Kicking Off the Weekly Garden

I feel like my thoughts need a word cloud because this morning's picture (see above) has a bunch of different things racing through my head - in no particular order:

• I have never been great at taking before and after pictures with our home improvement projects. Hopefully, since this is so early in the season this will be a good measurement for how the garden's growing. 
• The lavender (second row, planter box on your left) already smells divine. It's so low maintenance (now in it's third year)...one of the best investments we've made in our yard.
• You can see Holden in the back of the garden, tending to the lettuce and radish seedlings "I watered all those villains"he just told me -- looking over my shoulder as I type.
• I love that Danny built me these planters. To me it makes it feel like the whole family is involved in the *sacred space (I had Zoë in the Ergo pack strapped close to me tummy-2-tummy while I took this pic and we worked outside this morning)
• The tomatoes will return to their rightful spot in the large planter in front. I've got six varieties we're planting from starts this year, including an heirloom Mr. Stripey.
• The rhubarb already needs to be picked (all we do is harvest the stuff. My grandparents planted it years ago, and it just keeps surviving and thriving.) 

Holden's Garden

Next to the lavender (with the pea-pod tee-pee) is the spot I have officially delegated as Holden's garden this  year. It already has carrots growing -- left over seedlings in the soil from last year), I planted a couple of marigolds for pest control and the oregano plant from last year also survived the winter and is growing like gang busters. He scattered peas and we set up the tee-pee, and in a few weeks I'll let him go to town with squash and pumpkin seeds and we'll let nature take it's course.

*Grandma's Legacy

For those of you who may not recall the history of this place, this space is indeed sacred. We bought the home from my Grandparents - a couple of months after my grandma passed away. The yard, amazing in it's time housed multiple fruit trees, raspberry bushes, a grape vine, a dozen (or more) rosebushes and much more (rhubarb being another one of many delights).

Unfortunately, after my Grandfather passed away, it was just too much to keep up - and by the time we bought the place, it was in serious need of some T.L.C. We've made changes bit by bit...with little kids and a life much different than my grandparent's led, we don't have the time (or experience) to dedicate to the yard and gardens like they did. But I think the changes we make are in the spirit of making the place beautiful, being more self-sufficient and teaching our children about where food comes from with patience and a respect for the earth. (All things I think my gramdparents would appreciate).

In fact, there's a couple of spots by the planter-boxes where roses seemed to have made their way up through the soil. I like to think it's a reminder from my grandparents...perhaps even their way of sending approval for what we're trying to do.