Potatoes Taste Best Fresh From The Garden!

We harvested our potatoes!

Some were tiny!!  I guess we could have waited a while but they weren't green and the plants were shadowing the rest of the garden so they had to be taken out!!

Wow!  Look at those tasty potatoes!  The grey one is the seed...root...?  hmm, not sure what you call that?  We didn't eat that one:)

We really enjoyed our yukon potatoes.  Next year we will plant them on the hill so they don't take over our cute little garden.  I heard you can grow potatoes almost anywhere!

Today each of the kids got to eat a strawberry out of the garden.  I didn't get any photos but it was a very exciting moment!!

The Garden Is Growing!

Apparently our thumbs are a little bit green.  Our garden is looking great.  I am really happy with the outcome as this is the first time we have attempted any gardening.  Here is Mailee harvesting some Romaine lettuce.  The red cabbage leaves have lots of holes.  we are open to suggestions about that:)

These are our peas.  Next year I will plant them in a row with a better structure for them to grow up.  Again, taking suggestions!!

We were all so thrilled when the lettuce grew back after we harvested the first batch.  So incredible!!

Maddie likes to water the garden:)

Mike and Mikayla with the bountiful harvest...free salad is a great thing!!

A Garden in Banmanland

I've been collecting pots for a few weeks now.  Somehow in the 10 years that I have been keeping a home of my own, I have never had a desire to keep plants.  I suppose I was too busy growing babies!  This year I am so excited to do some gardening.  I will let you know how it all works out.

 Today after taking the girls to soccer and ballet, we spent a little time outside.  Here are two of my pots with their new inhabitants.  The plant on the left is a citronella plant (Mosquito plant...hopefully it works to keep them away!) the other is a begonia.  Isn't she pretty?

Two more pots, one with geraniums and one with another bubblegum pink begonia.  I may need to put a third geranium in the big pot...

Have I shown you our retaining wall?  That went up last year.  I guess it's been in the background of pictures.  Anyways, it's back filled now with soil and we are planing a garden!  This is another new venture that we are going to take on as a family.  Should be fun!

I am not a fan of how ugly that dirt hill looks.  What is the solution?  If you have any ideas, let me know!!!  I am planting zinnias and sunflowers along the back of the garden but they won't grow tall for a while (if at all) and I want a quick fix!!

Here's another view of the garden.  We are trying "square foot gardening" .  I say "we" very liberally because so far I have purchased the plants and drawn up a "plan" and Mike has planted them so this is most definitely not an "I" type of a thing! If you have any tips, please share!

 
Now let me introduce you to our new yard!  This is at the end of the deck.  Luxurious grass!  Soon the fence will be complete.  We are so excited to have a "real backyard" with grass for the kids to roll around on!

 Look at that pretty grass!  Cait Bear is going to have lots of fun toddling around back here while I am "gardening" (ha ha, it makes me laugh to think of myself with dirty hands, all one with the bugs and dirt!).

 This should be a fun summer project that the whole family can enjoy together.  Stay tuned for updates as our little garden grows.