Partly Paper

December 2011 - Catching up on some of our travel adventures.

2011-12-12T07:26:00.001-05:00

Well, obviously I've been busy!!!! :) There's been no new posts here for quite some time, although I visit, sporaidically, here and there, when I remember "I have a blog!" LOL! Life has simply been crazy! I make it through one day thinking that tomorrow it will be better, offering a chance for me to slow down, but somehow when tomorrow arrives, that doesn't seem to happen, so I'm going to try to make the most of it and attempt to post some of the highlights of our year. I left off taking about and preparing to post some of our Outer Banks vacation trip, but more importantly you should know I left my heart there and I cannot wait to go back! {This year's lease agreement & cashier's check are already in the mail! :)}

Anyhow, returning from our vacation... seemed to fill my life with a void I didn't know existed. I quickly realized just how little there is to actually do here on a daily basis, but the restless I feel prevails. Don tried to help me, purchasing me a kayak, taking me out to paddle, either at Alum Creek or Richwood's little park with its nice little beach and flat water pond, perfect to paddle in.We began riding in the dunebuggy more, going on a Memorial Day run over to Indian Lake with friends, a day trip {just the two of us} to the Lake {Erie}, a group ride over to Mohician Valley, where we cruised down the road with the kayak on top of the buggy! and I even did a few hours of kayaking before returning to camp to fix some cheeseburgers for the boys! In late autumn, we took a "Covered Bridges of Union County" tour with Mike and his Trykes. We even went "busting water" down along the side of Bigelow Bridge!!!! It was a freakin' blast!!! So much so that had it been about 20 degrees warmer, I doubt they'd gotten me outta that creek so fast, LOL! It was then, that I, got bitten by the bug! So, No. I didn't hesitate to make a couple runs to buy up some dunebuggy bodies, chaises, motors, and transmissions, in fact, I think I even encouraged it, LOL! We made a run to Toledo for one; and an all day run to Traverse City, Michigan to drag a basket case of a buggy home. We're still not certain that this one is a Manx.... it has all the makings of one, except for the wiring tubes on the underside --- who knows, perhaps someone cut them out, but that's neither really here nor there, the fact is this one is for ME! :)

Besides, vacationing, traveling for dunebuggies {parts & pieces}, we've been blessed with a grandson! Jonavin is 5 months old now and is a very vocal baby. I believe that boy is gonna be talking soon! I also found his first little tooth the other day ---- Yep! Grandma's proud of that known fact! ;) I've been watching him throughout the week while his momma returns to college and he is the joy of my days!!! Alexxis is in the first grade of school this year and is doing wonderfully well. I love hearing about what she is learning and the excitement she has for learning to read is amazing. So much so that we bought her some workbooks for Christmas just to help her practice more since she enjoys it so much!

My Mom and Dad are doing good.... considering their ages and although we had quite a scare with my mom recently. The week of Thanksgiving, my sister, Karen and her husband made it home to share Thanksgiving dinner with us {They were our houseguests.}and Mom was admitted to the hospital with CHF - Congestive Heart Failure, which fortunately, they can treat and help with the symptoms, although there will never be an actual cure for her... she can slide in and out of it, but it will never totally disappear. Mom is back at home now... but the scare of losing them still lingers.

Somehow, during all this I had this overwhelming urge to learn to paint and I found solitude and strengths I never knew I had while creating some of these paintings. I've posted them in the order in which they were created and after the first one a friend commented, "I didn't know you could paint!" I had to admit to her that I didn't know I could either until I did it!" Although, I'm sure there's room for improvement, I've had no formal training in drawing, sketching, or painting, but I'm certainly enjoying the process I'm making and am proud of my efforts ( --- otherwise, I'm not so certain I'd share them, LOL!)

The canvas on this painting was so stretched on the frame, straight out of the packing, I thought about returning it. Instead I decided to try to add some tissue paper over the canvas and it helped to not only tighten the canvas on the frame; it added depth and texture that I could work with! It is one of my favorites to date. I also experimented with a heavy bodied tar gel and mixing acrylic paint more in shades and tints. The reflections in the water had me stumped but with the help of some Flow-aid, I was able to obtain the dream, watery reflection I desired and the texture really helped to add some sense of motion to the painting. Well, at least, I think so.... ;)

And last, but never the least is my newest piece of artwork in progress. I feel deeply in love with the Currituck Beach Lighthouse and knew I wanted at least one of its images in my collection of paintings, so I "Googled" it and found a picture whose composition I liked and began sketching right onto the background. It's been a little tricky getting the sides of that lighthouse just right, I finally got smart and resolved to use masking tape to keep the lines straight!!! LOL! Oh, the tricks you learn in life! :)

Damn! Them Dates on the Calendar are Closer than they Appear!

2011-10-18T05:23:00.000-05:00

I cannot believe it! Here we are, smack dab in the middle of October before I finally make it back to visit my poor neglected blog! No pics, no vacation updates, no pics of our new grandson!, or the thousands of other things that have happened over the course of the past four months... and all I can say is, "I'm Sorry. Life Happens." and it's been "happening" a lot lately! ;)

2011-06-01T07:16:00.001-05:00

www.corollalightresort.com

This is the view of the Corolla Light Resort from atop the Currituck Beach Lighthouse looking southeaster-ly. It is a very clean and well-maintained resort and we found the staff to be friendly and helpful regarding directions and things to do & see outside of the resort area as well. We loved that a lot of the main attractions, such as the Corolla Historic Village & Shoppes, the Whalehead Club located within the Heritage Park was close enought to walk to or enjoy an evening bike ride to catch a sunset on the sound. {An additional bonus for us was not only could you see our beach house from the lighthouse, we had an amazing view of the lighthouse from our beachhouse!}

{room to upload pic to follow}

Our Outer Banks Experience...

2011-06-01T07:10:00.000-05:00

Have you ever seen pictures of someplace online and just know that somehow someway you gotta go there? Well, going to the Outer Banks of North Carolina was my someplace --- I absolutely fell in love with the Cape Hatteras National Seashore and the Outer Banks moment my eyes first laid on photographs others had previously posted on the internet, mostly those shown back in my scrapbooking message board days. I'd never really imagined going, but I certainly dreamed and thought about it for quite some time! I cannot for the life of me even remember when or where or why, Don & I's conversations even began to take the turn to begin taking about a vacation, but neverless the less, take one we did! It was sort of spur-of-the-moment, feeling the need for one, and then Don told me to get online and check things out. Before I even knew what hit me, I came across a great deal for a week's getaway, considering to be on the off- season, an entire beach house for 12 within a resort community with access to many amenities, so discussed it with Don, who quickly told me to contact the realitor. It didn't take long to say, "We'll take it!" and leases and cashier's checks began flying through the mail. Yep! It happened that fast; we'd packing and leaving in six short weeks! Shortly thereafter, I googled everything I wanted to know before leaving while the anticipation and excitement began to build. I don't know how many times I actually had to pinch myself to be sure I wasn't dreaming, LOL! Little by little, the brochures I'd order began appearing in the mailbox and I'd spend my afternoon browsing and dreaming of the places we'd see and some of the things we'd love to do while there. I truly felt so suddenly alive and inspired, I created the mini-book previously posted, and began filling in some of the details, I was certain I'd want to capture. {Although after you go, is when you REALLY get it!} We ran into so many people from Ohio, we began to wonder, "how in the world, did we miss the bus?" Anyways, our week was absolutely amazing! The beach house was more beautiful that we expected, the resort absolutely beautiful, peaceful, with plenty of things to do even in the off-season. Lighted walkways assisted us to the beach areas in the evenings and at night. We spent time laying on the beach, collecting seashells, people and nature watching, enjoying the sand, surf, and blue skies. We couldn't have asked for better weather, days with little or no rain, even though the weather channel previously stated otherwise the week prior to our trip. We flew kites on the beach while the wind played havoc with the sun, sand, and sea, We enjoyed the deck at the beach house with it's day and nighttime views of Currituck Beach Lighthouse, along with wonderful food and of course a few "island" theme adult beverages.

We enjoyed the close proximity to shopping, dine-in or carry-out food, and to Corolla BBQ!, which was our first venture out after unloading and settling into the beach house. The pulled pork sandwiches and potatoe salad made for a nice, light dinner, followed by a walk to the beach in the evening, which made a wonderful preparation for a good night's sleep. There's nothing quite like the smell of the sea- salted air blowing a light breeze through the bedroom window while the sound of the waves lull you to sleep and the light from the lighthouse anchors you securely with the knowledge you and your loved ones have arrived safe and sound.

"Almost" June!

2011-05-30T10:10:00.000-05:00

It's so hard to believe that today is Memorial Day! {Thank you to all who have served our country through the centuries. You are the true heroes!} and tomorrow will be the last day in May! We've been so busy over the past six weeks that time simply went right on by with all the planning and anticipation of our Outer Banks road trip. We had such an amazing time, it's going to take me some time to post pictures and write updates. Please be patient with me as I take the necessary steps as we continue on our journey! Pictures and posts soon, I promise!

Outer Banks Mini-Book ~ Signature II

2011-04-10T11:39:00.000-05:00

The second signature was sewn into the right side of the gatefold album, again I fastened it into place using a pamphlet stitch. I used a lot of scrap papers creating this album and it was so much fun to find myself rubberstamping and playing with paper again. I think it shows ;)

I left room for observations...

included a postcard and added a map of the Outer Banks area. A rub-on circles the word "Corolla" and the map is accordian-folded to preserve the integrity of the small 6" x 6"book.

Another photo from the resort's website and a variety of rubber stamped images and text, along with some of the local telephone numbers that we may or may not need.

Also, located within the Corolla area is the historic Corolla Village, which features a quaint, small town restored schoolhouse that is on the National Register of Historic Places so I designed several pages for photographs and journaling to be added after our visit.

I was stoked to learn that the Corolla Light Resort won 2010's NC Resort of the Year. The map printed off below is actually an interactive map on the resort's website. I printed them off to assist me with correctly documenting everything... hopefully anyways!

The Grille, an oceanfront restaurant located within the resort,

aka "Crabcake Heaven"... another photo from website.

I created a pocket to hold another map that I printed off the resort's website. It is a map of the entire resort area, which our beach house is located within.

Print of map, unfolded.

Researching the area, I learned about Corova, a twenty mile area north of Corolla, where the wild Spanish mustangs roam free...

All of the above photographs were taken from travel brochures discovered online. I'll be adding photographs that we take once we get there which will help to assist in personally the mini-book just for ourselves.

This Rhonda Ferrer stamp pretty much sums up how I feel about going! I'm so ready!!! The next portion of the book focuses on the beach house itself... It's name is "The Lush Life" Let's hope it lives up to it, LOL!!!

I printed off the online photographs of the house and created a small accordian album to house them altogether.

Released from it's tie closure...

and stretched out...

One of the amenities of the Corolla Light Resort is the Community Trolley. Trolley Stops are located within the community, although one can easily walk to everything with just a little bit of enjoyable time doing so...

A tri-folded enclosure houses the trolley map {printed from website}, a stamped tag and a few accents complete yet another page. The beach house we've leased is located within the Lighthouse Villas area of the resort, so I printed off another map of the area. I'm certain these will come in handy in helping us to reach our destination! ;)

I also left a couple of pages for journaling and more photographs, as we, ourselves physically visit the area and get to experience all the sights and sounds ourselves!!! I cannot wait!!!

I may end up creating a few more signatures to add to this mini-book. It has already became apparent that that is a lot of information to pack all in to one place and did I mention that this only covers the one area out of many that we plan to experience while on the Outer Banks. Stay tuned...You may just see more here real soon....

Outer Banks Mini-book

2011-04-10T10:22:00.000-05:00

I began by altering a Basic Grey Gatefold Mini-Book by removing the pages and creating two new signatures within the book using a pamphlet stitch to attach the signatures to the book's structure and cover. Adding additional pages allowed me to cover a lot of territory and details for our upcoming Outer Banks, NC road trip that I'm certain that I don't want to miss.

To help remind me of some of the places I desire for us to go and visit, to some of the things I'd love to do while we are spending the week there, I saved and printed off some of the pictures that I've used here from some of the actual travel brochures we'll be sure to pick up on our travels, with promises of being "more than just a beach".

Visiting and hoping to see the Wild Spanish Mustangs in the Corova area is probably #1 on my MUST Do list! We will be staying very close to that area, just a bit further south in Corolla.

Therefore, for this signature I focused mainly on that area of the Outer Banks.

