After a spring devoid of garden success (sparrows ate the peas, springs crops like radishes bolted too quickly, lettuces were slow to grow), I welcome summer. Warmer temperatures and less torrential rain will surely help our sustainable garden grow.

Grapes, tomatoes, and peppers bend with fruit and hope for autumn harvest.

Greens and herbs grow by inches overnight.

Insects exchange flower dust for nectar in the symbiotic relationship that creates so much of our food: pollination. Thank you, bees and butterflies, for this gift.

Beans climb and slowly reveal their flowers.

Cucumber and squash plants also hide petals under their shady leaves.

We pick small handfuls of warm, soft ripe raspberries daily, coveted by child, chickens, and hounds alike.

How does your garden grow?

Resolution Number 1 (get my head bone fixed) is underway - I had sinus surgery today. Even though I am under the influence of narcotic pain killers, I believe I can still count to five well enough to share five interesting things I read this week: 1) Why by American Family - a lovely essay on why it is important and good to fight through the school plans, packing struggles, and overtired kids to travel with a family

2) Sustainable Love by Tara Parker-Pope for the New York Times - The whole sustainable series is great, but this post about successful marriages is the best in my opinion. It explains a lot about how while Alex and I have some drastically different habits we are still very much in love and enjoy our marriage.

3) 2011 The Year of the Vegetable by George Ball for the Wall Street Journal - This concise opinion piece admonishes parents adults for failing to give children an influential example of a balanced diet.

4) Washing Away by Tiny Mantras - Tracy Zollinger Turner introduced me to a new New Year's superstition and a contemplative view on grief and death in this beautiful writing.

5) Fat Talk is For Babies by Sundays with Stretchy Pants - Amidst tons of posts about losing weight, meeting resolutions and the like, Abby writes a powerful essay about developing positive body image.

There - five blog posts that made me think this week. Now I'm going to return to the drugged state of not-thinking. Happy Weekend!