Three little pansies.
Every year, I try to game the onset of wintry weather and see how long I can keep my porch plants alive. At some point, I have to throw in the towel, of course. Two days ago the nighttime temp went down to 29 degrees. I didn’t want to bring all the plants inside, so I placed them in a group on the porch floor and attached an old sheet from the back of the glider to the two Adirondack chairs. It worked! I moved this planter onto the porch, as well.
But, a quick glance at the weather forecast tells me that next week we’re headed for below freezing temps every night, so I expect I’ll give up at some point.
Last year I couldn’t play this little game because I was away working in NYC.
I missed it.
We’ve needed to reorganize the shed since Don brought home several bins from the storage facility. We finally did it yesterday. (Side note: we’re sore and tired today.) But boy, did it feel good to figure out where to put everything so I can have access to my garden/potting space and we can have easy access to the bins with Christmas ornaments, garden tools, mower, and snowblower. It’s very spacious in there. We stacked the bins vertically. It also gave us the opportunity to sweep the floor and bat down some cobwebs. The guy who owned this house before us built the shed as a place to store his motorcycle. It’s quite large.
While we had the doors open and were working just outside the shed, another murmuration of starlings took place. This time, they were flying over our heads, swirling, soaring – and we were right in the middle of it. I cannot tell you how magical that was! We stood on the ramp to the shed, birds flying all around us, filled with awe.
And as I write this, another murmuration just occurred! This time, they were flying all around the front porch and our neighbor’s property across the street.
Word on the street is that Don is making an apple pie today.
The winner of the calendar is Chris K! Chris, send me an email with your address and I’ll get that out to you.
Stay safe.
Happy Thursday.
Fun to organize.
It can be. It certainly was yesterday!
Stay safe, Brenda.
How nice that those pansies persevered with your handiwork on the porch! Pretty flowers… It’s been cold here, too, but not as low as your temperatures. It always feels good to have things organized…wish I could be that way more often! Stay warm and enjoy your pie!
Had a piece of the pie last night after dinner. Ummm ummm good!
Stay safe, Barrie.
That must have been very magical standing in the middle of the murmuration. I can picture it. A lot of people might have been scared. Enjoy your day. It’s much cooler here. We’re trying to save a huge pot of nasturiums and geraniums that has been living on our porch. We have room in our back shed to shelter them in the winter.
Congratulations on winning the calendar, Chris.
Enjoy your day. Rest those sore muscles and eat pie.
Hugs, Elaine
It was magical. Don kept saying “I just want to be present and appreciate this.”
Stay safe, Elaine.
how fun for you and don to see two starling murmurations! you were definitely in the right place at the right time.
glad you have some more surprise pansies, too.
and good job on the shed (i love to organize things).
congratulations to chris k for winning the calendar. and for you to get some homemade apple pie! :)
another earlier-than-usual start for me here today. all for a good reason. and hopefully with the bonus of getting my sleep schedule back on a better track.
hope everyone has a good, easy day.
stay safe!
kathy
Thanks so much, Kathy!
Stay safe.
Laughing about the “word on the street” about pie. I’ve been making applesauce (basically just apples cooked down in water, no sugar needed as the apples are so sweet), but a bit of pie dough around them would be a lovely addition….
ceci
Hmmm…sounds like your next project, Ceci!
Stay safe.
Apple pie, warm from the oven, sounds fabulous!
We just dove head first into winter with six inches of snow on top of shrubs and trees still holding onto their leaves. Our pond has a skim of ice after lows in the teens. All new experiences for our pup–could you hear her on the opposite coast as she vocally and shrilly let us know that she thought the snow shovel was the scariest, most exciting toy ever?
I could hear one lone bird as I raked and clipped and scooped in preparation for the storm. Maybe I can look forward to a flock of cedar waxwings soon since the neighbors’ hawthorn has a nice crop of berries this year.
My houseplants are safely indoors again and I’m hoping for a lush display from my Christmas cactus in a couple months.
I understand why people love autumn, so cozy and mellow. I thoroughly prefer the months when I can enjoy our garden instead. I’m glad I have sewing projects, crafts to try and my trusty watercolor paints to keep me sane until the first sprouts of Spring.
Whoa! That’s a lot of snow, Roxie.
I love autumn but I love spring and summer more!
Stay safe.
Oh, my, Claudia!!!! How exciting!!!!!!! I order a SB calendar every single year, and have it in my kitchen. I had not ordered my 2023 one yet. What fun. Thanks so very much to you and your very very kind reader who sent it on to you. ♡
How interesting to see all the birds for a couple of days in a row. I don’t remember you talking about them in previous years. Just happenstance that your little corner of the world is where they are assembling this year? Are they getting ready to migrate? Hope the pie was delicious!
Take care.
So glad you won! Congratulations!
We see murmurations every year. They happen all over the place here in the Hudson Valley. I even saw one in NYC last year. But we haven’t seen as many as we’ve seen this year. I believe they’re getting ready to migrate, but I need to research that.
Stay safe, Chris.
Nice to have revamped the shed while the weather was still good. I think I may have missed the boat on nice days to tackle the garage. With no heat it becomes a “what can I do in X minutes” versus “Let’s spend the afternoon working on the garage.” You remind me that I need to start bringing my rosemary plant in at night and probably harvest the last of the oregano (the weather was so nice I got new growth.)
It’s always something!
It is.
Time to get used to the idea that my porch plants will die. Sigh.
Stay safe, Jeanie.