Years ago (when I was single), I had a huge garden. It was roughly 30′ x 20′ or 500 square feet. I grew 10 varieties of heirloom tomatoes, three colors of potatoes, four variety of carrots, beans, peppers, and a lovely square of mesclun.

Then I had kids.

The first year, Big A was only six months old and it was a hot summer. H-O-T. So I planted a small plot of land and ended up with bushels of weeds.

The next summer, I was due with Little A and knew that I wouldn’t get outside to garden with an 18-month-old and newborn in tow. So I didn’t plant anything.

The following year, I was determined to start my garden again and show the beasts how plants grew from seeds and how we could eat the yummy fresh vegetables. Unfortunately, I also took a new job that year. Director of Marketing for the Kansas City Royals. Yep, baseball season. In the middle of gardening season. Spending more and more time at the ballpark, I didn’t spend time on the garden and it was soon a jungle of overgrown, bug and weed infested plants.

Last summer, we moved. Another baseball season stealing evenings and weekends from me. Prime gardening time took a backseat to sports again, and I still had unpacking to do on days when the team was on the road. I did add a couple of flower pots with herbs on the back deck, but it was a far cry from my dream of a great garden.

So this year, when I’m working for myself at home, I thought I might add a new huge garden in our backyard. YES! I would try to resurrect my green thumb and provide fresh food for the table. Conference calls and weeding can happen at the same time. Instead of a corporate coffee break, I can check my tomatoes for bugs. This is going to work out very well!

With so much excitement and planning, I’m proud to show off my new garden…

Ok. So I’m really not proud of that. It is a hanging tomato plant.

Wait, let me clarify.

It’s an UGLY hanging tomato plant.

But Big A saw one on a TV commercial and insisted we get one for him to grow his own tomatoes. He is very excited about being a farmer and harvesting his plants.

So now that I am gardening for my beasts’ sake and want to get them excited about nature and taking care of something and watching it grow, I guess I’ll suffer through having this, this, Thing, hang on my back deck. Where I can see it from almost any window I look through. Obstructing my view of our glorious, park-like backyard.

Sorry. Got a little off the point there.

We have planted more than just Hangie. That’s Big A’s name for the Thing.

This is our herb “garden.” I use the term loosely, but I realize that people in large cities with only a window sill or fire escape plant gardens of this size all the time. It’s just not for me.

In this pot, we have basil and creeping rosemary. I’ve never grown this variety of rosemary before, so I’m interested in finding out if it tastes different from the regular upright variety.

There in the middle, you’ll see our flowerpot with chives and thyme. Mmmm, thyme. I think it could be my new favorite herb. I use it in everything. Last year we had three varieties, but a couple didn’t do as well, so this time around I’m using the one big-producing variety so I can hopefully get more out of it.

Oh, and the next pot has my absolute all-time favorite. Cilantro. Ooooh, I’m drooling just thinking about homemade salsa with a huge handful of cilantro chopped up in it. Yummy.

Unfortunately, I try to grow cilantro every year and every year, I end up with dried up, shriveled stems of nothing. So this year, my baby has its own flowerpot. I am giving it special treatment. If it needs more or less sun or water than everything else, I can move it and adjust it on its own. I hope that helps. I love cilantro. I want it to live. L-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-I-V-E!!!

(No, I didn’t just lift my arms and scream to the sky then fall to my knees in exhaustion. Really. I didn’t.)

Ok, moving on.

Rounding out the “garden” in the back is another tomato plant. Yes, two varieties.

Actually, I need that one because Hangie is a grape tomato plant and I have never managed to get warm-from-the-sun-right-off-the-vine grape tomatoes into my kitchen to use for cooking. I eat them right there, standing next to the plant. There is nothing better. I consider them manna. Yes, the manna-from-Heaven manna. They are just that good.

So I planted another full-size tomato for use in the aforementioned salsa. And maybe in spaghetti sauce. And definitely from my hand, standing next to the plant.

Even though I have a miniscule garden, I can’t wait to share the thrill of eating a fresh tomato off the vine with the wee beasts. I hope that will get in their blood and turn them into gardeners who dream big some day, too.