Personal blog of christian
writer & fallible mom
Katy McKenna Raymond
in Kansas City, Missouri
Katy is represented by
Greg Johnson at
WordServe Literary
Read more Katy at
LateBoomer.net
Recent Posts
- Try
- Becoming Brenda Starr
- Off Beat
- Scattered
- That’s It
- So I’ve Finally Signed With An Agent. Now What?
- The Spoon
- Sciatica
- Sweetheart
- A Woman’s Train of Thought Has No Caboose
- However much we own, we are all still living on borrowed time
- After all, when restaurants shrink portions, they don’t shrink prices.
- As with everything in life, balance is key.
- Slow down, you move too fast…
- Yeah, I know. I have issues.
Syndicate
E me at katy @ ngenius.com
Who Knew That When You Plant Seeds, Stuff Grows?
Honestly, people! I think I was pretty darned good at raising kids, but that’s where my “growth potential” came to a grinding halt.
I used to cry openly from intimidation when given a common houseplant as a gift, knowing I would kill the thing in three days flat. But now I simply whimper to myself and make the giver promise not to think less of me if he never sees the thing alive again.
My darling son Kevin gave me a beautiful white orchid plant for Mother’s Day last year and scared the bejeebers out of me. The bloom did finally die, but new leaves continue to emerge on an occasional basis, so I am not parting with it! Who knows but what I’ll be enchanted one of these years with another exotic bloom?
This Mother’s Day, Kev gave me a different variety of orchid (just in case I’d mastered the care of the first one and needed another challenge, I’m thinking….), this time a pink one with multiple small blooms. As always, I begged his forgiveness in advance for what will most likely become another Fallible Houseplant Demise. He’s so sweet. He said, “But in between now and then, you’ll enjoy looking at it, right?”
Yes, I will! And even more so this year, since I am now an official gardener! While a number of my experiments with food growing have proven failures, like the three out of four broccoli plants that bolted, most everything is thriving. In fact, tonight we popped a couple of ribeyes on the grill and had salad made WITH LETTUCE THAT WE GREW!
For even more fun, while we cut lettuce leaves for dinner, we popped a few bright red and SWEET strawberries into our mouths. Yay for us!
Small heads of cauliflower have formed and are growing, green peppers and brussel sprouts are coming along nicely, we’ll have a least a number of purple onions, and the tomatoes and zucchini are taking off. Plus, we’ve got tiny peaches on one of two peach trees, which are surrounded by three apples, two pears, and a cherry.
You know that whole can’t-teach-an-old-chick line of thinking? SO NOT TRUE. I have been making a habit of learning new things, and in 2009 I’ve developed several skills that I’ll enjoy for years to come.
And, yes, I know that hanging clothes on a line in the sunshine is not exactly a skill. But I’ve been doing it since February and I love it. It makes me feel like a kid again, since hanging laundry in our dryer-less household was often assigned to me, and what’s not to like about recapturing one’s youth?
It’s fascinating when you start caring less about what the stock market’s doing and more about the weather forecast.
“Do you think this load will dry before the rain comes in?”
“Should we water this morning or count on storms to do the job later on?”
“How much water do you suppose is in the rain barrels? Enough to do the whole garden?”
“Hey, the temperature is perfect. Let’s walk around the property and see what’s growing….”
It’s refreshing to realize that even when the whole world seems like it’s going to heck in a handbasket, there’s always something to look forward to, something to savor. And what a wonderful surprise to find that in a very down-to-earth sense, we really do reap what we sow.
- Congrats on the garden success. Isn't it wonderful to see things grow. Isn't God so good!! I haven't done a gardent for a while, but I do love getting frsh produce and canning or freezing for later. When I was a girl, my granmother canned everything. They had a big garden. I wish I had learned more from her when I had the chance, but I can still smell the jelly she made from the berries we picked. wrapped up in long sleeves and boots to protect from the thorns on the bushes. Great memories.
Congrats on your orchids too. Enjoy.Posted by Sandi Thompson on 05/18/09 at 01:06 PM - So, are the rain barrels hooked into your gutters somehow?
Posted by Terri on 05/22/09 at 10:31 PM
- All very enjoyable article. Nothing like soil and garden. ;)
Posted by atasözleri on 07/25/09 at 05:09 PM
- I used to live in a village or urban area, but it seems I lived in a province or rural area. Since my dad lived in a rural area and used to grow vegetable in their backyard, he managed to do the same thing in our backyard. Gardening has so many benefits like means of relaxation, trim down your food expense, provides more healthy food and a lot more.
Posted by Luke on 08/11/09 at 03:08 PM
- Congratulations for your success. I also like gardening and I regularly visit my farm house where I have planted many plants, twice in a month. I like to plant fruits and flowers in my farm.
Posted by Health tips on 08/19/10 at 10:54 AM
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