Drying in the Wind

pretty daikon flowers

 The other day I came home to a sweet surprise. Jewelry? Flowers? Chocolate? nope. my truly romantic husband bought me a clothesline. I've been pestering him for some time about getting one of the 'square' ones. We've had lines strung from the swingset the the apple tree in seasons past, but with more of our yard being consumed by potato plants, chicken tractors, and raspberry bushes it just wasn't working anymore.

 this may not have been the best time to use it, but with our wickety-wack weather lately it's been nearly impossible to get 3 sunny/dry hours in a row...

So, he stumbled across one of these umbrella style dryers at the hardware store and brought it home. Can I tell you, I had no idea how perfect it would be for our tight spot! First, it's square-ish, so it doesn't sprawl across the lawn. Second, it collapses in an umbrella type manner that makes it even smaller. Third, and this I had NO idea was a possibility, it comes out of it's little sleeve in the ground to be stored away neatly when not in use...amazing. Oh wait, I forgot one other bonus--it spins! Meaning VERY easy clothesline accessibility. Love it.

Just thought some of you eco-friendly folks would want a little review of this modern marvel--meets nature friendly technology! Now I need to make one of these...

Oh, and Drew made a Daikon Radish Recipe, and I grabbed some pics to share with you.

Just a note to let you know that I have been honored by an interview over at Still Parenting with Arianne!

Hope you'll stop by there and see...thanks again Arianne--it was enlightening thinking on your great questions!

Garden Growing and Making Unleavened Bread

everything is getting greener... 

daikon, new tomato seedlings, repotted plants, lettuces...

happenings in our garden? well, we've planted some of our awesome--and I can say that knowing how we've struggled to figure it out--tomato seedlings in actual beds and repotted a bunch more. Thinking about selling the extras, if we find people interested in heirloom, organically grown goodness...

LEARNED:  it took us a few days to identify one of the plants we sowed a month ago. Turns out it's Daikon Radish. Drew looked for more info about it, and while there are loads of recipes, it's also a great plant for cover cropping. Its roots delve down, even through really tough soils like clay breaking it up, then you can let them rot & your beds are ready for the next growing season. (this process can be stinky, apparently, keep that in mind!)

 
I stole the below pictured lettuce from the garden and this guy didn't seem to thrilled about it...

Drew and the girls whipped up some 'tortillas' which we think are probably more authentic to what the Israelites would have eaten during this season...

It was SO yum. 

and the bread combined with the lettuce combined with some hummus and some homemade falafel topped with a smidge of ketchup--well, it was a very nice dinner.

How are things growing in your garden? Please share! Link below.

Pesach Semeach

I won't go into a lot of detail about our Passover meal this year, it wasn't traditional at all, but it was magnificent! Friends and new experiences and LOTS of learning. I think we all are feeling like we walked away a little more in tune with the original Passover experience, a little more in touch with what it all represents...


Matzo Brei
I think I made this a long time ago, but I don't remember liking it. This time it was good. Pretty much just soggy broken matzo pieces dipped in a egg/milk/cinamon/vanilla mixture and cooked like a pancake. So, Passover french toast...it was delicious.

Our first real Nature Table
I designated this table a while back, but it was filled with seedlings and a grow light until last week. This morning the girls and I added everything you see here. We blew out some eggs, added our hens that represent our actual hens outside (I purchased those a few years ago from here), added select books commemorating the season, crafted birds and baby Moses'.

A simple baby Moses in a walnut shell floating down the silky Nile...before its waters were turned to blood--of course.

the Renewal of Every Spring & our winner!

Thanks to everyone who participated in the little garden giveaway! Sonja said...
I just found your blog this morning and love it. I look forward to reading more in the future.

Thanks Sonja! I hope you do continue to visit! & make sure I get your address so we can ship off your little garden!

In other news, we've been spending our time this week getting ready for Passover. It's a big holiday for us, and the build up is half the fun! Over the past month we've been careful about the things we bring into the house from the grocery store because in a few days we're purging all the leavened items from our home to keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread..

