Matt and I have been busy in the yard this year, which has left less time for crafting. We expanded our front and back planting beds and added new plants. Matt made two new planting beds with recycled bottles that house a succulent garden and our first shot at a veggie and herb garden. We had no idea what we were doing with growing our own food, so we decided to keep it simple on this first try. We planted cilantro, sage, basil, rosemary, Italian parsley, two tomato plants and a pepper plant. Here's a shot of the bed shortly after planting the veggies.

I had no idea how fast tomatoes grow! After a few really good rain showers, our two tomato plants shot up, took over the bed and quickly outgrew their homemade tomato cages. I really enjoy heading outside with my clippers to gather ingredients for dinner. And, even though our tomato plants seem out of control, they've produced some yummy little tomatoes. Behold!

We've enjoyed both our Sweet 100s and grape tomatoes in a delicious dish from Everyday Food: Grilled Steak with Tomatoes and Scallions. So good!!

Backyard Bliss

Well, we're not there yet, but we are working on it. Matt and I have been busy in the front yard and now we are slowly turning our attention to the backyard. We've planted a couple of things here and there. Like this crossvine from Plant Escapes Gardens:

We have also spruced up the backyard with some purchases like these yellow Adirondack chairs (a steal at Big Lots for $19.00! Yes, they are plastic). I have a small obsession with outdoor pillows and iron-on vinyl, so I plan to make some pillows for these chairs with a beautiful fabric from Anna Maria Horner's Drawing Room line.

Image via Pink Chalk Studio's flickr.