I love free food!

Well, this is our 3rd or 4th year having a garden. And it's the first year we've planted the entire thing! We got a little over-eager the first year when we tilled a huge square in our back yard, and drew up plans for where everything was going to go. Little did we know just how little time we would have to maintain it. As I said, we didn't even get the whole thing planted and we ended up with a weed jungle in the back half. Over the last few summers we've had our own young children, and also had some foster children come and go, and some come and stay. This year, since the weeds have really overtaken, we had our neighbor till it for us. And then, one day, Derrick and I were able to spend an ENTIRE afternoon planting while the kids played in the yard around us. I have to say, it feels like such a relief to actually be able to do a project like this and get it done in an afternoon. It's been YEARS since we've had the opportunity to get anything done besides cleaning up bodily functions.

We started our seeds in December, in milk cartons. A few of them worked (broccoli, carrots, and basil), but most did not. Maybe our climate isn't quite right. Or maybe it never got cold enough.

THIS beautiful bunch of green leaves is volunteer romaine lettuce coming back for the 2nd year. I love volunteer veggies, it's free food without ANY work! I don't have a picture, but I also have a few bunches of spinach that never died over the winter. I had no idea spinach was so hardy. About once a month, all winter long, I would pick a small handful of fresh spinach from the garden and throw it into a salad or something I was cooking. And as soon as it was warm enough, more spinach plants started cropping up. The frugalista in me cannot even express how much FREE FOOD from my own garden excited me. Not only is it free, but it can be exactly what I want it to be. The foods I want, as organic as I want (which is totally).

Did I mention my husband has an amazing green thumb? I could never do this without him.