Just Call Me Mrs Greenthumb!

There is a very good reason why I took a horticulture related program in college.  I love it.  I love plants, I love gardening, I love being outside working on even the hottest of days.  I even love hard labour (seriously I love shovelling, digging, and hauling wheelbarrows full of dirt).  The only I thing I don't love, or even like for that matter, is bugs.  But it's something I'm willing to deal with to do what I enjoy.

I have been out of the garden for many years now since getting pregnant with Tristan and had almost forgotten how much I love it.  A few weeks ago my dad asked us to clean up his backyard which Tyler had landscaped last year.  It didn't take me long before I was back into it and happily spent hours there weeding, cultivating, pruning and mulching.

The fact that I am currently 7.5 months pregnant has not stopped me from getting my hands dirty.  Ever since our family has embarked on this hops farming adventure I have been longing to jump in and help out.  But being a full-time mom has meant I couldn't do that.  I was actually jealous of Tyler and his parents being able to get out there and do some hard labour, but whenever I would go with the boys I would have to spend pretty much every second watching their every move.

Over the winter I was able to stay involved by helping plan our vegetable garden.  I was responsible for researching and picking out what plants we were going to grow, and for setting up a gardening, sowing, seeding, and transplanting plan.  I had no idea what I was doing, but figured I'd be learning in the process. 

In March we started sowing our seeds and I finally got to put my hands in the dirt a little bit.  We would sow them on nice afternoons in the backyard into cell packs, and then transfer them into the basement where Tyler had set up an area for them to grow and germinate.  It wasn't long before all our little seedlings were emerging, and we were on our way.

The past few months have been an experiment in starting seeds indoors for us.  While we had a very high success rate for germination, we were always struggling to figure out what each of our individual types of plants needed.  And as they got bigger we struggled to find room for them since we were constantly sowing new seeds.  At first we were certain we'd have such a warm, early spring that they could go outside earlier than usual, but it turned cold on us and we had to keep them inside.  We even had some that got stunted from the cold when we tried to harden them off.  We kept juggling all our plants, moving them around as they got bigger and trying to get some of the hardier ones outside into the hoop house at the farm or even in the backyard.

Finally we were able to start transplanting some into the garden, and eventually we were able to start direct seeding as well.  Now we are in business, and our garden is filling up nicely.

Filling up!

For awhile I was still more of a passive player in this gardening game, but in the last few weeks I have stepped up and gotten involved.  The weather has officially turned hot which has made it more comfortable for me to be out there with the boys.  They are now familiar enough with the property that they are willing to hang out near me while I work, and I just have to keep an eye on them but not worry about them wandering off.  Usually a few toy trucks are enough to keep them happy!

My little gardening helper with his tractor and wearing his favourite John Deere shirt

I have been spending most mornings recently working in the vegetable garden, especially since Tyler has been so busy helping his parents plant the hops.  It's go time at the farm and there are always a million things that need to be done.  Last weekend we went as a family and planted some of our tomatoes in the hoop house.  This past week I have been going with Finn and planting some more seedlings, as well as working on keeping the weeds in check.

We sowed so many tomatoes and peppers that we're having trouble finding homes for them all!  Those two types of vegetables where the ones we knew we'd want a lot of, and we chose several different varieties of each.  I think we have 7 or 8 different kinds of tomatoes, and 5 different kinds of peppers.  We've put some of each into the garden, but have also decided to plant some in the hoop house too to see how they do.  We're hoping to have enough vegetables that we could even sell some.  I'm sure we will!

The hoop house

First row of tomatoes planted and mulched inside

So many tomatoes!

Both boys love coming to the farm and hanging out with me while I work.  I have gone a few afternoons this past week with both of them, but I have gone most mornings with just Finn.  He is my little gardening buddy and is so great about hanging out with me.  I think he is a little farmer in the making!  He will often play in the dirt with his toy digger or tractor, or he will just wander around the garden area.  But he never gets upset or whiny, or asks to leave.  Tristan will hang out too, and sometimes he will help me pull weeds or lay mulch.  He really loves hanging out with Tyler though and will jump at the chance to 'work' with Daddy.

