spending time

Catching up with some pictures. Here's Molly from Winter Formal at Firestone HS.

I've been spending a lot of time raking, composting, tilling, trimming, and getting ready to plant. I was so delighted with the rich compost I got both from my rotating barrel and my 3 bin system. I get up early each morning with the first light and go out with the dogs - Maggie and Winston. They run and wrestle with each other while I do my yard work for 45 minutes to an hour.

This has been very spiritually centering for me and I have lost some weight during this time too.

I remember my dad was talking about retiring to a small farm. Then he died of cancer at age 58. Dad was raised on a farm and basically framed until he was 21 and went to college. His gardens of flowers especially were fabulous.

I never spent any time with Dad gardening. Now that I have taken it on for myself, I appreciate the experience he had while doing it.

This year we will have our 10 x @ 20 ft kitchen garden plus a lot of beds of perennials. Plan to get do some more annuals this year. Thinking about adding another apple tree to the back yard and possibly another spruce tree for the birds. Last summer added mock orange and lilacs as some buffers to the patio.

Doing this, hiking and canoeing/camping bring great peace to my life. Just spending time with my family does that. I am very grateful for Martha, Kate and Molly. They are joys to be with. Wonderful conversations and ideas are shared.

Winston, whom we got at the dog pound about 4 weeks ago is very well behaved, smart and quite a character. Can't believe we got him not long before he would have been euthanized. He was picked up off the street. He is Lab, Shar Pei, & Boxer mix.

I will add pictures of the yard and garden as time goes on. Also have plans for an organic garden at the church and inviting neighborhood kids to help with it.


Loar, Akron,