Get Your Green On!

Time does seem to fly... Did you know St. Patrick's Day is exactly two weeks from today? So it is definitely time to get your green on! :)

Lucky (the Lil' Irish Bear), Seamus O'Shea (the Little Irish Dog) and Colleen O'Connor (the Wee Irish Bunny) are just waiting to join you in your celebrations!

(Seamus actually sold last night and I have another special order in for his twin, but I've relisted him and will be whipping up his clone today!)

Stop by the shop freckles & friends to see the details (and get a sneak peek at Easter - which is coming up quickly, too!)

Happy Wednesday ~ think green. :)

Green, Green and More Green!

I came from a long line of Iowa farmers. My grand-parents were elderly by the time I came along, so I don't have too many memories of them; but one thing I do remember is my Grandpa's garden. Once they left the farm and "moved to town" (a rite of passage and reward for years of back-breaking work), many farmers maintained beautiful gardens in their backyards. I wish I had photographs of my Grandfather's... I see it in my mind as if I were walking thru it today. And the scent of marigolds take me right back. Grandpa always planted them around the perimeter of the garden to keep certain insects away.

So I guess it's not unusual that I enjoy growing things. At one point in my life while living in the foothills of Colorado, I had over 100 indoor plants (including alfalfa and bean sprouts and avocado pits sprouting green "trees" on the kitchen windowsill) and a small garden in front of my house. My guys were little then and really enjoyed helping me harvest (among other things) the green beans, peas and zucchinis; the big orange pumpkins in October were a real hit, too.

Then I moved to town and became limited to container gardening on my porch and deck. And this year - for the first time - my vegetable plants outnumber my flowers ~ by design. Lettuce (which is almost gone and we plan to buy additional plants), green onions, leeks, cucumbers, zucchini, spaghetti squash, pumpkins and tomatoes and hot chili peppers galore. Of course not all are ready to harvest, but as things are ripening, it's so much fun to step on the deck and gather a salad for dinner.

In the interest of keeping things green (literally and figuratively), I remembered a recipe for homemade all natural plant fertilizer my sister shared with me a few years back. Super easy and seems to do the job! So, here's Pat's Plant Fertilizer:

1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. Epsom salts
1/2 tsp. household ammonia
1 gallon luke-warm water

Mix and pour. :) Pat recommends using every 2 weeks.

And it seems to be in the genes. My younger son planted his own "balcony garden" this year for the first time. He went even more green by planting everything from seed!!

Here's to all kinds of green. :)

Recycling Tip # 31

I recycle as much as I possibly can, but had a little lightbulb moment the other day on recycling with a twist.

My sister makes very yummy handmade soaps and body lotions -- http://www.dollyandmesoaps.ibuilder.com/ I know a lot of her overhead goes to her packaging. I've always sent her bottles and boxes and containers to my household recycling bin, but got the idea the other day to wash them thoroughly and start stockpiling them to return to her the next time I see her (we live 800 miles apart). I'm sure she can sterilize the bottles and containers (maybe not the boxes) and re-use them. Hopefully that can save her a couple of buckaroos and in a small way help the environment as well.

Now that's the ultimate in product/packaging recycling, don't ya' think? :)