun to see who shows up and what they bring to the evening!

Stepping closer to the farm life

We are preparing to put our home on the market. We have lived here for 10 years. Our son was 9 when we moved here, the mark on the closet doorway says he was just under 4 feet tall. Now at 19, he is 6'2". Tears of joy, but time passed to quickly. Yes, it has been a home not just a house. We have shared joys and sorrows, we have had celebrations and much laughter in this home. We have watched our family grow in many ways. It has served its purpose and it is time for everyone to move on.

Its time for us to venture out and claim our dreams of farm life. We plan to rent until we build a suitable home on our five acres located 2 hours south of our current home. The first step is selling this house. We have a great yard. Since we are both gardeners, we over planted. We have a very private and peaceful yard in the summer. We put in a pond and two years later, we enlarged it. It is a very enchanting setting. I know I'll miss it but I am looking for to over planting another pit of earth.

Soap that does NOT dry out your skin

I am going to make soap today. I have some new fragrances and I am dieing to try. I also found a wonderful lotion that I want to try and scent with Lilac. The new soaps will be Lilac, Freesia and Mint. The existing fragrances of Lemongrass, Ginger Ginger, Lula and Posh will still be available. I am also going to make more wax tartletts, the Lemongrass is very nice and lemony. I think the Lilac and Mint are also going to make nice scented tartletts. Check out http://www.treestarfarm.com/ to see more soap info.

I started making my own soaps when I figured out store bought soaps are really detergent. There are not many natural oil soaps. My soaps are made with a blend of Coconut Oil, Sweet Almond oil, Mango Butter, Olive oil and Vegetable oil. I use a technique called "cold processed" to make them from scratch just like the pioneers and my great grandparents did.

I also figured out the store bought soaps were drying out our skin. My daughter Kat, has suffered with eczema since she was a child. She is very sensitive to soap drying her skin and causing irritation and itching. She is my main soap tester. She is now an adult and swears by the soap made by Mom. I have gotten the entire family hooked on my soaps. I started selling them at craft shows last winter and it was amazing to see how "aroma" sells.

One other interesting fact, we have been talking amongst us and found we don't have as much soap film build up in our showers since we have been using the home made soaps.

Lavender and Rosemary

Lavender and Rosemary, sounds like great names for new pets! Truth is, I purchased seeds today to start indoors. For the next 3 months these will be "pet plants". I always tell people I don't like to over winter plants in the house because I don't like caring for "pet plants"! This is different, I can watch the entire process from seeds germinating to tiny plants begging to go out doors and sink their feet into that rich soil at the Farm. I have a wonderful location in a sunny window above my kitchen sink. I could start talking to them when I do dishes, when no one is looking of course!
I have wanted to plant an entire field of Lavender. There are many tasks to achieve before I get to that point. I still need to find a good spot for the vegetable garden, fence off the grapes so the deer quit dinning on them, weed the asparagus patch, create a path to the Loo.....its the "Land of endless projects"!

Small Farm Renovation Continues

The five acres that we have was once part of a larger farm. I was told it was divided some 25 years ago. The wooded 5 acres with the house and barns was sold and the farmer kept the tillable land. Some of the out buildings and the house burned down. The main two story barn remains. This is the building we are trying to renovate. It has a small cabin that was build in the last five years attached to the barn. We have enclosed the cabin and are trying to make it more winter resistant. Doug found large beautiful shutters in the barn. He has cleaned and painted them and he is going to attach them to the cabin as bermuda shutters. We have built an adorable out house. It is large and very bright. I was attended a lecture by a Dutchess who was rebuilding an estate garden, open to the public. She said one of the most important features should be "the nicest Loo anyone has seen". I have incorporated that thought into the outhouse.

At the present time, the first item we are going to purchase this Spring will be a chipper shredder. We have an abundance of limbs and branches to turn into usable mulch. I spend way to much time weeded the flower beds and mulch will help cut down on that.

New Puppy

Yesterday my daughters family increased by one. The new addition is an 8 week old black lab named "Zoe". She is so adorable. There is nothing like a new puppy. We had labs when Sayrah was groing up so she knows what she is getting into. If you have ever had a puppy, you know what I mean when I say "puppy breath".
As a Mother and Grandmother, it is amazing to watch your children grow and experience joys and a few set backs. I'm here if she needs me, but my job is to watch from a distance. I still enjoy giving words of wisdom when asked. I did a fine job raising her and she is doing a fine job too. Carry on!

Bridal Shower Planning

I am planning a bridal shower for my daughter in June 2010. A friend with a greenhouse is going start Rosemary and Lavender from seed. I want make tiny topiaries for each place setting. I have dreamed of this day, of hosting a bridal shower for my daughter. There will be lots of vintage cloth and china. I'm going to carefully plan the gardens and containers this year. More heirloom plants would be nice. The fairy garden should have a "Fairy Wedding Theme" too.

Some women dream of the day they get married, and dream of the perfect wedding. I have three daughters and I have always dreamed of their weddings. With our oldest daughters wedding, she wanted it simple and "NO" shower. I was devastated! This time I will have the shower of "my" dreams. Go MOM!!!

Garden Club

Once again I have been asked to speak at the Sugar Grove Park District Garden Club. This is the third time I have been invited to kick of spring and share gardening motivation. Last year I showed the club members how to make a trellis using twigs from there own gardens. I also shared how to avoid rabbit damage to perennials by using Bunny Barricades.

I think this year I may talk about using wine bottle as garden art. My herb garden is edged with wine bottles. It ads a bit of flair and the bottoms fill with water for the butterflys. I have been wanting to create a pole or tree trunk (dead trunk of course) of spikes to display wine bottles. I think it will also have corks and a string or two of lights for evening pizazz.

Plant flowers in numbers to create impact

Its nice to have a variety of plants in our flower gardens, but when we have one of everything the garden can appear a bit busy or kaotic. Planting groups of the same plant can acheive visual unity. This is pleasing to the eye and really gives your garden impact from a distance. You can choose to plant a group of the same plant (3 or 5) or another option is to plant groups of 3 different plants together and then repeat this combination in other locations.

For example a spring combination of tulips and daffodils planted in numberous locations. These are nice in groups of 5 and 7. Did you know, you can choose Tulip varieties that bloom early, mid or late spring?

For summer you could plant Salvia (annual or perennial) repeated in groups of 3 or 5. Mixing plants in the same group are very lovely. I like a combination of 3 Salvia n. 'Marcus', 3 or 4 Echinacea 'Sunset' and 3 Origanum 'Herrenhausen'. This combination will have slightly different bloom times, with the Salvia blooming first. Trim back the Salvia after it blooms and you will get a second bloom in the same season.

This is a simple and fun way to add the impression of disign qualities to your flower garden.

The days are getting longer. I long for the smell of fresh cut grass. Everything is frozen. I am starting some new classes this week at the community college. I am so excited. It is a new path that I have been wanting to take. I am at a point in my life that I have a whole stack of experience. Its time to put them all to use. I am full of anticipation on how it will come together. I am going to put effort into organizing my schedule.

This week I have to make more soap. I need to increase my inventory. I need to make more candles and finish a final landscape design of Sarah's back yard. I must do some networking for Bunny Barricade. I definately have to exercise. I think that will be the key to making it all work.