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At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

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June 24, 2011

Blogger Block Party! Fresh from the Garden

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Wow it’s hard to believe we are already on day 5 of the Summer Blogger Block Party! We have seen soooo many fabulous posts and there’s still three days left to link up! A big thank you to all who have participated.  The Block Party is taking the place of Inspiration Friday this week…but we’d love to have y’all come back next week to join us with anything inspiring you’d like to share!

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It’s hard to imagine a country home without a garden! When we moved on to our acreage in Kentucky we knew that at some point we would want to put a garden in.  While we come from a long ancestry of gardeners, neither Bama Boy or I had even had our OWN garden.  Over the last few years and through a lot of trial and error we have become seasoned gardeners in our own right!  We’ve learned how to build garden boxes, grow plants from seeds, how to get rid of pests organically, and how to can, pickle, preserve and otherwise utilize the bounty of produce we have grown!  It’s been a fun learning experience!
Because our soil is mostly lovely Kentucky clay we decided to build gardening boxes, so we could control the quality of the soil. It was no small feat to build all of our garden boxes but it was well worth the effort.

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Using left over lumber from a building project, Bama Boy constructed four large rectangular boxes down on the bottom part of our property.  We filled the bottom with rocks to facilitate good drainage. 

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We had a good quality of garden soil delivered out to our place.  Even though this can be a little pricey, it’s worth it in the long run to have a high quality soil to grow your plants in.  Then Bama Boy prepared the soil by mixing in several other compounds such as peat and lime to achieve the proper ph levels.. 

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Next we determined what we wanted to plant in which box.

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We tried to keep vining plants together such as our cucumbers and squash.

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We planted our trellised plants such as peas and beans together in another box.  These are an early crop, so we were able to rotate some later producing tomatoes and peppers in this bed when the peas were done.

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Like all good Southerners we dedicate an entire bed to tomatoes of all kinds!  With these I like to make tomato sauce and sun dried tomatoes as well as use them for lots of summer pizzas and of course the quintessential Southern sandwich…tomato, mayo and white bread! Winking smile

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After the beds were complete Bama Boy and his dad built a fence around the garden with a nice gate for us to access it.  Needless to say living where we do we have a large deer and rabbit population.  While we love wildlife out here in the country, it was not our intention to keep them fed off our garden all summer.  Along the bottom of the fence we ran a low voltage battery operated electric fence. This has worked well to keep critters…and children for that matter ha! ha!…out of our garden.   We also added a platform with a nice utility box attached to it to store all of our gardening supplies.  This has been so handy! It allows us to keep everything right where we needed it instead of hauling it over several acres down a hill. 
Our garden has given us so much pleasure over the last few years! Bama Boy has taken it over and has enjoyed it as a fun hobby and project. 



So what do you “DO” with all of that bounty once it starts coming in?

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Banana Peppers from our garden

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Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Squash, and Peppers from our Garden

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Okra from our Garden
I step in when it’s time to start harvesting and we spend many summer afternoons canning, preserving, pickling and drying. I have also enjoyed creating and trying different recipes using what we grow! 


The following have been some of our most productive crops from our garden.  
I thought I’d share a few of my recipes for each. Enjoy!



Tomatoes:


Homemade Tomato Basil Simmer Sauce
{Print Recipe}

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Make Your Own Sun Dried Tomatoes
{Print Recipe}

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Chicken Parmigiana with Tomato Basil Simmer Sauce
{Print Recipe}

Chicken parmigiana 1



Okra:


Okra Griddle Cake Sandwiches
{Print Recipe}

Okra skillet cake sandwiches


Okra Fritters
{Print Recipe}

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Peppers:


Homemade Pepper Vinegar
{Print Recipe}

Pepper Vinegar


Pepper Relish
{Print Recipe}



Grilled Stuffed Banana Peppers
{Print Recipe}




*All photographs are my own and from our garden!



Thank you for visiting our garden!  I hope you have a chance to try some of these fabulous recipes!  Even if you don’t have several acres to plant a large garden on, you can still grow wonderful things using containers or building smaller garden boxes.  There is just something special about growing, tending and harvesting your own food! Enjoying the fruits of our labor way into the winter and spring is a wonderful reward for our hard work during the summer!

Since it’s not a party without presents and in honor of all of you fabulous gardeners, our super-duper generous sponsor The Simple Stencil is offering a choice of one of the following stencils:

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You can choose your own color and any size up to a $30 value! A big thank you to The Simple Stencil for providing this giveaway! If you have a chance pay them a visit, you will be amazed at all they offer including custom stencils…

…and it’s just one of the 12 giveaways going on this week for the Blogger Block Party!

 

To be entered into the giveaway you MUST LINK UP (a summer related post) and LINK BACK! We are finding many people are not linking back to the Block Party in some capacity! Thank you to those who take the time to do this…it’s just polite party etiquette!

