For now, check out this beautiful flower blooming in my backyard. It’s a hosta. (Or something.) We planted it two years ago (a transplant from my mother’s garden; she of the greenest thumb). It only blooms once a year, and this is our first opportunity to enjoy it. Last year, my then eight-month-old daughter tore off the single spire when I bent down to let her look at it. That made me heartsick, and I knew I had to wait a year to see the flowers. This glorious display makes up for it. 🙂

It’s been a slow start to the vegetable garden. Actually, one garden bed is doing great — we already have more lettuce than we can use, spinach, cilantro, and the cucumbers are blooming. The other garden was started with seeds less than a month ago (late start, I know). I’m hoping in a few weeks we’ll be happier with the growth there. It’s always shocking how quickly plants grow when the weather finally warms up; you can often see the changes every day.

Our strawberry patch has produced a handful of berries for the kids to enjoy each evening for the past couple of weeks, and it looks like it will continue for a while. Sidenote: when I was a kid, my parents had a big yard (well, a quarter acre inside Portland is considered big) with mature apple, plum and cherry trees; blueberries; and a big vegetable garden. I grew up foraging for my snacks, and I strongly believe in kids eating fresh fruit from their own land, or grown with their help, if at all possible. It fosters a connection with our roots that you just don’t get picking produce at the grocery store, or even at a farmer’s market.

One of the most exciting changes in our family this year is the young one’s independence. She loves to be outside, and is perfectly content to play on her own a lot of the time out there. At one and a half, she needs a constant eye, but I can garden, or even clean the kitchen if she’s in a spot where I can see her. This is major!

Watering the kids has become a nightly tradition, at least if it’s not raining. After dinner, we go outside and play; slides, chalk, bubbles, hopscotch. When it’s almost time for bed, we water the garden, and both kids want to get in front of the hose, or make rain. These are fun times. I haven’t had so much fun just enjoying life since I was a kid.

This summer is going to fly by, and the next one will be completely different. I’m going to appreciate every day.