Spring at Maltby Park

Nala and I took advantage of the nice weather last weekend to have a walk/run at Maltby Park. There were lots of new 'sniffs' for the dog, and she is learning to take long rides in the car and travel to new destinations.

Juno's Haiku

We ordered a granite stone to put in Juno's garden as a memorial to her life, and to all of the joy she brought us. The haiku tells the story of what we liked best about her, and the engraver did a beautiful job on the photo and the writing. We surrounded the stone with gravel from Maltby.

Juno

snow wallows tasty

2 degrees comfort (less?) bark

more wag 2 biscuits?

Juno's Memorial Garden

We are ready to buy the final shrubs and flowers for Juno's memorial garden (as soon as the rain and snow stop). In the spring and summer, it will be a nice place to sit and relax in our Adirondack chairs. The hardscaping is complete, which was our goal for March.

William Blake--Augueries of Innocence

To see a world in a grain of sand,

And a heaven in a wild flower.

Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,

And eternity in an hour.

The First Daffodil of Spring

Here is the first yellow daffodil ready to burst into bloom in a week or so. I can't wait until several dozen of them line the white picket fence in the front yard, making their annual brief appearance before the next round of flowers takes their place.

Dogwood Tree Is Coming Alive

The bare branches of the dogwood tree are transforming into yellow buds that will soon be leaves on this lovely little tree. The tree is three years old this year, and I'm hoping for some actual blooms later in the spring.

The whole yard is waking up from its winter slumber, and 10,000 frogs remind me that the March Equinox is almost here. I'm looking forward to the next six months of flowers, gardens and the sweet, sweet scent of summertime.

Rhododendrons in Bloom

In spite of the cold, wet and snowy weather, my rhodies are almost in full bloom! I'm hoping we don't get another frost anytime soon like we did last year--it ruined the first blooms of my rhodies, and I had to wait quite a while for the next round of pink flowers to appear.

With spring only four days away, I'm very glad for some color in the yard. It's been a long time coming this year.

Beach Cruiser Bicycles Everywhere!

When you visit Seabrook, you will see Beach Cruiser bicycles everywhere. And there are many bicycles that are used as art rather than for riding. Many of the businesses here have bicycles at their front entrance, and they are decorated to match the theme of the items being sold.

This bicycle is in front of the pottery shop called "Colours", where you can make your own creation. The Salty Dog, next door, has its own decorated bike festooned with dog memorabilia. The new bookstore, Blind Dog Books, has a tiny bike with a chalk board that lists the store hours.

I prefer to ride the bikes that are provided here, and I found two great ones in the garage of Weldin House. I'll take one of them for a spin tomorrow! I love vacations at the beach!

Stormy Winter Weather at the Coast

We love the winter storms that abound this time of year, and March is one of the best times to visit the Washington coast. The rain and wind were fierce last night, and between sunbreaks today, there was torrential rain and a hailstorm.

The clouds cleared long enough for me to get down to the beach and take this lovely picture today from the Seabrook Promenade.

Seabrook

We arrived at Seabrook over the weekend, and we are staying at Weldin House, our favorite place here. Nala is enjoying her first trip to the beach in her 10-year-old life, and is enjoying the walks, the car rides, and the new sniffs everywhere. She loves running up and down the stairs in this large house, and follows us everywhere. She turned out to be a good little traveler.

Here she is in the entrance hall, waiting for us to take her for another walk!

The Asian Pear Tree

Here is the second tree on our property that had not been pruned in 25 years. This Asian Pear bears well each year, but the tree looked very unkempt from the street, even in full foliage. It was also topped and thinned out, and I am looking forward to seeing what it looks like with its new shape. Hopefully the pruning will also help to improve the quality and size of the fruit.

A Sturdy Primrose

When we removed the heavy layer of leaf mulch from the front yard flower beds last weekend, we found this sturdy little primrose left over from last spring and summer. Over the winter, it multiplied about three times its original size, and while the flowers were small and rather pale, they will quickly recover and have dark green leaves and full, white flowers. I love the hardiness of this plant, and have them all over my yard this time of year in pots, in flower beds, and in flower boxes on the picket fence.

Tree Pruning--Apple Tree

This apple tree has been on the property at least 25 years, and it doesn't appear to have ever been pruned before. The last few years, the apple yield has been small, so Jason, our arborist, came out last week and did a full pruning of the tree, including topping it. He also removed a lot of the English Ivy, which is considered a noxious weed. It strips the tree of vital nutrients, air flow, and light. I kept some of the ivy, as it serves as the backdrop to a lovely shade garden off the deck in the back yard.

I'm expecting the tree to regain its health this spring and summer, and I'm hoping for a high yield of fruit for applesauce and home-made apple pies. We'll see.

