They grow!

So over the weekend I planted my tomatoes. I can't believe it, but they've already grown. A LOT! They're like little kids. But thank goodness I don't have to buy them clothes. Wouldn't that look silly? hah! It won't be long until I get to use my tomato cages though at this rate.

I'm very excited for them to grow up and start producing something! So much that I'm tending them daily and fret over them like a mother hen. No, really. My kids are jealous. But I absolutely cannot wait to eat the first tomato that I grew myself. I'm not sure why. I don't really understand it. But something about it seems very real and earthy and neat.

Evie was dramatically less help with the planting than I had hoped. She wanted to crush the flowers and pull leaves off the tomato plants at first. After I discouraged that behavior she did try playing in the dirt a little. Then she discovered that playing in the dirt meanT there was dirt on her hands. *gasp* So she gave that up pretty quick. But she did get a kick out of watching me play in the dirt and occasionally patting my back. Guess I was doing a good job.

Otherwise her only activity during planting was forcing me to regularly call to her to come back on the deck. When Josh got home from work we were still outside planting. He was exhausted from work, but he watched us plant and kept Elly happy.

Now that the plants are safely ensconced in their happy little pots, Evie loves to go out and smell them and pat them. She's quite proud of the work "we" did.

I changed my mind on sharing half of my plants with my mom. I felt a twinge of over-protectiveness and selfishness and decided to keep four of them and let my mom have two. I kept two of the beef steak and two Rutgers. I am amazed by how much they've already grown!

I also filled four pots with flowers. Two full of bulbs and two full of live plants. I've made no progress on my gate or my paint, but they are next on the list. Our deck is already more homey and decorated with the pots of tomatoes and flowers sitting around. I can't wait to have an evening at home with the whole family so we can grill out and have dinner outside.

The rest of my flowers are doing well also. My day lilies are doing their thing. They are just the best flower because they're practically impossible to kill and they proliferate wildly. The blanket flowers that I thought were going to be black-eyed Susans are also doing well. I'm a little disappointed that they aren't what I thought they were, especially since black-eyed Susans are my favorite flower. But I'm getting over it now that they're blooming.

I am so excited about all the possibilities and activities for this summer. Last summer Evie was still so young and then by this time I was pregnant again, so our plans were rather limited. This year, although Elly is very young, Evie is old enough that she will enjoy going on trips and doing things outside. I cannot wait.