Homemade Spaghetti Sauce Using Fresh Garden Tomatoes

I've had a garden every summer for a few decades and I always grow tomatoes. Not because I love them, but because they are an easy thing to grow if I'm honest. I almost always have success with tomato plants, even if I plant them from seed. Some years, I have more than others and while my favorite thing to make with them is pico de gallo {this recipe is my favorite!}, spaghetti sauce is a close second. Probably because I always feel like a freakin' homesteader mid-winter when I bust out a jar and make a quick family dinner with it! I'm sharing this homemade spaghetti sauce recipe today using fresh garden tomatoes. No garden, no problem! Tomatoes are cheap at the tail end of summer and you can easily find them at your local farmer's market, at the supermarket, or from a friend who has a garden.

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A Beginner's Guide to Succulents and Cacti

Adding a cactus or a succulent to your garden is the perfect beginner's plant for an indoor or outdoor garden. There are thousands of different species and they are pretty darn easy to care for them. If you can give them full sun and occasional water, you are going to have success. And having success is the best thing for a beginner gardener. Here is everything you need to know to get started with succulents or cactus.

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5 Hard to Kill Plants for Your Flower Garden

Even the most experienced gardener loves hard-to-kill plants. If you're a beginner, these plants can make everyone think that you have a green thumb. These perennials will come back year after year and give you a starting point from which to build your garden.

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5 Gardening Secrets for a Bountiful Tomato Crop

One of the easiest vegetable plants to grow is tomatoes. A still sun-warmed tomato is one of my favorite treats in the summer! As easy and plentiful as tomatoes are to grow, they can be a bit fussy sometimes, so here are 5 gardening secrets so that you can have a bountiful tomato crop this summer!

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DIY Patio Update on a Budget with the Cricut Explore Air

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Cricut for Cricut. All opinions are 100% mine.
I always hated yard work. I'm not sure if it was because so much of my time as a new homeowner was spent weeding during my kids' naptimes only to find myself in an endless loop. It seemed that as soon as I started weeding one area I'd return to where I started only to have to do it all over again. It was exhausting and not one where I could really enjoy the fruits of my labor. My kids have gotten older and I have been a homeowner for two decades now and I'm cautiously going to admit that I think I've fallen into a new love of gardening. It's so satisfying to see new life bloom, spread, and grow and I'm getting more confident in my skills that now it seems like I can sit back and enjoy it. Which is why creating an outdoor patio area where I can sit back and relax is important to me.
Like all things, I'm always on a budget and hit my local thrift shop for some items to help me upcycle my patio space just in time for summer. I used my Cricut Explore Air 2 and I'm excited about the fun updates. I'm going to show you how you can take some thrift shop finds and update them to create a space you can enjoy all summer long! 

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Gardening Ideas for When you are Stuck at Home

The older I get, the more I like to get my hands dirty in the garden. I really don't know what I'm doing, but thankfully, I am not afraid to get out there and try. I think that's what holds a lot of us back. But now, with plenty of time on our hands, and nowhere to go, why not try gardening this spring? You've probably already got a yard full of plants, and if you are like me, you might even have a stash of seeds somewhere too. I've got some gardening ideas for you for when you are stuck at home.

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Tips for Growing Tulips

Tulips are one of the prettiest bulb flowers with deep, rich colors of almost every hue. While tulips are perennial, they often have to be grown as annuals, especially in hotter climates that do not really suit them. To start them off many gardeners in temperate regions need to place the bulbs in the crisper section of the refrigerator for 10-14 days. Thankfully, in the Puget Sound region where I live, tulips grow great. We even have an annual Skagit Valley Tulip Festival that draws crowds from all over the world during the month of April. 
Gardeners who live south of the sub-tropical regions should be able to grow tulips. There are more varieties now than there used to be, and these – Single Late Tulips - are better suited to warmer temperatures. They are sometimes called French Tulips or Warm Climate Tulips. Whatever the variety, here are some tips for growing tulips.

