It's possible to get fresh fruits and veggies, even in an urban area like Hoboken. 

A couple of months ago, I wrote about planting a balcony garden with my two toddlers. I transplanted flower seedlings (impatiens and begonias) along with lavender and a raspberry plant, and started basil and tomato plants from seed (that took three attempts since a container filled with just dirt is irresistibly appealing to two year old boys). Since then, we have been watering and weeding, and excitedly watching the plants grow. It is the highlight of my kids' morning to help me water the garden.

Our tomato seedlings are just starting to produce small green tomatoes, but the verdict is in for the rest of the garden. It has been a blockbuster year for the basil and lavender. The kids have been helping me harvest those herbs, watching while I carefully cut ripe lavender buds and wrap them in paper towels to dry on a cool, dark shelf in preparation for making sachets in the fall. But the basil harvest is conducted 100% by the kids. I give them a couple of buckets and let them strip the leaves at will. It is impossible to over-harvest basil, so the plants continue to thrive in between toddler attacks.

This has been a bad year for the raspberry plant and impatiens, which have not produced any flowers or fruit in a while. Both have browned, sparse leaves, but I continue to faithfully water them in the hope that they may revive. A friend of mine grows raspberry plants on her balcony in Jersey City and harvests half a pint a day, so there is always the possibility the plant can recover next year. At $25 from the 14th Street Garden Center, it was by far the most expensive of my balcony plants, so I am not prepared to throw in the towel just yet. (But if I do, I can always get my fruits at the Up- or Downtown Farmers' Market on—respectively—Thursdays and Tuesdays.

The best part about the garden is it gets my kids outside instead of begging to watch TV. Once they are done watering and spading up some dirt, they move onto other activities. I keep an outdoor easel set up all year round, with watercolor paints on both trays so setup is fast and easy. We have a hula hoop, an inflatable wading pool, sidewalk chalk, and bubble blowing containers. Once the kids are outside, they are occupied for a couple of hours, after which it is time for lunch and naps.  I never use sunblock when the kids are out on the balcony because the overhanging terrace provides shade in the late morning, and I want the kids to get their year's supply of vitamin D. 

We often go on afternoon outings after nap time, but if the highly unpredictable weather doesn't cooperate, I don't feel guilty about keeping the kids indoors all day. Our balcony is only 120 square feet, but we get a lot of enjoyment out of it 12 months of the year.   

To read more about what makes Kathy Zucker tick, check out her blog at http://hobokenmomcondo.com/momblog and follow her at http://twitter.com/zhobokenmom