The beach house we've leased is located within the Corolla Light Resort area and we will have access to all the amenities the resort offers. I've decided Don and I deserve the "Starring Roles" in this production as we spend our days at the beach, charting our own course as we navigate through the days trying to savor each and every moment of our time spent there.

Visiting the Lighthouses is another MUST See/Do... located within Corolla is the Currituck Beach Lighthouse and is one of five on the Outer Banks. Seeing them will most definitely be "A Wish Came True".

I created a card style closure to hold a few pictures of us and room for some journaling about our adventures.

A K&Co. rub-on, a Cricut cut, and a Corolla tab help decorate the pages.

Another page with room for pictures and journaling...

I've already added my list of things to do!

It is here within the mini-book that I focused my attention completely on the Corolla Light Resort and Corella area. The photos were printed from online brochures and their website to provide me a visual add as well as to serve as reminders of the time we will be spending there.

I created a small accordian style booklet to hold a lot of important information all in one place. Location, physical address, directions, Main office, Sport Center, Maintainance, and Security telephone numbers and a printed email with information from an online friend.

Another page for photographs and journaling to be added...

The Outer Banks area a group of barrier islands along the Eastern coast of North Carolina, the Currituck Sound on the west and the Atlantic ocean on the east... promises to provide the best of both worlds!

Another couple pages for notes, photos, and whatever else.

Names of places within the Corolla area...

March Madness

2011-04-10T09:19:00.000-05:00

March definitely seemed to me like it came "in like a lion and go out like a lamb." this year. It seemed to me to be taking its and Mother Nature's good ole time getting here...then turning cold and blowing those brisk Northern winds over the Ohio Valley. To add further to our already sunshine-deprived spirits, we were supposedly blessed with warmer Southern breezes that blew up from the Gulf, containing a lot of moisture which resulted in even more snow, sleet, rain, and any mixture of all of the above.

Many areas of our state were under flood watches and warnings as the Scioto River spilled from its banks. Even the Spring date on the calendar seems to be a bit off with all the below average temperatures we've experienced this year.

Thankfully, over the years, Don and I have become about as accepting of this as we can be under the circumstances and have use our time to make plans and prepare for the upcoming summer months, as we intend to enjoy them fully and most thoroughly.

Don has been working diligently on building his dunebuggy and I'm happy to say that it is now street legal! Now if it would just warm up so we can truly enjoy it... ;)

I've been staying busy with our normal daily routine, getting a slow start on the Spring housecleaning, and dreaming of days at the beach. What began as a dream, has slowly evolved into become a reality as I browsed and searched online, so many different areas to choose from, and I finally setttled for visiting one place I've always desired to go... the Outer Banks of North Carolina! So, I began researching the area and just so happened to stumble upon a great deal for a beach house for a week! Upon contacting the realitor, making a reservation, and finally on to signing the lease... so we will be making a road trip to Corolla, N. Carolina in May! I'm so excited!!! I can hardly contain myself... just wait til you see what I created with all the information that I've already gathered. I can't promise it will make the weather any better wherever you are located, but I can say it sure helped to pick up my sagging-Spring spirit! :)

Bathroom's coming along!

2011-03-03T16:33:00.000-05:00

It took me a moment to get adjusted to this beauty with her sleek clean lines and additional height. However, it was her soft-close door and drawers that really sold me on her functionality, not to mention that she's holding my beautiful, new white onyx sink! She may look a little plain jane right now but with a nice new chrome door handle and couple of cute knobs, I'll have her looking beautiful in no time.

You can see I've already added a few decorating touches here and there. :) It's those extra "little" touches that help make a house a home. The simple things like adding a couple extra rolls of toilet paper out in a seagrass basket.

A bottle of bottle spray, a couple of washcloths, and a few touches from the beach...

A starfish dish becomes a soap dish...

a bar of lavender thyme soap carries you away,

if only for a moment...

even a small seashell glued to the top of a fingertip towel bar

makes a grand statement...

{sigh}

How I survived another Ohio winter!

2011-03-01T11:28:00.002-05:00

Have I mentioned that as I get older, I really detest winter? The only thing that seemed to get me through this one was thoughts of this.

I cannot even begin to count the number of days I spent daydreaming, envisioning, and researching for a what was simply supposed to be only a new facelift, consisting of a fresh couple coats of paint. {Hey, if you gotta be held hostage by the weather, you may as well dream of sunny, summer days, right?}

For several years now, I've struggled with the how and what way to decorating our home. There were way too many themed styles and choices that I like for me to simply choose just one, and then, try to stick with it. It took me a long while for me to finally figure out what it was that I desired for our older ranch style home, yet I knew I wanted something that remained a bit true to our home's history and that of the area. So, I finally deciding to go a bit "lake house-ish" casual and I'm so surprised that I'm loving the more simplified version of paring down to only a few necessities and upgrading the quality of the simple little things that make life, well, a bit nicer and a more luxurious.

The biggest difference made to the room was created simply with paint. I choose Valspar's Cincinnati Hotel Aby {and obtained another gallon in a beautiful turquoise for quart price! I'm waiting patiently to use it somewhere in the room as an accent color.}I'm loving all the light colors! I mixed the wall color above with some of my white ceiling paint to help it blend in better, then, painted the upper walls with two coats, before priming and painting over the existing wood paneling!

{Yes! You read that right? I said "paneling". Brown, dark, man cave... bleeeeck!!! My redneck hubby's version of "wainscotting" LOL! Here are some before photos taken a few years ago when I tried my darnest to decorate around it! http://partlypaper.blogspot.com/2008/08/ced-2008-its-all-in-details.html Lots of new changes!}

I, also, purchased a few new bath/hand towels, washcloths, chrome shower curtain hooks/bar/towel holder. New tub/shower faucets, vanity faucet, new onyx vanity top, and the materials to build a new vanity for our bath. I so enjoyed those days when we could actually get out and do a bit of shopping! Well, until it came time to get to work, LOL! Have you ever tried to re-docorate a bath in the a one bath home? A couple days later, and several times of taking the door off and putting it back on, I'm happy to say, now it can stay!

Hopefully, I'll have a new vanity and sink to show you soon! ;)

Altering an old binder to hold collaged pages...

2011-01-27T19:00:00.000-05:00

This is an old binder, like the ones our mother's used to receive monthly in the mail to hold binder pages on a variety of topics. Mine was a Creative Living binder, filled with indexed tabbed pages and pages on a variety of home decor style topics for the creative person.... well, back in it's day!

So, I decided to breathe some new life into it, decoupaging on scrapbook papers and creating collaged pages to punch and begin filling it with my art, thoughts, and ideas.

It's been a fun project and has provided me a much needed artistic outlet during the winter months, esp. when my heart yearns for summer's warmth and tending to my roses.

2011-01-27T18:23:00.000-05:00

Working in my art journal, using an older issue of a Somerset Studio's Art Journal Calendar for adding some of my own art.

What I've been up to...

2010-11-12T10:42:00.000-05:00

Hello! Remember me? Well, after recovering from the world's worst cold, I began easing my way back into a somewhat-normal-for-me routine with my fingers in a whole lot of pies! Besides catching up on the obvious housework, I continued restoring this old desk. The drawer front and a few knobs have been added and I've decided to paint the desktop black, thinking that perhaps, one day I'll have a glass top cut to fit it and add some fun collages underneath it.

I finally finished our hallway! {Yeah!!!} Removed all the drywall patching, gave it a final washing and the , and a last coat of paint. It turned out so good, I felt inspired to paint the basement entryway, LOL! So now, that's another new on-going process, but I've also taken some time to have a little fun and play!

When an online friend put out a call for creativity for Artist Trading Cards, I just knew I had play! So, I spent a day creating these for her. One of my favorite ATC's themes is "Techniques" so I sort of tried to combine the two using a lot of different art supplies and mediums. Some are simply cut decorated printed papers, while others are creating using rubber stamps and a variety of stamping and collage techniques. I had so much fun! that I decided to continue working right onto the back side! Who says ATC labels have to be boring?

Well, after shipping these off to Maria, I just learned that MY Artist Trading Cards are going to be used for an upcoming PBS Creative Living Segment!!! I'm so excited! I'll post a link once everything is set up and under way. Thank you, Maria, for this wonderful opportunity, I'm so thankful for you!

Autumn Adventures...

2010-10-07T13:59:00.000-05:00

Our Radtkopink Double KnockOut continues to amaze me! Even through the cooler temperatures during the past several days and night, this beauty has continued to hang in there. I cannot believe so many blooms on a six month old plant! Although, I did cut me a nice bouquet of flowers to bring into the house and to help assist the plant with some hardening off for winter. I can only pray this baby as much effort into into her many roots as she did on her beautiful display; I'm excited to see what joy she'll continue to bring into my life as she grows, blooms, and begins to blossom again next Spring.

Last Sunday, Don and I took a couple of friends of ours up to Findlay for the Christmas in October Craft Show. It was a miserable day! Cold, damp, sprinkly, and windy... so after exploring the craft booths we headed to the Cracker Barrel for a nice Sunday brunch. Somewhere along the way, I obtained the first cold, upper respiratory of the season, so I've been feeling a little under the weather the past several days. The good news is my fever broke last night and I started an antibiotic today. Should be back to my old self soon.

2010-09-28T07:55:00.000-05:00

It's official! Autumn has arrived... and along with it has came some cloudy skies and rain, perfect for fall cleaning and fluffing the pillows! Football season has began and it's definitely sweater weather... which means we've been busy around here! The veggie garden is officially closed for the season. It's been all tore out, raked, and tilled again. Later this week, we'll be shoveling manure... to burn up the remains of any surviving weeds and to assist fertilizing and breaking down the composing leaves that will soon be covering the soil. A few of the roses continue to bloom, the Radtkopink Double pink KnockOut continues to put on a beautiful display of color; enough so that I've been able to cut enough for small bouquets every other day or so for a continous arrangement to enjoy in our home.

Although, it's still a little too early for the Hocking Hills region of Ohio to be in the peak of Autumn color, we decided to take a road trip with family to the Hocking Hills Scenic Valley train station. Yep, we've loving riding the rails and an enjoyable day was had by all!

Now, we're looking forward to a couple of cool nights spent enjoying the rear deck and jacuzzi, bonfires in the back yard, roasting weiners and melting marshmellows over the open fire, pots of soup, and oven-baked slow-roasted stews, indoor games, movies and comfy clothes and throws. Let the autumn games begin!!! :)

In other news...

2010-09-12T04:42:00.000-05:00

A recent wind storm knocked one of my angels over... the iron-looking chippy looking one that stood proudly on the pedastal near the knock-out Rosa. Not only did it get blown off the pedastal, it fell backwards, and completely broke off one of her gorgeous wings. I was so saddened to find her, laying there, broken, but thankfully still in two pieces, so perhaps, I can glue it back.

Purchased a new concrete angel, but I don't seem to be enjoying it as much. I guess the other was sort of specail to me being the first one I'd actually purchased specifically to use in the garden.

I purchase a new submersible pump and fountain fixture for the watergarden basin, but I haven't felt like cleaning it, refilling, and installing it. Don't know if it's the summer time blues, blahs, or if I've just had the wind knocked outta my wings dealing with other things.

I recently primed and painted this old desk that's been tucked upstairs in our attic for years. I've decided to stain the drawer fronts a light oak and maybe soon will be shopping for some new replacement knobs and handles.

I took apart the previous garden journal I started to create as a book and decided to go with a 12x12 scrapbook format. It felt great to be creating again! After I whipped out these three pages, the next one just seemed to "fall out", well, the idea for it... creating it was a bit time comsuming spent stamping, cutting, pasting...

I used a special piece of stationery I've had in my possession next to forever, an event/invitation envelope, which I opened and attached to the background cardstock using a hole punch and several strips of black satin ribbon,tucked under, threaded up and tied on top. The clock image is from Above The Mark and the Found Object is a Stamper's Anonymous stamped image. Shown beside the layout is a tag booklet I created with notes of things I desire to include in my pages, Types of Seed Sown, Sown Date, Outdoor Planting Date, Location, and Notes. Plant Wishlists. {I'll be adding some more pictures and thoughts and ideas, to this one, I'm sure!} Monthly Garden Journal - Jan. - Dec., Things To Do, Notes, What's Blooming, Drawings/Sketches/Pictures labelled with plant locations. Yada, yada, yada.....

Envelope opened, interior shown. I added a section of some of my favorite Cavellini papers, used the pocket for journaling, and another stamped image, "Found Object & Official Investigator" stamp - Stamper's Anon. Bird image - Cavellini papers, decoupaged on background cardstock.

