Raking

5 March 2012

What a gorgeous day. It had to be at least 65 degrees outside. I took the opportunity to begin raking up all the leaves from fall. The plan is to slowly work my way from the front of the yard all the way to the back, where my garden will be.

It was the first time I have taken Em outside to play since it has been winter since she has been able to crawl. She loved it! First I had her in her play pen with some toys, but after a while she wanted out, so I let her crawl around. She loved the grass and followed me around the yard cooing and babbling. It was so precious.

I took a break from raking and we took a walk around the block. On our walk I talked to Ra about why we were growing a garden. I explained that healthy foods have what we call nutrition. Nutrition comes from nutrients found in plants. Healthy, nutritious foods are things that are grown. This will hopefully be a good basis for discussion when it comes to meal times and food complaints! Ra will be able to decide whether or not she wants to eat the food based a knowledge of its nutrients, not just its looks. We have already previously discussed that healthy foods help keep you from getting sick and she understands and appreciates that concept.

On our walk Em fell asleep in the stroller she was so tuckered out from her first day exploring the outdoors. I put her in her crib, made lunch and then headed back out to the yard for more raking. The kids played around the yard, digging in the dirt, hanging on the willow branches, and making secret hideouts in the plum grove. When the hubby arrived home we started pulling weeds in the garden area, which is no small task considering our garden is 900 square feet and all weeds. We stopped about dinner time and while the hubby had the kids help straighten the house I made dinner.

After dinner we watched an episode of BBC's Top Gear on request from Ra much to the delight of the hubby. When the episode was over Ra read a few passages from Mosiah in the Book of Mormon then I read some of the abridged children's version of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table by Howard Pyle.