Making it our Home

After posting about the move to our new home and the need of inspiration for interior and exterior decorating, you all really had some great advice.  And while I haven't yet implemented any of yours (or my) ideas of painting the inside and making that space feel like "us", Joe and I have done some things to the exterior that make it feel more like our home.

Joe's one of the most handy people I know.  He can do just about anything and aside from how well he loves me and James, it's probably the thing I find most attractive about him.  There's not much that's more sexy than a man who can make your dreams happen.  When I tell Joe an I idea of something I want, he usually finds a way to make it happen.

A few months ago when I complained to you all about the price of outdoor furniture, you had great ideas about what to get and where to get it.  I'm not in a place in my life where I can stomach paying $200 for a fake wicker chair, so Joe and I found a great deal on Adirondack chairs at Harbor Freight Tools (if you live in Fort Wayne you should check it out on State Street and Coliseum Blvd.).  The chairs were a good quality and were only $29, and with 2 coats of opaque stain they really look like they cost three times that.  They are going to be our "beach chairs" and we have some beach umbrellas that we'll use with them so we can hang out at the pond.

It seems that frustration over the cost of household items forces us to do things ourselves, and after a visit to the big box stores and seeing how much picnic tables cost, Joe decided to build them himself.  So for the cost of one table, we have three (of great quality) that match our chairs! Or will as soon as we finish staining the blue one.  Our house is pale yellow and white, which is why I chose the colors  And since I couldn't find a pale sky blue opaque stain that was exactly what I wanted, Joe mixed a country blue stain with the pale yellow stain and ended up getting a lovely color.

And if Joe didn't build enough already this past week, now he's working on a swingset for Jamesie.  He has enough lumber left over from the tables to build a set for James, who has been swingless (oh, the horror) b/c none of the trees at our new house are large enough yet to support a tree swing.  He's building it as I type.  Must be nice to have your summers off, eh?  That way you can spend your days doing your wife's bidding and your evenings playing Guitar Hero!

Finally, the garden is in full bloom.  It's twice as big as the garden I shared with you the past few years, as we have a bit more land now.  Joe says he wants the garden to be even bigger next year, but I have images of loosing my husband to his passionate relationship with his roto-tiller.  I don't know if I'm ready for that.

The peas are going to be ready in about a week, and next will come some of the tomatos and green beans (that's what's climbing up the cylinders).  Watermelon, corn, butternut squash, brocoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, soy beans, peppers of all shapes and sizes will follow.  Again, I think thriftiness has governed much of our gardening decisions, as grocery shopping is becoming so expensive that I want to put up as many fruits and veggies as possible this year.  I hope to add asparagus and some other things next year.  Maybe some fruit bushes?  Anyone had any luck with blueberries or raspberries?  Any tips for varieties and planting of strawberries?  We make jam and I have no idea how many plants I'd need to put up strawberry jam.  We usually buy 2 flats, so what's that in bushes?  I'm a city-girl living in the country!  HELP!

Comments

[Jill]

Head (Well, call 'em) to the local ag store and ask them if they sell strawberry plants, then if the answer is yes, ask them the typical order size for a small family. It seems to me that years ago, my mother and grandparents each decided to plant a patch that number 25 plants in the patch. Also seems like you'll need a bale or two of clean straw to mulch the patch with. I think it takes a full year or maybe two for them to produce with any preserving yield amounts but I could be off.

Honestly, unless you cannot live without raspberries, I'd steer clear of planting them. A lot of work to keep them where you want them and so many prickers on the plants, poor James might end up hating them or miserable from the scratches. (Go ahead, ask me how I know!) Blueberries really seem like the easiest option if you amend the soil ph balance correctly before planting. The house next to my aunt's was empty for years so the blueberry bushes there were neglected but seemed to thrive. I could only imagine what they would have done if cared for properly!

Enough of my novel...I think I found that usb cable this morning!

[Emily]

I have no helpful garden advice - I'm only getting started! But I'll be paying careful attention to the comments you get on this post!

[Jan]

Sorry no help on the strawberries but thanks for tip about Harbor Freight and the chairs. I will be heading there today. My husband is super handy like Joe. He just finished creating a kitchen pantry for me and could not find a suitable spice rack for the door, so he made one. Think I will spend this rainy weekend movng things around in the kitchen.

[Teyani]

Such glorious chairs and those tables.. the colors just invite you to sit and relax (which I hope you are doing now and then)
You will enjoy them for a long time! How great to have such a clever guy :-)

Fruits and veggies are very fun. I'm of the school of "try it and see". You'll figure out what grows best where from experimenting -
It looks like you have a great spot that pretty much anything will grow.

[Nancy]

Oh, you are a lucky, lucky woman--a man that is handy--now that is sex appeal. My fantasy man is Norm on This Old House. Everything looks wonderful and there is nothing as good as fresh vegtables.

[VickiW]

As I have said before, so say I again: That Joe sounds like a keeper to me, roto-tiller and all. James will have lots of fun working with him as he grows up. Sorry, I have no advice as to gardening, as I am as citified as they come, but I do hope good advice finds its way to you.

[Jimmie Tomlinson]

Just a note on the strawberry question. If you put out about fifty plants, you will have LOTS of berries. My favorite is a little hard to find, but if you can find some Ozark Beauty plants, you will relish the use all season long. All they ask is water during the hottest driest part of the summer, and they will yield clear to frost. Now they are not the biggest, but far and away the best 'old time' flavor. Jimmie