Now back from vacation and back “to work”. Yes, I know it is only volunteer work but still it is work with awesome benefits. Like the flowers in bloom.
One of my favorites at the Historic Garden, Aalsmeer. A bright orange rhododendron.
Now, if orange is not your color then perhaps purple/blue is. This is called blue rain (English translation of what the Dutch commonly call this following plant). A wisteria in full bloom.
Wisteria in full bloom, Historic Garden, Aalsmeer.
With the return of Spring, babies try to make the gardens a safe place. I saw two clutches of ducklings this morning. Just in time for Mother’s Day.😊🐣
Mama duck was not happy that so many Human workers were at the garden. She was “yelling” at her children and they were not listening to her! Had to laugh as her “children” were in about the safest place they could be, plus they stuck together.
I got a total work out weeding the roses. As our manager mentioned to me this morning “You can hear all the weeds popping out of the garden as you walk pass.” As the day went by I really think the weeds were laughing at our efforts.
Boat full of plants ready for the annual geranium sale.
As if I didn’t get enough of weed pulling or flowers I went directly to my garden to pull weeds and to plant my now late to start garden (darn vacation…😂). Tomorrow is “work day” at the garden where I must help care for the common areas so had to get going on my area today.
Iris in bloom. Rows of seeds planted, mulch done. Protection on the tender plants to keep (hopefully the very hungry slugs from eating my plants.😬One patch of weeds still to be done… then we start all over again.🙄My straw bales don’t need to be weeded but the garden rules say I must keep all my garden weed free. So the never ending process continues…My rye grain is NOT weeds! Not sure the other gardeners agree, but they will see…The last of the Friday Flowers.
Enjoy your weekend everyone! Give your Mom a hug if she is still around, if not, plant a flower in your garden in her memory this weekend.
When on vacation we like to relax and unwind and during those moments of reflection we can “see” things we otherwise would not notice. “Do” things we don’t normally do. Wonder about the sights in the areas we travel.
Both the Hubby and I spent our careers busy with work and now it is nice to actually relax and enjoy the moments and all the things at make us go Hummm… this vacation to the United States from The Netherlands was filled with such moments.
Like yesterday as we were enjoying a meal at a restaurant in Moose Lake, MN and sat watching a guy clean the parking lot, by hand, one five gallon bucket at a time.
A record snowfall in Northern Minnesota has left parking lots with piles of gravel after the snow melted.Hummm… suddenly the “hand work” turn to “dust blowing work”. Hummm…his vehicle didn’t have a MN front plate. Later I saw he was from South Carolina😳!
We did wonder if he was financing this work by the coins he might have found while cleaning up. We actually found that looking at those gravel piles issued us some coin rewards during our trip. A small but entertaining vacation activity.
Then we have the entertainment of what we find at parking lots here in the US. Hummm…
Wow! A heart! Hummm…Nope, just a discarded shoe.
Then we seemed to have a doggie vacation.
Hummm… this dog looks very tired…JD is my son’s dog, four full days of activity, this puppy was worn out.Hummm… onemore neighborhood dog that stopped to see me.
While visiting my son in St Louis, MO I had a visit from Finn. Finn is a international famous dog blogger and his “Human Mom, Ann” lives in the neighborhood. Ann even wrote a blog about meeting me for a walk on one of the days I was visiting. You can read about her experience.
I have followed Ann and Finn’s blog for years and was inspired to visit the animal shelter where she volunteered on one of my visits to the St. Louis area. I had no idea where Ann lived in St Louis until just recently when my son and daughter in law purchased their first actual house. When I emailed her a picture of the house she said she lived in the neighborhood.
Hummm… I wondered, is that by European or American distance standards? I never asked. When she stopped by while I was there and she showed me where she lived, it was very close! I thought that the universe was joking! We couldn’t even plan a house purchase in her neighborhood and here she lives just down the street. Hummm… a wonderful karma experience for both bloggers and the new neighbors who now have a trusted resource close by. Thanks Ann!!
Hummm… then there was PeppaThis pig travelled from MN to St Louis…And now has a place on my office door…
The artist… Hummm… Hanging Horn Resort’s youngest manager…
Tutu and artist/manager with supervisor in the background.
I spent a wonderful afternoon with the youngest resort manager I have ever known learning about how we “are not to talk to the customers, what we needed to clean up, and items that needed to be added to the supervisor’s To Do List.” In her spare time she is an artist. If this is the future generation I don’t think any of us have to worry.
Hummm…looks like the Hubby has lost weight on this vacation!
Maybe it is because we visited my son and daughter in law. We spent time fixing a “free” grill, a bad gate, and trenching the lawn to solve some water issues. Hummm… team building event? Possible.
Team building.
Vacation is also a time of appreciating what you have at home. So when we returned today I was greeted with a garden of beautiful tulips.
My straw bale garden looking great after three weeks.Our back garden with long grass and tulips.The tulips and iris in my front garden.
Wishing each of you to “see” the Hummm… in your lives and enjoy each day as if it were vacation. Carpe diem!
The day after Earth Day 2023… my head is clear as I have recovered (mostly) from jet lag. Since the Hubby and I landed at the first of the week we have experienced darn near three of the four seasons that Mother Nature offers in my former homestate of Minnesota!
Hummm… where to start…?
How about water? Lots of water!!!
A late Spring snowfall and record breaking winter snow cover in Duluth area then a few days of crazy warm. This video of Thomson Dam at Carlton, MN shows the amount of water exiting the Northland and heading into Lake Superior. Most April visits this lake welcomes me with nice open water for paddling. Not this year! Swing bridge on the St Louis River. Hummm… a bit unsafe due to water levels.A smaller river in Carlton County at high levels… still unsafe to paddle. Hummm…All that water in Northern Minnesota that doesn’t flow into Lake Superior flows towards the Mississippi River. St Paul, Minnesota; Minnehaha Falls.
Then as usual there are the host of other things that give us time to stop and ponder the Hummm…
Like the following…
Rest stop education on septic systems and how they work. Hummm… yes, a study of how the “can” works while sitting on “the can”! Maybe we need a closer look…Why anyone with a brain would even think of placing any of those items down a toilet is begone my brain to comprehend. Hummm… closer…Nice to explain how “sh*t flows” and sponsored by the UMN! Good research and education money providing education to all who stop at this rest stop between Barnum and Mahtowa, MN.Hummm… an old fashioned picture. We had to pick up a book on how to negotiate this strange weather. Hummmm… not sure it is helping.🥶
What better way to start the season than with a little outdoor cooking! Hummmm…a bit cold but sure tasted great! We are all about solutions and not about weather stopping us from enjoying our few days of vacation!From outdoor cooking to just enjoying Earth Day with a book from the local library. We hope you consider your relationship with Mother Earth for our future generations!
The Cedar Journal 