When there’s a spring storm coming and you spend a ridiculous amount of time and effort trying to protect the $20 worth of plants you just planted yesterday from the high winds…..
… and the storm just completely passes you by… 🤣🤣🤷♀️🤦♀️
Tag: mom blogger
Into the Garden I go…
To lose my mind, and find my…. Something? Lol
For years I’ve toyed with the idea of “suburban farming” – growing my own produce in raised beds of some sort. I love spending time working with the decorative plants around my yard but just never got around to the whole vegetable/fruit part of the equation. There has always been some other pressing home improvement project that bumps the raised bed gardening down lower on the list and we just never really gave the idea much traction.
This spring I began mentioning it to the hubs again, and for some reason this time the idea took hold in his head (maybe it’s his growing love for a nice ripe tomato slice on his hamburgers? 🤣) This past weekend he built me a little prototype raised bed to see how I liked it based on some designs I sent him that I liked and a few other random ideas that popped into my head for maximizing the not-huge space we could allot to it.
We decided to level them out and step them down the fence line here to allow for easier netting should we need to keep the critters out. First things first, however, was fixing the mud pit that over half our backyard had become (it’s always something, isn’t it?)
We were supposed to be off work today to help with a fish survey in the neighborhood lakes, but due to circumstances beyond control those plans got scrapped and we decided to go ahead and get this huge project finished off. Two and a quarter pallets of St. Augustine sod, 28 thirty pound bags of beach “pebbles” (they’re ROCKS people, calling them pebbles doesn’t make them lighter), and a crapload of sweating, swearing, and me having to crawl under the trampoline several times later, we have a completed backyard project. It’s funny, I knew the muddy mess in the shaded areas under our huge bald cypress trees looked bad, but I didn’t realize exactly how bad until we got the sod and the dry creek bed done and it looked freaking amazing!!!
So I got to work hand-watering all that sod, and hubs set to work installing the bed and making sure it was completely level by digging out the ground underneath. When he got it level we placed some cut branches in the bottom to help with drainage (and also to cut down a little on the amount of soil we’d need to fill it) and filled it with good quality gardening soil. First one is in!!!
We did some calculating and planning and decided on a total of 6 boxes for this first phase, 5 of which will be stepped down this fence line, and the other will be placed beside the kids’ playhouse cottage as the “Children’s Garden”. Of course I couldn’t wait to put some plants in this so I went out and bought way more than would fit and we probably can’t get the other five boxes made for 2+ weeks 🤦♀️🤷♀️🤣.
This box got three red beefsteak tomato plants with supports and I read on Pinterest that basil makes a good companion plant to tomatoes so I planted two of those in the front of the planter. Waiting on the sidelines now are one more tomato plant, four big Bertha green bell pepper plants, and two good-sized strawberry plants. Hopefully they’ll make it until we can get the additional boxes made, though I may put the other tomato plant in a large pot with a support and see how it does there. Why not experiment, AmIRight? 🤷♀️🤣
And of course, I had to go back and get a second sweet basil, because there MUST by symmetry or my brain will start screaming, so here I am at 10pm at night putting another plant in… 🤣🤦♀️😜
I hope to catalog my “journey” here along with trials, successes, and failures to share with others who may be interested in growing some of their own produce in a smaller, more confined place. More power to the suburban farmer!! ❤️❤️❤️ Updates coming soon (and hopefully more frequently than I’ve been posting in the past 🤷♀️🤣)
Happy Gardening!!!!
Opening the door…
It’s interesting how things play out sometimes, and how one simple act can start a domino effect to something bigger.
I took the kiddos to the indoor play place today because the weather was crap and we needed something to do. Afterwards they wanted to go to Panera, which I am always happy to oblige because y’all know I love to eat. Ha! We went in, and walking in I saw the cutest kids with their mom by the door, and I told them both I loved their hair, especially the colors in the girl’s hair.
We walked up to the counter, ordered our food – the clerk asked dine-in or take out and I said dine-in. He responded that the restaurant was currently full and that there would probably be a wait to find a table. Not a problem, we don’t have anywhere else to be.
The kids and I stood around for 5-10 minutes, me eagle eyeing for an open seat or two, when I finally spotted a group of teens getting up from a table in the back, so I ushered the kids over and we grabbed our spot to eat. On my way to fill my drink, I notice the same mom and kiddos (adorable baby not pictured) glancing around the still packed to the gills dining room so I mention to her that I have a 6 person table I snagged in the back, and she’s welcome to sit with us, that we weren’t creepy (that I know of, LOL) – she accepted and we all sat down to eat.
