Outdoor Living

The perennials are back in bloom, the days are longer, the birds are fledging, and now I have the perfect place to enjoy it all: a front row seat in my new patio furniture. We bought this lounger and bistro set from HomeGoods more than a month ago, and I love them! I'm still skeptical about their durability, but so far so good; and I figure, if I had to pay a dollar for each hour I've used them, I'd have gotten my money's worth already.


Previously, we had two nice wrought iron chairs under the arbor. They are durable and classic, but I rarely used them. What I needed was a place to stretch out and relax and a place to set up and work. Now I have both, and I'm in the outside more than ever.



Bailey, my sidekick, never misses a chance to join me outdoors. Inevitably she draws me into a game. Her favorite is jollyball tug of war. She always wins.


Gideon likes to spend time outside too, especially in the evening when it's cooler.


Some nights, when we have some extra time, Travis and I fill the bird feeders and enjoy dinner outside. When the sun is setting and the cardinals are chirping, it's like heaven touching earth.

Cat in the Catmint

I've been really impressed with the Walker's Low catmint that I bought from High Country Gardens. Gideon likes it too. I planted three tiny mail-order plants in May. Five months later, they've grown into perfect 18-inch mounds.


I've read that cats eat catnip but only browse and smell catmint. So far, this has been our experience and the arrangement has worked out well since catmint is the more attractive of the two plants, yet it's still something that Gideon can enjoy. (You can see on the right side of this picture where the dogs stepped on my plant again).


When you buzz catmint with a line trimmer, you get a nice camphor smell and you encourage more blooms. I haven't had a big flush of blooms this year, but now that my plants are established, I'm expecting a good show in the spring.