EKjourney Backup

I think the major purging project that I started back in January is going to be done and redone in stages as I come to grips with letting go of old ways and diving deeper into simplicity and minimalism. It has really been a major project. I always do a house purging and deep cleaning a couple of times a year but this time, I am really evaluating the necessity of each item in every nook and cranny. I am hoping that by the time the newest Kelly member makes her appearance, I will have this massive project more or less finished. I am amazed at how much deeper I can go even redoing what I just finished up (like closets and toys!). I know that I will probably have several projects that I do and redo several times before I am satisfied. Truly a work of art! This is my new and improved homeschooling/home improvement bookshelf. I had, no joke, 30 labeled 3-ring binders of various papers. By the time I was done going through each one, I had 2 laundry baskets of recycled papers and only ...

This week is not what we would have chosen but despite lots of rain and everyone being sick, we managed a family outing, a productive day of yard work, a continuance of the house purging that I started back in January, and even a little crafting time. Phil has been working on digging out the bamboo to make way for future raised beds. It is slow going! He has had to sawsall the roots and do major shovel work just to get out a few stalks at a time. He is about 1/3 of the way done. The beginnings of a cold were starting to show Saturday and by Monday everyone was dropping like flies. We had fevers, croupy coughs, headaches, earaches, snot, crabiness and sleepless nights (and when I say sleepless, I mean 4 sick children equals at least one parent awake at all times - and that was mostly Phil on the night shift.) By Friday (today), both of us are now sick and the children are still sick but in various stages of recovery. NOT FUN! It is quite frustrating to have a vacation time that y...

Which Kelly child got the sandiest and wettest?  It was a close call.  Jubilee, while timid, still managed to get pretty sandy and mostly soaked.

Evangeline made a great effort. She wasn't afraid of deep water and she had some good spills! She was pretty sandy and soaked!

And the winner is Sawyer! He jumped, he cannonballed, he swam, he was sandy and soaked!!

Phil thought it would be brilliant to throw the ball against the cliff for Claudia to chase when it bounced down. First throw up and it stuck in the top clump of grass. Here Phil thinks that somehow he can scale the remaining 15 feet to retrieve it. Claudia played with sticks the rest of the trip. Baby bump

Ideally, I would have liked a nice dry weekend to start spring planting but we were already a little late to get those earliest veggies in the ground so we decided to tackle the project on Saturday. Phil brought in a load of dirt to raise up the level of the beds. Sawyer and Evi helped to break up dirt clods and rake the dirt out. Jubilee helped me plant peas. I pulled the last of the produce (we still had lettuce, beets, parsley, kohlrabi, and onions that overwintered) and a few scatter weeds. We have our two large beds completely planted now with peas, chard, beets, carrots, and green onions. My mom has starts in the greenhouse ready to go in and soon as we get the cover crop rototilled in. We need more raised beds!!! And more sun!!