A Kinderwhat?

I promised our kids their very own swamp this year.

Garden. I meant... their own garden. Excuse me.

The kids are old enough.

The boys love everything garden related. I have a slight obsession with growing things, which means they're immersed in it year round. Kids are more willing to try new foods when they've planted the seed, watched it come alive, and harvested it with their own two grubby hands. But it's so much more than that. It's a whole magnificent experience.

The Bean is old enough now to destroy everything help too, which is very exciting.



We have big dreams.

Dreaming is just as important as seeds or healthy soil. I won't let my kids miss out on that.

One of our boys is obsessed with mazes, so we're planning a simple corn maze. When they saw the photos my friend Kirsten posted of her kiddo's bean tunnel, well, it absolutely had to go on the list too.

We have the space.

Last year I had three garden plots. Every Spring we seem to dig up yet another (higher) garden because someone is too impatient for the (lower) swamps gardens to dry out. Every year we have more water than we did the previous year, and... here we are solidly into May and I find myself eyeballing the space between my apple trees.

Everything is still soggy, except the barn, which means three things:

1. Our neighbors (who are real farmers and the kindest people in the world) can't get into their fields, which means my barn is already wearing it's shiny new roof.

2. The jungle is temporarily in the house.



Please notice the very professional use of oatmeal and baking soda in our lighting set up.



We even potted up twenty five strawberry plants because I was unsure how long they could stay refrigerated. I've never ever been unhappy to find a package of plants in the mail, until the day they arrived.



3. The Bean has been busy practicing her "helping" skills.



We're excited to document the journey along with the others at The Inadvertent Farmer. I discovered this project too late last year to join in, and it's been in the back of my mind all winter. Although, while everyone else has KinderGARDENS, we're more likely to have a Kinderswamp. We still have hope!