Fence and Sod Project for Side Yard

 Covid really put me behind this Spring. I did not completely get all my weeding done until this past weekend. Yes, I spent the majority of my 4th of July vacation cleaning flowerbeds and planting up new beds.

During our Covid sickness, Keith decided to make a fence that blocks the dogs from one side of the yard. This is the side of the yard where I have my vegetable planters. We used leftover wood from the cat cage we had up in one of the rooms inside. Now that the cats are gone and with Jessica, we decided to upcycle all the wood. We also used cattle fencing instead of dog fencing. It makes the fence steadier and more eye-appealing.

We had some strips of the cattle fencing that we made into a cute archway. I then purchased some really adorable hanging planters off of Amazon and filled them with some really cute flowers. Next year we might work more towards a full vine that engulfs the arch, but this year we went more simple.

We added a couple of window box planters as well and Keith set up the sprinkling system to easily water the planters. It really cuts down on watering time with the way he has it all set up. He also installed some sun shades that go over the patio. It has made a huge difference this year so far.

We got very lucky this past week. We were heading home from Home Depot with a heavy load of pebble rocks to add as flooring to my greenhouse and freshen up the flowerbeds. We were going extra slow on the interstate due to the heavy load when we came across a lot of contractor sod on the side of the interstate. We pulled over and scavenged as much as we could. What a huge difference it makes compared to the previous pictures just having some great-looking grass down. We had that area heavily seeded and some of the grass was sprouting, but why wait when you can have it now and for free!!

I am loving my back patio this year so much. I sit out in the morning drinking a cup of coffee and enjoying the bees and butterflies. I am not sure if I will have any vegetables this season. We had a cold snap and I did not tent my planters. Hopefully, something produces. I do have some lettuce, so that is something.

Spring might actually show up!!

 Our weather has been so scattered-brained lately. Over the Memorial Day weekend, we had rain and snow. Very cold morning temps. I had to pull out the heater once again. I am praying this was the last of the cold fronts.

On a crappier note, Keith and I caught Covid. Of course, it was Keith who brought it home to me, but nonetheless, we both were down for the count simultaneously. I am back at work, but I probably won't stay the entire day. I am very fuzzy-brained right now. It wasn't the worst sickness I have ever had, but it was still unpleasant.

As for my seedlings, I have still been able to keep most of the cucumbers alive. All of my okra is still thriving. I have an eggplant that is now growing and I believe a tomato plant. I still have not divided up the radishes. I did plant a bunch of dill, chives, and basil seeds right before getting sick. They have not germinated just yet. Also, the lemon seeds that I planted about a month ago are sprouting. I might have a lemon tree one day.

I am hoping this past cold snap does not wreck my apple tree. We are loaded down with blossoms and I really want a load of apples this year.

Well, I should actually try and tackle some of the paperwork on my desk. 

Cold Front and Trying to Keep my Seedlings Alive

 So we have a horrible cold snap happening. I just looked out my office window, and it is snowing!!

With little sun today, I am afraid that my greenhouse will not heat up enough throughout the day to generate good heat for overnight. The temps will be in the 20s. I have a ceramic electric heater that we used under our camper this winter to keep the pipes warm and the ground from freezing too much. I think I will be running an extension cord out to the greenhouse and running the small ceramic heater tonight.

We have an extension cord that has our patio string lights attached to it and I will just unplug the string lights and plug in my heater instead. It isn't like we will be hanging out on the patio tonight!!

I was able to get my electric heater in place before the temps dropped too much. The greenhouse was nice and toasty the next morning even though it was frosty and around 20 degrees outside.

The sun came out later that morning and warmed everything up. I still had to use the heater all weekend. I even need it again tonight, but I think after tonight I won't need it anymore.

We worked on cleaning up the backyard more and Keith set up a sun sail for us to use throughout the summer. It is easy to put up and takedown. The winds can get pretty hefty some days, so we will only put it up when we are outside.

I have a few more flower beds to clean in the backyard and then I move on to the front yard flower beds. They are not half as bad as the backyard ones. I think by mid-week I can sow some sunflower, shasta daisy, and wildflower seeds around the back patio and in the far corner flower bed. I am looking forward to morning coffee surrounded by a meadow of wildflowers!!

