Window Boxes

I often drive by this old vine-covered garage with living quarters but it wasn't until recently that I took a real look at it. This could be my little "home away from home"....a place I could visit and do nothing but think.

I've never lived in a house with a window box, but always notice them and always admire them. This one is being held up by two pieces of wood, is coming apart at the seams and there's an old clay pot sitting inside of it.

I started wondering what could be done to make the dilapidated window box look loved and happy again. Maybe this would look nice.

A few days ago I drove by and there under the window box were beautiful low-growing white flowers, thick and lush and gorgeous (and me w/o my camera). The window box looked perfect just the way it is and doesn't really need a makeover. Some things are better just left alone.

Mourning Doves & Even Sweeter Things

It was my intention to write about these sweet Mourning Doves who have built a nest (if you can call it that) on the stones right below our clothes dryer vent. I've only seen the nest one time without one of the birds keeping the two eggs warm and luckily I had the camera with me.




Something made me stop what I was doing and take a look at Beth's blog, ArtCricket2. What I found there was a much sweeter bird nest, a more important nest. It's a story about two sisters who love each other and care about one another, have fun together and enjoy each other's laughter. Beth's sweet sister is awaiting a double lung transplant. I'm repeating Beth's words here, but she said it best. Please whisper a prayer for this beautiful person. And for Beth, too.


Thank you for taking the time to care.

Stone Soup

One of the books Phillip brought home from the library was Stone Soup by Jon J. Muth. The story of how the villagers came together to make soup from stones intrigued him and he had the idea that we could make stone soup, too.

He went outside and looked around for the perfect stones, three of them because that's how many were on the cover of the book. I gave him a brush and he stood at the kitchen sink and scrubbed them clean and then we boiled them a good long time to make sure they were clean.

Then he cut up some celery with a table knife while I cut the carrots. We added a little minced onion and some chicken broth and finally the stones.

We put the soup on the stove to cook. Yes, I know the burner is too big for the small pan, but I couldn't be bothered with that detail while he was so excited about cooking.

Then it was time to taste the soup because as he said, "That's what all the chefs on TV do." He was only this close to the burner for the minute it took to take a taste and I was watching him carefully. Now that I see the photo, it looks dangerous being so close to the burner while wearing that robe with the sleeves that are too long. We do a lot of early morning cooking in this house, maybe we should get dressed first.

Although the soup making was fun for the both of us, he also learned the lesson that even in hard times we all have something to give and that by giving, much more comes back to us in return. I love this boy.

NOTE: You've probably figured out that I won't ever be a food/cooking/recipe blogger.

Garden Bloggers' Muse Day - May 1

"O the green things growing, the green things growing,

The faint sweet smell of the green things growing!

I should like to live, whether I smile or grieve,

Just to watch the happy life of my green things growing."

- Dinah Maria Mulock Craik -

Dinah Maria Mulock Craik (1826-1887) was an English novelist and poet. She died of heart failure at the age of 61 while preparing for her daughter's wedding. Reportedly, her last words were, "Oh, if I could live four weeks longer! but no matter, no matter!"

My friend, Sue, at UrbanLittleHouse has a great post about gardening that I'd like to share with you. If you visit her blog, you won't be disappointed. I promise.

Happy May Day to everyone and thank you to Carolyn at Sweet Home and Garden Chicago for hosting Garden Bloggers' Muse Day. It's easy to join in. Post a poem, a quote, a photo, your thoughts on gardening or whatever friendly thing is on your mind. Then, leave a comment on Carolyn's blog saying that you've posted. You'll meet a lot of interesting gardeners.

THE MONTH OF MAY MAKES ME SMILE

Much Mulch

This cocoa hardwood mulch was delivered yesterday.....all 18 yds of it. With cheerful enthusiasm we happily started to spread it on the beds. After about two hours we were headed to divorce court, but recovered in time to make good progress, have a nice dinner, take two Advil and fall into bed. Mulch makes me kind of sad. Although it's handsome-looking and shows off the plants/bushes in a way that plain old dirt can't do, I prefer being able to dig in the dirt without having to mess with the mulch and then there's the worrying that we (my husband) covered a plant that won't be able to find its way up through the mulch. Today will be another day of work.

The Fern Leaf Peony has big fat buds like this one. It's a plant with an interesting history which I'll share when it's blooming.

The Delta Blue Hyacinths are blooming. Although they've multiplied since being planted in 2005, the flowers are getting smaller. Maybe that's to be expected. I don't know very much about Hyacinths.

The pretty little Anemones. They always seem to be waving me over to take their picture.

Wisconsin Spring Wildflowers

Mayapples (Podophyllum peltatum) show up before the trees have leaves and are sometimes referred to as umbrella plants because they resemble a closed umbrella when first pushing through the leaves, like the one in the photo below. The plant will eventually open into an open umbrella and be about 2' tall. We have them growing in the areas of our yard that have been left natural. More about them in a couple weeks.





On a walk through our neighborhood, I saw colonies of blooming Trout Lily (Erythonium americanum). The name comes from from the spotted pattern on the leaves which looks a lot like the pattern on a Trout, the fish. Other common names are Dogtooth Violet and Yellow Snowdrop. The petals only open wide and curve back like the one in the second photo when the day is warm and bright. I know, it's hard to believe that we had a day like that.

At first I thought these were Wild Geranium (Geranium maculatum) but now I think they're False Rue Anemone (Isopyrum biternatum) because Wild Geranium flowers are generally lavendar. I should have looked at the leaves more carefully. Indians made tea from the roots for medicinal purposes. The plants are dormant during the summer.

According to one of my wildflower identification books, this looks to be Flowering Spurge (Euphorbia corollata). The flowers are white and the leaves are linear, without teeth and smooth. I need to take my book along when walking in the woods or take better photos for identification purposes.

I do so love the Marsh Marigold (Caltha palustris). They are one of the first wild flowers to bloom in the spring and are seen growing in wooded swamps, wetlands, near creeks and other places where they get a lot of moisture. The flowers are a very bright yellow and are easily seen when driving down a country road. These plants were growing close to a creek in a lowland area.



Although certainly not a wildflower, this Forsythia growing in my neighbor's yard deserved to have its picture taken. We don't have as many pretty blooming Forsythia as they do south of here so when I see one like this, I stop and enjoy the beauty.

My Anemones are blooming now but because of the wind I wasn't able to get a good photo, except for this one bloom who was willing to cooperate and stand still.

Can you stand one more Daffodil photo? I took this picture because of how the moss looks in front of the Tete-a-Tete. The colors are a little washed out because of the sun. We'll be doing mulch soon and the moss won't be seen for a while.

A Country Road

These photos were taken on an early morning drive down a country road on the way to my mom and dad's house.