A few years back, Don decided we should do something with what was the parking area. Well, it still is the parking area, but Don thought transforming a small section of it might be fun and it would give us another seating area. Off we went to Lowe’s where we bought some pavers, then on to a local nursery, where we bought some whiskey barrels. And thus, the Funky Patio was born.

Don has good ideas.

The pavers are a little uneven. I constantly have to weed whack so the patio isn’t taken over by dandelions and grass. But it’s worth it.

We used to pull the car right up to the house. Now, there’s a lovely outdoor patio between the house and the car. Much better. As always here at Mockingbird Hill Cottage, this was done for very little money; just the cost of the pavers and the whiskey barrels. We already had the chairs, the bench and the birdbath.

The chairs are one of my favorite things around here. We bought them from a local antique dealer, gosh, probably about 7 years ago. They are so comfortable! They even rock a bit. We used to have them up in the back forty, but eventually we moved them down to the patio. (I’d love to have two adirondack chairs up in the back forty. Someday.)

The birdbath has been around for quite a while, but when Hurricane Irene sent a huge limb from our Sugar Maple crashing to the ground, the top of the birdbath was broken in two. Those pieces are now in the big garden bed, functioning as garden decor. (Ironically, last year another huge limb from that tree fell – this time right on the big garden bed – and one of those pieces broke in two – again.)

I realized that I couldn’t go without a birdbath. I love watching the birds frolic as they take a dip too much! I managed to find a birdbath where the pieces were sold separately and now the birdbath is once again intact.

I mean, really, would you want to miss out on this?

I didn’t think so.

I replant this galvanized tub every year. This year it has a mixture of sweet potato vine, gomphrena and strawflower. I may stick something else in there. It needs some height – something taller.

The whiskey barrels are planted with geraniums. The barrels need more plants, but that will have to wait.

I’ve had this red piece for several years. I really wasn’t using it, so I punched some drainage holes in the bottom and now I’m using it as a planter. That’s lantana, a favorite of mine. Very Southern California, at least, to me. I used to see it everywhere in San Diego.

More sweet potato vine, this time in a pot my mother gave me. She found it at a local art fair.

It’s a lot sunnier on the patio this year. Losing the latest limb from the Sugar Maple has had an impact on the garden and the patio. I’ll be watching everything closely this summer to see what plants are affected by the change in light. I miss that limb so much. It gave us some lovely shade as it gracefully arched over the big garden bed. The tree looks strange without it.

Ah, well.

Happy Wednesday.