{Pretty, Happy, Funny, Real}~ May 24, 2015

It's been more like an issue of Birds & Blooms around here than a blog, but that's because I don't have regular access to babies or small children of any variety and my remaining child at home is camera-averse at the moment. Gardening and yard work are what's happening around here, so please bear with me. :)

{Pretty}

Some sweet pansies poking their little faces through the deck rails~

I haven't taken the time to determine what kind of butterfly this is, but it sure is purdy!

Coreopsis, also known as tickseed in these parts, is just coming into bloom.

It's especially charming mixed with daisies.

{Happy}

After much rain and many delays due to said rain, the beans are finally coming up in the vegetable garden.

{Not Really Funny . . .}

but I wanted to put this picture somewhere.  It's been rainy and cool this spring, which is perfect for growing mushrooms in the pansy pot.

{Real}

The spinach and carrots in this little patch ONLY  are looking good, but the rest of the sixty-plus feet of carrots we planted and the five feet or so of spinach is spindly and stunted.  I'm blaming the soil.  This is our first year to have a garden in our new home, and the soil is uneven and unenriched.  Oh, well, you have to start somewhere.  Next year will be better.

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{Pretty, Happy, Funny, Real}~ May 17, 2015

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{Pretty} and {Happy}

This is the first May we have spent in this house, and it is exciting to see what blooms. There are wild roses and daisies on the boundary between the lawn and the woods, which makes me happy all out of proportion to their consequence.

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This little guy (or gal) is living in our woodpile and seems to enjoy the daily buffet of clover and grasses.

{Funny}

Forgive me for thinking a crying baby is funny, but you have to understand that Verity cries about everything.  Not real, honest to goodness, distressed crying, but a complaining, what-are-you-trying-to-do-to-me crying with a twist of whine.  So here she is experiencing the sandbox for the first time and telling all and sundry that she doesn't like it one little bit, thankyouverymuch!

And just for comparison, here she is last winter at about four months of age making the same face because she was upset about . . . who knows what?  That's Verity for you, though to be fair, she does smile a great deal and is in every way sweet and adorable.

{Real}

So I'm outside doing some gardening and I see this spider out of the corner of my eye.  When I look at him, I also notice a fuzzy, yellow caterpillar with funny antennae obliviously within range of said spider.  In a split second the spider seizes the caterpillar by the head and drags it off to his lair to be devoured in peace, like Shelob with an orc. Such is the way of the fallen world.  On the one hand is the exquisite beauty of babies, bunnies, and blossoms, and on the other is the horror of sin and death. Come quickly, Lord Jesus.

{Pretty, Happy, Funny, Real}~ May 10, 2015

Hello, everyone!  Most of the week was dark, gloomy, and rainy, so I do not have a lot of pictures,but I will share what I do have.

{Pretty}

The blue heron is likely here for the summer.  We played host to one~ maybe the same one?~ last year too and also her two babies.  I'm hoping this one is also a she and has a nest somewhere.  It's likely she does.

Gold finches are common occurrences around here, but that doesn't stop them from being pretty.

There hasn't been any noticeable activity on the bluebird front this week, but what with the rain and all, I'm not surprised.  We'll keep watching!

{Happy}

Dave found this huge mushroom in the yard.  After some digging on the internet, he decided it was a dryad's saddle, which is edible.  So . . . he ate it.  (All the look-alikes are non-toxic, so he felt safe.) He was happy to find a free mushroom of such enormity, and I was happy he didn't poison himself. :)

{Real}

This is what the skies looked like most all the time this week~

Dark, gloomy, and cloudy with the occasional peak of blue sky.  And we have a few more days of it!

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{Pretty, Happy, Funny, Real}~ May 3, 2015

Just a quickie this week while our out-of-town guests are out exploring the woods . . .

{Pretty}

I planted the three barrels at the front of the house this week.  They will fill out as the summer wears on, but I think they are quite pretty right now.

{Happy}

I was happy to see that someone has set up housekeeping in the birdhouse.  I'm hoping it's the bluebird and his family!

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This photo was taken accidentally on Dave's phone while he and I were out for a walk.  He always holds my hand, which makes me excessively happy. :)

{Real}

In addition to the barrels, I also planted the bed by the driveway. Though everything looks pretty puny right now, I have hopes that it will bloom and grow in abundance!  There are summer bulbs planted in the back that haven't come up yet, but they should help fill things out quite nicely.

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