Here’s a coded button to make linking up super easy!


Now it’s time for YOU to share your garden posts with us?  Do you have a post about gardening? Have you recently put a garden in our built your own garden boxes? Have some great recipes, canning tips, etc to share with us?  If so, than it’s your turn to link up to the Blogger Block Party!

Don’t have a gardening post?  That’s okay!  There are three other FABULOUS themes today! Alison over at Stuff and Nonsense is hosting everything Summer “Sale-ing” Related! If you are a thrifty shopper and you’ve posted about your finds, head over and visit Alison and share your sale-ing posts with us!  Items like this:

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My fabulous Goodwill find that I turned into a Dining Caddy!

If you are a lover of all things Shabby Summer Cottage you will want to pay a visit to the lovely Courtney at French Country Cottage where she is sharing how she decks her cottage out for the summer! And of course we could never leave out our Vintage crowd! The fabulous Debra from Common Ground will be sharing how she celebrates summer in Vintage Style! See we told ya the Blogger Block Party would have a little something for everyone! And you’ve all probably figured this out by now but just in case…your link will show up on all 12 BLOGS participating as soon as you link up! Isn’t that cool? So read the rules, have fun at the party and link em on up!
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  • Link Up any post past or present related to this parties theme
  • Be sure to link back to your original post and not just your url (main blog address)
  • Please post the Blogger Block Party button (code located above and in sidebar) in your post so others can join in the fun! (MANDATORY)
  • Visit another guest. We love it when you party with our other guests!  Please take a moment and visit some of the other posts and leave some comment love!  This is what makes a party so much fun!
  • We’d love it if you’d share the Blogger Block Party on your Facebook Pages and Twitter (use #BloggerBlockParty in your tweet) (Not mandatory but we’d appreciate it!

And we always love getting new friends at the fence! We’d love to see your pretty face in our Google Friends list or send you free email updates.  You can join either in our sidebar! 

30 Comments Filed Under: Blogger Block Party, Gardening, Recipes

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Comments

  1. Debra says

    June 23, 2011 at 11:44 PM

    Wow, you guys are pros, I’m super impressed! Your recipes sound wonderful, so yummy.
    xoxo Debra

    Reply
  2. Pam - diy Design Fanatic says

    June 23, 2011 at 11:54 PM

    I’m so jealous of your garden! We have so much shade and only a couple of spaces where we get sun. My tomatoes plants are finally producing and should be ready in a few days! Our potatoes should be ready soon, as well 🙂

    Reply
  3. Little Brick Ranch says

    June 24, 2011 at 12:30 AM

    WOW – those peppers look amazing! I cant believe how much you have already…I have nothing but, then again, I just redid the whole layout again!! We switched to raised beds and are trying out square foot gardening. ALL next week will be devoted to our new garden. Check in for progress pics! 🙂

    Reply
  4. Michell @ Girl In Air says

    June 24, 2011 at 12:42 AM

    What a wonderful garden!! I’m loving this party and looking thru all the wonderful links!!

    How FUN!

    Reply
  5. Haniela says

    June 24, 2011 at 12:54 AM

    Your garden is totally wonderful. we also have a garden and isn’t it the best when it is fresh and homegrown.Love it!!!

    Reply
  6. Jessica Lauren says

    June 24, 2011 at 1:27 AM

    wow what a fabulous party! It’s going to take me forever to get through these all, but there seem to be some great ideas based on what I’ve seen so far! Thanks to all of you for hosting!
    ~*Jessica Lauren @
    https://copy-cat-crafter.blogspot.com

    Reply
  7. Brandi says

    June 24, 2011 at 2:49 AM

    oh my goodness heather, your property is gorgeous. your garden is thriving beautifully. nothing better than fruit and veggies fresh from the garden.

    Reply
  8. Sherry says

    June 24, 2011 at 4:18 AM

    Oh, I would love to try sun dried tomatoes. on Pizza! I grew up in KY and had lots on tomato sandwiches! My husband from IL had not! LOL Thanks for the great party. Will spend some of the weekend cruising the posts.
    Sherry

    Reply
  9. Honey at 2805 says

    June 24, 2011 at 8:54 AM

    Your garden is certainly full of goodies!

    Looks like your party is a roaring success! I’ve been somewhat out of pocket this week and unable to particiate much.

    Reply
  10. Tanna at The Brick Street Bungalow says

    June 24, 2011 at 11:21 AM

    Heather, your post is simply wonderful! I love. love. love. your raised garden beds! And, every recipe you posted looks divine! You make my farmer’s daughter roots yearn for some soil to til myself. =( I’ll enjoy looking at yours and wishing! blessings ~ Tanna

    Reply
  11. dogsmom says

    June 24, 2011 at 11:30 AM

    I have only been through Kentucky once, well and barely tipped my toes in a second time, but love the cave tours! The scenery from the highway was a treat.

