Eat your vegetables...

I am always trying to find a way to save a buck or few. I shop second hand, love the auction, know where to buy the cheapest groceries without using coupons and how to buy name brand without paying full price... I am not usually a brand snob but give me my Dove, Dawn, Downy, Wen and Levi's or rip the heart from my very chest lol. I am also always up for a challenge.

My latest challenge as well as next gardening experiment will be an attempt to grow a vegetable garden through the winter. I will be gardening approximately 100 square foot of garden space with the use of cold frames and plastic covered structures.

I picked up the book Four-Season Harvest by Eliot Coleman which is supposed to be the New England winter gardener's bible. I have surfed the web and ordered my first shipment of seeds. I was amazed by the amount of vegetables that will make it through a good part of the winter or even the whole winter with some protection. I will say that as much as I like Park Seed, Burpee is cheaper and has a larger selection.

My first order of seeds consist of the following:
beets, broccoli, brussel's sprouts, a cabbage blend, *carrots, cauliflower, collard greens, parsnips, *a mix of lettuce mixes, *radishes, peas, *spinach, *turnips, *swiss chard, mustard greens, *parsley, and *leeks. I am going to see how long I can keep basil going.

Future attempts will include:
broccoli rabe, *endive, *kale, *arugula, *kohlrabi, okra, *radicchio, *rutabagas, *sorrel, and *onions.

*grow most of winter season Nov-May

I currently don't have that kind of variety in my culinary life. I haven't even tried a few of the vegetables listed above but I'm always up for trying new foods. Many of the vegetables listed I love but don't usually buy them. I'm American Irish, how can I not love leeks, parsnips, turnips, rutabagas and cabbage?

When the seeds arrive I will start most of them in 6 packs while my summer garden finishes it's production... heck, I haven't even had a home grown tomato yet this summer. I will amend the soil with compost, leaf mould, green sand, lime, and blood meal before transplanting the seedlings later in the season.

For the last 10 years; I have only used natural methods of fertilizing and insect control. I believe in it so much I have dedicated the majority of my yard to a wildlife garden. My garden provides food, shelter, water and a place to raise young for beneficial insects like spiders and pollinators, butterflies, birds and hummingbirds.

I am learning about and planting more perennial fruits, vegetables and herbs in my garden. I am learning how to push the envelope when it comes to my gardening zone. I am becoming more adventuresome when it comes to gardening, I am looking forward into investing into a lemon tree and adding artichokes and horse radish to the garden. I would love an esplanade fruit tree grafted with a few different kinds of fruit on one tree. I may even net one of my crab apple trees from the robins and try my hand at crab apple jelly this winter.

Another trick I am going to learn is how to grow sprouts, and I'm not talking plain old bean sprouts... I'm talking about a mix which includes but isn't limited to alfalfa, broccoli, clover and radish sprouts.

Another year has passed...

So here I am a year since I have last blogged, my grammar and punctuation haven't improved but I never claimed to be a scholar.

I am still walking and hiking with a little bit of jogging in between. I have to admit openly I have failed miserably with the stretching, weight training and core exercises... I suck. I still have to give myself credit for being in the best shape I have been in probably the last 20 years. I have four months before Reunion to buff up...

Currently I am:
43 1/2 years old, closer to 45 than 40... "It turns me on to think of growing old"
5' 8" tall... thank you Grampy and Ritchie (my father)
150 pounds, I've fought with 10 pounds either way for years, I will win!!
I refuse to give my measurements, truth be told I could care less; I am comfortable with my current size. I wear a size 8 pant comfortably.

I would like to be 140-143 pounds by Reunion in November, in general a lighter weight is healthier. I was on track in June but fell off somehow, now I need to make myself accountable:

I need to watch what I eat, that means keeping a journal; I find I make better choices when I keep track of what I eat.

I need to get up and move... by that I mean giving myself a good hour long cardio kick 3-5 times a week. I would also like to take up jumping rope, I'd be thrilled to be able to do 20 minutes at a time. I'd also like to take Irish Step Dancing at the John Boyle O'Reilly... a good cardio kick and Irish beer what could be better?

I need to stretch every day... Yoga is a wonderful thing, I will keep telling myself that; 10 minutes a day should do it.

Weight training 3 times a week, not one of my favorite things to do but it wont kill me either.

Joy for joy my core, the place I need the most help and the place I hate to work on the least... if I do it once a week it will be a miricle but 3 times would be great.

A must... I need to Meditate every day for at least 10 minutes, just for sanity reasons alone. One's spiritual well being requires moments of contemplation.

This is the first day of the rest of my life as they say so here's to running a couple and walking a couple too... I noticed the dog getting pudgy, she needs to be walked more; I'm sure she wont complain.