Farmer's Market Flowers for Easter Celebrations

Farmer's Market flowers made all the more special when gifted by the hands of a child.  Even if she's grown ♥ maybe especially when she's grown. 

Owl Update: Pass the Cigars and the Kleenex

Today was the first sighting of a baby.  We won't be sure how many are in the box unless fortunate enough to see them leaving the nest.  The last brood we hosted had four young!

Sadly we haven't seen or heard the momma since Sunday evening.  Daily perched on the arbor in clear sight of the box, she vigilantly watched the goings on of the backyard. The poppa continues to sit in the photinia which also gives a clear view of the nest.  At dusk he leaves his roost to feed the young alone.

Momma (photo taken the Friday before she disappeared)

I fear she was prey to a great horned owl. My husband heard their nearby calls Sunday night when he was out in the yard with our dog.  I hope I'm wrong and she is just well hidden but given that I haven't heard her either, I fear the worst.

As my daughter says, they've all got babies with their beaks open and they've all got to eat.  She's right.  Still, I'm heartbroken.

I'm Like a Momma with a New Baby

Y'all I can't help myself.  I'm completely smitten with this guy.  I'm transfixed.  Maybe even a bit obsessed.  

He's visible from the kitchen, dining and family room windows.  Upstairs the best view is from my son's room.  Specifically, his bed.  Where I perch.  Constantly.  To take more photos.  

He/she? has taken to sitting at the opening of the box during the day which leads me to think the box must be getting a bit crowded.  With momma and eggs?  I don't know.  Maybe with owlets?  It seems early for that though.  

The eggs take nearly a month to hatch and then the owlets are box bound for approximately another month.  You can be sure I'll keep you posted!  I just pray I'll get to take some photos of the owlets because they are the CUTEST things ever.

On the down side, I haven't spotted many anoles yet this spring.  My garden is usually thriving with their presence...  Having said that, I noticed this the last time we had owls nesting here and their population recovered. 

The folks that live here with me are pretty sure I need an intervention.   I claim there are much worse things I could be doing with my time.  

She'll Be Back

Ah!  Look!  A butterfly!

These words drifted through the window and pulled me from the comfort of my chair.   A small girl excited by the sight of a butterfly stood open mouthed; transfixed by the acrobatic, graceful movements.  And I too stood transfixed, marveling at this small child's delight in her simple discovery.

She gets it, I thought to myself.  She really gets it.  A smile opened itself wide on both our faces as we shared the moment.  She reluctantly trailed after her companion and I wanted to yell, wait, wait ... you haven't seen the hummingbirds yet or the many lizards or the swallowtails.  But I think she knows.  She'll be back.

Joy was written all over her face.

Siblings :: I Sought My Soul...

I sought my soul, but my soul I could not see.  I sought my God, but my God eluded me. 

 I sought my brother and I found all three.  

                                                                                                              ~Author Unknown

Sometimes You Need a Swift Kick in the Rear

The next time I decide to paint any room larger than 6' x 6' go ahead and give me a swift kick.  And the next time my sweet husband looks at me with complete sincerity and asks if I'm sure I don't want to hire someone to paint and I say no, just kick me.  Hard. 

And, the next time I take on this project the day after we get home from vacation the week of school starting for my son and my daughter readying herself to leave for college.  Yes, you know.  Just give me a kick.  And, my parents and extended family are coming to town the following week for a birthday celebration...Yes.  Really.  I did this.  Knowingly.  

Three rooms and two hallways painted a gorgeous warm gray.  Thankfully I love the color and the work was worth it!

So this lunacy explains my blogging absence and I've missed you sorely.   There has been so much happening.  We've gotten cooler temperatures, a little rain with more on the way and there are so many signs that fall is coming!

The oxblood lilies gifted to me in March by my neighbor Leroy are blooming!  They are delightfully charming and old fashioned and have lived up to the expectation of JOY I anticipated.  I adore them.

This group of mushrooms appeared in the yard yesterday.  Amazing, really because the lawn in the back is parched.  Wonderful these little miracles out there just waiting for the perfect conditions.

Spider lilies are eagerly pushing up the earth with one in bloom all the sudden.  The others aren't far behind. 

But my favorite fall story is this little fall aster...

This was planted three years ago with the excitement that every gardener has when she plants a flowering perennial.  I could just imagine how it would spill over the slope, loaded down with sweet lilac hued flowers each fall.  But a rabbit ate it down to nearly nothing only for it to come up again the following year to suffer horribly through drought and heat.  This year it was nibbled again but fortunately the bunny found the nearby black-eyed Susan more palatable and the aster finally grew.  It's still tiny but it is a survivor and it is proclaiming the start of fall loud and proud. 

