my backyard

our airstream rv

i love my back yard, and the things in it. if i am not working at the scooter shop, i am usually out back. there are many reasons for me to be out back. one, my neighbors. there are about 6 of us that our backyards back up to each other, so i always know what they are doing. we will chat, share a bottle of wine, eat snacks, give gardening advice, or give away extra plants or eggs. i love it. another reason to be out back is to watch the chickens. i let the chicks out to play for the first time today. they were so cute, taking a dust bath or pecking at the dirt. thirdly, being in the backyard is where my garden is, and being in the garden takes up a lot of time right now. so most of the time when i am out back i will be sitting on my tushy digging in the dirt, if not i feel too guilty to do anything else. if it is sunny out i will do double duty and put my bikini on and absorb some vitaminD while digging. reason number four is the kids. they are always in someone's back yard. i know they are okay, but i feel like i should be outside listening just in case...when will i get over this mother hen attitude?!

my lighthouse my Greek gave me for mother's day 3 years ago

the planter i made for the asparagus

the peas, carrots, and broccoli

playhouse/mudpie restaurant/laying nest

the baby girls, well i hope they are girls

wink! he wanted to play.

so, being in the backyard rules right now. as we know i love the front porch, but no rest for me till my chores are done out back.

getting my gardening on

i am so excited about the garden this year. i have goals, new things i have never tried. doing all this new gardening is a lot harder with a little Greek girl in my belly. i have been expanding the garden, and i have learned using a shovel while 20+ weeks is a lot harder than i thought it would be. sneaky me, i got my wonderful neighbor to dig up half of my new garden plot for me:) i owe him some eggs and beer. now the new plot is dug up, i have been sitting in the dirt, shooing chickens away while i weed it out. i love my chickens, but when they stick their head in my weeding looking for grubs it drives me crazy! i have one more plot to dig up and weed so i can plant my corn. never done corn before, and i can't wait to pluck one off the stalk and just eat it. we are going to plant our corn in circles. since we are planting such a small amount we have to have optimum pollination. corn has male and female parts and need wind to pollinate and make kernels. i will be planting the corn on the north so to capture the most north wind. it will be fun to run through with the kids. i also have to build some planters for my asparagus. i am afraid to plant my crowns in the ground and them lose them or something. i feel like i have these fragile plants that i have to baby so i get my asparagus each year. they will be getting special attention mostly because they take too long to grow! but once they are ready in a couple years i will have fresh asparagus in my back yard and a beautiful plant to look at.

since my peas have sprung i need to build a trellis. this is the type i will be building, or rather constructing. i need stakes, nails, and twine. easy as pie. once i get my cucumbers in i will have to make something for them too. for my tomatoes and bell peppers i use some homemade wire cages i have been using for years. i have so much i need to get in the ground! it is so hard for me to bend over because of my belly, so i am always sitting in the dirt. it still hurts my back. but not as bad. it is great having neighbors that help as well. we all plant some of the same things but some different as well. i know behind me they will have basil, jalapenos, and banana peppers in abundance if i ever need them. i can go get chicken wire and and a fresh berry or cherry tomato if i need to at another. they get fresh eggs whenever they need them and a visit from a dog or chicken at their back door when the gate is left open.
i have my berries in, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries. i love having a green, thriving backyard. our little urban farm makes me so proud.

It's a...........

GIRL!!!!!!
mini monkey hat by citefuzz.etsy.com

i am so happy! a boy would have been great but i don't know a thing about them.
i know girls! i love girls! a boy would have just scared me. know we can get things!
pink things. pink eames things.

another adorable hat by citefuzz

i think i decided on this mobile from hangingmobilegallery.com
i know daddy's want boys, but my Greek is very happy. i don't think he understands the magnitude of the situation, i guess you don't until the baby is born. he will be hit over the head with the love stick.
i do have fears. fears of fights, resentment, and jealousy between sisters. i don't have a sister, i have 2 kick a** brothers. i hear it's different. i also come from a home without d-i-v-o-r-c-e.
will it be odd between them having a half sister who's mommi and daddy are still together? it's all so odd to me, so many questions unanswered. i want to do the best i can for them. but maybe my fears are just silly deep thinking of situations that will never come about, who knows. all i know right now is that i have the best husband ever, the 2 most sweetest and loving girls i could have ever hoped for, and the best friends and family a person could ask for.

