Raised Veggie Garden Open for Business!

It's finished!!  The new raised veggie garden with hand built natural stone retaining wall.  Squee!

I couldn't be happier with my new dream veggie garden!  It's big with over 164 square feet of gardening goodness.  And there is even a new supply of dirt/manure mix which should make plants very happy. 

Oh, and how about the stone stepping path?  Isn't it marvelous?  It also helps me divide the space in half creating natural planting rows and squares/

I think the new wall does wonders for the front of our house too!  As much as I like brick... I think the stone makes more sense for our forest-y area.

And yes, I couldn't resist putting the first plants in the garden.  The first two are jalapeno plants!  I will be adding lettuce, spinach, green beans, peas, and probably a few others this coming weekend. 

Can't wait to get my hands in the dirt!!

How about a quick look at a few of the tulips that we are enjoying right now?

Having these brilliant colors around is really making me smile!  I also think I need to make a note to add purple tulips in the fall.  I seem to have a lot of red and orange. 

Lastly, a small story... I pass this tree at least ten times a day.  I mean seriously I have probably be staring at this tree every day for nearly 3 years.  And I'm not sure I ever really noticed this awesome knot on it. 

It's about the size of a bowl -- big!  And has lovely textures and shapes.  I think I feel it inspiring a quilt.  Don't you just love when you have a moment that you finally see something for the first time? 

Previous posts about the rock wall project:

The Rock Wall is Nearly Done

The Rocks are Multiplying
Veggie Garden Retaining Wall

The Rock Wall is Nearly Done

Another busy week in progress, but it's the kind that you get a lot of stuff done and feel really good about it.   And we've been able to pluck away at our rock wall project to the point that it's about done.  Want to have a look?

I just love the look of the rocks interlocking and so neatly stacked!!

Once the design was complete we had to haul away the rocks that we didn't use.  Thank goodness for the little cart on the tractor!  Next steps are to till the garden and top the whole thing off with dirt.  Then I'll be planting and weeding before I know it.

The pups supervised most of the wall building project along the way.  But there was a point that I had to put them inside.... "...how much is that doggy in the window? bark bark"

Here's Katie

And Sammy

Also, I am so enjoying all the daffodils in bloom!!  What a fun surprise as they are all coming up and sparkling in the sunshine.

It's funny how I vaguely remember planting a lot of bulbs in the fall, but by the spring I had happily forgotten where... what a fun surprise!!

Something about seeing all these cheery little yellow faces in a row really just makes my day!!

Almost Friday now... hope the week has been treating you well and you are making fantastic plans for the weekend (and Easter!).

Happy Moment #51: The Rocks are Multiplying

A Friday ritual with Soulemama.  A single (or a few) photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week.  A simple, special, extraordinary, happy moment.  A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.  If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments too.

And if you missed the earlier episode of us knocking down the retaining wall... check it out!

“Be happy for this moment. This moment is your life.”

~Omar Khayyam

Veggie Garden Retaining Wall

This past weekend we enjoyed the most delightful sunny weather.  The kind of summery feeling day that draws the whole family outside to soak in the rays, feel the breeze, and get our hands (or paws) in the dirt.

We were minding our own business.  Dreaming of seeds to sow and veggie garden layouts. 

And then it happened.

The brick retaining wall, who has seen better days... 

...looked at us funny...

...so, we tore it down.

And made a big mess.

And I know there is a bunch more work to go... but squee! we're building the expanded veggie garden of my dreams, complete with a hand built natural stone retaining wall.  

Can you see it?  It's going to be amazing!! 

p.s. and that's how I spent most of my weekend.  Yes, we did cook down the final batch of maple syrup.  no, I still need to take a picture to share here.  and yes, that was our christmas tree holding down the woods as a natural bird habitat... at least that's what I keep telling the Mister.

No Progress for WIP Wednesday

This week is kicking my butt. 

At this very moment we are mid snow storm/white out --- ugg!  

and Mr. Happy is shopping for snow chains for the car....

It's a good thing I bought a daylight bulb in November.  I have surrounded myself with plants, fake daylight, fabric, and soft fuzzy things (a.k.a. the dog) and the combo has been able to beat off the winter blahs up to the this point, but I need more uummpf as my Grandma would have said.  More on that in a later post!