At the moment in our garden we've got a variety of leafy vegetables like lettuces, swiss chard and cabbage, broccoli, carrots, tomatoes, peppers, peas, beans, onions, and artichokes.  Our strawberry plants are still in pots and are thriving, but we really need to get them into the ground asap.  We won't get a harvest from them this year as the advice is to pinch off the flowers in the first year to encourage stronger plants, but we are willing to be patient to get a good crop next year.  I have sowed some greenhouse variety cucumbers which are just sprouting, and will direct sow some more next week along with some other things like squash, corn, melon, pumpkins, and subsequent crops of carrots.  There is so much going on in our garden right now!  And we still have no idea what we are doing or what is going to work out, but boy are we having fun.  We have to learn somehow and it is all trial and error.

Red cabbage

Peppers

Lettuces

Strawberries, carrots and onions in pots

Tomatoes and beans growing up the poles

I am remembering what it is like to be out in the sunshine with my hands in the dirt, and I am loving it so much.  It means I have been spending less time at the gym, but I don't care because it's so good to be out there in the fresh air.  I also love that the boys are enjoying being out there and are learning about gardening and farming along with us.  I hope it won't be too long until they're actively involved in the process and hopefully gaining a strong work ethic from it.  I can see them spending summers working there and I hope they enjoy doing it as much as Tyler and I do.

I look forward to the future and getting to do more of this.  With a new baby soon to be here, my involvement will still be limited, but I hope that I can still get out there and keep tabs on my garden.  When I look into my future I see myself being more and more involved with the farm and all that is going on.  I love being at home with my children and do not wish that time away, but I look forward to when they are older and start school, and I will be able to play a more active roll on the farm growing my vegetables, and helping with the hops as well.

It truly is a dream come true!

Mommy and her little sidekick!

Little Dude's Birthday and Party Plans

Happy 2nd Birthday to my very special, very sweet, very funny Little Dude Finn!  I can't believe it's been two years since he was born.  What an amazing day it was.  I reflect on the birth of my children a lot, as expressed in previous posts.  I won't go into massive detail here, since I know I already did that last year for his 1st birthday!

I'm not really finding the words to describe how I feel on this particular birthday.  It's been a bit of a blur of normal life really.  We woke him up with a song and had a nice day together.  After dropping T off at school we went to Walmart and had a birthday muffin and smoothie at Tim's, then did a little shopping for his upcoming party.  He is such an amazing little man when we're out, so patient while sitting in the cart and hardly asking for anything.  It's really a pleasure to go anywhere with him.

After that we went home to hang out for a bit before picking T up from school, then had a yummy lunch before the boys went down for their naps.  This afternoon we just stayed home and the boys played while I got some housework done.  We were on our own for dinner since Tyler had to go down to the city, but we had a nice meal together and then after bath time I let the boys have some chocolate pudding as a treat for F's birthday.

So not a terribly exciting day I'm afraid, but we're saving all the excitement for his big party coming up this weekend!  I'm very excited!  We expect a lot of people to come out to the farm to celebrate with us, and while part of me feels like I should be overwhelmed this week while planning such a large event, I'm not at all.  Everything seems to be coming together nicely, and I am really looking forward to seeing a lot of our friends and family that we don't get to see too often.

We're doing a bbq style cookout at the farm, with lots of food and fun stuff.  I'm taking care of the dessert and am going to be making about 100 cupcakes, as well as a dirt cake.  Wow!  Now, I do feel a little guilty because I just went and bought cake mixes instead of making them from scratch.  I know I know, I have made such an effort in the past to make healthier varieties of cakes and cupcakes for the kids' birthdays.  I wanted to this time as well, but I just couldn't see how I could make so many from scratch on my budget, since the healthier ingredients required always end up being SO expensive.  So I'm cheaping out a bit, but they will still taste yummy that's for sure!  I might try making some rice crispy squares as well.

