As Our Life Goes On

The East side of the moss garden is almost covered with moss that was gathered from other parts of the yard. Small flowering perennial plants are planted randomly through the moss. The plants were selected for their non-aggressive spreading style.  There are several different varieties of moss that vary in color. The edge of the has garden has medium sized square shaped stones. Larger rocks are inside of the border. A bird bath sits on some rocks near the edge for easy maintenance. The birdbath is the only water feature in the yard aside from the wetlands at the bottom of the hill. 

This large and very fat toad is quite welcome to stay around our yard. It is possible for a toad to eat 10,000 or more insects during a Summer season according to Ask.com. This toad looks as if it has eaten very well recently. It is resting on the wet cement in front of our breezeway after a rain. The blossom and seed fallout from the red Japanese maple and other trees surround the toad.

The tulip poplars are really full of the beautiful blossoms. Soon the colorful petals will drift to earth and seed pods will form. If we could do a re-do of where we placed trees around the house we certainly would have not planted many of the trees where they stand now.  The leaves on the tulip poplar are very large and a bit more difficult to blow away with the blower. These trees are now huge and so they will stay where they are. The red Japanese maple was here when we moved. This is a very messy tree from Spring to Fall. Bushels of the tiny blossoms have fallen from the tree and soon the seed pods will whirl their way to the ground. Then in the Fall the many leaves in the tree will fall onto the cement pad in front of the breezeway and clog the gutters just like the blossoms and seeds have done.   The flowering crab apples next to the driveway litter the drive with blossoms, leaves and the gushy little fruits. Again, none of the trees can be moved so we will have to live wit

Let us remember Those who died for our country Memorial Day -Caroline

Tomorrow is a day set aside for remembering those who have fought and died in the service for our country.  Please keep this in mind as you celebrate this holiday. 

I just could not resist pulling out my phone to capture a picture of this sign in a small strip mall near the center of town. Certainly some prankster has tampered with it. It is in front of a kick boxing establishment that is due to open soon. 

A sudden rain storm Welcome thunder and lightning Moisture falls to earth -Caroline

The nest on our bathroom window sill did actually produce 3 baby robins. They are just about ready to jump out into the world. They are still being fed by the parents but from time to time one of them stands on the side of the nest and flaps its wings.  Rain is badly needed in our area. The green patches on the radar continue to skirt around us. The wetland area at the bottom of the hill has dried up again. The birds are being offered fresh water in our birdbaths but they clean off their bodies in the water that they drink. 

A bug's in my ear Not the electronic kind Crawling and biting As it travels on the edge. Now I know Summer is here -Caroline

This old restroom at the Tour Ed Mine in Tarentum, PA is actually quite clean and usable. Outdoor restrooms and outhouses come in many shapes and sizes and degrees of cleanliness and repair. Since we have bought our old camper van it is not necessary to use these old outhouses any more but we just can't help checking them out to see what they look like inside and outside. None of these places is a place to linger reading a magazine. 

Pure white flower blooms Small yellow center flowers   They' ll brighten your day -Caroline

The may apple bloom Underneath umbrella leaf A hidden beauty -Caroline

The large pink blossoms on the thorn apple are so beautiful this year. The tree is not so pretty. It has many dead thorny branches and seems small and twisted compared to the large trees that surround it. We do look forward the the bountiful display of blossoms each Spring. 

Delicate lilies Your scent intoxicates me Beautiful white blooms -Caroline

The cold weather has slowed the the revisions being made on the East side of the flower garden. This side of the brick path will be sparsely planted with a few perennial flowers and ferns. These plants will be surrounded by a variety of mosses that are being gleaned from various spots in the yard.  The predicted rain and warmer weather should make finishing the project go smoothly. The side of the garden to the West of the brick path will go some revisions also. It is very crowded with some plants that seem to have taken over.  Flowering shrubs in the back yard are still emitting sweet smells. The robins on the bathroom window ledge seem quite noisy and defensive today. I don't hear any baby robins yet. I have sown inexpensive packets of mixed wildflower seeds across the back of the hill above the bike trail for many years. Today I spotted a lone flower plant that survived. It is the first to ever bloom. It is better to buy the plants from someone who is thinning the

Solomon's Seal blooms Bell-like flowers ring out, "It's Spring" Graceful and pretty  -Caroline

Happy Mother's Day to all mothers and those women who have nurtured a child. 

The mess in the garage this morning was a bit puzzling until Russ started looking around. The legs on a set of sawhorses had been chewed until they were ragged. They had been upset and were laying on their sides against the front bumper of my car. The box that holds the new mailbox that we have not yet erected had holes in each side. Shreds of cardboard were strewn on each side of the box where large holes had been ripped.  We thought that it might have been a raccoon but the garbage can remained undisturbed.  As he poked around the box a groundhog ran quickly under the car to the safety of the small area under the heavy workbench.  I think that this may be the groundhog that I saw in front of the house yesterday. It ran when it saw me and it must have sought refuge in the garage. When we locked the garage it went on a rampage trying to escape and destroyed the legs on the sawhorses, chewed into the box to see if that would be a nice new home and generally made a real mes

A dried up blueberry from last year is nestled on top of some of the blossoms on the largest of our 3 wild blueberry bushes. These wild blueberry fruits are quite small. There may be enough to sprinkle a few on top of some cereal or ice cream. Two of the bushes have only a few blossoms but the large shrub has hundreds of blossoms. 

Yellow pollen from the trees coats the cars and the surfaces below the trees. Not sneezing seems impossible. The flowering crab apples have thousands of blooms and blossoms  and the white petals from the trees above are starting to drift down and litter the driveway and fill the gutters on the house. The hemlock trees seem particularly full of the yellow pollen so I have avoided brushing against them as that causes a great golden cloud to come from the tree. Spring sure is a pretty time though. 

Warm day with sunshine Cirrus clouds and bright blue sky Criss Crossed by jet streams -Caroline

As I looked out across the fields from the back of our camp in Pennsylvania.  The view to the old church and school house on top of the hill is very clear. There is a piece of fiberglass missing from the top of the equipment shed on the farm next door. Years ago this might have been fixed very fast. The farmer next door has health concerns that have slowed down the amount of work that he can put into the necessary repairs. The farmer and his wife are both in their mid eighties. The sixty some acres of farmland have been leased for the last few years.  It does not seem that long ago that horses, cows and feeder  pigs were raised on the old homestead. Time does seem to fly. These perfect friendly and tolerant neighbors may not be living at their home for too much longer. This is a sad thing. 

The Japanese Red Maple tree is just outside of our breezeway door. Two flowering crab apple trees flank the sides of the driveway in the upper section where we generally park cars. Soon we will have to abandon parking in these spots. The white petals from the flowers on the crab apples will soon be snowing down in great numbers as evidenced by the number of blossoms shown in the photo. The Japanese maple is an equally messy tree, pretty now, messy later. Stuff falls from both of these trees from Spring to late Fall. It fills the gutters and can clog the vents under the windshield wipers of cars. Pretty though!

Come and sit with me and we'll watch the garden grow Flowers will bloom soon -Caroline

It appears that the good weather has finally arrived. One side of my little flower garden is filling in with flowering perennial plants. The other side remains ready for revisions. Some weeds will have to be eliminated before anything can be done. there. A birdbath is perched at an angle on a large rock. This rock will be leveled slightly. Rocks and sandstone pieces will be moved around. There is a chance that the brick walkway will be extended. There are so many other yard tasks at this time. Some projects will have to wait.