It took about 3 minutes for the little boy to turn to Wyatt and in the sweetest voice offered to share his tablet, and within seconds the little girl sitting next to Tatum offered the same with hers. I sat there making some small talk and watching the kids happily play together like life-long friends and thought to myself, wouldn’t it be nice if us adults could make friends so easily?? At which my next thought was, well, why the heck can’t we??? So I looked up at the mom and said, “You know, I’d be happy to share my phone number with you if you’d like to set up some play dates or something” at which she laughed and said she had just been thinking of saying the same thing.
Turns out they moved here mid-last year and haven’t had the chance to make many friends yet with everything going on and her kids were super excited to meet some other kids their ages (much like mine always are!!) that they could hang out with.
So, now we have a play date with new friends scheduled tomorrow, and the moral of the story is, I don’t really know what – but sometimes just a simple thing can open up the door to some great new friendships! So good to meet you and your adorable kids, Ashley! (I won’t tag you though until you decide if you actually like me or not with my no-filter random self. LOL!!)
Opening the door…
It’s interesting how things play out sometimes, and how one simple act can start a domino effect to something bigger.
I took the kiddos to the indoor play place today because the weather was crap and we needed something to do. Afterwards they wanted to go to Panera, which I am always happy to oblige because y’all know I love to eat. Ha! We went in, and walking in I saw the cutest kids with their mom by the door, and I told them both I loved their hair, especially the colors in the girl’s hair.
We walked up to the counter, ordered our food – the clerk asked dine-in or take out and I said dine-in. He responded that the restaurant was currently full and that there would probably be a wait to find a table. Not a problem, we don’t have anywhere else to be.
The kids and I stood around for 5-10 minutes, me eagle eyeing for an open seat or two, when I finally spotted a group of teens getting up from a table in the back, so I ushered the kids over and we grabbed our spot to eat. On my way to fill my drink, I notice the same mom and kiddos (adorable baby not pictured) glancing around the still packed to the gills dining room so I mention to her that I have a 6 person table I snagged in the back, and she’s welcome to sit with us, that we weren’t creepy (that I know of, LOL) – she accepted and we all sat down to eat.
It took about 3 minutes for the little boy to turn to Wyatt and in the sweetest voice offered to share his tablet, and within seconds the little girl sitting next to Tatum offered the same with hers. I sat there making some small talk and watching the kids happily play together like life-long friends and thought to myself, wouldn’t it be nice if us adults could make friends so easily?? At which my next thought was, well, why the heck can’t we??? So I looked up at the mom and said, “You know, I’d be happy to share my phone number with you if you’d like to set up some play dates or something” at which she laughed and said she had just been thinking of saying the same thing.
Turns out they moved here mid-last year and haven’t had the chance to make many friends yet with everything going on and her kids were super excited to meet some other kids their ages (much like mine always are!!) that they could hang out with.
So, now we have a play date with new friends scheduled tomorrow, and the moral of the story is, I don’t really know what – but sometimes just a simple thing can open up the door to some great new friendships! So good to meet you and your adorable kids, Ashley! (I won’t tag you though until you decide if you actually like me or not with my no-filter random self. LOL!!)
Road Trippin’
This is the year I officially hit middle age… the big 4-0. A couple months ago I decided there was no way I was turning 40 just sitting in my living room so I planned a trip to Galveston Island with hubs, the kids, and my parents. Fast forward to today and we’re in the car, road trippin’ for the next 4-5 hours with a 6 year old and a freshly potty trained, almost 4 year old, and I’m wondering WTAF was I thinking?
We had a few blissful moments of the youngest sleeping, but of course he knocked off about 10 minutes before we stopped for lunch so that was short-lived. After lunch we endured about 30 mins of arguing, an hour of ridiculousness, a stop at Bucees, 10 more minutes of cranky fussing, and now I have this mean-mug burning a hole in my from behind.
Pray for us, we are not ok…. 🤣🤷♀️🤦♀️
Road Trippin’
This is the year I officially hit middle age… the big 4-0. A couple months ago I decided there was no way I was turning 40 just sitting in my living room so I planned a trip to Galveston Island with hubs, the kids, and my parents. Fast forward to today and we’re in the car, road trippin’ for the next 4-5 hours with a 6 year old and a freshly potty trained, almost 4 year old, and I’m wondering WTAF was I thinking?
