Spring took its dear sweet time but it seems to have finally sprung.  Yay!  Spring break is also here and some of you will be fortunate enough to have a little extra time with the kids.  How wonderful is that!  This time flies by so quickly and the memories you build now will last forever.   Don’t miss out.

Memories in the garden can be some of the most precious and wonderful memories ever and they last.  Some folks long remember that tree they planted with their father, planting vegetables with their grand-parents or even laying under the “big-tree” swapping secrets.

I remember anxiously awaiting the tulips to pop up.  I remember waiting for the first squash to appear on the vine and the first strawberries to turn red.  I remember making daisy chains as I lay on the grass nearby where my father worked in the yard.  That was over 40 years and about 3,000 miles away but I can remember it like it was yesterday.

One of the best things you can do for your kids is to help them appreciate the garden,  appreciate their home and of course show them how much fun it can be to dig in the dirt with you.  You will be building memories and teaching them how to do the same with their own children someday.

A few suggestions for memorable gardening moments with your kids:

• Make it fun!

• Keep the project age appropriate and stick to relatively small time frame.  For some small children, that may mean only one jumbo pack of flowers or vegetables.

• Let your child choose plants and flowers.  Let them plant!  It’s about fun and memories!
  • If you are a control freak, try you darndest to let go! If necessary give narrow enough choices that please you and don’t steal all the fun, “Help me pick from these pink flowers” and then go with your child’s choice.  If they want a blue one, consider going with it.  Moms can grow too.  Try to find ways to say yes.
  • If you must fix how it was planted, fix the plant when they are sleeping (just so that it lives) and don’t move it!  Don’t criticize.

• Help your child succeed.  Make sure the soil is prepped, the plants are planted correctly and watered, and prevent pests such as snails and aphids.  Critters can mow a plant overnight so be prepared.

• Don’t count out your older kids!  Fun is Fun and don’t miss those bonding moments.

• Get dirty!

For you pragmatists out there, Spring Break is here and so is your free labor.

Get Digging Baby!

photo credit: freedigitalphotos.net