Last year, on Will’s due date, we planted a tree. It kept my mind off the fact that our baby didn’t want to make his appearance on time. So we took that extra week and thought of ways to keep our hands busy and our minds occupied. I had heard of the tradition of parents planting trees on their child’s birthday and then taking a photo next to it every year. For some reason that idea struck a cord with me. A happy cord. Like a D chord. Sorry I get cheesey when I’m breathing.
We picked a Yoshino Cherry Tree for several reasons. We loved the size and shape. We loved the little white blooms. We also loved the meaning. Online we found out that the cherry tree represents death, rebirth, and new awakenings. In Japan, they believe that the cherry blossom is an omen of good fortune and an emblem of love, affection and the coming of spring.
I like to know what trees and plants represent to other cultures. It may be strange but it helps me remember what those plants are like and what they do. Like the cherry tree blossoms represent clouds because the blooms all open at the same time…making little clouds of white that hang on the branches. And all the other meanings pretty much are spot on for representing our first born…death (we decided to start trying for a baby after my grandmother passed)…rebirth (the passing of the old generation, the birth of the next generation)…new awakenings (hello 3am breastfeeding sessions!)…love (in the bedroom)…affection (we definitely are fond of the kid)….coming of spring (and Will’s springing into this world!). So it was definitely fitting. It also just nearly fit in the back of our SUV on the way home from Lowe’s.
We decided at the time that we wanted it up front and so we transplanted the Vitex tree that was in the bed and put Will’s tree there instead.
It’s a good idea when you are planning on planting a tree to make sure the hole is at least twice as wide as the pot. It helps not only loosen the dirt for the roots to get established but it also makes it easier to get any air pockets filled and help with proper drainage.
Whenever we plant something new we always fill that hole with water before putting the plant’s root ball into the hole. It helps too if you loosen the roots up with a small spade or a knife. Don’t forget to do the sides and the bottom.
Then just firmly plant your new guy in there and water away.
We usually make a little ‘well’ around the tree or shrub so that the water won’t run away from the plant…I don’t know if you have to do that everywhere but here in Georgia, there are a lot of hills and our naturally clay filled soil takes a little extra time to absorb that water.
Here’s Will at four days old in front of his tree. He is so crazy little. The current Will could eat the baby Will for breakfast.
And seriously…was I swollen or what?! It’s hard to remember how swollen I really was…so let me put it this way…I gained almost 60 pounds with my pregnancy. Three weeks after giving birth I woke up one morning with ankles…swelling poof gone. So I weighed myself and I was only ten pounds more than my prepregnancy weight. That is a LOT of water. I often wondered if I just took a pin and pricked my ankle, if I would leak. That would be equally disgusting and awesome.
So anyhoo…after we found our new house, the first thing we did was dig up Will’s tree and replace the Vitex tree back into it’s former home. After a little bit of transitional trash-can dwelling, our babe’s tree finally came to resting spot near the side of the house.
And yes…it is in full bloom!
It’s so cute and small…but I know that one day it will be something that Will will be able to find shade under…he will be able to lay out a blanket and read a book there…or climb in it’s branches. Not FALL from it’s branches or puncture himself with the branches or use the branches as a weapon against future siblings…a girl can dream, right?!
And we will definitely have to get a yearly photo of him in front of his tree. And just in case we miss his tree in bloom…there is always the International Cherry Blossom Festival here in Georgia….
So that is one little highlight of our…well…our year! A little tradition, a little nature, and a whole lotta swelling. Anyone else out there a birthday tree planter? Or perhaps you have a different yearly tradition that you do…I’ve heard of the whole ‘outfit’ thing where you dress your baby in adult clothing and then as they grow up they fit into them more and more….so what is yours? Oh and has anyone else out there get crazy swollen with their babies? I know that I ain’t the only one popping the vitamin B6 like it was candy….
I gained 70lbs. with my first pregnancy, had an unplanned c-section past my due date, looked just as swollen as you, and felt like I could’ve done the same thing with my ankles for weeks, too! Wish I had planted a tree to take my mind off of it. Love that idea.
NIce story, now take a picture of Will in front of the trees new home.
