You don’t need me to tell you, these are some strange times we’re living in. The Coronavirus wasn’t even on my radar a couple of months ago, and now as I write this, I’m doing my part to “flatten the curve” and am adhering to quarantine guidelines. I pray all of you who follow my blogs are staying healthy and being safe out there. We’re all in this together. The way I see it, there’s no room for panic. Just arm yourself with the facts, use wisdom, and choose faith over fear every time.
That said, I’m making the most of my quarantine time at home. My husband and I have cleaned out the garage and are taking care of all sorts of things that needed our attention. We’re also spending a lot more time outdoors as one of the projects I’d been wanting to do for years is now coming together. Who would have thought it would take something this drastic to get it started!? It’s not completely finished yet, but I thought I’d share it with you anyway. I’m calling it my “Quirky Quarantine Time Garden,” mostly because I’m a fan of alliteration, but also because it is definitely quirky.
I’m sure you can tell by now that it’s on the side of our house. It’s a narrow area that had nothing going for it. Were it not for the fact that our garbage cans are kept there, we’d never spend any time there at all.
But, I’ve always thought it was the perfect place for a small garden. And just before the COVID-19 pandemic broke, my husband made good on his promise to build me some raised garden beds specifically for that narrow area. At the time, he was busy with his regular work, and didn’t have much time to spend on this project. I’m sure the neighbors wondered about the sounds of digging after dark as he made sure drip lines were installed and the ground would be level.
He built the boxes out of 1″x4″ Whitewood Board and made one of the boxes deeper that the other so that I could grow vegetables in the deep one, and herbs in the more shallow one.
While my husband was building the raised garden boxes, I decided to work on another project. I had a leftover piece of artificial grass that wasn’t very big, and I wanted to cut it in a whimsical, swirly pattern for at least one side of the walkway.
It was a great idea, in theory, but once I tried cutting it, I realized how hard it was. So, I decided to cut it into squares instead and make a checkerboard pattern. It took me three days to cut these squares, and I had blisters to prove it.
I used every salvageable piece of that artificial turf to fill that one side of the walkway and there was nothing left to spare.
I know it’s not for everyone, but this is MY quirky garden, and I LOVE the unexpected. I can’t tell you how happy this checkerboard pattern made me. The only thing that made me happier, was finally planting my garden.
You’ll have to pardon the way I look, but once the quarantine started, my choice of wardrobe only got worse. Fortunately, my need for a creative outlet increased.
I took some cheap, plastic garden markers I already had from the Dollar Store and tried to upgrade them a little by painting them with black chalkboard paint. Then I hand wrote the names of everything I’d planted using a white chalkboard marker. They turned out so cute.
I also took some of the wood circles leftover from a tree we cut down a few years ago and I filled the other side of the walkway with them. They’re leading up to a fairy garden I plan on expanding when this quarantine is over.
Meantime, we put up this iron welcome sign. I’d forgotten I had it. I bought it at Goodwill sometime last year and found it when we were cleaning out the garage.
Life is far from normal right now, but I choose to find joy every day. In my Quirky Quarantine Time Garden, I reap what I sow, which means I’ll have sunflowers soon to make things even brighter.
And while I’m anxious for this pandemic to blow over, I cherish this precious time with my family. I have nowhere to go and nothing else to be… but thankful.
