Our Spring Home.

Hidden behind the growth, we sit on our veranda

and take in the sun, the greenery and the blue sky.

Clouds move in, the rain falls, the earth becomes

softer and full of life. Country living at it's best.

The Forest.

This time of year it starts to really fill in

and take on a life of it's own. Beautiful.

TIny Playmates.

Our one statue in our garden, close to the

forest, is this tiny girl and boy on a seesaw.

Chic Bench.

I love this shot with my father in law's

old bench behind the growth. Sweet.

More Flowers.

 A few more before I say goodnight ....

.... pinks and whites are always my favorite ....

.... a little yellow thrown in ....

.... with a hidden bit of purple.

My Favorite.

Hope this happens again this year in our

country yard. Reminds me of a meadow.

Last Years Flowers.

No time to plant right now ....

.... so I'll take a moment to remember ....

.... some of the sweet blooms ....

.... from last year's plantings ....

.... and get excited to do the same this year.

Shed Placement.

Now that we have made the decision to

purchase the vintage wooden shed, we

have to decide where on our land it will

be placed. A very big process to endure.

This is what our original plan has been all

along. Our white picket fence around our

garden boxes, with paths to walk around

and some type of statue right in the middle.

Now we're thinking about "attaching" the shed

to this idea. Almost like it's own little garden.

We were going to place the shed near the tree line

but after our big wind storm last week, that changed.

The more we think on this new idea, the more we

get excited about putting it all together. I think it

will look so sweet to have a vintage wooden shed,

looking out over the garden, with a white picket

fence surrounding it all. Very English, very Country.

And the dh says "very practical" ~ he is very smart.

Update from Today.

My mom's hospital appointment went well but it was

so hard to hear her progression is moving quickly.

We have many decisions to make and I truly hope

we make all the right ones with her and for her.

My workshop was great. Small numbers but I was

warned it's often not a large crowd. But very well

received and we had a few laughs in between the

tough conversations around grief and loss. Thankful.

Antique Mall Update.

Not the best picture but we figured out

what we can use for displaying items in

our booth. This shelf was a dark green

but we've lightened it up with this lovely

shade. We have another unit as well and

look forward to our move in tomorrow.

The Second Half.

The second half of my day will be spent teaching a

workshop to a group of youth who are involved in

an addictions and mental health program. I love to

teach and this population really tugs at my heart. I

hope they all show up and that they leave with a

better sense of what grief is and how to heal when

it impacts their lives. One of my former practicum

students is the lead on the project ~ I'm so proud

of his accomplishments since he was in my program.

Wonderful young man with a wealth of knowledge.

What's on tap for you today?

Any exciting plans to share?

Hospital Trip.

Today is going to be a busy, crazy experience.

And a predicted high temp of 30 degrees C.

I'm off this morning to take my mom to her

quarterly assessment at the Geriatric Clinic

at one of the hospitals in the Big City. There

has been quite a change since her last visit

so I think we may be now looking at long

term care. I'm not excited about that prospect

at all, except for the fact that my worry for

my mom's wellbeing may diminish a bit. At

the moment, when I'm home, I worry if she's

safe. When I'm out, I worry if she's safe. She

has had a few scary times where know one

knew where she was. At least in a care home,

she'll have regular meals, activities to get

involved in and around the clock care. She

refuses to move in to our home (we have

tried to convince her) as she doesn't want

to live in the country. So this is the only true

alternative we all have. Wish us luck today.

Saturday Art.

With my kids grief program, we use art

as an option to talk therapy. And the best

part of my job, besides watching these

young grievers begin to heal, is the fun

I get to have making art. It's an honor to

be present and to create each Saturday.

Lost Babies.

One of our preschool moms has taken

in a tiny family of lost baby squirrels.

Just 3 weeks old, their eyes are not even

opened yet. But so cute and cuddly.

Baby siblings, snuggle up together, I'm

sure wondering where their mama is.

And our decision is ....

.... the little pink shed. It is too sweet to pass up.

And tonight, we made an offer and the family

that was selling it was so gracious and agreed

on the price that we hoped to pay. So excited.

Just coordinating the delivery by a company that

can get it on their truck, something we wouldn't

be able to do as #1, we don't have a truck and

#2, we'd need many helpers to lift and move. It

weighs 1200 lbs. Great for the stability but really

not so great for trying to get it moved. I've got a

plan to configure the inside. Now I'm dreaming

about which flowers to buy for the window boxes.

New Favorite Snack.

It's only May but wow, it's hot! We're lucky to 

have air conditioning in our house but we do

choose to use it only sparingly. Finding ways to

stay cool is key in this weather. I've discovered

a new favorite snack ~ watermelon. I've always

loved this sweet and cool treat but in the past, I

would cut it in to pizza pie shapes to hold while

munching. Then I found that by cutting all the

melon off the rind, I could get much more into

the fridge and somehow it gets sweeter with time.

