To Everything There is a Season

“A time to be born, a time to die. A time to plant, a time to reap. A time to kill, a time to heal. A time to laugh, a time to weep.”

Before we wrap up our cooking tour of Mongolia we thought we’d share our latest gardening adventure – a first here at Eat, Play, Love. Now, I have to be up-front, I am not a gardener. I do not have a green thumb and I typically kill (albeit unintentionally) the heartiest of plants. So this year I figured I’d get the kids in on the action. Miss A after all has been a big help in teaching me not to kill yeast and to actually get a bread to rise. I’m hoping some of her natural ability rubs off on me here as well.

Miss A and I began our project by planting some seeds for sage, rosemary and lavender. 

We started the seeds several weeks ago, intending to grow them inside for several weeks to avoid the risk of frost. We’ve had a very mild spring, but you just never know.

Miss A and I had a great time scooping dirt, tucking in the seeds and protecting them from the whipping winds we had that day.

She did assure me, “Don’t worry mommy. I’ll teach you how to grow plants.” And truthfully, I actually believe she will. It’s amazing what kids can teach you.

We carefully carried the plants inside and placed them on a stand near the sunniest window. It’s also the safest place where they are out-of-the-way of traffic. Or so we thought. A few weeks after planting our lovely little seeds, we got our first sprout. It was lavender and I was beyond excited – beaming with pride even. We actually got a seed to grow! Well, in the excitement of the moment the kids got a bit pushy with each other about who was going to stand nearest the sprouts and yep…the plants went down.

Dirt all over the carpet. The sprout nowhere to be seen. I was near tears as I silently scooped up the dirt and placed it back in the planters. The kids, expecting me to begin with a reprimand, were a bit taken aback by my silence. They instantly began with apologies, promises to buy more seeds and try again. They felt pretty bad. I cleaned everything up and said, well, we’ll just see what happens, but from now on only one person at a time can be near the seeds. The kids agreed.

So we kept up with the watering for several more weeks. I figured all hope was lost and that growing plants is just not in the cards for me. Then wouldn’t you know…we got a new sprout. And then two more sprouts. And now we’ve got sprouts in nearly every little compartment.

Now I know a few of the compartments are definitely sage. Four of the sage containers did not spill. As for the others, I have no idea what is sprouting up. It could be sage. It could be rosemary. Or it could be lavender. I really have no idea, but honestly I don’t care. We have sprouts!

The kids were so excited, and a bit relieved, that new life was sprouting up. Every day they check on the progress and announce with such pride and enthusiasm if a new plant has popped up.

Miss A, however, is not surprised, “I told you that I would help you grow plants mommy.”

She has since informed me that we will let them grow until they are ready and then we will eat them because she LOVES rosemary. Now the next part of the plan is to wait until the sprouts are a bit stronger, then Mr. N and I will transfer them to some larger pots and move them to our patio. If anyone has any good tips about transplanting, we’d love to hear them!

Now since it’s Mother’s Day weekend, I plan to be outside most of the day tomorrow cleaning up the flower beds, laying down mulch and playing with the kiddos in the backyard. I do not plan on cooking anything. Instead I plan on celebrating my babies and being grateful for the gift of being a mom.

My first baby, Mr. N several weeks old.

I tend to look at Mother’s Day differently now that I’m a mom. When I was a child it was of course the day to celebrate my own mom, shower her with gifts and hugs and spend the day with family. While I absolutely still celebrate my own mom and everything that she has done, and continues to do, for me; it’s now become more of a day of gratitude and reflection about my own motherhood.

Tiny Mr. N, my favorite boy in the whole wide world.

I don’t expect to be showered with gifts. The sweet little projects the kids bring home from school are more than enough. The amount of pride and excitement they have to share these with me is the best part of it all. I also don’t expect to be catered to throughout the day or get any kind of special attention. All I really want is a day of uninterrupted time with my husband and my kids. They are my gifts.

Pretty in pink. My favorite girl in the whole wide world.

I know my kids love me. I know my husband appreciates me. I don’t need a special day to be shown those things. I just want a day to relax and be grateful for all that I have, as it’s more than I could have ever hoped for.

Miss A was even a spunky baby!

I’ve been blessed with an amazing family and two downright, silly, loving, sometimes stubborn, and amazingly beautiful children. That is my happy Mother’s Day.

Now of course we will have to eat this weekend, and I’m thinking maybe we’ll try a new French toast recipe for breakfast tomorrow. You really can’t go wrong with that, at least in my book. So until next time, we’d like to share the links to a few recipes we whipped up last night for some friends. We started the evening with a version of Kay’s Strawberry Champagne Slushies. We served them a delicious bruschetta appetizer that was a twist on two other strawberry recipes – This one which we whipped up last summer, and this one from Rufus’ Food and Spirits Guide. Delicious!

Mom and babies outside yoga this morning. Happy Mother’s Day!

