Becoming A Gardener

(WARNING - this post contains A LOT of pictures!!)

So last Spring (2010) hubby and I decided that we wanted to start a vegetable garden. We both thought it would be so nice to just be able to go out in the backyard and get our own vegetables anytime we needed them, rather than having to figure out how much to buy at the grocery store. Hubby had the great idea of using the space behind our garage, which was pretty much wasted space anyway, and it would be less grass to have to cut. We decided to go with raised beds instead of planting straight in the ground, which would help with not having to pull weeds as much, which I don't really like to do at all.

Hubby removing some of the fence to make way for the beds

Starting on the beds. The design actually changed after this pic was taken.

After a few weekends, the beds were built, and then hubby had to level the ground out so the beds would sit well on the ground. When this was done we were all set to fill them in with dirt, but sweet pea had other plans. She decided to make her appearance into this world 9 days early, so with a newborn in the house, the garden got put on the back burner pretty much for the rest of the summer.

This spring we picked right back up where we left off. Once the beds were filled with dirt we purchased at a local nursery, we then had to decide what to plant. We decided on tomatoes, green beans, peppers, corn, okra, and of course I had to plant some cut flowers (since I vowed to keep fresh flowers in the house all summer long), so I decided on zinnias. So the time had finally come to plant, and off we went. I had helped my mom plant seeds in her garden when I was little, so I pretty much knew what I was doing.

When the planting was complete I was very excited to see what was going to happen. Hubby and I kept saying to each other that this was our "trial and error" year since this was our first time having a garden. Little did we know that we were going to be such good gardeners (not sure if any of you out there have ever planted okra, but no one told us it was going to be almost six feet tall, but I will save that for a later post). It literally took no time at all for our crop to start coming in and producing. The first thing we got to pick were green beans, which are my favorite, and one thing I look forward to in the summertime. I then got to cut some of my zinnias and bring them in the house. They are so pretty! Here are some pictures of one of our first picks.

Beans and Jalapeno Peppers

We quickly decided that it was going to be expensive and time consuming to keep the garden watered, so hubby built us a homemade rain barrel and watering system, which ironically hasn't gotten much use since we have had literally NO rain all summer long! He did a really good job and it only took him like 30 minutes.

All in all we have had fun watching the garden grow and enjoying the fruits of our labor. It has been challenging at times though caring for a garden and a one year old, but someone I have managed to make it work. I definitely have been making mental notes for next year, and there are a bunch of things that we will be doing differently.

For now I will leave you with some more pictures of our lovely garden. Enjoy!

Hubby watering the garden since we have had no rain for the rain barrel.

Beginnings of beans

This picture was only taken like 2 1/2 weeks after we planted everything!!

Haven't gotten any tomatoes yet, the squirrels keep eating them.

Linking up to:

Life Made Lovely

I HAVE GONE CRAFTING CRAZY!!

Well not sure what the weather is like in your neck of the woods, but here in Kentucky the temp has been over 100 degrees with the heat index. Yuck! (I think I may have sweated a little just thinking about going outside!!) I decided that since it has been too hot to do any kind of yard work (hubby is supposed to cut the grass today, it's like a jungle, but I worry about him while he's out there) I would do a little crafting inside where it's nice and cool. Like I stated in an earlier post, I have been making some changes to things around the house to give it a little face lift. I usually tend to do this in the summer, because after looking at the same things all winter long, you tend to want to change it up a bit.

Here are a few of the projects that I completed over the past several days:

This is a project that I did for sweat peas room, and she actually got to help as well. I had these frames hanging in her room already but was tired of the pictures in them, so I thought and thought of what to do, and then it finally came to me. I had always wanted prints of her hands and feet when she was a newborn but never got around to it, so since she is now 1 I decided that now is as good a time as any. I had some leftover drop cloth material from my drop cloth curtain project, so I decided to us that as the background. I just attached it to the backing of the frame with tape and then went to work on the design. I used craft paint to paint sweet peas feet and hands and then just stamped them on the cloth. (Not sure how good of an idea this project was with a 1 year old because she freaked out when I was painting her feet and ended up getting paint all over me and her daddy before we could get her feet on the cloth!)

Here is the finished product on the wall. Love the way they turned out!

My next project I saw over at Dear Lillie, and loved it, so I made a couple myself. You can check her tutorial out here. I made one for the year we were established as a married couple, and one for when we became a family of 3. I think they are pretty sweet.

These zinnias are from my garden, aren't they pretty!!

The final project I completed was one for my dining room table. I was sick of staring at the same old vase with flowers, so I decided to come up with a whole new look. I knew I wanted some kind of tray, with a bunch of little trinkets, but needed to find just the right ones. So off to the trusty ol' Hobby Lobby I went. I found this beautiful metal tray in the clearance section for only $10! The color didn't quite go with the rest of my decor, so I decided to spray paint it white. (My hubby has been really bothered lately by all the painting I have been doing, he keeps saying "why do you keep painting everything white??" I just smile and say "oh honey, it will look so much better") A couple of coats later, the tray was finished and the final look was just what I had been looking for.

