surprise! it's a tomato (plant)

 Sometimes I surprise even myself with my nonsense.  I have this "potted plant" on my kitchen window sill.  I don't remember what the original plant was, but one sad day it became just a pot of dirt on my windowsill as the life which inhabited it passed on to plant heaven.  He gives and takes away ... 

One day I noticed that my carrots were sprouting, so I planted them in the empty window sill pot.  They grew into pretty little plants, but I learned later they would never grow into a carrot again.  Carrot greens are eatable though, so I cut them and put them in my salad.  They tasted like- nothing basically.  Then all the stems of my carrot leaf spouts died.  He gives and takes away ...

One day my sweet potatoes were spouting, so I planted them.  They grew some pretty little stalks with bright green leaves.  I know some people grow sweat potato vines for decoration, but I wondered if a sweet potato would also grow.  I also wondered how you know when your sweat potato root was ready to be harvested.  It all seemed somewhat mysterious.  In the midst of all my wondering, I guess I forgot to water them- or maybe I was just using the wrong water.  We have filtered water in the house- not so great for the plants.  I have to get water from other people, or rainwater- sort of a hassle. Anyway, all the pretty little leaves fell off so I pulled the stems.  surprise I found this tiny, baby- barbie sized sweet potato!  He gives and takes away and gives again!

I left a few sweet potato stems because they still had a leaf or two.  Those little guys were working hard on their comeback when I noticed a couple dozen little spouts popping up one day.  I thought some little piece of potato had really started giving its all.

Then, to be honest, I didn't really pay that much attention to them at all.  I mean I know it's on my windowsill, and I look at it every day, but well- the next thing I knew those little sprouts were 7 inches tall.  And I also noticed that those little spouts were definitely not sweet potato sprouts.  In fact, it looked to me like I was growing a whole passel of tomato plants.

It occurred to me that I had no clear recollection of planting any tomato seeds.  SURPRISE! It's a tomato (plant)!

I had bought some tomato seeds with the intent of planting them- but then I lost them.  

I think this is what happened.  

Last summer - my friend said, "Come over to our house and pick some figs. We have so many figs."  Now, I'm not a big fig eater- I mean who is? but it was mid-pandemic and we hadn't been out much so that sounded grand.  Off we went to pick figs.  We picked some figs, and they showed us the other parts of the garden where they were growing some melons or cucumbers or some such and there were tons of tiny grape tomatoes just dropping off the vines.  I said something about them, and they said, "Well, we didn't really plant those- they are volunteers from last year's garden.  You can take as many as you want, we harvest at least a bucket full every week."  So- I took some of those tasty little rubies. I mean a homegrown tomato is about 1000% better than a store-bought one.  (Which makes me oh-so-sad that I can't manage to grow them at home.)  

A few of those little tomatoes had some cracks or specks or blemishes or something- in any case, they didn't get eaten.  They dried up and turned into little tomato raisins. I vaguely remember putting a little cup of dried-up cherry tomatoes in the fridge.  I also vaguely remember finding those same dried-up tomatoes a good while later when I was cleaning out the fridge and wondering why I had put them in the fridge in the first place.

That is the mystery.  I guess I put those little withered gems in some dirt to see what would happen next- and then promptly forgot about the whole thing.    HOW WONDERFUL.

I'm not so bad at growing the tomato plants, it's the actual tomato that stumps me.  

We're going again this summer!  Tomatoes or bust!

The other day I noticed my celery was sprouting ... I guess I need a new window sill pot.

whamy :(

 Yesterday I went to pick up T and as usual, she gave me a happy greeting.  She quickly, however, gave me a sad face and said, "Whamy!"

I said, "Whamy?"

She said, "Whamy!"

I said, "I don't know what that is."

She said, "Whamy! Ah-ho ahh-ahh who. Whamy!"

Now- she was a little delayed in taking- and even now when she's making sentences and telling us complex ideas she still sounds like a little monkey sometimes.

I said, "I'm sorry, I don't understand. Let's go."

She said, (with a very sad face) "Ma Whamy!

We were already out at the car, but suddenly it clicked- I got it!  

I said, "Are you saying you left your lamby in your classroom?"

I've made a career of understanding people learning English and it took this long to understand my own child?

(Happy Face) "Yeah- (long steam of babbling sounds ending with Whamy!")

I said, "I'll go get it."