Do you like sweet, juicy watermelon?

Do you have a favorite summer snack?

Art Studio Progress.

 In between other obligations over the

weekend and some illnesses creeping 

through our home, we managed to 

squeeze in Art Studio construction.

The painting is now complete, the cabinets

are all put together and now the placement.

We discovered after we put the first cabinet

together that the measurements we were so

careful to gather for the designer were very

accurate. But she did not factor in the feet

that hold up the cabinets. If we had installed

those, our cabinets would have come right up

to the bottom of the windows, not giving

any space for the countertop depth. We did

end up figuring out a way to create "boxes"

to hold the cabinets, which in the end if

much more sturdy. Took more time and a 

ton of extra measuring but so worth the time.

Now we are busy placing the items in the

units that are for our art projects. Next, our

contractor will come and install the counters

and then the flooring, trim and two more of

the lights to hang. At that point, we'll do more

of a true reveal. Almost there, so very close.

Curious Cats.

Working on our acreage has created lots of

curiosity with our daughter's cats. They love

the sun of course, but also the projects we

are working on really seem to intrigue them.

Rebirth.

An old stump beside the garden, that once

supported a tree, is now in "rebirth" mode.

Landscape Dreaming.

Our landscape artist brought over our plan

a few weeks ago for our final approval.

She worked magic with our blank slate.

And now we have ideas to fill our space.

It's likely going to take us 4 or 5 years to

finish all that we hope to create in the garden.

I'm sure it will be worth the wait.

Until then, I continue to dream ....

Blue in the Garden.

Living in the country means we have

many natural and native surprises ....

One of my favorites are these sweet little

blue flowers. Maybe a blue bell? Precious.

Free Falling ....

 .... but hopefully not too soon and not

on our sweet little cottage ....

A big wind storm in our region the other

day uprooted this tree a bit. We're very

concerned but thankfully, the last few

days have been super dry and very warm.

The Arborist is coming out tomorrow to

let us know if it needs to come down. We

are pretty sure it will need to. They'll also

then let us know when they can take it down.

Have you ever had to take down a falling tree?

Where you sad to see it go or happy it won't fall?

Which One?

We're in the beginning stages of our landscaping

and have decided we'd like to have a garden shed

to store items like the snow blower, lawnmower

and all my gardening tools. The garage is big but

we want to keep it sparse ~ it houses two cars

and will soon be the home of a workshop for my

dh. So a shed is now on our list and worked into

our frugal budget. Now we have a big decision.

This first shed is from Costco. It is made from Resin

and appears to be sturdy. We like the look and it can

be painted if we choose to match it to the color of

the house. I'd put window boxes on. The only worry

is that Resin can in time wear down. And crack and

break. Will it hold the snow load in the Winter?

Our second choice is this one that a lovely family is

selling because they are moving. It's about $300 less

than the other one but we'd have to hire a company to

deliver. So price will be roughly the same for either.

It's made of solid wood and looks brand new when

we popped over to look. Their is a large door on the

side for getting large items in. We'd paint it to match

the house. The sturdiness for snow load in the cold

Winter months would be much better. And our sweet

landscape artist did suggest we find a "quaint"  shed.

What one is more appealing for a vintage look?

Which one would you choose if you have to decide?

No Words ....

.... just love and blessings for all affected ....

New Island Project.

There are so many things I love about our kitchen but 

the island is truly my favorite ~ I smile at it often. 

We've never had an island. Our kitchens have always

been so small in the past. Now that we have space, I

can't imagine how we survived trying to make meals

for a big family in such tiny spaces. We did it but it

makes me appreciate my new roominess even more.

Above is a shot of a kitchen island with two brackets.

We ended up overhanging out countertops but didn't

know what we wanted to do to trim it out, so we left

it until we could decide. I found a set of brackets, like

 the ones above that are perfect in style but are a bit 

fragile. Made out of a material that I was worried would 

break if our little guy was too rough with pushing his 

chair back in one day, so we squashed that idea. I may 

use them for a wall idea so have tucked them away. The

countertop is granite, so it's super heavy but it doesn't

need any extra support on the overhang as it's not really

a big piece on that side. What we want to do is add in

a decorative look and the picture above is our idea.

A few weeks ago while we were shopping, we stopped

in at our local "re use" shop and found two columns.

They're old and banged up but that's the look we're

going for. And if our little guy bangs them up more,

no one will be the wiser. We filled a few holes and

will sand them down. Then a few coats of creamy

ivory chalk paint and we'll be set to go. I'm looking

forward to adding this decorative touch to the island.

And happy that we can do it on a budget. Each column

was $10 (marked down from $20), we already had

the wood filler and the paint. A "not too hard" project

on a limited but wise budget. Pictures to follow soon.

