Gardening with Bug

Some day lilles, sunflowers (thanks vaca daddy!!!) and a leaf from the squash plant








The weather is warming up, it is after mother's day and that must mean it is GARDENING time in our area.

I love to garden, that was the whole reason I wanted a house, just so I could garden !!!

Last, i did not do too much- Bug was coming home right as gardening season started and I knew that it would be difficult to garden with a little one who needed to be cuddled, loved and held (not that he does not need those things this year, just he much more independent and willing to play on his own). The year before that I was planning on him coming home, found out that was not going to happen and then lost my job- so gardening was not a priority.
But the garden plans are always in the back of my mind.

I rely on 2 books for my Gardening:
gardening by the square foot (http://www.squarefootgardening.com/)
lasagna gardening


using both these books, I can add a 4X4 foot garden anytime I want and it is easy to maintain.

So on to the start of the gardening year with Bug:





Bug with the geranium I transplanted from my mom's house in the middle of summer last year- yes the drought- apparently the geranium loved the drought and loves the rain this year.


Bug refusing to stand and look at the camera with the roses








the roses- these are Rugosa roses from Great lakes Roses in Michigan (http://www.greatlakesroses.com/)
The same roses in the front of the house. These were bought 3 years ago and will be 4-6 feet (front of the house) or 5-8 feet tall (side of the house) when fully grown. I like the ones in front because no one can hide behind them due to the HUGE thorns on them.
I barely watered the roses last year in the drought- maybe once a week, I never cover them in the winter and I certainly never fertilize them. Easy maintenance gardening is what I am looking for in plants.

This year's vegetable garden is mostly being done in pots. Easy to move, great for blocking Bug from an area of the backyard that I want him to be away from (steps to the basement with a rickety handrail)

This is our sweet red pepper plant


same plant in the middle, tomatoes on the left, lettuce on the right






Wrong size cage 9switched out the next day, for 2 tomato plants.




A cucumber and eggplant sharing a pot








Square foot gardening-- 1 squash, 1 zucchini, each in their own separate space (these will get huge of they are like the ones I grew 3 years ago)





My goal this summer is build the spaces for corn, blueberries, and potatoes for next year. I also need to plan ahead to start radishes, carrots and green onions from seed to move to the garden, or I need to build a cold frame for starting the seeds outside.

In a few weeks, I will begin to expand the front flower garden (not in the pictures), I need to seen how big the day lillies get so I can divide them and I need to see what goes on sale at the gardening centers as the summer starts and folks lose interest in gardening.

Now, if I could only get Wendy to come up for a weekend- then i get it all done in one weekend.

have a great holiday weekend.

love to you,
Deb

Nothing new right now- just a quick note

Based on the last few days at work, it looks like I will not be able to update the blog until the weekends. Heck, i barely have time to play with Bug.

For the last 2 nights I have been working until 10 or 10:30, I usually work from 8-9 pm after Bug goes to bed.
Since I have 4 studies locking in the next 2 months, I think I am going to be hard pressed to stop working before 11 pm. So I get breakfast with Bug, then drive him to daycare, then home, work for 9 straight hours (yep- no lunch either), then drive to pick up Bug, drive home, play, eat, do the bedtime routine, back to work for another 3 hours.

So i have one study locking in 4 weeks, the next one 2 weeks after that, then the 3rd one 2 weeks later and finally the last one locks 2 weeks after that or 4 days before Bug's birthday. They were not supposed to be so close together, but a decision by the sponsor changed the timelines. I think by the end of summer I will be ready for nice long vacation, far away from a computer and phone.

I need to concentrate on Bug in the time I have with him. I know kids really need quantity time with parents, not quality time. So I am trying to be in the moment and present for Bug during the time I have with him each day. We have even gone back to cosleeping at night just so he knows I am right there (seems to help with behavior issues in the daytime too).

So if you don't see lots of posts or hear from us via email, just know that I am busy, busy and trying to just be there for Bug during the time he is awake during the day.

Pictures coming tomorrow evening of out garden- we had fun working on it this week.

love to you,
Deb- who needs to go get some sleep.

yep- he remembers

Sunday, I dressed Bug in an shirt and sweater that he has not worn for a year.

I pulled out the shirt and sweater from Embassy day, 30May2007. Bug took one look at it and said "I wore that in Guatemala". Seriously, it was put in a drawer for months, I just pulled it out when I cleaned out his closet and removed all the clothes he outgrew.



As you can see from this picture taken after our embassy visit, Bug was not happy that day. I have a hard time looking at this picture- seeing his sadness and knowing that I was just numb.







yes, I dressed him in the outfit- he was not upset by it and I thought it would not hurt. He ended up being in it all day and Sunday night we attended a concert at church- this is the picture of us from the concert.



I like this one more- I see us as a family, I see us having fun. It is not that the first picture is not valid- it shows the loss and the pain of the process, but the second picture shows the difference a year makes.

We are still working through the change, but perhaps we are more working on how a family grows. I think I am going to start a collection of us- each year- the same color outfits right at this time of the year- I wonder what the future will bring.




At the same concert, my boy started coming out of his shell- he discovered that pews are for climbing on, over and under. He decided that the front of the church was the place to be and ran up to the front, he clapped along with the music and was a typical 2 year old. WOW- what a change since the first time we came to church. then he sat there, would not interact, would not even react to the music. Now he is so into it. I would keep him in church with me if I knew he would sit still. I guess we are still a few years away from that.




Love and hugs to you,
Deb