Gardening....a Life's Lesson with Great Memories

After many requests for Papa to till the garden, he finally found the time and the plot was ready for planting.  Now all we needed was seeds, sun and some time.  The Hutchinson grandchildren have been anxiously waiting to "plant" with the seven-year old begging to "weed".  I can just see the hoe swinging uncontrollably as I write.  Not that he would intentionally hit is sister, but then hoeing is a job that takes a lot of man power and if she should just happen to get in the path of the hoe, well who should question?!?!?  

Last week, with grandchildren in toe, we headed to Smith's Market.  There we stood in front of the wooden seed cabinet for some time trying to make our selections and wondering what each little seed would look like and what would be the most fun to pick and eat.  Perhaps eat right there in the garden.  However, out of the corner of their little eyes they spotted the candy display.  A display measuring three-foot by fifteen-foot housing nothing but candy, candy just ready to be “picked” and put into a bag to take home and enjoy.  The site was an absolute child's heaven on earth. OK little dollies, let's get back to the planting of seeds, you know the reason we are here?  So, after getting back on the "seed" track and much deliberating, the chosen seeds were radishes, beets, peas, beans, carrots, corn, and onion sets.  With seeds and plants properly placed in the shopping cart, we were off to, guess what, the candy display where each child retrieved a sack and 10 pieces of their choice.  I am not sure which too the longest.....seeds or candy selection!

Back at Nanas, it was Carter's job to set the stakes, run the string, and prepare and identify the rows.  Little Miss Ayla was the planter and a serious planter she was.  She painstakingly put each seed in the ground one by one and was so very careful, getting them all properly placed in the ground.  However, when we opened the carrot seed, her little eyes widened and she was very concerned about getting them placed one by one in just one row.  After many trials she found it easier to shake them into the furrow that her brother had made than to continue with her previous plan.    If the carrots and radishes come up, they will need a lot of thinning.  I think our rows should have been a lot longer to accommodate all those seeds!

After several hours in the sun, all of the ground had been "planted" and there were still seeds that needed a home.  So, they set off on a mission to find their Papa and request yet more soil be tilled for their seeds that were eager to grow.

Saturday afternoon a garden was planted, precious time was spent with grandchildren, the out of doors was enjoyed, a lesson on growing things was taught, but most of all memories were made.  Hopefully there will be produce that can be picked and shared with other family members and yes, several hours of weeding can be accomplished, but once again, the most valuable lesson is the one of working together, enjoying nature, and making memories to share and to keep close to our heart.

Hopefully by the time some of the produce is ready for picking, our Arizona grandchildren will be here to help harvest the crops.  I know there are three more little people who would love to get in on the gardening action, share time with cousins and Nana and Papa, and make some memories too!