March 9, 2016 by Born To Organize

Gardening From The Ground Up

After my forced break from the garden, I’m making up for lost time. I’ve been outdoors pulling weeds, sorting compost, preparing planting beds and doing general cleanup every day for weeks.

The freesia are in bloom all over the garden

I’m in the garden for a few minutes in the morning after returning from school drop-off. If I’m working with clients or have other appointments, then I put in my time at the end of the day.

Meyer’s Lemon Tree Enjoying the Rain

The weekend affords the luxury of a few hours in a row, even with our recent and welcome rain.

Chronic neck pain, a wonky hip and my tender ankle tend to dictate the duration. I enjoy working in the cooler weather and even the rain but once my various ailments begin to act up, it’s time to pack it in for the day.

About a year ago I bought a garden kneeler with handles. I’ve seen pictures of them in catalogs for years. I once used a foam pad for shifting around the garden, but it’s become increasingly harder to get back up without pain.

The pictures generally feature a “mature” woman using the kneeler. Only recently did it occur to me that I’m a mature woman. In my mind I’m perpetually thirty. How disconcerting.

I got over myself and bought the kneeler.

Kneeling in the garden

Word of the Year

I chose “health” as my word this year. It’s interesting how much of life’s enjoyment comes down to our personal well-being. I’ve reduced my consumption of sugar, with some slip ups here and there. I’ve kept a food and exercise diary through MyFitnessPal for the past 66 days. Now that I’ve been on such a long streak, I find that I don’t want to miss a day. Logging what I eat is also eye-opening. It feels good to be back to Pilates classes two days a week, and I’m back to long walks as well. The weight is coming off slowly though, which seems so unfair [insert pouting face here]. I’m not giving up, but find it disappointing when week after week the scale doesn’t budge and the pants remain snug. I think we’re conditioned to think that if we do everything “right” we should see the results. Does this happen to you?

The first day of spring in California is March 20th this year. I’ll be planting heirloom tomatoes, basil and maybe, just maybe, a few pumpkins. I have a new and improved watering system which I will share in another post.

When autumn rolls around, I say it’s my favorite time of year. Then spring unfolds and I’m in love with the color, the birdsong and the freshness of it all.

I think I’ve made up my mind: I can’t possibly choose sides.

March 7, 2016 by Born To Organize

Have Carrot, Will Travel or Where’s Gardenerd?

Have you seen or heard from Gardenerd?

Well technically *I am* a gardening nerd and you’re hearing from me now, but this is different. Gardenerd is the brain child and mascot of Christy Wilhelmi, in Los Angeles, California. Here’s a snippet from Gardenerd: The Ultimate Resource for Garden Nerds.

Are you obsessed with organic gardening, have a thirst for knowledge and a healthy sense of humor? Whether you’re a novice or garden nerd veteran, there’s a place for you here.

At least a year ago my PR assistant, Mel, gave me a carrot plush toy. It’s the cutest thing ever. It also spawned an idea we couldn’t pass up. What if we sent this plush toy around the world so people could photograph it in their gardens? What if gardenerds all over the planet could then post their photos to Twitter or Instagram for all of us to share?

I’m like a child in a candy shop with this sort of thing. After meeting the traveling carrot via Sarah’s video, I quickly added my name to the list of garden hosts.

Gardenerd arrived in San Jose, California last week. He traveled thousands of miles from Waiuku, New Zealand via Sarah The Gardener. Sarah enclosed a few Kiwi treasures with her package as well. What fun!

Thank you, Sarah!!!

Gardenerd arrived with the first of several storms, bringing much-needed rain to our drought-parched state. What a weekend!

My first order of business was to take a quick pic in the garden with our guest. Mouse the Cat insisted on meeting him as well. As you can see, Mouse doesn’t have a shy bone in his body.

By Saturday the rain was really coming down, so some quick rain gear was in order.

Gardenerd checks out the California native plants #wheresgardenerd

A produce bag, a newspaper cover and some scotch tape did the trick and he was ready to spend some time in the garden.

Gardenerd in his rain gear. He’s resting on my new planting Trug.

It’s been a busy time in the garden with the first day of spring less than two weeks away. I’ve been rotating compost bins, preparing gardening beds and assembling an elevated gardening bed called a Trug. More about that later. With the recent rain, the weeds are having a second go at garden domination. Sadly, they’re in for a disappointment. I’ve been plucking weeds and renegade lawn on a daily basis, keeping the garden in good shape.

Stay tuned for updates as I show my visitor around my garden and the nearby community.

If you’re interested in hosting Gardenerd, you can grab the details here.

You can follow Gardenerd’s adventures on Instagram or Twitter by using the hashtag #wheresgardenerd (with one ‘n’)

March 7, 2016 by Born To Organize

International Women’s Day

Today is International Women’s Day. I’m sharing this from my friend Laurie’s blog, Life on the Bike. Laurie recently ran for state delegate in an effort to balance the disparity of women in office. She’s also a health care practitioner, serving the needs of women every day. Let’s spread the word.

Life on the Bike and other Fab Things

Tomorrow is International Women’s Day and the 2016 Campaign Theme is Pledge for Parity.

“Worldwide, women continue to contribute to social, economic, cultural and political achievement, and while there is much to celebrate, progress towards gender parity has slowed in many places”.

Let’s all do our part to take concrete steps to help achieve gender parity more quickly – whether by