Return of the backyard homestead...

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Remember once upon a time, several years ago, when our backyard looked like this?

Remember a cute little couple who spent hours upon hours there tending to their beautiful veggie garden?

Well, things have changed a little.  Here's what the backyard looked like in January...

...and now...

Yikes.

For the last few years we didn't grow as much as we could have, but we do have an excuse - we were sorta busy running a demanding small business and then raising a newborn.  Thankfully, that newborn is now a very active toddler who loves being outside, digging in the dirt.

What's never changed is our dream to have our own farm one day - not in the city, but just outside a small city (Nashville?) - where we grow delicious organic food and host farm dinners at a big rustic table on a patio with white twinkle lights and our children grow up frolicking freely in fields of flowers and horses and goats and chickens.  It's a wonderful, worthy dream, but if we cannot grow food in our small urban backyard in Dallas, we surely won't be able to grow it on 40 acres of land.  Anywhere.

So instead of waiting for a someday dream, we decided it was time to get dirt caked under our nails again.

Here's the grand master plan that Steven drew up for our backyard "homestead":

Much of our recent inspiration came after reading the incredibly fascinating book Folks, This Ain't Normal: A Farmer's Advice for Happier Hens, Healthier People, and a Better World by Joel Salatin of Polyface Farm (featured in the movies Food, Inc. and Food Matters).   Salatin sites, "As early as 1946, nearly 50 percent of all produce grown in America came out of backyard gardens."  A pretty shocking statistic, don't you think?  My mom was born in 1946.  That's not very long ago.

Somehow between the mid-40s and now, convenience began to trump wholesomeness, and growing your own food is mostly viewed as a "hobby" for people who "have time," not as a necessity.

It's not easy.  And I know it's not realistic for everyone to grow all their food in their own backyards these days.  But everyone can plant a few seeds and grow something.  Even if it's just some herbs in a few pots on an urban patio.

So, I wanted to give you a further glimpse into our garden this year.  It's far from perfect, with unrelenting grass sprouts and weeds threatening to overtake our food crops every single day.  Somedays I wish our backyard was an idyllic haven that pruned and weeded itself, but that's not life. We were created to tend the land God created, and I believe that there is a deep satisfaction in doing so.

And most of all, it's ours.  And it will bear food to eat and to share.  And that's something.

Wild cilantro

Lavender flower

Bees love lavender

Trusty red gardening Crocs Teensy salad greens

Red chard

Kale

Garlic

Iris before blooming

Iris unfurling

Clematis vine // Summer squash plant

Persimmon treeTaking a breakWe've already harvested enough greens for a few simple salads, and like the Frances Mayes quote says, it's true. There is something special that happens when you eat something you grow. Maybe it's woven into our very being to be connected to the dirt in a way that sustains us.

Spring happiness: hiking, bluebonnets, and apple love.

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Oh, spring. How you redeem the state of Texas for me. How you make up for the sweltering, sticky summers. Green, green, and more green has surrounded us this year.  It never gets old.

On a clear, cool spring morning recently, I met up with my dear friend Erin at Cedar Ridge Preserve, my haven just outside the city.   Erin is a kindred soul - we've been through thick and thin together and have so much in common like our nerdiness, love of Jesus, and crafting.  We both have toddler girls close in age, Luci and Lawson, who love to play together sometimes on Saturday mornings.   But what I love most about our friendship is how different we are.  I have the opportunity to learn from her personality and be spurred on to seek Christ in ways I otherwise might miss.  

Our walk through the woods was refreshing on a day when I really needed it - we've been steeped in multiple toddler tantrums every day around here lately, exhausted from the consequences of my husband hurting his ribs in a bike accident, and the ongoing small business/money woes. 

But a morning in the woods with a friend is the best medicine - the scent of mulch and mud, the sound of crickets and lawnmowers, sunbeams illuminating our hair through the trees, both of our heads nodding and our spirits quickening as we walked and talked.  It's so good to be with someone with whom you can agree, "Yes.  This is what life is about."

On our hike, we passed green prairie meadows with freshly-mowed walking trails...

...forested pathways...

...clear rainbowy streams...

...new growth sprouting with the energy of spring.

After the hike, Erin had to bid us farewell, but Luci Belle and I got to linger at the Preserve a little longer.  I fished inside my bag and pulled out a Fuji apple for us to share.

It was so simple, that apple.

But in the sunshine, with my daughter, time stood still and the multitudes of stress from the previous week seemed inconsequential.  I'm thankful for moments like these.  Does it mean the struggles don't exist?  Absolutely not.  But it makes them more bearable.

She asked for a bite, and then didn't want to let go.

MORE pictures, Mommy?  Yup, still holding the apple.

Meanwhile, her usual favorite snack of salted cinnamon pumpkin seeds lay untouched.

After licking that apple core clean, we decided to head home.  On our way out, we caught sight of an entire field of bluebonnets, the Texas state flower.  I swerved the car to the shoulder, hopped out, and snapped a few photos.  After all, they come and go so quickly.

No sooner were we on the road when I glanced in the back seat.  The ultimate sign of a successful morning outing?  A completely conked-out toddler...

...and a quiet ride home for a mom who's able to be a little more patient, a little more kind today, after having spent some time in nature with a close friend, wildflowers, and an apple.

Hair advice!

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OK, folks.  I need a new hairstyle.  I've been rockin' this one since, oh, 2003/2004, and it's TIME.  Here are a few I put together using the InStyle.com Hollywood Hair Makeover - haha!  I was doubtful about bangs since they're a pain to grow out and since my hair is wavy/curly, but after viewing these examples, I think it's a possibility.  I know my hair isn't as thick and  luxurious as these, but they give you an idea.   Longer or shorter length?  Longer sideswept bangs, or shorter bangs?

