On Friday May 26th we made a dump run and then enjoyed some breakfast out.
The views above are from the roads we take to the dump.
After dropping the truck off and switching to our car we enjoyed another drive in the opposite direction. It was fun to spot these ducklings with their parents on the road to Rocky Lake.
Home again enjoying the lush green of Spring.
Happy Tuesday everyone! We are busy with company today. We might even be chopping down our huge dead tree. Have a good week.
These were our rhoddy bushes at our last home in Kenmore, Washington.
Jo From This Side of the Pond has a new bouquet of questions for us to answer this first Hodgepodge of May. Click over to join in the fun. Thank you Jo!
1. What’s something you ‘may’ do this month?
Gut our master shower and start work on the remodeling of it. That won’t be me alone but the royal we who do this. Mostly he’ll do it and I’ll be his gofer.
2. “All things seem possible in May”~Edwin Way Teale. Do you agree? Elaborate. If not May, then in which month if any would you say all things seem possible?
I’m more of a get-er-done in October kind of person. For me the merry month of May yields more things to leisurely enjoy.
3. April showers bring May flowers…is this true where you live?
Absolutely true here. We are still in daffodil and tulip mode and soon many different plants will flower.
What’s your favorite color of the rainbow?
I will go with Violet.
Your favorite May bloom?
Rhododendron
Do you enjoy visiting gardens?
Yes! I’ve been fortunate to visit several beautiful gardens like Butchart Gardens on Vancouver Island, The gardens at Biltmore in Asheville, The Japanese Gardens in Seattle, Roozengaarde Tulip Garden in Mt. Vernon Washington State, Descanso Gardens in Flintridge, California, Airlie Gardens in Wilmington N.C. , Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden, Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh, Hidcote Gardens (Cotswolds), Kiftsgate Court Gardens (Cotswolds) to name a few…
What’s a ‘famous’ garden you’d like to visit?
Beatrix Potter’s Garden at Hilltop
4. Are you a fan of the Star Wars series of films? If so how many have you seen? (I think there are 12)
I enjoyed watching the first series in the theater, the first 4. We went to church with George Lucas’s sister when we lived in Huntington Beach. Didn’t really keep up with the last 7 or 8 of them.
Are you a fan of the sci-fi genre in general, in either books or movies? What’s your favorite sci-fi book or movie?
More a fan of Fantasy. Hubby really enjoys Sci-fi. His favorite author is Isaac Asimov and the favorite series is The Foundation Trilogy.
5. Cinco de Mayo lands on Friday of this week…do you enjoy Mexican food? How often?
We grew up in what I call ‘Northern Mexico’ aka Southern California so we learned to enjoy Mexican food early. I can eat Mexican food several times a week but on average I’d say twice a week.
Do you eat out or make your own?
Both. This week we’ll be eating Mexican food out on Thursday and on Cinco de Mayo!
Your favorite thing to order in a Mexican restaurant?
Depending on the restaurant I enjoy Chile Colorado in a burrito or a chalupa. I also enjoy Enchiladas Suissa.
Have you ever been to Mexico?
Yes and not to a resort. We went to Tecate to pick up floor tiles for our cousin’s house. Ticate is well East of Tijuana. We have tales to tell about that trip. After we got the tiles in the van the trip back to the Border near Tijuana was dicey. The heavy load necessitated more air in the tires and we called out to the Lord to find somewhere for that air! We made it back on the U.S. side and parked the van there. Then we crossed the Border again taking a taxi to Tijuana for some shopping. After we were done shopping we thought we could walk back to the Border, because we were so cheap. A Tijuana Police car pulled up and told us it was too far to walk to the ‘Border’ and we were escorted back to the U.S. Border by two Tijuana policemen in their police car… My cousin sat between the two policemen in the front seat and Me, Jeanie and Greg were in the back seat. We were a little nervous until we saw the Border crossing. Come over for dinner sometime and we’ll tell you the rest of the story…
6. Insert your own random thought here.
Speaking of gardens…
The gardens at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville N.C. in May of 2014 with our daughter Katie.
Butchart Gardens with our daughter, Katie.
Japanese Gardens in Seattle.
Descanso Gardens in 1988 and 2010, Katie and her cousins.
Roozengaarde in Mount Vernon, Washington State.
Hidcote Gardens in the Cotswolds 2014.
So thankful for all the beauty that God created for us to enjoy.
Thanks for stopping by and I hope to visit Hodgepodgers soon.
Looking forward to our May flowers! Our last couple days of April brought temperatures into the 80’s!
Spring has brought some common visitors back to our yard.
These stay right where they are all year round in all kinds of weather.
Our daffodils came up and they are in their full glory.
Spring Rhubarb.
Soon we’ll be enjoying the Peonies.
For close to 5 years we have been half-satisfied with our internet service. Where we live Satellite service has been our best option. Our plan was expensive and doesn’t deliver for the cost in our opinion. Lately we have another choice for Satellite and we took the plunge and ordered Starlink. Dear is on the roof getting the space ready for the Satellite dish.
That dish moves and finds the optimum position in relation to the Satellites. Very cool. It lets us know if there are obstructions. It also will melt snow that might accumulate on it. Our other service had a data limit and this service does not. We are happy campers. It was expensive for the initial cost of equipment, etc., but the monthly fee is $50 dollars less than our previous provider. We are pleased. When we called to cancel our previous service they offered us more data and a $50 discount on our plan. Too little, too late.
Hope you can enjoy lots of pretty blooms in May and joy in your hearts!
Jo From This Side of the Pond is tweeting out some new questions for us to answer for Wednesday Hodgepodge.
