Thursday, May 27, 2010

The Homestead...........

Last weekend we finally had a day of sunshine!  We have been anxiously waiting to get started on our front yard so we jumped at the opportunity!  It was warm enough for me to wear a tank top, that is saying a lot! 

Chris got out the rototiller and made two laps around the yard.  I then took the rake and started raking the dirt as smoothly as I could.  I am trying to make the dirt as level as possible, but it's kind of hard to do.  Especially when you have a little someone behind you the entire time thinking the new "dirt yard" is the best place on earth!  We have now nicknamed Maggie "dirtworldgirl".  LOL 

We had some HUGE rocks to move and of course underneath them were a lot of little ant colonies so I had to do some pest control in those areas. 

Here are some pictures, big difference from the last ones I posted the other day!


Just starting the job!


Digging out some old Rosemary root


Daisy Mae supervising the day


Watching Daddy rototill


Maggie would be perfectly content if we left the yard like this!


I'm surprised at how much work we got done, especially because when you work in the yard like this it drives neighbors out of their homes and the chit chat begins! LOL
After we did the front yard we pressure washed our back patio/deck so I can stain and seal it soon! 

So here we sit in "Sunny California", the rain has come back and will be here for at least the rest of the week.  Our strawberry clover seeds came in the mail.  They are sitting on my counter anxiously waiting to be spread.  Can't wait for my state to live up to it's name and give us some sunshine!  I am ready to get this lawn put in!











Monday, May 17, 2010

Not enough time in a day.....

Doesn't it sometimes feel like you just don't have enough time in a day?  I have been feeling like that lately.  In fact, I have been feeling very overwhelmed lately, that is certainly reflecting in my lack of blogging.  We have had a lot going on, a lot of decisions to make.  I am happy to say that the overwhelmed feeling is going away and I feel very confident and happy with the decisions we have come to.

Before Maggie was born we decided we were going to homeschool her.  I have never wavered on that decision.  Ever.  The county we lived in when that decision was made had a lot of resources for homeschoolers and a lot of great places for learning, and if there wasn't something in that immediate area, we were close enough to San Fransisco and other places that made homeschooling adventures fun.  About 3 years ago we moved to another county.  It's much more remote.  We moved here because it's quieter, more rural and the people are by far friendlier.  We didn't want Maggie in the "hustle and bustle".  While we love the environment we are in. we are sadly disappointed with the lack of things for kids to do here. 
When Chris started working at his new job he told me how the local charter school is directly across the street.  He sees the kids outside gardening, walking down to the creek, and playing in the play area.  He sounded really happy when he was talking about it, so I decided to do some research.  Even though we have the best elementary school directly behind our home I have never once wanted to send Maggie to it.  I get this unexplainable pit in my tummy when I think of it.  But the Charter school, what Chris saw, what I read and the few conversations I had with different people at the school made me feel good.  We sent in our enrollment papers and are hoping that there will be enough room for her in Kindergarten in the new school year.  We are waiting to hear back.
Maggie has been BEGGING to GO to school.  So I figure I will let her try it, and if it doesn't work then homeschooling it is. 

I feel at ease and peaceful, even excited about this decision.

We have finally started our front yard.  I am so excited about this I can't hardly stand it!  We wanted to put in lawn, but the water is so expensive  we decided to look into "lawn alternatives."  We found Strawberry Clover.  I am so excited to see how this turns out.  We have visited Real Goods many times and always comment on how nice their "lawn" is.  It's always so green and lush.  They use Strawberry Clover.  Chris' boss loaned us his rototiller and he started doing it yesterday.  He will work on it some more today.  Once he gets the dirt worked up I will rake it and spread the seed. 
We decided on Strawberry Clover for several different reasons, not just the water factor.  Although that was huge.  Here are some other great benefits to using Strawberry Clover:

  • Naturally prevents erosion
  • Possesses nitrogen-rich legumes
  • Great for a variety of soil conditions
  • Prefers sun to partial shade
  • Produces fragrant red and white flowers
  • One ounce covers 125 sq. ft.
  • Can grow as tall as 6" - 18" at a mature height
  • Does not require fertilizer if clippings are mulched
  • Drought tolerant
  • Pest resistant
  • Weed resistant
  • Does not discolor with liquid animal waste
So, you can see why we love the idea of Strawberry Clover!  What a PERFECT alternative!  I can't wait to get the front done so we can do the backyard! 

Here are a few pictures I took yesterday, you can see how terrible it looks!  The house will be getting painted also, so hopefully everything will look so much better in the next few months!



The boys pulling out the UGLY bushes on the side of the yard


As you can see, we have a lot of work ahead of us!

I was going to talk about the cats and kittens today, but I think I will leave that for a post for tomorrow! 

Hope everyone has a great day!

-Bobbi










 

Thursday, May 6, 2010

Aprons: Go ahead and tie one on - latimes.com

I was on Facebook and saw that someone had this article linked and I loved it!  Wanted to pass it on. 
Check it out!

I don't know about you, but I LOVE aprons, so this article made me smile.  :)

Aprons: Go ahead and tie one on - latimes.com

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Shrimp Pineapple and Mango Salad

Both Maggie and I have been craving shrimp.  So when I stumbled across the recipe for this I knew immediately it was what we were having for dinner.  It did not disappoint!  If you would like to make it, click here

It definitely tasted as good as it looks!



Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Ocean themed study (K)

Maggie is all about the ocean and the beach.  The weather is warming up and she is ready to go!  Luckily living on the west coast we have the coastline right by us.  A trip to the ocean/beach is a quick drive.  Our "daycation" to Glass Beach last month has really got her fired up to go back. 

I found this cute Ocean themed study on Love Two Teach.  It's a 9 page pdf that is free for download.  There is patterning cards, tracing words, coloring, matching and even a little math sheet.  The math sheet is perfect for Maggie right now as she keeps asking me to give her "math tests."  LOL 

Maggie has already started! 







I thought this was really cute and wanted to pass it on.   Enjoy!

Monday, May 3, 2010

Free Butterfly Thematic Unit Study (Prek-1)

This is a great 77 page thematic unit study on butterflies.  You can get it free this week only!

I just downloaded it myself and there is a ton of great stuff!  Sight words, number worksheets, number words, colors, patterning activities, science activities for an entire month...it's packed!

To download this study you must be a registered member of Teachers pay Teachers.  Registration is also free.

To get your free butterfly unit study click here!

A big thank you to the creator of this study, Kristen Walsky for being so generous!



Print

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails