Celebrate Earth day and stop by your local Lowe’s and get your free tree. April 23rd, Lowe’s is going to give away 1 million trees. Call your local store for more details.

Thank you ~Happy, for the heads up.

My kiddos are enjoying the beginning of spring, I would say they are basking in it. What are you doing to enjoy spring? We are going to plant some strawberry plants today and take a walk around the farm.

Every year God gives us some of the best natural free compost/mulch you can find. I like to call it nature’s confetti because it falls ever year around this time and lands randomly across the landscape. Leaves are awesome compost and mulch. Some people even gather it for you and put it on their sidewalk. All, you have to do is grab it before the trashman does. Leaf litter is nature’s best fertilizer! Think of the forest. Your plants will thank you.

Have you ever considered how many chemicals you use in just one day? I personally think women use more than anyone. I have decided to challenge myself into using less and less harmful chemicals in my house, starting today. I have over the years done little things here and there, but never really stuck to much of anything. I have decided to start with a regular day (not a typical day though, this is what I might want to get done if I was supermom) and make a list of different tasks that I do. With many of my tasks there are different chemicals involved. For example:

1. Wash face – face wash
2. Brush teeth – toothpaste
3. Take a shower – shampoo, conditioner, shower gel/ soap, shaving cream
4. After shower –
*Apply deodorant
*Apply make-up (Well, I do this on days I actually leave the house)
*Apply face lotion & body lotion
5. Get the kids up – change diapers & use wet wipes
6. Start a load of laundry – laundry detergent and dryer sheets (stain remover)
7. Make breakfast – cooking oils
8. Wash dishes – dish detergent
9. Clean house –
*clean bathroom – shower/tile cleaner, toilet cleaner
*mop floors – wood floor cleaner, regular floor cleaner
*clean rugs and couch – upholstery & rug cleaner
*dust furniture – pledge
*wash windows – window cleaner
10. Work in the garden – pesticides & herbicides
11. Fix dinner – cookware, aerosol cooking sprays

I realize that I have not listed everything and as I think of things, then I will try and add them to the list. My plan is to each week research the products we use in and around our house that are laden with chemicals and replace them with healthier and less harmful products. As I research each number in my list, I will post my findings and use these products and tell you my results. I challenge myself and you to join me in making a healthier and fresher home for you and your family.

Please feel free to comment with ideas that you and your family use already. I would love to try what you are doing and pass them along to other readers. With your permission, I will cite you on my posts as well.

If you love gardening as much as I do, then you wonder what to do sometimes with your garden during the off season. I feel like there is only so much planning you can do for next year. Looking for seeds or new plants online and in catalogs, perhaps even planning a new bed somewhere. I have been researching some of what I might be able to do this year. This helped me some, perhaps it will give some other green thumbers out there some ideas too!

OCTOBER

Fall is here and many vegetables don’t have enough time to develop before your first frost. There are still a few vegetables that can be planted in October.

Blueberries
Fall is the perfect time to plant blueberry plants. Planting in the fall will allow for good root growth and early growth this coming spring.
Suggested variety: Blueberry Bluecrop

Flower Bulbs
October is a great time to plant those fall flower bulbs. There are many varieties that can be planted this fall and start blooming early spring. Flower Bulbs

Garlic
Garlic is a vegetable that can be planted in the fall for a larger and earlier harvest this coming spring.
Suggested variety: Italian Garlic

Herbs
Herbs are defiantly the most popular indoor plant to grow throughout the winter months. Try your hand at these 5 most popular herbs.
Suggested variety: Basil, Chives, Oregano, Parsley, Thyme

I found a picture of this online the other day, but have not been able to find anywhere that sells a preformed corrugated chair to start the project. Guess its time for me to get creative and make my own. I am really hoping to do this next spring! I think it would be awesome to have an entire sitting area in a garden. Four to six chairs and a table? Hmmm!

I will try and post some pictures next spring when I start this project. I know fall is one of the best times to put out grass seed, but I really do not see myself getting very far at this stage in my pregnancy. (I have 3 weeks, left)

The ultimate grow-your-own—the grass armchair. Here is the answer to those tricky design problems—where to put the garden chairs, what kind to buy, will they get rusty, be comfortable, be green, look good. First decide on the best location for it—at the back of the garden so you can enjoy it in peace, or at the front so that you can watch it grow. But it can’t be moved so be serious about this. After you assemble the cardboard frame, you fill it with soil, sprinkle the grass seeds over it, and water it daily. Watch it grow. And enjoy.