Happy Mothers' Day to me! (and all you moms, too)

Haven't been posting much, since I figured you would get tired of reading "we're out enjoying our beautiful garden" again and again. But that's what we're doing.

James and I shared our first strawberry from the garden this morning. We might get a few more this year, but the real objective (since we started so late in the season) is to get a good patch built up this year for next year's crop. James says he's going to put up bird netting next year, and that was even before he found out that our second strawberry was tasted by the birds before it got ripe.

My Mothers' Day presents were trellises for my rose on the side of the house, and four new hostas. We ran by the Navy Exchange to grab the trellises, saw a few hostas we didn't have, talked James into a pair (for my Mothers' Day "flowers"), and got to pick two more when he found out they were only $4 each! We picked out four that we didn't think we had (all variegated with yellow in different patterns), and found that one of them is very close to a pair we had at home, but the others are definitely new to our yard.

The sage is still rooting, so I water it daily after I check the seedlings in my seed starter tray/house. The cucumbers have been planted out, and are doing well after transplanting. The salvia and basils are working on their second sets of leaves, and the first of my zucchinis are sending up their first leaves.

Out in the beds, the beans of all varieties are doing well. The corn and squash are coming up in the "three-sisters" bed. The Sweet William didn't fare well in this week's hard rain, but we have late azaleas blooming for Mom and Bill's visit later this week. The rhododendron may show a bloom or two in time also. My real excitement comes from seeing the new leaf buds on the herbs we've planted out onto Herb Hill, and my lilac twigs and lavender on Mt. Leahi. It looks like they're going to make it.

Out on our walk tonight, we discussed the idea of a neighborhood plant exchange at some point in the future. I'm still trying to figure out logistics, but we ought to be able to work something out, from a database of wants and give-aways to an annual bring-your-extras gathering or a beginning & end of season something. Any suggestions?

And, oh yeah, kids are doing well, too.