Seed Order 2009 Season: Vegetables, Herbs and some Flowers

Is it normal to go crazy when ordering seeds for the first time? This is my order – with Fedco Seeds only (choosing just from them was difficult enough: I didn’t dare add the selection from any other gorgeous catalog). Provider Bush Green Bean OG (A=2oz) Maxibel Bush Haricots Verts OG (B=2oz) Cannellini Bean (A=2oz) …

Amie Writes?

I’ve been quiet about Amie’s reading and writing here because it’s tough to know where she stands. One day she reads and writes enthusiastically, the other day she won’t even write her own name properly (and that she has been able to do since she turned two). She has been reading simple words, slowly stringing …

Birdwatching and Playing in the Snow

Dark-Eyed junco and American Goldfinches Who knew birdwatching in winter would be more fun than in summer! We’re experiencing our third snowstorm in five days – or is it the second one come round again? The scene outside is magical, but to me there is also an aspect of danger. I see the trees laden …

Let It Seed – I mean, Snow!

Finally we got some snow: about an inch, I should say. Amie ran out to play before school. For once it wasn’t difficult to get her into her clothes! Sadly the snow was too hard for snowmen, snow angels, and snowballs, but she had a lot of fun just scraping it off our car and …

Chicken Wire Compost Bin Accomplished

It’s warm! 50 F in the shade at 9 am and now, at 11:30: 60 F! This weather is unbelievable… But I believed it and immediately went out to set up that compost bin I talked about earlier. The only problem with the plan was that it was impossible to get the 4 stakes that …

Ocean Diorama for Homemade Christmas

I’m pretty sure that our Tia Tata doesn’t read this blog, so I think we’re fine, but IN CASE YOU’RE TIA TATA, LOOK AWAY IMMEDIATELY! Okay, that said, all the rest of you can get a preview of one of our homemade Christmas presents. It’s a diorama for our friend Tia Tata, who is a …