Garden of (Un)Eaten.

This boring yard needs a pick-me-up.

I'm looking out in my yard and wondering where the winter went. It's a drab mess and I'm lacking the motivation and inspiration to pull it together. Maybe it's the fast pace I've felt my axis spin on since Fall. Or, maybe it's the new baby in our lives and things just got away from us. At any rate, things aren't looking so good outside my house right now and I'm hoping one, sunny weekend will bring it all back around.

"Where do we begin?" is a question I ask myself every year. By now, we're typically weeks into our indoor seed gardening; we'd probably have an inch or two of darling, green seedlings of Heirloom tomatoes - maybe even a little lettuce. But, not this year. This year we have no excuses, except a bunch of excuses. It makes no sense - but here we sit.

It's not easy mustering up some motivation. Especially when it all seems unbearable and overwhelming. I know myself all too well - when the going gets tough, I go sit back down. But I, also, know what I need to do to get the ball rolling and jump start some ambition:

A whole lot of weeding needs to go on here.

First things first: sun. I need just one sunny weekend and my yard (and my attitude) will change its tune. Seriously, in Seattle, that's a major thing! I can't complain, though, we've had a pretty decent winter - even if I spent three weeks of it in sunny Tucson and it happened to be right smack in the middle of the big "Seattle Snowmageddon," so who am I kidding. But as of right now it's pouring down rain and the forecast says to expect it for days...

Next, it's bringing in some fresh, black compost to spread over the beds. Man, does this make a big difference to those lazy beds. It sharpens and brightens the vibe of the area and I like that. That color of black will, ironically, brighten the garden more than any one thing - plus, it will enhance the growth of the seeds and plants more than anything.

Finally - and perhaps most important of all, I need to gather some motivation. All it takes is one glimpse in my memory of last year's crop and a quick dig in the dirt and I'm sold. Sign me up! I'm ready to sing some Kumbaya My Lord. Give my hands a little run through some cold dirt and it's all over.

I know this state of affairs won't last all spring. I'm hopeful things will come around. Soon enough I know I'll be bragging about the abundance of our garden. But, until then, I need a little push: sun, fresh compost and motivation!