New artwork and ready for planting

I like to plant a few vegetables, specifically tomatoes and basil every year.  But over the last 25 years the volunteer trees in my neighbor's yard at the back of my lot have shaded out my garden spot.  A few years ago at the Home and Garden show I attended a lecture on container gardening.  This has proven to be very successful for me.  The tomatoes go beside the driveway near the white garage door facing south, so they get all the sun and heat that they want.  Then nearby I have a planter with basil and rosemary, and another 2 with different varieties of cherry tomatoes.  This is the time of year to get things started.

I put a tarp down on the drive, dump the planters and start to break everything up.  I add about half again fresh compost and some time release fertilizer.  Then  it all goes back into the containers.  So last Sunday ( 2 weeks ago now) I spent the day getting everything ready.  Screened more compost, worked everything up and got it ready.  Here is Michigan it's a little early to plant out.  Probably will wait until around Memorial Day. (Couldn't wait, May 10 planted 11 tomato plants). But seeds are started  and trips planned to Van Atta's.

The blue planter usually has my full size tomatoes in it.  But this winter really wreck havoc on it. So I had to buy a new container this spring.

I also got around to hanging some artwork that I have been buying.  I hung these in my stairway going to the basement.  This is the door I come and go by most often so I get to enjoy them on a regular basis.

And I also had a new driveway put in the first of May.  Of course once the old driveway was lifted it had to rain and make a terrible mess.

I should be able to park on the new drive on Wednesday.  Will be so glad to get my truck off the street.

One additional little picture.  On the way to Eaton Rapids there is a barn with a quilt design.  I finally stopped this weekend and got a picture of it.

Gearing up for a busy may.

Garden Whimsey and the Variable Stars

Tuesday night we met again at Roxie's house, this time to try our hand at making garden whimsey's out of garage sale finds.  There was some glass breakage, but all in all I think even those who didn't make one still had fun.  Even Roxie's grandsons joined in.

Carol concentrating very hard to get it just right.

This is the red, white and blue one I have been saving bits and pieced for for the last few months.



Is Roxie wondering it it's tooooo tall?

This is my green one.  Melanie pulled some of the class that I used.

South Carolina vacation

Thanks to my mom's sister, Patricia, we just enjoyed a wonderful vacation in South Carolina.  We spent 7 days at Hilton Head Island and had one side trip to Savannah Georgia before their big St. Patrick's Day festivities.  The weather was marvelous there the entire time running from 82 to 90.  But that meant that the pollen count was also higher than I have ever seen 9000.  Awfully glad I got my allergy shot before we left. 

We make it a 2 day trip and spent our night on the road in Knoxville, Tennessee.  It was amazing to watch for what was blooming in each state we went thru.  Pear trees, redbud, azaleas, and peach trees.  As we got closer to my aunt's home we went through Johnston SC, US Peach Capitol.  It was beautiful to see acres upon acres in bloom.  Here are picks of some of the blooms.

I am also always entranced with the Smokey mountains and the Appalachains.

At my aunt's home it was as if someone had covered her cars with corn meal, but no, it was just tree pollen.

The weather at Hilton Head was Marvelous!!  I got to walk in the Atlantic Ocean in MARCH and it was actually warm.  Walking the beach was my favorite thing to do.  There were all kinds of interesting things to see.  Jelly fish, dolphins, life guard training.  Second best thing was shopping in North Agusta at Hamricks, best store in the south!

While in South Carolina I got to see my cousin Lisa and her kids and Kurt and his family.  It always makes me feel older to see younger cousins I remember as little kids who now have kids of their own.

Since we were in the south at St. Patrick's Day my aunt suggested we go to Savannah, which has the largest St. Pat's day celebration outside of Chicago.  The tv kept talking about expectations of over 1 million! people being there for the celebration on Saturday.  So we started planning on going before Saturday.  We heard late in the day on Wednesday about a charter boat that goes from Hilton Head Island to Savannah twice a week.  Unfortunately, we called too late and the boat was booked solid. So since I had my gps we drove down and I did the driving.  We took a trolly tour of the squares and houses of Savannah.  After about an hour we got off the trolly on River/Bay street to do some shopping.  About 4pm we took the trolly back to our car and headed back to HHI.  It was a nice say and the weather was gorgeous.

Coming home we spent the night in Lexington, Kentucky and were surprised to find that midweek, with nothing special going on that it was hard to find a room for the night.  But we did.  Then it was the long 333 miles left to get home.

What a weekend

Saturday was a whopper of a day.  I started off by having breakfast with a high school friend.  Then on to: an estate sale, a massage, running errands, the East Lansing Arts Festival and lastly the Capitol City Quilt Guild Show.

I enjoyed all if it.  It was extremely hot at the Arts Show.  I knew I only had from noon to 5 to do both the arts festival and the quilt show.  So I opted to only do the craft side of the arts show, which centers around the Union Building.  Lots of interesting items.  I, like Linda K, spent a lot of time looking at the yard art done by a welder who used everything from silverware to tools.  But the booth that got me was the one with concrete yard items.  Here is my beauty...

I'm thinking I need a chennile plant so she looks like she has a hat on.  But we'll see.

Then on to the quilt show.  I got there about 2:30.  We, CCQG, always to a nice show.  Here are a few of my favorites from the show.



This bug greeted attendees as they arrived at the quilt show.



Sunday was spent helping my brother prepare a house for an estate sale.  Although in rough shape, can you imagine waking up each morning with this cheery wallpaper?

Flower Show pics

Boy has it been a busy month or 2. March was the month with 3 family birthdays and a trip to the flower show in Chicago.  My mom and I have taken several trips to Chicago over the years through a tour company, Hartzlers.  This time it was to the Chicago flower show at Navy Pier.  It was a nice show. The theme was backyard games.  So we were greeted at the entrance by this great bench made out of baseball equipment.

Bench made out of baseballs, bats and bases, Hmm, wonder how it would look done in Tiger orange and blue?



There were lots of different things going on at the show.  There was a cake bake off going on with different garden themed cakes around the showplace. A stone sculpture.  Dining floral displays.  I was surprised that there were no bonsai displays, but all in all it was a nice show.

Mom enjoying a little break from our Michigan winter.



While in Chicago, we were able to get together with my niece Jennifer.  Grandma's green beer was because that was the Saturday that Chicago has it's St. Patty's day parade.







All in all a good time was had.  Wonderful italian dinner and time to visit.