Flowers and Fruit Blossoms

It's a beautiful time of year right now, with many different flowers starting to bloom all around the gardens.  The fruit trees and some of the berries are beginning to blossom as well. 

Apple blossoms

Lilac

Bluebells

Solomon's Seal

Hellebore, aka Lenten Rose

Tulips and forget-me-nots in front of the pie garden

Pie garden - alpine strawberries, apple trees, and blueberry bushes

Apple tree blossoms in the pie garden

Alpine strawberries

Raspberry bushes

The first of the red rhododendrons

Spring Vegetables!

The spring garden beds are thriving, and the extra sunshine this week will give them another good growth spurt.  We've enjoyed some freshly harvested salads of lettuce, spinach, mustard greens, and radishes lately.

Spinach, radishes, lettuce, and  forget-me-not flowers

The uncovered hoop house that was sheltering the lettuces, kale, and broccoli

Onions and snow peas, with strawberries in the background

Broccoli starts at the forefront of the expanded square foot bed

Overwintered bed of garlic and spinach

View of some of the backyard gardens from the deck - snap and shelling pea tipis, bean trellis, perennial sunflowers, ferns, lettuce and leafy greens bed, garlic and spinach bed, and lots of forget-me-not flowers blooming

 

Tulips in Bloom

The tulips are in full bloom now, and all the colors are so beautiful!

Red Apeldoorn, Golden Apeldoorn, and Elite Darwin Hybrid Tulips

 

Tulips and blueberries

Tulips, violas, and strawberries

 

Tulips edged with forget-me-nots

First Tulips

The tulips are just starting to turn beautiful colors...

Rest in Peace, Indi

You were such a good dog.

Winter, 2008

Spring, 2011

  We miss you.  

Love, Us

Spring Bulbs and Blossoms

Dutch Master Yellow Trumpet, Ice Follies, & Tête-à-Tête Daffodils

Carnegie Hyacinths

Blue Jacket Hyacinths

Peach Blossoms and Dutch Master Yellow Trumpet Daffodils

Tête-à-Tête Daffodils

Ice Follies and Tête-à-Tête Daffodils

Old Dog, New Flowers

Indi still likes to follow me around sometimes when I'm in the garden, but mostly now he just waits and watches.  He found a nice place to rest next to these pretty crocuses yesterday.  Sweet old dog.

First Cut Flowers from the Garden

Crocuses and Daffodils

Crocuses!

I planted great quantities of bulbs last fall, so it's really delightful to see these first blooms.  I'm also looking forward to daffodils, hyacinths, and tulips.  It should be quite a colorful spring!

Almost Spring!

We've had sun and we've had snow this week, but the plants are looking forward to springtime!  Here's a little peek into what's happening in the gardens this week.

Hellebore flowers starting to bloom

Columbine plants emerging

Hyacinths and crocuses

Forget-me-nots, daffodils, and red crimson clover cover crops

Overwintered beets and leeks

New bamboo tipis for spring snap peas

Garlic and other overwintered veggies

Bright red skimmia berries

Colorful new garden clogs!

Bulldog!

Fire Service Program "Bulldog" Award

October 2010

Ben received the first Bulldog Award of the year, which was voted on by classmates and awarded to recognize positive individual behavior within the Fire Service program. The Fire Service Chief told us he felt they made a really good decision awarding it to Ben.

Awarding Criteria:

Safety minded

Shows leadership qualities

Gives the most effort

Always is willing to help others

Always shows respect for other students, instructors, and others

Exhibits self discipline

Exhibits positive behavior

Good attendance

Work book is up-to-date

Neatness and appearance

Always ready to perform

Opportunities and Invitations

Last week, we went to Motion Boardshop in Seattle, and Ben brought his newly built longboard to show the shop owners and builders there what he had built.  They seemed impressed.  He had been to the shop a few times before, asking them questions and seeking input about materials and board-building methods, so it was fun for him to show them his finished board.   At the same time during our visit, a traveling sales rep for Rayne Longboards (Vancouver, BC) was there offering freebies and promoting their longboards.  The rep saw Ben's board, also seemed impressed by his work and design, and asked him several questions about the board and his building experience.   He asked Ben if building longboards was something he might like to do in the future.  Ben smiled and replied, "I'm doing it now."  :)

The rep appeared delightfully surprised by this forthright answer and suggested Ben come visit their factory store in BC in order to talk and hang out with their main board builder.  He said there are only a handful of good board builders and designers, so they're always looking for interested people.  Ben exchanged contact info with the rep who said he'd email soon. Ben wrote a nice follow-up note today to confirm his interest in visiting the shop.  We'll likely go there for a weekend to give him a chance to visit, observe, and meet people there.  Ben's quite exhilarated by this opportunity!

Longboards!

Ben and Josh have been building longboards together for about a
month now.  Here they are with their new collection of prototypes.

Ben and his boards

Ben's second board, plus new shoes for easier riding

Ben's third board with new grip tape designs