This little aster gives me hope and makes me smile every time I see it.  I want to be like that little aster.

A Suggestion for Summer Sunshine

Let us dance in the sun, wearing wild flowers in our hair...

I've Been Keeping a Secret...

The suspense has been killing me...

This project has been in the works since the beginning of June.  It's a project that I've been begging  asking my husband to build for a while as I'm not so handy with razor sharp blades.  Honestly, they scare the bejeebies out of me. 

I've pinned multiple styles for inspiration.  Dreamed about one, visualized one on my porch.  Imagined all the ways our family would love this.  I've obsessed actually. 

One perfect day my husband came home and said he was ready to build it.  I was beside myself GIDDY!

Now, it's not completely finished yet.  Which is my fault.  My husband finished up his part long ago and we've been using and loving  it for well over a month. 

But I wanted it to have a kind of grand introduction, you know?  I wanted it to be all fluffed and dressed pretty before I had the big reveal.

Then in one moment it happened and I just couldn't stand it any longer.  I had to share with you because you, dear readers and fellow gardeners, understand the joy when a garden dream becomes reality.

My youngest {who is now 6'1"} was in NYC for the week on a mission trip and he returned exhausted.

My husband and I were on our way out the back door when I saw this...

I grabbed a quick shot with my phone camera {he would kill me if he knew; fortunately 16 year old boys don't read their mom's gardening blogs}.  In that little moment my heart swelled.  We did it.  We created a sleeping porch!  And everyone in the family loves  it.  All the imagining and daydreaming and obsessing about this bed swing is now a reality.

This post isn't quite the big reveal I had hoped for.  The pillows aren't made and it's not quite dressed the way I see it in my mind's eye but the most important part is finished.  It's a porch that draws you in and welcomes you comfortably.  It's a porch where we will find respite.  A place to daydream, read, laugh, sleep, chat.  It's a place where memories will be made.

It's everything I imagined and more.  ♥ Thank you DJ ♥

A Bit of Fragrance

A bit of fragrance always clings to the hand that gives you flowers...

A small gesture presented in the tiniest of packages.   A cherished bouquet gifted to me by my girl.  Whether two or twenty years old, it doesn't matter.  What mother can resist the delight of a child as she proudly surrenders her carefully selected posies chosen just for you?   Sweet moments. Simple joys.

Eastern Screech Owls ~ A Party at Casa de Cat

The day has come, sadly.  The screech owls left the box last night.  But oh what a party they had!  And oh how they surprised us!

Picture the four of us tightly perched on a twin size bed, faces pressed to the window, watching as one of the owlets appeared only to be pushed from the box by another owlet trying to get a better view.  We stared with rapt attention and rapidly beating hearts, wondering what would happen to this now vulnerable baby.

Fortunately, my husband placed the box in such a way that there is a limb where the owlets can perch directly below the opening of the box.  The momma flew in with what appeared to be a baby rodent, surveyed the situation, didn't seem too concerned then hovered at the opening to feed the nesting babies. 

Yes, I said babies...there are four!  Steadily, with the exception of one, we watched as the others bailed from the box.  We fretted, cooed and marveled as if they were our own offspring!

By this time, it was dark but I managed to get a {quite blurry} photo of the four of them.

The antics of these four cuties was so entertaining!  We watched for a good hour.  Three were out and exploring their expanded world while one unsure squirt hung back and watched from the safety of the box.

One bold fellow lost it's footing and fell from the perch, landing among the elephant ear.  My husband exclaimed that the leaf actually caught and slowed the fall.  That demonstrates just how light they are.  My daughter and I ventured outside to see if it was okay.  We tip-toed around in the dark, scanning the beds to no avail.  We stopped near one of the trees and I jumped when I realized the owlet was clinging to the side of the tree trunk at waist level!  My daughter was a mere 12 inches from the baby!

In my excitement I snapped a photograph.  In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have.  My daughter and I wondered at how the light from the camera may have bothered it's eyes.  I hope not too much.  It had a lot of work ahead of it to get back up into the canopy of the tree.  It was a straight, vertical ascent.

At this writing, two juveniles are with the momma roosting high in the oak, while at least one is still in the box.  I'm not sure if the fourth is in the box or off with the papa...I haven't seen either of them today. 

