Gardening is awesome

Hello Everyone!

I've found myself in an emotional crisis over the past week. Currently, gardening (for the first time ever) is my reprieve. In all seriousness, 

gardening is improving my quality of life

I mentioned in my last post that I've started a number of different herbs and vegetables. I also mentioned that I placed a big beautiful butternut squash (BNS for short) close to my BNS seedlings. Y'all thought I was crazy but this morning I awoke to two big beautiful BNS sprouts! The role model squash has been working fabulously! On the topic of butternut squash, my boyfriend doesn't like the BNS shortening. He thinks it sounds like a disease or something else that's quite terrible. 

My current dilemma is the fact that I want to cook the role model squash for dinner tonight. I'm planning on making a butternut squash curried lentil dish. But I don' think I can butcher the role model squash in front of the seedlings! I can't do that! Boyfriend said that if I cook the role model squash, the little seedlings will refuse to grow. 

That's all I have to live for!?  They'll cry, as their little tender green selves witness the massacre of the adult BNS. I'm hoping that they'll be slightly uplifted by the smell of curry and perhaps they'll dream of one day becoming a beautiful, delicious meal. 

Butternut squash seedling has a beautiful golden role model

I've actually become so excited by the potential of having a bountiful garden that I went to Home Depot and purchased more seeds (and 3 strawberry plants). This afternoon I started 4 pumpkins and 4 watermelons in jiffy cups.

Once I get start working the soil outside and prepping the beds, I'll just have to wait till the last frost before I can move my seedlings to the great outdoors. I plan on keeping my terracotta herb garden indoors, but I'll also plant some herbs outside.

Parsley is sprouting like crazy in my indoor garden

If everything goes according to plan and my seeds all behave, I will have a beautiful garden and many vegetables and fruits to eat. I'll be growing: 

-Purple Carrots
-Carrots
-Peas 
-Butternut Squash 
-Sweet Pumpkins 
-Watermelon 
-Strawberries 
-Beets 
-Lettuce 
-Mini Bell Peppers 
-Basil
-Parsley
-Dill 
-Rosemary 

I'm so excited I can't even wait. I plan on sketching out my garden plan tonight, and I've been reading and studying gardening online. I am convinced that I will have an amazing garden, and this hope and excitement is helping me pull through my emotional crisis and my physical pain. Endometriosis won't stop for my garden, but my excitement for my garden is overcoming the endometriosis blues. 

Strawberries, role model squash, and makeshift greenhouses all chilling in my kitchen

Last summer I started this blog to document my transition to farmerhood. I've since moved into the city with my boyfriend, but perhaps I can maintain my farmer status through my vegetable garden. I'm also planning on getting a duckling (or two. or three.) but I'll have to be extra cute to get my boyfriend on board.
 
Ideally I want a mallard duckling, but I think the only way to do that is by egg-napping a duck nest and I'm not terrible enough to do that. 
SO-- if anyone can hook me up with some duck eggs and an incubator I will be SO THANKFUL. Just don't tell my boyfriend. Or my landlord.

I will be happily blogging about my garden through the spring and summer. If all goes according to plan, we will be eating well at the end of the season!