Notes From June

JUNE 23: First day at the pool. The boys loved it, especially since their buddies Landon and Adler were there too. (Thanks Kari for the picture!)

The Garden


Our garden gets bigger every year, and each year, Isaac is more interested and better able to help. This year, he planted potatoes and flower seeds, mulched with grass clippings, and even planted his own bean plant, which he has helped water.

The first food we harvested is above - the snap peas grow like crazy through June and into July. They love a shady fence, and Isaac loves to eat them right off the vine.

Below is the rest of our garden, with corn coming up in front, raspberries out of control in the back, and potatoes growing like weeds in the middle. There are also tomatoes, eggplant, mustard greens, squash, beans, basil, epazote, cucumber, cantaloupe, watermelon and blackberries, along with a grape plant in the side yard and other herbs in pots in the front. Jonah doesn't care about the plants too much yet, but Isaac loves to help me water and see the changes week by week.


I think these flowers are so beautiful. Any guesses what they are?

Answer: potatoes. When they bloom, you can go ahead and harvest the new potatoes, though for storage potatoes, you have to wait until fall when the vines die off.

Below is yet another pumpkin that planted itself - this one in the compost pile. We have two other volunteer pumpkins that are getting huge. And we haven't done a thing for them - we haven't even watered them.


Here is Isaac with his bean plant:


Conversation and Stories:

JUNE 21
At the stoplight on the corner of Federal and 26th, Jonah looked up and said "Safeway! Safeway!" then started saying "Me...cart. Me...cart."
I almost always take the boys to Vitamin Cottage, which sells mostly organic foods, but Jonah not only recognizes Safeway (where he's been now and then with Adam, but not often!) but Safeway is the store he begs for! And he's starting to speak in the first person too...

JUNE 24
Jonah wanted to send Adam an email at work. His message, typed word for word by me:
"Dada dada. Hi Dada.
Hi Dada. Hi Dada.
Hungry. Crackers all gone. Highway downtown.
Bee ant. Bee ant. Bee fly.
Windy.
Bye."

Ohhh...it's so cute, and it's so Jonah!

-----
This week, Jonah has been waking up crying around midnight. A few times, he's been calling for me, so I got him from bed and snuggled with him so he could settle down again. Then I put him back down and blow him kisses, and he's fine.
On this night, it was pretty hot, and he felt sweaty and almost clammy when I picked him up. Adam was still at work, and I brought him into my dark sitting room off our bedroom. We laid down on the futon next to two wide-open windows, with the attic fan pulling the cooler night air over us, and we just talked. Mainly, Jonah talked. He was a chatterbox at 11:45 at night. These are just a few things he told me:
Again elevator. (He wants to ride the Telluride gondola again.)
Watch lightning minute. See lightning...(He's always asking to watch more lightning. In a minute.)
Adler sad water. (Adler was crying a lot at the pool, and Jonah can't stop thinking about his friend.)
See light! Fan on.

I just love that I can know what he's thinking about.

JUNE 26
Isaac was crying loud and long over something rather insignificant, so Adam said to Isaac: "You have 5 seconds to stop crying or you'll have to go to another room."
Jonah's response: "ome two free four RRRAH! (tiger roar at the end)

We all burst out laughing, even Isaac.

JUNE 28
One night while I was feeding the kids dinner, and Adam was at work late:

Jonah: "Again elevator! (gondola in Telluride)
I told Jonah that next time we ride the elevator he will be 2.
Jonah, with big smile: "WOOOW!"

In the middle of Isaac's fussing over something, Jonah said: "Go...away...pimy." (Smokey the dog) "Go...idack (Isaac)...pimeout." (timeout)

Isaac and I looked at each other and laughed like crazy, and Jonah was surprised but pleased with himself.

Isaac and I were just talking about going to Charlotte soon, and I asked him what he would do first when we got there. He said: "The most thing I want to do is play legos. And go play trains at the bookstore."

JUNE 29
On a Wednesday night before soccer, Isaac said gleefully: "I LOVE that soccer team."
Jonah answered: "Love soccer too."

Jonah doesn't get to play with the bigger kids yet, but it was still pretty cute. And if Adam needed a reason to keep coaching the kids, that would be one. I think it means the world to Isaac to have his Dada there.