What gardening has to do with knowing Jesus.

It’s gardening time! Don’t let the random late winter fool you. 

I don’t know if I’ve said this before but I’m sure to say it again: Gardening is a spiritual experience! 

Once the nasty white stuff melted away today, I enjoyed some quiet time managing the wild raspberry bushes and ridiculous mint. (A couple of “oops”es that we are still paying for!) As I raked smooth the soil, I was struck by the beauty of the blackness, the richness of it. It is a stark contrast to what it was 5 years ago. But it did not go from a light brown, dry soil to a deep, dark soil that’s hard to keep my hands out of all on its own. It took effort. Lots of effort. Lots of studying. Lots of worrying (okay, only I did that part). LOTS of patience.

3 years ago we decided to forgo the tilling route and attempt the wood chip route. We made mistakes- the biggest one being putting way to much wood chips on. The following year we weren’t sure anything was going to survive, and many things didn’t. Other things didn’t flourish the way we would have liked. But there was still harvest, and we kept plugging away. 

Last year we were abundantly blessed with much harvest! There were sections that still hadn’t composted down well enough yet but there was a significant improvement. Our patience was paying off.

Today, our soil looks like this:

Black gold.

Some kale and spinach has sprouted up from last year and the snow from last night didn’t even phase it. Must be some delicious soil for these beautiful greens to not only survive the winter in dormancy, but survive the freak snow storm in April.

So let’s head on back to the actual point of this post: Gardening is a spiritual experience! 

While I raked this black soil back into place, it struck me how much it is like our spiritual lives. 

"Read your bible, pray every day and you'll grow, grow, grow!"

Spending time in prayer and in the Word are not just good, Christian things to do, they are essential to your growth. How can we even know Jesus if we aren't spending time with Him? 

Yes, this is "Sunday School" stuff, so it's sad to feel the need to urge my brothers and sisters (specifically fellow mommas!) to live that Sunday School song out.

Our soil did not reach this beauty on its own. It took back-breaking effort, and tear-inducing patience. But oh the harvest!! What a beautiful harvest we look forward to and already are seeing, not only in our garden but in our very lives.

In the 3 years since we laid these wood chips-

-Derek was finally released from the shackles of his sin.

-Marie surrendered to our Savior.

-Derek became the spiritual leader in our home and one in our church.

-Two of Derek's students surrendered their lives to the Lord.
-I've been a part of leading 2 people from our church to the Lord.
-Marie and I were baptized together.

All things that put callouses on my knees from prayer. All miracles I had doubted possible. All as a result of doing our best to spend time in prayer and in His Word every.single.day.

Next year we will probably need to add more wood chips. We'll have to continue to be patient. We'll have to continue to put in the effort.

But oh the harvest!!

"As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold..." Matthew 13:23

((Later this week I'll share practical ways for a momma to make time for the Lord))

A Couple of our Potato Faves

Harvest time is in full swing and we've been thoroughly enjoying the spoils.

Our potato plants looked rough and bugs got the best of some of them. But we still got at least one good potato per plant. Most plants got us 2-3 quality potatoes. And since we planted 100 plants, we're doing pretty good.

We plan to can a good chunk of them, but until then we need to eat up! So I want to share our two favorite potato recipes as of late.

One you have probably seen floating around Pinterest which is where I found it.

1. Lipton Onion Potatoes

This delicious pic is from the blog this recipe is originally from. Go visit her.

These are sooo easy and stinkin' delicious.

• Slice your potatoes and place in baking dish as seen in pic.
• Melt 1 cup of butter in small bowl then mix in two packets of Lipton Onion soup.
• Pour over potatoes.
• Cover with foil.
• Bake at 375 for about 45 min. 

When I make this for just our family, I cut the butter, onion soup, and baking dish in half. The full recipe can handle my extended family well! It's perfect for good sized gatherings!

(There's a recipe floating around FB with a homemade recipe for dry onion soup. Might have to look into that).

2. Fried Potato Patties (aka Homemade crispy seasoned french fries)

I had planned to (have Derek) grill potatoes so I cut them in these slices. Then I realized we already had burgers and peppers and onions on the grill so I did a quick search from some homemade fries and this recipe was a huge hit!

Ingredients:
Potatoes sliced however you desire (place in cold water to prevent browning)
1 C unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp pepper
1/2ish C water
Canola oil to cover bottom of frying pan up to about half inch

Instructions:
Heat oil in frying pan on med-high heat.
Sift flour, garlic and onion powders, salt and pepper, paprika into a bowl. Gradually pour in water until the mixture looks something like this...

