Getting Our Green On !

 Being part of a family of 6  is a number of things.  It is special, it is great fun and full of love , it can be chaotic, it can be loud, it can messy and it can also be expensive. And if one is honest ...one must consider the effect a family of 6 have on the environment as compared to a family of say 3. It's a sobering thought . Mr Picket Fence and I have been talking to the Picket Fence kids about our beautiful world and about lessening our environmental footprint or more exactly ..our 6 sets of footprints. Lots of ideas have been tossed about. This week we've made some serious progress.
This truck brought 12 cubic metres of soil destined for our newly built vegetable patch.

 See the driver smiling...maybe that's because he knew we had to move all that soil about 50 metres down to the backyard. The lane-way entrance was not truck friendly and the garden awkward for a bobcat. So it all had to be moved by wheelbarrow.
 Mr Picket Fence by the end of the day was calling me his "wife-cat"
 Back and forth we went...
 Baby Picket Fence helped with the final barrows.
 And, eventually, we got there.
 
 See the above accidental drain at the bottom left hand corner of the photo.....that's us,breaking pipes and  keeping the local plumbers in a job ;)
 
 Above is our strawberry bath. We planted forty strawberry plants in the soil and I'll be planting mint under its sides
Everybody helped.
 Miss Picket Fence refining her watering skills :)
 The other "bigger than big" thing that happened was the installation of our solar panels. This was something we have talked for years about doing, we had secured a very favourable deal on same and after 12 months of delays, today they landed on our roof :)

 All good things come to those who wait.
Speaking of waiting, the vege patch and solar panels had put the chook house caravan on the back burner.. BUT today the posts went in for the hens on holiday awning ( that's the posts in the picture , prior to being straightened  and cemented ) Next the fence , some more decorating ( which I will reveal quite soon I promise) and in less than 4 weeks we will welcome 6 chooks into the Picket Fence family.
 So there you have it ! This is our beginning very humble attempt at greening up our lifestyle...I'm proud .  I have water tanks etc planned , but again these will happen when the budget see's fit. In the mean time we are going to enjoy our lovely new garden and chook pen building ...Please comment away , I'd value your input Was it worth our while ?  More updates to come shortly  :) I promise !

Linking up with Sarah's Good-Life-Wednesday
                                      Five minutes just for me !                                                    

19 comments:

  1. that sure is back breaking work but oh so well worth it. Cant wait to see those strawberries dripping off the tub!
    alicia

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  2. My goodness, that sure was a lot of soil! The raised beds look fantastic though! Nothing beats the taste of home grown veggies :)

    I love the idea of planting the strawberry plants in a bath tub. I hope you will get a good and tasty harvest!

    That polka dot caravan is so cute! :)

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  3. Can you just hop on a plane to the US and do that in my back yard!!!!! :)

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  4. Wow, you must have been sore after lugging all that soil! Well done Ava, enjoy your new garden!

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  5. Love the strawberry bath and your house is gorgeous! What a great way to get the kids involved in doing something positive for the environment and future. I bet the kids will love the vege patch...they will grow well down there. Have fun, Tam x

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  6. holy pile of soil! Hows your shoulders and associated muscles? I love your consciousness. and am so looking forward to meeting your chooks. Are the kids busy thinking of names for 'the new girls'? have a great day. Jane x

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  7. Oh yes! It will be worth it! I can taste all those fresh garden treats now..........

    Love the look of your house and yard....are those metal bed headboards as fencing or are my eyes playing tricks on me??

    Whatever they are---very awesome!

    Keep us posted........

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  8. Thanks girls :) We have a black board running with potential chook names. Quite a list already with some real doozies as I'm sure you can imagine ! Pam , Yes you're right ! They are old bed headboards. We bought about 20 complete very old rusty beds from a local hotel for a ridiculous $5 for the lot. My husband welded them together to make this feature for the front. He got brownie points for this one and will be so thrilled with your comment ! Have a fabulous day xx Ava

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  9. That looks like a lot of fun! but a lot of work haha wow it looks good though! my dad just did the same thing and were getting a lot of good veggies.

    Follow for Follow??
    http://tiaology.blogspot.com/

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  10. Wow, you did a great job !!!

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  11. Wow, love all your hard work , your blog is beautiful. If every My husband thought I had a problem with collecting, he better think again. Only most of my real good stuff is still packed away from the last move 2 1/2 yrs ago. You really inspire me to make an effort to unpack and display again.

    Rina www.pumpkinpatchgarden.blogspot.com

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  12. I will keep your garden in mind as I hope one day to have a kitchen garden patch like yours, only smaller as my garden is smaller!

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  13. Wow! You all did an excellent work. Can't wait to see the harvest. Thanks for sharing at Beach Cottage Good Life Wednesdays and adding your link to the party :)

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  14. Ava, Thank you so much for giving me the info; unfortunately, The Cupcake person won't be around (leaving on boxing day), but she did recommend Anita-Redfern Photography in Forbes. I'll be contacting her. I've been busy working on Corbin's paintings, but so many other happenings are slowing me down. I think you've got a lot of work ahead of you with your garden. Enjoy the fruits of your labor!

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  15. So lovely to read your friendly hello. Thanks for stopping by.
    Well I had to come and have a look and see who you were too and now I'm all envious about the fabulous vintage finds you have in your neck of the woods. It's getting impossible to find much good tat these days here.
    Don't envy you humping all that soil about. You did a great job.

    Lisa

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  16. I love your blog too, looking forward to seeing what you grow in your new veggie patch, it looks so great. I'm looking forward to starting a new patch here too next year, as we built over our old veggie patch this year, like your strawberry bed idea!
    Sally x

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  17. L.O.V.E it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    You cute lil' tree hugger you!
    Mr 3P's in trouble now!
    x Marnie

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  18. Fantastic Job!! Looks amazing..i cant wait to see what comes out of it!! I grew up in a family of six and i totally understand where your coming from.
    Mxoxo

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  19. Thanks so much for linking this project to my Pinning & Singing Pinterest Party! I loved seeing you all getting green! Hope everything is going well for you.

    Best wishes,
    Natasha.

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