Going back to my roots...

My Grams and Grandpa always had an enormous garden full of all kinds of beautiful, healthy vegetables. When I was a child, my Grandpa would take me by the hand, gently leading me between the perfect rows of little plants and ask me to identify what was growing.

I have such fond memories of time on their farm, time spent with my fingers in the dirt and enjoying the delicious taste of fresh-picked vegetables.

My Grams now lives in a retirement home (she's 88!!) but her wisdom from 60+ years as a farmer's wife is still sharp and willingly shared.

Up until this year, I've always purchased the little seedlings to grow in our garden but this year, based on the wisdom I've gleaned from Deep Roots at Home and several other blogs and websites, I decided to dig in! (Sorry, no pun intended!)

We purchased Heirloom seeds at our local hardware store, some biodegradable seed starter pots, organic top soil and some trays to set the pots in...

The children enthusiastically helped get the garden started. Precious girl filled the pots with dirt, Little Man dug the hole (and got properly dirty in the process), and Little One carefully dropped the seeds in the holes. We used popsicle sticks from the craft store to label our little seedlings (just in case my brain is rusty!). We set the trays of seeds in front of a sunny location, and in a few days we had little plants poking up through the soil. You should have heard the squeals of joy Easter Morning (not over their baskets) over the appearance of an entire crop of little pea plants!

We also have some beets and lettuce seeds sprouting now. In a few days, I'll start our second batch of peas, beans, lettuce and squash so that everything isn't ready for harvest at the same time.

I'm certain that there will be a lot of trial and error this year, but I am so glad I decided to go back to my roots and give my children the experience of growing our little garden from scratch. I have such fond memories of time with my Grams and Grandpa, and I want my kids to have the satisfaction and joy that was mine.

I think my Grandpa would be proud!

All photos were taken by Precious Girl. She is our photographer in residence. *smile *