As you may have noticed, I am giving everyone yet another chance for the garden contest, which is ending in less than 2 weeks. So when I get back from the market today, I hope to see plenty of SUPER COOL garden comments that will make you eligible for the March Gardening Madness Contest! Complete rules are as follows (originally posted from Feb. 26th)
March Gardening Madness Contest
OK kids, I am hosting another contest. In order to promote the upcoming spring and gardens and growing your own foods and such… I am giving away a great prize. In this gift package, you will receive seed packets, hand tools for gardening, a pair of gloves, a book about gardening, a seed starting tray, and a $25 gift card to either Home Depot or Lowe’s so you can buy soils, plant foods, containers, etc.
Now here are the rules… The contest runs from March 1, 2010 until March 31, 2010- one full month. The morning of April 1st I will have my kids pick a winner based on who meets ALL requirements. You must be a registered follower, you must comment on the days I announce a “GARDEN COMMENT”, and you must email me your full name and address so that I can mail your prize if you win. In your comments, you can discuss that day’s blog OR about something you plan to do in your garden this upcoming spring. Share what you plan on planting/growing OR a craft to use in your garden, etc. You can also ask garden related questions.
That’s it… when you think about it, this is an awesome prize really. You can grow your own food, which saves money on your grocery bill, and enjoy a hobby. This prize package could potentially be worth hundreds if not more if your garden flourishes well! I know I would be super stoked about it! Okie dokie, well good luck and I wish you all the best!
Oh I have such great news to share with my minions of readers! I emailed the $5 Dinner mom, Erin Chase, with pics of my garden and a little bit about why I started gardening, my family, etc. Well guess what? She emailed me back today and asked if she could post my photos of my garden in an upcoming issue of HER email newsletter and blog! Can we say- SUPER COOL CRAZY EXCITED!? Oh I am so happy to be asked. It’s an honor! Maybe it will bring more readers our way! She said it will probably be posted sometime in April or Early May… so you know I will be watching for it!
Alright kids, we did it… we have officially planned out our “Purple Planter” for the Spring 2011. I charted out a 5 foot by 3 foot container garden with each square designating one foot of space. With the help of the Burpee catalog, and google pictures LOL, I now have a plan for the upcoming year. So all that will be left is ordering the seeds and sowing them this winter for a patch of purple plentifulness! We hung the diagram on the Family News bulletin board in the main hallway!
Ok, so while on the hunt for more FREE seed offers, I got this absolutely crazy idea! A couple of the offers for free seeds were available only to groups and non-profit org’s and required a small fee. If I had, or we could find someone to donate a plot of land, then the band could start a community garden that they maintain! Perhaps they could take home a few veggies or even donate them to the local food pantry! I think that would be SUPER COOL! So did the DD… we thought about talking to the director about it but haven’t really discussed it. I tend to come up with a lot of crazy ideas that seem like super cool ideas that just pop into my head, but never actually come to fruition… maybe this is just another one of them.
Alright, so after hours of searching, I happened upon a few more free seed offers I wanted to share with you. I will be sending these out (as soon as I get more stamps LOL) and I will let you know what happens with each one. The first one is Free Flower Seed.
Send SASE (Self addressed stamped envelope with 2 stamps) Limit of 1 per address 1 pack of 10 seeds per year.
Free Flower Seed
C/O DataWorkZ.com
P.O. Box 394
Robbinsville, NC 28771
The next I found is Buzzy Seeds. Send in your gardening photos to photo@buzzyseeds.com for free seeds. You can also get free seeds with any purchase on their website - www.buzzyseeds.com.
Then there is “Plant a Row for the Hungry” free seeds offer. I imagine this would be great for people with larger amounts of space. But just in case you are interested, visit Hume Seeds and check it out.
Check out America the Beautiful and see about their FREE seed giveaway. Since 1980 the Operation Green Plant Program has:
-saved more than 800 tons of seeds and 7 million flower bulbs from going to waste in landfills - free plant seeds
-grown 1.75 billion pounds of food for the hungry - free vegetable seeds
-beautified roadways, parks and neighborhoods in 20,000 communities in all 50 states. - free flower seeds
Tomato Heirlooms state that if you sign up for their newsletter, you will receive free seeds. Variety package includes 3 garden size packets: 1 each of Classic Genovese, Dark Purple Opal, and Lemon Basil. You do not get to submit your information on the website, you have to wait for the “Orders” Newsletter subscription email. In that email it gives you the address for seeds… this is what it says:
Thank you for signing up for the Tomato Heirlooms Newsletter!