1. April 26th is National Audubon Day, honoring John James Audubon, the French-American ornithologist, naturalist, and painter known for his detailed study and illustration of birds in their natural habitats.
Do you have a bird feeder?
Yes, several.
Any birds in your home decor?
A few.
Have you ever owned a pet bird?
Yes, and it’s a sad story I’ve told before. In the 50’s our Pop decided he would get pigeons and he built a pigeon cage for them in our back yard. I had 3 siblings at that time and we all chose one to be our pet. Mine was Green Neck. Things got so dire financially that our pet pigeons ended up in a pot of soup. All of my siblings and myself refused to eat that soup. Our Pop couldn’t understand why. OYE!
The photo above is of our Pop, my older sisters Kathy and Vera and that’s me with a pigeon on my head. I’m guessing it’s Green Neck.
What’s your favorite bird?
This is tough. I love many birds. The majestic eagle and the hawk are special. I love the look of owls. Hummingbirds are adorable. I’m not a fan of pigeons and won’t let them find a place to roost.
2. What’s something you took to ‘like a duck to water’?
Blogging.
3. Empty nest, nest egg, proud as a peacock, free as a bird, birds of a feather flock together, or the early bird catches the worm…choose one and tell us how it currently applies to your life.
I’ll go with the early bird catches the worm because lately I’m finding myself awake at 5am and by 9am it seems like I’ve gotten all I need to get done, done.
4. Pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, chia seeds, sesame seeds, poppy seeds…your favorite seed and a favorite food or dish made with that seed or topped with that seed?
Sunflower seeds first and pumpkin seeds come in second, roasted and lightly salted in the shells.
Have you tried all the seeds on the list?
I don’t think I’ve tried flax or chia.
Any you don’t care for?
All are fine in limited quantities, except for sunflower seeds. I can crack and eat a whole bag of sunflower seeds!
5. Something in the past week that made you ‘happy as a lark’?
We took the plunge and are trying out a new satellite internet service. Waiting for one last mount before we are good to go. If you don’t see me next week you’ll know something went wrong. Where we live in the country our only good option is a satellite service.
6. Insert your own random thought here.
We are warming up the rest of this week and finally have mornings above freezing. We had our first walk on the Rotary Trail on Saturday morning and are looking forward to this trek a few times a week.
Today is a busy day with a 7am appointment for new tires on the car, an 8:30 appointment with the doctor, 9am Prayer meeting and then the window washers are coming in the late afternoon. Hooray for clean windows!
Our shadows on the trail last Saturday.
Thanks for stopping by. Hope to be around to visit soon.
On this day in between we are preparing for our Joyful Resurrection Sunday service. “It is Finished”
It rained most of the day yesterday but it looks like we have the day off from rain today.
I’ve not been on my computer much as we are busy here at our Country Bungalow preparing not only for Easter Day but some other events this Spring.
Hope to be around soon to see how Spring is unfolding in your neck of the woods.
We’ve had some stormy weather with wind, downpours, thunder and lightening. The ground was so soaked that we took the opportunity to pull a lot of weeds that were easier to pull up.
On the Fourth the skies cleared up just in time for a gathering of lots of church folks at a family from church’s home. Everyone brought their own meat to throw on the barbecues. We all got a grilling number when we arrived. We were number 7. Everyone also brought sides and desserts to share with everyone. It was a feast. We left about halfway through the Corn hole tournament. There were enough corn holes for 8 teams to play at a time. We made it home just in time for another downpour. Hope the corn hole tournament wasn’t rained out!
With all the storms this summer it was safe enough to shoot off lots fireworks.
Walking early this morning with a new friend from church who just moved back to Colville from Montana. It’s going to be hard to remember what day of the week it is since the Fourth landed on a Monday.
If the rain is over for a few days Dear will be able to continue on the exterior painting project.
…and our blooms are slower to open up this Spring. Compared to last year our Peonies, Clematis, Irises, and Columbine are all a bit behind in opening up in their glory.
We have 2 large bushes of this variety of Peony and 3 smaller ones. When they bloom I try to bring bouquets in and give away some, too. I was able to take a nice bouquet to a surprise birthday party we went to on Sunday afternoon during a dry spell with sun, some blue sky and lovely fluffy clouds. When we got home from the party the skies opened up with an amazing downpour with lightning and thunder and hail, oh my.
One of the many Iris bulbs opened up on Saturday. Several more to come.
Our weekend was filled with mostly rain with a few dry spells. During the dry spells I pulled as many weeds as my back and arms would permit. When the soil is wet with rain the weeds pull up easier. I figure 20 more hours of weeding and I’ll be ahead. I smile and sigh at the same time.
Even though we are getting a lot of rain and cooler temperatures this Spring we go with the flow and hope that this accumulation of moisture will help lower the risk of wildfires this summer.
How goes it in your corner of the world?
We don’t remember them with white on the tail feathers like this.
This young one was just improving it’s flying skills, just fresh from the nest.
If you squint you can see the little one on the branch to the left. It flew up into the trees in our front yard.
It’s been fun to watch the festivities of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee! We recorded it and are slowly making our way through.
In other news we have had to turn from heat to air conditioning the last couple of days and the Columbine is blooming beautifully!
Hope your first weekend in June is a good one.
…and waiting on more blooms around the yard.
Lots of red peonies ready to show. We have 5 bushes.
Hostas
White Bleeding Heart
Original Poets Daffodil
Lilac
Johnny Jump Ups
Rhubarb
What are you watching at your home?
The Happy Wonderer ~ ellen b. 