hardofhearingchildren.com by PAM Candlish MLS
"What did you say?" "Eh?" "WHAT did you say?" "MM?" "WHAT DID YOU SAY?" oh "PARDON ME!"

Gardening and the HOH Child

Well, Ross told Reid to clear the brush on our little island, and leave the apple and cherry trees. Reid claims he heard "Cut down the apple and cherry trees." which he did. Poor, poor trees, just budding with 4 years of TLC. Ross was angry, and did not speak to Reid for 3 days. I was angry and dismayed too, and got in-between to ensure the continued survival of our family.

I said to Reid. "Why didn't you ask????if you thought it might be a strange request.?????"

So Finally Ross got on the gardening show on the CBC to discuss the cherry tree. He came home with another tree, which Reid got to plant, and water. and we took cuttings from the poor decimated tree.

So Washington DC, if you need any cherry trees cut down, let me recommend my son. He has previous experience.

Perhaps when a hard of hearing child has an axe in the hand, a parent should be there...thoughtful hindsight.

-PAM

for lots of gardening information,
http://www.itsgardening.com/

May Dreams for the Summer

Even though my birthday is in June, May is my favorite month perhaps because the lily of the valley blooms. When I was pregnant with my third child, the baby was due in May. I announced that the baby would be born the day the lily of the valley bloomed, he was and the lilies bloomed. I treasure flowers given to me, especially when a child gathers wildflowers or dandelions. Last week Jonathan the great purloined the first daffodil to give to his mother. She was so happy too, she wanted to keep that moment forever.

New House, Unknown Garden.

I moved in January to a new house which has a magnificent garden, in fact a daunting garden. In the warmest most protected spot, right out my bedroom window, masses of hyacinths and daffodils, have emerged. The spring garden is a present from one gardener to another. If you know enough to recognize the tiny shoots of crocuses, the delicate violas which will be there now, edelweiss, and a dark green ground cover which has little blue star flowers. You go out and liberate the shoots and get an idea of the last gardener. 

Gardening is Great activity for a Family with a hohkid.

Gardening is one of those things which you can do with any child, but it is particularly good activity for a hard of hearing child because you are not shouting at each other across large spaces, you are close together. If you want the child to learn duty and working, you can insist that the child prepare the earth, plant the seeds, water the plant, and learn. Chances are 50-50 whether the plant will live or die when I am  gardening anyway. I think it is more fun to have to child do some part when s/he is in the right mood, the adult determines a watering schedule thus keeping an eye on the plant, and whoever sees it first, announces the emergence of a cotyledon.

Living in Canada, you can start your own seeds inside, which is seldom successful for me, or you can go to the good nurseries and buy baby plants. Last year I did an adapted garden for myself so that I did not have to go up and  down because I fall doing that. I started a wonderful package of seeds indoors in window boxes, put plastic mesh up the sunny side of the porch and grew sweet peas, climbing nasturtiums, cherry tomatoes which did not grow, snows peas which everyone, even Jonathan filched as they walked by. I bought five or six cucumber plants which produced from July to October. Before planting the cukes in the ground, I replaced the soil with brand new soil. The window boxes were put on the bottom of the plastic mesh, and it looked magnificent.

Pansies

Buying blooming pansies at the nursery is a good place to start. Pansies need kids to pick them to maintain the bloom through the summer. The pansy flower blooms, the petals fall off, and the pansy makes a seed head which it tries to get to the soil. Once the plant knows it has a seed in the ground, it usually dies, so to maintain bloom, pick the pansies.

A garden is a Test of Patience

Patience, patience. With the exception of a few crops like radishes which few children eat anyway, gardening is an exercise in patience, and hope. It is also a good time to talk with each other about any thing.

I inter mingle vegetables and flowers. If water is rationed you are allowed to water veggies when flower beds might be forced to be sacrificed.

Future Passion for You.

Perhaps another benefit to gardening is so you will have another passion to share with others when your hard of hearing child has grown up.

PAM Candlish

May  1, 2005