You Just Never Know, Do You?

I've been away for a few days, sort of unexpectedly. I went for a visit to Michigan to see my Grandfather before he passed away. A sad and difficult occasion, for sure. Early in the week it was decided that they would start giving him morphine and whatever else was needed to keep him comfortable. My mother and I arrived on day 2 of this regimen and we got to see and talk to him before he slipped away into a drug-induced coma.

I was very glad I was able to see him even just for a little bit. He was seriously one of the best men on the planet. Kind, patient, true and just very sweet. They don't come any nicer than my Grandpa.

I am glad he is no longer suffering and that he is now free from his struggles. It's terrible what he had to go through.

Tomorrow will be a crazy day getting ready for our trip, so I will probably not be posting anything until after we get back!

Here are a couple photos of where we'll be:


Have a good week!

It's Raining Cats, Dogs, Buckets and Anything Else Imagineable!

Oh, these days are so icky! Rain rain rain, SO windy, not a glimmer of sun, and just sort of messy all the way around.

Even the dogs are like, "Really? You want me to go out in THIS?!" I don't blame them. It's gross out there! Not only is it raining, but all the snow is melting, so it's a matter of dodging the icy remnants of the snow, giant puddles and the wind-driven rain! It's really soggy from literally all angles!

A theme you will probably notice over time in this here blog is the weather. Not only because I live in New England, and the weather here is strange and VERY changeable, but I'm also a weather geek. Seriously. Not only was I a science major all through school, all of my professional life has been dependent on the weather! Less now than when I worked as a whale researcher, but even now, I have to pay attention to times of drought, rain, and cold, as well as the appropriate times of year to plant, prune and fertilize!

The one thing we have going for us today is that it's 50 degrees! Not too shabby for January 25th! And, it's supposed to be about 40+ Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, so I'll take that! Back to reality on Friday...Brrrr cold again.

On a positive note, I have lost quite a bit of weight on our South Beach diet so far! Quite pleased with the numbers on the scale! Would still like to lose about 10-15 more, but I am definitely on the right path! So, YAY for that!

I don't have any pretty flowers to show you right now, so I will leave you with these cute pictures of Sadie. The way she looks now, compared to the look she had when we first got her is absolutely amazing! She looked SO unsure when we first got her...The confidence and security of her life just shine through now! Very satisfying to see, indeed! : )

Here is Day One, March 8, 2008: Her look is saying, "Where the #%^* am I? Who ARE these people? And why does that other dog want to eat my face off?!"

Here is a recent photo, 2010: Now her look is saying, "Ummm, could I get some service over here? I'd like some steak and some fresh water. Oh, and could you please scratch my belly and possibly take us for another walk soon?!"

Ahhh, the good life!

How to plant a flower box...NOT!!

I was randomly looking around today to see what's out there on the subject of planting flower boxes...You know, tips on soil, drainage, types of plants, height, texture, movement, etc.

Not a lot out there in the way of really good tips, unfortunately. Look at this example I found:

This would be a "don't" in my book of Dos and Don'ts! Really!

Those poor, scraggly plants on either side of the spiky dracena in the middle? This is not the full, lush look that one strives for when planting a flower box, is it? It's really just sad and pitiful looking. Now, I do not claim to be THE authority on how to plant your flower boxes or planters...I'm just telling you that when I do fleurs for my clients or even here at the house, people respond quite positively! The trick is to really pack the plants in there and work with different heights, using types of plants that will grow tall, along with plants that will trail over the planter itself.

Here's an assymetrical flower box I did some years back:

While I'm not a huge proponent of assymetry in planters or flower boxes now, this really worked! Mostly due to the fullness and use of color.

Here one I did for a client:

Again, fullness, height, and texture are the things here...

Springtime flower boxes at our house several years ago:

And, finally, some planters I did for clients:


I'm totally itching to do some planting, but, alas, the weather will not be cooperating for about 3 more months!

Please let me know if there's anything else here that would be helpful!

Happy Spring (in 57 days!)!!