Going on a 'Staycation'

(original tea image courtesy Pixabay. A little added photoshop artistry, me)

It's nearly the end of February, a time of year Henry and I begin to long for warm weather. He starts itching to get out his boat and fishing rod and I'm knee deep in seed catalogs and drooling over all those fabulous gardening boards on Pinterest.

We had hoped to take a trip down to the coast (B.C.'s west coast), lounge around in our favourite Bed and Breakfast, visit with my sisters, and go on a few adventures but . . . truck repairs, dentist visits and new glasses have put that out of reach for the time being.

What to do, what to do . . . 

Normally I would plan a lovely 'Staycation' at home that would include adventures here at home, working on a big project or lots of learning about some new project I'm hoping to do.

But this year???

This year I'm tired. There's been lots going on for months and, although my post shingles pain is mostly under control these days, I feel rather worn out.

 I have something totally different planned for this 'staycation' This year it's going to be all about resting and relaxing. Poor Henry's still going to have to go to work, so all his relaxing and resting will happen in the evenings. (not to worry though, he had a lovely golf holiday last fall)

Me???

I'm going to be madly getting stuff ready for the ultimate 'at home' retreat week. I'm cleaning and fluffing and staging lovely vignettes around the house. I'm going to bake all my favourite cookies, squares and cakes and pop them in the freezer so I'll (okay, we'll . . . I might share a few things . . .) have tasty treats all week with out any effort from me. Some of those cookies won't even see the inside of an oven. They'll just be yummy dough. If I'm really, really smart I'll put together a few things to make quick meals next week but, and I hate to say it, I'm pretty sure there will just be a whole lot of 'Help Yourself' suppers instead.

There will be piles of books beside the bed, movie marathons and . . . I may not even change out of my pj's!

I do have a few things booked that will get me dressed and out of the house, so I won't be a total hermit. For the most part though, I'm going to pretend I live in Regency England and not 'At Home' when people come to call. Or in this day and age, email, Facebook and text . . . ;D

Sigh, I can't wait. But now I'm off to wash the sheets and scrub the bathroom. There's nothing cozier than a bed with crisp, freshly washed bedding that's piled high with pillows and extra blankets. Add in a sparkling bathroom complete with fluffy towels and fresh flowers???

Bliss.

See you all in March!

Looking forward to Spring

I don't know about you, but every January I start to long for spring.

 On Boxing Day I'm in a fever of impatience, wanting my tree down right now, loading empty laundry baskets with anything Christmasy, ready to make a clean sweep.

 Master Gardener or not, I deliberately stop watering my poinsettias so I can throw them away as quickly as possible without guilt. Which I can. Because they're dead. Even though I killed them. On purpose. (Yes indeed. That's how my brain works.)

By New Years Day my house is usually bare of seasonal decor. I love to decorate for the seasons and somehow I never seem to do 'winter'. I go from fall to Christmas, skip winter altogether and go straight to spring.

The ultimate denial.

By the end of January I'm chomping at the bit, aching for the sight of fresh flowers. When I can't stand it for even one more day, I'll treat myself to an inexpensive bundle of flowers, which I will spread out into an assortment of tiny vases so there will be something pretty all over the house.

 Then it's February and time for the grocery store primulas. I love to work them into a spring vignette. Because, if I still lived in B.C., it would be spring . . . at least, that's what my sister Lisa tells me when I'm moaning about another winter snowstorm and she assures me that the snowdrops are already poking their heads up everywhere she looks . . .

 She's a mean one alright . . .  ;D

 By late February (and sometimes even before) the tulips/daffodils I'd forced back in the fall start to bloom and it's just magical. There is nothing like enjoying the blooms of your own tulips and daffodils. I'm not sure why I find them so much more satisfying than those I buy at the store, but they are.

 March is hardcore seeding. I could watch those seedlings pop up all day long if I didn't have to keep us in clean underwear and toilet paper . . .

 

In April, seedlings get transplanted into bigger pots and moved into the greenhouse. Oh the thrill of a greenhouse in April.

Ah spring, it's almost as fun to anticipate as it is to live it.

Almost . . . 

Wordless Wednesday

Flying . . .

Around this time of the year, after a cold snap or two, I start to feel a little cooped up.

 I stay inside as much as humanly possible because I'm a big baby when it comes to cold weather. If it weren't for Jada and the need for groceries, I'd probably stay holed up in my comfy little home for 4 or 5 months of the year!

That's when I start looking through my photo library, dreaming about those beautiful warm days in the sun. I took this image last summer while on a long overdue weekend away with my friend Joyce. (Still to be blogged about. Ahem.)

We gazed at these boats from the deck of a paddle wheeler, the sun hot on our faces, small breeze ruffling our hair, while kids wove in and out of the crowds, looking for the best vantage point, the most adventurous going so far as to climb on benches and hang joyously over the rail.