Another thing I try to do for birthday parties is avoid giving out treat bags that are filled with candy or crappy plastic toys.  This year for party favours I have sowed a bunch of extra tomato seedlings, and will give one to each child to take home and plant in their garden.  I'm also going to do little snack bags that are made out to look like butterflies and they will be filled with dried fruit instead of really sugary stuff.

I really hope the weather cooperates for this weekend, and I'm really excited to have everyone over to the farm to see it and to celebrate with us!

My littlest (but soon to not be the littlest anymore) guy is already 2.  Wow, just wow.  He is such an amazing little boy.  In fact, sometimes I can't believe he is the same baby that cried all the time and didn't sleep, because how he is now couldn't be further from that fussy baby.  He is so happy, and so social.  Everyone who meets him loves him to bits.  And we do too!

Happy Birthday Finn!!

The Invites Are Out!

Finn's 2nd birthday is fast approaching and I've just finished sending out the invitations for the big day.

Normally planning the boys' birthday parties stresses me out to no end.  I am not a natural hostess, I don't really enjoy throwing parties.  I mean, it always sounds like a great idea but the work involved ends up feeling so daunting.  Last year Finn's birthday party was very stressful for me.  We hadn't lived here that long and didn't really have any friends in the area.  Pretty much all our guests were from out of town and it was hard to know if anyone was even going to bother making the trek out here to see us.  I really hated the whole planning process.  So much so that I didn't even bother throwing a party for Tristan's 3rd birthday last summer, I just wasn't ready to go through the stress again.

This time though I'm actually quite excited for the next party, mainly because we have decided to pair it with sort of a grand opening of the farm and hops yards.  Also, we have so many friends here now as well as some family, so it almost makes more sense to throw a party when you know people nearby might actually come.

We're going to have the party on the farm the first weekend in May (so a little after Finn's actual birthday, but that's fine).  I'm hoping that will be a good time for the weather to be beautiful and not rainy, but the nice thing is that even if it is a rainy day we will still have the hoop houses and barn to stay dry in.  There is plenty of room in there.  And I'm sure that the toddlers would have fun rain or shine!

I've got some great ideas for kids activities so I think all the kids will have a great time.  There may be a lot of them if most of the families I've invited show up!  At first I thought we'd be crazy to have so many kids at the party, but knowing that it will be outside makes it less scary.  There is a playground right beside the farm that the kids can play at, and there's no shortage of things to do and places to explore.  I'm sure the little boys will love sitting on the tractor!

Not sure what we're going to do about food yet for all those people but we already have a bbq at the farm so that makes it a little easier.  We can just do hot dogs and burgers with a variety of other snacks on the side.  Nice and fun and simple.  I have some ideas for what I'd like to do for cupcakes and other desserts.

Party planning is still a bit stressful, but I'm really looking forward to the event.  I hope we get some great weather, and that lots of people come out to celebrate.  I can't wait to have a fun day for my boys and especially for Finn, but I also can't wait for people to come see the farm and everything we've accomplished so far. 

It's almost planting season!

A few weeks ago the seeds we had ordered for our vegetable garden arrived and for the past few weeks we've been busy thinking about and planning how we are going to sow and plant them.  We have about 70 varieties of vegetables and some fruits that we will be sowing from seed.  Tyler went out and bought a large binder with plastic sleeves and calendar sheets so that we can organize them all and keep track of the sowing/transplanting/harvesting schedule.  It's taken a lot of thought to organize it all but we're in pretty good shape.

