This has definitely been the winter that won’t end.  I can’t remember ever having a winter with so many snow storms.  I’ve been dying to plant our peas, but with freezing temps and snow in the forecast every week, I’ve been too scared to put them in the ground.  Fingers crossed I’ll get a chance this weekend!!

While we are on the subject of seeds, I’ll share my most favorite seed companies.  In 2012 when I decided to try my hand at starting some seeds, I just grabbed some packets at Target and ordered a couple more from out of a seed catalog that happened to be delivered to my home.  When I realized how great it was, starting from seed, and how many more varieties were available this way, I was hooked!  I started doing some research because, A-I’m a science nerd and always research everything to death and B-I believe very strongly in supporting really good companies.  Now there are tons of good ones out there, but I found two that I absolutely LOVE.

Botanical Interests is a family owned business that has signed the Safe Seed Pledge and are a perfect choice for the beginning garden.  They have tons of heirloom and organic seeds and absolutely no GMOs.  Their website and seed packets contain a wealth of information.  When I am new at something I prefer to have everything spelled out for me so I’m not left doubting if I’ve done it correctly.  These packets are just fabulous and so pretty too!  (and we all know how important that is!  🙂  You can’t make a wrong choice when it comes to their seeds.  For me, the worst thing about this company is having to choose what to order because I want them all! Their catalog is free, so pop on over to their website and request one.

Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds is my other favorite seed company.  Also family owned, this company sells only heirloom seeds and the owners are dedicated to preserving seed varieties and fighting against GMOs.  I can not even begin to explain to you the awesomeness that is their seed catalog.  I have spent more hours than I can count pouring through the pages, and my wishlist at Baker Creek is a mile long.  I am continually amazed by how many varieties they sell and have found so many cool vegetables for my garden the past two years.  They have a free catalog and the absolute king of all seed catalogs that you can purchase for a few bucks.  I have both and they are getting worn out.  🙂

You honestly can’t go wrong purchasing from either company.  Their customer service is top notch and I am always thrilled with the germination rate of their seeds.  In fact, last year I started WAY too many seeds and was sad to have to thin so many because it seemed like such a waste!  What a great problem to have!  This year I knew pretty much all of the seeds would sprout, so I planted fewer and got the numbers I wanted, still having enough to share tomato seedlings with my family.  Just look at these gorgeous tomatoes, peppers and friends!

And I’ll confess my nerdiness now and tell you that I get giddy looking at these little guys and think the smell of tomato plants is one of the best smells there is!  🙂  Come on spring!  Be here for good this time!

I am going to call 2012 my very first garden.  Before that I had one or two failed attempts at a tiny vegetable patch.  I wasn’t serious about those.  I just wanted a few super yummy homegrown tomatoes, but life soon got in the way, and the weeds quickly took over past the point of no return.  In 2012 I was really focused on growing healthy food for my family.  I bought seeds and a few little plants.  My husband borrowed a tiller and I made a really good attempt, which was relatively successful.  We enjoy tons of cherry tomatoes and some cucumbers, and a few peppers.  Not bad for a first attempt.  The weeds were pretty vicious and battling them was pretty exhausting.  I also watered a lot.  Our summers are hot.  This gardening thing was work.  Work paid with tomatoes wasn’t too shabby though.

Summer started to wrap up.  I had bookmarked a cool looking gardening documentary months before, and happened to watch it right before Hurricane Sandy came through.  I was hooked pretty quickly.  No tilling?  Few weeds?  Huge, delicious fruits and veggies?  Sign me up!  Let me tell you, it was so life changing  I am really excited to be able to share it whenever I can.  It’s so simple, most of us miss it.  In order to grow healthy, nutritious food, your soil must be healthy and full of vitamins and minerals.  We think we know the best way to grow, and yet the earth was designed to do it perfectly, if only we take a second to look.  It’s a wonderful film, and very generously the women who made it allow all who wish to, to view it for free.

BACK TO EDEN

You can watch the entire film for free here:
http://www.backtoedenfilm.com/

Trust me though, you will probably want to buy the dvd so you can watch it over and over and share with your friends.  Also, once you’ve watched the film and digested the information, check out the YouTube page L2Survive for TONS of interviews with Paul, a wonderful garden tour in its entirety and TONS of other little clips with information.  L2Survive on YouTube

I’ll post photos of last year’s garden soon.  I got my woodchips in the fall of 2012 and planted using this method in the spring of 2013.  I am extremely excited to plant this year after seeing the results last year after such a short time.  It’s one of those things that just keeps getting better and better with time.

I’ve been playing with the idea of this for quite a while now.  I’m not sure why the idea of a blog could be so daunting, but today I decided to just get it started and quit over-thinking it.  So why the blog?  What do I have to offer?  I feel like the past five years have been a major turning point and beginning to the life I really want.  Really, if I’m being honest, the beginning of the life I never knew I wanted until now.

Five years ago this May, our newest addition only weeks old, life changed and my eyes were opened.  This was baby #3 for us, so we were far from being newbie parents.  I was nursing and our 3 or 4 week old baby began having blood in his stools which was soon attributed to food allergies, most likely milk.  I took all dairy out of my diet, and while this seemed to improve things, it didn’t fix them completely.  Through many doctor visits and much research I was eventually able to identify the culprits, remove them completely from my diet and continue nursing.  What was he allergic to?  Milk, soy, corn, beef, potato and chocolate.  If you are a label reader you will know that milk, soy and corn are in EVERYTHING you buy in a package.  I couldn’t comprehend how this brand new little baby could possibly be allergic to so much, and didn’t realize what I would have to do to keep them out of our diets.

It amazed me how different food tasted that was made from scratch.  I always thought we ate healthy, but until you can no longer eat fast food or pre-packaged food, you have no idea how much salt is in everything and how good fresh food can taste.  Over the years since I have read A LOT and watched a lot of documentaries on our food system and it has lit a fire under me to learn how to provide my family with the healthiest and safest food possible.  I don’t believe that there was a single thing wrong with my son at birth.  He was perfectly and wonderfully made.  His brand new little body was able to do something that mine was not.  It showed me that much of the food we are putting into our bodies is poison, for lack of a better term.  So much is genetically modified and pumped full of and covered with pesticides and herbicides and grown not based on how nutritious it is, but how it will hold up and make it to the store looking perfect.  We have factory farms growing the animals for our tables that are a disgrace to our species.

I want to grow what I feed my children.  I want to buy locally what I can’t grow, as much as possible.  I want to support those who choose a more kinder, sustainable path.  And I want to share with others what I’ve learned by putting all of the best resources I’ve found in one spot.  I will not, for second, claim to be an expert.  This is all my opinion and my experiences.  Take it with a grain of salt and do your own research.  We can’t continue to be sheep blindly following the herd and pretending to not see what is happening around us.  We need to make big changes, if not for ourselves then for our children.

“Let us walk softly on the earth with all living beings great and small, remembering as we go, that one God, kind and wise, created all. ”

― Ancient American Indian Prayer