photographs, life is...

The pain I have been having in my right back and sides took a turn for the worst over the holiday weekend and I spent Sunday in emergency care when it became unbearable. I have a long road ahead but I choose to celebrate life, because in spite of many obstacles, life is good.

We went to the cemetery to rake and decorate the family plot as we do at least once a year, but I forgot the camera, so no photos.

However, here are some photos of scenes of home and nearby travels.
For the humming birds :



The Landscapers' finally opened for the season, so we bought another cubic metre of cedar mulch for the tomatoes, and

to replenish the flower and herb beds

The bluebird house on the garden shed:

The raspberry bushes have been pruned!

At the vintage/thrift shop, hubby played with this Alvarez guitar:

I bought this butterfly house, someone else's handiwork:

I repaired it, sanded, gessoed, and painted it blue and white.

The thin plywood is not sturdy enough for posting it in the flower bed, so I think I'll use it as decoration on the front porch for a while.

A stack of old magazines and a vintage book from 1928
version after the (silent) movie came out, starring Faye Ray (The original King Kong’s “girlfriend“) While the book is a Grosset & Dunlap publishing, which I collect, it is not a children’s book, but I broke my rule of collecting only their vintage children's books for the black and white photos and Ms. Ray :)

Lilacs:
An unoccupied bluebird house on the south border:


Pear blossoms, very tasty pears, yum!

A bat in our belfry, or our chimney any way:

A bat took up residences in the gap between the house and chimney. Here's hubby cleaning the bat guano from behind the chimney. After which we sprayed liberally with bleach, and rinsed with a solution of Green Works and water.

It's time to finish this pair of cotton denim and wool blend socks:














As for the baby's cardigan, I have finished the back and both fronts, but I will be out of yarn before I can finish the sleeves. ( I considered making short sleeves, but I decided to order more yarn instead. Photos are forthcoming.

The positive side have needing bed rest is that I can knit and sketch without guilt :)

Take Care of each other!

my back, ouch!

My back, or more accurately, my right side, has had it, at least for a few days. No more planting, shoveling, or climbing for a while. The pain tablets are not helping very much, and no matter what I do, it has gotten progressively worse over several months. It may not just be another kidney stone. :( so I just have to rest and behave for a time, and see if it improves in the next few days. :)
I've weeded the herb and flowers beds and have also potted some plants. Here is the flower box on the front porch, I promise to post more photos of other flowers around the garden next time:

In the last four years we reduced our once large vegetable garden to a 8 x 2 foot strip to the right of the back porch. I no longer preserve vegetables, since I can and do stock up on most canned veggies at the super store. I think I'm ahead 3 to 6 months ;)) However, if I find something at the farmers market, I do get a bushel and cook and freeze whatever it is, like green beans and corn. I've kept most of my canning jars and utensils in good order just in case ;)

I've planted two kinds of tomatoes :















On the left is "beefy" and on the right is "cherry"
I got some fresh yeast last Friday, and I baked two loaves. Since there will be no more work in the garden for a few days (except for watering the plants and flowers) I'll probably make a few more loaves and buns.

Now that my sister's birthday has come and gone, and I know she has received it, I will show you the necklace I bought for her some time ago ( this photo is from the website):

I have amethyst earrings in a square silver setting, and they are so lovely, I thought sis would also love something in the same stone, even though it is not her "birth"stone.

It's funny, but when I was younger I was not terribly interested in buying or wearing jewelry, but as I get older, I seem to be turning into a magpie bird( They find shiny things attractive *giggles*). Not that I own very much, but I seem to have become more interested in the last three years in at least looking at jewelry.

The hummingbirds are back, and so we need to make nectar for them. Whilst I was standing on the back porch, one flew up, had a look see at the spot where we usually hang the feeder, and flew away. We have been feeding them for at least twenty years, so each generation probably has the location in their genes by now *lol*

Off to put the laundry in the dryer ( too rainy and cold to hang on the line even if I want to). I'll also try to have photos of the progress I've made on the baby's cardigan I've been knitting. I finished the back at the weekend.

Mother's Day comes

A barn swallow decided that one of my soil sifters stored in the rafters of the wood shed made a good foundation for her nest. Usually they just build directly onto the rafters. This mother for the first few days would fly out of the shed every time we went in ( the nest is closest to the entry) but now when she is sitting, she sort just keeps her eye on me and allows :) me do what I need to do. I took this photo mid morning yesterday, when she must have been out foraging.
Four perfect eggs:

I planted all three of the amaryllis in one pot a couple of days ago. I had them loosely wrapped in newspaper, and they were again sprouting in the dark. I think the stems will be shorter this time, but there seem to be many more blossoms at once. they are outside on the front porch which gets some of the afternoon sun, so it's a good spot for now.

Talking of porches, this is the little side porch and landing I mentioned I had scraped and painted the other day. a view to the west, and of the door to my studio/workroom. My herb patch is below right. I may paint the door the same chocolate colour as the door frame. The back and front porch railings are touched up only every few years because they have full roofs, but this one needs doing every other year because it is only partially covered and is on the moister, north side. The second floor siding needs some painting as well. I sat there on Sunday and Tuesday mid morning for a few minutes after the rain stopped and the sun came out. The sunlight was just right then.

The rhubarb is not as tall as it could be because I pulled up about 75 percent of it last fall due to over crowding. My mother-in-law makes the best apple-rhubarb pies. My friend E. , who has a strawberry farm, makes a terrific strawberry-rhubarb pie as well. I like the sweet/tart flavours, but one slice for the summer is usually my limit. ;)

I remembered to bring my camera when I went walking down the lane yesterday, but I saw no deer as I often do. They are very stealth when they visit our yard, but I can usually see some in the evenings in the neighboring field.

I'm doing cheese/spinach quiches for a gathering this weekend, and maybe a cold barley salad; yum!

I hope your Mother's Day celebrations are wonderful!

Unseasonably warm and windy

On Wednesday I scraped old, loose paint from the little side porch , and yesterday I painted its landing and steps. I had just a bit of the floor boards on the side and a bit of the railing left to do, so I finished that today. (My vitamin regimen seems to be working, I was not as sore as I thought I would be afterwards. :) )
The door there leads to my studio/workroom so the little porch is a good spot to sit have a cuppa or lemonade, enjoy the the songs of the birds (and toads, they have been in fine voice *lol*) and let my imagination fly. Only minutes after I finished painting yesterday, a bird left a little present :)

My little herb garden is next to those steps, so hopefully, this weekend I'll be going to the greenhouse to get some annual herbs and flowers. I have some potted geraniums growing in the house, (I was able to save about half of the plants from last summer) but will only put them out during the day for now, as the nights are still too cold.
How does your garden grow?
Visit my MyCraftivity friend Debra's shops here and here. she makes beautiful jewelry.
I cleaned the ashes and the glass of the fireplace yesterday, which I do at least once a week in winter. I would like to delude myself into thinking I’ve cleaned it for the last time for the season, but I know it’s not so. I expect cold, damp rainy days to come; It is April after all, and I do like a warm fire on those damp days. Propane just doesn't give the same warmth :)

I've been making mini accordion art books lately. This one, bound in Indonesian rice paper, is available in my Etsy shop



Happy Friday, and Happy weekend to you.