Enjoy!

Dates on the calendar are actually closer than they appear!

2010-09-12T04:15:00.000-05:00

I cannot believe it's September already! And, to add insult to injury, we may as well say "mid-September", after all today's the 12th, and we all know that it will be here before we know it! Have you been "feeling" it, too? The beat and rthym of Mother Earth's song, as Summer creeps out and Autumn sets in? I have. I've noticed I'm noticing the ticking of the clock as the sun is rising a little later and setting a little earlier, there's a chill in the early morning air, and often, fog and mist can be seen in the early morning sunlight. The local children have once again returned to school, the grass now has burnt brown patches from the heat of August sun, and there's touches of yellows, browns, and vanilla as Mother Nature once again begins to change her color pallette. The fading roses in our garden and the turning brown of the hydrangea tree was really bittersweet this week. In one instant, I look forward to the cooler weather, but in another, my heart's just not quite ready to let Summer go! Then, I'll spot a sunflower, and well, I guess you know how that story goes...

And life is also always full of surprises, bringing us sweet, little things; Sometimes, things we could not ever plan for... like sunflowers that pop-up in the darnest of places, and a plant that you swore was a non-blooming 3 yr. old peony turns out to be nothing more common than a darn old goldenrod weed. }Are you serious?} I think about how I nurture it, watered it everyday, inspected and investigated, looking for signs of just one small bud.. and I cannot help but to laugh not only at myself, but at the jokes that life plays with us, through nature and the hands of a small child. {I'm pretty certain my 4 yr. old grand daughter, Alexxis, planted the sunflower "SEED" here!} and I even have to admit it's nice to have a little autumn color! :)

New Beginnings.... the start of some front yard landscaping.

2010-09-09T10:17:00.000-05:00

Recently, we purchased three hostas to add to the partial sun/shade area of our front yard landscaping. We didn't fuss with them too much, mainly Don helped digging a hole just to the east of the Rose of Sharon, while I amended the soil, loosened the potted roots and plopped them in the ground along with a thorough drink of water.

There was no sense attempting to create beds and borders here just yet, as we've some future plans of making some much needed repairs to re-cover our concrete porch. I'd love to add railings and handrails, and hopefully, a new mailbox post and mailbox before we do too much here in this area. So, I try to avoid planting where things where they only be in the way later. Also, we aren't completely sure if there are any underground electrical wiring, so we tried to played it a bit safe. We learned a few things along the way. The soil here is compact! I mean clay-rock hard solid! We will definitely need to till it up, just to provide the plants with a healthy bed of soil in which to start their new lives out in. But for now, these little touches are providing some much needed visual interest and are helping to make our home's front yard a bit more inviting. And it's contagious! I've been noticing our neighbor's envying our yard and garden this year and I've also noticed some of our neighbors have cleaned, tidied, and even added a few plants and flowers to their yards. Makes me smile knowing I'm making a good impression on our neighborhood and community.

Also, a new addition to our garden and front landscaping, is this beauty below! Let me tell you, she's definately "stole the show" so to speak! I get so many compliments and inquiries about this beauty! We just love this new Knock Out Rose, called "Rosa Radrazz"; it's a rose shrub that's been pruned to become a tree! I planted in our front yard close to our bedroom window, so hopefully, one day the fragrance can waife in......{same plant, different angle... bedroom window in background} :)

This area of the front yard's hardscape is a bit challenging for me to work within... not only is the soil hard, clay, and compact, the area itself is often changing. One moment, it's partially shaded by three huge maple trees, then there's our homes porch and entrance way, and to the east...... it's sunnier the majority of the day. Let's just hope it's enough for this Radrazz to survive here..... I've been reading that roses perfer not to moved. Anyways, by the time we finished up with the planting, dusk began to fall.

Time to sit back, relax, and enjoy the fruits of our labor!

Our Rose of Sharon is re-blooming...

2010-09-09T09:21:00.000-05:00

and this little guy just cannot get enough of its sweet nectar!

August's end and Sweet September beginnings...

2010-09-08T04:26:00.000-05:00

The weather here in the Ohio Valley took a sudden shift there for a few days this previous week. We went from sunny and hot, 90 degree days/ high's in the 60's at nights, to dipping down into the 70's for the daily high and into the low 40's overnight one night. The cooler air was a welcomed relief, even if only here for a few days... it was still a gentle reminder of days to come; yet provided us with another good weather opportunity to continue to work outside of our home and on our landscaping.

We were able to take advantage of a few end of the season sales and ended up obtaining a couple of really good deals on a few items we've been desiring to add to our landscaping and gardens. The first, a new glazed birdbath at a 1/3 of the original price! The second, some landscaping blocks, pavers, and mulch!

Of course, while shopping for some good garden and landscaping bargains, we came across another new rose that yours truly just had to have --- but more on that later.

It's here in the side yard bed that I've been continuing to provide my constant attention. After weeding and digging to aerate the bed recently, I knew I needed to get a border added to this bed to keep the weeds from creeping back in. I'd even made a mental note of a concrete border that I desired, but when we returned to purchase them, they were all but gone, so we settled for 72 bricks @ 32 cent apiece. After loading and unloading several times, I finally got them in place, although there's still some adjustments needing to be made to straighten it, create a drainage trough, its enough for now to keep the mulch from washing out into the yard and away.

I, originally was envisioning some sort of stone path, but once I tried several arrangements using the pavers I'd purchased, I gave up on them entirely in this location and moved them to the bottom of the deck stairs to help fill in and make that area of our yard a bit more safe and secure. I left some room inbetween the blocks, to fill with stone and perhaps, next year, I can add some potting soil and try going a good ground cover there like some creeping thyme.

2010-08-30T21:51:00.000-05:00

The backyard flower beds continue to thrive and bloom... I did a little bit of weeding here early this evening, I noticed there is a bunch of creeping charlie out in the yard near my watergarden, so I pulled and pulled and pulled a bunch of it up. Darn stuff anyways! Other than that, it's forever dead-heading the petunias {which I've gotten quite fast at!} and water as usual. Well, all except the new rose... Yes! The James Galway... I noticed it leaves were a little yellow this morning as well as a portion of the cane, so we're with-holding a bit of watering from it for a bit. Hopefully, it'll spring right back.... I'm thinking since it wa recently planted, we may have over-saturated it just a bit.

2010-08-30T21:41:00.000-05:00

It has been hot the past several days with temperatures in the low 90's, so I've been trying to take advantage of the mornings and the early evenings to work outdoors. It's simply too crazy to be out there in the heat of the day as all I ever seem to get accomplish is wiping the sweat from my brow. It was about 80-85 degrees here in the side yard when Don and I worked on weeding and removed a bit more sod in one area to widen it. We finished up planting up all but one of the remaining plants left to stick in the ground. This bed is approx. 36' long x 1 1/2' - 2' wide, so weeding it can quickly get away from you, if you don't watch it.

At the far left corner, I've planed my strawberry pot on top of a block to add some visual interest and height, there's a pot of greenery and an asparagus fern at the base. A limelight coleus, one of two in this bed, accents the copper dragonfly candlestand that we've had forever. We purchased it from one of the shoppes up on a trip to Put-In-Bay. Neighboring the coleus, is an drawf evergreen, Taxus {something or other, mentioned in some of my previous posts.}

Another butterfly bush... this one a lot smaller than the Silver Frost that is in the back yard's header bed. If I'm remembering correctly, this one will bloom pink. It was a small pot when I purchased and planted it and has grown nicely here in this end of the part sun/ part shade bed. {Well, that was the idea when I purchased it...} The healthy, little bush-y type shrub is a new addition. Purchased on a trip to Wilson's Garden Center in Newark, Ohio.

Below, is a close-up view... it won't bloom until next Spring, but it was one plant on my "I want wanna those!" list... a Bleeding Heart plant. I think they are just beautiful and I think the red/pink will compliment all the green and the texture of the bed nicely. Not show in this photo is an astible that I am in the process of trying to rescue! The poor thing got way too much heat and hot sun, so I've been providing it with nice, cool sips of water a bit more frequently than the others. To compound the problem, I've probably thrown in into transplant shock, Yep! I dug a hole and gave it a new permanent home. Hopefully, it will survive and learn to love it here.

A few unexpected potted plants... an asparagus fern and our rosemary, both will require over-wintering indoors, but I love the texture and the scent they add here.

The periwinkle {vincas} still blooming here as well, although, you'll note this little patch didn't do nearly as good as the periwinkle in the backyard's header bed, which receives full sun vs. partial sun which is what this periwinkle receives here. I also that the vegetation of the plant seems so much more vibrant and a richer green.

Newly added today, was the daisies and the aslyssum from a pot. It was either transplant it in the shade soon or toss it... so I stuck in here. This limelight coleus has amazed from day one of planting it. It took right to the spot and has shone ever since. I love the little boy and puppy figurine, I believe was a yard sale find. Heading on south down the side bed, is the new trellis I recently purchased to help hold the verbena bush up off of the ground. It seems to be taking the trellis relly well and has made a big improvement in the general appearance of the side yard bed. I like it!

This is a section of the side bed that the hubby and I worked on widening just a bit today. It's a subtle change but I think it made a big impact in the way the bed related to the natural surroundings. It seems to be a bit more inviting now, although, this is the best picture to probably show you that. We also need to work on some of the borders for our beds and have been browsing at our options. I'm keep leaning more and more towards the concrete borders for durability once they are sealed and as long as there's adequate drainage below them.

But time will tell.... The plants in this bed have plenty of room to grow and fill in, in a sense, it almost appears a little sparce, but it's a major improvement over the before when there was nothing but grass and more weeds! Speaking of grass and weeds, I worked on this section of the side yard and a good half of the front yard using a metal rake to remove some of the grasses thatch. There were areas that it was so thick, no wonder we've got weeds everywhere. I've added picking up a bag of grass seed to the "Gardening To Do" list.... right up there with purchasing the mulch for this bed and the front yard's plantings. Anyways, see? There's plenty of room between these plantings, they aren't as "squished" in as the photo above makes them appear to be.

Moving further south in the bed, we have the new ground cover, which is establishing itself nicely and already sending out new shoots, Thank you! Here are a few scattered in among what I'm hoping will be a clump of lilyturf. It's growing... slowly. The ruby-colored coleus also took off in this August heat and I think it has been blooming since mid-July....

more of the new ground cover surrounds it and the additional plantings up a bit further in the bed.

Eventually, I want this end of the bed to have some curves to it... well, it does now, an outward curve up along the outside fence. But I could only come out so far with these plantings for now until we purchase the new sections of fencing and the garden gate for this area.

Thanks for taking the "shady lane" tour with me... I had a great day out here working today!

2010-08-30T07:53:00.000-05:00

The serenity that I find while spending time in the garden is often beyond what I could have ever imagined. Everyday, there is almost always something new to discover, and that new discovery always promises to fascinate and amaze me. I love waking up in the early hours of the morning, while the world around sweetly slumbers, peering out the kitchen window and watch as life unfolds out of the darkness. I look forward to my early morning visits, while the dew is still wet on the grass, and it lays like sparkling diamonds across the tops of the flower beds. Sometimes, the periwinkle itself looks like a sea of glistening diamonds, especially in the evenings and in the summer moonlight. But yesterday, it was in the sunlight that I made this beautiful butterfly discovery. I found it fascinating as I watched it flutter from on bloom on the periwinkle to another, thoroughly enjoying this 90 degree weather and the hot summer sun!

What's happening in the garden...

2010-08-23T18:08:00.000-05:00

I have so much to blog about and to share! Not sure exactly where I should start first. Do you want to hear about the Perfume Delight rose that is planted by the rose arbor that is re-blooming! How it smells so good while you are standing here with the sun shining on your face breathing in the rose-scented air? Isn't she a beauty to look at and admire? I had to capture this freshly opening bud before it blooms forth in just a few more hours. You probably wouldn't believe just how much that bud has opened up just since early this morning.

Or I could tell you about the seeds that I collected from the garden this week. There was butterfly bush seeds, some from the salvias, and what I'm hoping are seeds and seed pods from the annual flower, Angelonia that I planted in the watergarden along with the pink and white petunias.

The Pee Gee hydrangea tree is filled with blooms and today is the first day that I have noticed even the hint of pink on any of the panicles. I cannot wait to watch more and more them appear as the weather turns cooler at night and I'm hoping to actually dry some these buds to enjoy inside the studio during the upcoming winter months.

