March 22, 2007
The weather finally turned halfway decent, so this morning we all put our shoes on and went out into the backyard to play. Well, the kids went out to play. I went out to keep an eye on things and get some very perfunctory work done via the laptop. Zeke kicked up a fuss at first about wanting to play with his trains instead, but I pointed out that there are supposed to be thunderstorms later and that maybe he could play with his trains later on while it is raining outside, and this logic appealed to him. So Zeke and Stazi ran around outside for about an hour and a half and then announced that they were ready to go inside. Which is where we are now, and have been for half an hour, and the skies just opened up with a huge peal of thunder, so their timing, as usual, was impeccable.
I got some of our seeds started for the backyard garden today. Orange bell peppers, basil (standard Genovese variety) and yellow cherry tomatoes went in. Keith and I actually don't care for tomatoes that much, but last year we got two free tomato plants from the kids' preschool at the end of the year, and stuck them in the garden almost as an afterthought.
We had tomatoes. Oh, we had tomatoes. We had tomatoes out the proverbial wazoo. Our previous gardening experience having been in rainy, mild Seattle, we are not used to hot-weather crops actually producing significant quantities of fruits. Throughout July and August, I would go outside at lunchtime every day and collect about ten cherry tomatoes and bring them in, and the kids would have them eaten before dinner time. Every day! So I thought, maybe this year we should actually plant some on purpose and do it right with wire cages and so forth. Last year they just kind of spread out all over the ground. I think the squirrels got as many (or more) tomatoes as we did. The particular variety I went with is a German one called "Blondkopfchen", which means "blonde little girl" in German, and I'm sure I don't need to tell you that as soon as we saw that variety in the catalog, it was clearly our only option.
Speaking of squirrels, have I mentioned that our albino squirrel now has a friend? There are two albino squirrels scampering around our backyard on a regular basis now. I am not sure whether to be freaked out or charmed by this.
In other news, we have Zeke's kindergarten registration packet, due to be filled out and returned to the school by April 9 or 10 or something. (I have it written down, I promise.) We have to locate his birth certificate, his immunization record, and some other stuff. And I need to stop having panic attacks. Kindergarten! I am terrified by this prospect. What if the other kids don't like him? What if he gets too much homework? What if the bus drops him off at the wrong house and he gets lost? I think it is my job to worry about these things. Zeke, of course, is totally excited about the prospect of getting to ride the big yellow bus next year.
Kindergarten!
Posted at March 22, 2007 11:13 AM
Posted by: Bibi at April 2, 2007 1:45 PM
That's Rita Buchanan. Oops.
Posted by: bibi at April 2, 2007 1:46 PM
Hey Jan! Nice to see a posting!
I got a book from the library on gardening, and I wish it had been published about 15 years ago when we first bought our house so I could have avoided making umpteen thousand mistakes. Okay, so I'm garden-obsessed this year, but it's a great book and I'm reading it cover to cover. It's called Taylor's Master Guide to Landscaping, by Tia Buchanan. It can seriously help you avoid making even minor mistakes about where you put things in your yard and how you do things. We could've saved so much money.... Anyway. Aren't you lucky to get tomatoes?!?! I'm thinking of a friend who planted dozens of tomato plants and ended up with, drum roll here.... a HUNDRED POUNDS OF GREEN TOMATOES!!! He weighed them. This, of course, is in Puget Sound area.
Cheers!