Coffee in the Flower Garden

It was time for a break in a full, check-list sort of day.

So I brewed coffee, splashed in whole milk, and headed out to the garden.

Delphinium are getting lovely, lilies are starting late, and so many more flowers are getting ready to enjoy the summer sunshine!

I also took time to sit on the swing while finishing my coffee, enjoying Annabelle hydrangeas turning white and a pink thunbergia climbing a trellis. Restful minutes!

Book Report: Father to Nobody's Children

"Father to Nobody's Children" by David E. Fessenden is a short book about the life and work of Thomas J. Barnardo among the homeless boys in London.

With plenty of direct quotes and first-hand accounts, this book pulled together the threads of comments and themes in others I have read.

Readers of "Anne of Green Gables" by Lucy Maud Montgomery may remember how Marilla had declared she would only adopt a Canadian born boy. "At first Matthew suggested getting a Barnado boy. But I said ‘no’ flat to that. ‘They may be all right—I’m not saying they’re not—but no London street Arabs for me."

And "Dusty Diamonds, Cut and Polished" by R. M. Ballantyne highlights a couple of street boys who ended up taking the opportunity to move to Canada, which Barnardo gave to the boys he saw would do well building a new life out of the city.

Overlapping the latter half of the life of the famed father to orphans, George Muller, you can notice some similarities in Barnardo's work, as well as some clear differences. God leads each of His children to do His work in unique ways!

Keep reading...

~ Hannah

Food Reintroduction Win: Black-Bottom Birthday Cake!

Huge Win! I enjoyed my first Black-Bottom Cake [my long-time standard] in about a dozen years!

While I am getting back to gluten by way of whole grain rye and einkorn sourdough and the occasional pasta away from home, we chose to use a gluten-free cake mix when adding back cream cheese for now.

But lake time comes before cake on my birthday... despite cold water!

Garden: Before & After

We got a little late start on the raised gardens this year, but they are coming along nicely!

First Step: Weeding. Before (above) and After (below):

Before... and After

Next Step: Digging and Amending Soil

Finally: Planting

Now: Watering and Growing!

Meanwhile: The asparagus patch has been feeding us and our friends well. We will stop picking any day now to let the plants store up strength for another year.

Hot & Cold Greenhouse Days

Greenhouse season is slowing down up north. But when helping out with plants, customers, and kids this year, we had a wide range of hot and cold days.

Hauling carts of vibrant colors was a treat after winter!

Little helpers...

Elsa's woolen bonnet design getting well used!

"Thunder Cake" Book Review

A little thunder, a little hail...

...and a good dose or two of rain suddenly turned our world green in early May!

• Lily of the Valley moving into the brick path •

• Wild Ginger •

But not everyone enjoys thunder as much as I do. Especially not little ones, which is why books like "Thunder Cake" by Patricia Palacco were written. (And why my sister got it for her kids!)

In a delightful way, the author teaches children that they can choose to do things even when they are scared... and that they don't actually need to be afraid of a sound.

We love this book's vivid artwork highlighting the author/artist's cultural background - especially her Babushka (Grandmother).

And when asked what was her favorite part of the book last week, my 3 year old neice said "the cat." Plus she likes the part where they are gathering the ingredient "milk" for baking a Thunder Cake.

▪︎ My little shadow and her big shadow ▪︎

April "Showers," Flowers, Birds, and Clouds

Our April Showers have been mostly white so far. See April 3rd for example:

But they did bring some April flowers! Can you spot our very first blooms in this April 13th picture? 

No? I'll zoom in.

We recently learned the name of this hand-me-down bulb from Mom's mother, who got it from her mother in law, who got it from a community friend. (My great-grandma's journals are full of these neat facts that tie our life and things in our home back to her days.)

The plant is called Scilla or Squills. It is tiny and easy to miss completely. So glad I looked at the right time this year!

I also cut in some little lilac leaf-buds that day. Here is what they looked like at first.

And more green two days later...

Also last Sunday, I had some restful birdwatching and cloud-watching from deck and porch. The back-lit layers of rain clouds rolling in before sunset finally got me to pull out my watercolors again to add to my nature journal. 

And yes, we identified 14 kinds of birds by sight and another by sound, plus there were more we couldn't name.

What a gift of an afternoon!