Accomplishments.

Things are slow going with a six month old. Especially now, the little guy has taken to crawling and he's just all over the place! Not only that but it's getting up to 90 degrees during the day now and we're sitting in the middle of an open field so it's HOT!

Outside work and exploration is usually reserved for the mornings or the evenings. I was reminded of something very important the other day when I went out to water some plants. I turned the hose on and the water was BOILING hot just from sitting in the sun. Why use a water heater when the sun alone will make your water that hot?
I am going to spend some time reading up on DIY solar water heaters and hopefully this will be a project we will start on soon. Another cool idea is the solar oven. Save money on cooking, and you can keep the house from heating up so if you are using the AC it won't have to work as hard.

Well, I'm not getting out as much as I'd like but here are a few things we have accomplished in the 1.5 months since moving in....

-I haven't had a single plant die on me yet. We've got all sorts of things growing, mostly gifted ornamental plants, but I've got to get my green thumb somehow. There's a rose, a mandevilla, a sword bean, a tub of catnip and spearmint, a tub of wildflowers, scarlet sage, chives, shallots, croton, 3 young figs started from root cuttings earlier this spring, 2 pine trees that really need to be transplanted soon, aloe vera, some cactuses, 2 parsley plants, tomato and pepper seedlings, one little nasturtium, a few four o' clocks, a gardenia, and rosemary seeds (I'm trying but I'm not sure if these will come up.) Also, we went to visit Seth's great grandpa and came home with cuttings of Turk's Cap.
-Also I've planted a red maple and a bald cypress in the field
-We've built new stairs for our porch.
-Raising 4 little hens in a temporary run.
-Harvested some blackberries
-Explored and photographed the property. May not seem like much, but a critical first step!

Wow, is that all? I feel like I'm missing something but I'm probably not. I suppose we're just getting adjusted and I'm trying to find time to do things while looking after the baby.
By the end of the summer I'd like to be growing more veggies, have the pine trees and other potted plants planted somewhere, finish the permanent chicken tractor or coop. For now, I'll keep it at that.

Come Fall, I want to plant the figs, work on getting the tallows under control, get ready for a winter veggie bed and set up better fencing to keep my dog on our land.

Ah yes, I will also be starting school either in June or in September (haven't quite decided on that yet).

Slow and steady work is all I need to focus on, otherwise I will overwhelm myself with all that needs to be done.