steps to planting a tree

First, engage one preschooler, one toddler, and two hot and sweaty parents in said tree-planting activity.

Read lots of books to inspire excitement and motivation.

Start digging.

Parent #1 realizes that it will take him a long time to dig a hole "two times as wide, and double the depth of the root ball".

Parent #2 pulls out the big guns.

Yup, I rented a backhoe for my sweet one to drive. The boys were caught between excitement and hysteria. The thing was LOUD. But, we were determined to plant our meek little apple tree and finally give the baby's placenta a proper home. (yes I recognize that almost 17 months in a freezer is not appropriate. But - hey - we've got our hands full here!)

Next step: break child labor laws and encourage all availabe civilians to participate in the filling of the hole. This made for a sweet family activity, and I found myself crying a little bit (despite the heat. and the sweating. and the whining of the little ones). Planting a tree together is such a special thing...and even though we likely won't live in this home forever, I hope that this tree will be a marker of our time here...and the family we created here.

So here, is our humble tree:

Still Got It

Just when I thought the sling nap days were over (so over, in fact, that I scrapbooked about it...which I did because I really believed our littlest one was finished with them), I get the wonder of this. A sweet, quiet, head on the heart kinda moment. Everyone says it, and it really is true - these days go by too fast.