Watering Baby

For a few days last week, I was busy working on my garden. Once the garden was put in, my priority focused on keeping my garden alive, which means watering it.

My toddler, Ginny, loves going outside and playing. If my husband or I go outside, then she feels that she must go with us.  So, when I went out to water my garden the other day, my little shadow followed me. Her huge grin let me know that going in the yard was a dream for her. She ran off to play in the grass as I got started watering the lawn. 

Eventually, she got bored and came to see what I was doing. When she realized that I was spraying water on the flowers, she became curious about the water coming out of the hose. Soon, I found her putting her hand in the path of the water spray. Then, as only a toddler can do, she was under the hose, getting misted by the water. Her giggles were contagious! I couldn't help but laugh as I witnessed her joy at being under the water. She became more bold and got right in the direct path of the water. By the time I was done watering my garden, Ginny was soaked and jubilant.

The next day, it was my husband who went out to water the garden with Ginny at his heels. I was inside nursing the baby. When I looked outside, I noticed that Ginny was once again drenched. She was helping Daddy water the flowers. My DH had handed her the hose, and the result was priceless. Not only was she soaked and happy, but she was amazed at the hose and the fact that she could control it. Ginny never did really water anything other than herself, unless someone held the hose with her. That didn't matter though! Her smile and delight in her achievement made it a wonderfully special moment.

As we got her dried off and into a fresh diaper, my husband and I decided that we need to get the sprinkler hooked up soon. We can only imagine how much fun she will have once we turn that on.

Feeding Grace

Sometimes I feel like I'm a total granola mom. I cloth diaper. I breastfeed. I buy 90% of my girls' clothes at a consignment shop. I have even become a bit obsessive when it comes to recycling. I know I'm not truly granola, but I do what I can for my girls.

One of the things I did for my oldest and now plan on doing for my 7-month-old, Grace, is making baby food instead of buying it.  I feel bad, though. With Ginny, I started cooking her food a full month before she was ready to eat solids. I had several bags in the freezer filled with foods for her to eat once she got past cereals. Grace just turned seven months old, and I have barely even started. Heck, I've had a hard time remembering that she eats solids now and getting into a routine with it. How pitiful is that?

Part of the issue has been Grace herself. She has not seemed interested in solids in the least. We started with rice cereal a month ago, but she wouldn't eat it. Her little tongue just kept pushing the cereal out of her mouth. We discussed her behavior with her doctor. He said she might not be ready for solids and to try again in a week. Now, a few weeks later, she is still not very interested in solid foods. I try every day. Most of the time, the food is pushed out. The most she has ever eaten has been four small spoonfuls.

I'm not overly concerned. After all, Grace is most definitely well-fed. I know this is just a developmental issue and totally normal. Some babies aren't ready for solids until they are 8 months old. I know that some day soon, she will be developmentally ready to eat solids. I'm aware that she may be ready for solids soon, so I need to prepare. In the meantime, I keep feeding her every day.

Another thing holding me back on getting her foods ready is our food processor is not working. The handle broke and now it won't lock in place. We need to replace the bowl so that I can have my 7-cup food processor working, something I plan to do this week. Until then, I have a small food processor I can use. It doesn't work for getting a large amount of food prepped, but it works well enough.

Peas are ready to be frozen

Pureed peas in my small processor

Until yesterday, Grace had been introduced to rice cereal, bananas, and sweet potatoes. So, I got busy preparing two more options for her, peas and carrots. The peas are simple to make. You just microwave some frozen peas in a bit of water, for about 5 minutes. Once they are done, you put the peas in the food processor, add some of the water, then process it. I always check, and if needed add a bit more water until the texture is just right. Then I spread the pea mixture into ice trays that were then put in the freezer. Each ice cube is one serving.

Carrots are in the pan to cook.

The carrots take a bit more effort. I prefer to buy organic when it comes to carrots. I peel them, then cut them into chunks. I place the carrot pieces into a pan of water and bring it to a boil. I allow the water to simmer for 10 minutes. Once done, I drain out all of the water. You really don't want to use the boiled water because of the nitrates. Then, the carrots go into the food processor to get pureed. I add water, like I did with the peas, so that the carrots are the appropriate texture. Finally, I put the carrots in the ice tray then the freezer.

Carrots for the freezer

I do have a good start on her food, but I have a lot more food to make. Tomorrow I intend to make apples for her. In the next week, I hope to get a new bowl for the processor as well as pick up pears and acorn squash for her. I have a lot of work to do. It is well worth it in the end.

Garden Love

Gardening my front lawn has been one of stages. When I first started on it, about two years after moving into our home, I had to pull out the whole section in front of the window.

Where we began!

It was a lot of work, but totally needed and very worth getting done. The following spring, a little over a year ago, I planted a few hedges and flowers. I was quite happy with the work I did and looked forward to watching it grow.

Last spring.....

Unfortunately, my plans to keep up with the garden, with weeding, and adding more flowers, did not come to fruition. You see, I was about 4 months pregnant at the time. It was a warm spring, and I was already having issues with my asthma. When I'm pregnant, my asthma gets worse. With the warmth of last summer, I could barely go outside without having issues breathing. So, working in my garden was not something I could accomplish. I found the situation frustrating, but, in the end, you do what you need to do for your own health and that of your unborn baby.  By the time that the weather eased up as well as my asthma, I was 8 months pregnant. The last place I wanted to be was on my knees in a garden. 

This spring I have been quite anxious to get back to my garden to work on it. Of course, Mother Nature was not very cooperative. Winter didn't end until early April. Then the storms came in wave after wave. Now that I have two little ones, I also have to work around their schedules to get out there. Finally, in the last week, I was able to get to work. 

My baby girl and dog kept tabs on me as I worked in the garden.

My poor garden was a mess. Grass was growing in, weeds were every where, and a strange plant just kind of showed up. Major work was needed! It took me 2 days to get the garden weeded. Just doing that made the garden look much improved! Once that was done, I saw that one plant didn't survive the summer and assessed other needs. I ended up going to a nursery to replace the plant with another perennial (I don't remember the name) and to Lowe's to pick up some begonias, a daylily and mulch.

With some help from my husband who dug a couple of holes for me, I planted the new perennials and begonias. I then added the mulch. Of course, I didn't get enough mulch. So, today I ran to the store and got more. I finished adding the mulch this afternoon and then added a garden gnome I got for Christmas (a Jayhawk basketball player). 

My finished front garden! :)

Now my garden looks lovely! I'm so happy! Next up, the backyard. Wish me luck!

My lovely garden gnome, along with the rock explaining the
split baseball loyalties in our home!