Highlights and Undertones

Some weekends are more productive than others. The soccer game was cancelled Saturday morning and it wasn't raining, so this was one of those productive ones.

First of all the bean tunnel came down. It was on it's way down anyway since I didn't know what I was doing when I made it. I've since educated myself. I am a woman with a mission now and there will be no stopping me. I'm thinking Christmas gifts will be made of wood this year. I know you're all dyeing to be added to my list. Don't deny it.



I replaced the tunnel with mini Eiffel towers for the beans to grow on. Who wants an elephant of a tunnel when you can grow French green beans?



Oh, and I added the steps, too. Just because. Sometimes I do silly things like that when I should be doing so many more things. Luke tells me they're not spaced closely enough. Silly me, I was spacing them for my paces. I am not happy with the brick now that I see it pictured. I'll have to work on those.

This little guy has a sad story to tell.



I saw him over near the dog kennel and thought to myself, "Self, he needs to live in your garden. He'll love it there!" Then I noticed that a front foot was gone. He couldn't get around very well, poor thing. But he survived the night and managed to find his way out of my garden, so he can't be as bad as all that. He might actually be a she, though. Have you ever seen such a fat little toad? If it's indeed a he, he needs to cut back on the Bug Juice.

As the kids were playing hide and seek in the basement, they stumbled upon this little gem.



Only it wasn't in the bag. I know it's difficult to make out without being able to get up close and personal, but it's a snake head. A rather nice sized snake head at that. No body. Obviously the thing found it's way into the basement and died. A long time ago. But the house is only 3 years old. The first winter, as we were still building, the basement wasn't sealed around the door and we had a mouse problem, so here's hoping that thing found it's way in along with the mice and then couldn't find it's way back out. Because the alternative is that it thrived, had a snakey wife and babies, and died of old age. But I don't want to think about that. I might have to move. Suffice it to say, I'm horrified and have the freaky-creepies.

After that thing was discovered inside, I figured it was safer to be outside. So I resumed my obsession with wood.



My mom's birthday is Tuesday and I thought this might be nice for her roses to grow on. I'm insanely jealous of those roses. I planted them at her horse stable when I still lived at home, these many long years ago. They are thriving, healthy and produce an abundance of roses every year. I've planted more roses than I care to admit at my place and not a one of them will go to the bother of living. Those roses have some kind of nerve.

And this is the week that we became drum owners, so no day is complete without this taking place.



At 6:30 in the AM, Micah remembers that those sweet things are in the basement. He's lucky that
1.) the house is well insulated enough that it's not annoyingly loud
2.) I rather like the sound of drums. Just not at 6:30 in the AM.

And because I didn't feel productive enough after I finished planting my vegetable garden, I decided to put in that garden out front that I've been talking about all spring.



I'm not nearly as happy with that trellis as I had visions of being, but for now it's staying. I'm hoping that the clematis actually grows and climbs as the tag promised it would. And the big debate now is whether or not I should make wings for either side of the trellis. Would it be too much? Or would it kinda tie things together? There are so many choices, how am I to cope?