getting dirty..... no, not that!

growing up i was very much a tomboy, a 'blue' kind of girl who very much wanted to be a 'pink' kind of girl. blue came naturally, and was just easier since i was my father's son for the first 10 years of my life, til my little brother came along. but i longed to be a pink....i just didn't know how. i always thought that i really was pink somewhere inside, more than just longing and wanting to be, simply because i didn't like to get dirty!

i hated getting dirty. i would throw a game of run down if it meant that i'd have to slide into some dirt. i remember passing on playing my most favorite-ist childhood game - jacks! all because i didn't want to sit in the dirt. i especially hate/hated dirt under my fingernails.



fast forward to now. i'm elbow deep in dirt. and not just dirt - compost and manure - and i love it! do i know what i'm doing? nope, not really. but as each day passes, everything looks better and better. well, my bok choi was looking a bit peaked, so i had to replant them closer to the house and fence so they'll get more shade, and they've perked right up! i'm so happy because i was so worried about them.

gardening makes me happy. truly happy. and i'm thankful.

my new venture.... yes, another one

as you've seen from the post below... i've taken up gardening. hubby built two 3ft x 3ft raised beds that are about 16 inches deep and filled them with good old fashion organic compost - all in one day! boy do i love that man!

on moms day we went to the garden supply and nursery to pick up the things we/i needed and i got to it on monday and tuesday. i'm trying hard not make what the 'certified nursery professional' called a classic newbie mistake, by going overboard with all my plantings. i'm trying to be smart about the space i have, which is not alot, and the amount of sun i get (about 5-6 hours max), and what i want to grow/eat.

we don't have a lot of backyard space in general, but its just right for us, so i'm trying to balance the growing space with patio/entertaining space with where the sun actually is for most of the day. and it's not easy! we've been on a search for the perfect patio furniture for at least 2 years now and still no luck. i don't want to spend an arm and 2 legs, but still want something with a little flair i had no idea just how hard that would be. so now summer is fast upon our heels and we still have nothing. well, actually, we may have found a compromise at a local store. yeah, if we get that set we'd be settling, but hey, i want to actually sit out, or maybe even take a nap in my backyard this summer!!! i will have a set by the end of next week if its the last thing i do!

now, back to the veggie garden... so i'm going to try to grow -
3 types of tomatoes - sweet 100's, yellow pears, and early girls
3 kinds of summer squash - green empire zuc's, and yellow straight necks
italian bush beans (green beans)
bok choy
2 types of sweet peppers - red and green bells
collard greens
cabbage
spinach
broccoli
various salad greens - mesculin mix, romaine, red leaf
various herbs - rosemary, thyme, sage, french tarragon, genovese basil, and parsley

so what do you think? enough huh? i know! and after i plant all that, i'll still have those big wine barrels left to fill!! hmm... corn? carrots? rainbow swish chard? i'm so happy i could scream!!

be well :)

mommy's day

this is late, but i've been just too pooped, and my fingers have been too swollen and too much pain to type.

well, i do hope that all the mommies out there who deserved to have a great day for them, did. i know i did!

it began with hubby dearest getting ladybug and i up at the almost the crack of dawn - 7:30 am - he let me sleep in! we went off to breakfast, then he took me to my all time favorite kitchen/cooking store - Sur Le Table - and let me pick out several things, but most important, he 'made' me get my beloved Le Creuset!!!! i have been a crazy fiend for these pots for at least 10 years! my granny had 3 that are at least 40 years old, i just don't know what's happened to them. so, i hemmed and hawed about whether or not to get those pots til dh walked up behind me and told the sales lady that i'll take the purple ones. he said that that's why he brought me in the first place, and that he would have just done it himself only he didn't anticipate there being two different purples (purple is my favorite color), both of which he thought i'd like (he was right). i melted right then and there!

then off we headed to the nursery to get the supplies we needed for the raised bed garden that dh built for me. i was showered with cards from my brother, mother, and father, and then dinner was made for me! all and all i had a great day! here are a few pics... please enjoy!

SOMEONE YOU KNOW...

may (along with august) has always been my favorite named month of the year. yes, there are other months i love, but the word (or name) MAY... i love the most (again, with august).

and MAY is LUPUS AWARENESS MONTH, and this very day is WORLD LUPUS DAY.

LUPUS is an awful disease that has no cure and, in its worst form, is just as devastating as cancer. i know because i have both, along with a few other critical and life threatening auto-immune diseases. and this may sound crazy, especially because we think of cancer as this alpha/omega of diseases - that there's nothing worse. but i find that my LUPUS (and the LUPUS of many others i know in this fight), is worse than my cancer. although there's no definitive proof of this, we feel that the LUPUS opened the door to my other diseases.

my LUPUS causes so many problems for me, way more than the other diseases. it affects my heart, my lungs, my muscles, my brain. i have other issues with these same organs (cancer, pulmonary fibrosis, vasculitis, MS, mixed connective tissue disease), but the LUPUS is all encompassing, every reaching. it keeps me from driving, working 'officially', making and keeping engagements - both personal and professional, from crafting and cooking, from doing things with my ladybug, friends, family, and myself. it keeps me from finding my words and understanding those spoken to me, from keeping up with and enjoying my favorite tv shows and books. it keeps me from rocking my favorite pair of 3 inch heels and hanging out in the sun for as long as i want. i never know how i'm going to feel, or be every day that i wake up and from hour to hour. i'm in constant, constant pain... pain that you can never get use to. on a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the worst ever, 6 is a good and regular day for me. and the seizures.....

it's unpredictable nature keeps me from counting on myself in a way that's just so basic to most, and i can feel it slowly yet aggressively trying to take my confidence and my audacity to truly LIVE in spite of it, away from me. and i hate it. i hate what it's done to me, my body, to those who love me, what it continually tries to do to my life.

this is a horrible and insidious disease that has no cure and can kill. it strikes (mostly) women from all backgrounds, races, and walks of life in the prime of their lives - as they're just finishing school, staring a business, a family, a new relationship, an exciting career or adventure! this disease turns lives upside down and havoc descends, yet there's little to nothing in the form of support, resources, and major awareness out there for those suffering from and living with LUPUS. especially in the medical community - so many go mis or undiagnosed.

because of this, and my own frustration with the lack of services and programs, i have started a charitable non profit specifically for women at risk, the newly diagnosed, and warriors living with LUPUS here in my area = THE BUTTERFLY PROJECT for LUPUS. my goal is for this to become a national organization. we are currently registered as an exempt non profit corporation here in california, and are awaiting our federal exemption status at a 501(c)3. we're working on our website now and it will be up soon (www.thebutterflyprojectfoundation.org), as well as the rest of the details, and i will keep you posted so stay tuned!

this is LUPUS AWARENESS MONTH, and someone you know has lupus. please donate and find out more about how you can help those of us with LUPUS by going to www.lupus.org

be well!