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Everything You Need to Know About Visiting the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival

The Skagit Valley Tulip Festival is one of the largest destination events for the greater Seattle area during the spring. Mother Nature decides when the tulips bloom, but you'll likely find rows of colorful flowers in bloom during the month of April. During the tulip festival, millions of flowers come to life creating a magnificent display of color. I've got everything you need to know if you want to visit the Skagit Valley during the Tulip Festival.

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How to Rescue Clearance Plants

How to Rescue Clearance Plants

Now that planting is ending for the season many plants are going on clearance at local nurseries, hardware stores, and supermarkets. These clearance plants often look as if they are down for the count with no life left in them. If you have a soft spot for plants this can be difficult to see and you may be interested in saving the plants. The good news is you can rescue many of these clearance plants.

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Vacation Proof your Garden

Vacation Proof your garden

When you put work into your garden all spring and summer you want to see it grow and thrive. The fear of how your garden will survive on its own is a big one that stops many gardeners from taking a well-deserved vacation. With a little planning, you can vacation proof your garden and have fun without fear you will come home to devastation.

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5 Easy to Grow Veggies to Plant in Early Summer

I'm not much of a green thumb but I do like to garden and I've learned a thing or two by trial and error. Our spring weather is fairly mild here in Seattle, and I like to plant my vegetable garden mid to late April. I am a no-fuss kind of gal. I plant hardy plants that I know I can grow year after year. These 5 easy to grow veggies are the perfect plants to start in early summer or late spring to give you a jump start on the gardening season and help you get some freshly grown food on your plate before you know it!

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Quick Pickle Recipe

There are so many fresh veggies growing right now that are available in your garden or at your local market. One of the best parts of summer is cool, briny pickles straight from the fridge. Canning has always intimidated me, and I'm all about being as efficient as possible so I love the idea of anything quick. Like this quick pickle recipe. Bonus, this recipe works great when adapted for a variety of vegetables. I've got a few variations just for you. Come check it out!

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Painted Wooden Hanging Plant Stand with Chalkboard

I love a good hanging basket but I have one problem. Every year I kill the ones I buy. They hang up so high that I usually forget to water them because out of sight, out of mind. Also, I'm never quite sure how much sun or shade a plant gets so it's usually trial and error. But I got to thinking, hanging baskets are so pretty and when they hang you kind of miss like 50% of the flowers and plants inside because you just can't see them. So, why not move them down to a plant stand? I saw one of these wooden hanging plant stands at a home last year while I was going to garage sales and I thought it was genius. So come see how I made it my own and now I have this painted wooden hanging plant stand on my front porch to enjoy all 100% of the plant. Now here's hoping I keep it watered so it stays alive!

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Backyard Chalkboard Games

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Roundup® For Lawns. All opinions are 100% my own.

Our rainy season is LONG, but when the sun comes out, I think that we live in one of the most beautiful places on earth. I'm not sure if all the rain makes me appreciate the sunny days more, but when that sun is shining, it's hard to keep me inside. I love spending time outside especially in our yard.  Some of my favorite afternoons are spent with the warm sun setting, hanging out in the yard with my kids. Being active is great, but sometimes, games that help us be still and work our brains are exactly what we need. I'm sharing how you can enjoy your yard space with an easy DIY backyard chalkboard and I'm sharing games you can play on it. Kids of all ages will love this!

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Getting Your Yard Ready for Spring

This is a sponsored post written by my on behalf of Roundup® for lawns. All opinions are 100% my own.

