It’s been a minute

05/20/2023 If you’re wondering where I’ve been, I’ve been in the garden. In and out, crawling around in the mud and the mulch on my hands and knees, like a freaking 11-month-old. I wasn’t drooling (that I’m aware of) but the sweat was running in my eyes and dripping off my face. I am unable to squat down (knees) so my choices are bending over (not pretty), sitting on the ground and butt hopping along or crawling. I’ve done all 3. They are a very embarrassing look.

Last year we got a late start on the garden, sticking things in the ground haphazardly and hoping they would survive the winter. It was a mild winter, only really cold for a week here and there.

I’ve never been the type of gardener to have a system and plan where I am planting each plant. Not me. I stick things in the ground with little to no rhyme or reason. It just is what it is. Some of the things we bought last summer at a garden place in Glasgow did not do well. I’m not sure why as they were all perennials. We ended up digging them up and replacing them with other (many other) varieties.

Sometime last Nov. we planted about 30 bulbs and then we had really warm temps and they bloomed earlier than they should have. Again, It was a total surprise what came up, I had no idea what I planted.

And then we had a late frost and I had to cover things up, and still lost both my basil plants, which I obviously planted too early. I don’t learn.

I have planted enough lettuce for everyone who lives on Leslie Rd. I have had a salad every night for 3 weeks or more. I have 4 different kinds of lettuce and some spinach. I am in heaven with a salad from the garden.

So far this year I have purchased and planted over 120 flowers and 30+salad fixings.

I said, once the Azalea is planted, I’m done. But, I also said, I want to start some lettuce from seed to have later in the summer. When I was fertilizing tonight I noticed a few spots that could use another plant. I’m really going to try to not buy more. Seriously.

We got 2 huge loads of mulch in the trailer and still had to buy 10 more bags. The bags were much easier to spread than Bill shoveling it off the trailer. That is done, as of today, the Azalea is planted too.

I finally made it to Sunny Day nursery. It’s an hour away, in a different time zone, which is weird. I believe the people are Amish, really sweet people and they have an amazing place. On the first visit I wandered for almost an hour before I got a wagon to carry the plants as I shopped.

The whole time I’m plant shopping, the fact that all these plants means a lot of work, never crosses my mind. It doesn’t hit until the next day when they need something, water.

Where the pool sits in the yard was ugly. There was dirt around the bottom, weeds and it just looked nasty. I suggested we use rubber mulch. Bill looked into it and thought it was a good idea. I found some heavy plastic border to hold the little tire nuggets in place. We finished that this morning, it was a sweaty one.

The umbrella came for pool deck so I put the rug out there and the chaises. It will be nice to have shade but we have to really watch the wind, the umbrella could literally fly away.

Bill woke me at 4:30 AM Saturday morning, saying, I think Highway is dying. This is the second time he has woken me in 14 months saying the same thing. I got up immediately and went to the living room. Highway was NOT good. His eyes were glassy and he was struggling to breathe. We have a nice vet very close but he has no diagnostic stuff. We called the Glasgow vet (45 min away). They’re closed on Sat. and had no one available to see us. So Bill threw him in the car and drove 2.5 hours (one way) to Louisville to the $$$ vet.

They did xrays and said there is something in his lungs, bronchitis, pneumonia (which he had a year ago) or cancer. Without a several thousand dollar biopsy, we don’t know. They put him on heavy antibiotics and prednisone. The bad thing is: he’s been on one kind of antibiotic or another for over one year. Does his body even respond?? He is better, breathing ok but he hacks hard, nothing comes out, and he is doing the reverse sneeze again. We’re going to wait and see how he responds to the meds to determine our course of action. Highway is 10.5 years old.

Dogs sure aren’t cheap. It’s a good thing we love them.

My friend and I went to Tennesee a few weeks ago. I needed a Sam’s cheese and chicken breast run. They had no chicken breast. When I got home I ordered 8 bags of frozen chicken, 4 breasts and 4 tenderloins from Costco. Don’t ask why so much because I don’t know. Then Highway had to go to Louisville, where Costco is. While Highway was at the vet, they don’t let you go in for the exam and xrays, Bill ran to Costco. It’s a drive to get there so we stocked up on dog food, VODKA and Bourbon.

I saw these advertised online and got some to try. Oh my…watermelon, grape, coconut, pineapple, lime, mango. These are so good.

Years ago Bill had a Schwinn bicycle shop. Schwinn started making exercise equipment, like the Air Dyne and the Bow Flex. We had both. I loved the bow flex but sold it when we left WA.

I decided I wanted one and found one on a FB group I admin on. I called the girl and promised her I would buy it but we couldn’t come until Monday. She said, no problem.

We got it home and inside, quickly realizing it takes up a lot of room. It’s now in the bedroom in a really terrible spot but there is nowhere else.

I’m also trying to walk at least 4 miles every day, some days I hit 5 miles. We walk the boys in the morning then I walk Barrio and Max after dinner. They’re easy, they listen and stay right with me. Tonight we were walking down the driveway to go up on the hill and I saw a stick in the driveway, only it wasn’t a stick. I screamed, I’m sure they heard me down the road.

Max and Barrio were not interested in him at all.

I’ll end here with photos I took this morning. Bill keeps it well mowed where we walk the dogs every morning. It’s park-like, especially with the fragrant Japanese Honeysuckle. It smells fabulous.

And that’s it, I’m outta here.

Happy Memorial Day. XOXO