I had forgotten that morning I had negotiated that she leave her "beebee" (pacifier) at home, and she could take the lamby to school instead.

J&J covid vaccine- check

 I got my J&J vaccine last week.  I hadn't been especially concerned about getting a vaccine.  I figured there were plenty of people who wanted it or needed it more than I did, so I was just waiting my turn. My sister-in-law is a nurse practitioner.  Every once in a while she would announce that her practice had extra vaccines.  The problem was that once she let us know they were available, we had to drive 45 minutes to get them that same day.  

Once the governor announced no mask mandate and 100% openings for business, I thought we might want to start getting more serious about our vaccines.

Our opportunity came up last Thursday, so yeah we're vaccinated!

D had zero reaction.  Of course.  I, like 1.4% of the population had all of them.  Of course.

It wasn't terrible, just annoying.  I had a slight fever and chills, fatigue, and ouchie! vaccine arm.  

Actually, I didn't know there was such a thing as 'vaccine arm' until today.  I got the vaccine on Thursday.  On Friday I had soreness and redness about the size of a nickel.  Saturday it was very sore and the redness was about the size of my thumb.  Sunday the redness was about three inches across and two inches wide.  It was quite painful.  It felt like a deep muscle bruise.  The slightest touch was too much.  (troublesome with three huggy girl-children.) By Monday I was feeling a bit better, not quite as tired and yuck, but my arm injection site had started itching like crazy!  I couldn't scratch it because it hurt too much.  I had been taking Benadryl and pain relievers, but nothing seemed to help.  Tuesday I think I thought I was all better and did too much stuff and felt bad again by evening.  UGH.

Today I didn't do much- my redness is mostly gone, it only itches a little, the soreness is reduced and so I think I'm almost recovered from my J&J vaccine!  

There is still about a two-inch-long welt under my skin at the injection site.  This is certainly the weirdest reaction I've ever had to any kind of vaccine.

So now I won't die from the disease du jour.

ships in the sky

 I had an unsettling dream last night.  I have had similar dreams before.  I was traveling with extended family (as if that isn't unsettling enough) and we were staying in a large urban area.  We were using only public transportation and walking around when everyone noticed the ships in the sky.  They were enormous-and hovering just above the clouds.  Everyone was starting to panic- and as always happens during times of panic there was a food and transport shortage.  We were stranded in a strange city without access to food or any way to leave.

Of course, the looming problem was still in the sky- but dealing with everyday problems was the only thing that we focused on.

Sometimes we can only do what we can do- and we just have to let the rest happen.

Tamzin the Friendly

 I decided to change pre-schools for T.  I took her with me to visit a new place.  While the director was showing me around she was telling me what the kids would do on a regular basis.  She said, "These little cubbies are where the kids will hang up their jackets and put their things."  So- T took off her sweater and put her bear up on the shelf.  The director said, "Oh! she knows how to get things started!"  Then she said, "This is the three-year-old classroom, with all the learning centers."  So, T went over and started playing with the playset.  Then, while we are watching what will happen next she said, "At lunch time we clean everything up and line up to go to lunch." And even though she was talking to me the whole time, T put what she was playing with away and stood in front of the door.  

That girl was showing how schooled she was.

We looked at the rest of the facility, played with some more toys, and when it was time to go the director put her hand out to shake with T.  T pushed her hand aside, and gave her a hug.  

I said, "I guess she likes it here."

The director said, "She is SO CUTE!"

She is so cute- and smart, and stubborn and independent like her sisters.

The other day we were cleaning out the garage to get ready for a new garage door (that actually opens and closes- novel) near dusk when all the sudden someone says, "Where's Tamzin?"  I said, "Well, that's a good question, and I went to look in the house, while my husband went down the driveway."  Down at the street, he yelled her name and our neighbor (who we stayed with during the storm) yelled back, "she's down here!"  That's across the street and down three houses that my three-year-old took herself in the almost dark.  So I walked down there, and sure enough, there is her tiny scooter leaning up against the door.  

The neighbor said, "Tamzin's here, I don't know where the other girls are."  I told her they were at home, where we thought T was too. She said, "Tamzin just came up and knocked on the door, and I asked "What are you doing here?" and she said, "I come in."  So I said, "okay."

I told T we needed to go and she hugged everyone and said,  "Bye!"  

And the neighbor said, "She is so cute!"