Our neighbors lost their 6 month old about 3 weeks ago. My husband and I have been researching trees to plant in her honor for them in a prominent place on base. Not to be the downer. This post made me smile, because you got to plant your tree for your beautiful healthy boy. You are a lucky, lucky woman, Katie Bower!
sitting typing one handed with a 2 week old on my lap….Ive been trying to figure a way to mark her birth and her growing…this is a great idea! typing one handed takes a while…sheesh!
I love that you guys did this and I think it is a great idea! I also love how you dug it up and moved it with you! 🙂 So smart you Bower’s!
I so thought you were going to say that you were sad to have to leave the tree behind! So happy you were able to move it and it’s still blooming! Wow! Great idea!
I love what YoungHouseLove does with the monthly photos. I so wish I had done something like that with my kids.
I’ve heard about videotaping/interviewing your kids every year. Super cute!
That is so heartbreaking. 🙁 I’m so sorry to hear it.
I love that idea! With a little one due in 1 1/2 weeks, I think we’ll “steal” the idea! We moved into a house about 8 months ago that has WAY too much planted in it, so it will take a bit of work to try to figure out where to put it so that we’ll like it when we clear out some of the other stuff. Also, I wish there was something I could do for my 3 year old. Maybe we could let her pick out her own tree…
I’ve never heard of planting a tree for a birth. But, I love the idea of taking pictures of the tree and kiddos next to it each year.
Love the idea.
Thanks Heather. It was one of the most awful things that I will ever go through, and I can’t even begin imagine their pain. But they have started healing for their two older daughters sake (and theirs, for that matter). The mom tells me all the time how lucky she feels that she got six entire months with her beautiful, laughing girl. As heartbreaking as it is, and it is – it could not have happened to a less deserving family – they are making sure that everyone around them enjoys every second God gives them on Earth and with their loved ones.
So instead of being sad about this, remember to live every moment to the fullest and always tell those who you do, that you love them.
How ironic we would be reading about a Japanese cherry tree on the day of such destruction in that country. It will take years to recover, their “rebirth” will be so slow. Aren’t we all fortunate today? A good time to count blessings, even for the little trees we plant for our children.
I love the tree planting idea. We are still a ways from even thinking about having kids but I love that idea. And the funny thing is, my biggest fear about being pregnant is being the majorly swollen one (my mom was definitely like that when she was pregnant with me). Good to know it goes away about 3 weeks after. At least it’s worth the outcome! 🙂
After my second son was born by C-Section (neither of my boys wanted to come out either!), I was super swollen. I had Shrek feet and legs! I had tree trunks for legs! It was crazy and it hurt too! I was in the hospital and not understanding why the pj’s I bought for after the birth were tight! Then when I went home, my maternity pants were too tight! Seriously, I got the baby out of me and the pants fit me going in, and the were too tight coming out? The nurse told me it was from all the IV fluids they pump you with to keep your blood pressure up during the surgery. She said it happened to her and literally 2-3 weeks later, it goes away- you just pee it out (gross I know). I didnt have that with my first son’s birth b/c I didnt plan on having a C-section, so they didnt pump me up as much I guess. Thank goodness it went away. I could not live with myself if I had feet and ankles like that!
I was quite swollen after both of my kiddos and I have 2 pictures very similar to yours in front of our trees! We have a cherry tree planted for our firstborn and a pear tree for our 2nd! I love the idea of having them growing in life just like our children. And, I love the thought that we are rooting our children in the soil of the LORD by fountains of living water!
1 Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
2 but whose delight is in the law of the LORD,
and who meditates on his law day and night.
3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers.
Psalm 1:1-3
Blessings on your family Katie!
I know this sounds crazy, and most people look at me like I’ve lost my mind, but I know you’ll get it. : ) On my firstborn’s first Thanksgiving, he was around three weeks old. (read:tiny) Ok, not tiny, my kids are 9 pounders when they come out, but he’s now four, so yeah, he was tiny. ANYway, as my mother in law took the turkey out, my father in law cheerily commented that the turkey was so big, IT could practically eat the baby for thanksgiving. ‘Course, I had to snap a pic for comparison…long story long, we now have 5 consecutive photos of my Bear posing with the Thanksgiving turkey. It’s a hyper-ventilate-if-I-even-think-I-might-forget-the-camera-at-home kinda tradition. : ) See? I knew you’d get it.
