Here's the Plan

Okay, I've been slacking. I'm the kind of girl that needs a plan, a routine, practically a schedule! I've been in a bit of a funk lately, getting a lot of things sorted out in my life so I have a bit of sanity to spare for blogging. I'm not sure how much sanity I have to spare, but I think I've got the plan laid out. How does that go? Failing to plan is planning to fail? Heaven forbid! Here are few points in my next set of mid range goals:

1) Silas is now three. In my books that means I finally get to pursue a bit more "formal" education. Yeah, right . . . I'm not planning on hitting the books by any means, but I would like to set up a regular routine 2-4 days a week where we spend a bit of time in 'focused play'. I LOVE the idea of Tot School set out over by 1+1+1=1. It might be a bit young for Silas, however this we'll cover a lot of basic skills and whatever he's already mastered, we can leave behind and focus more on whatever challenges are left over. This way I know exactly where we stand and where to go next. As an added bonus, I can pave the way for Oliver and get him having some fun with us.

This is a way to experiment with the whole home schooling day and see what to expect, especially as far as the rest of live goes. I know it's possible to home school, I mean obviously a lot of people do it. I just want to see what it means for us in terms of gardening, animal chores, housework and other commitments.

2) Which brings me to a second goal: The garden. So far it's not going too bad, but we haven't even finished planting yet! The weeds are going to be coming hard and fast in the next few weeks and I need to be out there every day! My little daycare friend will only be coming out full time for one more week and then for a week or two on a more part time basis. I'm hoping the start of weeds and the end of her time will coincide nicely and I'll be able to get a few things accomplished. I need to get a daily routine set up that works with my first goal as well as both boys' naps! Additionally, my sister in law has some outdoor toys her boys have outgrown that Oliver would love. I NEED to get them from her house asap before she gets rid of them on her own. I will keep these down at the garden and eventually fence in a small space where he can play and snack without interference from the dogs.

3)My dairy cow! I'm so excited to announce that I will be purchasing a dairy cow in September from a friend in the Lower Mainland. In reality, she is mine but she will not be coming 'home' until then as that is when she will be drying up and our friend assures us that is the best time for a big change like moving homes. She is a Jersey cow, due to calve a pure Jersey calf in November. She's been shown before, which means she's used to being handled, she's halter broke and she's fairly gentle. I trust this friend to provide us with an excellent cow and I cannot wait to meet her. So this summer I will be preparing for my new cow, getting her set up and accumulating the equipment needed for milking and processing the milk (buttermaking, cheesemaking etc).

4) It's so heartbreaking to say it, but I believe my husband, my kids and I will be leaving this ranch at some point this year. Things aren't 100% but we're feeling like the right place for our family at this time is at Scott's family's ranch about forty minutes from here. It was not an easy decision to make, we love living here so much, but there are important things to consider and that was just the way our cards lay. So. My fourth goal for the summer is to continue to strive to design the perfect house for our family. I say continue to strive because I've always had an interest in residential design and I'm constantly designing us the next 'perfect' house. Let me tell you, the word perfect is not a word I like to use but I feel like I can get around this by saying "perfect for our family". This just means a house that really fits us, works for us, and suits us. As it will be built on privately owned ranch that's been in Scott's family for generations, there is no nagging need to design a home that's also suitable for resale. Therefore it is not going to be a generic plan, it certainly will not be one of the garages with living space you see built so often these days, and let me tell you, it will really show off who we are and what we believe in! Now I just have to design it! This process, from beginning brain spams to (hopefully) finished product, will be recorded for posterity on my new (second) blog: Not for Resale.

5) And just cause I think five is a good number and four somehow seems unfinished, I want to throw one more goal in there. As part of setting up an updated daily/weekly/monthly plan, I will be instituting a nightly "My Computer" time. I get up between 5 and 6 every morning, thanks to the little ones, and I generally get a cup of fake cappuccino and sit down at the computer. Lately this has been hit or miss as the boys have been hungrier than usual, so it's usually full of interuptions and that tends to make me grumpy. So instead of trying to get 'real work' done at that time, I'll probably use that time to post in a few forums I frequent and read a few blogs I keep up with (see the sidebar!). Nightly computer time will happen after the kids are asleep and after the kitchen is cleaned and that's not only when I'll do my own blogging, but also when I 'll be creating my newsletters for my jointly-owned organic produce delivery service. It starts up next month and I'll be giving at least a full day to that every week, but all the free/at cost organic produce is SO WORTH IT lol!

All right. So, it's all there in a nutshell. Now I just have to do it! If only I had followers to make me toe the line. On the other hand, then I actually would have to toe the line. I'll let you know how it turns out (I say to myself . . . ?)

Springtime Gardener's Itch

Ooooh boy. I've got it bad! For whatever reason, I am just ITCHIN' to get in the garden! Why? Hard to say really. I certainly wasn't in there enough last year - the weeds were higher than my head in some spots. And we had some start up funding issues, with a lack of sprinklers and hoses. But with every year, as the fields take on that first hint of green under winter's brown, as the birds come back, and the front door can be left ajar without dire consequences, my thoughts turn to gardens. We had a week of phenomenal weather in the beginning of the month and I've been unable to temper my enthusiasm for spring planting. What to do?

I started some plants! I can get my garden going without even stepping outsdie (and a good thing, cause there is a mean wind today!) My laundry room has a great big window that faces southeast, so it gets a wonderful amount of sunshine. I happen to have a large table placed before that window - supposedly for folding and projects, but usually ends up storing junk. I cleared that sucker off, and voila! Mini-greenhouse a la Robyn! So far I've got pumpkins, butternut squash, acorn squash, spaghetti squash, zucchini, cucumber, peanuts, and watermelon started. Because I used dirt out of an outodor planter I don't intend on using this summer they're already growing weeds (not an omen I hope!) but the pumpkins are already uncurling that first pale green leaf from the dirt! Silas is quite excited to help me plant this year, he recalls helping me plant the peas and beans outside last year, so the planting in the pots seems to make sense to him.

I've also sprouted yams for the first time this year. Or maybe they're sweet potatoes. The orange ones! They have a 100-day growing season, but I thought if I give them a good start in jars, maybe I can actually get my own if I'm lucky this fall with the weather.

I started out with some organic yams leftover from the organic produce delivery service in which I am a part owner. I saved seven just for this purpose. I inserted toothpicks around the middle, and set them pointy-side down in glass jars. Filled with water and waited. And waited. They're in the sunny spot in the laundry room and it wasn't until it really began to warm up that I noticed an obvious 'leafing' on the yams. Some of them, apparently have two pointy ends, because they've grown leaves under the water! However, they seem perfectly happy to be doing so, so I left them as they were. Once they've grown to about 6-8" I'll snap a few of them off and sprout them again in glass jars of water. Once they have a healthy looking root and it's warmer outside, I'll plant them in my garden under plastic and hope for the best. I'll also save some of the yams with sprouts attached to plant, just in case that's a better bet. I've have heard of doing it both ways, so I thought it best to give them both a try.

I live in a 3 or 4 hardiness zone (where 8 is the mildest and 1 is the harshest!) so things like watermelon don't always grow either. But I'm hoping too give them a strong start, then plant them when it's warmer with some plastic over to make a bit of an in-garden greenhouse. I'll let you know if it works out!

I cannot wait for good food again!