There's no use crying over picked tomatoes.

So, you may wonder about the title of this post. Well, Nate and I had high hopes of having a garden in our backyard this year. However, it didn't work out like we'd hoped for lots of reasons....so we settled for two tomato plants in a big pot on our back porch. We LOVE tomatoes and it has been a family effort growing them this season. Faith has done her part to help plant and water them throughout the Spring/Summer.


This being said...maybe you can understand our excitement when one of our "big ones" started FINALLY getting ripe. Nate and I watched it slowly ripen with great anticipation for at least a week and a half telling each other at least once/day how great it would be to actually eat our very first tomato.

Well, Faith and I were home one afternoon and I decided to fill up her baby pool on the back porch for some summer fun. To do this I have to go around the house, turn on the hose and wait on the other side of our porch as there is not an opening. Faith usually helps by holding the hose in the pool. So, we did the routine on this day.... and as Faith was obediently holding the hose for Mommy, I saw her eyes drift to our ONE ripe tomato. Anticipating her toddler thought process, I calmly said, "Faith do not touch the tomatoes." As I repeated this phrase with growing alarm and volume, Faith slowly moved toward the tomato. I thought about trying to jump the porch, then quickly decided against it in my current (very pregnant) state. I thought about running around the house really "quickly" (nothing is real quick these days either), but knew it would be picked by then. So....I simply watched as our very first tomato was picked early by our beautiful, ornery little girl who then proceded to take a bite out of it and spit it out.

This may seem overly dramatic (and maybe it is a tad bit...) but as the pictures show, my husband completely shared in my grief when he got home. One of the many reasons I love him.

On a happier note, we had our first attempt at fried green tomatoes for dinner....even though the tomato wasn't exactly green either....and they were delicious! We'll let you know when we enjoy our first truly ripe tomato of the season :)

Just a Few Reasons We Love Summer:

1. We get to see family a little more frequently:

Aunt Ally bravely letting Faith paint her fingernails (or fingers to be more specific :) )

Aunt Kiki stopped by on her way home from the Ozarks!2. We get to see family AND go to the zoo!!! The Henry Doorley Zoo that is....not just your average run of the mill zoo...it's amazing! Faith loved it.
Daddy and Uncle Bubba keeping a close eye on Faith through the "tunnels"

The zoo would not have been nearly as fun without Aunt DD! She was able to help Mommy keep a close eye on Faithers.3. We get to see friends new and old :) The newest of which is baby Whigham set to arrive right around the time Lainie does. Faith thought Bunny needed to give him a kiss too.

Danielle and Ehren stopped by Der and Dan's when we were visiting...Faith enjoyed the extra attention :)

Hamilton is a good friend of Faith's. We will also be watching him starting in October while his Mommy and Daddy work. He's such a sweetie...and cute too!
Faith's friend Kendra got to hang out with us for a few days before she went to visit her dad for the summer. Faith loved having a play mate, and Kendra is a very patient 9 yr. old.

Art work by Kendra!

4. We get to lots of fun things with Daddy...like swimming at the lake...

...and learning how to fish. He's pretty much the coolest dad ever.

In other words, we are loving summer around here. Soaking it in while we can!