Or perhaps, you'd like to hear about the road trip to Wilson's Garden Center that hubby and I made. We returned with the entire Jeep filled with plants, the aroma was heavenly! How about this gorgeous looking flower? It's a David Austin climbing English rose, named James Galway. I just love his flowers!!!

Or maybe, you'd be surprised to know that I'm slowly working on what I think will work good in the front yard and add some beautiful landscaping. Something along the lines of this gorgeous Caryorteris Blue Mist, a late summer-fall blooming perennial with the most gorgeous cornflower blue flowers you ever did see. I thought the blue would be a nice contrast to the sand {that looks yellow} vinyl siding. I love that I can see this from our living room window and the honey bees seem to really love it!

I, suppose, I could also share the side yard bed that I recently spent the entire day re-working the soil, removing the weeds, re-locating a few plants, and adding a wonderful new ground-cover to help fill the corner area of the border bed. It made quite an improvement and is continuing to grow and thrive.

Or I could tell you about the wonderful day I had planting one of the new plants in the front yard {Blue Mist previously shown}, or how I had a wonderful visit from my godchild, Heaven, who was working on a photography assignment and with whom I spent a wonderful afternoon. I took this candid photo of Heaven while she was intently concentrating on her photography shot. It was interesting to see what she photographed in my garden and so nice to see it from a different perspective.

Never in my wildest dreams...

2010-08-20T07:55:00.001-05:00

The greatest achievement was at first and for a time a dream. The oak sleeps in the acorn, the bird waits in the egg, and in the highest vision of the soul a waking angel stirs. Dreams are the seedlings of realities. ~ ~ James Allen

This is a photograph that was taken of our backyard in April of this year. Never in my wildest dreams, did I ever imagine that four months later, this would be the view my eyes would be soaking in...

{sigh} I've definately been blessed!

Outdoor Lighting...

2010-08-20T07:45:00.001-05:00

Menard's also had these solar lights on clearance for $2 a piece... so I grabbed up 5 of the them. I activated them yesterday and stuck them in the watergarden's header bed to charge. Late in the evening, after returning from a visit with my parents, I returned to photographed them. There's actually 3 solar lights in this bed; the 3rd on the right side isn't as bright as it isn't shaded overtop of it, but I like it! The effect is soft and inviting... I may have to return for a few more! Wouldn't those look pretty lining the edges of the side border bed leading into the rear yard, too?

Lilytuft in bloom...

2010-08-20T07:40:00.002-05:00

Recent landscaping in the side yard...

2010-08-20T07:36:00.001-05:00

I, also, came across some deep shade groundcover on clearance while we were at Menard's. It's Japanese Spurge, a dark evergreen shade-lover that was in 6 pk. pots for $3 each. My mind quickly did the math and when I realized that was 36 perennial plants for .50 cents apiece and I have a shady area in the side border bed that could use a little something to fill in... I grabbed them up, too. The photograph above was taken before I began working on the bed.... remember, hubby just tilled this up and I planted it not too long ago. Not much, other than planting, watering, and weeding has been done to this area, well, until yesterday when I decided it was time to do some re-work to the entire 2 1/2' x approx. 30' border bed. So, I spaded and removed weeds, loosened up all the soil with my shovel and space before setting out to plant the new groundcover. I took a short break, just long enough for a slice of pizza and a nice, cold Bud Light, and got back at it. Before long, I was hot, tired, and satisfied with this [well, for the time being]:

{Why is is all your hard work doesn't look like much in any photograph?} Oh well. I worked on widening the bed, removing a bit more of the sod starting at this brick, strawberry pot end and working my way down. I made it approximately half way, to the basement window well before finally giving up on that and focusing my attention back to loosening the soil and removing weeds, I gotta get those plants planted, remember?! Don't loose sight of the goal now...

It's hard to photograph this area due to the carport, garage, the house and the hardscaping, so I took a few little close-up shots. The limelight coleus loves it here at this north end of the border bed. There's plenty of shade for most of the day and Mother Nature provides a few hours of the hot afternoon sun. I added an old iron hanging dragonfly birdcage that I should clean up of rust and spray paint some bright contrasting color, but for now it serves its decorative purpose.

Further on down the bed towards the south end, lies this butterfly bush.{ I'm not certain what color/style bush this is but I believe I still have the tag... } anyways, while inspecting before beginning to work on this border bed, I discovered an entire pod had gone seed so I collected them! It's thriving well here in the same conditions as those mentioned above; it's from here to the south end of the bed that the amount of afternoon sunlight changes from full to dappled with shade to a deep shade at the southern most end where I opted to plant the new groundcover.

This is the same border bed, taken from the basement window well onwards to the southern corner. The periwinkle is still in bloom here, along with another limelight coleus. A verbana quietly establishes roots and awaits a small trellis to climb upon, while the lilytuft blooms! I've never grown this stuff before so bear with me and my little discoveries and fascinations as I make these observations, LOL! They excite and enchant me... fill me with anticipation of what's next! Seeing its purple blooms excited me, as I didn't realize that they'd even do that! The ruby-something or other coleus, {how's that description, heh?} continues to thrive, providing some contrast and texture to this end of the bed....... also, scattered in is a hosta, an evergreen taxus, and a magnolia tree!

And, after planting....... They're tall for a groundcover, no? {Ignore the root sticking up outta the ground; I've got to cut it out!} But, talk about "healthy"! These baby's roots system were so rootbound inside the plastic pots that they were spliting the sides, just begging to be planted, so I obliged! :) I know it doesn't look like much now, but just wait til these little babies grow... I'm hoping they'll establish nicely here, continue to grow, so maybe next summer I can divide and transplant some to other areas in the front yard. For now, I'm content just to watch it grows as I weed and water it.

Also, while at Menard's, we discovered the cutest little 8 ft. sections of 4' dog-earred fencing and a short garden gate in the same style.... so I gotta slow down on the plant purchases for a moment or two to start saving my $$$..... two 8 ft. sections of 4 foot fences $50; and the gate $25; 4x4x8 ft. post; and 2 2x6x8ft. treated lumber boards for another arbor $20.... and plants to plant on both sides......... well, you get the picture. ;)

2010-08-18T19:59:00.002-05:00

Oh, mid-August... what can I say, except perhaps, it's been hot, hot, hot! 90 degrees temps., factor in the heat index and the humidity and some days it feels we're being cooked on a slow boil! As far as the garden goes it's been consistantly tackling the weeding and deadheading either in the morning or in the evening because during the day, it's been far too hot to be truly comfortable. In the early mornings, I like to water like crazy! The flowers, though, certainly don't seem to mind... there's been plenty of blooming flowers in the gardens.

While I was inside, {spending my time in the air conditioning!}, my mind was stuck in the garden. Isn't every gardeners??? Always, thinking, wondering, envisioning, planning...... well, I certainly seem to be, so I gave some thoughts to recent garden choices and decisions to be made. I decided to forgo a late summer/early fall planting in the vegetable garden so that I can rip it out early this year, treat and remove all the weeds, hopefully, condition the soil and tarp in preparation of late fall, winter, and spring. I've also been reading and doing a lot of research and consideration to going with raised beds in the vegetables garden, just for a more formal look, and the ease of tackling the weeds, tending to the veggies.

Totally, unplanned, was the purchase of this Pee Gee "Unique" Hydrange tree! Isn't it gorgeous?! Sort of bored this hot afternoon, Don and I decided to venture out to Menard's garden center and when we spotted this for 30%........ well, {the rest they say "is history"}

Looks like a good place to me..... sunny, slighty-acidic well-drained soil, plenty of room to grow up without interference or interfering with anything, and what a wonderful compliment to the two rose bushes who neighbor nearby {there's plenty of room for both rosebushes and the hydrangea to grow and blosssom!}

And after planting..... don't you just love it when you add something to your garden

and it just looks back at you and says, "I was meant to be."

I do. {Sigh.}

2010-08-18T19:37:00.000-05:00

A week ago, heaven gained another angel when my sister-in-law, Melody Miller, lost her one and a half year battle with pancreatic cancer. May you rest in peace, Melody, and sing with the angels while you're tending your roses. You will always be loved and missed.

2010-08-14T07:20:00.002-05:00

‎"~ I am no one special; just a common man with common thoughts, and I've led a common life. There are no monuments dedicated to me and my name will soon be forgotten. But in one respect I have succeeded as gloriously as anyone who's ever lived: I've loved another with all my heart and soul; and to me, this has always been enough."

~ "The Notebook"

˜”*°•♥Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ♥•°*”˜

An early morning stroll...

2010-08-14T07:04:00.004-05:00

"Come, let's go for an early morning stroll through the garden, shall we?" I just love here so early on these August mornings. It's going to be another hot day, but for now there's still a faint whisper of a chill in the early morning air, as the gentle breeze blows softly against one's skin. But it isn't the weather that brings me here, it's the colors of the garden that draws me so early in the morning hours. It's a special time when the garden offers up a rare glimpse, or a hint, that perhaps, something magical may have occured overnight as the stars shone in the night sky.

It is the header bed that is one of the leading stars of the show. The periwinkle simply comes to life within the pre-dawn night. Isn't it beautiful? I love how it "pops" with it's white color and how its green texture adds a sense of softness to the rocks around the bed's border and then, mimics the brickwork of the watergarden. Notice how the white hues of the periwinkle pulls the white color of the wishing well out from the darkness and out into the light.

The soapbubble gazing ball lies covered with the early morning dew, nestled in amongst the periwinkle that shines in the pre-dawn light. The light is also captured and contined within the branches and leaves of the silver frost butterfly bush. Beside it, there's a surprise {bush/plant/flower?} growing, and the delphiniums are going dormanant since their long past their bloom. But what cracks me up and brings a smile to my face is my peony bush!!! ROFLOL! This peony is 3 yrs. old but this is the first year out of a pot. When I planted it this spring, it barely reached the top of the chicken wire cage I created to prevent droopy blooms. Well, it didn't bloom, but it certainly seems to love it here... just look how it bushed out! I'm betting there will be a blast of blooms on this beauty next year, but for now we'll just admire its crazy antics and enjoy it in the moonlight.

There's gentle flowing curve to the header bed that invites you further in to explore and look beyond what is visibly there; look closely, there's sure to be some pure magic tucked in here and there!

An angel watches over the Betty Prior rosebush while the Radtkopink double pink knock-out sneaks up to become another rising star in the show. Isn't it beautiful? I'm thinking its time to cut me a fresh rose bouquet soon... swoon! Just look at those long, lovely beautiful stems...

The watergarden is also a profusion of blooms with the angelonia and pink and white petunias continuing to shine, even in the pre-dawn hours of the night's sky! The wishing well makes a beautiful statement although the potted petunias that were planted there haven't faired so well with the past 16 days of 90 degree heat, but here in the moonlight the green and whites come to life.

But it's the magic in the rays of a certain morning light that brings me here. It's a beautiful light that makes everything seem to glow and tell you, "Hello."

It's cool and brief, a fleeting light, lasting only a moment or two before it's gone... like a memory, lying forgotten, until it's waken by the morning light once again.

2010-08-09T05:53:00.000-05:00

I love the pink, white, and light purple color combination, especially at sunset and sunrise. There's something magical in that light that's extremely hard to capture with a camera, the peacefulness and tranquility that light provides just seems to seep into every pore into your body possessing you, restoring your soul.

Sunrise in the Garden

2010-08-09T05:49:00.000-05:00

Our Garden's Flourishing!

2010-08-09T05:17:00.000-05:00

Well, here we are, into the first of week of August, and the garden continues to flourish and bloom! I have to say that I am really impressed, not only with myself and the hubs for all the hard work we've put in, but with the performance that our garden has blessed us with in it's first year! It has been an amazing experience; one that I wouldn't trade for anything else in the world! I swear I've felt "the heartbeat" of the soil as it lay dormant underneath the green grass and weeds as I worked in preparation of this day. The Knock-out Roses {Double Pink and Betty Prior one shown with the angel statue} continue to self-clean, re-bud, and bloom all over again.

Be Still My Heart...

2010-08-04T05:38:00.001-05:00

Isn't it gorgeous??? Looking like a huge soap bubble scattered amongst the vincas with its dream-like quality. Thank you, honey! I love you.

2010-07-30T11:43:00.002-05:00

Gardening is a long road, with many detours and way stations, and here we all

are at one point or another. It's not a question of superior or inferior taste, merely

a question of which detour we are on at the moment. Getting there (as they say)

is not important; the wandering about in the wilderness or in the olive groves

or in the bayous is the whole point.

- Henry Mitchell, Gardening Is a Long Road, 1998

Gardening thoughts...

