Winter prettiness

I finally had time to get out and take photos. We've had gorgeous weather all week, very cold (-15-20c) and sunny. This weekend, a little warmer and cloudy, but I'm sure we will have white crisp sunny weather again soon.

You can faintly see in this picture the "glitter" snow gently falling in the sun... I LOVE when this happens! 

Sun as a bug in a rug. ♥

 

It was such a mild fall and early winter that the pussy willows started to "bloom". Now they're snow covered. 

 

I was really enjoying the low sun and trying to capture the flare in the lens. 

 

Winter ♥

I love when it's sunny and cold and snowy...

but I do miss summer ;)

Hope you're staying warm where ever you are!

Where have I been?

Funny how such a small person can take so much of your time... 

Sometimes it's frustrating to never have time for anything or anyone else... 

But I know this time is fleeting....

So I try to embrace the lazy days and cherish every little milestone, giggle, and smile.

She's the most beautiful, wonderful, calm baby I've ever met. And she's mine!! *

Summer passed us by so incredibly fast... No idea where it went!

So I'm trying to milk fall for all it's worth and so far have been rather successful. :)

Some faithful blog fans have asked when I'm going to continue blogging (so here's for ya'll!).

I'll confess, I did consider just letting the blog slide and just moving on.

And I'll admit I did feel a little more than overwhelmed to pick up from where I left off and bring the blog up to date with everything that has happened (and all the new pictures)... but honestly, it's just so much work and time that I don't have to do so.

Therefore, I'm just gonna say HI, HERE I AM!! 

And try to get here a little more often and share my latest pictures and going ons. :)

She's getting much bigger and is becoming less dependent on me (ok, so I get 10 minutes to myself every so often instead of 2 minutes ;) lol) so maybe I have a chance to get back into the blogging groove.

I really do enjoy having a little journal to look back on!

So thanks if you're still here following! 

And hope you had a great summer and equally wonderful fall. :)

 See ya soon!

*I know all mothers feel this way and I'm totally biased. :D

2013: Garden post #6

Wow, so did some back-tracking and my last garden post was from May 20th! Today is June 3rd... But I assure you, that I have indeed been there, just have been a) too lazy or busy with other stuff to take pictures there, or b) too lazy or busy with other stuff to upload pictures from there. 

Is this something I can blame on being pregnant? 

;)

So here is what is probably going to be a photo-intensive, lengthy post about the state of our garden. It really is paradise for me!! 

 These following images were taken on May 25th. 

Zucchini and beds of seeds (beets, cornflowers, pumpkin).

In the foreground: new red currant bush to replace old and gnarly black currant, around it some fancy pansy starts of my mama's. 

Background: more pansy starts.

The morning glory starts not looking too hot... Yesterday my mama and I planted some sweet peas in shades of red and pink. Hope they take off!

Our deck hidden behind the currant privacy hedge. 

Peas and cucumber covered under white "sheets".

Blooming golden currant flowers!

These photos were taken yesterday, June 2nd. 

I was there for 6 hours in the hot hot hot sun with my mama. We spent our time weeding, enjoying breaks on our deck with snacks (amen for coolers!), and chatting. 

Good old quality time. Nothin' like it!

Here is are some peony buds. We have probably 15 of them!

These red bugs (the smaller one, not the two doing the nasty) are the bane of my existence at the garden. 

Ahem, after weeds of course.

They are "scarlet lily beetles" or "liljakukko" in Finnish and they ruin my lilies. I know I've mentioned before that I'm not a huge lily fan, but nevertheless, I do like having them for a short period at the end of summer and these guys, well... they're not good news for my lilies!

The only (or best) method I've read about getting rid of them is manually picking them off and killing them. :( 

I hate being mean, but sometimes gardening is just that! 

No idea what those two in the back are though!

...I wish I knew more about bugs because then I would know more about pests and could help prevent issues but alas... bugs are just not my thing!

Forget-me-nots never disappoint.

Buttercups are one of the WORST weeds with the WORST root systems and they run rampant along one walkway along side of our garden as you can see here. Hubby trims them with the rest of the grass on the walkways and we try weeding them out... but a silly part of me thinks they're kinda pretty. ;)

So yellow the camera was like "Whaaaaaat?"

My dad's pre-grown potatoes that will hopefully be ready for midsummer in a couple of weeks. We'll see...

 

Different varieties of lettuce...

 

Peas! (Round 1 of hopefully many before the summer's over!)

 

Green beans!

 

A hidden surprise in the bulb beds... A little allium of sorts that no one remembers planting. 

 

Corn.

 

Lots of blooming strawberries.

 

An old-time Finnish perennial that was left on the g-ma's plot we took over. (Along with the poppies I can't wait for!)

"Kullero" or "Globe flower".

 

Along side the back of our deck we have some sweet peas and scarlet runner beans. In front of them are some plants of my mama's that I just don't remember the name of. 

 

Golden flowers didn't last long, the currants are already coming along! :)

 

Bellis.

 

One of our neighboring plots (one that has been abandoned for years and finally this year has new "tenants") borders ours with a lilac bush. Mmm, what a scent!!

Another neighbor has gorgeous irises.

 

And along side the road, I couldn't help myself to a few photos of dandelions and Queen Anne's lace. 

I didn't realize until looking at the picture on the computer tonight, that in the bottom corner you can see some seeds flying away. :)

ACTION SHOT!

So there you have it!

We're caught up on the gardening front. Phew!

...Now if I could just blog about some crafty endeavors, my patio pansies, maternity photos, and the other stuff that I have taken pictures of! :) 

Oh where to find the time and motivation?! 

It's funny how sometimes you just don't feel like doing things that you like doing. 

I guess it's just because I have one thing on my mind: Getting this baby out! :D

39 weeks tomorrow.

I'm a basket-case with anticipation!

Thanks for sticking with the long post. :)

Ponderings

Oh me oh my.

It seems this fall, I'm in a funk.

It's not a bad funk, I am actually quite happy... but I just can't seem to get anything done.

So very tired!!

Honestly, I'm looking forward to our trip to the States SO much that I am just counting down the days (41, if you were wondering). :)

I know why I am looking forward to our trip... can't wait to see special people, do special things, eat special foods etc etc. 

So, I am hoping time will pass quickly but painlessly. I can't wait for November to be over! (a sad thing to say on only the 3rd!) :D

It's stressful graduating and having to take care of all these final things and tests and such. Let alone, find a job!! We're gonna be fudged come January if things don't work out... and for some reason, I just can't find the energy or enthusiasm for job hunting. I suppose going to school for "the wrong degree" might have some effect on my mood. :P

Coulda, shoulda, woulda. 

Consequences are what they are... I just hope it all works out in the end.

So now that I have vented my frustrations and worries, I can focus on more "fun" things. :)

Like cleaning the house! Brushing the poor knotted mess of a dog! Cleaning the fish tank! Doing the dishes!

AHAHAHHAHAH!!!

It's a miracle I got out of bed before noon. ;)

I don't want to make this a pictureless post, so these are some pictures from last Sunday. I did a two year photo shoot of my friend's daughter and took some sweet family pictures of them too. :)

We went to the arboretum... which was still then covered in snow. Fortunately (?) the snow has since melted.

 I totally can relate to these roses covered in snow.

Thanks for stopping by, despite my glum mood. 

:)

Hope your weekend is a happy one!!