Ongoing Projects - Let's talk progress quilting-wise. 


Confetti
I did take a few steps forward which I posted about yesterday here.

X Marks the Spot

No progress.  Shuffled the fabrics around again, but need to cut and haven't yet.

Tulip Runner
*cricket, cricket*

Central Park Pin Wheels
Tiny bit of progress here.  I have given in to adding a sort of background and decided the additional fabrics I pulled really will work.  So, I rearranged the pin wheels on the design board and cut a bunch of squares and am now ready for another pin wheel assembly session (not tonight... maybe this weekend).  And yes, I am really going to make you wait another week to show you.

You Can Sew-a-thon!
I really need to gather up materials for the first project (still a secret) and whip up a post to get us going, don't I?  This will also have to wait till the weekend.  Read the intro to this sewing together idea here. 


------------In house project related news... lots of progress there!--------------

The ceilings are getting painted... the breakfast bar wall is primed.... Mr. Happy found me the perfect shade to paint the breakfast bar wall so it stands out a bunch... and we are nearly ready to have the new counter top installed. 

Here is an updated picture of what will be the breakfast bar area.  You can see the first part of the project here.

The project has been a ton of work so far, but I love it love it love it!  At the same time it will be nice to put the house back together and make all that spackle dust scarce!!

Meanwhile, keep your chin up and keep beating off those winter blahs with the biggest stick you can find!


This Week's Work in Progress (WiP) Stats

Last WiP Wednesday Total: 3 4 if you count Sew-a-thon
New Projects: 0

Finished Projects: 0
Total WiP's: 5 (with Sew-a-thon)

---Linking to W.I.P. Wednesday---

Straight from the Design Wall

Things are brewing over here.  Happily brewing into a criss-crossy loveliness!

Here's the re-arrangement on my design wall...

What do you think?  

I am still contemplating whether or not this is too much solid all at once... and at the same time I am tempted to bring in another solid. 

Still not really sure where this will all land, but I am so enjoying these quiet moments while the brewing happens.  Silly tv show on, dog at my feet, natural light bulb keeping the winter blues at bay.

Tear Down to Ring in 2011

New Years Eve in the happy house...

...you are probably thinking of parties or snuggling in with a movie, right?

Well, this year was a bit different.  We took down a wall.  Well, to be more exact we cut a hole in a wall.  A rather big hole.  A hole that allows so much amazing light into our once dark kitchen.  It's really a great hole.

Here's how the whole thing went down... (ha! get it!!)

This is the wall we targeted.  Can you hear the eerie music in the background... *dun dun dun -- dun dun dun*

We removed the very large mirror that was here when we bought the house.

Covered everything -- tree included -- with plastic sheets.

Made a humungo mess as Mr. Happy cut out the hole on the dining room side with a circular saw.  Dust was flying, it was noisy... it was exhilarating! 

A tiny hole was made on the kitchen side.  Just look at all the light pouring in!  We can see the light!

Another big mess as the kitchen hole was cut.  Tons more dust flying!  No turning back now.

And here are the first results!  We can actually eat breakfast in the kitchen now without turning on the lights.  It's really a remarkable difference!

We have a lot more finishing to do.  But since this picture, the studs were cut, the edges were sheet rocked and metal edges installed, the first two coats of joint compound are on and ready to be sanded.

We are also ordering the counter top for the breakfast bar this week.  I would like to get a nice thick piece of wood to put there.  It's going to be so awesome when it's all put back together!  I will be sure to keep you updated on the progress we, well, make progress!

I just love the Mr's vision of what he wants to do with the house -- he's spot on and I am one lucky girl!

---Linking to Midweek Blues and All About You Monday's and Fab Friday---

Dragon on the wall

Seeing cool art where ever you go = happiness!

It's fun to see unexpected things when you are out and about, running errands, or catching up your to do list. The unexpected keeps you guessing and looking about for that next neat thing. Well, this past weekend, I caught a glimpse at this dragon mosaic. I know I have seen it a million times, but it never fails to impress me and make me smile!

What's extraordinary around you?