"Links"

Impulse Purchase

Ok, here is what I picked up, an ergonomically correct shovel, http://radiusgarden.com/, a brochure for Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge http://fws.gov/northeast/iroquois/, http://buffaloaudubon.com/ brochure for Gooseneck Hill Waterfowl Sanctuary, http://gooseneckhillwaterfowlfarm.com/ , A copy of Upstate Gardeners' Journal http://www.blogger.com/jane@upstategardenenersjournal.com , containing classes, and events in the Rocherster, Buffalo, Syracuse areas, and ads for Nurseries in those areas.

I also picked up a pack of seeds for a perennial called Malva (Zebrina), I'm not sure if it will take over my yard, but it looks interesting. If anyone in this area is familiar with this plant please let me know .

Field Trip

Today it is snowing, ever so lightly, but it IS snowing. Just enough to let us know that it's too early to get out there and grow something. We're probably the last "zone" to get going, but when we do, it's shovels ready, and lawn mowers buzzing at the crack of dawn.

To amuse myself, or torture myself, yesterday I dragged my daughter, and husband to "Plantasia" a garden show, at an agricultural center.

Garden nurseries, landscapers, and textured concrete vendors displayed there wares, for the garden starved shoppers. A chance to ask a few questions about their dream plans, and pick up a few garden gadgets and trinkets. My daughter scooped up a ceder trellis, and three ceder plant containers, at a very reasonable price.

Coming soon to this back yard.

This is it folks. We've picked a landscaper and work should begin in mid April. I no longer will have a view of my neighbor's pool and patio, but I will have a mix tree line.

"What are they?" you say. well the proposed plan was quite extensive, to the tune of $25,ooo. What?!! They

planned a dry rock bed near the patio, off to the left. I said, "no thank you," a water feature, a rock bench, I also said, "no thank you." There were beds for both sides of the house, but I think I'll do without these. The lots on both sides of my house are empty, and as soon as I scape there, someone will build. Oh, yes, the trees, there will be evergreens, but no Arborvitae, the deer like to eat them, some spring flowering choices, and some with fall and summer interest. I know I'm being vague, but my head was swimming by the time I toured the nursery twice. I will get back to you on specifics. The photo on top appears with a slant to the grading right, but it actually slants to left.

The Bird House That Wasn't

This is an example of what happens when good intentions go south. This
bird condo started out as a "gift card box" for our daughter's wedding.
My husband's friend builds bird houses. He offered to make us one. I didn't ask, "how big?" How big can a bird house be? My friend painted it, and now my husband has converted it. I might get it put out this year, but I don't think so.

These are the original, and revised floor plans for our new home. Originally you had a tour of the laundry room, coming from the garage.

As we are a couple with grown children,

I decided that relocating the guest closet and making the powder room NOT part of the laundry room tour, was more accommodating for our guests.

There was no direct route from the garage to the kitchen, so we opened up a wall next to the staircase. Dragging groceries through the whole house, was not my idea of convenience.

We made the front space an office,(where I could do this work). The loft was an over-hang, which gave gave architectural interest, but I had the wall go straight up, so I could have a bigger kitchen, since we lost pantry space by putting in the doorway.

Next, the loft had a 12ft. across opening, which we walled off 3ft. on either side, for some privacy on the second level.

We extended the dining area 6ft. so when we had guests, we didn't have to bang into any furniture, or ask someone to "push in" if I wanted to scoot by with a hot platter.

We have two exits to the patio,(that isn't there yet) one from the dining room, and one from the kitchen.

The master bath has a walk in shower, with a teak bench.

This is the first painting I've done in a long, long time. I know the proportions are a bit off, and it has some other issues, but it makes me happy. It's hanging in the kitchen, so mostly only I can see it. The colors are rich, and feel good after a hard Northern winter.

"The Birds"

Did you ever see Geese on a roof? Well I hadn't, until this week. And do you know what they sound like on a roof? Well, I DO now. Something must have spooked them, and they came honking and flapping, and running around on my roof as if the roofers forgot to tack on a few shingles.

There seems to be two schools of thought why Geese don't fly South anymore. One is, in times gone by, hunters tethered some, so others would fly to them, so the hunters could shoot them. When the the hunters were not allowed to do this anymore, they let the tethered geese go free, and they were never taught to fly South. The other thought is, with the development of suburban sprawl, the Geese decided to stay and visit the artificial ponds and parks, instead of flying South. Short attention span, I guess. Sometimes I forget what I was going to get in the other room.

Another Sunday Visit

Please read this entry revered, it will make more sense.

The photo with the ladder is where the plumber put the pipes for the shower, in that very wall.
Eventually the pipes were removed to the opposite wall, and that wall did become a half. What a waste of man hrs. and material.




As long as I'm talking about errors. Here's another one. That partition in the center of the picture was supposed to be a half wall in the master bath. I was assured it would be.

Another Sunday Trip

This is the FIRST construction error of a few. The fire place is in the center, and book cases were to go on the left and right, the only problem was is that they were to butt up to the wall on the left. "No problem," said the foreman. Our Sunday trips out to the construction site, left me concerned until Monday, (when I calmed down) so I could speak to the builder in a rational manner. *#@!

This is a better view of the back yard view we have from the house. I think we are going to settle on a tree line instead of a fence. There is a drain that runs from the left corner of our property to the right corner. There are some trees on the left that are in my yard that will be an interesting part of my landscaping plan. Some of the yard on the far right is encroaching in our property, and I will try hard to be a good neighbor.

Moving along

In March in Western New York, we don't officially welcome spring until the week after St. Patricks' Day. So we have a bit to go yet, but the days are longer and some are sunny.

Here are a few pictures of the house construction so we can bring us up in time.....

Under these concrete circles are a grid of drain pipes, and in the background you can see the chain link fencing that belongs to the neighbor behind us that I'd like to not see from my property.