Ahhh I love spring time.

Okay this fact would probably shock my parents, but one of my favorite things is to get totally dirty, sweaty and exhausted working out in the yard(and on my farmers tan)and then be able to get a hot shower and lay on the bed.  The only thing better is to be able to get into clean sheets as well;  Oooo, Oooo sheets dried on the clothes line( or for those of you of the environmental persuasion, a solar dryer).  Today I get to do that very thing.  My plan is to workout in the yard today. I did some work outside yesterday as well and had a great time.  While I work outside my tomato babies will play outside in the sun like they did yesterday.  I have a huge list of to do's outside.  Baking and housecleaning will wait until the rain comes tomorrow.  I am hopeful to plant my potatoes, onions, and beets today.  I also have my burn permit to burn a small amount of the cleared off stuff, but most of it will go into a wood chipper.  I want to get out to my pecan trees and go ahead and cut the bark where the kudzu strangled it.  Any more then that I will be thankful for accomplishing, but I am going to try to accomplish more.  So I am off to work outside.  You guys have a great day!

!@#$$%^& and an update

Hello all!  Before I begin my rant(well kind.  I am not nearly so frustrated as I was) I wanted to let you guys know I have fixed the two previous postings that had items missing.  What is she talking about?  Well you can find the first post http://frugalmavensdailyrave.blogspot.com/2011/11/apple-walnut-pancakes.html and this will now show you the actual recipe for the pancakes I made that day.  Please forgive me for not just re-naming this link, but I don't know how(smile).  Then the second problem post can be found http://frugalmavensdailyrave.blogspot.com/2011/12/soooooo.html.  I hope both of these links work.  Fingers crossed.

So now onto my rant.  Day before yesterday I spent a decent amount of time re-potting some tomato plants due to over crowding.  I finally got them done and had let them stay out of direct sun for the rest of the day to give them time to recover.  So yesterday morning I place them in front of  my bedroom window.  I have storm windows, and while I get good sunlight though them, the sunlight has a hard time reaching all of my plants.  Well I decided I would open the inside part of the storm window to allow my seedlings to get as close as possible to the sunlight.  I literally get them positioned and turn my back and the inside storm window comes loose from its latch and slams down onto my seedlings; sending seedlings, pots and potting soil flying.  It was a mess to be sure.  I was afraid I would lose them.  I did lose some of them, but managed to salvage about 2/3 of the seedlings.  So far.  It is a wait and see.  I re-potted them and have kept them out of the sun.  This morning will tell.  I plan on letting them sit in front of the window so we will see how they do.  I also canned some chicken and some stew meat, as well as baked my bread for the week.  Here is a pic:

I love how it all looks lined up on the counter.  Those are my little wrecked baby seedlings.  I have another flat that didn't suffer so.  Total tomato seedlings so far is 69.  Go ahead and laugh Daddy.  I need tomato sauce!  That takes a lot of tomatoes.  I also planted a few snow pea seedlings out in window boxes.  I am hopeful they do well also.  I am thinking not to many of those as they are better eaten fresh and not frozen.  I have 7 of those plants. Here are half of them:

There is such a long list of things to be done and it is hard to not feel overwhelmed, but I will just do as my mom always tells me "just do the next thing".  I will get done what I can get done.  Before I leave you guys I thought I would give you something to smile about.  I don't think I have posted this before, but if I have just over look me.  I think he wants in: OPEN, OPEN, OPEN

I know you aren't supposed to wish your life away...

BUT I AM SOOOO READY FOR SPRING!  Okay, i'm calm now.  I have a list of cool weather crops to get in the ground and other springy type things to do, but I can't get the ground to dry up enough.  Makes me a bit nervous then I get ansy.  I do have some things I am able to do now so that helps.  Last week I traded for some yard work.  This wonderful man cleared my back property. Here he is in the process:

That tree in front of him is my oldest peach tree.  Next to the peach tree is my thornless blackberry vines on a lattice.
I feel I have to show the process so here are more pics:

And more clearing:

To the left of that marvelous machine in the above picture you can catch a glance of my garden.  It isn't very pretty right now, but bear with me and by spring it will hopefully be wonderful.  So now that he is done clearing, I have this on my plate to somehow get rid of  this summer.  Ummm and it will probably take me the summer:

Behind this pile of wood, a little to the right of the center of the pile, you can see two seemingly young trees. They are pecan trees that were uncovered during this clearing process.  The wonderful gentleman told me I have given them their best chance just by uncovering them.  He said to just throw some fertilizer around the drip line and they would be fine.  They were strangled by kudzu, and so to help them come back strong, I need to also cut the bark where the kudzu was choking them and let them fill back out.  I love the fact that I have pecan trees.  I have been wanting them, but it takes so long for them to start producing and they are tough to plant just right.  Now I have them.  Thank you Lord!  Cause He is the one that planted them, not me.  Other trees uncovered were hickory, and tulip maple trees.  I have gone out and begun the process of cutting some of the wood pile.  Mainly I am cutting longer, straighter stakes for my garden.  I have to say one thing about these seed trees; they make awesome stakes. The diameter is about 2-2.5 in and the length is anywhere from 7-9 ft.  I have about 20ish so far.  I need plenty cause I am hoping to be able to use them for not only stakes, but make sort of a fence for my beans to climb on.  I have plans for a lot of climbers this year: green beans, navy beans, pinto beans, english peas, and cucumbers.  Then I have tomatoes to stake and peppers can always use support.  I have some cages and trellis already thanks to my mom and dad, but needed more and figured these trees could be put to use.  Waste not want not!  Today's plan it to re-pot some tomato seedlings, plant some lettuce and spinach in window boxes on my deck, general housekeeping, and make bread.  I love this time of year, and am anxious to get started.   So!  My todo list wont get ta done until I get up from here and get to work.  Hope everyone has a productive day!  God bless!

Weather man says serious freeze this weekend.

As it stands right now, my peach trees haven't bloomed, but they are seriously close.  I think that will save them for now.  My blueberry bushes have some blooms open and that concerns me.  I have plastic to cover them, but not sure if it will help them with a hard freeze.  What to do,what to do.  I did get out in the garden this past week and start getting things ready  for spring.  It amazes me how bad a garden can get just over the winter.  I think one reason is the fact that we have had such a warm winter that the weeds haven't gone dormant.  Primarily growing in my garden is clover.  I hear tell that is a good thing cause it means I have plenty of nitrogen in the dirt.  However, it covers my garden so I am slowly but surely getting that situated.  Not to mention the bunny factor.  Makes me want to sit out on my porch and just pick the little critters off.  Don't tell Peta.  I have planted my seedlings in the house and am just awaiting their little heads popping out of the ground.  Fingers crossed.
I have been a bad blogger in the fact that I haven't been taking the pics like I want in order to make my posts more interesting.  I mean lets be honest here.  I doubt many people love to hear of my day...Seriously.  I want my blog to be something interesting and/or informative that I can impart to others.   I may have to re think this blog and vow to either make it better, or do without it.  I don't have many readers right now and that may have something to do with it, but in order to possibly get more readers, I need to make it something worth reading.  Anyway.... I will try better next time.  Daddy if you are lurking HELLO!  The rest of you have a great day.