Welcome!

Like millions of other people, I have decided to blog about certain aspects of my life that I think are fascinating...and others that are not so. Recently, there have been some big changes in my lifestyle such as deciding to become vegetarian (purely a personal preference based on my dislike of meat) and starting a vegetable garden from seed.

I have been a meat eater for 25 years but never enjoyed touching, cooking, and eating animal flesh. So at the beginning of 2011, I decided to become a full fledged vegetarian. I respect other people's choices and am not going to try to convince anyone one way or the other on their diet preferences. My husband is a carnivore and that will never change (he could eat a whole package of bacon in one sitting!!!). Obviously this leaves the challenge of finding vegetarian meals that can be complemented by animal protein but is easy and cheap to make. Did I mention I am doing all of this on a budget. Being unemployed doesn't allow for much excess spending in our household.

I have also decided to grow a full fledged vegetable garden! The constraints: no yard and a budget. I live in a second story apartment with a tiny porch. The goal is to grow a variety of veggies all in containers and all from seed. I guess I could have taken the easy route and just bought plants that already have growth but I like to jump in head first. I want the final product to be completely my doing and that includes starting the seeds, transplanting the sprouts, and harvesting a bountiful crop (from my containers). It may seem like extra work, but I look forward to the challenge.

Okay, so that is a quick intro about me and my inspiration for this blog. I hope to be able to share everything I learn about being a vegetarian (with a meat loving husband) and a vegetable gardener (if that is what you consider a container garden on a 5' x 8' porch). I will also be adding pictures along the way for something pretty to look at. Wish me luck!