Survivor

This is the time of year when I start to push the envelope and get one step closer to being in my garden, by starting some seeds inside. Mostly tomatoes and this year strawberries as well, are started from seed in peat pots. It's really easy... and fun for the kids to help with too.

Last week we hydrated the pots and planted all 30 tomato seeds. By Wednesday, we had little shoots appearing. Today, I had to take the cover off and set the tray in a sunny spot. I only hesitated for a moment when I set the tray on the floor... after all, the boys know the routine and Ellie doesn't usually stray too far from a chaperone... either Monte or me... or one of the boys.

But today, two things happened:

1. Ellie got extra curious.
2. The terrible two's kicked in.

The result? Ellie "helped" to pull out all of the plants.

You know the moment, when the house is just too quiet, although it's full of little people, but NONE of them are making a sound. I found myself in that gut-clenching place and immediately knew that something horrifying was happening. As I cautiously stepped around the corner and bracing myself, I found Ellie, sitting there quiet as a mouse, with a pile of green stems strewn around her... smiling from ear to ear. 

I was too devastated to speak. 

I guess it could have been worse. The only things hurt were my very tender seedlings/feelings. And luckily, we had a survivor. A single little stem that little miss destruction overlooked... turns out, we may still have a tomato for the garden after all.