| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| tziporra |
Posted - Oct 12 2006 : 2:27:25 PM
Hi there!
I'm Robin and I'm new to the forum and to MaryJanesFarm. Found my first issue of the magazine (Artists in Aprons) at my local Fred Meyer and am I glad I picked it up!
Since I quit my (loathed) job as a computer programmer three years ago to stay at home with my babies I've pursued a more frugal sustainable lifestyle for my family. I'm into stitchery, (particularly with reclaimed fabrics), handicrafts such as knitting and crochet, canning, bread baking, whole foods, etc.
My husband and I come from farming/ranching families. I worked on my grandparent's apple orchard as a child and a teenager (they still send me tons of produce each fall to put up), and my husband's father owns a cattle ranch in central Washington (where I kept my horse until she passed away last spring).
I live in Seattle with my husband and two children, ages 2 1/2 and 9 weeks. I am planning my first kitchen garden (unless you count my 30 feet of blackberry hedge) for this coming spring, in a 70 square foot plot in my back yard. Hopefully I'll be better at vegetable gardening than I am at general yardwork -- although I joke to my husband that if I'm successful I'll just turn the whole yard into my kitchen garden and be done with the grass.
Best regards,
Robin |
| 15 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| tziporra |
Posted - Oct 15 2006 : 9:30:27 PM
Hey -- thanks for all the warm welcomes!!!! This is the nicest forum :)
I make applesauce and MORE applesauce and then applesauce after that with all my apples. It helps that my daughter is an applesauce fiend and could eat all that I made and then some. I can pears and peaches, but I also make pear-sauce which is very good for babies. My food-mill arm gets a good workout this time of year. I get mostly Jonathons (sp?) and Macintosh, but I'll throw anything I get into the sauce. If I'm feeling very ambitious I'll make apple butter as well, but this year I had a baby in August, and my putting-up activities had to take a back seat!
Susan -- I'm in Rainier Valley, so we are neighbors of the distant variety. Nice to see you here!
Best regards,
Robin |
| Libbie |
Posted - Oct 14 2006 : 11:32:24 PM
Hi, there, Robin! I'm so excited to hear about your 70 sq. ft. farm! Welcome to the forum... I think you'll really enjoy all the farmgirls here...
XOXO, Libbie
"Nothing is worth more than this day." - Goethe |
| MamaHumbird |
Posted - Oct 14 2006 : 7:36:10 PM
Welcome Robin! It sounds like you have a much more rewarding job now than you did three years ago! There is no greater joy that being able to stay home and raise your children. Although I have noticed since I quit my "day" job in an office, I seem to work harder! I agree with Susan, I also envy your orchard connection. What a great job to have while you were growing up. What do you do with all your apples? What kind of varieties do you get? I just got 2 bushels of apples so far and I was about ready to go get more when a neighbor brought me a huge amount of pears. I am guessing at least 4 bushels. They are free and I can't let them go to waste. But I am hoping to get more apples.
Holly |
| susan kate |
Posted - Oct 13 2006 : 10:15:34 PM
Hi Robin and welcome! You will have a whole lotta fun here!
Hey, I wonder if we're neighbors? (I'm in Shoreline)
Susan |
| Kelly43 |
Posted - Oct 13 2006 : 8:17:47 PM
Welcome Robin, we're glad you joined us.
Kel |
| Lavender Cottage |
Posted - Oct 13 2006 : 11:16:39 AM
Welcome Robin-glad to have you here!
Ellen in MI |
| bybiddie |
Posted - Oct 13 2006 : 09:01:54 AM
Welcome, Robin - small farm or not, it sounds like you have your hands full! I envy your orchard "connection"!! This is a wonderful group and I'm sure you'll love your time on the forums!
Susan
Lovin' my life |
| Nance in France |
Posted - Oct 13 2006 : 08:51:16 AM
Welcome, Robin, to one really awesome website; you will certainly learn alot from these gals, and probably teach us some things too! There is an old saying somethign like "Admire a large garden but work a small one". Good advice!! Maybe you can make a teepee for your little ones someday and cover it with morning glories or another fast growing vine for their own little hideaway. Looking forward to hearing more about your stitchery projecs. Have a great day! Nance |
| grace gerber |
Posted - Oct 13 2006 : 07:52:32 AM
Welcome Robin to the site and I am sure you will enjoy it as much as the rest of us do. Your garden will be wonderful and it is the right size when you have two small children. It is a shame that people spend so much time cutting, raking, watering and put harmfull chemicals on their postage stamp yards when they could have it filled with plants that give back, not only to the stomach but to the eye and soul. I am glad you found us and look foreword to knowing more about you.
Grace Gerber
Larkspur Funny Farm and Fiber Art Studio
Where the spirits are high and the fiber is deep |
| sunshine |
Posted - Oct 13 2006 : 07:12:51 AM
That would be lovely I always thought gardens like that were called victory gardens a ww2 thing I guess. Any way it is very nice to have you here welcome to the group. sunshine
have a lovely day and may God bless you and keep you safe
my web store www.sunshines.etsy.com my other web store http://vintagethreads.etsy.com/
my blog http://sunshinescreations.blogspot.com/ my google page http://sunshine.harbaugh.googlepages.com/home |
| willowtreecreek |
Posted - Oct 13 2006 : 05:41:50 AM
I love that! 70 square feet! You can actually do quite a bit! Welcome to the board! I have been here a ew months and I love it. HAve made some great friends (and never met them) already. This is by far the BEST discussion boeard I have ever been a part of. Some good changes have ome to my life through this board. Godd luck and welcome. This place is like home!
Jewelry, art, baskets, etc.
www.willowtreecreek.com |
| Tina Michelle |
Posted - Oct 12 2006 : 5:46:27 PM
welcome to the group Robin.
~Seize the Day! Live, Love, Laugh~ |
| nouveau_farmchick |
Posted - Oct 12 2006 : 5:45:09 PM
Hello Robin,
good for you and your 70 sq. foot garden! Have you read Square Foot Gardening? great book! We grow comercial crops of salad greens in green houses on the Olympic Peninsula. It's amazing what can be done with intensive gardening!
happy farming!
Pennie
God bless Farmers |
| Aunt Jenny |
Posted - Oct 12 2006 : 2:35:15 PM
Welcome Robin! Wow..how lucky you are to get all that produce to put up each year. I hope you have so much fun with your garden plot that the whole yard becomes garden. that is my plan for someday. It is fun to have another Washington gal here..you are one of quite a few!!
Sounds like you are a kindred spirit and will fit in well here..you will love it!!!
Jenny in Utah
Inside me there is a skinny woman crying to get out...but I can usually shut her up with cookies
http://www.auntjennysworld.blogspot.com/ visit my little online shop at www.auntjenny.etsy.com |
| Miss Bee Haven |
Posted - Oct 12 2006 : 2:34:01 PM
Good to have you here, Robin. Your idea about getting rid of grass isn't bad! I did that with my yard in town - I had nothing but pathways, tiny patios and flower beds for years. And Voila! No mowing the back yard! I used lots of mulch, so the weeds stayed manageable. I'm happy that you were able to quit your job and pursue your 'bliss'.
"If you think you've got it nailed down, then what's all that around it?" - 'Brother Dave' Gardner |
