Roses, Acorns & Falling Leaves

There is a bit of a strange phenomenon taking place in my yard right now. I have leaves and acorns falling, but roses still blooming.

I had the flagstone beyond the deck and pavilion filled in with decomposed granite on Friday. I'm wondering what took me so long. As I've tripped and fallen on those rocks for months.

I suppose it was the fact that I wanted to do it myself. And I finally came to the conclusion that I can't do it all out there. Though I'd love to.

They took this giant pot (with the drain hole in the side) and put it on the west side of my house. I could never have lifted it or dug the hole in this root-entrenched dirt.

Above is the west side of my house. So many times I've wished my garden home wasn't on the corner. I have someone come in to mow it. It's all I can do to take care of the east side.

This is the bank across the street I speak of. I'm standing in my driveway taking this photo. On the other side of the bank is probably the busiest highway in this town.

Below is the side of the house where I spend all my time.

There is an elderly woman living in the house you see to the left. However, there are no windows on her side. So it is extremely private.

Above you see me taking a pic from the back of my yard.

And then, the photo below is just to the other side of the pavilion going toward the front.

About twenty-five feet from the spot I'm standing taking the pic above, is the view of my front gate looking out onto the cul-de-sac.

I have to say that this is my favorite of all the yards where I've lived. Because this is just so cozy with the way it's laid out. We rented this house when we first came to town. Then bought it three years later. It is actually perfect.

The pondless waterfall is simply heavenly. It is teeming with wildlife. Dragonflies and butterflies and all sorts of critters and creatures enjoy the running water.

I am very pleased with the results. It's taken me three years to get to this point. First was to have the dining room brick walls taken out and replaced with two walls of French doors. I could finally see my gardens.

Then came the wraparound deck and pavilion. And lastly, the flagstone, stone gardens, and pondless waterfall.

So I may live one block from a six-lane street that sees thousands of cars per day. But I have my own little slice of paradise that I feel extremely blessed to get to enjoy each day.

I don't feel the need to go on vacations. Mine is right here outside my door.

There's Sunshine On My Shoulders

We have abundant sunshine, hot temperatures, and not much else going on around these parts.

Let's stroll through the gardens and see what's what, shall we?

For those of you who are new to this place, I call these the corner fairy gardens.

Clyde's favorite scratch tree. We couldn't figure out what was making the horrid marks on our crepe myrtle trees. Yep, it's Clyde sharpening his claws.

This is Miss Abi. She thinks she runs things, by the way. Simply a delusion.

Mister Charlie Ross. The essence of pure sweetness and honey.

The pavilion we had built this year. It's pretty hot to enjoy it right now. But when it's a bit cooler, it's the perfect place for company or a good book.

The view from the very back of the yard. Obviously it isn't a big yard. But pretty good sized for a garden home yard.

I loved this contrast. Of course potato vines look good with most anything. The perfect backdrop.

The ginormous waterfall recently built for our little pond. Ten thousand pounds of stone.

I had almost nothing blooming out here yesterday. But these two waterlilies today made up for it. I hope you enjoyed your tour of the yard.

PB Outdoor Pillows & Some Changes

Here are the new outdoor pillows I ordered from Pottery Barn online. Aren’t they a pretty floral? I’m rather in love with this shade of blue.

Due to the influx of rats, I went to great measures this week. I had someone come landscape the west side of my house, which is the side by the street where I seldom go.

It was a jungle over there. Really. While I was injured and in that steel boot until around Christmas time, things got seriously out of control. Dead plants, crazed wild vines, bushes on steroids. So bad I didn’t even take a photo to show you.

Some of you may recall my clearing out my next door neighbor’s yard a year ago, and getting the most horrid case of poison ivy. So I decided to leave the vines to the professionals.

Here is how it looks now:

One crew did all this in a day and a half. It was amazing to watch them work. In case you live in my area, it was Jarrod’s Lawn & Landscaping. I just had to ask the owner of the business how old he was. I could hardly believe he was 28 years old, and had such a professional demeanor and crew working alongside him. This young man got things done. And my neighbor quickly grabbed him for her place while he was here.

Though my yard is a certified wildlife habitat, I simply can’t live with rats. So they cleaned the place up a bit. It’s a less conducive environment for vermin with beady little eyes now. I don’t want to drive away small critters that need a home. Really I don’t. I just don’t want rats laughing peeking out at me from behind my red mirror!

They trimmed all the tree limbs w-a-y back. You know, I love the long limbs of my Crepe Myrtle trees curving down lush with blooms. But so did the rats. They literally sat in the trees laughing screeching at me.

So I have a very open view full of sunlight now. I will possibly kick myself as this heat continues to climb. But maybe the rats will at least have left the neighborhood for shadier digs.

There was just no way I was going to feel serene in my yard, lounging about in my night gown on the pavilion, with rats lurking in the dark around me.

So it isn’t as full of nature’s bounty as it was a few days ago. It is a stream-lined version.

Look at Charlie staring into the flower bed. Looks like he doesn’t own a head.

And though there is no sign of our Bonnie cat, Clyde has finally this week started to perk up. He still will not set foot in the guest room, which is where they slept. Poor thing. But he is a bit more animated.

Last night I stood on the deck and stared out at the fence, watching that red mirror very closely. I didn’t move a muscle. Watching. But no rats appeared. It is a pity we can’t all live in harmony. It truly is. But I draw the line at rats. Draw…the…line.

I’ll be back next time with some indoor changes. I’ve been crafting!

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