2010-07-30T07:25:00.000-05:00

Creating and establishing a garden space has been such a rewarding experience for me! I'm excited to venture in and explore what's new, what's changing on a daily basis, learning how the plantings and flowers respond to the environment that I've so loving place each and every one within. I'm learning each plants likes and dislikes, what itsects and bugs prefer what flower and why, and how to remove them successfully with little or no damage to the plant, the bug, or me!

Take the asphids that I caught chewing on my rosebush leaves; did you know that a thorough spray from the garden hose will remove them? Of course, you gotta use some common sense, but there's where knowing a plant's likes and dislike come into play, what kind of diseases they're sucsectible to, so you can hopefully avoid making the plant ill while trying to combat the pest problem. I gave my double pink Knock-Out rose a good spraying yesterday morning to remove the asphids from the leaves of the plant. Afterwards, a gentle shake to remove some of the excess water from the bush and I left the rest of the drying to good ole' Mother Nature. Her sunshine and light winds had that rosebush dried out in no time! My evening inspection revealed that I had indeed successfully removed the asphids and I sighed a sighed of relief; no need for a soapy water application.

I also noticed that this bush is establishing a lot of new canes and the existing canes are continuing to grow. I'm actually surprised by the growth, yet remain hopeful that there is just as much going on underground with establishing the rosebush's root system as there is growth going on on the top!

These are things that I want to remember, the daily jaunts into the garden, the little discoveries that I've made along the way, so I've been keeping a journal for the garden only. Of course, it is filled with a variety of gardening information re; the plants themselves... but there's also a lot of information I'm learning by doing and observing. I've also been photographing the garden on a regular basis ---- it will help me establish a time-line of what's bloom when, what's fading, and what's about to come into bloom so that I can establish a Spring to Fall continous cycle with something of interest going on with the perennials. The annuals, well, I got lucky with the petunias and the angelonias continous blooms! That takes some of the pressure off that there's always something of interest going on somewhere! I've been spending some of my non-gardening time blogging and editing some of the garden photos. I'm desiring to send them out to get the photo developed later this fall so I can create a 2010 garden scrapbook album and incorporate some of the notes I make daily in my journals. It will be interesting to see some of the changes in the garden and in the journals year after year. Well, I'm off to make more observations as I begin my morning garden chores --- the bird feeders are calling for refills and the plants are waiting patiently for their early morning sprinkle. *smiles and waves*

2010-07-27T08:13:00.000-05:00

Beauty in the early morning light...

The side yard entryway into the previously shown patio/courtyard area..

2010-07-26T10:56:00.000-05:00

The newly established bed is continuing to thrive, although, I've probably been watching too closely, if there is such a thing. I couldn't help but notice the Magnolia seems to be loving it here and the poor girl hasn't even been taken outta the pot! Hmmm... and something else I noticed is one of the lilytufts took to this new bed like a fish to water, while the other two, well, they aren't looking as "healthy". I believe the difference is in the amount of shade/sunlight that each of these plants receive everyday. The "thriver" lilytuft is at the very end of this bed, while her companions are planted almost mid-way, where they receive a lot more sun during the afternoon and the heat of the day. I suspect that I'll be uprooting and re-locating this two very soon. May as well do it while I have the shovel out for the Magnolia tree, right?

In other news, there's a reason I wanted to show you this area of the sideyard and the garden's actual entrance way. Do you see it yet? It's there! Just waiting to be discovered...

It's one day going to be an actual "Garden Gate!"

Yep! Right there, smack dab behind the little table and chair.

Don and I took a look at the fence and the fence posts and we see no reason whatsoever why we couldn't unscrew one section of this fence so that we cut the three crossboards to create the actual "gate" using the existing fence and some hinges we have on hand.

I'm loving this idea! Because it now creates a new traffic pattern coming in from the front of the fence vs. the "we need more fence" area that's standing wide open just to the right in this picture. Also, that "wide open" posts allow for even more possibilities, put me in heaven. I instantly began seeing two 4' high sections of fencing allowing us view of our driveway from our living room. I'm thinking a long overhead arbor overhead with some climbing plants should help frame the view. :) Of course, all these wonderful ideas are all put on hold and on the one day list... but ya know what? We're getting it there! :)

A Patio/Courtyard {of sorts}

2010-07-26T10:36:00.000-05:00

The table and chairs have been a God's send the past couple of days, providing us a quiet place to rest and enjoy a nice, refreshing cold drink after working here and there throughout the gardens and yard, especially while we were prunning and trimming all those evergreen trees! Which I'm still not to certain that I'm finished with just yet... as they may just get a much trim. Anyways, I brought the wicker drum-style table up from the yard and placed it here in our sort of newly-established patio-courtyard, aka "planting/potting/refilling birdfeeder's station".

The changing seasons potting bench has also been added to this area, providing me a wonderful place to fill the birdfeeder's in the mornings. They remind me to provide fresh water to the birdbath, provide the pots a good long thirsty plant drink, to check on the new plantings in the foundation beds, before I wander off to the watergarden and begin the daily chore of deadheading the petunias there.

Newest plant addition to the Garden...

2010-07-26T10:17:00.000-05:00

A beautiful Limelight Hydrangea!

I'll be planting her today. She'll be replacing my "I ♥ Garden" stepping stone in the header bed allowing plenty of room for the silver frost butterfly bush to continue to grow and thrive. This limelight hydrangea isn't like some hydrangeas that are effected by the soil's pH. It will produce these beautiful light green, bright white blossoms up into the fall; then, the stems begin to change color and the blossoms turn to those beautiful shades of light green mixed with the softest pastel pink! I'm hoping to harvest and dry a few a blooms for filling a basket before the blooms turn brown and wither away.

2010-07-26T09:57:00.000-05:00

Another angel sits nearby on a moss-covered ball sphere tucked in among the vincas, along with a boxwood, as two blue delphiniums weave themselves into a wire trellis in the headerbed above the watergarden.

Nearby the Silver Frost Butterfly Bush is about ready to blossom and bloom!

Summer blossoms and blooms...

2010-07-26T09:46:00.000-05:00

As I worked in the garden this morning re-filling the birdfeeders and deadheading the petunias, I couldn't help but notice what a show-off the Angelonia has become in the hot, humid summer heat! This plant has been absolutely amazing providing continous pretty pink blossoms throughout the watergarden and keeping up with the continous nature of the petunias, which require dead-heading, something the Angelonia doesn't. No wonder she's so proud of herself!

She provides a beautiful backdrop, not only for one of our angel statutes, she blends in beautifully with elegance and grace of the pink and white petunias that are scattered around among her peaceful, graceful presence.

Side yard....

2010-07-26T09:37:00.000-05:00

This is a view of the side yard after I had worked on establishing the foundation bed recently. Spending some time in the space, hoeing, raking, weeding, observing allowed me to see some additional areas of our yard and landscaping that was in some dire need of improving. So the following day, I set out to work on clearing, cleaning, and tackling those darn over-grown evergreen trees!

I may have went a little crazy with the pruning shears and the saw, but look at all that open space now! I'm loving that view into our back yard and beyond.

A few hours later and after my hubby was pleasantly surprised, he began to get in on the action....

It wasn't long before we decided to stop right here for the night.

A Sweet Find...

2010-07-21T09:17:00.000-05:00

I'm loving this vintage hummingbird feeder I recently purchased from a local thrift shop! Filled with sugar-water and drop or two of red food-coloring and it adds a visual "pop" of color to the garden. We currently haven't noticed any hummingbirds in our yard, but I'm remaining hopeful that as the silver frost butterfly bush begins to bloom, we may just see one yet!

2010-07-21T09:11:00.000-05:00

Sometimes, gardening isn't only about planting and caring for your plants, it's about caring and cultivating the gardner's spirit. Often it is the "littlest thing" or a small change that makes a big impact, revealing something of beauty that touches you more than you could have ever imagined.

Establishing the new bed...

2010-07-19T14:38:00.000-05:00

I transplanted and divided the hosta and lilytufts out of the watergarden bed today. The petunias and angelonia were simply taking it over and so needed the room to continue to bloom. So, I also decided to removed the limelight coleus out of the header bed; since this guy is actually a shade loving plant that tolerates the full sun. I believe it will do so much better here in the newly established bed, so I planted it into the freshly dug garden bed along the west side of our house. This area changes from fully shaded in early morning, to full sun in early afternoon, back to full shade early into the evening, so it will be interesting to note which plants will thrive here and which won't. Some of additional plantings include a temporary home for a Chicago Lustre Viburuim, mainly due to size ~ and this plant is supposed to love moist, wet soil in dappled shade, so I'll be transplanting it again later in the fall. Hubby has given his approval of testing the waters and seeing how well it will thrive in our low lying wetland style area out in the rear of our acre; there's not much there of interest but the groundhogs seem to like it. I on the other hand am thankful for his approval as those beautiful blooms will be so very beautiful along with the roses, peonies, and hydrangeas. I also added in two small evergreen shrubs ~ Densiformis Taxus. They will grow to be small shrubs and can be pruned to retain their shape. I'd love to allow them to stay shorter, rounder fuller so that I prune them into some big puffy hearts. Perfect for my garden, which I so love! Together these plants add a nice little informal border, of course, I've since added a few little garden stakes and decorative features like a chair and a small patio table for a quiet place to sit and relax while here in the side yard. Doesn't every outside area need somewhere you can sit, if even briefly for a moment, to collect your thoughts and wipe the sweat from your brow. Well, that's what I discovered while working in the mid-summer July heat! I also tucked the plastic birdbath into the corner, although it's a little hard to disguish what exactly it is in this photograph, and underneath it lies the softest little area of green moss. I know because I just had to kick off my garden shoes and stand there allowing the soft, gentle coolness of the earth massage my tired feet after all that digging! Speaking of digging, I think I might just know of a few little treasures that just may look mighty good residing in those flowerbeds there.

Mid-Summer blooms...

2010-07-19T11:59:00.001-05:00

These aren't grandma's petunias growing in pots and scattered everywhere her garden, but they are scattered throughout the lower level of our watergarden bed. Mixed with softer pink flowery petals of the angelonia, it serves to softens the bed into one giant sea of luscious pink and white color that is absolutely breath-taking!

Crowded among the two lies a lone hosta and pair of lilytufts. Can you believe they've survived here, shaded from the hot, humid, heat of the summer sun by the petunias and the angelonias? I think it is rather unbelievable and that I'm actually tempting fate, so later today, I'll be digging the hosta and lilytuft out and providing it with a new home in the foundation bed that runs the length of our home on the west side. There's a mix of shade, sun, and dappled sunlight so I'm certain that they will love it there... at least, I'm certainly hopeful so!

A shot from the top of the bed in the opposite direction, looking down into the reflecting pool where the angels lie in wait, the petunias have grown out of the soil and now hang precariously over the water basin below. The petunias are thick and fill up a good portion of this bed all by themselves, while a few well-placed angelonias accompany them, glittering and glistening, softly, and silently, in the morning sunlight.

Gardening "To Do's..." and some progress made..

2010-07-19T10:02:00.001-05:00

I've been continuing to work on the changing seasons potting table. I've recently touched up the paint and scrapes and painted the top board with a nice fresh coat of white paint. I'm still loving the thought of adding a mosiac tile top to this table... I just need to get out hunting for treasures to use in the mosiac process and begin collecting the tools to work with. I, also, still love the idea of painting the slats on the lower shelving a pretty pink eye-popping color. Unfortunely, I've had no time to work on the new bench design, although I've done some browsing online at a few home-made style ones and the thoughts and dreams of creating one of my own and daydreaming of what it actually look like has proven to be thought-provoking.

In other news, the garden is doing wonderfully well. Mother Nature has been co-operating and playing nicely the past few days, even with the hot July heat. The petunias and angelonia planted within the lower level of the watergarden's basin have all but taken over and tumbled over the edges of the white cement bricks! I kid you not; it is a sight to behold! I promise some new pics, coming soon. In the wake of growing pains, the petunias and angelonia have all but pushed the hosta and lilyturts outta the bed itself; no worries about shading them from the hot summer sun, nature took care of them herself! but I figure why tempt fate? and have decided to move them today to the freshly create side yard garden! There's plenty of dappled shade and sunlight, they should thrive there! So, soon I'll move the hosta and the lilyturt from the watergarden to the side bed along the foundation of the west side of the house; along with the coleus from the header bed. I need to plant the two bare-root cinnamin ferns, then, I can fill with wildflower garden seed mix. I figure as long as the ground is warm, the soil is moist, the seeds should take root and maybe, just maybe, even bloom this year! Some of the flowers in this mix are perinneals, so it will exciting next year trying to determine what is what!

