utter chaos.

I have an admission to make. While I show images of colorful flowers and abundant fruit from the garden there is a seamy underside. No, not aphids or slugs (yet), but instead benign neglect. Yes, it is utter jungle chaos out there. My back went 'out' right at that exact time that the heat and rain came to spur the big summer growth, and I would have normally been out there daily weeding, pinching off, tying up or down. But all I could do for several weeks there was...water. And now it is just too late. By the time my back improved enough to do more, it was over! Overgrown, that is. There is no untangling what nature has accomplished. And she has accomplished.



It isn't as though my neglect means that the garden isn't growing - that things are wilting or dying off. In fact, with all of this heat and record rain, well, it is growing really well on its own. Without my pinching and tying off it has developed impenetrable areas of mass growth. Vines and leaves, flowers and fruit. Cucumbers and beans are growing up the paste tomato teepee. Or, in another spot the cucumbers are growing right up the bush 7' in the air along with malabar spinach. Tomato plants are the size of European cars. Beans are up into the bushes. It is a jungle out there - a beautiful jungle.




I don't know if I will get a record crop this year - while some things are benefiting, some probably are not. While I planted things with height/sun/shade/space in mind, it has gone a bit beyond that. ;) While some things may be slower going with all the extra greenery, I am still getting greens and peas in July with all of the cover they are getting. And I may very well have a bumper crop of tomatoes and cucumbers (if I can reach them!). But the squash is probably not getting the sun I intended when I planted it among the beds, thinking that growth would be more tamed and controlled, allowing more sunlight to penetrate. And some of my interspersed herbs are just plain covered by rampant growth from the plants above. But I do still have many growing fine - lovage, parsley, stevia, dill, parsley, lemon bee balm, fenugreek, borage and many others. I also have many volunteer plants that I would have pulled had I been able to get out a few weeks back. I have ground cherries and wonderberries! I think the red raspberries are poised to take over the entire alley side of our yard. The peppers have been loving this heat and have plenty of sun on the low-height side. And of course there are flowers - lots of colorful wonderful flowers.


So while I am doing much better back-wise and can wander the garden again, I do so at the edge, peeking in and under, swatting at the mosquitoes, plucking beetles, watering when it doesn't rain -- a bit at a loss to what more I can do at this point, but in wonder at what it has done without me.



So, I admit it. The garden is a luscious chaotic jungle. And I'm OK with that.

getting back to normal...

(weekend trip one year ago - july 2009)

Thank you for all of the well wishes and emails last week. I did finally visit the spine clinic and have been taking a powerful anti-inflammatory for a few days now. While we must stay close to home since I'm not quite ready to drive (and am not supposed to be exposed to any viruses while taking these) the boys have been happy to hang close to home with me. I am feeling much more mobile every day, and am optimistic that this is helping get everything back to my 'normal' so we can move on with our summer! We have several projects we are looking forward to, and I hope to share and post more frequently again as I can sit a bit longer.

Happy Monday! :)

fall back.

I love the smells and sounds of fall - although this fall has been so cold, wet and gray it hasn't seemed much like fall! In a way I wasn't surprised that my back 'went out' again when the cold wet weather hit a few weeks back. So - I have been pretty much out with back pain and immobility for several weeks. But after five (long) months of physical therapy, I feel like I have it more under control and know what to do when it gets bad. This time I've been hurting but I have kept it from getting emergency room bad. And thankfully I have been getting better over the past few days. Exercise, ice, no long computer time, no long sitting. So long story longer, I've been away for a bit, but am feeling like I am now on the mend and having less pain every day, and so hope to share more of our busy fall!


It has been nice, in a way, to have this back set-back during the cold wet dark dreary days we've been having. If it had been sunny and gloriously autumn, it would have felt like we were missing out. But with the dark cold, the boys have been happy to work on their projects, putter with science kits, read new books, build things, watch interesting DVDs from the library, create books/comics, play with the rabbit, and just be home a bit more.

Of course we have been out and about a bit - some fun excursions on those days the sun made a brief appearance - out to see the colors and birds and sun. And the early darkness has meant a lot of fun with light sabers, glow stick inventions, pumpkins and all of those other dark loving projects.



More later, but for now, I'm happy to be able to sit at this computer - even if only for a short time! :)

15 minutes.

You see, that is supposed to be my computer limit per sitting! 15 minutes. When I hurt my back at the end of March I couldn't sit at the computer for more than a few minutes (and needed help getting up). Once I started physical therapy, I was doing much better, but my PT told me 15 minutes max at a time. Then get up and walk around 15 minutes. It seemed kind of impossible...I have design projects, volunteer for a few local groups, have a website for local families, moderate a few groups, blog, & am starting an Earth Scouts group, blah blah blah. I had every single excuse (and TONS in my inbox). And of course other than checking email here and there, I am with my boys all day every day! My 'work' time is at night after they go to sleep. I would marathon sit at this computer from 8PM - 1+AM sometimes 7 nights per week to get all my work done (wonder how I hurt my back, hmmm?).

The funny thing is that my PT is right. I can't sit for too much longer than that - or I can't stand up from the chair! But I don't know about you, I can't get much done in 15 minutes. I'm just getting started! And it takes me 15 minutes to get back into whatever I stopped doing earlier! I spent weeks freaking out/stressing about this. Then I started doing only the 'important' must be done emergency stuff. And then I started doing ... well, I realized that if I wasn't at this computer as much my back didn't hurt as bad and I'm not so stiff or sore at the end of the day and could feel more improvement with the PT exercises. Ahem.

So the good from all this? I started re-learning to knit. Amazing how my carpal tunnel isn't so bad when I have less computer time and I can KNIT again! Woo hoo! I started organizing some ideas for writing projects. I started sketching again. Oh, and yes, I started spending more eves with my husband who also needed to not be working so late into the night. Much good from not so much sitting in this particular spot!

The not so good? I am not able to visit all of my favorite blogs as often! Many (most) days communicating even via comments is like a lifeline to inspiring and/or like minded mamas, and I miss that so much!! I do still visit and read blogs as much as I can, but I am not there at every post, commenting.  And I find I'm also skipping some of my own posts that have been brewing in my  head for days just because it is too much. So, not much garden chat  (although I have a TON of photos!), not many crafting posts, and not much rambling on here. But that is OK. I'm getting stronger and stronger every week and and just need to find a good balance for it all. I'll play catch up as I go along. But for now, its all good. Just pass the yarn. :)

Working my way back...

Thanks to you all for all the good healing vibes and well wishes. I did indeed get into see my acupuncture/massage/acupressure goddess on Monday and it helped a lot. I am not really up about about too much yet (yeah, still need my hubby to get my pants on...lovely, eh? ;)) but the pain is receding a bit and I can (drum roll) sit down! Woo hoo. I've also had two awesome little super heroes around to help me out.


While it is comforting to know that others can sympathize with how debilitating back pain can be, I also feel bad that so many of you have back problems too! Yowza! I hope we all have a year of strong backs, healthy bodies, and digging happily in our gardens without any twitches or wrenches.