The Green Ones

For Mother's Day, I got a patio garden. The top was for growing...stuff. And you put tomato plants in upside down out of the bottom. I was so happy the day I found a little green tomato had appeared on my plant. (We won't discuss what happened to the other stuff that was planted on the top. You forget to water for a measly week 'cause you're caught up in having a new kid and what happens????) Then, a couple more popped up. I was going to successfully grow tomatoes!! I was thrilled. That first little green one turned red, even if it was a little small. But then I noticed that about half of it was missing. It didn't really look like it have been eaten. More like it had never fully formed. I was totally bummed. But I still had three other green tomatoes in the running.

I watered faithfully so I wouldn't lose my last hope of proving I could garden in some capacity. Then one day, during my usual inspection, I couldn't find any tomatoes. Had someone taken them? Could the wind and rain the night before been enough to knock them off? I was completely flummoxed. Until Lily joined me on the patio and shared this bit of information:

"I took the green ones off for you, Mommy."

Said like this was perfectly normal and the best idea she could have ever had. Bitterly disappointed that my hope of fresh tomatoes was now laying in the grass, I explained that we usually wait until tomatoes are red before picking. Filing that bit of information away in her "good to know" section, she went on with her day.

And I picked up my prematurely picked tomatoes and sadly went back inside hoping that the few flowers still on the plant might be promising. Nothing yet...