How (big) does my garden grow?

Normal people measure their gardens in feet or yards (which i am sure Nick has because I am about to show you to-scale graphs) but I prefer to measure the garden in fence lengths.  Of course the fence lengths are uneven (usually between 4 and 8 ft), but it's a better visual for me.  Our first summer here, our garden was 2 fence lengths by 4 fence lengths.  Last summer, it was 3x5.  This coming summer, it is going to be 4x6 and that is the maximum size for that location.  Any deeper, and it'll be into the fire pit, any wider and it will envelop our fruit and nut trees (saplings, though they may be).  If I were a betting woman, I'd wager that next year Nick will be begging me for a garden annex elsewhere in the yard because I refuse to let it grow any larger in it's current position.

Resolutions

Every January I sit around and watch people make their New Year's Resolutions.  I consider making one for myself, and the first thing that comes to mind is "Loose Weight.  Lots of it."  Then I remember that, in order for it to truly be maintainable, a goal has to be measurable.  Ok , "loose 100 lbs."  I'm a tubby little greenie (woah, did anyone else just think of oompa loompas?) and could really use it.  But you see, a. that seems insurmountable and b. I love food and hate excercise.  Bad combo for loosing weight.  How did you think I got this way in the first place?

Needless to say, I have a bad relationship with resolutions but here I am (almost into February) laying some out anyways.  Hopefully this'll help get me out of my snowed-in blues.

Why I Can't Wait For Spring

You know, on the whole I'm a Fall/Winter kinda gal.  I love the leaves and smells of autumn and the light of winter.  I know, it's odd to associate light with the darkest time of year, but there is something so cheerful about light bouncing off of the snow.  Also, as much as I like to be outside, I really HATE warm weather.

Given that, you can imagine my surprise when, staring out at the beautiful falling snow this afternoon, I found myself wishing for spring.

I want to be out in my yard.  I want to plant a garden and reap it's fruit.  I want to fix my fence.  I want to watch Nick cut the grass.  I want my chicks to get here so they can start laying eggs for me.  I want to finish painting the trim on the house green.  I want to stop struggling to find things to put on my blog.

Yup, It seems like winter is construction time here at living from scratch and summer is greenie time.  We have started to map out next year's garden so hopefully I can share that soon, but other than that I'm at a loss.  Does anyone out there in cyberland have any snowed-in greenie tips? I love feedback!

It Snowed Today. A Lot.

And I dunno why, but snowy days are always productive ones around here.

 Last night Nick & I cut down a sheet of plywood so that today, while he was at work, I could tackle a bit of moulding and such on the bookcases.  I started with one of the pieces of plywood, using a pen and string as an enormous compass.  Unlike the kitchen shelving however, the center of my circle fell outside of my lumber.

As such, I had a more difficult time drawing my circle.

Mastering the Art of French Cooking: Quiche Aux Fruits de Mer

aka: Shellfish Quiche (Lobster, in this instance)
pgs: 149-150

2 cups of flour worth of Julia Child's Pie Crust Recipe
2 tbsp Minced Shallots or Green Onions
3 tbsp Butter
1/4 lb cooked fresh or canned crab, shrimp or lobster
1/4 tsp Salt
Pinch of Pepper
2 tbsp Madeira or Dry White Vermouth
3 Eggs
1 c. Whipping Cream
1 tbsp Tomato Paste
1/4 tsp Salt
Pinch of Pepper

Somewhere to Sit

Believe it or not, I have had this grand plan of mine for the living room in mind since shortly after we bought our house.  These plans have always included a bookshelf and window seat exactly in the ridiculous place we are putting them.  Why ridiculous?  Because I am putting a window seat directly across from the television in the only sitting room in the house and window seats are notorious for never being sat on.  Last year, I started to doubt myself and tried a dozen other configurations and none of them made sense.  It was then that I realized my best option was to somehow avoid that fate for my window seat.

My goals are to make it wide enough and cushy enough that it'll be a nice place to sit.

We started by making a basic box that, along with the ply wood sides, would fit very snugly in the gap between bookcases.

  

Quinoa

KEEN-wah? Keen-o-uh? (Apparently both are correct, though the first is more correct)

I've been reading a lot about this new "super grain" on blogs and such.  I don't have regular television, is it on tv too?

In case you hadn't heard, it is high-protien, gluten-free and cooks quickly(10 minutes).  It can just as easily be used to replace grits in your breakfast or rice in your dinner.  It is naturally coated in bitter-tasting saponins, which can be easily rinsed off though that is not typically necessary as most available products come pre-rinsed.

Did you know that it i also a flower?

Pretty, isn't it?