The Bright Side of the Gloom

I thought this picture would be self explanatory, but maybe not.



You see, this picture appears to only represent one week's worth of weather. In reality, it's much more than that. This week of solid rain marks the beginning of the rainy season in the Pacific Northwest. A rainy season that last time, lasted until July and even tried to infiltrate August.

I'm not sure how much more of this I can handle before I try to seek out a different climate. It's not just the rain and the gloom, it's the wet socks, the muddy dog prints, and the frizzy hair.

I'm going to have to focus on the bright side. I have a huge covered porch so I can still spend some dry time outside. I can also plant my garden in containers so I don't have to give that up. I have a fireplace to cozy up to, and I cam spend my time knitting and crocheting. Oh! But that's a story for another time!

My Mom's Blog

Hey everyone.  I'm super excited because my mom has started blogging... it seems like only yesterday she was learning to text.  Aww, they grow up so fast. Hehe!

Yes, this is my same mother who feeds and waters birds, squirrels, blue jays, raccoons, cows and coyotes - in that order.  (Timeline of My Mom's Critters)  Her blog is about her garden (of course).  She wrote her second post today and it's about her cactus that she has been trying to grow for 2 years.  This year, it finally started to bloom for her.  She has been nuts about it since it's first flower.

Whenever I see my mom, which is almost everyday, she pesters me non stop about taking pictures of her new favorite plant - it changes almost daily. So, we made a deal.  I would take a picture of any plant, or worm, or compost pile that she wanted, as long as she wrote a blog about it. Looks like she upheld her end of the bargain!

You can check her out here at NanasGardenBlog.blogspot.com.

Perches

On the last sunny day we had (which seems like forever ago) I was enjoying time in my garden (of course). I had Captain the cockatiel outside with me as usual. He was feeling especially needy this day and didn't want to sit in the tree like normal. I took an old piece of a broken plantation shutter and made a little swing for him to sit on.




I think he quite enjoyed it. At first he didn't like the swinging motion. After he got used to it he swung in the sunshine and sang songs to the wild birdies who were at the bird feeder on the other side of the porch.

Captain isn't allowed to play with the feral birds because they might have illnesses or parasites. Plus, he can't fly. So, if a bully bird like a stellar jay comes along, I'm afraid he wouldn't be able to defend himself or get away. I don't worry about it too much because he is bigger than most of the birds in the yard, plus, I've got his back.

It wasn't long after I had hung the bird swing under the porch that Chopper the garden eating dog began to feel left out. "Dogs don't perch", I told him. He begged to differ and when I still refused to build him a perch, he commandeered one of his own.




Sammy, my last dog, used to weed my mom's garden. You only needed to point to the weed an tell him to "get it". He would tear it out of the ground, shake off the dirt from the roots, toss it aside and wait for the next one. I think he only ever pulled the wrong plant once. Of course, by the time I get to gardening, I've got a dog who sits in a chair and watches me while I do all the work and he eats all the veggies.

Welcome, September

It is POURING outside right now.  I am at work looking out at the parking lot and watching gigantic raindrops fall on the pavement.  I wonder how my tomatoes are doing at home?  The bell peppers and patio tomatoes are in containers and they are fine, I'm sure.  My beefsteak tomatoes are probably gettin pummled.  They are partially under the eve of the porch and so I am hoping that will help to keep them safe from the weather.

The good thing about being at work today is that I can grab the lettuce and chard seeds out of my locker and get them started.  I currently have nothing to plant them in once they are ready to go outside.  I'm going to plant the seeds anyway and just cross the container bridge when I come to it. 

I am hoping to also get some broccoli and cauliflower for my fall garden.  I will need to pick up some containers for them for sure.  There is no way that I am going to root around in the mud trying to get them in the ground.  I did enough mud gardening this Summer to last me the rest of the year.

Does anyone know if you can plant parsnips in the fall?  No one suggested them.  I hope I didn't miss the boat.  I have never eated a parsnip, but they seem to find themselves into stews frequently and so I thought it might be a cooler weather plant.  Thanks people!

Anniversary Bummer!

I'm super bummed out! Shawn just told me today that he wasn't able to get off of work or our anniversary weekend. I was really looking forward to surprising him with our trip to skibowl.

I told him about what I had planned and he said that it seemed like something he would really enjoy. It was sad because there really isn't another weekend that we will be able to do it. It's about to get cold on the mountain and the adventure park will close down and the ski area will open up. Plus, Oktoberfest is only that one weekend.

Hopefully, we will be able to find another weekend to go away together. I really want it to be soon, but that means it will be more of an autumn/winter get away. I'm sure I will be able to think of something, but I would prefer it to be something Summer. Maybe I am still in Summer mode. Perhaps Shawn would like to go snowboarding this year instead. That would be a pretty good surprise.

New Baby and a Big Boy

Exciting news, everyone! My sister-in-law has started having pretty regular contractions tonight. Right now they are about 4 minutes apart, but I hope that things pick up soon because I can't wait to have a new little niece! It seems like only yesterday that I was registering for my own baby things. I had such a fun time picking out everything for Caleb's nursery. From curtains to Crib Bedding, I had it all perfectly coordinated and all set up by the time he arrived... okay, about 24 hours before he arrived!

I'm been reminiscing a lot lately about Caleb when he was a newborn. He is still a little baby in so many ways. He is only 2 1/2, but sometimes he seems so big. It's hard to believe that 3 is just around the corner. Recently, Caleb gave up his pacifier, which he called his sucker. I told Caleb that I would give him anything in the whole world if he would just give up his sucker. I was just about to suggest a trip to the fair as a reward when he blurted out that he wanted "a party with a cake".

This weekend will mark 1 month that Caleb has not had his sucker. The weekend after is his "So Long, Sucker" party. Caleb has a lot of adoring fans that are coming to the party, and I don't have enough seating for everyone. My solution is to bring in some old wooden chairs from the garage and comfy them up with some kitchen chair pads. I also have a large hearth which I will put some pads on and it can be used as a bench.

Another thing that I am doing to commemorate Caleb being a big boy and giving up his sucker is redecorating his room. That's right, all the cute little baby blue crib sheets and pillow cases are going into storage. Time to make way for new big boy stuff. Even though Caleb is sleeping in a toddler bed, I have been buying twin sized sheets for him. I just tuck the excess underneath the mattress. I don't see a point in buying toddler bed sized sheets if the bed is going to be upgraded soon. I am going to get more twin sized bedding when I redo his room.

Instead of getting little boy bedding, like Disney characters, I decided to go with teen bedding. I figure something timeless like stripes or solid colors would work well. That way he can grow into it and it won't be dated or too "little kid" for him in a few years. At first I thought I would do his room in Disney Cars characters, then I thought about Star Wars. I realized that his tastes will probably change before too long and then I will be stuck redoing this room every few years. By keeping it timeless and going for an older look, I will be able to save money in the long run. I figure this bedding can last him until it's time for me to look for college dorm room bedding.

Nearly every time I look at Caleb, I marvel at how big he has gotten. It just seems like he is growing up way too fast. I know that once I lay eyes on my new little niece (hopefully tonight!), that it will really hit me - my little baby is a big boy after all.