Well I didn't have to but really wanted too. Our cemetery in our town has been in need of cleaning up for some time now. Last year we had a terrible ice storm that caused a lot of damage. Local farmers came in and they cleaned up the big trees that fell and I went up with the School and took the girls with me and we helped clean up for the afternoon. We did raking, trimming, cleaning off headstones and picking up trash. A commitee was formed to raise money for the upkeep and fixing some things in the cemetery. I went with the girls again today for several hours to help with the clean up. The girls took rags and washed off head stones and carried smaller branches, hard work for a 2 and 4 year old. DH stayed at home with Hayden so that was helpful. They have been straightening stones, they are adding new entrance posts and gates, and adding a new fence around the perimeter of the cemetery. It is the first thing that you see when you are coming into the town from the North.

The girls love helping and tomorrow we are going up to the kids park and look at what needs to be done there. Every year I have wanted to do a plant, seed and garden exchange and have either been pregnant or had little babies. This year I hae organized it and are having it in May. I have had a good response and we are also going to add in some more work on the community. We are adding flowers and cleaning out the iris beds at the kids park first. I have lots of flowers to thin out and they will be used there. I am going to take the girls and see what needs to be done there. The next thing is to add flowers to the sign that shows off our schools accomplishments. I have talked to the people in charge of the cemetery and we are thinking of adding iris, daylillies and peonies to the entrance and also along the fence line. All plants that are hardy and need little or no upkeep.

Our last area ( so far as we can think of) is they have been working for a couple of years on a memorial for the veterans in the area. When this is done we hope to make a path and gardens around it. It is located on main street and easy for all to see.

And I forgot to add that a couple of the ladies made the comment first that it would be nice to add flowers and clean up some of the areas. I told them my plans and they are excited about it. Both work at the school and they have a garden area there that needs work and replacement plants, so will be probably be adding more plants around the school.

So even though my house is a mess, I am going to be busy with my own gardens and working on the community. I hope to have a big turn out at the exchange and will let people donate some of the plants if they wish to be designated for the areas that we are working on.

So if I am not around much you know why, besides having a 2 and 4 year old and 9 month old oh yeah and being 10 weeks pregnant lol.

If anyone out there would like to help out on our community project I would appreciate the help. With 3 little ones it will be busy, and I am so glad to help but don't want to strip my gardens down. Just let me know if you have any ideas for hardy plants that need little care or that would take some neglect, I will try and water once or twice a week to get things started. But could use advice and if anyone had any plants that needed homes, we could use them.

Stacie