Growing a green thumb

"I am not a gardener."

"I have a black thumb." 

I've heard these words so many times, and even said them myself. I was essentially saying, "Don't have your expectations too high when it comes to me growing plant life!" One thing I've always been confident in is my seed growing ability though. It doesn't require much, you basically put some seeds in dirt, water them with a spray bottle, and watch the seedlings pop up in a couple of weeks or less. This I could do. 

Transplanted yellow squash

But something changed recently. Every year Daddy grows tomatoes, as well as a few other veggies of his choosing. It is an understood fact that I will do nothing but pick and cook the fruit of his labors; I love the fact that he gets that! This year, Daddy decided that he would plant vegetables at our rental house and in the yard of an agreeable close friend...AND that he would start selling seedling trees from our backyard. After buying the dormant little trees and planting them he realized something: he needed to connect with buyers. He immediately thought of his daughter who constantly mentions things about blogs and instagrams, and Face books online (it's really like this y'all.) The rest is history.

 I bought some organic seeds and began to plant them in egg cartons to keep them from getting hit by a late (for the south) frost, and I jumped online and started setting up ebay, paypal, craigslist, instagram, and twitter accounts. With each seedling tree I listed, I had to google all about them. In the meantime my squash plants were growing quickly, and starting to lean on their spindly little stems. I called my aunt and asked her when I should plant them and she said, "Right now!". She gave me explicit instructions about the sun and soil and depth...

Basically, I found out that it isn't about having a green thumb. It's about having the diligence and care to commit to a project until it's finished. I had a black thumb before, because it didn't benefit me to check out five books from the library about every aspect of vegetable growing and seedling health--like I currently have.

 I've grown a green thumb! You can too, but it's gonna be work! Are you ready?

See what dad has going on over on Instagram if you'd like!

Sowing Seeds

A little over a week ago, my mom and I took some egg cartons and began to fill them with dirt. Several packets of vegetable seeds had just arrived in the mail, so I was excited to plant them. I am not known for my ability to keep plants alive, but I'm great at growing seeds. This year we're planning to have all kinds of veggies and have even been allowed to plant at a friend's house! I read each instruction carefully before sprinkling them into the dirt, covering them, and soaking their new homes with water from a spray bottle. These moments are the ones I love with my mom, because playing in the dirt is her thing; that I enjoy it too a this stage is what makes it special. I think every girl secretly wants to share her mom's hobbies.

A few days ago I noticed tiny plants nudging their way out of the dirt, specks of green were just barely discernible at the surface. At this point you couldn't really tell what they were, but by the next morning they were actually little plants. The squash were the biggest, and I watched their container and encouraged their speedy growth with elation. My mom's seeds didn't fare so well. She thinks that the seeds were old, or not stored correctly. Her disappointment only lasted momentarily, because she will find more seeds, and plant them and try again.                         

It's the same way with children. I was discussing schoolwork with a friend yesterday who isn't home-schooling her daughter, she mused that she needed the deadlines that the school set to stay on track. I told her that the online school we used for the last two semesters wasn't for us right now. When she expressed regret, I told her it was okay; I'm coming to the realization that everyone is different and much of parenting or teaching in my case, is about figuring out what works. We sow seeds into the minds of children, and expect that the correct "plant" will grow out of it. When the seeds don't grow, hope is not lost! It could be the wrong seeds, the wrong soil, not enough water, the wrong season, or any number of factors. We change things and try again. If we are in tune with the needs of these little minds that we are responsible for, it will turn out okay in the end. On a personal note, the girls did enjoy their online schooling for the most part (two subjects for each, read about that HERE) it took too much time away from other things I want them to accomplish. I also feel that much of my angst during the school year is from when we take some alternate learning time, and then they get behind online. Anyway, I'm signing up again for nature pal exchange, and my little nephew will be learning about planting seeds--so nature studies are fully covered lol. To close, here is a picture of my squash taken tonight.

Lizzi