    Your raised garden beds sounds like the best way to go but you went far above and beyond the basics.

    Reply
  12. Kim @ Savvy Southern Style says

    June 24, 2011 at 1:10 PM

    Heather, we don’t have a garden. We really should do some of those boxes. My husband’s dad was an avid gardner, but him, no! I love fresh veggies and especially a good ole drippy tomato sandwich. My neighbor brought over a couple of tomatoes from their garden and we had a sandwich. Love them. You pictures are great. I thought they were from the web until you said they were yours.

    Reply
  13. Marcia (One Heart) says

    June 24, 2011 at 1:20 PM

    Heather, your garden is amazing and so inspiring. We grew some herbs in hanging baskets last year and it was so much fun. I never thought it would work with hanging baskets but they grew pretty quickly (which is almost impossible down here in South Florida) and we were able to use them for pesto and for our Thanksgiving turkey.

    I must admit; however, that my favorite part of your post is that ADORABLE dining caddy. So cute.

    Thanks for hosting.

    Reply
  14. Kelly says

    June 24, 2011 at 1:37 PM

    I’ve been waiting for this part of the blog party! So great! Can’t wait to visit the other links.

    Kelly

    Reply
  15. Jen @ Domesticated Nomad says

    June 24, 2011 at 1:37 PM

    Your garden looks great. We also have raised beds. I linked up my post about our new compost bin and I’m not sure that quite fits your Fresh from the Garden theme. Sorry if it doesn’t. I’m just most excited about that right now.

    Reply
  16. Tanya@takesix says

    June 24, 2011 at 3:02 PM

    We had raised beds at our other house. I really miss it!! Your is fabulous! Your recipes look so yummy too! Thanks so much for hosting and sharing!!!

    Reply
  17. Gracie's Cottage says

    June 24, 2011 at 3:12 PM

    Oh your fresh veggies look SO good!

    Thanks for hosting and congrats on an aMAZing party!

    Jan

    Reply
  18. Lakeshore Cottage Living says

    June 24, 2011 at 4:45 PM

    Wow! That is one fabulous garden!!!

    Reply
  19. Sherry @ No Minimalist Here says

    June 24, 2011 at 7:07 PM

    Hi Heather, There is nothing better than fresh vegetables from the garden. The first year we lived in our new home we planted tomatos and the dear ate them down to the ground! Smart move with the fence.
    xo,
    Sherry

    Reply
  20. Poppy says

    June 25, 2011 at 12:35 AM

    I love your raised bed planters… we have similar ones to keep animals away but yours look just awesome. I love how you made those trellis for your peas and beans and fenced in the area with the cute gate… lovely idea! Thanks for sharing these yummy recipes and the fresh veggies look so tempting especially those okras. Have a lovely evening!~Poppy

    https://withadashofcolor.blogspot.com/

    Reply
  21. Martha says

    June 25, 2011 at 1:15 AM

    Very cool partay! Thanks!

    Reply
  22. ⚜ ↁℯℬℬᴵℰ⚜ says

    June 25, 2011 at 3:47 AM

    Your garden is incredible. How delicious and fresh. Your photos almost did not look real..LOL. What a great party girls. I can’t believe well over a thousand links. It was great.

    Reply
  23. telisa@sugartotdesigns says

    June 25, 2011 at 4:07 AM

    um, i just posted to your link party as the whopping 1117th link!!! you sistas rock! i don’t think i have ever seen that much linky love:) and p.s. your garden puts mine to shame! love it!

    Reply
  24. Debbie@refreshrestyle says

    June 25, 2011 at 10:25 AM

    You make me want a garden, beautiful delicious food! I am going to bookmark this incredible party, there are so many talented bloggers out there and here they are in one spot! Thanks for the party!
    Debbie

    Reply
  25. Debbie says

    June 25, 2011 at 10:28 AM

    I can see in my absence from blogland that your block party was a smashing success!

    We made raised beds here as well. The Georgia clay on our lot isn’t the best for gardens.

    I plan to try your recipes for pepper vinegar and sun dried tomatoes. The husband will be thrilled to try that.

    Reply
  26. sell my car says

    June 25, 2011 at 10:31 AM

    I also planted so many herbs in my garden. Planning to plant mint, lavender, rosemary and the other herbs. These are beautiful flowers collection.

    Reply
  27. Diann @ The Thrifty Groove says

    June 25, 2011 at 1:15 PM

    Your gardens look fantastic as do the recipes! YUM! I linked up. thank you for hosting. Have a wonderful weekend!

    Reply
  28. Joani says

    June 25, 2011 at 7:36 PM

    An excellent turnout. Congratulations. Love your garden. Have a great day.

