Well Hello my Dear.... (Deer!)

I do love my little house in the woods!

So Many Plants, So Little Time.....

In case you've been wondering where I've been and what I've been doing for the last week - I've been planting, moving, rearranging, mulching, fertilizing, pulling, weeding, trimming, watering and replanting. Whew!

We have about 4 acres with hundreds of trees and two buildings on our lot -- which cast tons of shadows at different times of day. Every 50 feet represents a different "microclimate" in our shadowy, hilly yard -- so knowing which plant to put where has been a major problem. They might do well for a few weeks, and then the sun moves over slightly and -- a whole new microclimate has developed which may NOT be suitable -- causing yellow leaves, sparse blooms, root rot, mold and - um- an untimely death. :(

It's taken me two years of documenting shadow zones and times, damp areas, dry crests, etc. to figure out which plants do well where. I've moved things about 3 or 4 times in the last 2 years -- totally revamping the beds - pulling everything out -- putting everything back in - but finally, I think I've gotten it right. My family just doesn't understand that a "true gardener" is constantly moving things around in an effort to locate the ultimate "sweet spot" for each plant.

Here are the results of my obsessive/compulsive moving, pruning, watering, mulching, weeding and seeding...... (and it's only Spring!!!)

Front Yard:

Back Yard:

This is a four-tiered water fountain that was constantly getting full of leaves, birdseed, and other delightful birdie tidbits that, if not cleaned out every few days -- just didn't look right. So, I filled it with dirt and planted in it. I miss the sound of the water -- but it makes an awesome planter. I'll probably clean it out at the end of the year and try the "water thing" again next year. But for now .....

Notice my purple picnic table in the background? Sabrina and I love to sit out there in the early evenings and in the mornings and have tea.

Perennial Lavendar - grows fantastic in North Carolina. Green all year and doesn't bloom only in January and February. And smells soooooooooo good....

Gizmo follows me around the yard - everywhere I go.....

and is NOT camera shy in the slightest!!

And finally, the vegetable garden. Hey Tammy - the sunflowers are about 6 inches tall already -- and there are peppers on my pepper plants, and flowers on the tomato plants!!!

Now I can't take all the credit for our landscape as my husband keeps the trees and bushes pruned, the lawn green and the brush cleared -- a HUGE job -- and he keeps things looking great :)

As an aside - I've also been doing some sewing -- but nothing blogworthy. In fact, I am not happy with what I've been working on so I'm not even going to talk about it right now. I'm still ripping out seams!

Enjoy your week.

Yeah - it's Friday!!!!!

Meet Eddie.... The picture to the right is my newest toy that my dad sent me last week. It's the coolest data collector/thermometer (named Eddie after my dad - NOT the company that markets it!) Eddie comes with a sensor that is mounted outside on the house which transmits data to this little device that makes him change his clothes according to the weather. As you can see -- it was 28 degrees when I took the picture so Eddie is fully dressed in his winter clothes with winter precipitation depicted. Now in Florida my dad's device (he has one too!) has Eddie all but naked (he's in his little beach shorts) with a sun shining above. Eddie has many accessories - an umbrella, a beach chair, a snowman and every morning we (Sabrina and I) rush to see what Eddie is wearing to see if it's going to snow!! I LOVE him! (Thanks so much daddy. I know you got tired of me trying to steal yours!!! )

Anyway - it's been a busy week. Haven't had a chance to do much of anything FUN except work and chores. I am looking forward to finishing up with the aforementioned (work and chores!) and getting my hands dirty in SOMETHING this weekend. We are supposed to get snow tomorrow (we'll see!) and if so that will entail some playing outside -- but aside from that , it looks like it's going to be a good weekend to grab a yummy soy latte, work on Sabrina's dress, maybe do a little painting with my new Tsukineiko inks, finnish up the book I'm reading (Mayflower), start Leslie's art quilt and cuddle with anyone who will have me -- probably Gizmo!

Have a great weekend -- find a creative (!) way to stay warm -- and check back for progress pics over the weekend!!