Awesome.
xo – kb
I also got super puffy when I was preggers, but only the first time! I remember getting up to pee multiple times at night, and just like you, within 2 weeks I had lost all but 10 pounds.
On a different, but related, note, I am a nurse practitioner for kidney patients. I saw a guy this morning who had super swollen legs, and a puncture wound on his leg too. Yup, it was leaking, a slow steady stream of fluid. Equally gross and awesome.
I LUHOVE the first picture of you holding your baby by the tree. Such a gorgeous picture! I too gained like 50 pounds and then one morning, I literally woke up and it was gone. At the end of my pregnancy, I could only fit my scary big feet into my husband’s flip flops. It was a pretty sad sight!
Boy I sure hope I wake up one morning with the weight gone like you guys when I have a baby! lol Just curious Katie, what does the vitamin B6 help with? I’ve never really heard too much about it…
That was my question too! What does B6 help with? Being swollen or water weight? Hmm…I’m intrigued.
I also gained a lot with my pregnancies…50 lbs with my daughter and then 70 lbs with my son. In 2 years I gained more than what I weighed pre -pregnancy! We did not plant trees with the birth of our kids, but we did plant trees when we were selling our first home to spruce up the curb appeal. Only I hated to leave them!! I had told the new owners how much I loved those trees – a grafted lilac tree and a grafted Japanese cherry tree. How surprised was the new owners called me a year after we sold the house to tell us they were adding a large front porch and since they had to dig up the trees would we want them! H E double hockey stick yes! We piled those trees on top of my old Grand Am and lovingly planted them. They survived and have grown so big!
So glad Will’s tree is making new roots in your new home!
Oh, that’s such a sweet idea (about the tree and pictures each year!). I wish we could have done that with our boy (just a little older than Will!), but here in MN, it’s Winter for far too long… We did plant some evergreens last Summer that may be good comparisons for each year forward!
We planted a tree to celebrate our sons birth. He was two weeks old and we took a video of my husband planting it while our sweet little boy sat by in his carseat. He was so tiny then. We picked a fig tree and I’m sad to say that this little fig hasn’t done much and a year and a half later it is still the same size. Sorta dissapointing because it doesn’t make for very good year to year pictures, but we will keep taking them anyway!
My son towers over the tree now and I have to remind him on a daily basis not to trample it while he plays outside!
I love these trees!!! Sadly they don’t grow in south Texas. boo 🙁 We just bought three new trees for our house, and we found that apple trees flower a lot as well… and we got a Bradford pear.. both produce tons of flowers. We still wish she could have a cherry blossom tree though.
It’s like one of those urban myths I think…like taking B6 vitamins will help with the swelling…it has been proven to help with other problems that could occur with swelling…like depression…but I always joke because my mom reads this and is like “YOU DIDN’T TAKE ENOUGH B6!”
xo – kb
Oh I love how Bradford pears look…the smell is quite a different story…but you can’t have it all, right?!
xo – kb
What a great story! And how sweet an owner to make such an effort to let you know! You are so very lucky!
xo – kb
We couldn’t plant anything when my Josie was born as we live in Kansas and she came in February, but I was given a Josee lilac in her honor for Mother’s Day that first year, and she loves that she has her very own plant.
i’m glad you dug up the tree and brought it with you. i probably would have mourned the loss of it and never thought to.
aww how pretty! I love cherry trees. Have you ever been to the Cherry Blossom Festival in DC? It’s held in April and they have a marathon and festival. The entire place is filled with gorgeous blossoms ~ you should definitely check it out! 🙂
That’s a sweet idea. We had a cherry tree in our yard growing up and we had so much fun eating cherries right off the tree every spring. Have you thought about planting other fruit trees too?
I love this! The year I was pregnant with my daughter (2009), my husband bought me a lilac bush for Mother’s Day (I was due in July). It was so special to me for many reasons: I lost my own mother in 2006 and it was very sad for me that she’d never know my children (obviously). Lilacs were her favorite flower. That he not only thought to get me a gift on Mother’s Day before I was “officially” a mom, but to remember how special those flowers would be to me was overwhelming.
We planted it right under our dining room window along the trellis so we could see it and smell it through the whole first floor.
