Labor Day Weekend

What a lovely weekend. mmmmm....that extra day! On Saturday, Tommy and I took a roadtrip up to see Gram. He loves her so. They have a very special bond, and they are so sweet together. He was really upset when he first saw her, because he could tell she was in pain, and he's certainly not used to seeing her bed-bound. But within just a few minutes, he was chatting her up and they had a grand visit. He asked if he could go back today, but scheduling didn't work, so I promised to take him back next Saturday morning.

Oh, I love that kid. And that woman.


The rest of the weekend was a funny mix! On Saturday, Erik and Scotty had a wonderful time, and Tommy and I had a wonderful time too! Tommy's friend came over, and all the boys played so well together. At one point, two boys visiting our neighbor also came over, and I was stunned when all five boys were playing together so nicely, and so quietly, that I was actually sorry to see 3/5 of them go. Sort of. haha That night was cold ~ rain would not have surprised me! ~ and we cuddled up.

Sunday was sunny, but we had just about a polar opposite mood in the house. Tommy woke up on the wrong side of the bed, Scotty was whiney, and I was extremely grumpy. Erik took the boys to the movies, I adjusted my brat-itude, and we were all grateful for a long weekend Monday do-over.

Before heading over to my mom's for a bbq (without Erik, :( because he had to work for a few hours and then he had band practice) we spent some time in the garden.

I hardly recognize it! The cucumbers and pumpkins are migrating to all corners of the yard.



From the patio side, it's just a mass of jumbling green!








But if you go in closer, you can see the prolific lemon cucumbers (I've already pulled a couple, and I'm happy to report that they are delicious!).






There are many pumpkins beginning to grow, but this guy is currently the largest.







I guess I didn't think any of the yellow squash I planted had actually survived, so he's a pleasant surprise. He's also sitting on my kitchen sink right now! We'll eat it tomorrow. (See how the squash went from 'him' in the garden to 'it' in my tummy?)





I also noticed (too late for a picture) that we have several eggplants that are finally growing, and at least one red tomato in among the dozens of green ones. The eggplants are funny. Kind of like the beans last winter, where I've been waiting and checking the flowers, waiting for them to sprout fruit. But when I was just about to give up, I noticed that the fruit is actually growing separately from the blooms.

I just love the way the cucumbers grow! See them hugging the pole in there? They've been grabbing onto anything they can get a hold of. It makes me wince when I see them strangling the tomatoes or the eggplants, but when I see them embracing the pole, they make me giggle. So much sweetness!




Here's a happy accident. I had planted two barrels of flowers next to the vegetable beds. I just liked the way it looked. But I noticed (again) today that there are tons of bees in the flowers, and the cucumber blooms too. This year, for the first time I've had volunteer veggies. I mean, it happens all the time with flowers (especially poppies) but this time I got two tomato plants, and three cucumber plants. Out of nowhere! I'm sure it's due to the bees and their pollination activities. I think I'll always do this from now on.

I love surprises!