The indistinguishable gray fuzzies behind her are the babies. 

Last one in the house?  Oh, have I mentioned how much I'm going to miss these guys?

Here is a great link for detailed information on their habits.

Somewhere Between Winter and Spring

a striking winter sunset

a rainy, winter day (3" in my rain gauge)

a text from my daughter saying she has a plot at the neighborhood community garden

and a photo later in the day of some carrots she pulled there

 four nerve daisy spotted at ATX City Hall 

Texas mountain laurel

*all photos except first two taken with iphone camera

Fire Ants + Fireworks = Forgiveness

a fire ant mound

 a 16 year old boy and explosives

innocent bystanders:  birdbath (birthday gift last year)

columbine, purple oxalis, cedar sage and holly fern

My sixteen year old son and several friends were tempted beyond restraint by a large, teeming mound of fire ants.  

Filled to the brim with testosterone and glee, they studded the mound with an ample amount of explosives.  Plentiful enough to crack the birdbath and blow the columbine, oxalis and cedar sage to smithereens.  Within a couple of days the fire ants relocated their mound six inches from its original site.  Clearly, this treatment for fire ants is ineffective.  

This incident happened during Christmas break.   It's taken me this long to get over it...

But it's time for forgiveness...the plants are thriving, the birdbath will be used as a base for tesserae and once again, I'm reminded of the amazing resilience of a garden and its inhabitants (welcome and unwelcome), and the fierce love of a mother for her boy. 

30 Days of Giving Thanks!

 Thankful today for you, the readers of The Whimsical Gardener.

A huge virtual hug goes out to all of you!  I'm so thankful to have discovered this wonderful blogging community through a simple photographic journal of my garden. 

30 Day Challenge ~ Thanksgiving ~ Day 6

I'm so excited and full of anticipation for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday and having my house full of the sounds of my children and their friends.  While I'm really grateful that my daughter is enjoying 

her college experience, I miss her.

Light of Foot ~ Light of Spirit

Times like this find me wishing for a zoom lens. This is a western diamondback rattlesnake.  He spent the better portion of a morning last week wandering my back patio.  I spent the better portion of the morning freaking out. 

This is Todd...my hero.   Yes, that is a snake tattoo on his lower left leg.  He is passionate like that.  He lives in the neighborhood and will come and relocate snakes for free.  He is passionate like that.   And because he is passionate like that, he came all the way from Round Rock, in the middle of a work day, to relocate my unwanted guest. 

A second encounter today with another rattlesnake (on the trail) and this anole spotted on the leaf of a sweet potato vine remind me of the importance of being light of foot.   As the anole eyed me suspiciously, just as I had eyed the rattlesnake, he slowly and ever so lightly walked along the vine with nary a disturbance.  The leaves barely sagged under the weight of its step.  This is how I'm determined to live at the moment; light of foot.   

These beautiful, young people I've been graced with caring for are growing up and I'm treading lightly into this new season.  We'll be feeling our way along, determining just what our new 'normal' will be while our oldest is away at college.

Treading lightly into new roles and responsibilities.   Purposefully being light of foot in order to remain light of spirit...


I used to live in a room full of mirrors; all I could see was me.  I take my spirit and I crash my mirrors, now the whole world is here for me to see.
                                                                                                                Jimi Hendrix

School Looms ~ Summer Hiatus

 

And thank you for a house full of people I love.  Amen. 

                                                                          ~ Terri Guillemets

Summer is moving by at a rapid clip and our household is a twitter...school starts in a couple of weeks and there is so much to be done.  My oldest is off to college and dorm decor is high on our priority list!  I'll be taking a short break from blogging to focus more time and energy on family.  I'll be seeing y'all in the garden soon!

A Week's Worth of Treasure

 

For all these treasures, I'm grateful.

Weekend Wrap-Up

Our family celebrated part of our Memorial Day weekend with good friends at Canyon of the Eagles near Burnet, Texas.   

I love the native plants of the Texas Hill Country...cacti and wildflowers mingle on an escarpment high above the lake.

Bees buzzed lazily in the perennial garden.

Rockers called for contemplative moments and relaxed conversations.   The relaxation and time spent together as a family was priceless.  This week marks a milestone for our family; our oldest is graduating from high school!

Congratulations sweet girl!

The Invitation

It doesn't interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream of meeting your
heart's longing.
It doesn't interest me how old you are.  I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for your dream, for the adventure of being alive.

                                                                        ~Oriah Mountain Dreamer