Tuesdays tids...

...I don't think I've done a Tuesday tid-bits at all this year.  Not to worry though, there is still plenty of crap this and that and the other thing to get me through.

*for the majority of the country Memorial day is the unofficial start of summer.  For western Washington the unofficial start of summer is July 4th.  I am still wondering when we will see the start of spring, official or otherwise.

*I still have not planted a vegetable garden, and with our shortened growing season I am wondering if I should even bother.  It is all weeded and tilled so I guess I should plant something there before the weeds make their come-back.

*I have a serious case of dry eye which is really cutting into my computer time.  It makes watching t.v. with your eyes closed a little difficult too.

*I keep falling asleep while I'm watching t.v.

*Last week at Marshall's I bought two sets of "skinny" hangars.  These are slim hangers that are coated with a non-stick surface to keep your clothes from sliding off (the hangar not your person).  They also take up less space in the closet.  I have no excuse to not clean out my closet now.

*I hope my fat clothes will not be too offended.

*here is a picture of my favorite new toy:

more to come...you've been warned!  Happy Tuesday y'all.

for all of us who live in Freedom...

In his second Inaugural Address, in the midst of the Civil War, President Lincoln called on our embattled Nation "to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just, and a lasting peace, among ourselves, and with all nations."  On this Memorial Day, and every day, we bear a heavy burden of responsibility to uphold the founding principles so many died defending.  I call on all Americans to come together to honor the men and women who gave their lives so that we may live free, and to strive for a just and lasting peace in our world.



source

Songs in Ordinary Time...

...those of you who are former Catholic school girls will remember that "Ordinary Time" is time of year following Epiphany and Pentecost.  Rather than meaning common or mundane the term comes from the word "ordinal" which simply means counted time.

The rest of us probably remember it as an Oprah book club choice back in the late '90's and a LMN movie thereafter.  It was an enjoyable book but for me the movie did not live up to it's full potential.  Such as it is with books and movies for me.  

Ordinary time for me is just that...ordinary.  And although it does not celebrate a certain ''feast' or 'event' it is a day to cherish and rejoice.  Today I sang a song of ordinary time.

With no constraints against me for my time or energy I awoke to a beautiful sunny day.  After a great nights rest and no alarm clock grouchily waking me up, I savoured my cup off coffee.  With no where to go, nothing to do I simply went about my day.  Dishes, laundry, making the bed...none of these things feeling like chores today.  Nothing pulling at me to be done or finished I made my way outside and took a little nap in the sunshine.

I pulled some weeds, finished planting my seeds, transplanted a few things that needed bigger pots, re-arranged the old pots to see what or if I needed to replace.  I spray painted some odds and ends, for a later post.  I thought about sweeping the porch, but didn't.  I thought about raking the dying moss in the yard, but didn't.  I thought about walking the dog, but couldn't  didn't.  In every way it was just an ordinary day.

No dinner plans except to throw a few things together as hubby put some Halibut on the grill. 

No misery, no mayhem, no complications.  An ordinary day that would pass others by without an second glance, or be put down as 'boring.'  Not to me...I rejoice in the ordinary days.  They are a rare gift in my life and I love when they come around...my heart sings a song of ordinary days.

Is your heart singing today?

google images

It's a knockout...

...this last fall, winter, spring has been so much rainier than years past, even for us.  We unfortunately have lost a lot of our garden plants.  Most of my bulbs are gone, I think they just may have become water-logged, our Rhododendrons look pitiful and only one of our many rose bushes survived.

We had a small garden of roses along the back of the house, all but one being planted in honor of or in memory of a special person or horrific event.  None of them made it through to bloom so we, meaning the hubs, dug them all out and this became my cutting garden, which remains a work in progress. 

I was a little saddened that so many roses were lost especially since they held a special place in my heart.  So recently, while perusing blogs, I came across several people who were crazy over the Knockout Roses.  I did a little research on them and found that they are a hardy shrub rose that can be grown in a pot.  I mentioned that we should keep an eye out for them next time we were in the store and lo and behold we came across two last week.  One of them jumped right into my cart~~right there on top of all my groceries and such.  I couldn't get it back out as it insisted on coming to live with us...

As directed I planted the little bugger sweetheart in a pot and it's on the patio where I can easily see it.  It is gorgeous!  Scarlett colored blooms, tons of them, and the plant is a nice compact shape.  I can't wait to see it bloom all Spring and Summer and I love the fact that they don't need to be pruned or deadheaded.  I need all my plants to be self sufficient!   Do you own a Knockout?

from the tag:
The Knock Out^® Family of Roses are easy to grow and do not require special care. They are the most disease resistant rose on the market. They have stunning flower power with a generous bloom cycle (about every 5-6 weeks) that will continue until the first hard frost. All of the Knock Out^® Roses are self-cleaning so there is no need to deadhead

Paper dolls...

