we got a plot in the community garden! we turned the soil yesterday, which gave me even more respect for all those women with children slung on their backs and hips as they toil in the fields. i can tell you, 2 hours of shoveling soil with anna in the sling was backbreaking. it was worth it though--the kids love it, and ava calls it the imperial garden -- based on a magic treehouse book in which the characters visit ancient china and land in the emperor's imperial garden. i love that.

our day was cut short though when a storm blew through, bringing high winds, hail, and snow -- everything was blowing sideways, and we ran to the car in suddenly 30 degree weather (the temperature probably dropped 30 degrees in a matter of minutes) only to find that the battery was dead. that was really fun. 1 hour later we were up and running again, but not before the kids had exhausted their patience and goodwill towards each other. we arrived home hungry, grumpy, freezing and filthy. casting aside our concerns about industrial food, we immediately called main st pizza.

hopefully that has not dampened their enthusiasm for gardening--i tried to explain that it really doesn't often snow on may 31, but i am not sure they believed me.