    Reply
  29. Donna, The Decorated House says

    June 25, 2011 at 11:14 PM

    So jealous of all your amazing veggies! It gets hot way down here so quickly. Good for swimming, tough for growing tomatoes like yours.

    Reply
  30. Ivy and Elephants says

    June 26, 2011 at 12:20 AM

    Wow, I absolutely love your garden. Chock full of veggies I would actually eat. You both are so inspirational. Now to get my husband to build a fence for the back yard so I can get started. ;-).

    Paula

    Reply

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“Those who know your name trust in you, for you, “Those who know your name trust in you, for you, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek you.” Psalm 9:10
This is one of my most favorite projects from my b This is one of my most favorite projects from my book Life in Season! 

Because, if heaven has a fragrance, I’m fairly certain it smells like lilacs.

I think that somewhere along the way the verse in the Bible that said, ‘heaven will smell like lilacs’ just got lost in translation. But it HAD to have been in there at some point, right?

When I bury my head in the blossoms (which I absolutely MUST do every single time I walk past them), I immediately feel a stirring in my soul.

It seems like I wait forever for my lilac tree to bloom. Every year I anxiously watch as the buds begin to form on the branches and then when the blossoms finally burst forth I begin that agonizing process of deciding the absolute perfect moment to snip them and bring them inside.

And then, after all of that waiting and watching it’s just over…done. Because, unlike heaven, lilacs don’t last for an eternity. So, making my own lilac room spray seemed like the perfect way to enjoy their fragrance long after the blossoms have faded.

Here’s how to make it! Ingredients: Water, Vodka, Lilac fragrance oil. Directions: Fill spray bottle with 50/50 ratio of water to vodka. Add 12 drops of lilac oil. Give it a shake, spray and if the scent isn’t strong enough, simply add a few more drops of lilac oil.

Once you’ve made this lilac scented room spray you will be very tempted to spray it in every room in your house. And someone may want to use it in the bathroom to cover up other less…ummmm….pleasing aromas.

But, do not, I repeat do NOT, let them.

You’ve captured the fragrance of heaven in a bottle and you wouldn’t want to go and tarnish it now would you? 😉
We had two back to back days of sunshine (the most We had two back to back days of sunshine (the most we’ve had in a LONG time) and now we are back to pouring rain. This has officially confirmed what I’ve know to be true for awhile now.

I’m a MUCH better version of myself when the sun is shining! 🤪 So I’ll just be over here today plotting and planning how my husband and I can be snowbirds someday when the kids are out of the house.

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Two of our bathrooms are also in need of major makeovers. And we’ve saved up enough money over the years to tackle those projects. But, for the most part, we made the decision to use the bulk of that money in another way. While we knew that it was financially wise to invest in our house, we also knew that the greatest investment we could make was in our children. 

I’ll admit, there are times where I see other people doing massive overhauls of their entire home in a matter of months and I feel a prick of envy. But, we decided that if our choice was between waiting a bit longer to enjoy a renovated bathroom or going on adventures as a family, we would choose adventures every time. And we don’t regret that decision for a single second. It’s not that we haven’t tackled home projects (we’ve done a lot!). It’s just that it’s been a slow and steady process. 

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We have many years left to remodel our home but only so much time left to make memories with our children.

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“The devil, darkness, and death may swagger and “The devil, darkness, and death may swagger and boast, the pangs of life will sting for a while longer, but don’t worry; the forces of evil are breathing their last. Not to worry…HE’S RISEN!” (Charles R. Swindoll).

Happy Easter! He is risen indeed!
Who has believed our message? And to whom has the Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?

For he grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of parched ground; he has no stately form or majesty that we should look upon him, nor appearance that we should be attracted to him.

He was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and like one from whom men hide their face, he was despised, and we did not esteem him. Surely our griefs he himself bore, and our sorrows he carried; yet we ourselves esteemed him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 

But he was pierced through for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon him, and by his scourging we are healed.

All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; but the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on him. (Isaiah 53)
I try to always remember to put a water bottle in I try to always remember to put a water bottle in my car before I go to pick up my daughter from school. She didn't ask me to do this, but a few months ago I began to notice that she was often thirsty when she would get in the car. Her water bottle filled up at the beginning of the day was empty by the time school got out and she would ask if she could have some water from my hydroflask. So I make sure to have one waiting for her. It's just a simple thing, really. But, I want her to know that I'm paying attention, that I see her.

Isn't it amazing how small gestures can make us feel less invisible? Knowing that someone is thinking of us and takes the time to meet a need that we might not have even realized we had? These little acts can have big impacts. What is something that someone has done for you recently that made you feel valued and seen?

What have you done for someone else to remind them that you are paying attention to their needs?

“No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of another.”
― Charles Dickens
“The next day the large crowd that had come to t “The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!’ – John 12:9-19
#palmsunday
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