...I am sure that most of you are at an age where you remember paper dolls.  I can remember my favorite, Connie Frances, and trying to cut out all the clothes and accessories that went with her.  It was quite a trying time for little hands and scissors and trying to punch them out along the dotted lines was just impossible.  I had many paper doll clothes that were taped together!     As I was browsing tonight I came across this dress...made completely out of paper, for a real live person doll. Incredible...

"For her creative processes class Jolios Paons designed this paper dress from only phone book paper. A whole lot of pleating takes this unique creation from waste to couture.  She did all the cutting, sewing and pasting all by hand.  To see more go here."

I hope she got an A!  Happy Monday y'all...

Things I've learned, or learnt...

...while blogger was on a bloggy break the last two days I learned a lot of things about myself, more than I am willing to share at the moment but a few I will.


1. FB is a poor substitute for blogging...at least for me.  I need to get things out, get them down, write 'em, scream 'em, what ever it takes.

2. I am a passionate person who can not keep things bottled up.

3. I can not be alone.

4. I missed all of you.

5. I had to bake.

I was completely surprised at just how important blogging has become to me.  I missed all of you, I missed our connection to each other...it is something that I have come to depend on and when you all weren't here I was a mess.

It's so nice to have you all back.  Please don't leave me again...*sigh*...

The divine Miss 'M'...

just shy of 3 months
22 inces long
10 lbs.
*ahhhh-gooo*

Because of her...



flowers from my duaghter today
for
Mother's Day...



...I am a fiery, Irish, red-headed girl.

...I am passionate and funny.

...I love my morning tea and afternoon coffee.

...I cherish my family and adore my grand-baby.

...I embrace beauty and love.

...I am faithful and have faith.

...I am married to my best friend, my biggest supporter.

...I have manners, respect, and compassion.

...I grew up in a wonderful home that would rival Donna Reed.

just like her...

...I have endured unspeakable loss.

...I have little patience for stupidity.

...I have suffered the sting of depression.

...I have no green thumb, pretty hands, or in-style shoes!

....I am torn.

I had a much different post in mind tonight but the words just wouldn't flow when I sat down to write.  My mother deserves much more than a little list from me.  She deserves to be remembered with respect, with a smile, with love.  I miss her more than words can begin to say, just as I miss the little boy and my dad.  She was the driving force in my life and continues to be so now.  There is nothing that I do that doesn't cause me to wonder what she would think.  Most of the time I think she would be happy and proud. She was a force to be reckoned with and she left behind a daughter who is her biggest fan.  Love and squishes to my mom today and always...j

Field of dreams...

...shortly after we moved into this house the hubs and I began plotting out our gardens.  He wanted a nice little veggie patch and of course, I wanted a flower patch.  We were fortunate enough that the yard had been landscaped by the builders so we didn't have that expense and could just concentrate on filling in places.

The hubs built two raised vegetable gardens on the south side of the house, about a foot off of the ground and easy to work in and maintain.  Every year we planted a little hope along with our veggie seeds and most of the time we were gifted with a few tomatoes, carrots, asparagus, squash, peas, and the like.  Most of the time.  Last year was a bust.  I think the late Spring and Summer had a lot to do with it and this year is turning out to be an even later start.


We decided recently to shake things up a little and add a few new items to the patch.  I came across some interesting organic seeds online and ordered some...dragon carrots, black fatso pumpkins, boothby blonde cucumbers,costata romanesco zucchini,watermelon radish, sweet chocolate peppers, and touchstone gold beets. Along with the usual peas, fava beans, and tomatoes.  The names alone conjure up some interesting ideas.

 

In addition to, and new this year, we have taken out all the roses bushes that lined the back of the house.  They just didn't survive the extremely wet fall, winter and spring.  The hubs turned this into a raised bed and added some new amended soil for me, also raising the bed to accommodate my needs to sit while gardening.  ( I can't kneel on my prosthesis and taking it off outside to crawl around the yard is not something I want to do.)  I am going to turn this area into a cutting garden.   I've gathered more seeds than necessary and more than I ever have planted before, in fact, I have never planted a garden of flower seeds!  Always opted to buy bedding plants.

I''m planting zinnias, hollyhock, sweetpeas, italian sunflowers, calendula, and radicculus.  I also have some pansy and poppy.  I know I can't cram all of this into one little flower bed but I am anxious to plan it out and see what comes up.  With the exception of the sweetpeas and the poppy these are all new to me...

so I hope you will come along with me and watch my garden grow.  Are any of these your favorite and do you have any advice for me?  How does your garden grow?

to quote...

 "I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that"

-Martin Luther King, Jr.