As many of you know, November is a big month for Thomas...his birthday is on the 4th! Here at Walnut Grove, we commemorated the occasion by planting two heirloom apple trees, a "Virginia Beauty," and a "Spitzenburg" (Thomas Jefferson's favorite variety). "Virginia Beauty's" are fairly common (I bought this one from a charming old farmer who sells his trees at Exchange Place festivals); but "Spitzenburgs" are a little harder to come by. Luckily for us, there is a wonderful heirloom apple nursery just up the road in Bristol, TN. So, I reserved a tree, and Thomas and I trekked up there one day to pick it up. After driving around in circles as our Garmen GPS system--affectionately known as "La Mujer en la Caja" or "The Lady in the Box"--spouted "recalculating" like a broken Stepford wife, we finally found the nursery. (All the while, I was preparing my argument for a return to horse-drawn transportation; after all, horses LOVE apples, and would have certainly led us right to the place!). Anyway, after a rather hectic trip to the nursery, we came home and planted the trees sans help from a lady in a box. It was a crisp, sunny day, and Thomas enjoyed himself immensely...apparently not realizing that he is going to have to help prune these trees every year, nor seeming to regret that he wasn't getting Legos for his birthday. He even donned the very special apple hat that one of my mother's friends knitted for him to wear at Halloween. Up to that point, he had absolutely refused to keep it on his head, but this time we tricked him by holding his hands by his side and singing a very peppy version of "I've Been Working on the Railroad" to distract him. Sucker!
(Walking to the Spitzenburg...with help from Mamaw)
(Crawling in the grass)
(Family photo by the Spitzenburg)
(Thomas chomping down on an apple from our old apple tree)
(No apple is too large for my mouth!)
And finally:
A love for apples must run in the family...
(This is me, about 15 months old, enjoying a June apple at my aunt and uncle's house)
As many of you know, November is a big month for Thomas...his birthday is on the 4th! Here at Walnut Grove, we commemorated the occasion by planting two heirloom apple trees, a "Virginia Beauty," and a "Spitzenburg" (Thomas Jefferson's favorite variety). "Virginia Beauty's" are fairly common (I bought this one from a charming old farmer who sells his trees at Exchange Place festivals); but "Spitzenburgs" are a little harder to come by. Luckily for us, there is a wonderful heirloom apple nursery just up the road in Bristol, TN. So, I reserved a tree, and Thomas and I trekked up there one day to pick it up. After driving around in circles as our Garmen GPS system--affectionately known as "La Mujer en la Caja" or "The Lady in the Box"--spouted "recalculating" like a broken Stepford wife, we finally found the nursery. (All the while, I was preparing my argument for a return to horse-drawn transportation; after all, horses LOVE apples, and would have certainly led us right to the place!). Anyway, after a rather hectic trip to the nursery, we came home and planted the trees sans help from a lady in a box. It was a crisp, sunny day, and Thomas enjoyed himself immensely...apparently not realizing that he is going to have to help prune these trees every year, nor seeming to regret that he wasn't getting Legos for his birthday. He even donned the very special apple hat that one of my mother's friends knitted for him to wear at Halloween. Up to that point, he had absolutely refused to keep it on his head, but this time we tricked him by holding his hands by his side and singing a very peppy version of "I've Been Working on the Railroad" to distract him. Sucker!
