More Silly Pics...

It was prom night for my baby, Dee. She's kinda hard to miss since she's the only one who's formal. OTOH, I'm getting to like the idea of being silly. So this is me, Dee, my youngeset, Shelby, the oldest and the DH, Mark. Yup, you finally have to suffer by seeing the whole crew.

I definitely would have liked a better background, but it was raining like the devil outside and we would have ruined Dee's hair, so here's my unfinished kitchen. Blech! One of these days, it'll be a room I actually like, but that will come in time.

In the meantime, Dee loved the idea that she's wearing flats and is taller than her older sister. I'm seeing that she's dangerously close to also being taller than me. Hmm... is this where I pounce on her in her sleep and vow to keep her tiny and small and defenseless? LOL!

Now, there's no way I can have a picture of one baby without including the other. This is my Lacy. If I'm in the house, she's never further than about five feet from wherever I am. And she's highly jealous of anyone who gets hugs unless she's included.

So, yes, as soon as the crew broke up, she jumped in to get her turn at hugs from Mom. Needless to say, she's one baby that I indulge.

Here's the one that's at least semi-serious. At least I tried. Problem is I have to stop tucking my chin in close. See those double chins hanging under my smile? Oh boy. Definitely need to rethink how I pose when pix are being taken.

But Dee looked gorgeous, as my daughters both are without trying. Isn't it scary when you can give birth to two girls who don't need make-up in order to not terrify small children and animals? Me? I try not to terrify those who know me and they don't even have to work at it.

Look out world. Remember that Daddy doesn't own the guns. Mom does... LOL!

Lastly, here's one for the records: This one was taken on Easter Sunday. Dee doctored it up with the frame and the words, but the picture is me, my Mom, Dee, Aunt Lois and my mother-in-law. (Yes, you can see why there was always the chance that my daughters would be taller than me. Course, then poor Shelby took after my Mom who's still not the shortest in my family. No, we're not going there except our women are small of stature but gigantic in heart.)

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In the Garden

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I started some chives, lemon basil and dill by seed and those are now in my little triangle garden. I did move my established chive plants to that bed also as they were really becoming crowded out by the hostas in what is now my mountain laurel bed. I think that one is pretty much established and done, so I moved my herbs to this other garden right outside my back door. I set the triangular corners with geraniums, celosa and each has a new guinea impatiens. It will be really nice once all the seedlings mature. I filled in the blank spaces with tiny alyssum that I also started from seed.

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I'm beginning to dig out around the base of the pool. The hostas really filled in since last year, but I want to keep that area clean and neat. So I'm going to dig it out and bury it in mulch. The hostas will come through whether I want them to or not, so that's not an issue. I just want to keep the spaces in-between clear until the plants really mature. I'm also hoping to work my way right under the pool deck and bury that in mulch so it looks neat and clean.

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Our in front, it's rather amusing. My strawberries 'n' cream grasses are taller right now than two of my purple smoke trees. The third three really shot up last year, so that one is okay. Right now, the grasses are shooting up seed heads, so I hope to get sun long enough to go out and trim the seed heads back. That will encourage more root growth and my goal has always been for the grasses to surround the base of the trees. A couple more years with the two shorter trees and everything will fill exactly the way I'd envisioned it.

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There's a lot of clean-up that needs to be done out front, but the plants themselves are doing wonderful with all the (damn!!!!!!) rain. I have my cages in place for the purple cone flowers so they continue to stand tall. Last year, I got the cages late and the plants had already started to droop with the weight of the flowers. I got them early this year.

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The yarrow that I'd started last year from seed really took off. I'm SO pleased with that. It filled the bottom of the bed and is soft and feathery and I'm sure, once it blooms, will add some gorgeous red color to all the feathery greenery. I also have some sweet william to add to some of the spaces that still exist. The diamond grasses are lovely and truly catch the early morning light and shine like diamonds. So that bed, though still a work in progress, is coming along and shaping into the natural garden that I'd hoped to have. I just need to bury everything in tons of mulch to keep down the weeds. (Course, it has to stop raining long enough to get the mulch and then put it in place... sigh!)

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On The Needles

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I just finished a beautiful pair of socks in greens and purples. The timing is perfect because I'm gifting a friend on Wednesday and I'm going to enclose her gift inside the socks. My gift is the idea that she can remember and cherish the support and friendship enclosed in those socks every time she puts them on. Kind of like a prayer shawl for feet. And it represents such a large part of my life that, hopefully, it will remind her of me. After all, I am a knitter and a spinner. Yarn is my secondary life and I'm gifting that to now become part of her life also.

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Tonight my spinning group meets over at Country Yarns. I'm hoping to find the right beads so I can finally finish the Mitered Tank (Vogue Spring/Summer 2009) for Dee for her graduation. I did finish knitting the Vacation Skirt (Creative Knitting March 2009). I just need to make the belt and get some pony beads to add decoration to the ends of the belt.

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I'm making this short because I just made myself a bowl of chili. Yummy!!!!!

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Have a terrific week and I certainly hope that the sun finds us soon or we'll all start turning green from mold... LOL!