In Memory of Bentley

Bentley died in February. I think of him often, especially when I explore our yard. When he was healthy, Bentley would go outside with me and scout out all "points of interest".

I his honor, today I went on a tour of our yard and took photos of the critters Bentley might have discovered.

He loved to hunt lizards. . .



. . and he spent lots of time on the back porch checking out the visitors to our pond.


I found this beautiful black snake . . .



when I walked over to look at this tree because I saw insects flying around it.



Upon closer examination, I discovered it is a honey tree - look at the bees!



And finally, I convinced this butterfly to stop long enough for a photo op.



I thought that was a fitting end to today's exploration since it is Easter Day and the butterfly is a symbol of rebirth and resurrection.

Although it seems far too short, I'm grateful for the time Bentley was in my life and the pleasant memories I have of him.

Goodbye, little buddy. You are missed and fondly remembered.

Busy as a . . .

The other day I noticed several bumblebees on the few remaining cosmos flowers because, unlike most bees I've seen, these bees were not flitting from flower to flower. They were curled up on the flowers and very still. They appeared to be . . . sleeping.



I'd never seen sleeping bees before, so I did a little research.

Bees do sleep.



Isn't it funny to think that the very creatures humans say they are "as busy as" take time to rest?



Maybe we could learn one more lesson from our busy bee friends and be as intentional about taking time for renewal and refreshment as we are about reaching goals.

The next time you're buzzing around thinking about how busy you are, perhaps you'll remember the bumblebees and take a moment or two to slow down for a bit. I think you'll be glad you did.

A colorful walk on Thanksgiving Day

QB and I went for a walk this morning and saw bits of color along the way:










Happy Thanksgiving from QB and the rest of us.

Nip it in the bud

"Nip it in the bud."

The person most responsible for making this phrase famous has to be Barney Fife, Deputy to Sheriff Andy Griffith. His catch phrase has inspired at least one rap song and numerous comedy routines.

I was recently reminded of the wisdom of this saying when I took a moment to really look at the flower beds in my yard.

The cosmos plants were fading away and ready to be removed. I pulled out the dead plants, making sure the seeds stayed behind.

Then I found plants I didn't want in the bed. These plants had also flowered and were starting to go to seed. I wasn't going to allow the plants or seeds to stay in my yard, so I started pulling up the plants. They were much more difficult to remove. The roots were a lot bigger and deeper than those of the Cosmos.

I had noticed the plants when they were a smaller, but didn't bother removing them. Now, instead of tiny, easily removable seedlings, I was dealing with sturdy plants that wanted to stay where they were. After a lot of struggle, I finally removed the plants from my beds. Some of the seeds have fallen in my yard, so I know the plants will return, but I will be sure to pull up any seedlings I spy next year. I do not want to wrestle with those plants again.

How many times have I ignored an issue in my life until it became a huge problem? How much easier is it to deal with a problem when it first appears rather than ignoring it until drastic measures are required? How much pain and trouble could be avoided by choosing another path?

It's time to re-examine my life so I can weed out any problems and nip them in the bud.

Double the fun

Several weeks ago while QB was taking me for a walk, I stopped to look at the horsemint in the flower bed. When I looked up, QB was gazing intently at a spot on the other side of the fence. We had to investigate, of course.

As we approached, I saw a small gray and white cat who was looking at us while alternating between meowing and hissing. It seemed to want to get to know us, but was too frightened to come over. QB and I showed the cat to Craig and he issued an invitation to visit us if it was hungry.

A couple of days later I was taking out stuff to the recycling bin when I heard a now familiar combination of meowing and hissing. Our new little buddy was ready for breakfast.

A can of cat food was consumed in record time.



After several days, we knew we had a new cat. Since I hadn't checked to see if it was male or female, I called it TK (The Kat). We later learned he was a male, so TK now stands for, among other things, Tom Kat.

TK visited the vet to make sure he was healthy. Everything checked out and he moved in with us. He explored every nook and cranny of the house. I found him here one afternoon.