Dip potatoes in batter one at a time and place into hot oil. Fry until they are crispy and golden brown.
Sprinkle a little extra salt on top and thoroughly enjoy!

I've always loved potatoes, but these recipes take them to a whole new level!

The evolution of the Jacobs Garden

In the beginning was the first Jacobs Garden:

2011

After beautiful success, the expanded second Jacobs Garden was born:

2012

Not only were we blessed with another successful season, but we found that we really love to garden! So we tackled our biggest project yet...

The Jacobs Garden of 2013

 Build homes, and plan to stay. Plant gardens, and eat the food they produce. Jeremiah 29:5

Planting Potatoes

We have 104 potato plants in the ground! This is how we did it...

We got seed potatoes and I cut them in halves or quarters, so there was at least one bud on each piece. Then I let them sit on the counter on a cookie sheet (or somewhere dry and with airflow) for a couple days until they look like this...

Then we headed out back and dug trenches 4-6 inches deep.

Place the seeds about a foot apart with the buds facing up.

Then cover with just about 2 inches of soil, saving the rest of the soil for piling up around the plant as it grows. Don't let any potatoes see the sun!

We planted our first 40 seeds on April 4th, and finished up the row with 64 more seeds on April 14.  The first signs of plant popped through on April 30th!

I love how the plants burst through the soil. I've found new plants bursting through every day since the 30th!

The plants will wilt and yellow when they're ready to harvest. That'll be awhile. But I'm excited!

Here's a few shots of what else is going on around the garden...

Raspberry bushes graciously donated by my Aunt Pam:

Strawberry bushes are flowering!

Peas growing unevenly:

Spinach:

Lots and lots of onions! Framed by lovely dandelions:

What a blessing to get to work God's soil!

Planting Onions

This year we used these...

Specifically -
Yellow Spanish
Redwing Red
Walla Walla

We planted over 200 onions! For the most part, we did 4 onions per square foot, about an inch deep.

The first set we planted on April 3rd and finished them up on April 13th.

We obviously love onions :)

I'll let ya know how they turn out in a few months!

Spring is here!

It has been gorgeous this week! Which means...

A. Very little housework was accomplished

B. The garden is in full swing!

My amazing man spent his last couple of days of spring break working very hard on the Jacobs Family Garden:

This year has been my most organized year, which is a very good thing given the fact that our garden is approximately 1,100 square feet! I keep running out of seeds.

So far we have planted...

• Yellow Onions
• Green Onions
• Red Onions
• Peas
• Strawberries
• Potatoes
• Spinach

Next up...

• More Onions
• More Potatoes
• Blueberries
• Grapes
• Raspberries 

Marie is very excited about her first garden! (She is not big on getting her hands dirty, though!) She has a strawberry plant in her garden so far. I asked her what else she wanted to plant and she said peas because she remembers eating them without cooking them last summer. But given the fact that there is a 25 foot row of peas right next to her little corner, I suggested flowers, and she loves the idea! So as of right now, that is the plan. Any flower suggestions?

What are you planting? 

Must-Do Pins

Just have to share a couple of pins I've tried that totally worked! I didn't take any of my own pics so I'll just share the pins and vouch for them.

First...

Source: thekitchn.com via Derek Lindsay on Pinterest

My Story:
Just before leaving for PA, I used a bunch of green onions and dropped the white roots into a little cup with water and left it by the sink. I don't have a good place in my house for plants to get sun so it got zero sun. I seriously cut them all the way down to the white and when we got back a couple weeks later, I had green onions spilling onto my counter!

What I Learned:
Something a gardener should probably think to do... remember to refill the water. And I feel confident that mine would look quite a bit healthier if they had a little sun. But they have served (and continue to serve!) me well.

Next up...

Source: loveveggiesandyoga.com via Derek Lindsay on Pinterest

My Story:
Just did this yesterday and was blown away at how easy it was! Seriously like 3-5 minutes process. Grab peanuts, toss them in a food processor, and hold down the button. Watch peanuts turn to peanut butter in minutes! And you can add any kind of flavoring you want!

What I Learned:
I don't know about pricing. I mean, peanuts can be pricey. And don't make the same stupid mistake I did and just buy the cheapest. I usually check labels, but I honestly didn't think peanuts would have high fructose corn syrup and xanthum gum in them?!? Seriously, I just thought they were peanuts. You live, you learn.