Quiet Mother's Day.

Mother's Day this year was quiet, just the way

it should be. I was spoiled with brekky in bed.

And ended the day with a rainbow cake. So truly

yummy. Thoughtful gifts that were abundant, notes 

full of love from my children and shared posts 

from many dear friends. The only thing that was 

missing was my mom. She is living with dementia

at this time in her life and she was so mixed up for

the day that we all agreed to try another time. Today

we'll pick her up when we are in the big City and

bring her home for dinner and gift tonight. I truly

hope it goes well. She did call us at 6:00 a.m. this

morning asking why we hadn't picked her up yet

but at least she hasn't cancelled yet. Fingers crossed

it all goes well today. I wish I could have her back. 

I really miss my mom the way she was ....

Project Line Up.

And this is only the half of it. The rest

is all set up in the turret, waiting for

my paint brush and my attention. A

big task but one I love to tackle.  This

is a mix of old vintage pieces and very

brand new. In the end, they'll all have a

sweet look and I hope they sell well.

If not, they'll look great in our house.

Antique Mall Update.

 A small update on the status of our Antique Mall

Booth that we were recently offered from our

favorite AM. We officially signed our contract

last week and paid our deposit to seal the deal.

Our move in date is Thursday, June 1st, 2017.

Now we're busy gathering items that we have in

storage and deciding how our booth will look. I

found this sweet and very solid cabinet at one

of the local charity shops. It was $75 but then

marked down to $60. It has a light in the roof,

a mirrored back wall and a glass shelf. This will

work well for any items we'd like to showcase

that are needing to be in a secure spot. The only

thing it lacked was a lock on each door. Once

my dh agreed it was just what we need, I paid,

then drove over to the local locksmith's shop.

After a half hour of work and just over $84

in fees, we now have a lock on both doors.

Our tiny budget for a cabinet was actually

$450 so I'm thankful we saved over $300.

I love how the locksmiths were so careful to 

centre the locks so they look like they were 

meant to be there all along. Now I have to 

decide if I should leave it with the original

wood finish or chalk paint it a light color. I 

like both choices, so I'll sleep on it tonight. So

many decisions. The rest of our booth will be

open cabinets. This will be the locked one.

Updates on our preparations for our booth, the

gathering of items, the setup and the opening soon.

Finally Green.

 The snow has finally disappeared and after

weeks of mud and dust, brown and muck,

we have a green landscape once again. It's

so exciting now to wake up each morning.

And even better to be driving home and

not being able to see our home through

the green of the trees. Light filters now

amongst the leaves and they dance in

the wind as it flows across our land. I

love this time of year when everything

finally blooms and grows. Soon we'll

have dots of pinks and purples all over

once the wildflower seeds start to open.

The shoots are up and soon the blooms.

Happy May Day.

 

Spring officially starts in March each year but with our mild winter, then "Sprinter" in April, we've had a bit of a delay to the beginning of our true Spring weather. Thankfully, things are quickly turning around. The snow is now gone, the buds are starting to appear and there is mud everywhere! I think over the next few days, with very warm winter predicated (temps between 14 degrees C and 22 degrees C), everything should dry up. No rain at all this week. I see some weeds starting to sprout in the garden and my first yard clean up will be to pick those first. Not my favorite job outside but I love what it looks like once the pesky weeds are gone. And then fresh dirt to plant.

Our landscape artist is visiting this afternoon with our final design and I'm really excited to see what she has in mind for our little country home. We asked for zones for a small playground for our grand babies, a gardening zone for our raised garden boxes, the fire pit zone so it's far enough from the house and trees to be safe, a zone for my dream English garden, and a central for our Gazebo to be erected and enjoyed. I have a vision in my head and am thankful that my dh shares this vision. Now to see it on paper and start the process of putting it in to place. We're thinking it will likely take 3 to 5 years before we really feel like it's all in place. But that's okay because as much as we've been able to set aside for this big project, I really don't want to let go of those funds all in one chunk.

After dropping my daughter off at school this morning, I did a bit of shopping, then headed home to do some tidying before the landscaper arrives. I've done 2 loads of laundry, emptied the dishwasher and put the breakfast dishes in, cleaned the small main floor bathroom, dusted, swept and washed the floors. I can't vacuum as my oldest dd worked a shift last night at the hospital, so she's sleeping today. Waking her up would not be a good thing! Now I'm ready for our guest and taking some time to flip through my notes and look for ideas of plants and trees we could plant that won't be eaten by the deer that love to visit our land. I want to live in harmony vs. keeping animals away but I also want to have a lovely landscape to enjoy and work on. I'll share pictures as we go. 

I hope you have a wonderful first day of May and that your gardening dreams and plans are working out well. I'm off to read some inspiring blogs and go for a little walk in the warm sun before our guest arrives.