chicken shirt i am dying for from ittikid.com

Happy Easter

remember running around looking for eggs? this is the first year i have ever hid eggs.
i know, i know...juni is almost 7 years old, and i have never hid eggs myself? well, someone has always done it for me. i was quite excited to do this traditional deed. i went to the local health food store to buy "healthy" jelly beans, gummi bears, gummi worms, and chocolates. goodness knows if they are going to stuff their faces with sugar, let it be real sugar. HA!
i hid them at my aunt and uncle's house after church. i cannot believe it was a hard to task, but it was. then we shuffled the kids out with my Greek, his brother, and my dad trailing along to take pictures of the girls. i had to point out what i thought were obvious brightly colored eggs in obvious spots. oops:)

well, 20 weeks is here, and my belly is bulging, even more so after i indulged in the Easter spread my aunt layed out. my little Greek baby is moving around like a synchronized swimmer now. he/she better be cooporative this wednesday when we peek at 'em. my Greek has been inviting everyone to the ultrasound. i am afraid there will be 50 or so people there at the doctor's office waiting to find out the sex with us. he is so excited, as am i. if i have a little girl i am prepared in a way. a little boy is so different and frightning to me. so many people say boys are easier than girls, who am i to know? 2 little girls have been my life for almost 8 years.

my beautiful, healthy, oh so smart, and wickedly manipulative little girls!
maybe a boy would be a nice breathe of fresh air....

I Crave....

rice pudding!

why don't i have a rice pudding restaurant in my town?

oh yeah. i don't live in NYC.

mail order rice pudding anyone?

http://www.ricetoriches.com/frameset.php?content=/startpage.php

Front Porch

i usually sit on the old swing, but i'm plugged in. before there was the wicker swing, which my grandparents got on one of their wedding anniversary's, there was an old wooden one. i have a picture of my momma pregnant with me sitting next to my grandma on it. wish i had a scanner:)
my whole family loves front porches. i guess we're front porch people. this front porch to be exact. my daddy grew up in this house. and my grandparents lived here till they couldn't anymore. now we live here. my kids are growing up in the house their papa grew up in. same sidewalk i learned to ride a bike on, my kids are riding theirs. i remember my bedo with a water hose in her hand, sitting in a lawn chair, squirting us kids in the front yard with just our undies on. yard darts were brought out when there were enough of the grown ups to play, and there was always a lawn chair if we ran out of sitting room on the porch.

snack time. yogurt and a banana. i want a hot fudge sunday with rocky road ice cream.
and mr. wink, my guard dog. we're just waiting for the girls to get home from school. when they get home, i won't even see them, they'll run to the neighbors back yard to go play with their friends. maybe i can lure them in with promises of making pretzels or cinnamon rolls. hmmmm?

April 7th!

we find out what we are having
april 7th!
so i am nursery crazy!

a chicken mobile?

pregnant mama mobile?

elephant mobile to go with my eames elephant i will get?

piece of pie mobile?

fake calder looking mobile?

awesome hanging tree i want? yes, thank you.

eames wall hanger?
and yes, if you hadn't noticed, i'm going mid-century modern in the nursery. i am thinking my Greek will want to change diapers in this minimalistic modern nursery if it is aesthetically pleasing to him. i hate the idea of doing a themed nursery. i have never done one. juniper's nursery was pale yellows and greens, ginghams, mixed with vintage oddities from my childhood. beila's nursery was pale green with pink accents, and same bedding and vintage oddities again. but this baby will have an all new idea in it's room. i love it. i'll keep you posted on wether or not the baby's winter monkey hat i want will have a flower on it or not:)