This weekend has rocked so far.  Tried sushi.  Found a hat for $6 that I REALLY wanted.  Moved trash and (flattened and moved) about 70 boxes to the trash place (out of the garage).  Ate supper and visited with my parents.  And, today?  I’m washing some clothes and towels and Steven is mowing…hooray…our jungle-yard will look normal again.  I think the neighbors will only buy the “Live first, mow later” motto for only so long.  If goats didn’t poop so much (or, if they came potty trained - in the woods), I would just buy goats.  Too bad for me.

This morning, after a lovely breakfast of totally non-healthy foods (eggs over easy, crescent rolls loaded with butter and honey, and cheesy hashbrowns—L had a crescent roll and banana), L and I went into the garden.  My tomato plants had grown so much and began falling over, so I needed to re-tie them…and um, weed the garden.  Badly.  So, L and I found a spot in the garden and began.  She started picking leaves, trying her darnedest to help - it’s not her fault that she hasn’t quite grasped weeds vs. good plants/flowers yet.  So, she helped pick a few weeds…some tomato leaves…some lettuce leaves…and a big ol’ piece of broccoli leaf.  I pulled my very mature (but easy to recognize and grasp) weeds up at lightening speed as she sat in between the garden rows, playing in the dirt and leaves she had collected.  I love my garden.  I love the fact that I grew it.  By myself.  I love that I planted each seed so lovingly in that ground with my two hands, and now those seeds feed my family.  I love that after a hectic day, I can walk to my little garden, and I can pull up weeds or check the plants for bugs…and…one of the girliest girls ever actually enjoys it.  For once, I don’t mind dirt under my fingernails (um, for a short time…til I can wash my hands), I don’t mind the work.  It’s my place.  The place I can go to “work” and my mind runs free with thoughts - happy thoughts.  It’s where I can breathe.  Relax.  And, as a look up to watch my beautiful daughter playing in the dirt, I see a fine line of dirt around her mouth.  And, it is in that moment that I remember why I chose to have a completely organic garden.  For my family.  I love the thought of picking a ripe tomato…or broccolli…or lettuce (I can go on and on) and KNOWING that there is NO fertilizer, NO pesticides, NOTHING but what it was intended to be.  Natural, beautiful, and wonderful.  And, my daughter could hypothetically eat all the dirt she wanted - But, she won’t, because I’m a mean mommy and don’t care for things like intestinal worms and other gross things.

I so very much love that my daughter loves nature and exploring…just as much as I do.

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