April showers bring May flowers. In the case of Northwest Arkansas, May floods! We have had a lot of rain this spring. I was beginning to lose hope that we may never get our garden finished in time for the sunshine. We got a small window of dry weather, eventually.
Our family took a break from many activities on Mother’s Day. I was able to watch our youngest son play in baseball tournament. When the team finished, we found ourselves home together as a family at our farm. My children and husband had asked me what I wanted for Mother’s Day earlier that week. My only wish was to have everyone’s hands on deck to finish our vegetable garden.
We worked together to get several varieties of peppers and tomatoes planted. We got plants staked , weeds pulled and tossed in the brush pile. The kids picked out several hot pepper varieties that they thought my husband would enjoy – those were planted in their “fire” patch. We added zucchini, cucumber, beans, squash, eggplant and several okra plants where there was room. Our strawberry and asparagus patches were both thriving. I added pollinator plants and flowers in between all of it.
It was hot and our boys are full of imagination. They dug a big hole near the garden and filled it with water. When I asked them what they were doing, they told me they were building me a pool. By the end of the day, they looked like a pair of piglets in their mud hole, but they were having a great time. What fun is working together if you cannot laugh along the way?
We finished out the garden and I got to work spraying for weeds to help make lighter work of the mowing and weed eating in that part of our yard. It was a great day watching each of my children stay hooked to their jobs to see the project through.
I love working outdoors and seasonal allergies often slow me down, I have recently started seeing an allergy specialist. I made the commitment earlier this year to take allergy shots to start fighting back against all the things that make me sneeze, wheeze and whelp up. I could tell after the long day working with flowers and vegetables that the treatment was working. I was able to breathe and finish my work.
When we all stood back and admired our day’s labor, I was excited about all the things we can look forward to this summer – including fresh vegetables. After putting away tools and getting everyone into the shower, it was time to eat. My husband grilled a great steak dinner, and we were all six home to eat together, which is rare when you have a family as busy as ours.
A mother’s love is infinite when it comes to her children. Mine is no different.
I am so proud of the kind, generous, hardworking people they are each becoming. I hope you had a blessed Mother’s Day with the special women in your life, neighbor.
Jody Harris is a freelance communications specialist, gardener, ranch wife and mother of four. She and her family raise Angus beef cattle and other critters on their northwest Arkansas ranch. She is a graduate of Missouri State University. To contact Jody, go to ozarksfn.com and click on ‘Contact Us.’
