I've somewhat lost my blogging mojo, but am instead having fun doing some crafting and playing with paper. I can't seem to get inspired to share anything, as no wonderful outdoor photos to share (like so many of you have been doing)... and haven't really made anything stupendous or earth shattering.
I am kind of in the "winter blahs" mood, and yet enjoying just staying inside and puttering and watching YouTube (that is my downfall) and doing a little bit of this and a little bit of that in my craft room. I have no desire to go outside... go for a walk or begin spring clean-up in my yard! I think my dead plants from last year will just have to stay there for another few weeks, until we have some nice warm balmy spring weather. Although today is amazingly 60 degrees out (!),, it is incredibly windy and again, no desire on my part to partake of that wind and blowing debris.
NOTE: I DID get out a few days after I started this post (two weeks ago!) and go for a nice long walk. I was happy that my knee was OK (after the fall I took last July and going to physical therapy for the last 6 weeks) and my foot didn't bother me more (some sort of foot problem from limping so much when I hurt my knee!). Bah.
Thought I'd share some "last summer" and "now" photos of my garden, to show you what I'm facing when I DO get outside and work in the yard!
Our front walkway looks so awful! Dead chrysanthemums all along it and they need to be pulled out! New shoots are coming up already. This area gets no rain, so we are thinking of taking out the entire raised bed (chopping out the rocks with a sledge hammer) and making the entire area a covered "patio/porch" along the front of our house. I want a little picket fence along the grassy side of the walkway and will put potted mums there. I would LOVE to have a covered porch where I can put my two wicker chairs during the summer. What do you think???
Oh the poor dead garden. That's all I have to say on this one (above)
My new "rock garden" was so pretty last summer. I'm thinking of taking some of the rocks out by our front porch "stoop", as every time I drag the hose out to water the front lawn and flowers, I have to step up on the stoop, and then down two steps and drag the hose over it. This house has NO faucet in the front area! How stupid is that???? It would be nice to just be able to walk from the yard to the side of the house without going up and down, up and down, up and down...... of course it IS good exercise...... what do you think?????
OTHER THINGS................
I've had more fun downloading FREE printables! I love them.... journaling tags, gift tags, quotes, pretty pictures to frame, watercolor flowers......... there's no end to them. Here are a few of my favorite sites:
Free Pretty Things for You - and that's what everything is on her site.... FREE everything! Her free downloads are great for framing and I plan to frame these two for gifts. She has many different watercolor wreaths, with different sayings in them. Love them!
I could go on and on and show you more.. but go take a lot for yourselves, if you want something quick and easy and inexpensive to print out and give as a gift. I found some darling vintage type frames on sale for 50% off at Kohl's and Michael's (in my area) so am stocking up on those.
With these winter blahs, I'm loving have some pretty and fun things to just browse and look at on my computer. (and make plans for using them).
Senaca Pond Crafts has about 4,000 WONDERFUL printables and downloads that are very vintage, cottage, shabby chic or retro. I love them ALL and have spent hours browsing her store. I have so many ideas for using her wonderful tags. Here are a few:
My Etsy shop is closed right now. Due to my computer having some sort of virus or something, I can't even get onto the Etsy site! Until I get the problem solved, my shop is closed, but I'm strongly thinking of moving to Art Fire anyway.
Have a lovely week everyone!
Hi Marilyn!
ReplyDeleteI don't think you're alone with feeling the winter blues. No worries. To everything there is a season, and you will get your mojo back.
Now, I must say YES! Definitely get a porch. You won't regret it!
The downloads are gorgeous, and how adorable is that trailer?!
I think March is one of the yukkiest months. Everything looks brown and depressing but guaranteed in just a couple of weeks that will start to change. Hang in there!!
XXX
Thanks for the pep talk Doreen! Yes I DO like the idea of a front "porch"... am very excited about it. I can put my great grandmother's wicker chair (still stored up at my old house in Washougal, WA) out there! And I agree.. March is a hard month to get through.
DeleteHi Marilyn: I agree with your winter blahs! As I get older, I find that I don't enjoy winter at all. I do love a good snow day, as we have so few, buy rain and dreary gets real old real fast. Your "Now" garden looks exactly like my "before AND Now". It gets harder to keep it up. We are "thinking" about a do over to our front garden so there isn't so much upkeep. Our water and sewer bills are very high around here. Of course, we have been considering this for a couple of years now. Your garden looks so pretty last summer and I'm sure it will again..There is a lot to rethink in these "golden years"..Happy Thursday and thanks for your visit..Judy
ReplyDeleteI agree Judy... more yardwork is really not what I want. I hope to blissfully let the perennials come up and do nothing else... ha ha ha ha.. that never is the case.. always alot of weeding to do and pruning and watering. Our county is one of the highest in Oregon too for the cost of water here.. I hate it! But I watered alot anyway last summer but bill was about $60 more a month. Ouch.
DeleteOkay, so YES to the covered patio! I bet you wouldn't regret it (except when you are chopping out that concrete...YUCK!). I have been looking for some reasonably-priced wicker chairs for our entryway mudroom. I'd like two white ones out there with a little table between them. It's the first thing people see when they come to our house through the front, and it looks bad right now. Against my wishes, my hubby moved the treadmill in there! WHAT? Can you imagine? Men just don't get stuff like that. A treadmill in the entryway. Okay, now I'm mad just saying it. I think I'll go move his riding mower to his side of the bed. No spring here either yet. We are having a high of 45-50 and lots of drizzling rain. All that snow is gone. Now it's just mud. I'm just staying in as much as I can too. I don't seem to be getting much accomplished, but it sure is fun not having the stress of work. I can do what I want, even if it's not a darn thing! Hugs.
ReplyDeletePammy you are too funny! We had a stairstepper thing in our living room last summer and I hated it! But nowhere else to put it.. but we still never used it.. so it's back out in the garage. Hubby wanted it inside so he'd use it more.. ha ha ha ha.... had to laugh about the rider by the bed! I'm so glad you got to "retire".... I'm now working some but not enough to make it too much of an annoyance! Just a little extra money which comes in so handy with a new (old) house! Take care.....
DeleteOh Marilyn, how I feel your pain! Digging out the dead flowers and plants is no fun at all! I did manage this year to get all mine pulled, and into the compost pile before winter, but there have been years when that didn't happen! The blahs are definitely upon us with all this spring rain and mud! The mud in our driveway is horrible, and we have gravel on it, but still, this year has been the worst we've ever seen here. Like you, it is giving me some extra days to do some crafting inside though! Your garden was beautiful in the summer last year, and it will be again :) Thank you for sharing the sites where you find your gorgeous printables! I will have to go visit them and save some. I haven't heard of Artfire, but it sounds like it might be a better fit for you. It is no fun when places like etsy who have a good idea, take it too far and it becomes too commercialized. You do such gorgeous work, I hope you can find a place that fits for you :) I know just how much work goes into things handmade, and you never really make much money on it, I don't think. That is why I like to make and give things away instead. I have thought of trying to sell on etsy or ebay handmade things, but think that there is such a glut on the market, that I'll probably just keep things as they are, lol. Enjoyed my visit with you today! Sure wish we lived a bit closer so we could craft together :) Hugs to you my friend :)
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