Hectic

Who need's paper when you can create art on yourself?

     Life has been crazy at our house lately.  Normally summers around here are lazy and boring.  Since my youngest was born, my older child (who is 11) hasn't had as many play date opportunities because it has been hard to lug his little brother along so I can help supervise.  I think my oldest would die if I said he was going to a play date. I guess they don't call them play dates when they are going to middle school....they are "hanging out".  We are lucky enough to live in a neighborhood filled with kids, so now that he is a little older this year I have let him walk or ride a block or two to a friend's house.  A lot of time the friends wander over to our house.  Then, they all roam around like an unruly pack of feral dogs from house to house. So needless to say with this new freedom, my oldest chooses to hang out with his friends rather than his little brother and his mom.  I guess it's all a part of growing up.  On the other hand my youngest (who is 3) is getting very busy as well.  Unlike his older brother he is not content to sit and play quietly.  The world is his Mount Everest and he is bound and determined to climb and jump off every part of it.  I spend a majority of my day making sure he doesn't end up in the ER.  I try to plan some sort of activity for him each morning.   Sometimes it's playing outside if it's cool enough, or painting on old paper shopping bags.  To top it off I am STILL trying to find a job.  The economy isn't being kind to someone a semester short of having a master's degree. I'm exhausted just thinking about it all.

     When I am not trying to wrangle children I am still tending my mini container garden.  The peas were and EPIC FAIL.  I was able to harvest (if you can even call it that) one tiny little pea pod.  Then they all turned turned a funny color and died.  The cucumbers that I originally thought were going to die are doing better.  One of the plants is doing great.  I have had blossoms ans now there are tiny cucumbers growing on both plants.  The tomatoes are starting to die.  After fending off the hungry bugs by hand picking aphids and other assorted six legged creatures of they now have blight.  I am not spraying anything on them so I have just been trying to slow the demise by picking off and disposing of the damaged part of the plant.  It seems to be working a little.  I had two decent sized tomatoes and I picked them while they were green to save them, and I plan to do that with the rest as they get bigger.  Maybe I will have enough to make a little something by the end. I apologize for not having garden pics this week, but it has stormed for the past 4 days or so.