New Chicks On Our Block

We've taken the plunge into backyard egging. No eggs yet (to answer the age old question, it was indeed the chickens that came first).

Put the babies in a Rubbermaid with a heat lamp...reminds me of when I first brought my own babies home. In fact, that might actually be their first Rubbermaid crib. (come on, I'm joking)

4 little chickens. Names: Angel, Esmeralda, Sweetie-Pie, and Zebra

For anyone that cares, thats a golden sex-linked, a black sex-linked, a Rhode Island Red, and a Barred Rock

Oh, it never ceases to be thrilling

Summertime

We couldn't wait any longer, so we busted into one of our many watermelons.

We grabbed the biggest one, but apparently it wasn't quite ripe yet. Or maybe I'm growing those white-fleshed watermelons. not sure, either way

Tasted good though!

Even Brian's dog agreed

Cheap labor

And the rewards of all that affordable work...We still don't like radishes, but they are so easy to grow. They are our ego-building crop, and nothing more. We don't ever eat them. The girls use them to when they make "soup" out of mud and sticks in a bucket under the swingset.

Early May Garden Update

One of my 2 favorite garden pests.

I had so many tomato sproutlets this year that I felt compelled to make another garden bed out of some old logs. I started way too many seeds because I didn't really have faith in myself that they would grow...well they did! And I didn't have the heart to throw them out. So I HAD to build a new bed.
The red plastic on them supposedly increases their output by 20%. Because obviously I'm going to need all the extra tomatoes I can get.
And look- there's my other favorite garden pest!

Buds on the purple pepper!

The first little baby tomato of the year. Its a mystery as to what it is... My Gardening Gal Pal Anne gave me this as a sproutlet and then we both forgot exactly what this was. Best guess is some sort of roma. Whatever it is, I'm so happy to have it!

Life on Ye Olde Griffin Farm

I'm getting really anxious to plant summer stuff and have been working very hard at getting the garden ready.
So out with the old, in with the new! Its time to do a final harvest of all our cold weather veggies.
Here's a tasty salad from our winter garden x3...that's how many times I tried to get a decent picture of the girls.

Today it was time to rip out all of the carrots and onions. Many of them probably could have used some more grow-time. But like I said, I'm anxious for watermelons and tomatoes (I'm anticipating actually growing some this year)

Girls getting down to work

Found one!

Baby carrots

Here's all my onions and carrots. Well, not ALL. I pulled up carrots all winter long whenever I was making a recipe requiring some. This is all that was left in the ground as of today. The onions are a little on the pathetic side (I planted them back in October!) I'm just happy they grew though. I bought the little starter bulbs a coupl years ago and they'd been shovd in some forgotten corner of the garage the whole time. The fact they grew at all is amazing.

If I had a food blog, I'd post pictures like this:

Lessons learned this year: Don't grow radishes, no one will eat them. Same with the greens, no one at this house likes those either and I can't ever disguise them well enough.

Do grow carrots, peas, LOTS of brussel sprouts (MYAH loves them!) and get some better onions. If I do lettuce again, give them shade next time so they don't get as bitter.

Stay tuned for summer progress pictures!

Snack Attack

Convenient snacking

Does Myah like to snack on peas too? Yes, but she likes swinging even more!

She's learned how to pump her legs and power her own swing. This is all her, no pushing help from anyone:

Garden Update

Growing things

Broccoli

Turnip (anyone know how to eat these things anyways?)

Brussel Sprouts

Lettuce, onions

Babies

Wild Kingdom

Apparently my last post about my house turning into the zoo was misunderstood by some folks.
I guess maybe some read it as a help wanted advertisment?
Because this afternoon THIS guy showed up in my screen room to apply for a position:




That's it, I'm so through with Florida. I want to go back to the good old days when all I'd find waiting for me out my back door was a moose or perhaps a bear.

Shay Gardens: Redux

Further proof that my garden wasn't a total failure

A couple pixie-princess-Nutcracker Ballet-fairy-smileyland creatures were able to create an almost complete bouquet from my growings.

And, my kids willingly ate fruit as a snack

This is actually one of my nice melons that I was able to grow to a size compatable with human (not just insect) consumption
Why is it so hard to get a good picture of them together? I'll never understand

I not only play a super hero on the internet, I happen to be one in real life too

Check out my muscles. I single-handely moved over 170 old cinder blocks. I borrowed a truck, drove to Gulf Breeze, loaded up the blocks into the truck (admittedly, I did have a little help there), drove back, unloaded, stacked, and then repeated until they were all done. And I brought the little girls with me too. I love them, but they are not helpful when it comes to moving heavy stuff.
The ultimate goal is to create a bunch of raised garden beds and fill them with real good dirt and hopefully be successful at growing something in the future.


The view from the top of the stack:


Like the remains of an ancient civilization...
The Stack (all 170+ blocks are NOT in the stack. Dozens are scattered around the yard. the remain where i threw them)
Myah thinks we are going to build a castle. That'll be my back up plan for if my garden beds are a failure too.

Potentially sort of what the garden beds will look like. this is a rough draft. See how that shovel is sticking up in the dirt (har har, I mean worthless sand)....that shovel represents the fact that I should rent a tiller but it's not in my Dave Ramsey-approved budget. Fortunately, I have budgetted for a chiropractor appointment very very soon.

Another rough draft. you see those holes in the cinder blocks? Those will someday hold nice cascading flowers or tasty herbs...

Sunflowers and Sunbabies

This little guy appreciates my ability to grow flowers. He was rolling around and frolicking like I've never seen a bee frolick before.


We had to prop up our huge sunflower. Love it!

Awww, baby wants to come outside and see it too


Look at Myah pose- what a spectacle


By Daddy-request...more Myah pictures!