Crochet Clothing: How hard is it really?

 Although I have not picked up a crochet hook in nearly 2 years, I am interested in making a couple of tunic sweaters. Therefore, I have been perusing my typical multi-media platform: Pinterest. As a result, I have pinned quite a few free and purchasable patterns.

I believe the most significant thing about crocheting a sweater is going to be the correct type of yarn. I have been reading up on bamboo yarn and cotton/bamboo blend yarn as a great medium to use to get that desired draping effect.

I did start a crochet tank top back in June of 2016, but the yarn I was using ended up being discontinued, and I have yet to find a replacement that will match and drape as well as the yarn I was using. I really would love to be able to complete that project, but until I can find a yarn that will match, I don't see it happening.

This is as far as I have gotten on my Ventura Swing Tank Top. I had to stop because I ran out of that denim blue, and Cascade Yarns does not make the Sateen one anymore. The cool thing about this yarn is that it is acrylic. Yet, it has been discontinued, and every time I have tried to find a yarn that is compatible, the feel just does not compare. I might pull it back out and again look to see how much of the yarn I actually have. Maybe a bamboo yarn will match the texture and drape of the Sateen.

I believe the first crochet top I want to begin is this really cute summertime one made by HookedoPatterns on Etsy. This is made with 100% Cotton DK weight yarn. I think it will be a pretty simple pattern, but again, it is all about the right yarn. The pattern is also free on Hooked on Patterns blog at https://hookedonpatterns.com/crochet-blog/free-summer-top-crochet-pattern-aviva

We have a very cold snap happening in our neck of the woods. I have to mitigate some heat issues in my greenhouse after work today. 

Hope all have a great weekend. I have a lot on my list-to-dos and will be very busy over the weekend.

Life Update!!

 We are now in 2022, and lord, things have changed in my own life and in society and around the world. I completed my Bachelor of Business Administration in late April last year. I began my Master's program in June of last year. Unfortunately, I got really sick in November and could not get back into the groove of taking classes any longer. So I am currently unenrolled in my Master's program. I thought I would feel guilty and regret this decision, but I am actually feeling great about it.

I have not started back to crocheting on any basis. I have collected more yarn, of course but just haven't committed to a project. 

I am currently moving into the vegetable garden project. I have never grown any type of vegetable in my whole existence. I have watched my mom grow beautiful vegetable gardens as a kid and helped her maintain them. But I have not actually attempted to grow vegetables by myself. 

I am trying to learn more about my area for growing vegetables. Due to the long winters and short warm months, we have a very short growing window. I purchased a small portable greenhouse and did begin some seeds inside the early part of March. I can say that attempt failed, and I have a significant learning curve to conquer.

Disregard the dead plant in my greenhouse. It was a plant that was on my back porch from the previous year. I tried to keep the geranium thriving throughout winter, but I could not. We had a few old bricks from our front yard flower beds that I had removed and replaced with a different border. They make for a lovely rustic floor, plus also help retain heat from the day sun to counteract our cold nights. The area next to the greenhouse against the dog fence will end up being my raised container garden once the seedlings are ready to transplant. We still have to build a fence in order to keep the dogs out. 

This is a pic of where I got my bricks from. There were quite a bit of those bricks around all the front yard flower beds. I love the way the beds look now.

This Mother's Day, I worked on planting a lot of seeds and placing them in my greenhouse. I have a few seeds sprouting. The ones that are really flourishing are the radishes that my daughter planted. She pretty much dumped the whole package of seeds into one container. I will have to divide very soon so I can actually have great radishes this harvest season.

I also am working on learning how to regrow produce scraps. I had a lot of organic celery that I bought at the grocery store for my daily celery juicing regiment. I started them off in small mason jars filled with water. I just recently transplanted them into their own container. We shall see how it turns out.

I am also turning my daughter's old cat cage into a vegetable cage for herbs and shade-loving vegetable plants such as lettuces. I am still working on comprising an herb collection. Trying to figure out which ones I will utilize the most so I am not wasting any plants. The wooden slats are from an old flower trellis we had made years ago from an old futon bed frame. The trellis has finally become worthless and too unstable, so we tore it down and I created another shelf inside the cage. It has been working out great when I place my tray of planted lettuce seeds on it during the day to absorb morning sunlight and enjoy the shade during the day.

