on this land

Blogging offers such an eensy teensy window into a person's life.  Every blogger has his or her sharing criteria (ex. this is a sewing blog), plus so much control as to when and how she shares.  Mostly that's all fine and dandy and makes the blogosphere a comfortable place to be!  But other times I gasp, they don't even know about X, Y, Z!  And then I want to invite you in to a few more nooks and crannies of my life.

Quick Change Trousers

So it happened again yesterday.  I was photographing those baby pants on the side of our barn and was struck by how lovely it is outside is at this time of year.

behind our barn

In fact, just around the corner is this beautiful blooming dogwood tree.  My favorite trees!

Three sides of this old barn have that dark wood siding and the back is like so.  All three sides make good pictures.  I'm darn lucky to have it!   That barn has charmed me since we bought this property and its wreck of a house 6 years ago.   We've fixed up the house, but the barn still desperately needs attention.  Maybe someday...

on our farm

Now, you need to know that I am not a gardener.  Ironically, we live on 8 acres and prefer to eat local produce whenever possible.  Which means I should be a gardener.

Making Mud Cake

So, I've tried.  Put in a huge garden 4 years ago, while little Aria and Liam made mud pies.  Then a smaller one, then a smaller one and last year.... nothing.   To our credit, we have bought our veggies through a local CSA (community supported agriculture - you pay up front and get a box of produce weekly) the last three years. 

CSA at home!

You won't believe what's happening now!  Last fall we became friends with a family who has a background in running a CSA.   Unfortunately, they had to move and leave their lovely CSA behind.  Their goal this year was to find land to grow produce for their own needs.  Guess who has land?  We do!  We're providing the space and the irrigation and they're doing the work.  In exchange, we get a share of the produce.  What a complete blessing all around!

across the meadow

Across from the meadow and garden plot is our house, the tree house and these gardens.  I am forever grateful to whomever planted so many hearty plants.  At this moment it seems like everything is blooming:  dogwoods, azalea, irises, roses, pinks, camellias, yellow jasmine and a bunch of things I don't know by name!

in bloom

This weekend I transplanted a slew of violets from the meadow to this bed by our front porch.  You can see a few to the bottom left, quite overshadowed by this blazing pink azalea.

about to bloom too!

The rest of the azalea are coming into bloom, just in time for Easter.  The original owners planted large leaf azalea bushes all around this house.  Most of the time they do bloom for Easter, and we egg hunt in fairy land.  A messy, not-at-all-manicured fairy land.  But those are probably the best kind.

small leaf azalea

And the bees are out!  And the grass is greening!  I may not be a gardener, but I am forever an admirer of all this beauty.  It is worth a few days away from the sewing machine, hedging, weeding or raking. 

But, just a few (wink).