Thinking About the Garden.... well... maybe... yeah...

I'm not sure if I have shared this before (okay, I know I share this about every other post), that I am very much a fall and winter kind of lady rather than a spring  and summer kind of lady. This mostly has to do with having a fair complexion, a hatred of sun, and horrible allergies but one thing I love about summer is our garden!

Wee tomatoes growing in the summer of 2011. 

We have been in the house about a year and a half now. We moved in at the end of the summer of 2011 and  brought our wee patio garden over from the apartment. It continued to do pretty well but I was excited about the summer of 2012 and finally having a "real" garden.... well, things happened (wonderful things like an anniversary trip to Hawaii and lots of teaching opportunities) and the plan to build raised beds was put on hold. In the end it was a terrible year for my garden for many reasons (mostly the worst drought in decades). 

This year however, I am determined to make our garden rock! I have started to get seed catalogs and have started lists, talking to my fellow gardening friends, and reminding Shane that we need to get building the raised beds early, early, early! 

Again, I'm still fairly new to gardening, (although I helped my mom lots on our little gardens when I was little) and my philosophy is "why not?". I started small in our apartment container garden with herbs, a few veggies, and each year add a new thing or two and see how it goes and what my little green friends share with me.

This year I will be planting my "usuals"; 

- Tomatoes - Cucumbers - Green Peppers - Jalapenos - Sage - Rosemary - Thyme - Basil - Catnip - Lavender - Red Potatoes - Nasturtiums - Marigolds

This years "newbies" ( I think...); 

- Acorn Squash (again... 2012 was not my year) - Carrots - Luffa - Garlic - Onion (maybe?) 

Have you gotten seed catalogs? What are you thinking about planting this year? Any advice any "must plant" plants?