I've been spending lots of time familiarizing myself with all the different seeds and their needs.  I've categorized them and come up with a sowing plan so we know what seeds need to be started and transplanted when.  We'll be starting our first bunch this week.  March will actually be very busy with the majority of seeds needing to be started indoors, but there are plenty that will be started in April, May, and even throughout the summer as well.  We will pretty much constantly be sowing, transplanting or harvesting our fruits and vegetables from March through to September.

This week construction of the hoop houses began and they will be ready to go soon, however we will be starting the seeds in the basement since they will need warmer temperatures than the hoop houses can provide.  Once they are seedlings most of them can be moved into the hoop houses until they are ready to go into the ground in May.  Tyler has build a light table to go in the basement for starting the seeds. 

I am so excited for this adventure.  When I read through my books I do feel a little overwhelmed as it just all seems so complicated on paper, especially since we are ambitious and starting quite big.  But I think we'll just going to jump in and see what works, and I think between the two of us we will have enough knowledge and experience to be successful.

Some of the varieties of plants we will be growing include: onions, beets, celery, broccoli and rapini, artichokes (Tristan's favourite vegetable!), corn, cabbage, beans, peas, many types of lettuces and leafy greens, several varieties of carrot, tomatoes, and cucumber, and of course an extensive selection of herbs.  We're also going to grow melons and strawberries, as well as squash and pumpkins.  Tyler really wants to try and grow a giant pumpkin!  I've also got some sunflower seeds to plant as well just because I thought it would be nice to have some on the property, and maybe we will be able to get some more seeds out of them as well.  We're going to try growing peanuts as well.  I'm sure there are a few more vegetables I missed, we ordered a lot!  All this in addition to the hops.

Ultimately it is my goal to be able to grow almost all of our vegetables and as much fruit as we can as well (we already have apple trees on the property, as well as other berry and currant bushes).  I would like to learn how to successfully preserve our harvest through canning, drying and freezing so that we can eat our own produce year round.  We should be able to grow some stuff year round in the hoop houses as well.  It's a little scary to take all this on knowing that we will be having a new baby in the family right in the middle of the season, but hopefully together we can pull it off.

I know I'm going to be hugely pregnant soon, but it is still my hope to play as active a roll in the creation and maintenance of our vegetable gardens as I can.  Me and my belly will be out there planting and weeding as long as I can still manage it.  I'm also hoping that getting the boys involved from a young age will teach them the value of the land and what it means to grow our own food.  Maybe if I'm really lucky they will start to eat more vegetables too!

Life on the Bay These Days

You know, when I first started this blog I used to write a lot about random things that happened here, which was the point of starting it in the first place.  I still kind of do that, but I realized that there are often a lot of things going on that I would have written about before, but don't bother to anymore.  Which is kind of sad, afterall this is supposed to be about our life here.  Guess I've just gotten lazy.  I've also diverted a lot of that stuff to my other two more specific blogs.  Stuff about the boys gets put on my Dear Children, Love Mommy blog because I just found it easier to record everything about them in one spot, and also to write directly to them.  Stuff about this latest pregnancy gets put on my Doula Ambition blog.  I started that one as a place to keep all my pregnancy and childbirth thoughts, since I am very much into that kind of stuff, but since getting pregnant have also been journalling about my pregnancy there since it seemed appropriate.  So now I often feel like this blog is missing out on a lot of stuff that gets put elsewhere. 

Time for a little update on how Life on the Bay has been treating us.

It's still pretty awesome.

Life

Is good.  We have had a mild winter which has allowed us to stay active and not feel too cooped up in the house.  Tristan goes to school in the mornings and is doing very well there.  Finley enjoys his time with me in the mornings and we busy ourselves with trips to the YMCA or the Early Years Centre.  Rarely are we at home in the mornings and that's how we like it.  The afternoons are sometimes filled with classes for Tristan like skiing (which are now over) and junior chefs, but often we like to just stay in since the mornings are so busy.  I do look forward to the spring and summer though when we can just go play in the backyard or go for walks without having to worry about snowsuits, hats, mitts, and boots.  The boys are good, Tyler is good, I am good, the pregnancy is good.  I feel great and really can't complain about much.