Please take advantage of our free seeds offer by sending a self addressed self stamped (SASE) envelope to the address below:
Free Seed Offer
4151 Hwy 86
Brawley, CA 92227
You will get a variety package that includes 3 garden size packets: 1 each of Classic Genovese, Dark Purple Opal, and Lemon Basil, a package valued at $7.50!
SandiaTec, Inc. / TomatoHeirlooms.com
Visit Peaceful Valley for another Free WYB offer. They are currently offering 2 free seed packets with any order.
Okie dokie… now each day I give/find you a SUPER COOL craft for the day. And today would be no exception. My Dad is into the whole Nautical thing… and I am into the gardening thing… and I found a SUPER COOL craft that combines them both! A Terra Cotta Lighthouse and you can use either a outdoor solar light or a lantern! I’m SO making one of these for my back patio next paycheck! LOL!
Craft Idea of the Day: Terra Cotta Lighthouse
By Debra from Colorado Springs, CO
Time Required for project:
Drying time of 24 hours for the silicone caulk
Drying time of 4-8 hours for the paint
Materials:
5-6 graduated terra cotta pots
1 solar garden light
1 tube of outdoor clear silicone caulk
2 one quart cans of outdoor paint (Black and white)
1 can of spray varnish or clear plastic coat
Dremel tool with sanding drum mandrel for enlarging hole for garden light only if needed.
Instructions:
You will need to buy or find 5-6 graduated terra cotta pots depending on how tall you want this. With outdoor silicone, glue each pot to the other while each pot is turned up side down. You now have your tower for your lighthouse. With good outdoor paint, Paint your lighthouse. Pictures can be found online for the stripes as each lighthouse is different.
Coat tower with spray varnish or clear plastic coat. Top with a solar garden light. You may need to enlarge the hole on the top pot to be able to put the garden light on. This can be accomplished with a dremel tool with a sanding drum mandrel.
These would be especially pretty lining a drive way. These would also be pretty on a table using smaller terracotta pots that can be found at most craft stores. For the light on top, use a baby food jar with a glow stick that should glow until your party is over.
OK so I know you are sitting there anticipating the next topic… food! Yep, as if you haven’t caught on… everything today is described by my kids, or myself LOL, as SUPER COOL so here is the SUPER COOL recipe for today!
Cordon Bleu Chicken Rolls
Ingredients
8 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
8 slices cooked ham
4 slices Swiss cheese, cut into 1 inch pieces
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 cup melted butter
1/2 cup Italian Bread crumbs
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
Place each chicken breast half between sheets of plastic wrap and pound with a meat mallet to about 1/8 inch thickness. Place a finger of cheese on each ham slice and sprinkle lightly with thyme and salt and pepper to taste. Roll up seasoned ham and cheese 'jellyroll-style', then roll each chicken breast with ham and cheese inside. Tuck in ends and fasten with toothpicks.
Place melted butter in a small bowl and place bread crumbs in a shallow dish or bowl. Dip each chicken roll in butter or margarine, then roll in crumbs, turning to coat thoroughly. Place coated rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking dish.
Bake at 350 degrees F for about 30 minutes or until chicken is golden brown and juices run clear. Serve with cordon bleu sauce, if desired.
To Make Cordon Bleu Sauce: In a small saucepan mix together the soup, sour cream and lemon juice. Heat over low heat, stirring occasionally, and serve hot over chicken rolls. Makes about 2 cups; 8 servings of 1/4 cup each.
So to draw today’s post to a close, I’ve brought you some, what I believe to be, some SUPER COOL ideas. Why? Because I have SUPER COOL readers! The radar still looks nasty for this afternoon, so I’m fixing to get my gang up and moving (funny cause the sun’s not even up yet LOL!) and get on down the road! To Market To Market before the water in the air… LOL! I will see you all tomorrow with more pictures from our exciting adventures! Peace, Love, and lots of HUGS!!!
WOW! You DID do a free seed search didn't you? I'm impressed! I can't believe the weather that is moving in today. I wonder if mother nature remembers this is Texas, not Siberia! LOL Oh well, looks like I am going to be doing some frost protection and wind blocking today for my little seedlings. Oh well, part of the joys of gardening.
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