consider the lilies...

Look at the lilies and how they grow.  

They don't work or make their clothing, 

yet Solomon in all his glory 

was not dressed as beautifully as they are.  

And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, 

He will certainly care for you.  

 

Why do you have so little faith?  

Luke 12:27-29 NLT

 

 

In our barren rental-house yard two beautiful lily stalks appeared in the most unlikely, unnoticeable part of the side yard; next to peeling peach colored paint and some stray wires that look like they used to be attached to something.  Obviously, it got me thinking.  

 

Beautiful yet totally unaware of it's surroundings.  It didn't refuse to bloom because of it's hideous location.  It didn't demand to be replanted in a neighbors yard.  It just bloomed.  I think it bloomed just to remind me that if God cares enough to make flowers, He will certainly care for me.

“What is your name, little flower, for I never saw one like you before."

The tiny plant answered at once in a tone as golden as itself,
“Behold me! My name is Acceptance-with-Joy.”

“He has brought me here... I, too, will look up into His face and say,
‘Behold me! I am thy little handmaiden Acceptance-with-Joy.’”
--Hannah Hurnard, Hind's Feet in High Places  

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My discovery of the lilies got me looking around for other signs of fruitfulness and beauty.  I found mangoes and loquats that hang into our yard from the neighbors.  The loquats are delicious and we are all eagerly awaiting the mangoes to be ready, looks like its gonna be a bumper crop!

I wanted to introduce the newest member of the Mills crew, but unfortunately Miss Nessly is no longer with us.  She went back into the ocean via the commode.  But for about a week, we did have a pet.  And it was fun.  We may try that again sometime.

before & after yard

Okay, so it's not exactly a playscape, but we're trying to work with what we've got without spending any money- like most people.

It does have a few basic elements.  Here's my list of 10 ideas to get you started on your own playscape.

+ Two strategically planted clusters.  A sunflower valley arch and a gourd vine nook.

+ While not a true path or circut, the bamboo reeding provides just enough barrier to give the space some flow.

+ An herb section that the kid's can get into.  Acacia loves to bring out some kid's scissors and a bowl and "harvest".

+ Stumps for sitting, mixing, and balancing. 

BEFORE:

 AFTER:

I cut the bamboo reeding in half so it would wrap all the way around the side of the pavement.

 The herb garden.  Acacia was in the middle of harvesting when I took this, you can see her bowl on the stump.

 This is the gourd vine nook/hut that doubles as a dirt pit for digging and finding worms.  Gourds are extremely fast growing.

The sunflower valley arch. It is somewhat of a boundary since we don't have a fence.

 

The "path" from the screen door, around the corner to the paved clearing (and trampoline if you need a quick jump) and off into the field.  Jackson gets it.  He just goes back and forth with that car as long as he's outside.

  

The safe zone.  Pavement to gourd nook, across balance beam log to sunflower arch to the sink and back to the beginning.  Not exactly a fence, and I still have to stay outside with them, but at least I'm not running into the street screaming.  Well, not as often, anyway.

sort of moved in

We got internet yesterday and our bedroom is  box-free... other than that it is still total chaos around here.

I'm really trying to unpack and nest but there are boxes EVERYWHERE!!!  In fact, there are so many boxes that it feels like something from an episode of Hoarders.  Minus the cats. 

Since neither Braj nor I are even the slightest bit inclined to hoard, we are having a big, huge, blowout, everything-must-go, priced-to-sell, yard sale this weekend.  Please pray that many people come and buy all of our stuff; cuz once it's outside, it ain't comin' back in. 

The main reason for the sale is to clear out some space, but we are also planning to use the yard sale money to purchase the few things we need for this house.  Like this:

The backyard is incredible.  Incredible in a blank canvas kind of way- the entire lot is .25 acres without a single tree.  Not incredible in a sherwood- forest-meets-tropical-jungle-paradise kind of way.  But it will be fun to playscape.  Here's the before shot:

And here's my plan:

+ That's bamboo reed fencing around the west side of the patio to avoid my nosy new neighbor.  $23 for 16 feet of it at home depot here.
+On the far east side is a curvy mammoth sunflower bed with salvaged tropical hardwood logs as sitting spots along the perimeter.  My neighbor just cut down a fantastic large tree.  Her loss, my gain.
+The square area next to it is our bottle gourd vine hut.  I'm growing the gourds up tomato cages in four corners and linking the cages with long sticks or whatever I can find.
+Of course, our prized kid's kitchen sink is already hooked up and in full service.  I have a fat stump from the salvaged neighbor's tree planted next to it as a mudpie prep area.

Build a natural playscape in your own yard

My love for natural playscapes stems from my very fond childhood memories in the creek by our house (until we found a bra there one day... ewww), and from going to the plant nursery with my dad on the weekends.  I finally got my hands on this great book by Rusty Keeler and it has opened up a whole new world for me. 

The main point of Natural Playscaping- Making use of an entire space by creating simple, engaging, natural areas using trees, grass, paths, and plants for children (and me, too) to discover and explore and play.  It is a craft. And I am loving it.  Sooooooooo much.

Here's 10 ideas for a do-it-yourself backyard natural playscape :

1. Create secret path circuits.  A figure-eight trike track, a balance beam trail, a willow tunnel.  Maybe  add a random small gate; kid's love opening and closing doors.

2. Build a hill.  Doesn't have to be big.  3-5 feet high is plenty.  You can put your slide here if you want to, or build a playhouse on top.  Or just have a hill.  Perfect for the center of one of your paths.

