Saturday

you never know who or what is watching you ~

6:30 yesterday morning ...
I'm sitting in my chair by the window with my camera ~ watching four black squirrels raiding the bird feeders ...

and trying to get into the grill ...

when I see a flash of black out of the corner of my eye ... thinking it's another black squirrel ~ crawling over my plants ... about three feet away from me ...  on the other side of the window pane ... the camera is up to my eye as I scan over that direction ...



Dang... that's a big squirrel ~~  zoom out a bit ...



Cheez Whiz and Peanut Butter on a Cracker!!!  
I hate it when they sneak up on me. 

It was a yearling bear cub ... around a 100 pounder.  He was sneaking up the steps of the deck.  I'm sure he was on his way in to check out the hummingbird feeders and the sunflower seeds that the black squirrels were snacking on.  Those were the only two snapshots I got of him.  I think I startled him as much as he startled me :)  He took off on a full run for the woods.

Never a dull moment around here.

Until next time ...
So it goes in my neck of the woods.
~mel

Sunday

fairy garden ~

Along the side of the garage I put in a flower bed the full length of it.  I decided it would be a good place to turn into a fairy/gnome garden since it's under the eaves and doesn't get beat by the rain too bad.  

This is an on going project :)

It has lilies of various shades, peonies, dianthus, irises, columbines, lily of the valley, semps and sedums, succulents and hostas growing in it.  Also tucked into the plantings are little homes for the fairies and gnomes.  Eventually, as the plants fill in, the little fairy/gnome homes will blend right in with nature ~ as intended.  

Who knows what you'll find in the garden ~ as the little woodland creatures are known for their mischief and borrowing from the humans.  When you first glance at the little garden you don't notice what all's going on. Fairies and gnomes like to blend in and have some elements of surprise.

Like this ... it's unexpected ... it's  a big old bone ~ sitting on a birch bark mat with a little rocking chair ...
 a nice little place for a weary gnome to take a rest.

An outside dining area ... with a coco-mat floor and fern frond walls ~ a nice place for an evening feast.


  A pathway of bamboo ...


... leading the way to the next little home.


Follow the stepping stone path ...
past the bird houses and chimes ~

There lives a grumpy old troll ... 


I don't think he likes rhymes :(



Who lives up there in that hollow tree?  Do you know where I put those skeleton keys?

Further on ... down the path of sea shell stepping stones ... 
yet another house ... more complete ...
an arbor and picnic table ...
and a fire pits with seats.
Are there hobbits in the garden ... or a fairy or elf?


Who lives in the hole of the hollowed tree?
The garden's full of mystery ~ you must look very close to see.

Be careful when walking the pathways and trails ...
there are dangers here too ...
like a fence line of wire that will trip and confuse.


Trinkets and treasures I'm sure will appear ~ who knows what will show up in here.


Until next time ...
So it goes in my neck of the woods.
~mel

Happy Mother's Day ~

I hope you're having a wonderful Mother's Day!

Dear Hubby and I jumped on the 4-wheeler this morning and took a ride over to the farm to see my Mom.  Of course, she was out and about ~ putzing around in her flower beds and just getting done with her morning chores of feeding and watering her chickens.

The farm is no longer overflowing with kids and critters as it was in it's prime.  There were nine of us kids, actually 10 but I had a little brother that passed away as an infant.  I don't know how she did it; but somehow Mom kept all of us in line and we all made it into adulthood without too many problems... lol.  (me probably being the only exception... I was the little hell raiser out of the bunch).  Mom blames me for 3/4 of the gray hairs on her head.  One out of 10 ... that's not too bad of odds! You done good Momma!!



She's so proud of her little flowering almond which finally decided to bloom ~

Yes... that's a gun propped up against the tree in the photo ... I had to eliminate a sap sucker for her that was nailing holes in the willow and apple trees; which kills them.  Gotta keep the momma happy :)  She doesn't like sap suckers.

I took  a stroll around the place to see what's going on ... like the blooming of the chestnut tree.  It's just loaded with bees and swallow tail butterflies.

The old fence fence, no longer of service ... which once held back cattle and horses in it's prime is now showing it's age:


A set of old wagon wheels from Dear Hubby's grandparents place.  When we moved into our present house we put them over at my Mom and Dad's place up against the fence while we were building.  We never brought them home ... they found their home against the fence line at the farm.

A LOT of great memories over at the farm ...  and I came home very grateful for such loving parents growing up there.  My Dad has passed on; but I still carry very fond memories of him and think of him every day.  Mom's lifetime partner is gone, she's lost two children already but carries on, knowing that someday she too will be reunited with those who have gone before her in eternal life with Our Lord.  Until that time comes... I wish her the happiest of Mother Days!  Remembering and cherishing such fond memories throughout her lifetime ... like the day she had me!!!!!!!!

H A P P Y   M O T H E R 'S   D A Y !!

Until next time ...
So it goes in my neck of the woods.
~mel


Friday

I'm back ~

Wowzers! I can't believe I've been away from my blog for so long.  So what have I been up to? Nothing much.  Still the same view out the window ~ only better colored.  Winter white was getting a little long here. The leaves are coming onto the trees and the lawn is green.  The snow is gone!! Praise the Lord and pass the gravy!!!

The summer song birds have found their way back north ~
The squirrels (black, reds and gray) and the chipmunks are still raiding the feeders ~
Look at those fat little cheeks ~ he looks just like me :)

Dear Hubby and I did some fishing ~ (sorry I forgot to take a pic of our fish) but we did see some beautiful clouds that were hanging so low in the sky it felt like you could reach up and touch them.

We also saw an eagle on a nest ... it was a ways off though ... and the boat was going through some pretty rough waters at the time.  I was amazed I even managed to get the two shots that I did get.


Notice the little white dot ... that's the eagles head sticking out of it's nest.










Such a pretty sunset ~













I just love it when God paints!!


It was so awesome sitting out in the boat watching this ...
the low hanging clouds ...
darkness coming on ...
the chill of the evening.

That last burst of sunlight ...
the end of the day.

Life is good.

Until next time ...
So it goes in my neck of the woods.
~mel