For now, we are chugging along. We have a lot of projects around the old homestead to complete this season as well as remodeling the inside of our 5th wheel camper. Our future plans are to become full-time RVers, so I am going to enjoy the gardens as much as I can these next couple of years.

Gathering supplies for upcoming project!!

Well I do have around 2 months to plan my upcoming project. I am perusing my Ravelry account looking at what I have in my stash inventory. I did go through some of my yarn bins this past weekend trying to find the perfect yarn combo. 

Backstory, the one room I had all my yarn organized in and accounted for became my daughter's room a year and a half ago. All my supplies are in different areas of the house now since her old room was so much smaller. I have yet to completely organize the new yarn room and so I have bins stuffed in every closet or container I could find. So I really have to organize these next few weekends so I will be ready to go.

The notes for the Throwback Blanket pattern stated that the designer used Caron One Pound yarn. I like Caron, but have found that in a blanket it becomes pealie (not sure that is a word, but it is where little lint knots come up while crocheting a large item).  I am thinking of using either a cotton mixture or wool mixture. I want the blanket to last a lifetime. 

I have a good bit of Cascade Sport Yarn that is a nice wool mixture, but I am worried the weight is not right. I guess the best thing to do is have a few sets of yarn ready and see which ones work up best.

These are the lionbrand natural organic yarn colors that I was working up about 5 years ago for a baby blanket, but the pattern and yarn just did not go well. Then the baby was born and I never finished. I frogged the project and have all this soft organic natural yarn that I think might do the new project justice.

Then we have the Cascade Sport yarn - I love the Walnut and Doeskin Natural with a touch of the purple as an accent color. I just don't know if I have enough skeins of either colorway to complete the blanket.

One thing about project planning, you get to see what you have and make things workout in the best way.

Pinterest Inspirations - Crochet Afghans

 So over a year and half has flown by since I last blogged on this blog. A lot has happened as with the rest of the world with this pandemic. My family has remained healthy but like many the mental aspects of a pandemic has gotten to us all. 

I started back to college in Jan 2020 to finish up my Bachelor's Degree. I am currently taking my last class and will officially graduate in April 2021!!! Very excited about this accomplishment! It has been a struggle with the pandemic and some weeks having all of the family working from home, but we have made it through!!

Well as the title suggests, I have some great Pinterest Inspirations that I am itching to begin as soon as my last class is done. Yes, I have not picked up my crochet hook except to move it out of the way in almost 2 years!!!!!! So as a graduation present to myself, I have pinned a few projects I want to tackle and complete before next Christmas.

This is a purchasable pattern through AnyutaDesignsLife on Etsy.com. I love the texture of this afghan and will purchase the pattern. It also looks like a quick couple of weeks project. It will be first on my agenda to complete since I should have enough yarn in the color scheme. I definitely keep a good stock of neutrals and blues.

Now this is one that will take me some time to complete, but it is just a fabulous looking afghan!! I do love the chevron pattern, but this one is unique with how each row is completed and then stitched together making a really cool pattern and texture! This is a purchasable pattern by TheHatandI on Etsy.com. This one is going to take some time just figuring out a color scheme and what type of yarn I will want to use. But it will be a wonderful project!!

I love the texture of this afghan as well! Plus the color scheme chosen for this one is amazing. Cool thing about this one is that it is a free pattern. You can find it over at Meet Me At Mikes blog.

So I have a huge task ahead if I want to complete all three afghans by Christmas 2021!! The hardest part now will be choosing the yarn and colors! Since it has been such a long time since I have actually completed a project, I had no clue that Craftsy no longer sells any yarn or supporting supplies for their classes. It was the main shop I would use to restock due to their easy ordering forum. Now I have to find a new online yarn supply store that sells yarn in some bulk buys. I have no idea where to begin!!

I do have a good stock of yarn, but I don't think I have enough of one type that could do these afghans. So I will be slowly going through my stock and seeing what will work as well as doing some research on which online yarn supplier is best to go through nowadays.