It's that time of year again, the boathouse is open for Airbnb and we have been booked since March. We had two contracts, but they did not meet the price we wanted, so back in business. This is the Boy Scout Camp being renovated. I love what they are doing, the colors they chose to paint the cabins and main house, the plantings, the canoe on the front gate. The grounds have been cleaned up, you can now see the towers from the road. The amount of trees planted are staggering. The money being spent on this place is unreal, but I love what they're doing. Bob and I were actually offered this little cabin 15 years ago when we were looking for a boathouse. It was not on the market and we were buying the land to build on from the man who owned the Boy Scout Camp. Even then, just this little cabin was way out of reach price-wise. We actually got to go inside and see it, it may be in a blog from way back when, I'll have to look. After setting up the boathouse for guests, I stopped by Down to Earth, the garden center just outside the lake entrance and could not resist these black velvet petunias which will go in the planter at the farmhouse. I think I will mix in some white petunias, too. On the way to the Boy Scout Camp I stopped and rolled down my window to get the beautiful aroma of the wisteria in bloom. The lake faired much better than we did in the gap with the winds last week that brought in two below average nights, which killed more plants and bush blooms than I thought it had. These are the buds on the wisteria on my fence that I have been training. I was so excited because one end had over 30 buds, but this is what happened with the cold. So now I wait until next year and will think to cover them if it happens again. I did get some blooms on the opposite end, so I guess it was the way the wind came in that decided which would live and which would die. Bob left yesterday afternoon to spend the night in Atlanta and go to the opening game Braves vs. Phillies. His friend had tickets and invited him to stay the night. He was texting me photos from the stadium of all the dogs attending the game. This one was ordering a hotdog and beer! With all the controversy, I was sure something was going to happen at the game, but evidently all is good, a text of the fireworks after the game. Today he has lunch with his sister and will be hitting up some of his favorite bookstores. The cold didn't get everything in my garden. The first teeny tiny iris opened! My wild azaleas are in full bloom! The dogwoods are always pretty! An update on my bat! As it got warmer, he would spread out more and you could see his toes and wings. He goes out at night and comes back for the day, but sometimes he spends two nights in a row out, and I wonder where he goes. This is him at dusk out flying in the pasture. I tried to capture him in a video, that was impossible, and almost impossible to get a photo, but I did get this one off in the distance. IT'S BACK!!! It only took about 10 years, used to be called Black Coke, but coffee coke is back and it's a special treat that I use to give me that afternoon lift when I have to go turn over the boathouse and have tons of gardening to do! Today is one of those days.
Church photos seemed appropriate for an Easter post. Bob and I took a short drive today looking for this church that Mindy wants to buy. Why she wants it is beyond me, but it's quaint and in a nice quiet spot. I looked for old plants, but none were to be found. April came in like a lion! Twenty hours of 65 mile per hour winds through the gap. Lost power, trees down on the road, Bob couldn't even leave to get to work. I am happy I got all these photos of my tulip tree because it no longer has flowers. Everything was flat to the ground. The wind beheaded many flowers that ended up in vases. Below is my only double lenten rose in this dark color. Hoping for babies! The camellias weathered the storm much better. Fiddleheads are appearing. A simple Easter mantle, another embroidery find. No need to dye eggs when they come in colors like this naturally! Have you ever seen a lavender egg? This is my first! No big plans for the weekend, just lots of gardening and maybe a drive here and there to look at pretty houses with everything blooming like this cute cottage in Gillette Woods. Atena sent photos of their bamboo project. The have really put a lot of work into their garden. They will be back next week for more. Mom, here is your update on Easton, the senior who we thought was a boy, but is now a girl. She had her spa day and we couldn't believe the dog that emerged! She may have chow fur, but I think she is a lab mix. She is so happy and feeling much better!