We had a few blissful moments of the youngest sleeping, but of course he knocked off about 10 minutes before we stopped for lunch so that was short-lived. After lunch we endured about 30 mins of arguing, an hour of ridiculousness, a stop at Bucees, 10 more minutes of cranky fussing, and now I have this mean-mug burning a hole in my from behind.
Pray for us, we are not ok…. 🤣🤷♀️🤦♀️
You win some, you lose some…
Apparently I’m really lame at this whole blogging regularly thing, but I feel like the “Mom Blogger” title still fits me, because when do Moms have the time to do anything, much less actually post a blog regularly. So I am still going to call myself a blogger, even though I suck at it. LOL!
This little monkey had his first ENT visit this morning, which considering he’s almost 4 and his sister had ear tubes by the time she was 18 months old, I consider this a win! He was WIRED FOR SOUND in the waiting room, but once we hit the doctor’s exam room he had settled considerably. He was UBER interested in the buttons on the side of this chair, and kept asking the nurse how to make the chair fly. When she told him he had to “use his imagination” he retorted “Well, I don’t have one of those.” ha! I love things kids say!
I’m still plugging away at the planning and bullet journaling – my current setup includes my beloved B6 Bullet Journal that is my “daily catch-all” for my desk and memory keeping. I generally have my daily tasks and hourly setup on the left side page and do a little journaling about my day on the right hand side. Other than that I carry a Hobonichi A6 Techo in my purse, and there’s a HP Mini sitting on my personal desk for weekly and other crap. 😉
Rainy Day Succulent 
We’re Expecting!!
There’s been some interesting things going on in the garden as of late – the rain has been EPIC and never-ending, so much so that a she turtle from the pond down the street has decided our landscaping is probably the driest place for her to make her nest and lay her eggs. She dug herself a nice muddy hole and has been “populating” her nest all evening. I hope it’s not too wet/muddy for the eggs to survive. We’ll have to be really careful not to disturb the nest or let the kids bother it. It’s been getting super “National Geographic” over here!
The plants are still struggling between recovering from SNOVID (the freak snow/ice/blizzard event back in February, which wiped out my entire succulent collection and I had to start from scratch) and the ridiculous 10+ inches of rain a week we’ve been having for months. Truth be told, it’s getting old out there Mother Nature, so cut us some slack, m’kay?
In other news, I turn 40 on Thursday, FORTY. I feel so freakin’ old. I’ve been going through my mid-life crisis since about November, and apparently it’s been my “thing” to collect tattoos, which I’ve gotten three new ones in that time. (That’s a post for a different day, for sure) I guess at least I haven’t bought a convertible or run off with a dude half my age. Probably a good thing I don’t even care for millenials that much. ha ha ha! Just kidding, my hubby is the best – even if he IS a year older than me. 😉
An exercise in self-control.
I’ve been doing this Keto thing faithfully since October 15th now. What do I mean by “faithfully” – I mean low carb, no sugar, pretty strict, NO STARBUCKS. Seriously, that last one is a BIGGIE because I adore starbucks.
The low carb thing I’m doing pretty good at – you’re allowed 20g of net carbs a day, and it’s rare that I even make it that high. I’ve never been a crazy bread eater, but I’ve found low/no carb substitutes for just about everything including No Carb Bagels, Bread, “Tortilla Chips”, and even a Pizza Crust by Thin Slim Foods – I’ve tried them all and most I can’t even tell the difference!
The no sugar aspect has been a little more difficult. Halloween was rough, but I was able to resist ALL THE CANDY the kids brought home this year. I guess you could say their “parent tax” was cut in half. At the suggestion of a friend I tried Russell Stovers Sugar Free Chocolates and they’re actually VERY good so that helps curb the chocolate cravings. I especially love the Pecan Delights! Taste just like turtles! YUM!
Finally that Starbucks problem… That was super hard, but I finally managed to put something together that was Keto friendly at home that tasted so very similar that I no longer even really think about Starbucks anymore! I knew I needed to get some MCT Oil/Collagen Powder so on a recommendation I tried the Bean Envy Vanilla and I use it similar to a powdered creamer with a little heavy whipping cream and my “Pumpkin Spice Chai Tea” and I have to tell you it’s freakin delicious! Like pumpkin pie in a cup!
