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Every Little Thing by April Jeppson

My husband just asked me what I’d like to eat for dinner on Sunday. I told him I didn’t know and that I’d figure something out. You see, in our home, my husband prepares most of the meals during the week and then I cook on the weekend. I really enjoy cooking when I have the time — it’s therapeutic. So when he said that he planned on cooking that day, I became confused.

“I cook on Sundays, it’s fine, I’ll figure it out.”

“I don’t want you cooking your own Mother’s Day dinner.”

Ooohhhh.

Well friends, I was not prepared for that.

Time has been going so slow and yet so fast lately. I was reading a graduation invitation earlier this week that said the party was on June 8. I started to think about what I was doing this weekend. It then occurred to me that I was an entire month ahead of myself.

My 20th wedding anniversary is in about a week. I mentioned this to a co-worker and there was genuine shock in their eyes. I could see that they were thinking the same thing that I was thinking. How are we old enough to have been married that long? It’s comical how sometimes I feel like a teenager and then other moments I want to throw away my phone because I’m so frustrated by this newfangled technology.

Mother’s Day is when we plant our garden. We had such nice weather, then it got cooler again … Perhaps it was the lack of snow this year, but I’m finding it difficult to wrap my head around it actually being time to plant. I haven’t stepped foot in a greenhouse or even thought about what I’d like to grow this year. Well I guess this is as good of a time as any.

I have some larger pots out front that I’d like to put some herbs or even tomatoes in. Last year I was obsessed with caprese salads, so I planted as much basil as I could. I even made my own balsamic glaze to drizzle (or pour). These salads were so good, I was eating them for breakfast! So I guess it’s official. Basil and cherry tomatoes are on the list.

Around the perimeter of the house I have a few areas that I normally plant flowers. I think it’s fun to bring my children with me when I’m buying for the garden so they can help me decide what to get. I’ve learned that if they help decide what flowers or food we are going to grow, then they enjoy planting and even taking care of them.

I enjoy seeing which flowers they think are beautiful. They each have their own favorites with different colors and textures calling out to them. I do need to do a better job of reading the little cards that they poke into the soil though. I came home last year with this vision of where we were going to plant everything, then when I read their sun requirements, I had to switch everything around. It all worked out, but it could have been smoother.

I’ll need to do all my garden shopping on Saturday. It looks like the weather will be perfect, so the kids and I should have no problem getting everything in the ground that day. Oh, now I’m getting excited!

I think I have my answer for Brian, too, shrimp scampi and a caprese salad. Yum.

Albert Lean April Jeppson is a wife, mom, coach and encourager of dreams. Her column appears every Saturday.