Getting Ready for Winter

This morning, my husband and I finished putting away all of our summer things from around the yard. Getting ready to hibernate for the winter, I had to dismantle our garden. As I was pulling up plants, I found a beautiful watermelon, perfectly ripe, that we had missed during our harvesting. A watermelon in Maine?

I have many plans for the garden next year-reflecting on what flourished (basil & tomatoes) and what failed miserably (pea trellises, pumpkins) this year. I thank Mother Earth for providing such a gorgeous growing season. Each year I view the garden as an experiment. Luck. We plant it but it doesn't always thrive. We do the same routine every year. The girls and I plant the seeds, we tend the weeds for the first week, never keeping up with their growth, carry seaweed from the beach to add nutrients to the soil, harvest the crops and eat our fill of vegetables from our little backyard garden. It has become something that I love to do with my daughters. And I truly hope they love it too.

But Winter....I'm not ready for it's arrival. Feeling the need to prepare myself, I found this picture from last year, one of my favorites. Winter has its' advantages-warm fires, holidays, hot chocolate.