Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails. Proverbs 19:21

We got a late start on planting this year but finally got the beds in and some seed started. So far we have a few strawberries left from last year and are hoping to expand those when they start sending out volunteers. The blackberry bush looks full and happy, hoping to see some fruit soon.

This year we top-dressed the beds with compost over a thick layer of newspaper. We had great success with the beds we tried this method on last year. This year, however, we're skeptical. We waited so late to plant, the weeds had already taken a good hold before we could get the work done. So, after we finished our work, we stood back and looked at the beds. This was our conversation (which you may recognize):

"Think it'll work?"

"It would take a miracle."

Other than sunflowers that self-sowed from last year's composting, this is what we started:

• corn
• cilantro
• jalapeno
• green and red bell peppers
• lettuce
• cabbage
• cucumber
• leeks (this was an accident--I don't even know what to do with leeks!)
• green onion
• tomatoes
• butternut squash
• watermelon
• pumpkin
• radishes
• carrots
• bush beans
• snap peas

We left about 1/3 of the garden fallow this year and are still totally organic. All the beds need so much work, and we need to get some grass seed started ASAP. Sadly, because my foot is still healing and I'm not really able to walk on it yet, I'm not able to get the garden/yard work done that I so love to do. But I trust this interruption to my plans and that an appointed time will be provided to do the work, as the Lord wills it.

We've done little to treat the weeds so far (other than put down newspaper and top-dress the beds which is only helping minimally). And the weeds drive me nuts! So much so that I often want to just scrap the whole thing, plant grass and go back to treating the yard to get that perfect green, thick, weedless lawn back. I can't stand it when I pull a weed and it snaps off at the base--leaving the root firmly lodged in the ground. I have to take a deep breath and remember that it will all be worth it when we're eating fresh produce (minus the miles and the unknown chemicals of store bought goods). I also love preserving what we can, giving away as much as we can, and picking the fruit in the early morning hours with whichever girl gets up early enough to discover me in the garden. That makes living with the weeds worth it in the end! My future plans include eventually converting to raised beds and treating the weeds with vinegar, so that should help some. We'd also like to start a small worm farm for fertilizer and composting.

So many plans. If the Lord wills it.

Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit." Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, "If the Lord will, we will live and also do this or that." James 4:13-15