The Only Leverage....

First of all, Mr. C. and I have been living at a mile-a-minute since two Fridays ago. On one hand, we're only able to function at this pace because we've been perfectly in tune with one another. (Praise God!) On the other hand, we can only keep up this way for so long, right? Right? There is no end in sight, which is both exciting and exhausting.

This past weekend presented the arrival of perfect Spring weather here. Saturday afternoon also presented all three children napping for the same two hours. Mr. C. and I worked on the site of our soon-to-be garden: It had been landscaped with rocks by our home's previous owners. We shoveled, and shoveled, and shoveled some more. We dug out a ton of rocks. Literally. It was fantastic. The sun shining, the breeze fresh and soft, the dirt just damp enough to give way easily, the aroma of turned earth rising up like perfume.

Two hours of shoveling cleared out about one-third of the area we're wanting to plant.

I used everything I'd ever learned about "lever," "fulcrum," and "pivot" in my search for the most ergonomic shoveling posture.

Given the current economic climate here in the States, my goal is to have our house paid off as soon as possible, and have the only "leverage" remaining in my life that of the shovel's handle against my thigh.

What a Weekend! (or, An Appeal to Gardeners) -- 3/2/09

Saturday, Mr. C. and I took the children with us to the bank to close the loan refinancing our home. "Herding cats" comes to mind. The loan officer was very gracious with us. It is such a relief, given the current economic atmosphere, to have been able to re-fi to a shorter term with lower interest. I'd consider this a huge step towards our goal of financial independence.

While Tigaloo was sleeping Saturday afternoon, I cooked up a huge pot of chicken and dumplings. Then Mr. C. and I started seed shopping for our garden. This will be our 3rd attempt at gardening. (The first summer after we married, we planted a garden in a tiny patch of dirt near the confluence of Ignorance and Enthusiasm, and our yield was nil.) This time around, we've the experience of having successfully grown 3 tomato plants and some lettuce, which sets us one tiny step above Woefully Ignorant. And we still have plenty of Enthusiasm.

Here's the list of the seeds we ordered:
Amaranth:
- Love-Lies-Bleeding
- Golden Giant
Beans:
- Jacob's Cattle
- Blue Lake Bush 274
- Hutterite Soup
Beet:
- Albino
Carrots:
- St. Valery
- Berlicum 2
Cowpeas:
- Purple Hull Pinkeye
Marigolds:
- Harlequin
Herbs:
- Genovese Basil
- Slo-Bolt Cilantro
- Lemongrass (to repel mosquitos)
Lettuce:
- Tom Thumb
- Forellenschluss
- Little Gem
Peppers:
- California Wonder
Chard:
- Five Color Silverbeet (Rainbow Chard)
Squash:
- Sweet Dumpling (winter)
- Crookneck - Early Golden Summer
- Cocozella di Napoli (zucchini)
Tomatoes:
- Arkansas Traveler
- German Lunchbox
- Mama Leone
- Rev. Morrow's Long Keeper
- Cherokee Purple
- Isis Candy Cherry
- Yellow Pear
Watermelons:
- Blacktail Mountain
- Wilson's Sweet
- Black Seeded Ice Cream
- Golden Midget

So we're probably in way over our heads. I would be appreciative of any suggestions from any gardeners out there! Anyone? Anyone?