Meet my new best friend

As I get older, it's the little things that mean a lot.
Like not having to fill up my damn watering can 18 times to water the garden-gone-wild.

Pat brought home this beauty after I complained every. single. day about how long it takes me to water, filling up our little watering can. See, we don't have the drip soaker hose thing figured out yet with the garden beds and the hose spray is too strong even on the shower setting for my delicate carrots and lettuce.

Key information you are possibly missing: Pat built some raised beds, we planted some veggies and flowers and herbs, they are growing, and we may be eaten by a giant zucchini.

Behold, proof that I don't really have a brown thumb like I thought. Yet.
May 13 sprouts


May 22 progress


May 31


June 4 - a new MTV special - ZUCCHINI GONE WILD. We had to move it yesterday before it smothered the carrots. I've named it Audrey Jr, after this Audrey, but if it gets sassy, I'm tossing it in the compost. That's her on the right pre-transplant.


The aerial view of her new home. Wave to Audrey Jr. or she might eat you.



Bitty Girl's garden yesterday - lettuce, anyone?? And as soon as those nasturtiums bloom, we can eat those too.



Zucchini, uh, I mean Audrey Jr. happily growing in her new home. We had a close call when she looked all wilty Sunday morning, but a little water and she perked right up.
That's her new home that Pat built Thursday in 90 degree heat, let me add.

Husband of the year with a side of lettuce and zucchini??

Making the chaos worthwhile

Sometimes, we have glimmers that remind us why we had two of them. And an argument for not overscheduling. You need to have time to make pizza.


It doesn't look like much, but there was a pizza kitchen in our front yard this weekend, and two busy pizza chefs, gathering sauce and "spicy stuff" and cheese and pepperoni from the nearby plants and trees and my weed bucket. There was cooperation and planning and a good time was had by all.

Bitty Girl's Combo




The Boy's Wood or Veggie options

Bitty Window

Just watching Bitty Girl tonight, I must have laughed 500 times. I wanted to get it on video, but knew she'd stop once she saw the camera.


They were outside in back, The Boy and Daddy were playing catch, and Bitty Girl was trying her best to pretend like she wasn't trying to get in the middle.


First she played in her water table for a while, happily splashing and pouring.
When she noticed the boys weren't paying any attention to her, she switched to her ride-on bike. She zoomed toward Daddy first, very obviously running over his toes on purpose. She alternated between using her tiptoes to zoom and walking/dragging the bike.


Then she switched to riding with one knee up on the seat, imitating Grandma with her scooter after her recent foot surgery. I wish I had a picture of the smug, delighted look on her face when she realized she could do that kind of zooming without falling over. Daddy intervened briefly when she put both knees/feet up on the seat, but then went back to his game.


Now she was getting desperate. She turned the bike on its side in the middle of the court and ran to get a bowl of water and a towel. By golly, if they won't pay attention to me, I'll WASH MY BIKE in the middle of their game.


One of the best parts that I left out at the beginning was her outfit. Green long-sleeved tshirt that she's quickly outgrowing, khaki flowered leggings, pink Merrell mocs on her feet, and her pink flowered bike helmet.