This weekend I did a little gardening work outside. One addition - well, two, actually - are the Red Velvet Trailing Verbena along the front steps. Each of the buds is a clump of tons of small flowers. They're not really fragrant but they add such a visual punch to the front of the house. I'm starting to plan some work for the back yard now, considering some undulating landscaping along the path of the sidewalk so I don't have to continue mowing around the landscape lights. And so it doesn't look so much like a runway. But, today, my neighbor, Julia, helped spread some mulch and water some plants. Most days I can find her lazing on the front porch swing. In the "out of the mouths of babes" category, she told me today that if I "ever find a husband and make babies", she would love to babysit for me when I go to work. She's looking forward to July when my neice Casey and nephew Kyle visit, both of whom are slightly younger. Is it just me, or is her comfort level on that swing as though she owns the place!?!?

I opted for a few cheapie indoor plants to dress up the bathroom, since I'm hesitant to hang anything on the walls and hose up the wallpaper job. These little guys are all supposed to be low-medium light happy, so I'll have to see which does best before creating a real border. This is the brightness of the bathroom with no lights on and the blinds closed, so if I open them a bit for when I'm at work, I'm hoping that would provide ample light. 

I planted a few Pentas along the back deck and moved some of the daffodils here from the front yard. Of course after I packed everything in and watered it, I took a break and went inside to learn that there is a frost warning for tonight. These plants may not make it, but I hope they will - they've got little star shaped clusteres of flowers and I've got them well covered with mulch, with help from Julia. 

These are growing along the east side of the house. At first it looked just like a nice green ground cover, which was fine. But then it started growing stalks with flat clumps of tiny white flowers. It's quite pretty even though it looks like a weed. I'm not sure what it is. I first thought it was Baby's Breath but that looks more clumpy and woody. These look dangly and weedy. But pretty. I'll have to keep an eye on them. 

This bush is called a Weigela Java Red. I thought it looked kind of azalea like - unbelievably, azaleas grow here - but the flowers are not azalea like. I've seen them in nurseries around town. Apparently mine's quite mature, the base stems are incredibly thick!  

This is a peony bud. I am not sure when these bloom - this bush has been loaded with buds for over a month, although this is the largest I've seen them bud in a while, so I'm hoping that it will blossom soon to add a little color to the otherwise green back yard. I read that these are some of the hardiest perrenials, and can live 80 or more years. This bush was so dead looking after winter, I almost dug it up. I know now to just trim it back. 

This is a new addition to the sun room, a fushia plant. I love its downward hanging blooms. Supposedly they will bloom "all season", whatever that means, so I'll have to see if I can refrain from killing this houseplant. Kathman doesn't seem to like its blooms so much, so maybe they'll have a chance to grow longer. 

I've discovered that catnip is in the mint family. I picked some mint for a recipe yesterday and Kathman went nuts for it. So, I rubbed some on his scratching toy, and he started drooling like crazy. So, I started dragging the toy and he clung on for two lengths of the house. I think he liked the rug massage - he was so high that night! 

Here's a shot of one of the last lilly of the valley plants in bloom. There is another type of plant growing tall in front of it that I'm not sure of, but since everything in that bed is so well landscaped, I don't doubt it will bloom into something soon.  

This is a blurry shot of my new pyrocantha gnome, or firebush (or fire thorn, something like that). It's a vine that I hope to trail up onto the trellis of the front porch. It is covered with little white flowers now that in the fall turn to berries. The berries attract birds and, I've read, make a nice jelly. Not that I'll go through that effort...... 

This is a rosebush in my neighbor's yard. She said she dug it up out of a ditch - she found it growing wild a few years ago. It is now as tall as me and loaded with not only tons of fragrant little yellow roses, but with hundreds of buds yet to blossom! 

This is an as yet undertermined bush in the front yard that has gone from green to red-tipped. I trimmed it a little bit today and the foliage underneath is green; I've not seen anything like it in my recent trips to Lowe's. 

Well, Mom and Dad came to visit for a long birthday weekend, and we had a great time, although now that they've departed, I remembered that I forgot to find some locally made fudge for Dad. We did a little exploring, played a little pinochle, worked in the yard, and had a really nice, relaxed, and fun visit. For some reason I let them talk me into staying in the master bedroom while they slept in the guest room, on a trundle and day bed. Mom says she liked the ceiling glitter flecks at night. We neglected to bring either of our cameras most places, but on one day of running shot some photos on the go. This is one from inside the vehicle of the front of the house. My parents provided the front porch swing as a birthday/housewarming gift and it adds a perfect, if almost too cute touch to the house. The crabapple tree in front of the master bedroom window is fully aflame with flowers now, and the maple on the neutral ground is glowing red - my favorite.
 

A through-the-roof shot, while driving, of South Main Street, Findlay. 

Drive-by shots of downtown Findlay, Ohio.