Hello Pumkin!

So it’s been a while since I’ve reported on any success in the garden. For one, I think the garden is just to big for me and the kids which is weird because it’s really not like its ½ acre or something like that, it’s just that it’s full of weeds. That may be my fault because of the way I chose to water it for so long. It wasn’t until my smarty-pants Jeremy made little “canals” down each of the rows to water it that watering became easier.
Jeremy’s corn was good, but we only got about 12 ears because the farmer refused to harvest. I was confused a bit when I’d ask him to go to the garden and get some corn for dinner and he told me he didn’t want any. Being the “training” mother that I am, I decided if he didn’t want to share his corn, I wasn’t going to make him. What comes around goes around – or so I thought. What I didn’t know is that Jeremy needed more info on gardening. The time that he did actually go out to the garden to retrieve corn for lunch the corn was old and yucky tasting. He wanted to go get more, but I told him it would all taste like that because he didn’t harvest it soon enough. He was confused, he thought that if he left it on the stalk, it would just get bigger and bigger along with better tasting. Law of the harvest. Why did I fail to teach that one?

As far as Mykie’s gardening opportunity, she had no problem harvesting her potatoes. We had fresh potatoes anytime we liked. Everyone appreciated her efforts. It was Mike that was confused at this gardening venture. Two weeks ago I went to the garden to harvest some potatoes myself for some Crock-pot Ham and Potatoes recipe. When I had them all cleaned, peeled and sliced, Mike came in and asked me where I got those potatoes. “The Garden?” I answered thinking this was a trick question. I mean he knew what we were growing out there. “The garden?” he said, “I sprayed the garden with weed killer yesterday.” “You sprayed her potatoes with weed killer?” I calmly questioned. “Yeah, I thought we were all done with the garden.” He said. I was a little fuming knowing how many potatoes were still out there. He must have recognized the look because then he said, “I didn’t spray the pumpkins though.” Arrrrgh!

Anyway, that brings us straight to the pumpkins. Brigam’s labor of love that he gave up long ago. Good things those vines go looking for their own water after a time. But Brigam got to harvest his garden yesterday. He got some loop-sided pumpkins, but they don’t look half bad if you lean them against the house.
Here’s the few that he got. I think he got 6 or so in all.

But here’s the MAMA pumpkin. It’s pretty hefty I must say (I should know, I’ve lifted the dang thing.) It’s ½ as big as him.

It really tried to grow hard despite not being watered, fed or talked to on a regular basis. Thank goodness for Mother Nature and her occasional outpouring of rain. Isn’t it nice? Still, it’s not as good as the one that mom and dad Anderson grew for us a few years ago. That one was so big that the kids could each sit in it (one at a time, of course) and I have pictures to prove it. But for a 7 year old’s first try – it’s all right! I really don’t think that Brigam is as impressed with it as I am. He asked me if he could have the little one (yes, that little yellow one that looks like a spaghetti squash). Whatever!