Watching the boats fly across the water with my dear friend at my side, camera at the ready, the loud splash and swoosh of the paddles in the background  . . . 

Life just doesn't get much better than that does it?

Looking Forward to Spring.

I don't know about you, but not long after Christmas the itch for spring sets in. I enjoy the somewhat slower pace that comes with a Canadian winter (when it gets dark by 4:30 or 5:00 o'clock in the evening, all I really want to do is read a good book) but the gardener in me starts getting restless not long after the winter solstice.

With so many new hobbies and projects in the works this year, I had decided I would keep my gardening efforts very low key. I dismantled the shelves in the greenhouse and I'm still in the process of turning it into a tiny, natural light studio where I can take still life and product photography images all year. (My house doesn't get a lot of light in the winter.) I took the lights off of my seedling shelves and filled them with props . . .

In short  . . . I was sensible.

What I forgot in all this, was the fact that . . . well   . . . I'm not all that sensible when it comes to doing the things I love, especially when life is in need of a little extra joy.

I had a challenging day yesterday. The withdrawal symptoms from the medication I've been on for the lingering nerve pain after my bout with shingles in October aren't great. I decided it was time to do something fun. And today that meant something that would allow me to look forward to spring . . . and gardening.

I had a bag of tulip bulbs I had forgotten about down in my cold room and I knew just what to do. Thankfully, I hadn't gotten so sensible that I had purged all my gardening things. I made a quick trip the garden shed for my planting tray and some 6" pots, the kitchen for coffee filters and the greenhouse for a small bag of potting soil.

I was going to force my tulips, which would give me blooms inside long before I'd see any outside.

I'm late with this. I really should have done it in October sometime but, I had shingles, it was the last thing on my mind, so you work with what you have. Even though the bulbs aren't in top shape they are still firm and have begun to grow . . .

Time to garden!

 

There is nothing like playing in the dirt and imagining how pretty these are going to look to cheer me up!

Once the pots have been thouroghly watered and let sit over night, they will go into a dark, cool place until green starts poking up. Then they come out and go onto a sunny cool ledge. In this case the windowsill in Henry's man cave . . .

Shhhh . . . don't tell him!

The bonus to forcing this many pots of bulbs is that I can give them away as gifts. I get just as much joy giving them away, as I do keeping them.

What do you like to do to cheer yourself up when you feel a little 'blue'?

A Visit to Greenland Garden Center

I went to Greenland garden center last week to see if it would be a good place to take engagement photos.

I, of course, figured I might as well make it a bit of an adventure and asked my sister-in-law Evelyn to come with me. She's an avid gardener too.

There are days I really miss having my sisters close by and I really appreciate having sisters-in-law to go on little winter outings with me.

We pulled up into the parking lot after we'd finally managed to navigate all the crazy road work, talking about everything under the sun. It was the perfect start to the perfect day.

I hadn't been to the garden center for a few years and I was blown away when we walked in. It was such a lovely place to spend a chilly winter day, eating lunch, and getting inspired for the up coming garden season. It turns out it's going to be great for engagement photos as well! Whoo Hoo!

Rather than ramble on about our visit I'm just going to let you enjoy it in pictures . . .

Spring will come again! 

Spring Inspiration in the Midst of a Deep Freeze.

I was supposed to drive the bus for the first time this afternoon and I have to admit, I've been rather anxious about it.

Although I've driven bits and pieces of the route before, a lot of the surrounding landscape has changed, making parts of it unfamiliar. Most of the kids are unknown to me which makes figuring out who is or isn't on the bus difficult. Some of my route, while in my neighborhood, has me dropping off new kids at unfamiliar houses. All in all? A little nerve wracking. Two weeks from now I'll likely wonder what I had to be nervous about, but today it's the first day of a new job.

That makes everyone nervous, right?   

However . . . while on Facebook early this morning, I saw status updates from two of my sisters-in-law. "No school today. -43 with windchill at the International Airport."

Whaaaat?! Alright! Except . . . . it's minus 43 Celsius at the International Airport!

Arghh!  I'm knee deep in growing and planning for the Spring Plant Sale as well as a big Mother's day sale. . . Will winter never end??!

I found something else on Facebook this morning and, if you're as sick of winter as I am, you might enjoy this Spring Fever blog hop. It's a lot more fun than looking out the window at the moment. . .

Click to visit the Spring Fever blog hop with 10 Garden Charmers

 Here's my contribution to the cause. . .

A few garden pictures to remind me that winter doesn't last forever. . .         

  

Now I'm off with map and student list in hand to drive out my new bus  route in the truck . . .

I'll be glad when it's two weeks from now.