Independence Days Challenge-- Week Something or Other

I've been very lax on getting these updates put together, so I'm trying to get back on track. Here we go...

1. Planted: Nothing.

2. Harvest something: Golden Bantam sweet corn, Kentucky Wonder beans, Scarlett Runner beans, carrots, mystery squash, calendulas.

3. Preserve something: Dried calendulas.

4. Prep something: Set up my gardening expansion budget and researched the plants I'd chosen. Talked to a neighbor about collecting seeds from her goldenrod "weeds" in October when they ripen. Most of our prep here has actually related to getting the kids ready for their first day of Head Start. Lots of thrifting for clothes and shoes.

5. Cook something: Despite the fact that we checked out several cookbooks from the library, we made nothing from the books. The only new thing I cooked was maple syrup chicken, which, uh, I made up on the spot.

6. Manage your reserves: Found some old "maple syrup" in the fridge and used as much as I could get away with by pouring it on and in some chicken while it baked. It was delicious and made the house smell wonderful, but have you seen the ingredients listed for store-bought maple syrup?? Let's just say there isn't much maple anything in it. Maybe I'll post about that later...

7. Work on local food systems: Nope.

8. Reduce waste: Nothing beyond the ordinary composting, eBaying, and Freecycling.

9. Learn a new skill: Nothing.

Independence Days Challenge-- Week 9

It's been a rough week emotionally. The pregnancy hormones are kickin' my ass, especially with some of the changes coming up around here and rabid eBayer's and their ridiculousness. If I'm not having a panic attack, I'm wanting to bawl or put my fist through a wall. Fun times.

1. Planted: Nothing.

2. Harvest something: Raspberry leaves, borage, Kentucky Wonder beans, Scarlett Runner Beans.

3. Preserve something: Dried raspberry leaves for later use.

4. Prep something: Dried the raspberry leaves to use during my pregnancy. Began reading Eliot Coleman's Four-Season Harvest in the hopes that I can still get a little more out of the garden this year.

5. Cook something: Sweet and sour fresh green beans. I wasn't thrilled with it, but pregnancy is doing weird things to my taste buds. I'm having a difficult time getting any veggie down.

6. Manage your reserves: Using up veggies in storage that were beginning to be past their prime.

7. Work on local food systems: Nope.

8. Reduce waste: Nothing beyond the ordinary composting, eBaying, and Freecycling.

9. Learn a new skill: Nothing.

Independence Days Challenge--Week 8

1. Planted: Nothing.

2. Harvest something: Raspberries, blueberries (just about done now), raspberry leaves, borage.

3. Preserve something: Dried raspberry leaves for later use.

4. Prep something: Dried the raspberry leaves to use during my pregnancy.

5. Cook something: Technically, I didn't cook it, but I finally was brave enough to add some borage to a salad for the first time. They really were VERY cucumbery.

6. Manage your reserves: Using up veggies in storage that were beginning to be past their prime.

7. Work on local food systems: Nope.

8. Reduce waste: Nothing beyond the ordinary composting, eBaying, and Freecycling.

9. Learn a new skill: Nothing.

Independence Days Challenge--Week 7

1. Planted: Transplanted a Concorde grapevine that was withering in its pot under the summer heat.

2. Harvest something: Raspberries, blueberries, raspberry leaves, lavender.


3. Preserve something: Dried lavender and raspberry leaves for later use.

4. Prep something: Dried the raspberry leaves to use during my pregnancy.

5. Cook something: Made scalloped potatoes for the first time. I can no longer find the link to the recipe I used, but it was basically just potatoes, onions, cheese, and milk. I added just a bit too much milk, so it was runnier than I'd have liked. The kids ate it up though. Score!

6. Manage your reserves: Used up potatoes that were on their last legs for the recipe above.

7. Work on local food systems: Nope.

8. Reduce waste: Nothing beyond the ordinary composting, eBaying, and Freecycling.

9. Learn a new skill: Nothing.

Independence Days Challenge-- Week 5

1. Planted: Nothing.

2. Harvest something: Starting to get more raspberries and blueberries now.

3. Preserve something: Nothing.

4. Prep something: Made plans for a sewing cabinet, researched the REC's available to AEP customers, called for a free estimate on metal roofing.

5. Cook something: Made banana bread using this recipe. It needs a bit of tweaking to be the perfect banana bread for our family, but it was yummy!


6. Manage your reserves: Used overripe bananas for the banana bread above.

7. Work on local food systems: Nope.

8. Reduce waste: Nothing beyond the ordinary composting, eBaying, and Freecycling.

9. Learn a new skill: Nothing.

Independence Days Challenge-- Week 4

1. Planted: Nothing. It's rained every single day this week...


2. Harvest something: Just a few raspberries and blueberries.

3. Preserve something: Nothing.

4. Prep something: Nothing.

5. Cook something: Nothing new.

6. Manage your reserves: Weeding, weeding, and more weeding.

7. Work on local food systems: Nope.

8. Reduce waste: Nothing beyond the ordinary composting, eBaying, and Freecycling.

9. Learn a new skill: Nothing.

Independence Days Challenge-- Week 3

This week was certainly better than last week, but I'm still falling short in so many categories that it's frustrating.

1. Planted: Oh, let's see... Planted an avocado pit from a store bought avocado, spaghetti squash, a variety of summer squash which I can't think of off the top of my head, a couple of sunflowers to replace corn that was stolen by the squirrels, potatoes, Black Turtle bush beans, dill 'Bouquet' (Anethum graveolens). HA! That's 7!

