Pardon the Garden

Confessions of a lazy wannabe homesteader

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Maybe this is just what we needed

October 9, 2017 Marie Leave a Comment

Pears

I kept busy this weekend with canning. The store had some produce on sale, so I came home with ingredients to make strawberry lemon jam, more sriracha peach sauce, apples for applesauce, cider for a mustard glaze (need to find the mustard seed in bulk, first), and got to work. And then, today, after going thrift store shopping for clothes for the Little Mr (because winter is coming and he’s growing like a weed), my mom handed me this. A giant basket of free pears straight from her tree. Free produce to can and preserve and feed us through winter, should we need it.

Maybe this job loss is what I needed. A reason to get back to my roots, my canning and preserving and being more frugal. Though, it probably would have been better if I had been the one to lose my job, instead, so I’d have more time to make foods from scratch for cheap… but it is what it is.

Anyone have some pear recipes they love they’re willing to share?

Featured, Posts fall, food, handmade wardrobe, preserving

Season changes

September 24, 2016 Marie Leave a Comment

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Autumn has arrived… kind of. 80 degrees isn’t exactly what I consider fall weather, but it didn’t stop me from wearing my plaid flannel to go pick apples at the annual festival at the local orchard. Normally we wait until after the festival to get the apples at a discounted price, but when you have toddlers you have to compromise – and the idea of a $5/per adult admission for the Little Mr to get to see goats, play in corn mazes, take a trip on the hay ride, etc seemed more worth it than not. We had such a great afternoon that he fell asleep in the less than 10 minute ride home, so we drove around and around looking at houses for nearly 45 minutes just to let him get his nap out. And now I’m left with probably 20-25 pounds of apples that I need to figure out what to do with. Canning probably won’t happen this year, so I’m thinking lots and lots of baked pies and crisps over the next few weeks.

This changing of seasons is marred, however, by the hole in my heart that is my dog, Molly. After months and months of the decision being in the back of my mind, the last month has really taken it from something I needed to consider to something I had to make a final decision on. Her quality of life just wasn’t there anymore, and it killed me to have to make that call, but ultimately she was suffering and it was selfish of me to let her continue as she was. She was 13 years old and a wonderful companion to me for half of that time. My routines are all messed up – there isn’t anyone to let outside in the mornings or before bed, no one cleaning up food behind the toddler, no one following me around from room to room while I try to clean. Coming home from the vet felt… depressingly lonely. She wasn’t there to greet me at the door. Just emptiness. Sigh. I’m going to miss that furry, sweet thing.

Featured, Posts fall, family, Little Mr, Me, out & about

Giftmas presents, round 2

October 17, 2015 Marie 1 Comment

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It’s cold and grey and dreary outside, and my trip to Joanns today revealed that the holiday decor is quickly pushing out the fall themed stuff. I might have started to panic a bit about all the things I’m planning on making.

So I came home and, after lunch, hopped on my machine. Two more bags down. Both are with some German-themed fabric on Spoonflower since one of my friends is from Germany and the other is a German teacher.

I have at least one more bag to go, and I’m trying to work on that one today so I can call that round of gifts complete. Tomorrow I start taking a quilting class to make an adorable winter fox quilt for the Little Mr, so I’m pretty excited to start in on that.

I made progress this week on the baby gift knit, too, so hopefully I’ll have that to share with you soon, too!

Featured, Posts fall, gifts, sewing

Post Turkey Hangover

November 28, 2014 Marie Leave a Comment

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Thanksgiving Dinner. We host every year, which is always stressful. I keep wondering if it will get easier from year to year… and I suppose it has if only because I started caring less about my house being perfectly clean. The volume of people crammed in here, however, never gets easier for me and it’s always a huge relief once everyone goes home and my house goes back to it’s usual level of noise.

I gave the baby a tiny bit of mashed sweet potato mixed with formula. We’re still a bit early for solids yet, though he is showing more interest in watching us eat and what we have on our plates, but since it was a holiday I thought it would be fun to let him try it. His reaction was pretty hilarious and he spit it out right away.

Today things are laid back and quiet. The remnants of Thanksgiving needs cleaned up and put away – tables, chairs, decorations on the dining room table, etc. And then it’s time to dig out the sparkles and lights and make the house merry and bright! It’s my favorite way to spend the Friday after. And this year in particular I’m overly excited – apparently having a baby makes you stop dreading the holidays?

I have finished knitting to show you all, and our cute holiday cards came in the mail, too… but first, coffee and decorating and holiday music.

Featured fall, family, food, holidays, Little Mr

Hello, snow!

November 17, 2014 Marie Leave a Comment

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We spent the evening at my mom and dad’s for a birthday dinner and came out to our cars to find the lightest, sweetest coating of snow on everything. This morning we awoke to the most perfect scene – beautiful snow clinging to the tree branches ever so gently, the wind perfectly calm, and an overall quiet that has settled in the neighborhood which muffles even the noisiest vehicles (we’re on a busy street so it’s much appreciated to have a bit of a break from all that noise). I’m trying to so very hard to get through Thanksgiving before I start decorating for the winter holidays but this snow is not helping one bit. I want to dig out all the glitter and shiny things and make the house merry and bright. I want to string the lights up on the porch to make the house glow so lovely-like. I want to bake sugar cookies and make hot cocoa and snuggle on the couch to watch holiday movies.

But, first, we must get through Thanksgiving.

Featured, Posts fall, home, nature

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Pardon the garden. A phrase I’m most likely to utter anytime anyone visits the house during the growing seasons of spring through fall. Sure, there are pretty flowers and delicious veggies in there somewhere, but they might be a little hard to find amidst the mess of overgrown grass, dandelions, and weeds that have found their way in there and haven’t been pulled. Read On

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