I, or should I now say, "we" ~ as Don's really starting to get into this gardening/landscaping/beautify-ing our surroundings thing along with me, made a return trip to Oakland Nurseries recently and I swear they seen us coming! We returned home with 5- one gallon pots of plants! So, now we need to actually plant the two new Densiformis Taxus in front of the house; One on each side of the front porch. I've checked the new placement of them so that they won't interfere with any future re-modeling projects to the porch and allow access for the summer time window air conditioning and fall removal.

Another new plant, which I didn't realize was a tree! is a Sweet Bay Magnolia. I'm not sure how well it will do here in our gardening zone, but hey! I'm willing to try it! I would have loved to have been able to plant this near our bedroom's windows, unfortunately, there is absolutely no shade whatsoever there, so I'm honestyl considering placing it in the center of the rear yard's "wetlands" section. I've read they love the moist, wet soil so perhaps, it will be happy there?

We also picked up a Chicago Lustre Virburium, which I'm thinking I'd love tucked under the shade of the Maple tree along the west fence row; close to the area I that desire to create a new seating area. It's in a beautiful shady location under the branches of two neighboring trees and will provide a perfect spot for a rest after working in the vegetable garden or provide a quiet place to wander off to and sit, relax, and enjoy the fruits of all our hard labor of love.

But, it was finding a Limelight Hydrangea that really touched my heart. I cannot wait to plant this and watch as she blooms beside the wishing well. She'll display her light bright green blooms in mid-summer and they'll fade to a soft, pastel pink in the fall. They'll be a beautiful addition to my "some day bouquets" of pretty pink knock-out roses, peonies, and a few fronds from the silver frost butterfly bush!

Off to continue planting, hoping, dreaming.......

Some "new" garden projects; yet to be begun...

2010-07-15T09:52:00.001-05:00

Earlier this week my friend, Amanda asked me if I'd like to tag-along with her while she went to the Salvation Army Thrift store... {isn't that how it always begins?... if it isn't my idea; it's someone else's...} anyways, I really wasn't expecting to find anything, but kept my eyes open looking for things to add our garden. First, I spied a round wicker/rattan drum style base with a glass table top that is already "white, chippy painted" and ready for just adding in under the shade of the bradford pear tree. However, it was finding this white, wood, full-size beauty that made my heart flutter.... I cannot wait to turn this into a new garden bench! Stay tuned...
*{smiles & waves}*

From "Changing table to Changing Seasons" Potting Bench

2010-07-15T09:40:00.000-05:00

While the garden continues to grow and thrive, Don and I have been busy discussing the details of what I envision this "Jenny Lynn changing table turned Changing Seasons potting bench" to become. He happily began working, measuring, cutting, pre-drilling screw holes for attaching to the pre-existing structure. We discussed the flimsi-ness of the previous "particalboard" and decided to remove and replace it with a much sturdier 1/2" piece of plywood, which I'm now envisioning paint white and a mosiac table top! How cool would that be? Of course, I'll have to start purchasing the tiles and looking for some fabulous plates and saucers to work with. I cannot wait to "potter away the day!"

A Morning Stroll....

2010-07-14T10:43:00.000-05:00

Recently I've been day-dreaming of what I'd love to add to our garden; my mind's eye sees lots of greenery and flowers where there are none, gentle, curving winding paths carved out of the lawn where none previously existed, pathways that lead you on into our rear and garden, spurring you one to see what awaits right around the next curve or corner. Don't all gardeners do that? On to dreaming about the next project or garden addition before their completely done with the one at hand?

Anyways, I sure to seem to and adding an arbor was on my "someday" list; I really wasn't expecting to obtain one so soon but when the unexpected happens and you find a deal too darn good to pass up, well, let's just say, you sigh, smile with happiness, and count your blessings one more time!

2010-07-09T21:35:00.001-05:00

This picture collage generated with Smilebox

A new angel...

2010-07-05T19:43:00.000-05:00

While the roses are busy establishing their roots and rejuvenating their blooms after a dry, humid period followed the previous June rains, I thought I'd capture a photograph of the petunias, along with my newest garden angel I purchased. The petunias seem to really love this new bed at the foot of the watergarden where they share their home with a hosta and several lilytufts; some of the annual Angelonia also assist to fill this bed. I've never had petunias grow so big nor the vines so long before but then, I've never directly sowed them into the soil before either, mostly saving them for containers for the porch and deck. These petunias have to be every bit of 14"-16" in height and the blooms are big, pink, and plentiful! Beautiful to look at or to sit contently nearby while daydreaming and watching the clouds pass by in the reflection of the water basin below.

Dreaming & designing a new potting bench...

2010-07-01T06:09:00.000-05:00

I've always dreamed of one day owning a potting bench. A bench that would allow me to putter and plant the day away... and provide a place to store some of my flower pots and some of my garden decor and small tools. So recently, while I was digging around in our attic storage, I remember this old Jenny Lynn changing table that I had picked up from the side of the road. Realizing it is the perfect height for a potting bench, I gave it a good washing, and starting painting it white! I decided since I'm just going to "dirty it up" anyways there was no sense really to go through all the sanding and priming; although I did use an exterior paint since it will mainly be stored outdoors during the Spring and Summer months. The previous two bottom shelves are missing from this table so I figured I could purchase some treated lumber deckboards cut to the exact width, paint them to add some color, and attach! For, now as I work to finish this project, I simply look forward to it changing through the seasons along with me and the flowers in the garden.

Wishes Do Come True!

2010-06-28T21:45:00.000-05:00

In my garden there is a large place for sentiment. My garden of flowers is also my garden of thoughts and dreams. The thoughts grow as freely as the flowers, and the dreams are as beautiful. ~Abram L. Urban

Rosa Perfume Delight Hybrid Tea Rose & Pink Delight Butterfly Bush

2010-06-26T12:03:00.000-05:00

I love, love, love our garden, and then, I love it some more! My husband is pretty special, too, I cannot tell you how much I love him! Not only does he allow me to buy flowers, he allows me to pick them up in pots, just waiting to be planted somewhere within the garden. I'm blessed for certain because he is the one who normally mows... hence, my desire to plant all my lovelies into their flowerbeds, making it easier for both of us to love them in our own ways. I get to enjoy them in full-bloom, while he's thankfully he's not running them over, LOL!

After a wonderful dinner in the evening, we stopped at one of our favorite garden centers, Oakland Nurseries in Delaware, Ohio. We arrived just prior to closing, but felt no rush since I knew what I was after. I've had this burning desire to add a climbing rose to our garden, and of course, a beautiful butterfly bush wouldn't hurt anything, would it? I, also, needed to restock up on some wild birdseed. The guys who work the nursery are wonderful and quickly came to our assistance, but unfortunately they only had one climbing rose left and I just wasn't picturing it in our garden. So, while the guys chatted, I continued to browse, breathing in deeply in the rose-scented air, I felt a little headed from all the excitement that one of these beauties could be making a new home with us in our garden, but I knew from the moment I smelled this beautiful Rosa Perfume Delight {a hybrid tea rose} that she would coming home with me! The scent from her is so heavenly!

I quickly walked around the garden center, taking in all the sights and sounds. Beautiful plants and flowers everywhere you look, but it was a Pink Delight Butterfly Bush that truly captured my attention. I know it will grow to become a huge bush, towering inbetween 5-6' tall and it's a arching style of shrub. It contains beautiful dark pink flowers that will bloom through the summer and on into the fall, attracting hummingbirds and butterflies to our garden. I thought it would make for a wonderful backdrop for our wishing well and the Rosa Perfume Delight rose, gently climbing up one side. Now I sit here day-dreaming of yet, another flowerbed design plan and wishing I had some white exterior paint. ;)

Secret Garden

2010-06-25T06:43:00.002-05:00

every garden should have a secret garden sign that discretely leads the way...perhaps, placed within a window box filled with petunias, or tucked in among the flowers somewhere along a meandering, curving pathway...

2010-06-23T21:58:00.000-05:00

I gave an old yard sale angel a coat of white paint by simply dry-brushing it on... no need to try to be perfect since it was previously broken and saved to be used for decorating the garden. I tucked it in around the bee balm to keep the butterflies happy.

2010-06-23T21:51:00.002-05:00

2010-06-23T21:49:00.003-05:00

A garden decoration I recently added to the petunias in the window box planter.

Hosta, Lilyturt, Angelonia, & Petunias

2010-06-23T07:52:00.001-05:00

The watergarden is blooming! The hosta is growing by leaps and bounds and the fronds of the lilytuft blow gently in the graceful breeze, while the petunias simply love and live on the sunshine!

2010-06-23T05:56:00.000-05:00

Recently, I played with an online mosiac maker so I can have some photograph prints made for my garden journal. I started to create my own handbound book but after the creation of the first signature, I suddenly realized that it isn't going to work the way I was envisioning it. There's a lot in that first signature that I do desire to keep so I'll be un-doing the pamphlet binding and rescuing whatever items I can. For years I've been desiring to purchase a bind-it-all so I can work more with thick, fat, lumpy things, but I believe I'm going to be alright with a very interactive scrapbook instead as there are so much things about creating this garden that I want to truly savor and keep as accurate as possible so that I can learn more about the plants that I'm growing and how they are reacting within the climate I've placed them in. I hope to fill this scrapbook not only with information about the plants, but also sort of a gardener's private diary as well. You may see some pics of those scrapbook pages as I begin to work to create them, of course! it will have to be only on the rainy days.....as I'll be in the garden while the sunshine is so I can capture pretty images like this!

Garden update...

2010-06-21T09:07:00.000-05:00

Don and I continue to work on establishing the garden's largest flower bed recently. We roto-tilled, removed the sod with several shovels and a wheel barrow, dumping the sod into a low-lying area of our yard,. We, then, hoed and shovelled and dug some more! We also added a few more plantings, as I was shocked to see 1 qt. pots of perinneals already on clearance when we made a trip to Lowe's {NOT that I'm complaining, LOL!} I believe the new additions will be beautiful once grown and I'm especially stoked to see the silver frost butterfly bush establish itself and grow. It's a sun-loving perinneal, so it should love it here! as I well know after spending an entire hot summer day here sweating and laboring away.

It's also a deciduos shrub which produces a beautiful silvery-grey foilage with milky white flower panicles. The tag also says it is a fast grower, and I am certainly hoping so as it will bloom this summer and on into the fall, providing some additional long-lasting color. The average size is 5 1/2' x 4 3/4' so it will fill a good section of this bed as it establishes itself and grows, providing a nice backdrop to accent the watergarden. I'll capture some good pictures of that area of the flower bed sometime while I'm continuing to lay down the remaining rock border surrounding this flower bed.

On for the left side of the floral bed., we added a new wire trellis and planted two blue butterfly delphiniums in among the existing peony bush and winter gem boxwood hedge. The plants are the only really "fixed" items in place to allow for the flowers to continue to grow and take up the space they'll require. i think I'll love the color combination when these plantings finally bloom. If I'm remembering correctly, the peony is a beautiful pink, which will contrast nicely with the green texture of the boxwood and limelight coleus and the blue delphiniums also contrast nicely. The silver frost butterfly bush is planted in the center nearby, and will produce some amazing white flowers to the garden once in bloom. I cannot wait to see them at twilight! I also found the vincas on clearance so I tucked a few of them in here and there. The potted petunias, vinca, and coleus are the only annuals I've added here.The garden decorations can be moved and replaced as needed. I did replaced the finch feeder here as the finches and the morning doves seem to love it here, although I worry about it and neighbors cats one day colliding!

I added the front of the rock border that will eventually surround this entire new bed and wind its way around to the backsideThe vinca and the coleus are planted on the left and right sides of the new bed, near a winter gem boxwood and the salvia on the right. I placed the silver frost butterfly bush smack dab in the center of the bed., hopefully providing it more than enough room to grow over the next several years. The bird bath is transportable, as so is the birdhouse that I've moved more than a few times and I dream of painting the wishing well white, but need to establish it a final home, preferably with a beautiful rose climber growing up the side of it, LOL!

I re-worked the two smaller rosebush beds, making them a little bigger, reworked the soil and added potting soil into the mix. They are now ready for mulching. I purchased three irregular shaped stepping stones to add into the watergarden area and the garden bench, it provides a nice sweeping curve that mimics the curve of lower watergarden brickwork. The stones are actually placed right upon the grass while I allow Mother Nature to do her job and kill the grass and weeds so that later I can pull them up, remove the sod, lay down more gravel and finally re-lay the stepping-stones! I leaning into thinking I should just sink them into the ground making it so much easier to mow and trim around.