2. Harvest something: Got just a couple strawberries this week, but none of them made it beyond the garden. Annie ate 'em right then and there! Also harvested some more Rosalita lettuce.

3. Preserve something: Nothing.

4. Prep something: Prepped the bed for the beans and potatoes, started on the next bed. Looked into the benefits of metal roofing since our current roof is going to need to be replaced soon and metal roofing is being touted as "green."

5. Cook something: While not technically cooking, I made the yummiest taco salad ever using our homegrown lettuce. I thought we'd have plenty for dinner that night and lunch the next day. Uh-uh.

6. Manage your reserves: Weeding, weeding, and more weeding.

7. Work on local food systems: Nope.

8. Reduce waste: Began using my urine as fertilizer rather than flushing it down the toilet. Other than that, nothing beyond the ordinary composting, eBaying, and Freecycling.

9. Learn a new skill: Learned all about Liquid Gold while participating in the Golden Showers Garden Party. I was already quite skilled at peeing, but hey! I had to learn how to properly dilute it...

Independence Days Challenge-- Week 2

First of all, let me give a world of thanks to all the wonderful people who commented on my Imperfectly Beautiful Garden post. How kind of you all to visit my little blog space and to leave such encouraging messages. It really lifted my spirits. Really, thank you!

Now onto Independence Days. Week 2 is going to be particularly light on doings because the whole family was ill, AND it rained several days. Fun stuff. Still...

1. Planted: German chamomile (Matricaria recutita), rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) in pots (will I ever have rosemary this year?)

2. Harvest something: Sage for the herbal steam inhalation. Some more lemon balm for tea.

3. Preserve something: Dried the lemon balm and some of the sage.

4. Prep something: Got a teensy bit more of the lawn ripped up. That's really it. Read several library books, some helpful and some not. Look for book reviews here soon! Researched columnar fruit trees and talked with the neighbor about planting them between our very close together houses.

5. Cook something: Didn't cook anything from the garden and didn't try any new recipes.

6. Manage your reserves: Was going to use some overripe bananas for banana bread, but The Husband got to them before I had the energy and tossed them in the garbage. You heard me right. THE GARBAGE. Not even the compost pile! I really wanted to cause him bodily harm...

7. Work on local food systems: Didn't really do anything here. I did send some of my rabid lemon balm to my bestest pal, but she's in West Virginia. I don't think that really counts as "local." T, you'll be rolling in lemon balm before you know it! ;)

8. Reduce waste: Brought home the scraps from our Father's Day dinner at The Husband's mom's house for Madame TrashHeap (That would be the compost pile. What? You've never seen Fraggle Rock?) rather than letting them put them all down the garbage disposal. Put some more stuff from the attic on eBay.

9. Learn a new skill: Learned how to make Sleepytime Balm with Crisco.

This coming week will be better.

Independence Days Challenge: (my late) Week 1

So, I spotted this doozy of a challenge over at Dancing in a Field of Tansy and, as intimidated as I am to make all of this happen on my meager and still developing suburban lot, I figured it would be a nice way to keep track of things and force myself to step it up! You can see the "rules" and inspiration at Casaubon's Book. Without further ado then, here are my Week 1 accomplishments (or lack thereof):

1. Planted: I've been extremely slow on the planting phase of things because I'm still ripping up the lawn to make room for our veggie garden. However, today I planted Corno di Toro peppers, sweet basil, marigolds, and Rouge Vif D'Etampes pumpkins. So, 4 out of minimum of 7 things to plant each week. LOL I'm rockin' this challenge, baby!

2. Harvest something: I am so far from having harvested something everyday this week, it really isn't even funny. Planting was laughable, but harvesting is just downright sad. This week, all I harvested was some of my completely insane, take-over-the-world lemon balm (Melissa officinalis). Lots of it. Does it count if I harvest just lemon balm everyday because that is a completely doable task! No kidding, folks. Oh, and I guess technically we harvested some chives (Allium schoenoprasum) as well, since Annie keeps eating them to the ground nearly everyday. The kid is an addict, I tell ya. Is there a support group for that?

Oh wait. I lied. We also harvested some Rosalita lettuce for salad one night this week. It was beautiful but bitter, since bolting time is nigh. This should have been planted so very much earlier than it was. Next year, I'll know.


3. Preserve something: The aforementioned lemon balm was lazily dried for tea.

4. Prep something: Spent all week ripping up the sod to prep a bed for the peppers, basil, and marigolds. I also listed some stuff on eBay on Monday and will do so again tomorrow as I continue to declutter the attic. Finally bought a clothesline to hang up in the backyard. Tomorrow's laundry day, so I'll spend my morning trying to figure out a way to rig that bad girl up!

5. Cook something: Didn't cook anything from the garden and didn't try any new recipes. While not technically cooked, we did eat the Rosalita lettuce we harvested... Yeah, I fail miserably in this category too.

6. Manage your reserves: Um, 'nother failure? Had to send some storebought onions and corn on the cob to the compost pile. Bad homesteader!

7. Work on local food systems: Let the neighbor borrow my green plastic chicken fencing to protect her sunflower seeds and received a couple cuttings from one of her rose bushes in the hopes of rooting and establishing them out front for hips next year (yum!).

8. Reduce waste: Other than the normal composting, didn't do much. Freecycled a few old games and a baby car shade. Listed stuff on eBay. Again, nothing more than the norm this week.

9. Learn a new skill: Other than blogging, there's nothing new in this category.

Aaaaaand that's a wrap!