no room for grass

we have finally done it! we have dug up a section of our front yard to plant our pumpkin patch! this is something i have been wanting to do for a while, but was finally convinced when my summer garden in the back yard did so poorly. the best sun and drainage is in the front, so diggy, diggy. i planted 2 different varieties of pumpkin and a winter squash. i will finish out the bed with some herbs and flowers (to attract the bees). i am dreaming big here. i want a lovely patch that people drive by, stop, hop out and ask to take pictures of their chubby babies next to the french pumpkins. i want a spot that inspires poetry and recipes. but for now, i mainly want buddy to stop walking through it trying to pull up my seedlings! as soon as the weather cools we will dig up the gardenias in the front beds (move them around the side of the porch) and replace them with peas, chard, kale and some various companion herbs. we will also put in some boxes to house some berries and a couple of small fruit trees. as we are moving towards sustainable living life feels more right. it's hard to explain unless you are in it as well, but there is much to be said about raising your own food responsibly, touching the dirt that you yourself were created from. my husband taught on 'sacred dirt' at church this weekend. dirt being sacred because it was created by god, saw as good and then humans were formed from that good dirt. he then breathed life into that dirt marrying the flesh to the spiritual. it was a beautiful message and one i will think of often when i am in the dirt, mimicking the creator as i try to bring life out of it.