More of The Dawes Arboretum...

2010-06-20T11:59:00.000-05:00

Nature's beauty awaits you around around every little bend in the road.... the property is absolutely gorgeous! My favorite was the big beautiful brick home and gardens; you'll see why next.......

Isn't it absolutely gorgeous??? I couldn't even begin to imagine what it must have been like to actually live here....... with all this lush beauty to wake up to everyday!

Me, in front of the rose garden arbor....

beautiful roses and rose-scented air surrounding the house....

and what's not to love about all these beautiful covered porches!

The Japanese Gardens @ The Dawes Arboretum ~ Newark, Ohio

2010-06-20T11:48:00.000-05:00

Don and I recently visited the Dawes Arboretum in Newark, Ohio, as you can see it was a beautiful summer day! After exploring around in the Visitor's Center we drove the car tour around to another parking area and began to explore a magnificant Japanese Garden! I loved it and would love to incorporate some of these elements into our back yard garden decor. This rock bed mimics the beauty of a beautiful river with the mountains flagging both of its sides, I just love the layout and hearing the crunching gravel underneath my feet! But I can envision this as a pathway, meanandering off, leading you somewhere...

Perhaps, onward around a bend and towards a lovely pond...filled with koi and visiting geese...... where a few small islands and bridges intersect...

and a couple choose to be married on such a wonderful summer day.....

A perfect spot for a wedding....

2010-06-18T08:25:00.002-05:00

"Don't be pushed by your problems. Be led by your dreams."

2010-06-18T08:22:00.000-05:00

The activity continues at the Reams household as Don and I continue to finish up on some of our Spring/Summer maintainance. We were able to take advantage of one of June's hot and humid days to use deck wash and power wash our rear deck. The following day, Don and I worked together to waterproof it. I'm happy to say that is now another project knocked-off off the good ole' "to do" list...

The vegetable garden is beginnig to flourish... we've already eaten a few salads made with fresh lettuce from out of the garden, The tomato plants look healthy and are wonderfully filled with a lot offresh blooms... one day promising us to become tomatoes, but we're still waiting on that first garden-ripen tomato! . We also planted sweet corn and as the saying goes, "knee-high by the Fourth of July" I think ours may just make it! Also, growing well is the canteloupe and the jalopeno peppers are thriving. The photograph to the right is another healthy green pepper plant that is potted and growing up on the deck; it's doing wonderfully well and it won't be too long before we can enjoy a few of these cooked up on the grill. I can almost take them now, LOL! Sauted in some fresh minced garlic butter with a Vahdahlia onion and a T-bone steak! Other herbs growing in the garden include: Lemon Balm - amazing in fish, chicken, and teas; fresh Rosemary - excellent on minced garlic and onion potatoes, chicken, and fish; Garlic Chives --- amazingly fresh and delishous to add to baked potatoe, potatoe and egg dishes, and to season cream cheese; of course, I planted Cilantro this year... wonderful in soups, tomatoe dishes, guacamole... and I'm looking forward to some homemade salsa!; Italian oregana... is a garden must-plant herb, especially for the tomato/pasta dishes, esp. chilled! The flavor of the oregano really comes out. And last, but never the least, some Sweet Basil.... a great accent to any cuts of beef grilled outside, goes well with the italian oregano in tomatoe/pasta dishes.

And while the rosebushes re-coupe their blooms that were shed during the recent rains, the watergarden flowers are thriving and continuing to bloom. I thank God for the annual petunias that continue to display their show of support, they remind me that God's in control and that everything's right where its meant to be! I may not have gotten all that I desired accomplished these past few weeks, but I've enjoyed the time and the love that I've spent with my family and there's nothing better than working with my husband hanging out and making our house a home!

2010-06-08T18:55:00.000-05:00

I meandered and puttered about in the garden earlier this evening, placing some of the new garden purchases, thinking about all the work I've yet to do to actually establish the flower beds. There's still things to be done, tilling to do, sod to remove, adding potting soil, a small amount of planting, and mulching, but for now, I'm just savoring these small accomplishments and creating more special moments.

As I'm entering the flower garden area I'm currently in the process of establishing, my mind envisions a mulched pathway with stepping stones between the water garden and placed in front of the garden bench, although they won't actually lead to anywhere else.

I paused to enjoy the lower level of the watergarden filled with hosta, lillyturfs, and those beautiful pink an white petunias.

I established a home for an angel at the base of the double-pink Radtkopink knock-out rose and added a welcome sign.

I sat on the garden bench and listened to the songs of the songbirds and I played arranging the garden decor and snapping photographs. I enjoyed every minute of it!

I spied another angel among the roses...

and stood there, breathing in deeply the rose-scented air, Thanking God and counting my blessings for all that he has certainly blessed me with.

I admired the pink and clear flower petal votives and the small pink votive candle that I purchased at a resale store that was sending all their proceeds to help Haiti. I love my $1 accent and who doesn't love candlelight in a garden?

Doing something I love & have only dreamed about: Landscaping and gardening!

2010-06-05T09:13:00.004-05:00

I love Spring! Having lived here on this acre of land for 12 years now, I've always dreamed of doing some outdoor landscaping, gardening, and decorating. Over the years, Don and I have done a little here and there; however most of that has up on our rear deck, accomplished with patio furniture, garden accents, and a few scattered potted plants. The deck space has never been the place I could always dreamed or imagined it to be in my mind's eye and it is always an ongoing battle and a work-in-progress. Yet somehow, when I'd look out into our back acre from the deck, it felt so open, and empty . I always had this sense of knowing, or a feeling, that something was wasn't right, there was something missing, I just didn't know what "it" was.

The property itself is truly beautiful! It is fenced in for privacy; and features many big, beautiful and healthy trees that help to grace the edges, border our property, and serve to soften all the rough edges. Yet, there was really nothing there that truly invited you out off of the deck and into the grassy lawn and the world just waiting beyond. It was missing a focal point and there seemed to be none. Well, except for maybe the old water garden, and it as you can plainly see, was an eye-sore and it needed a lot of work!

This photograph was taken in May of 2009. A few hosta's and woodland ferns lived here, but most of it was over-run with weeds! {And an a very unwelcomed mulberry bush that a not-so-kind visiting bird decided to leave us!} Or perhaps, you'd rather take a long, leisurely stroll out to see the wishing well that did very little to attract anything, except perhaps, my grand-daughter, Alexxis, who insists we walk out there on each of her occassional visits.

As Spring arrived, so did the beautiful backyard song birds; Blue jays, Cardinals, and the Goldfinches with their beautiful sweet voices always in song. While I'd sit on the rear deck enjoying my first cup of coffee in the mornings or in the evenings after dinner, and I'd hear and listen to the "cooing calls" of the Mourning Doves, or the sweet lyrical refrains of the Goldfinches, Blue jays, Cardinals, and Robins as they sang their favorite tunes throughout the day and into the twilight. It was there, in those moments spent sitting silently on the deck, that all of this truly began. I suddenly began to realize that while my life was in a seemingly endless turmoil of thoughts, mixed emotions, and had been turned completely upside-down and inside-out with uncontrolable life events, that I found myself spending more and more time out here, many days, and many nights ----just watching, waiting, sitting, thinking, dreaming, and healing; both on the inside and out.

I soon discovered myself myself hurt and angry by the path that my life was seemingly taking. I felt disappointed, heartbroken, and frustrated with people and things that are were simply beyond my control. I meditated, prolonged my own agony, and said so very many prayers while sitting here and little did I know, I began to heal as the earth came alive and Spring began to bloom and blossom.

After healing from my surgery and slowly gaining my strength back, I began tearing out the rocks that once surrounded the old water garden. I took all my hurts, disappointments, and frustrations out on the weeds surrounding it. I dug in with the shovel in anger, removing and tearing out the weeds that were choking what little life there was left out of the garden, when I realized that like those weeds, were the struggles I was going through. Little did I know it was living through a pruning process! I was cutting back the bad things in my life so that the good that was left within me and my heart could grow.

Soon, the gravel arrived, seeming to feel as raw, cold, and heart-broken as I felt inside. So, I shoveled it in the trough that I had created and much like my own life, I insulated it with a weedscreen. I realized I couldn't do all, be all to everyone, and I had to set some priorities and boundaries in my personal life.

Once the gravel was in place, there was more bricks to be moved back. It seemed so much like my life, a slow- agonizing process, down a path I didn't desire to be traveling. Day after sweet day, I toiled away there, but somehow I couldn't help but to stop long enough to wipe the sweat from my brow or the tears from my eyes. It was in those moments, when I'd spot something of interest..... mostly the birds visiting our yard's birdfeeders or a fluttering-by butterfly and I wondered about life, love, family, and God.

One day in May was just like that... I was shoveling weeds outta the vegetable garden when I noticed a newly fallen tree branch in the back of our acre. I couldn't help but stop and be memorized by how the birds seemed to love it. They fluttered about, flying down or up off that branch for a good 15 minutes, before it hit me to go get that branch and bring it up in the yard to set near the birdbath and feeder. From there, the garden and watergarden area of yard sort of spiraled much like my out-of-control life. Being surrounded by nature nourished my soul in ways I never could possibly imagine.

On trips to Lowes to for roofing materials, I'd discover myself in the garden center, dreaming of what I wanted to do, on days off from caretaking of my dad, we'd visited an Arboretum and gardens, and make the occasional stop at a garden center, and I purchased my first rose! Purchasing that rose was a God-send to me.. It allowed me to see and remember...

“Do not watch the petals fall from the rose with sadness, know that, like life, things sometimes must fade, before they can bloom again.” My life is like that.

March... April.... May.... June!!! How the heck did that happen?!

2010-06-05T08:16:00.001-05:00

Time certainly seems to fly, whether you're having fun or not! I cannot believe months have gone by...

since I last updated here.

Life can be such a whirlwind!

So many things have left and come into my life since I last posted, I don't know where to start.

Some good, some bad, and some not-so-good days scattered among the days of gratitude and blessings!

In February, I became sick and within the course of three weeks, I discovered myself hospitalized twice and under-going surgery in March to have my gallbladder removed. Then, there were the days of healing, somehow feeling blessed, yet frustration by the physical limitations, and then, my entire life seemed to twirl outta control as my future SIL was in a rollover accident and my Dad underwent surgery for a skin biopsy, then, another, then onto receiving 9 out of 21 radiation treatments for Stage IV Basal Cell Carcinoma. Then, the side-effects of the radiation enveloped my life when my Dad became very sick; enduring every conceivable side effect a person can get. Then, there were trips to the ER, the decisions of what to do... trying to get into see the Dr's. when you NEED them; not two days later. After two rough weeks of visiting Dad, making sure he took his meds, could eat, and be pain-free took over, Finally, a decision had to be made, so Dad and I together decided to discontinue the radiation treatments completely. We're currently waiting to see a Cancer Specialist in mid-June before we'll decide where to go from here.

In the midst of all that, our roof was hit with a tree branch and shingles riped from our roof in an early Spring storm. So between all the bouts of recent heavy rains, I'm happy to say we're now warm and dry as the roof is finally finished. On days the roofers were here, Don and I worked in the yard.

We completely reset all the concrete block surrounding our water garden so that we could remove out the weeds! and use gravel to assist with drainage for the blocks. One day while my Dad was feeling better and he weed-eated for us, he suggested filling in the watergarden. At first, I wasn't so sure I wanted to, well... until the reality of all the Spring maintainance came into my head, and I decided he was right. So we purchased a smaller 26" circular water basin and obtained some fill dirt, a couple bags of potting soil, and I began planting a lot of plants and flowers. Not only did I plant the water garden itself, I'm in the process of creating an entirely new plant bed surrounding the water

garden... slowly... I might add! Like "in-between"

all the raindrops!

One Winter evening...

2010-02-27T13:31:00.001-05:00

Alexxis snuggling with her Papa while watching Noggin.

Getting her "ducks" in a row...

Her shoes all lined up with ours. How cute, is that?

LOL! What can I say? Except she gets it honestly!

Reaching some of my personal goals...

2010-02-27T13:08:00.004-05:00

I've finally reached my weight loss goal! {and a little more than I intended to lose.} I began my weight loss journey on Thanksgiving 2009 and by changing my eating habits to smaller portions, eliminating a lot of processed foods, and increasing my activity the weight began coming off. By June of 2010, the majority of my clothes were literally falling off of me!
However, I toughed it out, knowing that I wanted to lose more, I resisted shopping for awhile. And here I am.... approximately 40-45 lbs. lighter, feeling healthier than I've felt in quite some, weighing in at 113 pounds. Go, me!!! :)

My next goal: Toning up!

