grammar - verb+ようにと、 or verb+かと、

Ch.16 of the textbook 中級から学ぶ日本語 introduces the ～と、 structure, with this example:

早{はや}く花{はな}がさくようにと、毎日水{まいにちみず}をやっている。

Without the と particle I would read this as 'I water the flowers everyday so that they bloom quickly' as per the verb+ように structure.

I'm inclined to think that this is the と which has the 思って, 言って, 感じて omitted (per A Dictionary of Intermediate Grammar p.464) but I can't see how or why any of those three verbs would apply to the above sentence.

The exercise for this structure wants us to complete some sentences, these are two of them, noting that one of them is かと:

少しでもやせられるようにと、＿＿＿＿＿
いつ帰ってくるかと、＿＿＿＿＿