It’s funny that you write this post today because I just noticed today that for the first time since we’ve had it, blooms are starting to sprout! We’ve had leaves, but no flowers yet. I can’t wait to take a picture of Olivia and her new little brother or sister (due in May) next to it this year!
What a great story about planting a tree. I think I might do this for my little guy (5 months) on his frist Bday. Kids love to see how things change and you can remind him that it is his tree. I could see teaching him how to keep it growing.
I’m so glad you were able to bring Will’s tree with you! It’s gorgeous!
LOVE THE IDEA!
As far as water weight–I was BLOATED! I ended up on bed rest for four weeks and basically could only wear flip flops my feet were so swollen. I don’t even recongize photos of me right after my son was born! Miserable, but so worth it!
http://www.wom-mom.com
I was ridiculously swollen when pregnant. My legs looked like tree trunks, my friends made fun of me it was so silly looking. My feet looked like if you pushed on them they would pop. I had to buy a pair of ugly slip on shoes 1 1/2 sizes bigger than normal to fit the width of my feet. The swelling went down before I left the hospital because of some drug they gave me after the c-section. It was so weird to have ankles again!
I gained 80 friggin pounds with my first!!! Because of my mother. It really is all her fault!! She said oh Holly just eat anything you want, you want to gain some weight and you will loose it!!!
PAHHASHAHAHAHAhlaskjcnelxif huq0ujqhe ikch3xqlijn damn woman!!!
I am still trying to loose it 1 more kid later!
We planted a tree for our first baby boy (forgot the 2nd time around) but it has moved so many times it is finally residing at my moms house and it is getting so big! I love it
What a lovely cherry tree!
We miss you… I enter to your blog every day… its like my first thing to do.
I think you are very busy in your new dream house!
;D
Hi Bower family,I too, am trying to be patient waiting for new pictures of the progress in your new home.I cannot wait too see what great decorating ideas, that I am sure you are coming up with.I am so happy and so excited for all of you.Liza J
Oh Katie. You are my very favorite blogger. I miss you… but I understand you have so much going on. “See” you soon I hope.
I love this idea Katie. I think as will grows older he will really appreciate it.
I miss your posts too! I’m realizing how addicted to your blog I am, since I keep checking it several times a day to see if you’ve posted anything new. 🙂
Um, yeah. What is the deal with that rotten smell?! Gives me the heebs just thinking about it. I enjoy them from AFAR. lol xo
What a cute bub! Your cherry blossoms look superb and will do so all year, and already with gorgeous flowers. They are a very pretty flower close up as well as make a beautiful impression from far away. I always love plants with flowers and not only foliage as they can add a lot of joy to the garden. Can’t wait to see what they look like year by year – like on that tag where there are so many flowers!
Hi Katie! No matter how many pounds you gained, you look stunning. And you know I don’t mean that in a creepy way! Oh — and I love that you are honest about the weight thing because it helps us other women! Love the cherry tree! I think I told you that we planted one on my in-laws property in the exact spot where my husband proposed. It survived two hurricanes and we plan to continue to tradition with our kids, except plant them on our property! For my Mom, it’s been a Mother’s Day tradition for me to buy her a rose bush each year for about 15 years. I randomly started it one year and it’s stuck. Last year, she wanted to add hydrangeas to her garden so we bought her a few great ones and they are going wild! I think it is such a great way to give something that keeps bringing joy and memories daily!
Happy Friday and it looks like you are slowly but surely settling into the new place.
Oh my goodness Katie! That tree is sooo gorgeous and now, I have to have one 🙂 We just moved into our new home in December, so now we’ve started planting things.
Oh, and you looked beautiful in the pictures above! 60 lbs. or not!
Katie,
curious on how the tree looks today 🙂
Actually it was very sad…it died. I think when we moved the transition was too much for it. So we measured the girth and the height and we bought one new one that was exactly the same breed and same size…and it is doing fabulously 🙂
xo – kb
I wish we could’ve done the same with our son, but I’m quite sure I would have killed a tree trying to move it. Honey, I was the same way with the water weight. The night after having our son, I was walking the halls of the hospital and two ladies stopped me to ask how long I had been in labor. Burrrnnnn. I remember the tops of my feet would jiggle — that’s just not right! Anyhoo, love the blog, I’ve just become a recent follower!