Ryan's Garden

As promised . . .

Okay, it's a little scrawny still. Unfortunately, it took me so much time to pull the trees and stumps out of this spot, clear the weeds, put together the watering system, and bring in and prepare the soil, that I ran out of time to actually plant seeds. So we didn't get this planted until way later than we should have. That means the plants are thriving, but pretty behind schedule, so it's a very decent chance we won't get any harvest at all. But now that I've seen how much I love having this garden out there, I can see that the actual produce is beside the point.

So in the left foreground, that's watermelon. That will almost certainly not bear fruit in the limited time remaining, but it's fun watching it twist around all over. In the left foreground is the cucumber- which is a bit more promising. Just beyond the cucumber vines, you can see the weak tomato plants, also unlikely to take a huge chunk out of our grocery bill. Rex is standing on the stone that separates the cilantro and the basil. Then back in the back, from left, you see carrots, peas and beans, which we do expect to actually produce something to eat.



Note the flowers on the peas and beans. I love coming back here and just looking around at all the plants most nights. I don't do too much work on it, but it's just fun to hang around and notice how everything changes so fast. My favorite thing to do is just to pick a leaf of basil and a sprig of cilantro and keep smelling them. Weird, I know, but I'm into herbs. The kids love hanging out and garden-watching too. The real advantage of this late-blooming garden is that it's not going to give us those bushels and bushels of stuff that people with gardens usually have, and are trying to give away to everyone in the world. We might get a little yield at the end of the month, and that will be it. Perfect!

I have such a Considerate little boy

So, a couple of days ago we were getting ready to walk to the park, packing up water bottles, snacks, and getting the stroller out when Rex suggested we call some friends for he and Lucy to play with while we are there. I said we could maybe stop off at Will and Jane's house to see if they would want to come and that was that. A few minutes later, Rex said in a very mature way, using his hands quite a bit to talk, "Mom, why don't you call some of your mom friends to come so you will have people to talk to while we are playing at the park." I couldn't believe how sweet that was for him to think about.

Again yesterday, Rex asked to call a friend over during Lucy's nap. As you can see he is a complete extrovert. Anyway, a bit later he came into the kitchen and said, "Mom, maybe we should call some of your adult friends to come over and see your new stuff." I replied, "What stuff?" He said, "you know all the new furniture and stuff that dad and randy brought in." I realized he was talking about a few new small pieces of furniture we inherited from my aunt. He really just thought I would enjoy showing it off, I guess. It was so sweet of him to actually think about me and my needs. I wondered how often I actually thought of my own mom's needs at all growing up , let alone age 4. I mean c'mon, Mom's actually have needs????

Macy's Garden

Inspired by this post, I thought I'd share a little piece of what makes it so nice for me to come home every night, courtesy of Macy and her gardening designs. We've tried to make this garden in front of our house pretty in past years (or, more precisely, I have) but it never really worked until Macy got on board, picked the right plants, and started taking care of it. She used to say she has a black thumb, but it seems to have turned a nice deep shade of green now.

I never would have guessed a little thing like a flower garden would have such a nice influence on a place. One of the bright little lessons you learn when you live with Macy (who gardens a little less as it becomes more impossible for her to bend over).

(Not pictured: the large yellow spot in the lawn that somebody appears to have spilled tiki torch oil on).

Pioneer Day!

We have the most darling little 24th of July celebration in our little neighborhood. You would definitely think we live in a small town when you see it.

It starts with a children's parade around the park near our home. All the kids in the neighborhood decorate their bikes, scooters, wagons, strollers, etc. The parade is just once or twice around the park with booming patriotic music in the background. Even though it is very simple my kids love it, and can't wait every year. Then our little comittee for events put on a great little carnival afterward. There is food, games, and entertainment. It is always on these days that I never want to move!

Here are Rex and will gearing up for the parade.

Lucy and Ikey riding in the parade.

Rex, the fireman!!

Lucy on the firetruck

Here is Andrew and Elizabeth's new baby, Peter. Isn't he a cutie!

Peter and his big brother, Henry.

Lucy waiting for her nails to dry.

Still waiting.......

Lucy holding her nails out to dry, roughly a half hour after they dried.

Rex's First Primary Talk

Rex gave his first primary talk yesterday. When we first told him about it, he was nervous. In fact, it was something we'd never seen him do before. He fretted for the better part of an afternoon about it. But when we explained to him that we'd have him well-prepared, he started to get comfortable with the idea.

The theme was "My family can follow Jesus Christ in Faith." We told him the theme and mentioned that he should think about what to say. Then Macy and I forgot about it. A few days later, we brought up the talk, and Rex said "Dad, I thought of a word to say in my talk." I asked what that was, and he said "Jesus loves families." I asked Macy if she'd fed him that line, and she said no. I was impressed that he'd thought about the talk, considered the theme, and come up with a relevant thought. It was very cute. Later he asked Lucy "Lucy, can you think of a word to say in my talk?" Unfortunately, she didn't have anything. She'd have done better if the talk had to do with princesses.

Anyway, yesterday came, Rex put on his suit, and gave the talk, doing very well. This is the exact text of the talk, which he delivered with solemnity, and with very little prompting.

Jesus loves families. My family tries to follow him in faith. When we were going on vacation, my mom asked me to wear my crocs [shoes] on the airplane. But we couldn't find my croc. My dad and I searched everywhere, but we couldn't find it. So we decided to have a family prayer. We asked Heavenly Father to help us find the croc. Then we got up and had another look. Right before we had to leave to the airport, my Mom found it in my sister's dressup box. I'm grateful that Heavenly Father heard my prayer. I know that if we follow Jesus Christ in faith, we'll be happy. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

It was a proud moment.

Chocolate on Vanilla

They handed out creamies today after church.

(Click to enlarge, for more detailed view of dainty chocolate stain patterns)

We probably should have gone home and changed first.

A Hike up to Cecret Lake

Last night our little family went on a hike to Cecret Lake up Little Cottonwood Canyon. It was so beautiful, and much cooler than down here in the valley. Our kids always love going up the canyon for campfires, drives, or hikes. They both noticed everything about the nature around, and loved picking wild flowers, singing songs, and throwing rocks in the various little rivers we passed along the way. It was a great family time.

(Rex took this shot of us without any warning (or instruction), with our digital camera)

However, I didn't know exactly what I was getting into, just 4 weeks before my due date. We had heard this was a great, low key, family hike. But much of it was kind of uphill, and we were not prepared. I naively wore my flip flops, Lucy was in a sun dress and crocs, and we didn't have any water. I was a little worried at the beginning when everyone we saw heading up was changing into hiking shoes on the tailgate of their cars and most had small backpacks too. About half way up I started getting comments like, " when are you due?" or "Did you choose to go on this hike?" When I saw the final steep hill with a few switch backs before the lake I knew this wasn't going to work, at least not for a couple of more months, and definitely not in my flip flops. At that point we decided to turn back. The kids luckily enjoyed every second and didn't care at all about not getting to the lake. They enjoyed the journey. It is always nice to get out of the city, and get up to nature for a bit even if you don't make it the final destination. We will have to try this hike again soon.