Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

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Green

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I decided to power through my lack of sleep yesterday. I added top soil to some of the garden beds and I mowed the front lawn (both sides). Goodness, I always forget that the first time is always the hardest! I’m not in my best lawn-mowing-shape yet, but I’ll get there.

The lawn slopes downhill and the land behind the house is on a higher elevation. That means that rainwater flows down hill and the grass gets really long – really quickly. I knew I had to mow soon or I would be dealing with constantly clearing a clogged lawnmower.

I took a break halfway through. I do love seeing a freshly mowed lawn and the spring greens that are popping up all over the property are so lush!

I came in, took a shower and laid low for the rest of the day. Today it will be in the eighties and I’m going to do some plant, topsoil, and mulch shopping.

I slept well last night, so I’m feeling much less ragged this morning.

I found the hyacinth bulbs a few years ago when I was digging a new garden bed on the side of the house. I had no idea what kind of bulb they were. They had been buried deep within the soil. So I took a chance and planted them in the big garden bed. Imagine my delight the first time they came out of the ground and I discovered they were hyacinths! They’re awfully pretty this year.

This is one of the Italian pots we purchased a few weeks ago. I’ve filled it with lavender, which should do well on the very sunny funky patio.

And here are the other two. I’m not sure what I will plant in them, but I’ll figure it out.

The pansies are keeping me going as I wait for my garden plants to grow and flower. They’re so darn cheery!

I hope your weather has changed for the better and that you are able to get outside and do some therapeutic gardening! Speaking for myself, it makes an enormous difference in the quality of my life. After many years without a garden, I started gardening in earnest at our rental in San Diego and then when we first moved out east, I asked my landlord if I could put in a little garden on the side of our rental cottage. Seriously, I now wonder what the heck I did all those years without a garden! Tended my houseplants, I guess. I still do that.

Happy Wednesday.

 

Pansies

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Hostas are emerging from the ground along with ground covers, day lilies, phlox, sedum, grasses, poppies and more. Once the warmer weather and sun kick in, it’s always fun to see how quickly plants start to grow.

I stopped by our local nursery yesterday. There’s not a huge amount of inventory available, but that will change now that spring is here. I picked up some bags of top soil and a flat of gorgeous pansies, since I knew I could plant them in my urns. They’re hardy – just in case we get a freakish cold weather day.

It’s immensely cheering to see some colorful flowers on and near the porch. Pansies make me happy.

I’ve been watching a British gardening show on Netflix called Big Dreams, Small Spaces. The host is Monty Don, who is a sort of gardening hero in Britain. I knew about him via Instagram (I follow him) so when I came upon this show, I was thrilled. He works with people who want to turn front or backyards into a beautiful garden and it’s a lot of fun. Plus, I learn a lot.

Heaven knows, we can’t expect any gardening shows from HGTV. Those days are apparently gone as they’ve locked into an endless stream of House Hunters and “Flip” shows, all of which bore me to tears. I realize they are a cash cow for the network but for me they’re a big, fat yawn. I really only watch Home Town – and that’s over for the season. Remember the days of gardening programming? And a host of other wonderfully unique shows?

Thank goodness the Brits are true garden lovers. I imagine there will always be garden programs across the pond. And thank goodness for Netflix!

Today it’s a ‘rain all day’ kind of day so I’m going to run some necessary errands.

Happy Wednesday.

Adventuring

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Lovely day with my husband yesterday. It was beautifully sunny and in the mid-sixties. We went to brunch at a favorite local restaurant and then proceeded to drive around randomly, adopting our “road trip” attitude. I still think about our trip across the country last year and I miss it; the adventure, being open to new experiences, stopping when someplace or thing looks interesting. We decided during that trip that adventuring with that attitude attracts wonderful experiences and people.

We had a taste of that yesterday. I felt my shoulders drop. So did Don.

We discovered a wonderful family run farm market, greenhouse, and wholesale vegetable farm called Davenport Farms.

Favorite thing of the day: this vintage cooler with that fabulous Art Deco font. Still in use after all these years. I love it.

We found some lovely pots and I bought a flat of pansies and some lavender.

I also found these, which made me gasp!

I haven’t thought about these in probably 40 years! I used to suck on these all the time. I love root beer and the flavor of Reed’s Root Beer is intense and long-lasting. It was like reuniting with an old friend! Obviously, I bought them and Don and I proceeded to drive with the windows down, sucking on root beer candies. Heaven. (I did some research – they were made in Chicago.)

We also had some great conversations with the staff. I’ll be going back for sure.

Also saw this in front of a local restaurant:

We tried it out, of course. Sadly, it isn’t for sale. Sigh.

We came home, unloaded the car, took it easy and then made dinner, topped off by watching The Post. Excellent movie and never more relevant than today.

And now I have to get ready to drop him off at the bus station.

I’m just happier when I’m with him. That’s a fact.

Meanwhile, not much is blooming here in the early spring, but the first batch of daffs are gorgeous.

And the lilac buds are getting fatter.

I’ll close with a remembrance of my dear mom who died four years ago today. I love you, Mom. I miss you every day.

Happy Tuesday.

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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