A little encouragement... according to fooducate.com, the Kroger brand honey and dry roasted peanuts (that I used for this) get a B- while Jif creamy peanut butter (what WIC lets us get) gets a C and is labeled "One of the worst products in its category."

I'm not really encouraged by that at all.

Moral of the stories...
Try these pins and learn from my mistakes! You will not regret it! :)

30 Days of Thanksgiving {Days 11&12}

Day 11:

Thank You, Great Physician, for our health.

We have been so blessed with great health. Our extended families have suffered from the dreaded cancer, but the 5 of us have not had anything out of the ordinary. We know that we live in a fallen world and are never guaranteed great health, so for now I will praise the Lord for the blessing of an illness-free little family!

Day 12:

Thank You, Jehovah Jireh, for our garden and freezer.

We tripled our garden the 2nd year, and in prep for next year, we tripled it again! Not only do we both love to garden, the harvest is fantastic! And we were super blessed with a freezer from the inlaws for Christmas! We're a few days away from payday which means the cupboards are getting bare, but we have plenty of veggies, a whole drawer full of beef, and cans of potatoes at my disposal.

I think gardening is a form of worship. I cannot look at a garden full of fresh veggies and not be in awe of God's provision. I'm so excited to teach my kids about gardening, so that no matter what, they have access to food.

Geesh, we are a spoiled little family. Thank You, Father, for being such an amazing Dad!

Watching God Grow

My mom encouraged me to watch this video about gardening and I have to pass it along! (Click the link below the photo to go to the website).

BacktoEdenfilm.com

The video is like an hour and a half or so but worth the watch! It's just amazing how this man, Paul, has such an intimate relationship with the Creator of the universe because of his garden. I love all the Scripture he whips out. And then, of course, I'm so pumped about implementing all the things I've learned!

I've officially started my second garden ever, by the way. And I love it just as much... oh probably more than I did last year!

Here's a glimpse:

I'm growing peas for the first time...

Last year I had no trouble with getting an abundance of spinach but this year, spinach just hasn't been in the mood! But I have gotten some...

My mom grew some pepper plants from seeds but they are still just little guys. While I have a couple of those planted, we did break down and buy some pepper plants from a local garden place. We've got colored sweet peppers and red hot peppers for the hubs, of course...

I gotta say, if you're wanting to plant something that is insanely easy and almost guaranteed to grow with basically no work, go yellow/red onion!

Potatoes take a little bit more maintenance but seriously, add them to the must-have list. These things are determined little boogers. You see the super tall one by the onions... that potato seed somehow survived the winter and grew all on its own! I have at least two more plants left over from last year, and they happened to be in the perfect places! I even have potatoes growing in my weed pile.

We've learned the hard way... don't toss old pumpkins in your garden over the winter unless you want a garden full of pumpkin vines come warm weather! We've been pulling them and pulling them. But I decided to leave a couple that grew in the trench around our garden that aren't too much in the way.

Hopefully they stay out of the way! It would be awesome to have pumpkins from our own garden, but I hadn't planned on them so there just isn't much room!

We actually expanded our garden by about a 3rd from last year and we're still barely fitting everything. In fact, the pepper plants are planted in the trenches around the garden. I'm hoping we can double the garden by next year!

This is a shot of the garden prep...

 

We were adding duck/horse manure. The dark part that has the manure already was the size of our garden last year. That last bit that hadn't been covered yet was the new part my rough-tough-buff-and-stuff ruggedly handsome husband dug up this year.

Then that same amazing man tilled until we had the most beautiful soil...

Don't worry, next year we will be using sticks and string to get this baby straight.

I'm so so grateful that Derek loves this gardening thing, too. He will go pull weeds and just admire it. And he's totally cool with the fact that he's probably gonna have to do most of the harvesting since I'll be HUGE or caring for a newborn post-major-surgery.

I really love gardening. It's so much like running in that I can't understand why everyone doesn't do it! Very rewarding, very worth every bit of hard work.

I was learning about the Feast of Unleavened Bread in my Bible study. In Deuteronomy 16:15 God is telling the Israelites to celebrate because "the Lord your God will bless you in all your produce and in all the work of your hands, so that you shall be altogether joyful." I wrote next to that verse in my Bible - "Pray over our garden!"  Why on earth wouldn't I? It is the Lord who grows it and blesses us with the produce.

Unless the Lord is in it, it is all vain! (Psalm 127:1-2)

I would love love love to see how other gardens are growing this year! Comment with a link!

Also, check out the "Garden Journal" tab up top for all the veggies I've planted and for updates.