Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Oh, the Mowing!

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We ended up mowing the entire property yesterday save for the corral, which I had mowed last Sunday. I was on the phone with my friend Doug and Don mentioned that he was going out to mow the lilac side of the lawn. Okay. But, as I sat there talking to Doug, I noticed that Don had finished that side and had moved on to the main part of the lawn. He took a couple of breaks, but by the time I joined him out there, he had finished about 3/4 of that huge expanse.

I took over and worked my way through the rest of that section, then upward alongside the house, then to the secret garden (still soggy) and the up to the back forty.

Oh lordy, we were tired. I mentioned to Don that my sections were much more ‘hilly’ and that pushing the only partly functioning lawnmower up and down the hills was not the best thing for my back. We’ll either tag team or switch sections next time.

But it sure looks pretty out there. There’s nothing like spring, when the lawn is thick and a lovely shade of green. It’s all very satisfying! But…we are resting today because it was a darned workout!

Now that we’ve passed last night’s cold temperatures, it will be time to plant some pots and some seeds. I’d love to drive over to our nursery today but I’m hesitant because the weekenders will be there and it will be crowded. But will I miss out on plants?? I haven’t purchased anything yet because the weather has been so funky. The force field is pulling me towards those plants!

The Adirondack chairs need to be moved from the shed to the porch. The cushions have to pulled out from the cupboard under the stairs. The bucket of salt for winter ice needs to go back to the shed. I’m getting an itch to transform the porch and the pots in the secret garden.

I took this photo as evidence that I love a brunette bob.

Okay, my friends. Have a lovely weekend.

Stay safe.

Happy Saturday.

Crabapples

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Last night the temperature went down to 31 and there was frost on my car windshield this morning. Tonight? 34. On Saturday things will get back to normal and I think we will have officially turned the corner into Serious Spring.

I can’t wait. My sinuses can’t wait, as well.

I’m going to do some mowing today. Same mower as last year – with the real wheel drive broken. When we can afford to, we’ll replace it. But with Don’s car repairs and some other expenses needing to be dealt with first, we’ll just have to work with the mower as is. We have to mow in smaller increments, but we get it done.

As far as I can tell, we have two different kinds of crabapple trees on the property. You remember the crabapple that was cut down by an overzealous county employee? That was my favorite kind of crabapple and I miss that tree to this day. But I have discovered at least two younger trees that are the same kind as the one we lost. They are now blooming. They’re on the far side of the house.

The blooms are a deep pinkish red. As they begin to open, they turn pink.

The flower is white and pink.

Aren’t they lovely? I’m so happy to have found them. Actually, I found them last year. This year they’re larger and there are a lot more blooms. They bring a smile to my face, which is much needed as I read the news. Enough said. You know what I’m thinking.

There are lots of dandelions on our front lawn which also makes me happy, as bees depend on them in the early spring. And even when we mow, they come back very quickly. Speaking of bees, I’ve been keeping an eye on the catalpa tree where the honey bees often reside and I haven’t seen any so far.

I’m seeing more and more green on some of the trees in the distance. Hurrah! And I’m certainly seeing buds on all of the trees. The catalpas are always the last to leaf out.

Once tonight’s cold temps are a thing of the past, we’ll be saying goodbye to winter for good.

Stay safe.

Happy Friday.

 

 

Flowers, Working in the Garden, Remembering Mom

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Some flowering quince for you today. That particular bush has more flowers on it this year than I’ve ever seen. It’s quite beautiful (but thorny.) I took photos of the lilac buds and a robin’s egg I found on the driveway, but it was so breezy yesterday that everything was moving, so nothing was in focus.

I found the robin’s egg in the middle of the driveway. It had been dropped and you could see the yoke inside. I suppose some bird stole it. It made me sad.

Also found in the course of raking out the area where the weeping willow used to be: the long missing cap to the gas tank on our lawnmower. We looked and looked for it at the time it went missing and couldn’t find it.  So now we have a replacement should we ever lose the current cap that we had to buy two years ago.

We’ve been working a lot outside, I started cleaning out the area where the weeping willow once stood and, much to my surprise, Don jumped in and really did a great job of getting rid of much of the stump and digging out brambles. I got distracted by our neighbor across the street who came over to say hello after the long winter. Right before that, our next door neighbor drove down his driveway and we said hello to him. It’s always this way – everyone sort of retreats for the winter and then we reemerge in the spring. It was great catching up with Laura. We are so lucky to have them for neighbors.

I’ve been raking out more of the garden beds, trimming brambles/wild roses (which grow alarmingly quickly,) yanking little intruders in the big garden bed. I do a little every day. On Monday, we did too much, and then I did even more yesterday, so today is for rest.

We had below freezing temperatures overnight and will tonight, as well. Then, it looks like we’ll stay on the warmer side. I have yet to do anything on the porch – the only summery thing I’ve done is to add the cushion to the glider. No potted flowers or hanging plants yet and I’m thankful there aren’t or I would have been hauling them inside last night.

Today is the 10th anniversary of my mom’s passing. Ten years. How can that be? I miss her so much.

Love you, Mom.

Stay safe.

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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