He got a little more comfortable with his surroundings . . .



and finally settled in, knowing that he'd found a safe new home. . .

thanks to QB.

Thoughts of Spring

Spring is definitely here.

Tomatoes are planted . . .



butterflies are in the yard . . .



and Bentley is adamant that it is time to go outside - NOW!



I hate to deprive him of time outside, but he's been sick lately - so sick that he had to stay at the vet's. He can see the yard from our front window and the screened porch, but it just isn't the same.

Today I picked up a couple of catnip plants and I'll replenish the containers of wheat grass so there'll be a little more green stuff inside. It's not "outside", but it will have to do.

In the midst of Bentley's illness, Luigi got sick, too. Luigi didn't make it. Now he and Muffin and Gordon are gone. It's one of the disadvantages when litters are adopted - everyone is old at the same time.
(Luigi is gray, Muffin is the tabby and Gordon is the "blonde".)



A walking iris was blooming the day we brought Luigi home.



Now I think of him and the other cats who are no longer with us whenever I see one.

Enjoying the season

We had two very cold days (in the 30s) recently. A lot of the vegetation in the yard got rather brown and crispy after that.

Bentley did his best to help me find flowers, greenery and other interesting stuff while we were outside.








Still, sections of the yard look rather sad.



Instead of fretting about the plants I've lost, I'm learning to enjoy the scenery provided by each season and looking forward to the changes that will take place in the yard as the weather gets warmer.

That's the way life works, isn't it? I can spend my time bemoaning the changes that are taking place or find ways to appreciate all of the opportunities to learn and grow.

More Fall color -- in Florida

It seems that many people think that green will be all that is found in Florida during the fall, but the color is there, if you look. Here are a few more colorful bits I've found in my yard.

A close encounter of the frog kind

You've probably heard: "You have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find a prince." That may be true, but I've already met my prince, so I'm not interested in kissing frogs. That's why it came as quite a shock the other night when I walked out of my front door and a frog landed on my face.

After performing several notes of operatic quality and volume, I realized that the cold, slithery, and yet sticky thing on my face was one of our resident Cuban treefrogs. Since I had been carrying newspaper to the recycling bin, the frog ended up on the newspaper.

We looked at each other, said a fond farewell, and I deposited the frog in the ferns by the door. The frog and I were none the worse for the encounter, but I'm not sure if my husband and the cats have yet recovered . . .

Summer rains

Since the summer rains have begun, the daylilies, sunflowers and cosmos have begun to flower. The grass now requires a weekly "haircut" and the frogs are singing on a daily basis as they celebrate the returning moisture.



Another result of the rain is mushrooms. Several have popped up along the driveway.



The tomatoes continue to grow, some successfully, some not. There are people who have so many tomatoes that they give away bushels and bushels. I am not yet one of those people. As a matter of fact, the tomato plant that has produced most successfully so far, was a volunteer!



Still, I look forward to my annual tomato adventure. As with many other areas of my life, each year I learn a little more and make a little more progress.

May flowers, etc.

The old adage "April showers bring May flowers" is usually true, but we didn't have much rain in April. In fact, it has been rather dry here. There have been several brush fires, none close enough to see, but at least one close enough to smell when the wind blows in the right direction.

I'm thankful that the only fiery looking things in our yard are the cardinals,

this amaryllis,


and the canna lily.



Meanwhile,
the tomato plants are growing and the first of the tomatoes are appearing --
the Eva Bell
and the Russian Purple



the cuban treefrogs have come back to their condo (also known as my wind chimes!)


and the lizards continue their patrol of the yard.

It's tomato time

Well, not exactly tomato time . . . It's tomato planting time.

I'm experimenting with container planting this year.


The container looks like this




I filled it 3/4 full with soil



added tomato plants



and herbs





and a plastic bag barrier to hold in moisture and keep out pests --



Now all I have to do is wait for tomatoes!

Instructions for making your own container can be found here.