Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Day Ninety-Three

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This morning. A gorgeous coolish day.

Also this morning:

The discovery that deer have chomped on our oldest – and biggest – hosta. Darn it! Time for my deer spray. Maybe I can save the rest of it. That big gap of dirt should not be showing.

I suppose it could be the groundhog but my money is on the deer.

We mowed like crazy yesterday, so we are tired today. But it looks lovely out there.

A scene from the porch:

The daisies that Don picked for me? Let’s just say…they stunk. Don first noticed that they smelled like manure. Every time we passed them in the kitchen, that aroma wafted our way. So I put them in a sturdy vase and found this place for them on the porch, where they’re still thriving several days later.

It’s a “take it easy” day today, though I have to wash the sheets and vacuum. By take it easy, I mean no mowing, no major work in the garden. I’ll make up a batch of deer deterrent and spray it on all the hostas. Hopefully, that will keep our little friends from dining on my plants. It’s not as if we don’t have all sorts of other green things for them to eat on this property!

Stay safe.

Happy Sunday.

Day Ninety-Two

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Don decided to run to the store this morning to get some yogurt and a couple of other items. He came back with those items and…disinfectant wipes!

Oh, heavens! He always checks and it looked like the shelves were empty but he found some lemon-scented wipes way at the back of a bottom shelf. He had two containers loaded in his cart but he put one back so that others could buy some. And then he pointed them out to a young woman, who gratefully loaded one into her cart.

He’s a better person than I am.

That and Peet’s Organic  French Roast. Good job, Don!

It’s a gorgeous day today; sunny and cooler and no humidity. There may be some mowing today, we’ll see.

It’s coming along nicely. I am so addicted to these puzzles. Sometimes maddening, sometimes overwhelming, there are few things better than finding the right piece and snapping it in place. I could spend hours on it – and have. I forced myself to clean the bathroom yesterday, deciding that my reward would be puzzle time. Maybe that’s how I have to approach all those chores I dislike.

Finished the Maigret I was reading and I’m about to start the last of three that I recently purchased: Maigret in Vichy. Then I need to go to my TBR pile and choose a new book to read.

Other than that, there’s nothing new. We’re doing well. We are self-isolating. We aren’t going to change this new way of living for a long time. Not until there’s a vaccine.

Hey, I haven’t asked this for quite a while – What are you reading?

Stay safe.

Happy Saturday.

 

Day Ninety-One

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One of only two peonies this year. I usually see five or six times as many blooms. The peonies, along with the lilac and the bridal veil spirea all suffered from that late frost we had in MAY, of all things. The other plants seem to be fine. But it really impacted these hard workers.

All that being said, this flower is beautiful and the scent – as always – is heavenly. Don leans down to sniff them when he returns from his morning walk.

Yesterday was crazy – torrential rain and high humidity. I stayed inside except to water the porch plants and take some pictures.

The hollyhock that I planted last year in this galvanized tub came back this year. It’s right by the kitchen door and throughout the winter it stayed there, exposed to all the elements. But some of the leaves never died and I kept seeing new leaves – even in the midst of late winter. Hollyhocks are biennials; they take two years to complete their life cycle. As the weather got warmer, this plant shot up and has three stems.

I don’t mind saying that I’m thrilled, especially since it was in a pot and ignored throughout the winter.

The same thing happened with my lavender, which looked, after being left on the porch throughout the winter, like it was a goner. Closer examination this spring showed a tiny hint of green, so I put it back on the bench on the funky patio. I cut back the part of the plant that had died and waited. Now it’s green and beautiful and growing tall.

You never know, do you?

I saw the groundhog this morning but he had run away by the time I came back with my camera. Also saw a catbird bathing in the birdbath.

A good way to start the day!

Stay safe.

Happy Friday.

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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