Inspiration from Coastal Living magazine...

2010-02-27T13:05:00.003-05:00

I love Matt's illustrations and maps in the recent issues of Coastal Living magazine, so I decided to sketch one of my own, with my own memories. I'll be adding this to one of those filler pages that I'll be placing within the album.

Creative News...

2010-02-27T12:51:00.003-05:00

I'm continuing to work on this altered travel album using a 4x6 photo album from Hobby Lobby. It has been a lot of fun creating those small photo mats and using up a lot of duplicate photographs to create us a travel album. We've certainly been blessed with opportunities to explore our home state of Ohio, neighboring states, and some longer road trips.

Here are a few of the pages I've created so far in this on-going project.

Don and I at Old Man's Cave in Hocking Hills area of Ohio.

Don, while we attending the Columbus, Ohio ArtFest.

Pieces, parts, and pages. You can tell the album was filled with white pages when I began in this photograph.

The inside cover of our album and the post-bound binding. I'll be inserting more pages and the journey will continue as long as the Good Lord is willing!

2010-02-27T12:40:00.003-05:00

I'm so missing those palm trees, sunshine, and 70-80 degree temps. The photograph is of the Indian River, located near Ft. Pierce/Jenson Beach area of Florida. It is a salt-water river and contains all the same types of fish and crab that the ocean does. Yep, even Man-O-Wars and Jellyfish. It was wonderful seeing the area that my dd, Amber had previously moved to before returning to Ohio after Hurricane Frances, but sad to see some to the destruction and devastion left behind, like some of the beautiful beach homes that are no longer structurally sound. It certainly makes you appreciative of what you have!

And I loved our lunch at Mulligan's, where Alexxis played in the sand with her sand bucket; drinking rum runners while watching the sunset on the jetty! Good times! Good memories!

2010-02-08T14:58:00.002-05:00

Remind me again, why I traded in that all that sun, sand, and surf for all this

snow, sniffles, and sneezes???? And just as we beginning bailing out from one winter storm, another 4-6" is predicted in the next two days!

Off to the stock-up at the grocery store, and Yes! I buying chocolate!

The Perfect Cure for the Winter blues...

2010-02-03T17:11:00.002-05:00

Beautiful blue skies and sunshine...

2010-01-14T11:12:00.001-05:00

January 2010....

2010-01-08T05:45:00.004-05:00

Man, Time flies!

I cannot believe we've already celebrated New Year's eve,

rung in the New Year with well-wishes,

and we're off and running in 2010 already.

{Well, some of us are...} we or, I rather, haven't taken down the tree,

packed away the minimal Christmas decorations,

nor cleaned the house recently.

But I did get crafty with it and create some things for for my grand-daughter, Alexxis's bedroom/playroom!

The toile boxes we've had here @ gma's, we're just passing them on as this kid needs storage!

The tussie mussies and fabric tags are for a pink/black/white w/ black polka dots

bullentin board I'm in the process of creating.

Enjoy!

Highlights from the Christmas Season 2009

2009-12-26T09:03:00.003-05:00

Every Christmas season has them... special little, magical moments in time, when you realize things are exactly the way they were meant to be. Decorating the tree with Alexxis this year was like that for me.

I don't believe I've ever heard so much "oohing" and "ahhing" in all my life as I heard the sounds of pure delight on this night. Alexxxis loved helping me decorate our tree and I enjoyed it so much I want to make it "our" special little yearly tradition! I was so totally amazed at how gently she unwrapped the glittered ornaments from their tissue paper storage and so lovingly hung them on the tree. I apologize for the poor photo quality of the photo but at least I got one before the camera batteries died!

Our Christmas tree decorated... Thank you, Alexxis! :)
And Thank You! to Aunt Mary and family for sending us a few special gifts,
like those shown below. {We miss you, esp. @ the holidays!}

{Mary's gift to me! :)}

Alexxis opening a few of her presents!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to everyone!

Our December home...

2009-12-13T08:34:00.003-05:00

After months of remodeling, it was finally time to begin bringing things back into the room. Although, to be completely honest, I was loving the simplicity of the room and hesitated to learn to let go of that for awhile. The first thing, I to be added should be a reflection of you... so here's my first contribution to the room, a small nook for drawing and journaling --- just for me!

Of course, furniture was added, then removed or rearranged...

a variety of arrangements were tried and then, once again rearranged...

then, I began realizing it's Christmas, so I started all over again.

But awhhhh, this is so much better!

and in the process of all the re-arranging, sometimes something will get broken...

like my rooster measuring cup holder... but never fear...

there's always a decorating answer just waiting near.

Our 2nd Anniversary...

2009-12-09T13:06:00.003-05:00

A cozy, intimate dinner for two.....

@ home by the tree.... just you and me....

because sometimes, we need a little reminder...

and a surprise! waiting for you...

Happy 2nd Anniversary, Baby!

I love you!

and do you remember these shoes???

Our section of our "new" living room....

2009-12-07T06:28:00.002-05:00

July - Nov/December....

2009-12-07T06:03:00.003-05:00

On July 25th, we received an unexpected surprise when our living room ceiling collapsed and we quickly found ourselves in the middle of a major remodel!

Demo began quickly as we started tearing out the ceiling, carpet, pad, paneling, and ceiling trim.

Soon we found ourselves, tearing out and replacing both insulation and drywall with new...

a lot of mudding and drywall dusting ensued.... this was our view for a few weeks!

But only a few months later, and we added new ceiling and sconce lights...

and finished the flooring, too!

Fourth of July!

2009-12-06T10:30:00.002-05:00

Good Times, LOL!

2009-12-06T10:24:00.002-05:00

Country Concert '09; con't

2009-12-06T07:55:00.007-05:00

Don and I, taken by ??? LOL! Between Little Big Town and Sugarland performing...

Sugarland and Little Big Town were amazing! Both groups played a combination of their older hits and their new music, so the concert itself was fantastic! Here's some great shots that I captured of Jen Nettles and Kristen on stage!!!

One of my favorites of Jen!

The energy they put off on stage is absolutely amazing! And Jen's voice, well, that speaks for itself!

Another favorite!

Thank you, Country Concert '09! We LOVED you!!! and our day ROCKED!!!

Country Concert '09; con't...

2009-12-06T07:38:00.003-05:00

It wasn't before long we meeting new friends and partying with the people around us. The chick in the lower left of this photograph was from North Carolina and sat beside me:

We partied away the afternoon... then, Little Big Town came out and did a wonderful performance! The sang my favorite song, "Boondocks" and later performed, "Life in A Northern Town" along with Sugarland!

A photo of me, taken by Don.... {buses and souvenior tents in background}...

and one of my favorite photographs taken that day!

Thank you! We had an absolute blast!!!!

Catching up.....

2009-12-06T06:36:00.005-05:00

Over the course of the summer, Don and I enjoyed alot of different activities! So much, in fact, that it's now December when I have finally found a moment to edit some photographs and compose a post, LOL! I have soooo much updating to do......

Anyhoo, here's some of the highlights from our first ever visit to on July 9th to Country Concert '09!!!!

The story goes, something like this...... I signed up as a Sugarland fan on facebook and a few days later, I learn that Sugarland is playing in Fort Laramie, Ohio at Country Concert '09 with another one of my favorite country bands, Little Big Town..... {I'll let you imagine the begging that ensued... :} and long story short..... July 9th arrives and off we go!!! We made the two hour road trip without any problems, arrived at the campgrounds, purchased tickets, parked, and a special "Thank You!" to the event staff handicapped parking attendent we quickly learned the ropes.

She explained to us that we needed to get chairs in this line that was beginning to form because when they open the concert area @ 10 a.m. everyone would be running to get some of the best seats for the concert into an area known as "The Gold Circle" Here is an aerial view, I later discovered online {the Gold Circle area is in the lower right directly in front of the stage}:

When the gate opens, all hell breaks loose, people start running... some to the right, some to the left, some taking the center lane and they run, with chairs, coolers ect. trying to be the first however many allowed in the Gold Circle area and with a little help from some new friends who had been there previously, Don and I were soon setting up our lawn chair in the sea of at least a hundred or so...... "This spot looks great to me!"

and "Look, Baby Girl! Someone brought you some seats!" LOL!

Shortly after setting up, we enjoyed watching Joey and Rory on stage. They are the cutest and I just loved their Overstock commercial about the song and guitar! :)

and hubby, he's having a great time! Munching on the BLT your truly made to bring along, with plenty of cold drinks!!!

Remember Me?...

2009-09-29T08:48:00.002-05:00

I know, I know... it's been a really long, long time since I've updated here! :)

Summer was whirlwind of outdoor and indoor activities, filled with time spent with family and friends, some planned home decor and unplanned renovation projects... the latter of which is still keeping me extremely busy! I hope to post some pictures of those projects here soon... although, some are still works in progress...

I cannot believe we're on the verge of entering into October. School has began once again, there's that early morning chill in the air, and frost lightly beginning to cover the ground. We've already, well, in all honest, I've added another quilt to the bed, tossed some pillows and throws on the couch but that's been the extent of our autumn decorating. I'm trying to find some time to enjoy those little things in between the rush of summer's end and autumn's beginning, but I promise to come back soon.

After our June Road Trip...

2009-08-27T06:09:00.002-05:00

Returning home was bittersweet; you're happy as hell to be here yet your heart yearns for those mountains and those carefree summer days! That feeling, my friends, stayed with me throughout the month of June. We puttered around with this and that, set up and re-arranged our rear deck, visited with family and friends, enjoyed dining al fresco, and nesting back into our daily routines. Well, until I decided it was time to shake things up a bit with a Sugarland concert after the Fourth of July festivities. More on all that to come...

{smiles}

Lexington, Ky Arborateum

2009-08-19T08:16:00.001-05:00

A little east of I-75 in Tennessee

2009-08-19T07:17:00.002-05:00

We came across Big Ridge State Park so we ventured through before turning around and heading back to the highway. We we're both so very glad that we did, the scenery was amazing!

An old grist mill...

another view...

a quiet little stream...

and a Tennessee hillside...

2009-07-31T12:06:00.001-05:00

Whoops! My photo are a little out of order... I'll edit them later....

Stay Tuned.

Be Back Soon.

Tennessee Road Trip...

2009-07-31T12:02:00.003-05:00

Adorable...

another shot of the salt kettle, this time I found a new friend.

and another willing poser...

the outside of the museum

and the views as we headed back to our Jeep and off down the road...

Kentucky's Appalachia Museum, con't...

2009-07-31T11:43:00.002-05:00

Gift Shop entrance...

a little rustic wagon, I absolutely adored...

pieces of American history, native to the Appalachia region...

and look at that beautiful old seed counter!
The first thing outta my mouth was,
"Hello! May I take pictutes, please..."

Some of the displays scattered about the Gift shop...

beautiful glazed pottery...

The Museum of Appalachia...

2009-07-31T11:30:00.004-05:00

As we left Pigeon Forge, early on Monday morning, the skies were cloudy and threatening to rain, but as the day progressed the skies cleared, and it was absolutely beautiful as we travelled north in Tennessee, heading back towards Kentucky. Once back on I-75N, we began seeing signs for the Museum of Appalachia so we decided to go check it out.

The entrance sign as we pulled onto the property,

featured beautiful county scenes that took us back in time...

Like this rustic log cabin...

Grist Mill...

a working farm...

and the Gift Shop.

Come on.... let's go look around!

Summer '09

2009-07-31T11:17:00.002-05:00

Our summer has been amazingly wonderful to us! We were able to take a road trip, attend a summer concert, had some backyard barbeques, hung out with our family and friends, celebrated everyday to the fullest, enjoyed our garden and rear deck, paused for a moment to complain about the weather --- although, we realize it beats some of the alternatives, LOL! and said, "Thank you to God for blessing and enriching our lives."

We've reconnect with some old friends, make time in our lives for a few new ones, had an unexpected mishap that we continue to "just deal with" for the time being, and Wow! What else?! There's still items a few things we've yet to do yet... like swim in the Lake, making that "promised trip" back to Headlands State Park and Beach... hooking up the cable from the computer to the big screen so that we can have our own little "drive-in" party in the backyard, and sleep at least one night out on the deck, just to stargaze....

But today, I spent some time editing more of our photographs from June's Gaitinburg and Back road trip, that I'd love to share with all of my friends. May you find as much peace in the journey as we did!