Miniature table gardens and peace

This was one of my favorite projects from the school year.  Our botany studies over lapped with some of our history of Japan and so, as we learned about the parts of plants and how they grow and the parts of a culture and how it grows, we planted our own little garden.  As most of you know, some Japanese religious thought teaches that happiness, wisdom, strength, peace, etc are found in isolation, quiet, order, pensive thought.  Now, while functionally I often live as if my strength is found in quiet and order, I find that my efforts to produce such things are often foiled and when they aren't, I never really do find as much strenth as I anticipate.  We ALL had a good reminder that our happiness, wisdom, strength, and ultimately our salvation is found in only one thing.  Jesus.  Thank you, Jesus.

Greta spent the entire end-product picture taking trying to get these gloves on.

Backyard Box Gardens

We started here.  They were supposed to be themed gardens.  Olivia chose a butterfly garden and Joe chose a pizza garden.  Only problem was our i.d. sheet for what we planted in the egg carton got wet or lost or something and we had to guess what we were planting where the boxes.  And, the squash and pumpkin seeds we saved from last year were not labeled, so it is all a big mystery what will come up.  Kind of exciting really.

 We knew we would need to transplant the pumpkins at some point, so the kids cleaned out our strip of dirt.  They were standing in that trench up their thighs just before we filled it in.  Forgot to get a picture of that.

We'll keep you posted on the harvest or any butterfly sightings.

Fresh squeezed

I don't know how many oranges were squeezed that afternoon.  I half expected the kids to wake up with acid sores in their mouths.

They offered me some...I politely passed when I caught a glimpse of all those grubby little paw prints on the jar.  All the dirt and vitamin C hopefully did them well.

Their harvest

I think this year we'll a bit to the garden (also known as the small strip of really bad dirt between two slabs of concrete in the back yard in which we have planted tons of things but only these two pumpkins were pleased enough to grow).

Harvest time

Earth Days

We've been doing a lot with planting and digging and picking these days. We've planted a few pots of geraniums - they get huge here and grow all year. We've also put in some herbs and have an egg carton incubating in the laundry room. So far every seed has come up - a couple of zinnias, 6 tomatoes, a parsley, a cucumber, and a couple of lettuce plants. Olivia comes in quite often with a handful of things she has cut from the bushes and plants in the front yard. And the other day I came in to the bathroom to find all the towels smeared with slug slime. That was gross. She is a different girl from a year ago when she didn't want to even touch worms - now she pesters rolly pollies and pets snails and collects worms in thermos lids.They are learning the parts of the flower (thanks, Amy). And she has been wearing her gardening gloves everywhere (thanks, Grandma) - although it is a little awkward sometimes. She looks like she has some sort of issue with sun exposure, especially when she has on a hat and sweater too.
Pulling out the root bound bottom. (Wish I could have planted that second chin of mine in that pot!)
Sometimes it is a bit overwhelming how "be with" our kids really are. Really, could we be in more together planting? If they walk away from us in public, sometimes strangers point out "Do you see your kid wondering that way?" Well, of course I do - but I have no fear of them bolting - they are way too co-dependent. (Don't worry grandparents - we aren't letting them wonder off everywhere.)
There's the egg carton, pre-sprouted.
Enjoying being out in the dirt. Now, off to make some iced tea with fresh mint in it.

Take a whiff

Now if I was talking to my brother that phrase would have entirely different implications. But this time I am talking about our orange tree - full of blossoms. You can smell them all over the neighborhood. I had no idea. It is wonderful.

...and harvest

This is NOT the Botanical Garden

These are in our backyard!! Alice gave me a few bunches of them two years ago. Last year the late snow really got them. Now look! Two deep purple ones have blossomed in the back bunch since I took these pictures.

I will be sad to leave our little garden - irises, tulips, daffodils (though puny), a huge peony bush, and five rose bushes!

A new variety

Most of the tulips in the city are well past their prime...ours are just opening this week. Aren't they lovely? We have renamed this variety The McBride...a little late, but glad to be here.

Over Grown

Our yard was a bit jungle-y when we got back. This is a picture taken a couple of weeks before we returned. That vine on the corner of the back fence had taken over the entire back fence. I planted a few sunflowers and zinnias before we left - the sunflowers, as you can see, were as tall as our neighbors garage. Maybe not a flower for the city???














But this is what we have been able to enjoy since we've been back.

"Boomin"

These are from our rose and peony bushes in the back yard. Olivia says the flowers are "boomin!"

NOT the Botanical Garden

This is our backyard!! My friend/neighbor, Alice, split her irises two years ago and gave us some. Last year the late freeze got them. Now they have doubled and are beautiful. There is another yellow bunch by our back stairs, though they are a little puny due to Ridley using them as a teether when she was really little. There is another bunch at the back of the garden that are both deep and light purple - but they haven't bloomed yet. You can see our purple tulips too, behind the irises. Olivia pretty regularly looks out the window now and says, "Yook! The flowers is booming!"

Mike and I are really enjoying gardening, though we are complete novices. I planted a bunch of flower seeds that are already coming up - sunflowers, shasta daisies, cosmos, and something else I can't remember. I put in a couple of tomato and pepper plants, but we aren't doing too many vegetables since we will be gone most of the summer. It is the most hands on experience I know (except for maybe child-rearing) of pushing back the effects of the Fall. If I can find them on our CD's I will post a picture of what this yard looked like when we moved in. Much like most of our lives before Christ and his Holy Spirit entered - ravaged with weeds, weak and spindly rose bushes, trash, no order, no care. But, to use Schaeffer's words, there was evidence of glory in the ruin as a few rose buds would pop through and the day lillies continued to bloom despite being overgrown with vines and weeds. Two and nearly a half years later more and more beauty comes up as we prune and weed and sow. I pray to have the same excitement (and courage) to be about pruning, weeding, and sowing of spiritual fruit in my own heart and life - and the wisdom to do the same in our children.

Favorites at the Botany Center

The "Botany Center"

We spent an afternoon at the Botany Center (as my dad calls it) while my family was in town a few weeks ago. I love sharing my favorite parts of St. Louis with our families. Below: Turtle Spotting. I'm not sure who spied the actual turtle since they are pointing in opposite directions.

Anyone who has kids knows this spot - the fish/duck bridge. There is probably an actual name for the bridge - someone who has donated a lot of money for its construction now doubt.

My dad, I am sorry to say (though he was not), was golfing. Mike got the best of both worlds - spring at the Garden on this day, golf on the next.


At least I come by my maturity honestly, or at least genetically...this is my sister-in-law and my mother taking her picture. Sad, but a bit funny.

Welcome to Holland

Not really. This is just our front yard, but we are pretty excited about the tulips. Mike and I bought about 20 bulbs two years ago while we were in Holland, MI and last year the late freeze got them. I think two bloomed in the back yard. We still have about 10 that have never come up. They were blue and dark purple - could have been too unique a variety to bloom here??? Or, I could have planted the bulb upside down. I had to dig a few up after realizing I was planting them upside down. We have four up in the backyard, but no buds yet. Our daffodils were pretty puny this year. We've had six total - and one Ridley ripped the bloom off of and Big O gingerly plucked the buds of another three. So, we have two beautiful, yellow daffodils in the backyard. The leaves on the irises look promising and all the daylillies are full and green. So, we'll see.