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Even though I’m a “fashion girl” there’s something about the simple, outdoor life that just gets me right in the heart. I’ve always wanted to live in a cottage surrounded by trees and though I don’t want to live completely off the land, I do want to have a garden of herbs, fruits, and veggies that we frequently eat from. I love simple living and healthy living, so it just fits.
Even though I’m not in that cottage in the woods now, I’m trying to make the most of what I have and not put my happiness in some moment that may or may not happen. Instead, I’m trying to find happiness in the life that’s happening right here right now. And when I open my eyes, I see that spending family nights outside and watching Will run around through our trellises and flowers, stopping to smell them with the golden glow surrounding him is well, bliss.
And another thing that’s bliss? Making a healthy salad using greens you grew yourself! We have a few window boxes in our front yard and in them we have different herbs and veggies such as kale, lettuce, and peppermint, to name a few.
I was surprised by how much I actually used them and how much I loved using them, that I proposed the idea of doing raised garden beds to Titus for more veggies and herbs and he was completely for it. Score!
Because I’m a beginner when it comes to gardening, I don’t want to start spouting off tips that may or may not be right, so I hope this post serves as inspiration for you instead!
But my plan was to get things that I love (like sweet corn & spinach) and grow things I don’t totally love (like brussels sprouts) to broaden my own tastes & horizons. We have 4 raised garden beds and we have them separated by squash/potato type things, leafy greens, and an herb/medicinal garden.
I’ll show you what we got so far, though I’ll warn you this area has a long way to go to what I envision it being!
It was a little tricky picking out the right spot for the beds, but I chose what we did because I wanted to make the raised garden beds part of my eventual courtyard/secret garden and I’m using the evergreen trees as a backdrop for that. This area gets both shade & sun so we planned our plants accordingly.
Here’s some inspo of what I hope this area could look like:
I want stepping stones, pea gravel, a cute cafe set, flowers, and lots more! So yeah, it will be a while, but it’s good to have a goal and inspiration. 🙂 Even though it may not aesthetically be what I want right now, we can still enjoy it!
And it’s fun to see Will enjoy it too. Not to mention rewarding, seeing him out there “working”. He doesn’t even know that we planted cherry tomatoes just for him but I can already see him going out there and popping them all into his mouth haha. He’s going to be so excited.
That makes my momma heart happy knowing that he’s already being exposed to hard work, patience, and learning how to enjoy the fruits of your labor at just 2 years old!
Though this garden plan wasn’t brought on by covid, it’s not a bad idea to find ways to be more self-sufficient. Plus, getting outside in the sun is good for your soul. It can heal a lot more than just sickness!
Though I didn’t give much (nay any) tips, I hope this post has inspired you in one way or another- whether it’s to get outside more, pick up a family outdoor project, or create ways to live more sustainably!
And hey, maybe you have a cottage in Iowa and this has inspired you to sell it to me! 😉
Have you read about our cottage garden yet?
