Growing Things!

Joe has made impressive progress with the backyard. Clearing out all of the saplings, buckthorn, and weeds from the back property line. Yesterday he was able to plant evergreen trees which will eventually grow to create a privacy screen between our backyard and the neighbor’s yard behind us. The planted trees are DeGroot’s Spire Arborvitae. According to the care-tag, “Foliage becomes a nice bronze color in winter.” These trees will grow 15’-20’ feet tall and from 4’-5’ wide. The flowering ground cover will stay and should grow to cover the area under all of the trees. We are shy of a couple of trees so will be going to the nursery tomorrow to get two or three more trees to finish the project.

Yesterday we learned that the nurseries in our area purchase trees only between March and the 4^th of July. After July 4^th they only sell what is in stock. I spent three hours trying to find our first choice of tree, with no success, before finding a nursery with enough of the same tree to plant. We ended up in Buffalo, which is about twenty minutes away and a lovely drive with several lakes along the way. We love our drives!

Once Joe finishes with the yard work about mid-September, we should be able to take longer drives and visit other areas of Minnesota. I even looking forward to exploring the neighborhoods of Saint Michael. 

I spent my morning with my daughter, Megan. We started with breakfast at The Hen & Hog and then came to our home where we visited while I altered pants for her.

Megan’s pregnancy timeline is close to the same timeline as my pregnancy with her back in mid-1991 until her birth in mid-February 1992. The Formo baby (nicknamed Bean for now) is due in January 2025. Megan was also due to be born in January but came in February after labor was induced. I used to joke that she was going to come out and go to college. That last three weeks of my pregnancy lasted fifteen years at least.

Now, thirty-two years later, I am sharing in the experience of her pregnancy. Megan shared her use of an indoor walking pad to get in her thirty minute per day walk which reminded me of how Ginger and I would walk in the mall everyday (we did this for years before and after Megan was born as well). There is no mall near Megan, thus the walking pad. The mall had a Jamba Juice store, and the smell of the cooking hotdogs would make me queasy. Megan claims that the air fresheners I use in my bathrooms make her feel queasy.

Then of course there are pregnant mom sleeping positions to figure out, as well as the multiple trips to the bathroom in the middle of the night. She says she is getting some of her best sleep ever since becoming pregnant.

The food cravings like for sushi which she is limited to once a week. This week was rough because she had tuna on Tuesday and has to wait until next Tuesday for any sushi. I do not remember worrying about sleeping positions or my seafood intake while pregnant.

Shasta (Megan’s best friend) is hosting a baby shower in mid-November here at our house in Saint Michael. Shelly (Jeremy’s mom), and I are helping out with the arrangements. Megan told me today that a couple of Jeremy’s family members do not want to know if Bean is a boy or a girl so to honor their request everything for the baby shower will be gender neutral.