Almost Ready to Plant!

Okay, so I totally forgot I was supposed to be doing a real gardening post for The Gardening Challenge over at The Homeschool Lounge (note the fancy schmancy button they created just so I could share this challenge with you! Come join me in this challenge.)

I wasn't sure what new to say about our garden, seeing as we haven't started it yet and its 50 degrees out. Crossing fingers for a nice warm up this weekend!

I talked for the first time about the garden here, the previous years of gardening, the plants we want to have, the beds we'll be making, the lovely dirt we'll be ordering (Monday!!) It also had wonderful links to seed catalogs to order, studies for homeschoolers, great gardening information.

Here, I talked about the seeds we actually ordered, the people who will be gardening with us, successive gardening practices, my daughter's love of carrots... Oh yeah! I also showed you the free online gardening planner I found. That was a great link! I even mentioned the highly addicting, complete time waster of a game you can play that has nothing to do with gardening but is garden related: Plants vs. Zombies. Real important that. lol

I think even at one point I talked about the fact that we'll be getting chicks soon, and to be honest, their poop is magical. For the garden that is. Can't wait for that natural fertilizer to start appearing!

Today I posted a quick post mentioning that Seeds of Change is GIVING AWAY seeds, so hurry on over there to get your seeds for your garden.

AND, last but not least, if I haven't mention before (and I think I have), I  put up a Gardening Gurus page full of links to gardening blogs, videos, companies, ideas, books and fun gardening activities for the kiddos.

Now, as I mentioned in my first post on gardening, last year we built two raised beds using these plans. Tomorrow mommsy-dear is picking the kids and me up for some shopping at our local Lowes. It's time to create 4 more beds, time to buy the wood. Time to find a nice helpful Lowes person who will cut all the wood pieces to my specifications so I can just bring it all home and slap together 4 more beds. That's the easy part. After that we have to dig a few post holes to sink the beds in. THEN come Monday, I'm ordering a load of dirt to magically arrive and be dumped on my poor unsuspecting driveway. I guess I better pick up a wheel barrow tomorrow as well. How else will we get the dirt into the back yard, unless by bucket brigade? Who wants to help with that one? Huh? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? 

So, I'm off to write up the measurements for the bed pieces I need to order, so I can measure twice and cut once, instead of the highly probable but very irritating opposite. ** mumbles to herself, 'now was that 4 posts at 12" or 12 posts at 4"? Hmmmm...' **

Happy Gardening!

FREE ORGANIC SEEDS ALERT!

It totally figures I just did my $85 seed order through Gurneys on Tuesday. But for others just getting started and needing seeds, Seeds of Change is offering 25 Certified Organic Seed Packets for just $4.99 shipping. I was looking on Amazon this week for seeds and saw their packets. They retail usually for $2.99-$3.99 each, so this is a fabulous deal!

** This is also a chance to give back! For every seed request, they'll give a matching donation of seeds to the American Horticultural Society. Now doesn't it feel good to donate?! **

There is no guarantee what seeds you'll receive but if you're just starting out and want to have the growing experience with the kids, any free veggies/flowers are great! 

Wouldn't this be a great start to a homeschool garden or a co-op neighborhood garden (especially if several of you and your friends ordered packets, you'd get a wide variety!) 

What seeds are you wishing for?

Pictorial Tuesday (Cuz I'm Never Very Good at Wordless Wednesdays)

I always think, 'I should take a picture for those Wordless Wednesday posts people are always doing.' But then I think, 'When have I ever been wordless?!' So here is a Pictorial Tuesday, kinda has a ring to it, right?

Want to see all the hard work we are doing today in school? All the massive hours of time spent learning, and soaking up and expanding our brains? 

Yup. You guessed it. She is reading. Has been since 830 am (we're going on 5 hours now.) But you know how sometimes a book just grabs you and you can't put it down? It just seemed wrong to rip the book from her eager reading hands and say 'Do you math, pick up your Latin!' There will be other days. Today, we enjoy the lazy rain soaked dreary day and read. 

(Note: She finished up The Battle of the Labyrinth this morning and is now reading The Last Olympian.)