3. Plant strategically and in clusters.  Create hiding nooks, small rooms, and secret spaces.  Sunflower houses, a maze of corn, a cluster of bamboo to shield a sitting spot.

4. Large scale natural elements.  Fallen trees or giant boulders for climbing and sitting.

5. Plenty of sitting areas.  Stumps work great for walking on, resting, as a table, to make mud pies, etc.

6. Moving Water.  Kids love moving water.  The book has some awesome ideas for this one.  But I personally love my second hand kitchen sink installed at kid height and hooked up the the hose.

7. Use what you've got.  Integrate existing plants and architecture.  If you have a long wall... install side-to-side climbing grips.
8. Let them get dirty.  You can wash them off later.

9. Smellscapes.  Plant herbs everywhere.  Every nook and space can have a smell.  Use herbs instead of traditional groundcover.
10. Soundscapes. The book has some awesome ideas for this one, too.  Outside is a great place for making music!

Most information, but not all, taken from 

Natural Playscapes: Creating Outdoor Play Environments For The Soul 

By Rusty Keeler.

For more interesting ideas for playground alternatives and natural playscape ideas, check out this blog.

Feed me, Seymore!

We are NOT spending any more money on our cute rental house, it is on the market and we'd be nuts to put money into it right now.  Besides, we're cracking down on extra spending, because we will be finished with our Dave Ramsey debt snowball in July! (whoo hoo!)

But, we HAD to do something about the mutant dandelions that were trying to take over our front and back yards.  I didn't want to spray in the back because it's where the kids play.  So, I've been digging them all up everytime we go outside.  But the front was totally out of control.  From the street, our house was starting to look like an abandoned property which is both embarrasing and unpleasant.  Acacia started referring to it as the "field of pricklies".

I'm talking about 3 foot tall spiky dandelions.  Everywhere.  Our very own Little Shop of Horrors.  And we get our grass cut every two weeks.  Mutant dandelions.  Taking over.

I splurged on some heavy duty lawn spray a few days ago and today I busted out the camping tent for the kids and my very thick garden gloves and went to town.  It was therapeutic, fun, and it looks awesome.

we found an awesome new park!

 

 

We had a blast exploring the park next to the horse park on Saturday.  Full of lush, tropical plants and trees, and there is even a firepit.  We are envisioning a creation-science day for kids followed by a b.y.o. picnic dinner and s'mores and worship around the campfire.  Mmmm.  Or maybe just skip the whole thing and make s'mores in the microwave at home.  Much easier.

chocolate-mulch-dirt birthday cake video

Just a few minutes of backyard play with the kids.  Jackson is doing some maintenance (dragging the broom around) and Acacia is working on a birthday cake.  The weather has been beautiful and we have spent a very good part of our week doing just this.  These are the days, aren't they?!

Where did you go, December?

My head is still spinning.  It was fun, but definitely fast.

Here's what we've been up to:
1.  Thanksgiving in North Carolina was awesome.  We even got to sneak up to Boone for a day. 

2.  The incredibly talented and oh-so-kind Braj installed my curbside-treasure cast iron sink for the kids to play in.  HOURS and HOURS of fun already... and it's not even summer.  Everyone with small children should have an outdoor kid-sized sink.  Everyone.

3.  Acacia is totally into Leap, Lily, and Tad... the Leapfrog characters because of two movies, The Letter Factory and The Word Factory.  She has been writing up a storm and pointing out short words she sees around.  Here's a shot of her chalkboard after teaching herself how to write "pop".

4.  I finally finished the Florida room (also the dining room, or the grey room).  It's so cozy and functional and we spend a very good part of every day here.  Again, a big thanks to Braj for installing shelves and Ikea rods into our concrete wall.  Total cost for all shelving:  less than $15.  Used cans hold crayons, colored pencils, markers, plant clippings, and the like.  Wood for shelves is scrap, everything else is Ikea, baby!  Oh, not the authentic antique Peruvian textile.  That's from the market in Lima.

 

5.  Then there were the big events:  Braj turned 32.  We celebrated our 9th anniversary with a date; thanks to our incredible baby sitters.  Company Christmas party in Orlando.  Married Couple's Fellowship dinner.  Party for a friend's new baby.  Guest speaker for the teenage girls in our youth group.  Live Nativity at a local church, with camels.  Cookie swap (mmmm... espresso & cardamom dark chocolate truffles).  Yes, all of those were in mid-December.  See why I didn't have time to write?!

6.  Christmas Eve service had the kid's choir; Acacia was so darling.  Here's "Feliz Navidad", she starts getting into it about halfway through.


7.  Christmas day was lovely; the vivacious and hospitable June had us over for a yummy dinner and we enjoyed a nice stroll around the neighborhood.  That's what you do in Miami on Christmas evening.  Walk around outside without freezing your tail off.  It's great.

8.  My parents came down for several days.  We had such a great time together.  They have most of the pictures, the only one I made it out with is this shot of my mom and I sporting our 3D glasses for the movie Avatar.  We got our awesome sitter to come over so we could hang together for some grown up time.  Thanks for coming down guys, I had so much fun with you.  I love you very much.

my love for moss

In my list of current favorites I mentioned a love for moss. Well, guess what. I'm not the only one. Looks like moss is a growing trend. Before you go thinking I'm on top of the latest... my dad purposely grew moss between the brick path he laid in the house I grew up in. Vivid memories, pa.

On the practical side, moss doesn't have to be mowed, fertilized or weeded and it feels GREAT on barefeet. Truly a green option (ha ha ha!!!). I know, I'm hilarious.