I'm Free!

It sure seems good to be able to drive and get out again. I'm certainly not used to sitting home. I did read 4 books tho and one was over 700 pages and small print.

Yesterday I decided to go to some estate and garage sales. I can never do that when I'm working unless they have an estate sale the first of the week. I found a couple small items. I also got the annuals I need for the containers I plant. I got this gardening book from the 40's for 70 cents
and this set of tiny gardening tools for 25. I don't know what I'll do with them but I knew I'd be sorry if I didn't get them.
I was very excited to find this copper strainer for my "kitchen" garden area. I can't wait until it gets a nice green patina.I also found this girl's shoe to go with my boy shoe. Since they are in such bad shape I don't mind putting them outside.
I found this picnic basket for 50 cents last year. There is a stump in this spot and it was really rotting so I got rid of as much as I could and moved this bench over. The bench is in bad shape too so I moved a climbing rose in front of it. Hopefully it will spread fast and cover the bench.
Then I filled a pot and put it in the basket. It should look cute once the pot fills in.
I also got this porch box at a sale last fall. I filled it with greens and set it on my steps for Christmas and now I have it filled with plants. It's a little too red to be near the house but works well in the back corner of the yard.
Tomorrow I'll start on the deck containers. I hope you're having a great weekend!

Show and Tell

My header is a shot of my red, white and blue garden. Not much is blooming there yet but my enemalware coffee pot fountain. I came up with this idea a few years ago and my son-in-law helped me put it together. It is in the front, on the side of my house that my customers walk past on their way to the beauty shop.
I sent a picture into Birds and Blooms magazine and they published it in October, 2000.
It was on a page about recycling. This coffee pot came from the camp my kids and I went to when they were growing up. We used it to heat water from the pump before our friends had indoor plumbing. I started collecting enamelware after that but have since given up collecting. I decided to use some of my collection for this fountain.
My customers look forward to me putting it up every year, You can click here to see how it is assembled.


Go to Kelli's House for more Show and Tell posts.


Come join me on Bloomin' Tuesday and show us what's bloomin' where you are planted!

Pennies from Heaven?

P-J photo by Robert Rizzuto

Shortly after 7:30 a.m. Sunday, Lakewood-Busti Police Officer Ellen Barnes responded to a call in the Town of Busti where a man allegedly made an alimony payment in pennies, dumping the money in his ex-wife’s driveway. Michael A. Nelson, 52, of 984 Frew Run Road, was charged with harassment in the second degree, arraigned by the Town of Ellicott judge, and released on $240 bail, according to the arresting officer. He will appear in Lakewood-Busti court later this week.

This is how this appeared in our local paper. I have heard that the payment was a couple thousand dollars! Talk about revenge!

Bloomin' Tuesday!

Welcome to Bloomin' Tuesday! My gardens are really beginning to come alive and I trust yours are too. If you would like to sign up to show us what you have blooming just put your name and link on Mr Linky at the bottom of this post and add a link on your post to the list. Click on the button on the sidebar for more information and to get a button for you blog, if you'd like. Then click on the names on the list to see what is blooming in other parts of the country.
Creeping Phlox
Wood Hyacinth and Forget-me-nots

Bachelor Buttons
Iris and Columbine
Columbine
One of my most favorites, Solomon Seal. I love the graceful stems and the green edged bell flowers.
I know this plant needs to be separated but I hate to disturb it. It is about 4 feet tall now.
So what's bloomin' where you are planted? Remember you need to sign up weekly and your pictures don't have to be from your garden.

Enjoy your garden tour!

Happy Memorial Weekend!

Thank you for all your well wishes. My surgery went very well and I was home before 11 am the next day. I haven't even needed any pain meds. All was well until the next morning. I was so dizzy I couldn't get out of bed. I didn't want to bother anyone at work so I just stayed in bed all day. Laurie called when she got home from work and came right down. Seems the antibiotic they had me on causes dizziness which is a major problem for someone like me with severe motion sickness! Now that it wore off and I'm on a different medicine I'm doing good. Just can't sit in a hard chair for more than a couple minutes at a time. My window box for summer.
It's a beautiful day here and I'm wishing I could be pulling all those weeds I see. Maybe next week. I hope you have a great holiday weekend!

