Blossom Cottage Garden

Baby food growing in progress

2013-04-14T22:22:00.001-07:00

I'm still gardening and I'm happy that the peas I began from seeds are doing well. I've tried growing them before but it was late in the season that it got too hot. Peas like cool weather so hopefully they'll be successful. I'm planning to make baby food and we're also buying organic veggies and fruits. I'd plant them all if I had time and room! :) Perhaps when I have a greenhouse in the future (is my husband reading this?) I can have the garden of my dreams.

We're waiting until May when Alyssa is 5 months old to give her solids. We'll start with rice cereal and other grains first. I look forward to feeding her healthy homemade food… no nasty pesticides, chemical fertilizers, artificial stuff and preservatives –– all fresh from our backyard. I love cooking (hubby's tummy is happy) and I can be a chef in the kitchen for my little girl.

Violas recently popped up in the strawberry bed. I can't remember I planted them but oh well, here they are. I think I'll leave the violas alone. We had 3 surviving strawberry plants from last season so I amended the soil yesterday and bought some strawberries today. My lettuce, spinach and onions germinated. I'm waiting on the carrots. I was going to keep the garden small and manageable and I find myself thinking about more vegetables to grow. Being a busy new mom, I wasn't sure about having an edible garden this year but I can't help it –– it's the gardener in me!

Here's our 4 month old baby in her spring dress. I'm amazed all the time, she's the sweetest blessing. Alyssa is getting big so fast, she's smiling a lot, rolling over, grabbing her toys and she's very vocal. I'm excited to teach her about gardening someday and she can learn where real food comes from. Homegrown and organic is the best.

Our new baby girl

2013-02-17T16:03:00.000-08:00

I haven't disappeared from the blogosphere. I'm here… just crazy busy since our precious bundle of joy was born on December 7th. Meet our little one, Alyssa Lauren. I had a C-section, not by choice but because her head was transverse, meaning it was sideways and with no room for her to move. So I went through 12 hours of labor and 3 hours of pushing only to end up having major surgery. Recovery sucks but seeing her beautiful face was worth all the immense pain. My doctor said it was impossible to deliver the baby vaginally. Furthermore, her head was too big for me. She was 8 lbs, 2 ounces and 20.5 inches in length. Healthy baby with a lot of hair.

Baby's first bath the first week at home. Aww cute little fingers and toes!

Alyssa is growing and looking at her makes me happy.

Babies are a lot of work and it's hard work. Days and nights are mixed up as we try to function in our sleep deprived state. Other mamas out there, you can relate to the unpredictable schedule. Caring for a child is time consuming, demanding and filled with challenges but I love being a mom. I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world and she changed my life forever. Oh how much I love her! She's the most amazing blessing from God.

Alyssa is sleeping longer through the night, 5 to 6 hours which means more rest for hubby and I. She's becoming aware of her surroundings, more interactive with adorable smiles and laughter. She's now 2 months and 10 days old. Time is certainly going by fast.

Our Little Love Bug on Valentine's Day. How was your V-Day?

This is what my garden looked like about a month ago. We're planning to move again, this time we're buying a house. I'm not sure if I'll have a garden this year. I moved my garden twice. Transporting all the veggies and plants was NOT fun. If I do anything this spring, I will take it easy. I might work on one raised bed and a few containers of vegetables. However, I'm going to buy starter plants. We currently have no room to grow from seeds and my light set up in the garage is a mess. Baby Alyssa is keeping us very occupied but stay tuned, I'll keep everyone posted!

Autumn harvest

2012-10-16T15:51:00.000-07:00

October

I miss writing and visiting all of your blogs but these days I'm becoming more fatigue in the 3rd trimester of pregnancy. I'm 33 weeks and I'm having a difficult time bending down in the garden or doing certain household work, the tummy is getting in the way. I'm uncomfortable trying to find a good position to sleep at night and I must mention endless trips to the bathroom leading to insomnia. My husband who's not into gardening harvested the basket of various tomatoes and he'll be pulling all the dead vegetable plants. I'm very thankful for him always taking care of me.

Maybe you remember this from last year, my 1st place winning organic heirloom squash I entered at the fair called cocozelle. The yield was alright this time and I pan-grilled the squash or made bread with it.

This is pumpkin bread in the front and the back is my cocozelle bread which taste similar to zucchini. I can't help but do plenty of baking especially during the fall season until Christmas. Although I'm exhausted I find myself baking because for me, it's relaxing and I love the way it makes our house smell. I get nostalgic about warm and sweet scents.

September

I haven't been posting here much lately but this was our harvest in mid September. Not much bell pepper or cucumber lemon but definitely more yellow squash and tomatoes.

My sunflower didn't grow as tall compared to last season but I'm happy we had a few in the garden. It's time to clean up all the wilted annuals and let the garden rest.

How was your harvest this year and how did the heatwave affect your garden?

Have a great week and happy autumn!

Hot summer harvest and we're having a ______!

2012-08-29T13:38:00.000-07:00

Currently, there's not much going on in my garden and the harvest is smaller compared to last year. From what I heard, the heatwave everywhere seems to be affecting many gardens. I neglected the garden for a few months when I was busy with a temporary position working for Kellogg organic soil as a sales representative. In addition, being pregnant in the 1st trimester had me extremely fatigue to do anything. I hardly ever water and surprisingly, I'm thankful we harvested a decent amount of edibles. Definitely worth the wait.

Beans were bountiful this time and I love cooking them with a little butter and olive oil soon after picking. Nothing compares to homegrown flavorful veggies. Although I lost all of the zucchini, cantaloupe, watermelon, peppers and most of my strawberries in the beginning of the garden season, I'm pleased with what we have now. There's always next year for more surprises.

We had plenty of kale and they're yummy sautéed with olive oil, garlic, Parmesan cheese and lemon.

New variety of heirloom sunflower in my garden called Evening Sun. I'm also waiting for the Russian Mammoth to bloom which grew to about 8 feet tall last year.

Stunning sunflower, I'll definitely plant more again in the future.

Lavender I started from seeds two years ago. They're doing great in the raised bed…

From my previous post, I mentioned I'd update you. We're having our first baby girl! Here, she's about to suck her thumb. Awww those cute little fingers and toes. I'm 26 weeks preggers and almost in the 3rd trimester… hubby and I are thrilled to meet the baby in December. I'm looking forward to becoming a mom and we're incredibly blessed.