Adventures in Gardening

Spring has reached the Houston area! Angels are singing! It is rumored that we have had the last frost for the season. Last year I waited too long to plant my garden because I wanted to make sure that the cold weather was gone. Therefore, my plants did not get to mature and fully produce before the heat arrived in um... April. Welcome to Houston, hottest place on earth.

So this year I have decided to plant most of my vegetables tomorrow. I'm keeping it simple this year. Just tomatoes, blackberries, cucumbers and my herb garden. Oh and some corn... Once I convince His Royal Highness to pull this huge thorny palm out of the corner of our yard.

Today I decided to take all three princesses to the garden center to pick up the vegetable plants that we will plant tomorrow. Things didn't go as planned. Lately Princess Goofy has been throwing huge fits with my in public. I'm not sure why or what is the cause of it but she just plants her feet in one place and refuses to move.  Nothing can convince this girl to move, nothing.  Usually I just start to walk off which sends her into utter hysterics. The hysterics were coming anyway, one way or another, the walking just is the final straw to bring them to fruition.

Today was going well though and she was excited about buying tomatoe plants because she has an undying love for "matoes".  I was almost free and clear when I saw the feet plant. I was at the register paying and I had them add a blackberry bush to the order that I would have to go get before I left. Then the feet planted and the huge tears appeared. Then one of the tomatoe plants were thrown and it was just ugly from there.

In case you need a good laugh, just imagine a mom trying to keep a squirming baby on one hip, carrying plants on the other, helping another child push the cart with an imaginary hand, and trying to pull a screaming, kicking, loosing it child along with the last imaginary appendage. Imagine this scene going from one corner of the garden center to the exact opposite corner of the center to retrieve the plant and then back again to the car. At one point I glanced up and saw every single employee peering out from behind the cash registers just staring at me like they had never seen anything like that in their life... oh yeah.. being a mom is fun....I finally reached the car and the tears stopped immediately. I don't know if it was because she knew her dad was calling me after my numerous 911 texts to him or because showtime was done for the day but either way it was done...and I was exhausted but mad. I drove to Sonic and bought myself a big cup of sugar, I mean Dr. Pepper, and got her a nice glass of water.

Tomorrow I will give her a huge hug, help her plant her "matoes", and then look for a new garden center cause' we all know I can never set my foot back in that one.