This one is for my friend Mindy

I have several things I need to post, but it is approaching my bedtime here soon, so I needed to choose only one thing to talk about. Well, I just wanted to give my friend Mindy some much needed thanking. A portion of my flower beds look spectacular thanks to her. At my birthday party last fall, Mindy spent an hour or so out in the freezing cold digging in the dirt trying to get some bulbs in the ground. Well her hard work paid off and I have beautiful flowers this spring to prove it. Thanks Mindy!! (Oh, and don't forget you did say that you wanted to help with the garden this spring...I might have to hold you to that one!)

Yes! I am so excited these days due to the fact that there is officially a chicken coop in the back yard. I am so happy! Bill and his dad spent a good portion of last Friday building the chicken coop. Eventually, our good friend Bruce, a carpenter, joined in on the fun. (Thanks so much, Bruce, for all of your help!!!) On Friday the coop got its base, and four walls with three of them being finished. On Saturday, Bill and dad spent a good portion more time adding a roof, the fourth wall, and a window. My wonderful father-in-law continues to faithfully come over every day since then to finish up the odds and ends of the building process. There are just a few more things that need to be done and we will be able to put the girls out there. On another note, with all this gorgeous weather we have been having, everything seems to be growing and in bloom. It is so fun to watch everything come back to life after this long winter. We are also growing six different kinds of tomatoes under a grow light in the basement and also some herbs. We hope to plant some lettuces/greens here in the next week or so as well. We are pretty pumped about the growing of our food thing and it gets more and more exciting every day. God is so good to bless us with the space and ability to grow our own food. Here are some pictures from Friday:



Dad starting the whole process in the garage,

Bruce's truck and the reinforcements (ie: a generator, nail gun, and professional carpenter skills!),


All three of the guys getting all wall up,


Our friend Bruce,


More work.

warm weather...finally!

Well the last two days have been gorgeous here in Ann Arbor. I must say that I don't do well with the cold, even mild cold. I was able to enjoy both warm, beautiful days for different reasons. Saturday I spent with the Marshall side of the family and was able to be a part of my sister-in-law's, Katie, baby shower. Now if you haven't heard this yet, she is pregnant with twins. It was a very fun baby shower and what a great day for celebrating the coming of the two little girls.

Today, I was able to get out in the yard this afternoon. Now, I kept telling myself I was "planning" on getting out there at some point. But after I did some shopping and came home to find the neighbors on both sides working in their yards, I felt guilty and knew I really had to get out there. I don't want to be known as the neighbor who doesn't take care of their yard. So as the smell of burning leaves filled the air, I worked trying to clear some of the remains of last fall. It always feels great to be outside!! So I took a few pictures of what is growing the front yard these days...and alas, there are some actual flowers...yes! And to be honest, I am not exactly sure what is going to pop up this spring, as several people did some planting this fall. So it will be quite the surprise to see what starts blooming.

Here are also a few shots of the girls. They are getting big and more than ready to be outside...hopefully soon! All of our neighbors are excited there are going to be chickens around. I met a neighbor a few houses down today and as he found out there were going to be chickens he exclaimed, "chickens in Frains lake again...alright!!". Apparently he used to raise 125 chickens back in the day and so I told him I was coming to him if we had any questions.

plans in motion

well, the plans are in motion to begin building the chicken coop. yes! as much as i love my chickens, they need to not be on the front porch any longer!! bill and his dad spent a good portion of the rainy sunday afternoon clearing an area for where we hope to build the chicken coop. originally we thought we were going to redo the scary shed, but it looks like we are going to start from scratch (and hopefully turn the scary shed into a potting shed/greenhouse some day). bill and his dad have already started talking about plans and how this is all going to work out over the next few weeks. we have to think of things like "15 feet from neighbors property", "how to get electricity running out there", "enough space for the girls to be comfortable", "free range versus enclosed chicken run" and all those kinds of crazy things. hopefully in a few weeks there will be pictures to show of the new mansion for the girls.

this week is also my spring break. i hope to start the tomato seedlings this week. pretty exciting!! of all the things we are going to grow in the garden, i think i am most excited about the tomatoes. we have chosen several different heirloom varieties and i am especially excited to see what ends up flourishing in the backyard (or at least hoping that something will grow...).

this week also held an update from the holistic doctor...for those of you interested, he said things are going great and a lot of the problems i had before are no longer problems. i am especially proud of my liver no longer struggling!! with this, my diet also gets less restrictive, which is extremely exciting for me. hello rice, potatoes, corn, and squashes!! can't wait!

just wanted to give an update on things as its been awhile. grace and peace!