Reason #2113 for living in Southern California

Not that there aren't a million other amazing places to live, but we are truly blessed to live in Southern California. 

I have 3 children.  They are 2 years old and younger.  I have no business adding anything else to my daily "To Do" list as I can barely keep my head above water as it is.  But living where we do, I just could not help adding a "4th child" to our home.

Over the past few weekends, my husband has been building raised planter beds for me to have a vegetable garden.  You're laughing I know, but our neighbors have a beautiful vegetable garden and my parents have just planted theirs (which my 2 year old LOVES picking strawberries), and I have vegetable garden envy.

Though my husband and I have never attempted this before, my dad very clearly told us, a "We live in the PERFECT place for a garden! All it needs is warm weather and good watering, and it will take care of itself."

So we built the beds.

And we finally planted them this weekend. 

And you know what, it was a perfect day, because "warm weather and good watering" are good for the soul and wonderful for spending time with your family!

We took the Pack N Play outside and our 7 week old baby was able to enjoy the beautiful day from the shade, content for hours on end.  Our 1 and 2 year old SMELLED like nobody's business from "helping" dig holes and planting in the soil, but they loved every minuted of having their hands in the dirt and feeling like they were part of the project.

The hose was flying around the backyard - swing set, fence, garden, trees, mom, dad and sisters were ALL watered!!  But it was a beautiful warm day, so what did it matter?  At the end of the day, we were all exhausted and sun kissed, and we now have a thriving vegetable garden filled with tomatoes, artichokes, lettuce, beans, squash, cucumber, carrots, green onions, herbs, corn, and pumpkins.  We will be able to enjoy an outside activity as a family for months to come, and be able to teach our children about vegetables and cooking what we grow. Can you imagine their excitement (and mine!) as they start to see pumpkins and corn growing? 

There are so many reasons to live where we live, but today I'm celebrating the weather and the simple gift it gives us to enjoy spending time with our family.

Original Orange County Moms Blog post.

When she's not digging her children out of the vegetable garden, Shanna can be found sharing "Simple Tips, Fresh Ideas, and Great Products" for making busy lives brighter at My Favorite Everything.  (You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter, @MyFavEverything...when she's not figuring out how to grow sunflowers).