Wild Plums

Every summer growing up my family picked wild plums and then spent the next week making plum jelly and jam. Our plum patch is way down on the river, with the snakes and wild hogs and chiggers. The temperature would be over 100 degrees and we would think we were dieing. We would spend hours out there. And this is one of my favorite memories. Last year we did not get any plums. The drought was too bad. We need rain in Texas. I decided years ago that when I owned my house I would move wild plums to my backyard. Last weekend while I was home, my Daddy took me out to the wild plums. It looks like we only lost a few bushes. We dug up four of the little plants (thorns and all) so I could move them to my house. I wanted to plant them on Monday but it rained just enought to tease us. Then on Tuesday the wind was blowing 40 - 50 mph and I actually got hit by a rock flying through the air. So this morning Alex and I decided to beat the wind and get them planted.

My little bushes in their bags of sand.

They started to put on leaves while sitting in my dinning room.

Alex helping me spread out their native sand.

Alex watering the bushes. This is the first real drink they have had in a really long time.

Look at their beautiful color! I think they will look great next winter when everything is brown once again.

All Done.

I hope the move does not kill them. They are used to being in the wild, without all the luxury that comes with my backyard - like water. I mixed in a little peat moss and a small amount of older potting soil I had. Our dirt is really bad, but I did not want to over do it. I can not wait to pick my own 'wild' plums.

Starting Over

I was going to write about my seedlings and show you wonderful pictures of my Cabbage, Broccoli, Onions, and the list goes on. Now I get to show you pictures of them all dead.

My sad little onions. Most of them look like they will make it after they got a drink.

My lettuce perked up again also. But all the empty cells were my cabbage and broccoli.

Yes...They all died while I went home to see my parents. Apparently they did not get watered, but I will not name names....Ok. I have to. My dear husband forgot to water my seedlings. He thought the note said to water my house plants. So my orchids and ficus trees got watered but my plants under the grow lights went without. Enough complaining. I replanted what I lost.  I will just have to freeze more than I thought since everything will get ready at the same time.

On a happier note my flower bulbs really seem to like the heated garage. Everything is growing great and hopefully they will continue to thrive inside until the middle to end of March.

My Day Lily pan and Dahlia pan. The Dahlias are starting but they did not show up in this picture.

My Lilies are starting to green up and put up their shoots.

And yesterday I was able to plant the strawberries outside. I just hope I put them in the right spot. It is so hard to tell where you want things when the flower bed is empty. 

Bath Tub Paints

OK. I have to admit it...I am a Pinterest Junky. I love looking at the pins. A little while ago I found a pin for bath tub paints from Having Fun At Home.  I love doing crafts with my boys but usually one is too old or the other is too young - the six year age gap really gets us in the craft department. I knew my boys would love to do this together. I mixed the shaving cream with the food coloring before I told the boys to put on their swim suits. I did not need extra hands with food coloring. They had so much fun painting the bath tub and each other. Plus Daddy even stayed to paint!

Just starting...Alex is a little concerned.

Painting together.

Alex painting himself.

I guess Dallas thought Alex had a good idea, so he painted himself to match.

And one more picture. The Superman symbol was Daddy's contribution.

I was really surprised that the clean up went so easy. The shaving cream washed off everything and no one turned out blue or red. I don't think we will do this every bath time, but I am sure we will have to try it again as Alex gets older.

New Flowers

Yesterday, as I was walking around the local Wal-Mart (There isn't any where else to shop) I noticed the employees putting out our first spring bulbs! Normally I would not buy anything this early but I am just so ready for spring. I bought  Calico Jack Day Lilies, Shaker's Prayer Siberian Iris, a mix of Asiatic Lilies, Bill McKnight Dahlias, and a bunch of June Bearing Strawberries called Jewel. Once I got them home I realized that I still have 3 - 4 weeks before they can go into the ground - And they were already growing in their little bags. So first thing this morning I ran to our local Dollar Store and picked up a few supplies. Foil pans seem to be the fastest and cheapest solution to my problem. Now all of my new flower are potted. I need to add a little more soil to the pans this afternoon. I just hope I can convince my dear hubby to buy me another light for the garage....Maybe I should shoot for two more lights!

My new flowers and strawberries.

 Siberian Iris

Yes, I know my clippers are on the Day Lily. The roots would not let it stay in the dirt so I placed them on top of it to hold it in the right place. The bottom pan is Dahlias.

