These pics are a bit out of order... but they include a shot of the 3 ingredients in the marvelous Mel's Mix- vermiculite, peat moss, and compost/manure and Mark showing off our nearly prepped 4 x 4 boxes.

The Square Foot Garden boxes are built and planted. This is the view from out kitchen window. We spent Saturday morning making the "Mel's Mix" to fill the boxes with, but we've dubbed it "Mark and Megan's May Mix" because we had to make a few adjustments. We'll see how the tomoatoes, peppers, eggplants, green beans, zucchini, green onions, carrots, cucumbers, basil, cilantro, chives and broccoli fair in the new garden spaces.

Here is the backyard mid-May. Some signs of life. We seeded and planted a few shrubs and perennials. We're particularly proud of the new sidewalk that runs from the garage to the patio. We pounded out the old one by hand with a 16 lb sledge hammer, used the cement chunks to edge our flower beds (beautifying the yard and recycling at the same time... "eco-gardening"?), and then hauled and mixed and poured 2400 lbs of cement by hand under my dad's guidance and help on long Friday.