lessons and reminders and lavender

 

 A lesson thank goodness we didn’t have to learn the hard way yesterday.   It could have been very, very bad and a hard lesson.  It certainly was a strong reminder- one can never be too careful when letting their flock free range, in a fenced backyard, that a predator can strike at any moment.   You see in the first picture a pit bull that does not belong in our quiet cove if 12 homes- but rather quite a few streets away-  but still here he was, for over an hour AND he was in my garage- staring at my chickens through the cat door- thankfully somehow I managed to have the door closed from the garage to the backyard- which on many a days- just like this day I often keep it propped open with a cast iron tea kettle.  I’m in and out and back and forth-  Somehow though, on that day I closed it.   Mental note and also one spoken to all who live here “if the chickens are free ranging- be sure to close the door”.  You just never know when a dog will be somewhere that it’s not supposed to be.   

In other news:

I was talking to my mom recently, and she said it’s still too cold to plant their vegetables in Maine! So this morning, I found myself hoping that they get some better weather soon, because a tray of vegetables just waiting to go in the ground at the end of May isn’t fun! Certainly by June she can plant? I just looked at her 10 day and the daytime highs look nice but nights are still dipping into the 40s…A general rule in Maine is to wait until after Memorial Day to plant!! She is eager.

The winters are so cold and dark and long there, that planting the garden is just such a bright spot in the spring. 

Meanwhile, in my own garden, things are starting to dry out, but we’re still waiting for the sun to show its face. The blackberries are starting to show a tinge of blush and I think as soon as the sun comes they will ripen quickly.

I’ve been steadily harvesting my lavender in between rain, storms, and have bundles of it hanging to dry here and there throughout the house. Each time I walk by there’s a gentle scent. It’s so good.  

I just know that this last cool snap of May will soon be gone once June arrives. There aren’t very many cool snaps after June in our area of Tennessee. 

I’m trying to finish up some outside projects this week, that have been idle with all the rain, but that need doing- before it’s 90s and scorching.  I’m juggling my to do list, getting soaps ready for the shop restock June 1 …and leaning into the new rhythm of a new job.  We all are adjusting to me leaving here and there for a few hours of work “outside” of the home.   Breakfast bagel this morning from my “work”.  So good! 

It’s a dream job though, really- YES! 

More on that later.  

~blessings! 

-tina

May showers

 

It's raining, again seems to be May's theme.  These snapshots are in between the rains, outside and during them inside.  They say April Showers bring May flowers.  So what do May showers bring? Hopefully June vegetables.  The tomatoes, zucchini, butternut (must remember to remove pots from on top of them), cukes and potatoes all seem happy.  I do believe that when the sun finally makes an appearance, everything is going to explode.  The Herbs are all happy too.  

I have been going outside as much as possible to check on the gardens and the chickens (and chicks) in between storms.  There is mud, a lot of it.  Not to worry though, because soon it will be HOT and the wet cush of the spring will only be a memory.  

Inside during the storms I have found a lot of time to spend cleaning, rearranging and stripping beds (tackling laundry piles).  How about you? How are you spending these last few days of the month? How's your weather?  

the fourth spring

 

About four years ago, right around this time, I was at Kroger.

Out front, they had one of those seasonal plant displays — you know the kind, right alongside the overpriced ceramic pumpkins in the fall or all the beachy trinkets they roll out every summer.

Usually I walk right by that stuff.

The plants weren’t anything special.

But tucked in there, almost hidden, was a plastic bag with a small rose inside — labeled John Davis Climbing Rose.

I knew that rose. She’s a beauty.

I told myself no. I was there for groceries, not plants.

Got what I needed, went home, started putting everything away…

and I couldn’t stop thinking about that rose.

It was one of those moments where your gut doesn’t whisper — it shouts.

I googled the rose, read everything I could, and paced the backyard looking for a spot she might like.

I grabbed my keys and drove straight back.

And there she was, still waiting — one tiny green tendril poking out of that plastic bag.

This time, I didn’t hesitate.

I wasn’t there for groceries anymore.

I was there for her.

The advice said: don’t prune for the first three years.

Let her sprawl, climb, get wild.

I loved that idea — a little bit of feral tucked into the garden.

The first couple of years, she was shy.

The third year, she bloomed like she meant it.

And this spring, in year four, it was finally time to shape her a little — and wow, did she ever respond.

Now she’s nestled between the lilacs and the comfrey — full, wild, blooming like she’s always belonged here.

A small moment of listening, a few years of patience — and now, every time I walk outside in April, she reminds me.

When something calls to you:

buy the rose.

in the studio

 

Sharing a few snippets of my work in the studio this morning.  Lard SOAP in the mold (yesterday), being cut and drying (today).  A gifted tea/coffee service~ washed and on the bench, waiting for me to find it a home. I cut the sweet woodland cotton fabric into neat rectangles for heat packs ~as well as the pure linen backing.   I filled them up with organic wheat berries and homegrown lavender.  I will have a handful of them available online for the May 3rd shop update.  Wishing you a bright Friday and a peaceful weekend too.   

~tina