More Dahlias

Lily Mix

The strawberries are going directly into the ground this afternoon if I can figure out where they need to be planted in my front flower bed. I plan on using them as a filler to go around my flowers. They will be a living mulch to help keep the ground cool once our hot July weather gets here.

Garden Plan

I have spent so many hours trying to figure out what I want in my backyard. We know we need a small patio, a kitchen/grill area, and lots of raised beds. Our soil is terrible, so the only way I can see us having a good garden is to do raised beds. Plus it will keep the tortoise out of my plants. I learned two years ago that Tank can eat an entire garden in one day. I love to use the online garden planner (and they have Garden Plan Pro for my IPad) and I just figured out how to publish it to the Internet. So here is my new Garden Plan. Hopefully we will be able to build the raised beds this weekend so I can post pictures next week.

Planting Schedule

The best part of growing your own plants from seed is that I started gardening in January. Well, sort of. I have my grow lights set up in the garage and my little plants are actually growing. Every year I start some of my plants but this year every plant going into my garden will be started from seed. It is so exciting! Then there is the complete panic. What if I can not figure out the right planting schedule? What if they don't start? What if they die after I transplant them? What if Alex thinks it is fun to play in the dirt? So many things could go wrong.

I started working on my seed starting schedule in December and it has changed so many times. I tweak the dates every time I look at a seed package or read another book. It is driving me nuts. So, I think I have finally finished my schedule. I am sure it will change a little bit, but this is the basic idea. How do you plan your garden?

Garage Storage

My husband thinks I am trying to work him to death. Here is our second project in our new house. Garage Storage was a must and normal shelves would take up to much floor space. So my wonderful husband did some research and built me these storage units. They hang from the ceiling and are mounted above the garage door. Each shelf can hold 165 lbs. The only problem is that they are already full of camping gear and fishing/hunting supplies!

New Dog Yard

One of our first projects in the new house was a dog yard. We have JD, our 6 year old Golden Retriever and Roxie, a 7 month old Great Dane. They both love to dig up the back yard and sleep in flower beds. Thankfully David was able to build our new dog yard in just one weekend.

David digging the post holes.

My Beautiful Gate.

The finished fence. The dogs were not very happy - Roxie is pouting behind the fence.

I am going to stain the fence a deep red color as soon as the wind and the children let me. Now I need to finish planing the garden so we can build my raised beds before Spring is officially here!

Our House





After so many years in Military Housing we built our own home. I don't think we would have chosen New Mexico but the military decided this is were we need to be. We thought about buying an older home and fixing it up but a new home seemed like a better option. I did not want to be in the middle of a project and have David go away for six months. I don't want to do all the work by myself.

 Here is our beautiful house during construction. I think I bothered the workers almost every day. I wanted lots of pictures to document our house. I also thought that building a home was a lot faster than it turned out to be. It took them eight months to complete our little house. I am scared to know how long it will take to build out forever home!

Here is our house on the day we closed! Look at the pretty green grass. We had grass and a sprinkler system installed in the front yard before we moved in. The green stops at the fence. The backyard is just dirt. Nothing has been done. I now get to design the backyard and I can not wait. 

Hello

After living a nomadic lifestyle in the military we have finally bought our own home. Well we built a new house. The process was long, slow, and frustrating but we have finally moved in and we are unpacked- sort of. We signed papers with our builder in February 2011. We were the first house sold in a new subdivision and were told our move in date would be June. Then July. Then August. We finally moved into the house in October. It was still warm enough to move my cactus and some hardy flowers but it was too late to plant grass in the backyard. So we have had a long, muddy winter.

I am a stay at home Mom of two wonderful boys. Dallas is 8 but seems so much older. Alex is 2 and does everything Dallas never did. Dallas was sleeping through the night at 6 weeks. Alex still gets up several times a night. Dallas loved toys and trains and puzzles. Alex would rather play in the mud or dig a hole.

My Dear Hubby is in the Air Force and thankfully he is home now. We have been through two deployments and countless TDY's. He lives and breathes EOD (Bomb Squad). He truly believes in what he does. Being a military wife is full of ups and downs. I have started my day with a husband by my side and a partner helping me with the boys and gone to bed that night alone. A single parent with a ring on my finger. A wife without a husband by my side. Most of the time we have plenty of notice to make plans. Most of the time. Then there are times when I get a phone call. My husband is on the other end. He has orders. He leaves in a week or tomorrow or (The worst yet) tonight. How can a family function like this? Who would want to?

I am hoping to create a story of our life - To allow others to see us grow. Please feel free to post a comment or two.

Christy