Pretty in Pink

Ranunculus

Japanese Crabapple

Tulip (first one!)

Bleeding hearts

Peas Please

I have been wishing the garden was ready for weeks so I could plant my peas! It's been such a warm spring I feel like they are going to fizzle just as they get established because of the heat. Ideally I would have planted them 3 weeks ago, but acquiring the manure, spreading the manure, letting the manure dry out, and tilling it in took longer than we planned for.

Our awesome neighbors let us borrow their huge tiller. It didn't take long--in fact I ran to the store one evening thinking it was getting too late, and when I got back Mike had it all done!

Yesterday I found some time to rake it smooth and make a few rows.

Finally, I got me some peas in the ground. Now I'll leave the work to mother nature.

One little interesting note... they were supposed to be planted 2" deep, and as I was spading them in I realized my spade has the inches marked. How handy is that?!

Man and His Machine

 

We bought our first lawn mower over the weekend. It guess it's kind of a homeowner's right of passage. Now we're official.

Mike had been salivating at the thought of the first mow. He wore this same grin the whole time he mowed (the few blades that were long).

I would have to say he's a little obsessed about the lawn. Sometimes when he is quiet or staring off into space, I ask him what he's thinking about and he says, "The grass." The minute he comes home (after he gives everyone a kiss of course) he changes into work clothes and goes out to weed or water the grass. Let's just say he's dedicated to having a beautiful yard, and I can't say I'm not thankful!

Dung Heap

It's time to amend the garden. If you are like me, it feels a little late because the spring has been so warm. I want to get the peas planted so they have time to establish before being blasted by heat!

Any who are familiar with Lehi know we are surrounded by mink farms.... and that they are smelly sometimes. Well last year we bought some composted mink manure and it was rich and fine and a great amendment for our garden.

This year, I not only bought another load, but I told my neighbor how great it was and she got some too. You can imagine my chagrin when they dumped it and it was smelly, lumpy, stinky mink manure! He says it's the same stuff, just not fully composted, and it should be just fine when we spread it, dry it out, and till it in. I certainly hope so, because for now it smells like we're the mink farm!

I have to admit I have been so distracted by the weeds and lawn this year that I haven't bought my garden seeds yet! I am getting my tomatoes and peppers from a lady in my ward who starts them in her coldframes, but I still need to buy all my seed. I came across a good post here on a friend's blog about buying seeds and sorting through the confusion on what seeds are best. I better get a move on!

The Grass is Greener... and Other Colors

The wheat grass has taken off! It's kinda fun having a mini green lawn in our kitchen.

They'll make a fun Easter centerpiece.

I let the girls give their vases a haircut. It was so much fun!!

 

It was also a good opportunity to learn about how plants work. Ella asked what the "white things" were and we talked about how the roots are straws that suck up water for the grass. 

Freshly mowed!

Our real grass is greening up too! We haven't gotten a lawnmower yet but it will be time before we know it.

Unfortunately the Johnson grass likes the area too. Until our seed is more established we don't want to use weed controlling chemicals, so we've been managing the old fashioned way: PULLING.
 

I should have kept a log of the time I've spent popping these suckers out with a screwdriver.... going on 20 hours maybe? At least that when Mike is home helping too! It's mind-numbing for sure... but the areas that are done look so much better. I keep telling myself it's worth it and by the end of the summer we'll have lush green lawn!

A few other colors are dotting the landscape... pink ranunculus.

White pear blossoms.

 White candytuft (a spring perennial I just planted).

And our first yellow daffodils! I just have say how cute it was when Ella found these. I was around the house spraying weeds and I could hear her yelling, "MOM, com'ere!!! MOM! The flowers are BLOOMING!" That nut didn't fall far from the tree.

Signs of Life (and Death)

Our wheat grass centerpieces make me want to squeal when I wake up in the morning. Those little tufts of grass are so cute!

The big one is growing in all patchy, but as soon as I can I will butch it all to the same height. Love me some green indoors.... but check out what's happening outdoors too!

My first crocus!!!!!!!!!! It's even on the north side in Iceland!

My bleeding heart is also growing valiantly in the cold shade.

My crabapple and flowering pear trees are budding!

I just love that first blush of pink before they pop open!

My daffodils have flower buds too!

And not to end on a sour note, but my Limber pine is showing signs of death. I am so sad.... it was fine all summer, fine all winter (except for where the deer stripped a few branches), but as soon as the weather turned warmer it turned brown. Wish I could just send it a memo: "Wrong color buddy!"

Fear of Fat

Saturated fats, to be more specific. Remember when I said that there is a lot of conflicting information about food? Well, fats may be the most murky of all the food issues out there.

Since my "manifesto", I have gotten many questions about fats and where I stand on what is best. It is a controversial subject, and saturated fats in general have long been deemed "off limits". However, I have been reading studies and articles on fats for a few years now, and I have come to the conclusion that some saturated fats are actually good for you, and in fact are actually important for your health. What is boils down to is I believe butter is preferable to margarine, and coconut oil is better than canola or vegetable oil. I think the health benefits outweigh the supposed risks. While you could say the jury is still out on these issues, everyone has to decide for themselves.

In the last few days I have re-attempted the study of these fats and have tried to take a step back and read both sides of the issue-- from raw, organic, vegan types on one end of the spectrum, to doctors, researchers, and FDA officials on the other. I kind of feel like I'm back in school doing a research paper or something... just be forewarned, this is not a quick read and may take some concentration!

My stance on butter is pretty simple. By deciding to eat whole, unprocessed foods, I automatically made the switch from processed, man-made, plasticized, dyed yellow margarine to natural, unprocessed butter. I guess I figure people have been eating butter since the world began. (Plus I really love butter... my whole family makes fun of me for occasionally licking the knife.)

If you would like to read more in depth on both sides of the issue, here are some good articles I found:

Harvard School of Public Health: Fats and Cholesterol

vs.

The 20 Health Benefits of Real Butter 

And now on to coconut oil. This is a topic I was uninformed about until I started following Green Smoothie Girl, a local health guru with a wonderful website and a plethora of information. I attended one of her classes and was convinced of the validity of her food lifestyle.

Her article Coconut Oil Health Benefits almost sounds too good to be true: she says it prevents heart disease, purifies blood, has been known to inhibit carcinogens in animals, and is anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-parasite, and anti-viral! One of the points I find most compelling from her is that traditional vegetable oils (canola included) are processed, refined, rancid, and oxidized from being heated to high temperatures (which has been said to cause free radicals leading to cancer).... plus they are usually made from genetically modified (GM) organisms.... exactly all I am trying to avoid.  

After reading her article, I followed her link to Mountain Rose Herbs and ordered a gallon of virgin, unrefined, raw, organic coconut oil. It has a high solid to liquid temperature (76 degrees), so often in the summer my oil is liquid and in the winter it is solid, and though it looks like a hydrogenated oil it is not. It has a yummy coconutty flavor and we use it in everything. I love it in granola, waffles, muffins, brownies, and all things baked, although if I don't want something to taste like coconut I sometimes substitute butter. I often use it to saute vegetables and don't notice the flavor at all.

To be fair, I found a few more "expert" opinions on the subject, and again you will have to decide for yourself!

MSN Health and Fitness: Coconut Oil

Wed MD: The Truth About Coconut Oil

vs. 

Green Smoothie Girl Coconut Oil Health Benefits

Dr. Mercola's Coconut Oil Benefits: When Fat is Good For You

I particularly find the subject of lauric acid interesting as a nursing mother. I had never heard of another source of this anti-microbial compound occurring in nature.

And that brings me to my final point: I prefer to use foods- and fats- that are naturally occurring in nature.