8 weeks- Arbor Day and Dreams

I've started dreaming for Josh. I want to expose him to so many things. I do not want to push him to one focus, but rather to expose him to many things and let him choose. I want to show him how to garden, introduce him to music (we just brought my great-great aunt Florence's piano to our home last weekend), encourage physical fitness, and teach him my favorite water sports (fishing, SCUBA, swimming, and skiing).

I started this today by planting a tree (okay 5) for him. With tomorrow being Arbor Day, maybe they'll actually grow. We found these maple tree seeds on our walk yesterday. If they grow, I'd love to take yearly pictures of Josh beside his "birth" tree(s) each Arbor Day.

I choose a maple for him, but they mean so much to me. My Grandpa Sebold had several big maples in his front yard. I have vivid childhood memories of going out in his yard and gathering fistfuls of the "whirley gigs" and throwing them up in the air.

If Josh shows an interest in growing things, he will be at least the fourth generation. Both of his great-grandfathers on Mommy's side were gardeners. Great-Grandpa Sebold was still growing tomatoes until he moved into a retirement community a few years ago. Great-Grandpa and Grandma Bredemeier always had a vegetable garden and a flower garden. Josh's Grandma Wannemacher still has descendants of those perennial flowers in her garden. I (Kristy) have special memories of my Grandpa Bredemeier's raspberry bushes. He had lush bushes on both sides of his house. We would get several bowlfuls every time we'd pick. I tried to replicate this at our old house, but didn't have much luck. I can't wait to try my hand at raspberries again here.

Josh's grandparents, Mel and Kaylene, instilled a love of gardening in his mother. We had a vegetable garden and several flower gardens. I have several gardening memories. Each year my elementary school sold $.10 packs of seeds. They had sunflowers, marigolds, celosia, zinnias, and more. We would plant the seeds in the summer and bring the results back in the fall for a competition. I won several ribbons for my flowers. (Good job Kaylene and Mel!)

Another memory that I have was of my next door neighbors, John and Helene Roscoe. They planted carrots each year and would let me help harvest them each year. We would cut off the tops. John convinced gullible me that we could replant the carrot tops and they would grow new carrots. I faithfully planted those tops and there would be new carrots next year. I somehow missed the detail that John planted new seeds the next year!