If I tell people that I live in Seattle, the first thing I usually hear is, "oh, it rains a lot there, right?" It does, but you may be surprised to know that it actually rains more in Miami, Florida than it does in Seattle, Washington. Don't get me wrong, Seattle earns its rainy reputation, but only because we have many days of rainfall. Other locations get more rain, just over less days. But it's not really the rain that bothers me about our weather, it's the dark dreary days full of what seems like never-ending gloom. This year it's worse than normal and local weather stations are starting to take note. Since October, we've only had nine official sunny days. I'm pretty much over it and to say that I'm ready for spring would be an understatement. Because our doom and gloom weather is such a huge chunk of the year, I soak up as much time outside as I can when it's not pouring liquid sunshine on me. I'm constantly reminded of what a beautiful place we live in when the clouds lift and the sun comes out and I want to enjoy it when I can. Perhaps I end up appreciating it more once I come out of my hibernation. Spring is coming!  I'm sharing some tips on how you can start getting your yard ready for spring so that you can enjoy being outside and start using your yard as an extension of your home.

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Spring Garden Projects and Create Link Inspire Party

Welcome to another week of the create, link, inspire link party. I hope you find inspiration here every week and that you check back often for ideas. I'm always impressed with what gets linked up and I always add a handful of crafts, DIY's and recipes to my to do list.  

This week, I'm so ready for spring and have been thinking about gardening and being outside. I collected some of my favorite spring garden projects for you.  You can find everything from DIY garden bench ideas to planters and how to create a self-watering system so you don't kill everything once the sun comes back!

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Create Link Inspire PLUS Spring Projects to get you Through Winter

Welcome to another week of the create, link, inspire link party. I hope you find inspiration here every week and that you check back often for ideas. I'm always impressed with what gets linked up and I always add a handful of crafts, DIY's and recipes to my to do list.

I'm pretty much over winter and ready for spring, so I'm doing my best to surround myself with bright colors, live plants, DIY projects and anything that reminds me that I can hold out for spring. It's not too far away! Come check out all of these great posts that were linked up last week.

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Mojito Lime Chicken with Black Bean Salsa

You know the feeling after you have been gone from home for a few days, there is nothing like coming home to a home cooked meal, especially if you have been eating out for days on end! Home cooked meals are my comfort food. There is something about using fresh, local ingredients {even better if some of those ingredients come from my garden} and knowing exactly what is in my food to give me that comfort food feeling, which is why I am so excited to be partnering with Foster Farms Simply Raised Chicken, raised locally on the west coast {the best coast} with no antibiotics ever. 

Foster Farms Simply Raised chicken is one of the best foundations for your new comfort food meals. We all think of those traditional comfort foods as being really heavy and super rich, but I'm happy to say that there is an evolution happening and comfort food is becoming healthier and simpler to make. With growing kids at home and a metabolism that seems to be slowing down as I get older, I'm happy to embrace this new comfort food. 

I'm sharing one of our family favorites today, Mojito lime chicken served with a black bean salsa. I always make extra chicken because it's fabulous the next day cut up and served on top of a bed of lettuce. Two meals in one is always my favorite!

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Driftwood succulent planter

It's no secret that I am crushing hard on this succulent trend. I bought a whole huge flat of succulents at a garage sale this summer and they have done so well that many of them are growing new blooms. I needed somewhere to plant these new shoots and happened to have a large piece of driftwood that I found on the beach this summer.

With a little help from my handy husband, I was able to make a driftwood planter for my succulents that I am in love with!  The best part is, it cost me next to nothing!

Want to know how?

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How to plant a bulb in a Ball jar

Our winter this year has been extremely mild.  I'm not complaining because we have seen far more sun in our normally dark dreary rainy season than we normally do.  

I'm pretty sure all this sun is to blame for my latest gardening itch.  Though I'm in no hurry to weed my gardens outside so I'm just going to pretend that it's still too cold to do that and stick to my indoor plants {indoor plants beware! I am sort of a black thumb!  You can read my confession about killing cacti here}.

When I found an Amaryllis bulb kit for $2.99 at the Grocery Outlet {love that place!} I decided to give it a go and try planting a bulb in a vintage Ball jar.

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