Saturday, July 20, 2013

Garden delights


 Mr. Rabbit sits patiently in our garden next to a flower he knows isn't real. He's enjoying the view just the same, however, and so am I. Our garden received seventeen days of rain in July, then 8 days of intense heat, and, then, last night, another huge thunderstorm.
This is why the phrase, fresh as a daisy, makes sense. The purple flowers are a nice accent, don't you think?

Our garden gate is on the north side yard and on the other side of the arborvitae is our neighbor's house, now effectively screened out..not an easy feat on the small city lots in town.
 The wind chimes are under an arbor of climbing roses in the backyard. I have at least 4 wind chime sets and love to hear them out my bedroom window at night. That is one of the consolations of no air conditioning.
 The rain is  responsible for our garden looking so nice this year. That, and our landscaper, Jim Palinkas of Gardenport in Huron. My talent is letting Jim plant whatever he wants, wherever he wants, and whenever he wants. He has turned our small city lot into a garden of paradise.
I add the garden art and then nature does the rest!  Every day something new is in bloom. I haven't used any annuals except for a few begonias this year. I am not a gardener. I am one that admires gardens and that is a huge difference! It took me years to understand this and stop trying to make a garden when I dislike working in dirt, heat, etc. Paulette loves to garden and she can't quite understand why I am willing to pay someone else to do my gardening for me. Hmmm. I tell her they call it yard WORK for a reason. I actually love books on gardening, gardeners and so forth. In fact I have a large collection.


 


The first gardening book I read was May Sarton's Journal of Solitude. It isn't really about gardening, but, she was a passionate gardener living in Maine, and I noted that she had a gardener that carried out her master plan gardens.

I loved Onward and Upward in the Garden by Katharine S. White (E.B.'s wife) and also loved The 3,000 Mile Garden by Leslie Land (great name, huh.) The Lavender Lover's Handbook by Sarah Baden gives me ideas on adding to my collection of lavender plants.
 
Good friends, Bonnie and Scott Rose are master gardeners and Scott makes his living as a horticulturist. I look forward to seeing their new garden in Michigan. I enjoy walking through Paulette's small city garden...it suits her personality and I think that is why I love it so.
 
Ron put fairy lights in our trees and along our fences and the view at night is just as enchanting as the daytime. Come join us anytime for a walk about-it really only takes a few minutes, that is, unless you stop to smell the roses!
 

 

Friday, July 5, 2013

First ever RV

Maybe I received the camping gene from my Great Aunt Alberta. At age 102, she can still recall her first camping adventures in a 1919 auto that she and her 4 sisters used on a trip from Iowa to Yellowstone.  Leaving the farming to hired hands in the summer, her parents set out for adventure, taking their 5 girls, a cousin, and her family, traveling caravan-style. They used a farm tarp and pitched that over the vehicle to create a makeshift tent, cooking over an open fire. Alberta recently gave my brother the tin cooking utinsels and metal coffee pot that were used.  The photo above was taken at the RV Hall of Fame in Elkhart, Indiana. 


There were more than 50 donated rigs on display, many of which you could walk through. Upstairs there was a library with a collection of manufacturer's catalogs, and photos of the first rally of the Tin Can Tourist in 1917. 
 
Yesterday, we went to our "summer home" aka "Nina" for a 4th of July picnic dinner. Well, actually part of a picnic. We forgot the hamburger, Ron ran over the grill with his truck, and I put the potato salad in the freezer instead of the refrigerator! We couldn't find the pole to pull down the awning, so, three nearby campers formed a human ladder and pulled the strap until the awning unfurled.  We had a light drizzle going, but, sat out on the picnic table anyway. At least the toilet was working. After a "camp call" from Barnes RV on Tuesday, we were back in business, so to speak.
 
There were lots of rigs, and campers, too,  of various sizes and types at the campground and plenty of activites for the kids. Fishing derby, scavanger hunt, bingo, to name a few.  We'll be back today and most of the weekend, so, stop by if you are in the area!