September 26th, 2006 - My big helper
Yesterday, Maggie helped me dig potatoes in the garden. She did a little digging (not where the potatoes where), moved taters to the pile, fell into my holes, ate some dirt, played with a green tomato, and probably wandered off with a potato or two as well. It was a lovely half hour for both of us! (My potatoes ranged in size from marbles to 6″ long. One plant had TEN potatoes on it! I’m saving one of those to plant next year.) The nice thing about the end of the garden is that it’s safe to let her wander the garden without watching her–she can’t harm anything when nothing is really growing anymore.
I’ve mentioned before that we are teaching Maggie to help around the house (chores). Yesterday along with the garden help, she put the dirty clothes (a set of sheets, pillowcases, and a few towels) into the washer all by herself. Usually, since I bring dirty clothes down in a hamper bag, I put them in and she just does the transfer in/out of the dryer. I think next time, I’ll put them on the floor for her to put in. Also, during the weekend, each time we went in to the laundry room (which is also a bathroom), she eagerly beelined to the laundry basket and started to push it out the door. We were about to leave the house for errands, so each time I had to tell her that it wasn’t laundry time yet. I LOVE that she’s so enthusiastic about chores. (Although her follow-thru isn’t the greatest. She usually gets tired of handing me clothes to fold halfway through. But that’s okay for now!)
I’m still waiting for her to be old enough to scoop poop and shovel snow…. No, actually, I just want her to help in the garden. Those two jobs are Eric’s right now–but he’s probably looking forward to that! LOL