This and That

Today is the big day! I'm having my surgery this morning (7:30). My customers have been asking if I am finally taking a vacation. I tell them that the only thing that will be spending time in a hammock is my bladder! I'm actually having my bladder put in a sling. After pelvic floor rehab, a bladder infection, a camera inside my bladder and peeing in a cup more times than I care to count ( I'm getting so good I think I could hit a cup on the floor!), I'm finally getting fixed. I'll only be in the hospital overnight. The beauty shop will be closed for 2 weeks and I will be off at the grocery store 4 weeks. Unfortunately for you all I should be able to blog. Hopefully I will get back in the groove of posting and commenting. I've been a little lax lately with everything going on.

I want to wish Chris and Laurie, my daughter and favorite son-in-law, a Happy 14th Anniversary! They are best friends and truly made for each other.
Next I want to welcome The Smith Family to blogland! Tabatha has been doing a online baby journal but has decided to move to blogger with the rest of us. All of you that just can't get enough Jerzie, can now enjoy the whole family. They are listed on my sidebar.


Lastly, I would also like to make you aware of a new blog, Butch's Battle also listed on my sidebar. It is a journal about my kids Father's battle against Non- Hodgkin's Lymphoma. At the present he is having stem cells harvested for a stem cell transplant. A link is provided for information on this procedure and other information. Please, stop by and encourage them all.

That's all the stuff I have for today. I hope you are having a great day!

Bloomin' Tuesday!

Welcome!

If you would like to sign up today and join the fun just add your name and link to Mr Linky at the end of this post. To see all the blogs participating just click on the names on Mr Linky. Click the button on the side bar for all the information.
The bugleweed (ajuga) is blooming. It is a great, but aggressive, variegated burgundy ground cover. The spring blooms are just a bonus!
Two jolly-jump ups from last year. They sure are happy little flowers.
I love the color of this lilac. It belongs to my neighbor. I took care of it for years for my other neighbor so I always picked them. Now I just enjoy it from afar. The only downside to this lilac is it doesn't have the wonderful scent of most lilacs.
Speaking of scent, my pink lilies of the valley are blooming. I love these! They always bloom a little earlier than the white.

I have huge hosta "bushes" in front of my house. The ice always fell and ruined any shrub I planted on this side of the house.
Hosta gives the same effect and nothing hurts it!
My azalea is really beautiful this year.
It's been quite cool so it may last a little longer than usual.
This was here when I bought the house and I love the color.

So whats bloomin' this week, where you are planted? Join the fun and sign up!

5 Year Old Driver!

You have to go to this link soon, or CNN will make it disappear:

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2008/05/16/dnt.ricker.5yrold.driver.wivb

A five-year-old crashed a pickup truck into a house.
Not just any house.
This one once belonged to William Broadhead. As in Broadhead Mills.
Here's the house about a year ago:

Granny's little darling hit the back corner. You can see the location under the driveway cover, where the bricks look discolored. Apparently, he didn't damage the house, but the pickup was totalled.

Here's a picture that shows the back of the house. On the right is the carriage house (garage).
This is only a few blocks from my house.

Show and Tell

Today I'm going to show you one of my Mothers Day presents. My daughter and I went to a craft show and one booth had a couple unique items. I liked 2 items but only bought one.
My daughter bought one of these for herself and a similar one for her mother-in-law. At least that's what she told me! I was really surprised when I got one for Mothers Day. Can you tell what it is? It's a bird feeder plus great garden art!

A seed bell fits in either one but you can also put an orange in the top one to attract orioles. I've never seen any orioles here so I decided to try an orange in the top.I think it looks great in this garden with the rusty wheelbarrow next to my neighbors garage.
This is the item that I bought myself. It didn't photograph too well but it is beads on wires.
A super addition to my shade garden.If you would like to join the fun or see a list of all the Show and Tell posts for today, go over to Kelli's House.

Time for a change!

It's time to change from spring to the patriotic I use from Memorial Day to Labor Day in my entry way. It's a very tiny area but I pack as much as possible in it. Just so nothing gets bumped around when people come in the house.
I have always loved patriotic decorations and can't seem to stop buying them.
I really like this area better now that it's painted this warm gold. It was cream before.
Sorry I haven't been around much lately. There is so much that I want to get done and I seem to have appointments every day besides.Next week will be better! I do stop and see most of you but don't have time to comment.
Do you change your decor for the summer months?