It’s been a little difficult to find things at restaurants to eat, but with a little creativity it’s possible to go out to eat, not be super difficult with the waiter/waitress, and still enjoy myself and my food. I feel like the hardest generally is Tex Mex, because I constantly forget to bring my own low carb tortilla chips and pretty much everything has a taco shell or tortilla involved, but it’s still possible.
Tonight was a little more difficult, an exercise in self-control, but I was so proud of myself – I ordered the taco salad, but basically asked for only the mixed greens, picadillo (theirs doesn’t have potato), shredded cheese, and sliced avocado in a regular (not taco shell) bowl.
Aaaaaaand everything came out awesome except the delicious looking fried taco shell bowl it all arrived in. Whoops. I could SMELL the delicious carbs fried into it and I wanted it so bad, but in the end I ate my salad and then turned the bowl over to my hubby and daughter to eat because my goal is more important to me than a few moments of taste bud gloriousness.
Speaking of my goal – I am down almost 11 pounds since I started about 3.5 weeks ago, my energy level is up and I don’t feel so draggy during the day while I’m trying to work! It’s easier to get myself out of bed in the morning, and I’m starting to SEE the difference in my body. I couldn’t be happier!
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Random tidbits
Still working on the Keto thing, but so far I’m really proud of myself for giving up carbs and sugar. It hasn’t been easy but I’ve stuck it out so far! I’ve been having fun experimenting with different foods and recipes. Last night I made salmon and asparagus foil packs and it turned out really well! I’ve never cooked salmon in my life so I was super pleased I didn’t screw it up!
Tonight I decided to try making a chocolate avocado pudding I saw online and it ended up being pretty good, though still a slight bit avocadoey- I read if you refrigerate it that minimizes that, so we’ll see how it tastes tomorrow. 🤣
Otherwise it’s been kind of a boring week with the exception of a couple things.
1. I got bit by a green anole the other day. I was trying to grab it and save it from the cats (which I’m sure would have been hilarious to watch because those damn heifers are fast) and when I finally grabbed it the dang thing bit me on the arm for my trouble. It’s not like it hurt or anything but it caught me by surprise because it basically grabbed a hunk of skin and shook it like a dog. 🤣🤣 Who knew?!!
Then today my daughter insisted we let the cats nap with us, which is fine if they’re sleeping and not acting like fools. I woke up to see this…
If you look closely you’ll see it’s actually two cats. Beans’s head is down by her hand, and his feet are actually propped up on her face. Look between her face and his legs and you’ll see Raisin, happily sleeping stuffed in there under the covers. Lol!!! I can’t believe it lasted long enough for me to snap a photo!
Monday we start a huge home updating project, Phase 1 – we have a TON of higher end wood paneling and trim in our home straight out of the 80s. I’ll be adding some before pics this weekend and also progress pics through the week! Although it wasn’t my choice to update all this I’m trying to imagine the pretty modern farmhouse look we’re going for and I think I’ll like it in the end. Guess we’ll see!!
I have nothing to call this.
I walked into the gynecologist’s office a little under a week ago for my yearly visit. No big deal, normal stuff, right? She asked me to step on the scale, and granted, I had my clothes on but still…. the number that popped up on that thing kind of threw me for a loop. Yikes….. I’ve really not been very good about healthy habits for sure but that was kind of a slap in the face.
I have friends who have had some success with the Keto diet, and to be honest being able to keep meat, cheese, and dairy sounded pretty fabulous to me, so I decided to check it out! Not entirely sure if I’ll be able to stick with it, but surely it’s a stepping stone to eating a bit healthier, and cutting back the sugar and carbs.
So I jumped in. Chef salad for lunch with my favorite homemade dressing. Keto friendly yogurt for a snack by :ratio foods. I was pleasantly surprised at the taste of the yogurt, I was expecting more of a bitter taste with an unpleasant aftertaste but it didn’t really have any of those things.
I had done some meal planning yesterday and a grocery pickup this morning, so I was pretty prepared for dinner! I made “Taco Stuffed Peppers” and they turned out pretty magical, if I don’t say so myself!
Paired up with some fresh avocado and it was a pretty easy, satisfying, and tasty meal! Even hubby approved!!! (Not kid approved, but my kids don’t approve much of anything edible to be honest)
I’m hoping to document some of this journey here, but don’t worry, I know people don’t like endless weight loss posts coming into their inbox, so I’ll find other things to write about too – like how I got a call from the school nurse on my 6 year old because she thought my daughter was sick but it turned out to be a sweaty crotch…… *sigh* #MomLife