A New Spring Flag for the Fence

I have four flags to hang on the fence to represent all four seasons. This flag is the newest one, and shouts forth gardens and flowers and warm weather. And Spring.

I'm inspired by this flag every time I drive into my driveway, and I usually run out into the pasture to check out the greenhouse and my cabin. Only 15 days until Spring!

Uses for a Greenhouse

A greenhouse is more than a place to protect and propagate plants. It's like a cabin--it's a place to escape to, a place to create, and a place to work at one's avocation. It's about dreams, too.

I'll be sowing my first seeds in containers later this week, and I'm so excited to use my greenhouse for the purpose they were made for. I've got some great stainless steel shelves, antique watering cans, an old boiler to store potting soil in, and a great child's wicker chair in one corner. I'll be puttering around in this structure until the cold of next winter forces me back into the house. Meanwhile, I have all of these lovely months ahead to nurture my seeds into plants hardy enough to face the real microclimate of my Maltby garden. Life is good.

The Raised Beds are Ready

I double-dug the raised beds today, which is the preferred method for preparing the soil for vegetables. Using a rototiller destroys the beneficial organisms and ruins the soil composition, so digging the dirt and turning it over twice allows for the best aeration and distribution of all of the nutrients.

These four beds will receive all of my heirloom seeds. Some of the seeds will be sown directly into the soil, and others will be started in my greenhouse, and then planted in the garden once the danger of frost is over in our Hardiness Zone 8b (mid to late May).

The Rhubarb is Coming!

Rhubarb is the first spring 'crop', and my Ruby Red variety is making its appearance! Before long, rhubarb-strawberry pies will be emerging from the oven, filling the house with wonderful, home-made smells.

Getting the Shade Gardens Weeded

I worked in the yard all morning, weeding the garden and the flowers beds in the pasture. Here is the small shade garden emerging from the winter, and I extended it today, making it twice the size it was.

Alex Is 13 Years Old!

Alex had her 13th birthday in February, so we went to Arnie's in Mukilteo to celebrate her transition from child to teenager. We had a lovely seafood lunch, with fruit and creme fraiche appetizers, and huge cinnamon rolls.

We went to the mall shopping after lunch, and had a great afternoon talking and getting caught up after the holidays.

Mom's 83rd Birthday at Volterra Italian Restaurant

We celebrated Mom's 83rd birthday this year at Volterra in Ballard. It's a fairly new restaurant off Market Street, with an upscale interior and rustic country-style Italian fare merged with Seattle's seafood favorites. It was a long and leisurely meal, with wine and bruschetta as an appetizer. Steaks with mushroom sauce and vegetable dumplings in a mushroom broth were our main courses, with salads before the main dishes. It was finished with a large tiramisu with a birthday candle on it, which we all shared.

The restaurant had lovely stained glass windows (made by a local artisan), and they were beautiful as the sun set that Saturday evening. The hanging lights were made in Italy, in the town of Volterra, where the chef and his wife spent some time learning the cuisine before opening this restaurant. The artwork on the walls also portrayed black and white images of daily life in the small village of Volterra.

Valentine's Day at Preservation Kitchen

Valentine's Day was a special occasion at Preservation Kitchen in Bothell. The tables were beautifully decorated, the food was wonderful, and the ambience of the darkly-lit, fragrant atmosphere unforgettable. No matter the age of the patrons or the level of romance found with each couple, it was a day to remember.

Spring Flowers for Juno

Our neighbors covered our entire front porch with beautiful Spring flowers the day we lost Juno (February 8). Here are some of the lovely colors that will grace our porch well into the summer season. They will remind us of Juno each time we see them.

Nala Comes to Live With Us!

My son moved into a new townhome that did not allow pets, so last weekend, we 'adopted' Nala, our "grand-dog" of 10 years. I remember when Dave and his wife brought the 8-week-old puppy home from the animal shelter 10 years ago--she was so adorable, and was a very small, black bundle of Black Lab and Border Collie. She is now 55 pounds, very sleek, and she checked out healthy at Dr. Bliven's veterinary office yesterday.

She's been with us for almost three weeks now, and has adapted well. She is excited about going to the beach with us next week when we are on vacation, and she has a new collar, leash and bandanna to mark her new life with us!

New Fence Complete!

Now when the weather warms up and the snow stops, we will put in the rest of the shade garden for Juno's memorial. I'll be staining the fence with a light gray wash to make it look weathered and match the other two fences.

Fence Progress--4x4's Are In!

Here is a view of the woods with the barbed wire fence removed, and the fence posts cemented in.

The Last New Fence

After almost 11 years at our Maltby home, we finally got the last unfenced portion of the yard complete. Brian built this great six-foot fence at the site of Juno's memorial garden, and now that it's completed, we can start the garden.

Here is the fence as it began, and I'll post updates so the finished product can be seen.