Friends are the best

I'm still hanging out with the same wonderful group of ladies I met over the summer, and we've formed some great friendships.  Some of them have returned to work, and we don't see each other during the week for playdates as often since winter arrived but we make a point of getting together as much as we can otherwise.  We have been meeting for coffee every few weeks, and also planning girls' nights once a month or so as well.  Last time we went glow in the dark bowling which was fun.  This weekend we're having dinner and going dancing afterwards to celebrate one lady's birthday.  Well, not sure how keen I will be to go bar hopping at almost 5mos pregnant, but we'll see.  We also still plan playdates on the weekends, often meeting up for gymnastics, skating, or tobogganing with the kids.  In addition to the great close friends I've made, I'm also making new friends all the time.  When I first moved here and started looking for friends, I was always looking for people to connect with and hoping that it would turn into the kind of friendships where we hung out a lot.  I have been lucky to find that with my group of friends, but am also learning that I can be friends with a lot of different people, and those friendships can all mean different things.  Some women are other moms that I see at the same places every week, and we get a chance to talk there but don't necessarily plan anything outside of that.  Other people I've just become familiar with from running into around town.  It's been a really great feeling to know that I've met and connected with so many different people on so many different levels.

Fitness

This has been a big topic for me over the past year as I have strived to become more active, and I am still keeping up with it and going strong.  I always feel there is room for improvement in this department but then I also have to think about time constraints and that my family comes first, and also the physical restraints of pregnancy.  But there are times where I think I just want to spend hours in the gym working out and getting in shape.  Maybe one day.  I do manage to go to the gym about 5 times a week.  These days all I want to do is hoop and have been doing that as much as possible, but I have been doing spinning once a week still as well as some prenatal fitness and working out on the machines in the gym.  A friend of mine just sent me several great prenatal workout dvds in the mail as well so I am going to start incorporating those into my day as well at home while the boys are napping.  I think my hard work is paying off as I have been feeling great and I think I look fairly fit even for 20wks pregnant.  I do hope that I can stay in better shape for this pregnancy than I did for my last two, and also that I can snap back into shape quickly afterwards.

Down on the Farm

Progress on the hops farm has been great.  The mild winter has really been a blessing in that department because it allowed Tyler and John to get a lot of work done.  When I look back over the past few months I cannot believe how much they have accomplished together.  They have installed all the poles for the front 6 acres to be planted, built a barn, made a road, and built a bridge from the ground up.  Not just any bridge either, a proper bridge that will have to carry vehicles over the river.  A lot of time, planning, and money went into the design and construction of the bridge, and now it is almost complete.  It has been very exciting for Tyler to design and build it, and see it come to life.  I know he is very proud, and he should be.  I have gone through the seed catalogues and placed the order for all of our vegetable seeds, which should be arriving this week.  In the next few weeks our hoop houses will be built, and then we can begin starting our seedlings inside to get a head start on the growing season.  There is no way to describe how amazing everything is going on the farm, and we are excited to see what the next few months have in store as well.

Other Events

What other things have we been up to this year so far?  In January I participated in the Romp to Stomp out breast cancer 5km snowshoe walk with one of my new friends.  The weather was perfect and we had a wonderful day walking and raising money for breast cancer research.  That same weekend Tyler took Tristan on his very first overnight ice fishing adventure.  He had a great time, but it was still too much for him and by the end of it he was very tired and got a little sick.  Still, he loves to talk about the trip and how much fun he had.  In February Tyler's sister Rachael got married to her fiancee Scott.  The whole wedding was just lovely and we were happy to be a part of it.

That pretty much sums up how our winter has been, and it's only been less than 2 months!  Needless to say life is busy, but it's a good busy.  We are always optimistic, always looking forward.  It feels good to be happy and to have a good attitude about life.  Onwards and upwards from here!