Growth. It’s a topic with multiple meanings and contexts, which is why I find it so fascinating. I have been reflecting on the different aspects of growth in my life lately…
Gardening has been a hobby of mine for years, thanks to my mom and grandma. Some of my fondest memories with my grandma were spending time in her garden. She had the most amazing flowers in the front of her house, where butterflies and moths would regularly congregate. I also remember picking cucumbers and beans from the vegetable garden. Over the years, I’ve become an indoor plant enthusiast thanks to my dad, and I recently joined a Facebook group for House Plant Hobbyists. Plants are pretty awesome!
I grew succulents last year after receiving one as a gift, buying more, and learning how to propagate them. They managed to survive the winter in not-so-attractive plastic containers, so I decided to get some new planters for them. I think they look much better, and the plants seem to be more lively as a result.
It’s officially springtime, and even beginning to feel like it. If you’re from the East Coast like me, you know the tendency of inconsistent weather patterns. Despite a few recent cold days, I’ve been eager to start gardening. A few weeks ago I planted some seeds in our sunroom. It was probably a little too early/chilly for some seeds since many took a while to germinate, and some didn’t grow at all. I also reused some seeds from last year, which may have added to the issue.
Last year I planted basil, cucumber, pepper, spinach, and tomato seeds. I didn’t bother with spinach this year… it was tricky to keep it from wilting in the sunroom, and the plants were too small to survive outside (in my opinion). The leftover cucumber and pepper seeds did not grow when I planted them this time around, but the basil and tomato seeds are slowly making a comeback. I purchased new cucumber seeds, along with romaine, and strawberry seeds. The romaine plants are doing the best so far. I think the other seeds need warmer germination temperatures, so I need to be patient.
The photo above is from May 9th last year, after my cucumber finally sprouted/and grew taller than everything around it. The plant did really well throughout the summer until it got powdery mildew and died. After doing some research, I now know how to identify and treat powdery mildew before it destroys an entire plant.. I managed to salvage my tomato plants that started to get powdery mildew on the leaves. I feel more prepared for this season’s crops.
Since my last blog post, I have publicly shared my pregnancy news! I am officially 18 weeks today, and still marvel at the idea that the baby (boy) is “the size of a sweet potato” according to the app that I’m using. I find it funny that fetuses tend to be compared to the size of different fruits and vegetables, but I guess they are easy to use for reference as the baby grows. Since this is my first pregnancy, everything is very new to me. I’ll admit, I used to Google just about every symptom or question that I had, which drove me a little crazy. I realized that too much information can be overwhelming and everyone’s experiences are different, so I stopped looking up every little thing after a while. Early on, I had some paranoia about if everything was going ok. After all, I had pretty mild symptoms in my first trimester, which I am grateful for. There were times where it almost felt as though I wasn’t pregnant at all. However, my checkups have been normal, and I go back in two weeks for an ultrasound! I haven’t seen the baby since the 8 week ultrasound when he kinda looked like a dinosaur and we didn’t even know the gender yet. Here’s our baby announcement (the background photo is from our trip to Canada last summer).
I’ve been taking ‘bump’ photos to document my growing stomach. It’s really interesting to see the changes over time! Here’s a recent photo that is more noticeable than others. Sometimes my clothes are too loose to see much of a difference.
In addition to this documentation, I am keeping a journal to record different symptoms, thoughts, feelings, etc. It has helped me work through some of the various emotions that I’ve been experiencing in this time of change and growth.
What type of growth is occurring in your life?