While planning is important to avoid throwing out loads of leavened items, the actual act of cleaning our house in a way that removes every last crumb, or shred of 'chametz' is such a physical way of representing a spiritual state. We clean it up, throw it out ,and wipe our hands of it; it represents a renewal of spirit and a cleansing like no other. It's such a story of salvation. Leaven represents sin, and the idea that leaven is permissible throughout the year with this one chance at true purging just reiterates the expectations of the Creator. To know us so well--and how like leaven our sinful nature permeates our lives; Passover gives us this opportunity to purge and really represents the grace we all depend on, the opportunity we are offered to just throw that away and start fresh. Sure, the leaven will return, but in the upcoming week we will focus on life without leaven--life free of the crumbs in the corner or hidden stashes in the back of the freezer, which we always find at some point during the week we live without it, more great imagery...


Anyway, it's a special time of year for most right now, even if it's just spring cleaning. This change of season resonates renewal and I welcome that! Are you feeling a renewal coming?

A Virtual Greenhouse Tour

Don't forget the How Does Your Garden Grow giveaway--ends Tuesday! Nasturtiums, Sunflowers and other organic wildflowers to attract the bees to your garden...

But for today, a first! We spontaneously decided to film a little tour of the greenhouse, so take a second to watch, if you're interested. Drew is quite the host ;)

We've also got some real activity in the garden beds. The Sugar Snap Peas are starting to climb.

The lettuces, carrots, radishes, broccoli, etc. are all starting to really turn into recognizeable plants! Can't wait to harvest a few things. We did pluck the first asparagus shoot the other night when we were enjoying time outside. We all enjoyed a piece of it, it's SO much different when you eat it straight from the garden, now if we only had enough to add it to a meal!

Don't forget to link up if you have a garden post--we'd love to see it!

Nomes Gnomes. Handmade Bead People

 We bought some polymer clay and I had a plan to make beads. I've never done it before and it was probably wrong of me to assume it'd be as easy as I'd thought. Well, it wasn't hard, but as with most crafts, it led us in its own direction...

First we rolled out our four colors in relatively equal strands, smooshed them and rolled the big roll out to be round.

We started out making cut/sliced beads, but we got a little bored and so we started rolling the slices to make rounder beads, snakey ones, twirly, twisty, etc.

Then, Naomi rolled one and she determined it to be a gnome. Well, that started us on a gnome making frenzy...and, how could we not. Gnomes are cute enough, but when they're tiny gnomes?!

They've been baked and now we've got several .5inch Gnome men and women. 

We used them to make necklaces this morning.

One for Leviah

One for Naomi

and one for Mama.

A simple project that can be worn! (the additional beads were from a Haba bracelet from a thrift store that's been stretched out and laying around for some time...waste not, want not! toadstools and clovers fit the gnome theme perfectly)

don't forget to scroll down just a bit and comment for a chance to win some sweet garden goodness before you go! 

Making Art Because

So, I took the last session of an 8 week pottery course I took at the local Cultural arts center. I highly recommend it, making pots that is. I've always known about my love of clay manipulation, but it's been over 8 years since I last did it and what a reminder I had...turns out (no pun intended) I love it. Also, note that it's NOTHING like riding a bike, particularly throwing, it is a start-back-at-the-beginning type of thing.

But, there are just so many translate-able parts of pottery--things that represent themselves in life; balance, patience, embracing the unknown, focus, eliminating distraction, participating in the process, following the clay and letting go of the preconceived notions...

I'll share some pics of more completed items, maybe next week. I'll have to go back to the studio to tie up some loose ends.

I've also been playing a lot with this Instagram tool, which is pretty sweet. It makes you feel like you have 12 cameras in one. If you have an iPod or iPhone, it's free and you can follow friends--of course. It's a sweet surprise to see an unexpected picture of a friend on my phone, just for fun. Here's another with instagram and one that just has beautiful filtered light--the room was amazing.

How Does Your Garden Grow Giveaway

Inspired by Spring and our excitement about the bustling that is happening in our own garden, I wanted to do a little giveaway. So, I put together an egg carton filled with organically planted seeds just waiting for you.

 The seeds included are wildflowers and edibles; they only need your loving watering to get started! Just place the carton in a window sill with plenty of sun and let this recycled 'greenhouse' do its work! Once they sprout, replant them in the place of your choosing!

TO ENTER:  feel free to do all 3, but comment once for each!

1. Comment below 
2. Post a link to your latest gardening post in the linkie section (we plan to have this linkie and an update on our own garden every Monday. We hope you'll continue to stop in and share your links as well! It's great using each other for a 'community' garden of sorts) 
3. Follow or add our blog to your blog roll

of course, when you linkie, you can add this darling button to your post for fun.

We'll choose the winner Tuesday, April 12th.