The tray when I purchased it.

Don't you just love the beautiful detailing!

After a couple of coats if paint.

Here it is all dressed up on the table. I would eventually love to get a glass cloche to put over the little herb plant, but for now this will do.

Well hubby is finishing up the grass, so I better get dinner started. I have a few more projects in the works, so I will post those at a later date.

Until next time, BYE!

Linking up to Kim for Wow us Wednesdays over at Savvy Southern Style

Drop Cloth Curtains

After much inspiration from the Drop Cloth Party that Kristin at My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia hosted a few weeks ago, I decided to embark on my own drop cloth journey. When we moved into our house there were no doors on any of the closets, just thin little curtains that someone had obviously made like 100 years ago (not really but they just were old and nasty). They quickly got ripped down and were never replaced by anything. As my birthday present last year, my mother in law said that if I found some fabric she would make me some cute curtains for the closets in my bedroom. I never quite found the right fabric (or the right length for that matter), so I kinda gave up hope, until I saw Kristin's post.

I fell in love with her outdoor living room at first glance! She made curtains for her patio to make it feel like a separate area in the backyard. It is so lovely, and I wish that one day I will be able to have a room just as beautiful. But for now, I will just daydream about spending time drinking coffee on her patio.

Anyways back to reality, I decided that the drop cloths would be the perfect solution to the curtains that I have been looking for. So I piled sweet pea into the car and headed to the local Home Depot. I purchased two 9x12 painters drop cloths, had my mother in law do a little hem job on the bottom, and "viola" I had new curtains! I had originally planned to use these really pretty tie backs that I purchased from Joann fabrics for $6.99 on clearance, but since our closest are not the same on both sides they ended up not working. So I just decided to make some tie backs myself from the scraps that were left over from hemming the bottom.

I am really pleased with how they turned out, and I think they give a whole different feel to the room. Now if we ever have company over and the closet gets a little messy, then I can just shut the curtain and its like there was no mess at all. (in reality anyone that knows me, knows that I worked in retail for many years, and my closet is too organized to get messy!)

This is a picture of our closets when we first moved in. Don't mind the decorating I have come a long way since then!

This is what the closet looks like now with the curtain shut.

Here it is open, which is the way I prefer it.

I just LOVE the way they turned out!

Hopefully this will inspire you to create your own project with a drop cloth. Drop me a line to let me know what you came up with. I can't wait to figure out what I am going to use the rest of my scraps for.

Until next time, BYE!

Linking to the lovely Kim at Savvy Southern Style

A Little "Bird" Obsessed!!

So ever since I chose the Penelope bedding from Pottery Barn Kids for sweet peas room, I have become a tiny bit obsessed with birds. They have somehow managed to "land" all over my house. I am not a fan of real birds, but for some reason little nick-nacky ones just make me happy! Every time I stumble upon a new one I just have to have it, no matter if I NEED it or not. Here is a little sneek peek into my collection:

Here is a picture of sweet peas bed. Don't ya just LOVE it!

Close up of her quilt

This is one of my new finds, and it has a brother that is blue that you will see later in the post. Got that cute little birdhouse at Joann fabrics for only .99 and painted it pink to match her room.

Got this lovely one at Michael's on sale for only $2.49!

This is some art that I painted for sweet peas wall over her dresser, when I was still pregnant. I was an arts and crafts machine before she arrived!

A Hobby Lobby find that was originally brown, but I painted it pink.

My sweet cousin painted this for sweet pea right before she was born. It matches the sheets on her crib.

My lovely friend Hannah purchased this cute bag for me, and I just LOVE it. I carry it everyday now! On the back it says "Made with Love". :)

One of my best friends is the manager at Arhaus here in town, so I think I have collected almost every bird figurine that they have in their store. Can't say enough about Arhaus's accessories, they are so cute, and the best part is they are actually affordable! Oh and by the way, that is a picture of sweet pea when she was only 2 weeks old, laying in my hubby's hands, isn't it the sweetest thing you have ever seen.

Yes ladies and gents (if there are any out there) this is a Dollar Store find, and it has a brother and sister to go with it. Gotta love the Dollar Store!

Another Arhaus birdy, and I'm pretty sure was the first in my collection.

Got this cutie at a local consignment shop.

Here is the twin to the green bird that sits in sweet peas room. They came from the JC Penney outlet and were on sale for .99. They also came in yellow, which my mom purchased, but I may just have to go back and get one for myself.

Another local consignment shop find.

Here is the last, but not final bird in my collection. It came from Hobby Lobby and resides in my kitchen. I have been thinking about painted it white. What do you think??

Hope you enjoyed your peek into my little collection. What are some of the things that you out there collect? Drop me a comment and let me know.

Until next time, BYE!

Linking to Kim at Savvy Southern Style

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

Happy 4th to everyone, and a big Thank You to all the men and women who have fought for our freedom and continue to fight!

Sweet pea says "GOD Bless America"!!!