May 2024

I've always said I loved that Judson was a May Day baby.  It seems like the perfect day to have a birthday. 

I'm grateful I got to be his mom; I would not have missed that for the world. 

Peonies from the back yard.  Mary Sue, the original gardener at this house, planted these. They're much earlier than other varieties that I've had in the past. 

We went to Jubilee Farm to walk the labyrinth.  It was beautiful, perfect weather. 

Mark has made the cutest garden space: 4 tomato plants, some hot peppers, basil, dill. Skye is going to be so mad that she can't get to the green tomatoes this year!

June 2022

The volunteer petunias are outshining the alabama sunset coleus so far.

Mark's firestorm daylily

that cute little oceanna girl with her daddy

Mark and Kyle with a good fire going.  Skye was happy :)

We had to say goodbye to Walker.  He was feeling so bad.  He's a great cat, I know he's having a great time hunting in the garden on the other side.  And he sent  this cute little Annie girl right away!

Mama got thru her surgery.  We're glad that's over for her!

No pictures of mama's garden?  I don't know how that didn't happen.  Here's Powers Pond.

And now we're thru June--half of 2022 already gone.  Wonder what July will bring?

August 2020

My favorite coleus of all time, Alabama Sunset.  It reminds me of my UK days.  They had it planted everywhere on campus and it just glowed.  I heard that the horticulture department hybridized it there, but I couldn't find anything online to confirm.  But anyway, whoever came up with it found a winner.

Oceanna has some pearly whites these days and a big smile to show them off! 

Betsy and Kyle and Rachel have been coming over for dinner lately, we're trying to catch up for all that stay-at-home virus time!  We're so glad we can all visit again.

I spent today at Petals & Co and gave the front flower pots a facelift for late summer.

It's time to start pulling out the fall silks.

More from July 2020

The front flowerpot, full of petunias and a mandevilla.  Lots of people have commented about how pretty it is.  We're late July now, so that means watering the containers everyday, feeding a couple times a week. I don't usually mind, it gives me something productive to do while I'm thinking about the virus and the economy and how school is ever going to happen this year.

Mark and Skye fishing.  This was a big catfish!

The best thing that has happened lately has been getting to visit with Betsy and Kyle again!

Our days get brightened when new pictures of Oceanna come through.  She has her daddy's blue eyes!

Jeff and PJ opened mama's pond and sent this sweet picture of her.  Her dress matches the ageratum :)

More from May

The lilacs at the pond were so pretty!  We're doing a renovation of that flower bed. 

New chairs

Oceanna at play

I went out to cut peonies for a vase and Skye started helping!  Bad dog!

There are hundreds of peony blooms out there. They are so heavy that they're flopping over, so these came in to sit a spell in grandma's vase.

V came over for the first time since the quarantine.  It was good to have company again

View of the Backyard

This is from the fence looking back up at the rear of the house.  The white dogwood on the right and the pink dogwood at the far left were just beautiful. 

And this is one of two flower beds at the back of the yard.  This one has the nicest birdfeeding post surrounded by perennials.  We planted a jet star tomato at the base of the post and hoping we can tie it up as it grows.  We've had four plus inches of rain in the last couple of days.

 The pictures of Oceanna are so precious!  She's a cutie and it looks like they are having so much fun together. 

 Mark fishes in the pond and Skye watches him from the fence.  Mama asked me why she doesn't get to go fishing too, but she would be in the pond if we let her out there!

 "Our goal is to remember with more love than pain, at our own time, in our own way, and at our own pace" David Kessler

Judson's birthday on the 1st of May.  I always loved that his birthdate was May Day. It  seems the days leading up to special days like this are harder than the actual date itself.  We miss him something awful, but we're so glad we were given the gift of his life.

I wanted to make a three-layer cake just to have something special for his birthday.  It was small, six inch layers, and it was pretty for a minute. But there was an incident and only the top layer survived!  Actually, I think it turned out better than planned and it made me laugh.  Who needed those bottom layers anyway?!?   I finally wore my sweatshirt that says "mom, I'm fine."  I can just hear him saying that to me. . . 

 The top layer--with lots of coconut and pecans :-)

Look how she's growing!

I swore these iris weren't going to get to stay in the garden. But now that they've bloomed, I think they will get to stay.  I dread the weeding, but they're so pretty! 

Our neighbor John took this photo of sunset at the park. Our house is a few houses further down into  the park and we have a good view of those beautiful sunsets.