We’ll be back early in the week to wrap up Mongolia. Have a great weekend and start to the week. And happy Mother’s Day to all the other mom’s out there – especially my mom.

37 thoughts on “To Everything There is a Season”

  2. Pingback: Season 2 Planting Day 1 « Goldie's Garden
  3. Nami | Just One Cookbook says:
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    You know Kristy, your post made me feel really good to be a mom and I loved your story today. Everything you said is true. I just needed a day with my family and that’s a happy mother’s day. I love the photo with your children at the end. So cute (esp. Miss A)!! Good luck with gardening. I have zero garden as deer ate them after we made nice garden when we moved in. I look forward to your garden report too.

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  6. Courtney says:
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    Oh, Happy Mother’s Day to you, Kristy – I hope your day was all you expected and more. 🙂 And I’m glad your little plants are growing. It’s so fun to see the garden grow – our oldest has a whole section of his own and he checks it daily – and shows any visitors his garden.

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  9. Aimee@clevermuffin says:
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    What a lovely post! And more and more I’m feeling such an affinity with Miss A (maybe because I was also a Miss A while growing up). And the fact that she seems to have a seriously cheeky nature, such a cutey. Hope you had a lovely Mother’s Day 🙂

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  10. Dawn says:
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    Happy Mother’s Day Kristy – what a beautiful picture of you with your kids!! I hope you had a wonderful day – I didn’t bake or cook this weekend either, just a lot of time outdoors :).

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  11. Karen says:
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    I hope you are having a wonderful and happy Mother’s Day. I really enjoyed your post and photos…especially the one of you with your “most favorite boy and girl in the world”.

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  15. ceciliag says:
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    happy happy mothering day to you too and I cannot think of a better way to spend the day than in the garden. fantastic post and i am impressed about the lavender. it is notoriously hard to grow from seed. Fantastic work! Hilarious that they are all jumbled up!! c

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  16. Norma Chang says:
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    Happy Mother’s Day, Kristy! A very touching post.
    Glad your seeds germinated and growing well. When transplanting, do not overcrowd and do not overwater, they will thrive.

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  17. Eva Taylor says:
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    What a cute story, sorry that the first batch went down like it did, but at least the kids will remember not to be pushy around the new sprouts! I usually can’t pull out the weak ones, it’s too do or die, which means that none of them survive! That’s why I buy my plants at the garden store! Oh well.
    Love the photos of you and the kids, Kristy. Happy Mother’s day!

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  19. Sawsan@ Chef in disguise says:
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    Happy mother’s day Kristy, this was a wonderful post to read 🙂
    I totally agree with you on the shift one experiences when she becomes a mother, I always say that motherhood fills a gap in me, fulfills me in a way that nothing else does and I am grateful for this blessing 🙂
    I am not much of a gardner either but I have been experimenting with seeds too this year and the tips dad gave me are,
    be as gentle as possible when transplanting the sprouts and do your best not to tear the roots
    Plant them in the center of the pot not near the edges
    water them with plenty of water after transplantation and don’t worry if they wilt a little, with water and sunshine they will be fine the next morning .
    I hope this helps

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  20. Three Well Beings says:
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    I loved getting to know you better! The pictures of you with your babies just warm my heart! They are such beautiful children, Kristy, and watching Miss A with those seeds is precious. I wish I’d had a blog when my children were little…you’re capturing such wonderful memories! You handled the seed spill better than I would, I think, but now it will be so much fun to see what comes up. I hope you get your day of rest tomorrow. Your family is indeed a treasure. The recipes look good, too, but your photos were the star of this post 🙂 Debra

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  21. Geni - Sweet and Crumby says:
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    You have truly summed up what a perfect Mother’s Day is Kristy. Having happy, healthy children and a loving family is more than anyone could ask for. It sounds like you will have everything you want tomorrow. Happy Mother’s Day to you and enjoy your garden and those cutie pies.

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  22. profiterolesandponytails says:
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    Aren’t the handmade gifts from school the best? The girls are so excited about what they’ve made that they can barely wait until tomorrow. It really makes me melt.I hope you have a wonderful, relaxing mom’s day tomorrow. The smiles in your photos really say it all.

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  23. Charles says:
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    Well damn, call me a big girl but i actually have a tear in my eye for reasons I’m sure you know why 🙂 The pictures are so beautiful! They were so tiny!! Enjoy your mother’s day Kristy – you deserve it!

    Good luck with your seedlings – I’m not one for transplantation tips… I just killed my gooseberry bush… something which has survived harsh winters forgotten on the balcony, long summers forgotten on the balcony… I give it some love, a nice big, new pot… and the damn thing dies!

    Thanks for this post – it’s so filled with happiness! 🙂

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  24. hotlyspiced says:
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    I love that photo of you and your kids – priceless! I’m glad something is growing after all that effort with the planting. I have the same sentiments as you do re Mother’s Day – I don’t need a lot of fuss or huge expense, I just want my family to be with me and enjoy some uninterrupted time together. Enjoy your day! xx

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