What do you think?  Leave me a comment with your vote!

option 1

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option 2

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option 3

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option 4

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option 5

A life-giving dark.

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Iris unfurling in my garden, March 2012

Around Easter every year, I love to pull out one of my old faithful book friends - When the Heart Waits by Sue Monk Kidd.  Because, you see...

Waiting does not come easily for me.

Especially now.  In the daily trenches of motherhood, it amazes me how many times in a single day I can oscillate back and forth between fully embracing my current stage in life, and wishing for what was, or what will be. 

In the midst of broken relationships and other struggles, it seems so lonely sometimes.

But, the waiting is necessary.

This book taught me...

  • It's okay to have questions; God is not afraid of them.
  • Waiting can be a "life-giving dark" if we will only accept it as a womb instead of a tomb.  In a womb, there is life.  In a womb, we are incubating.  A life-giving dark is where something is happening, something beautiful.  It is not dead or stagnant.
  • This process is key - it strips us of our false selves, humbles us, draws us closer to the heart of Christ.
  • Christ longs to draw us close to His heart, even more than a nursing mother.  Let Him.

Will I choose life today?  Or will I allow the dark, the waiting, to engulf me?

I love the words that Sue Monk Kidd writes in her journal on her birthday, as she continues to wrestle through the tension of life...

"Sometimes it seems that life is a grace too severe, too vast, and too beautiful to receive.  But I open my hands anyway.  Today I'll talk to myself.  I'll say, Accept life - the places it bleeds and the places it smiles.  That's your most holy and human task.  Gather up the pain and the questions and hold them like a child upon your lap. Have faith in God, in the movement of your soul.  Accept what is.  Accept the dark.  It's okay.  Just be true.

I'll say to myself, You're loved.  Your pain is God's pain. Go ahead and embrace the struggle and chaos of it all, the splendor, the messiness, the wonder, the agony, the joy, the conflict.  Love all of it.

I'll say to myself, Remember that little flame on the Easter candle.  Cup your heart around it.  Your darkness will become the light."

I absolutely have to believe that's true.  Otherwise, what's the point?

Tomorrow, we celebrate Easter.  Easter is about the promise that God can and will redeem all things. Out of the darkness came life.  Jesus is alive!   What does that mean for us, little us, still here on earth? 

Wherever you are in the dark, wherever you are in waiting, know...

You are not alone.

I've been there, I understand, you are understood.  I hope that you can grasp "how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."  (Ephesians 3:17-19; NIV) 

That's something I'm clinging to.

May the joy of Easter morning - the promise that the light does come to rescue and to save - give you peace.

Read more of my thoughts on When the Heart Waits and "eastering" here.

A thankful prayer for today.

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I woke up this morning feeling so amazing, non-allergic, well rested.  I texted this to Steven, who was at an early morning meeting and he said, "That's because I prayed kisses and God's love all over you!"

Thank you, Lord, for sweet gifts like this, for another day to live walking with You.

i thank You God for most this amazing
day: for the leaping greenly spirits of trees
and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything
which is natural which is infinite which is yes
~ e.e. cummings

 

Impromptu trip to Austin.

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What's one of my favorite things about living in Dallas?  That we're only 2.5 hours away from Austin!  One of the best cities out there, in my opinion - excellent food, great shops, rolling hills and beauty, and a ton of hippies like us.

A few weeks ago, we had an important task for Urban Acres to attend to there, so our family of three went together.  What a fun day.

All road trips make me sentimental for Nashville, so we popped in my "Nashville Memories" track list and started the trip off right - belting out "Check Yes Or No" by George Strait as we cruised out of Dallas in the rain.

The little one was excited to finally face forward in her car seat, armed with a banana and a Dr. Seuss book.  What more could you want in life?  

Steven and I were happy to have some undistracted time together to talk.  That alone was worth the trip.

The drive to Austin was pretty uneventful...that is, until we pulled into the parking lot of our first stop, Daily Juice, Austin's famous juice/smoothie bar and home of the super fat straw.  At this very moment, after holding it in for 2.5 hours, our carsick-prone daughter decided to puke up her entire breakfast.  A shirt change and an entire case of baby wipes later, we made a dash for the front door of Daily Juice in the pouring rain.

Once we were inside and saw their amazing menu board, all things were redeemed.  You've never seen a smoothie bar like this place.  We ordered one of the Serious Smoothies - the "El Paraiso" with added raw pecan butter.  YUM. 

After some work stuff, it was time for lunch, so we shuttled our grumbly tummies over to the highly recommended Elizabeth Street Café for French Vietnamese food. 

Luci Belle tried to figure out chop stix while we sampled the Bánh mì - a warm Vietnamese bun stuffed with pork belly, cucumber, cilantro, and a delicious sauce.

And then of course, Phở.  A steaming hot bowl of beef broth and noodles on a cold, rainy day?  Yes, please.

It hit the spot and gave us the energy to traipse around S. Lamar Blvd. in the rain looking for some new TOMS, to replace my beloved plaid Cordones that had worn holes through the toes.

Luci Belle was unfazed by the rain and was in heaven jumping in puddles, but Steven and I were soaked and just about to give up when we decided to seek shelter and warmth at Whole Earth Provision Co.  Just in case, we checked the sale rack, tucked into a dark corner on the second floor.  And there they were, just one pair, in my size, in the right color, and for $30 less.  Seriously?  I tried them on, and they were so comfortable they felt like socks.  Then as I was modeling them tentatively, Steven remarked, "Oh, those are SO you," and it was a done deal. 

I love them.

Even the rain couldn't keep us from a successful road trip - delicious smoothie, the perfect noodles, new shoes, and the companionship of my two favorite people in the world.