The Sunday Before Memorial Day

*Disclaimer: Memorial Day is a holiday that is near and dear to my heart.  We try our best to honor and teach our children to honor the veterans and ancestors that have given so much so that we can live the life we live.  (Which, I might add, we try to do specially Memorial Day but also all year long).  Each year we also attend the beautiful celebration that our stake does to honor veterans.  However, since we can't go put flowers on graves of those ancestors (like I did when I was a kid) because we live too far away,  we are doomed to spend the rest of the day working on the yard/garden/ other winter-neglected areas.

Besides being all the things that regular Sundays are-- a day of rest, filling your cup, and communion-- the Sunday before Memorial Day has a much deeper meaning of the word "rest."
Looking ahead to Memorial Day, you think, "I've got a holiday coming up, an extra day that I can get something done that has been nagging at me for all of the winter.  So you make your list, check it twice, order it and rank it according to importance.  Then you plot and plan.
This year, our biggest goal was to get the garden in.  We finally got the tractor AND the tiller working, and even got so far as getting the garden tilled before the rain changed our plans.  We spent the last two weeks dodging downpours and neglecting the house work to pick up rocks, pull scotchbroom and other noxious weeds and smooth out the ground.  Because we were so late getting our garden in we decided to go the seedling route and most of them were purchased and sitting on our porch awaiting the big day.
Pre-Memorial Day Saturday arrives and we start the day early.  Breakfast is a quick muffin and milkshake (smoothie).  And we are off. 
But wait!
There are a few things we need first, a trip to Home Depot is warranted.  Oh, and are we to the point of being able to order blocks for the retaining walls to FINALLY begin getting the yard in order.  So that has to be measured.  Oh, then do we want the ground level to here and then a wall?  How is that going to meet up with the driveway? And the sidewalk, do we want that to match?  Oh, but that tree has to go.  Do we go to the fence line?  Do we move the grapes?  How wide do we want to make that flower bed?  Oh, and do we make space for a small water structure?
Two and a half hours later:  Ok we've got the decisions made and measurements taken that we need, now we can go.
While we are out we might as well stop at Walmart and order the glasses the 4 kids need (topic for another post), so that one adult can herd/entertain/contain kids while the other helps with glasses.  But we need their prescriptions.  Quick trip to Pearle Vision to pick up the prescriptions.  But Wait! they can't find two of them.... 1 hour (and bored ornery children/ frustrated Mom) later they find them.  Ok pick the frames, order the glasses.  Then pick up the two tomato plants and a tomato cage there.
Gordon's Nursery is the only place around that has seed potatoes= trip to Yelm.  Great 3 kinds of seed potatoes picked.  Hey, they have spaghetti squash and cantelope seedlings  (that we can't find elsewhere).  Oh and Caleb and Jonas also have to grow 3 kinds of flowers from seedlings for 3 months for the gardening merit badge.  On to kid-in-the-candy-story-style picking out flowers (more than three kinds).  Look they have ladybugs and praying mantids for sale.  Ok, lets leave before we lose our shirts.
The crew (and puppy) causes quite a scene at Home Depot (well, really, everywhere we go).  Walking down the aisle to pick up some cauliflower plants we have to stop 3 girls from taking time to pick up fallen blooms, one little boy from knocking all the plants off, and 8 kids from chasing the cat (yes, a cat at Home Depot) just to pet it. (Who wouldn't run after seeing that mob come after them?!?!). 
Stakes for finishing the rabbit fence- check
cauliflower plants picked- check
stakes and tie ups for the beans and peas- check
Caleb- check
Anastasia- check
Alina- Check
Kristina- check
Jonas- check
Ryah- check
Elijah--- Elijah?
Elijah where is Elijah?!?!  Oh and where is Miriam?
Oh, whew!!  There they are, luckily together.
And look!  We still have 2 hours in which we can actually put some plants in the ground.
The kids picked up more rocks and smoothed more ground while Dad and Mom plant the rest of the squashes, tomatoes, cauliflower and cabbages.
At dark we drag ourselves in eat a quick supper and spill ourselves into bed.
You couldn't tell by what we did, but everyone was exhausted.  Most all the kids had a hard time staying awake in sacrament meeting, the rest of them should have had naps.
Yes, Sunday is a day of rest and of resting up so we have enough energy to work hard on Monday.  Can we have a vacation from our vacation?!?!?!