life on the gravel lane

Sadie's favorite cat is Teddy Bear... she just doesn't know it yet! Ted B. adores Sadie. He was the runt and has a funny sound and wobbly walk. Anytime Sadie is around, Teddy wants to rub faces, but Sadie's favorite activity is finding Daddy. When she spots him coming up the lane and runs past the rooster's territory, he sounds his warning!

droplets at sunset

The rain stopped right before dusk. You can keep the morning...

Foggy mist smudged the outline of the trees into the darkened sky. The air was heavy with sweetness, but yet crisp and clean, freshly washed. The irises, late in bloom and looking tired, folded in for the night, their blankets damp.

back then, now, later...

Another rainy day for writing and creating...

I just stepped out into the sprinkles to look from my balcony down to the goat shed. I have been putting some attention into sprucing it up since it's the focal point from the front porch. Here is an old picture back when we first built it. Except for the detail on the doors - not much to look at... I added shutters, a nice shrub, a rock border, some Japanese blood-grass, mulch and a bird bath. Plus with the new trees and shrubs in between, it's beginning to look picturesque. There are some baby willow trees (my own propagation) to the right and left that are too small to see. This is what it looks like today...

The next things I will be adding this year (God willing) are a trellis with ivy on the blank wall, and a fake window box with wood painted flowers that will brighten even in the winter! I'll probably plant another pine in the big open area, and the bird bath will get a deep green coat.

That should be enough for awhile. I'll turn my attention back to the 'people' shed...

Pay Dirt!

I tease Hubby frequently on laundry day about the small pittance he gives me for the chore... It's usually just a dime or a wad of string. Every now and then I get a palm full of change. But today... ah!

Ohio Gardening Kit

A few weeks ago, Hubby picked up this gardening kit for me at the nearby Tractor Supply Co. I already have all the hand tools I need for the job, but he was thinking of me... sweet.

My old recycled steak knife was my most often used tool until the last couple of weeks...

This time of year in south-western Ohio requires some special items that you won't find in your run-of-the-mill garden shop. One would have to spend hours driving around town to locate all the needed supplies. We're all trying to save time and gasoline, right? So, I have decided to market a gardening kit made specifically for the Ohio Valley area. It contains all the essentials needed for the hobby gardener in this area... All shipped directly to your doorstep, so you don't need to be out in the flying cotton balls any longer than necessary. Please indicate your choice of Wild Cherry or Honey Lemon.

WARNING: Please check with your Respiratory Therapist before beginning any gardening activity. Some users may require a higher dosage of medication than contained in this kit.

baby steps...

My asthma treatments are slowly working... I snuck outside today to help Hubby with the next step of my project. I wanted to concrete around the top slab so the sand base wouldn't wash out.

Hubby readied the site by clearing the sand around the slab. He then mixed up the concrete while I was a safe distance from the dust. (He's great.) That left me with an easy sit-down job. He shoveled the concrete mixture into the larger areas, so I could just use my little gardening shovel to fill the gaps. I then pressed the crushed brick into the top layer of concrete.

The crushed brick will soon replace the mulch under the steps. It will flow down around the bottom slab and on down to surround the stone steps to the lower level. I was hoping to open the pool this week since Grand #2 will be here for the summer. (she is a water rat-the one being flipped in the video) but we've got a ways to go and I hear the thunder coming closer. That's good news though... Hopefully God will wash all these little puffy things from my airspace and I can get some work done!