Surviving bleeding hearts

I'm so glad that the bleeding heart plants are nice and hearty! They got trompled pretty good while we were putting up the new siding on our house. But...they survived!!

First bud

I have been trying for YEARS to get the peonies to grow!! Finally there is a little tiny bud on the plant. Now...to watch and see IF it continue to bloom, then I will be even MORE excited!!

Some of my plants

I finally got some peonies to grow!!! I have been trying for years. There was another picture with a little tiny bud on it, but I couldn't get it to upload yet. I'll try again later.

Our rubarb is ready for picking. Strawberry & rubarb pie anyone!! I love it when it first comes up!! It means spring is right around the corner.

I was very surprised that our bleeding hearts made it through. As we were putting the sidding on they got pretty trambled down, and I wasn't sure if they were going to make it or not, but was very happy to see they did. They are pretty hearty plants, just like the rubarb.

Most of the bushes and trees are blooming, and there are LOTS of different wonderful smells outside.

Half way finished!!!

The top of the pciture is the OLD siding that we took off, and the bottom half is the NEW siding that we put up a few days ago. This has been quit a project for Tom and I, but...we did it!!

THE FINISHED PRODUCT OF THE FRONT!! YEA!!! The scafeling will come down tomorrow. We MIGHT have the whole house finished by the time we leave for the reunion. We'll see how these two bodies hold up and how many days we need off to let our sore muscles rest. AAAwwwww.

UPDATE

We have made it half way through our siding on the house!!!! Hip Hip Hooray!! We work until we get tired then quit. Tom made me take off my watch and ring, and we don't know what time it is, and since it's so light...Friday night we worked until 10:00 pm. :) Saturday, we started about noon and worked about 3 hours. We were both pretty tired and a little sore from going up and down on the scafeling to finish the top of the front of our house. I'm getting quit good with the nail gun. ") And...if I do say so myself, I'm a pretty good assistant. I would have NEVER thought I would be doing this a few months ago, but...now that we have made it half way, it's OK!!

Our yard and grass are kind of being ignored this summer so far. Angel, has hung in there with us. She hasn't gotten as many walks in, as I'm sure she would like, but...every once in a while we make it to the park. She does love to run and sniff things.

Tom BBQ'd some hamburgers today and grilled asparagus and bell peppers too. They turned out really good. Add a little lettuce, tomato and onions and you've got lunch, about 3:00. :) Yummy.

I'll post a picture soon of our progress. It's been quit a project for Tom and I. We'll be going around the back deck soon, and we have a lot of work to do on the deck before we do the siding around the stairs. Ugh...

A few living things

This praying mantis was HUGE! About 4 or 5 inches long. It came in the house while the doors were open. It was interesting to watch Mike try and catch him to get him outside. The geko had already been caught a time or two, I'm guessing, since his tale was chopped off. There was another geko that was green and puffed up upder this chest. It was fun to watch.

Snorkeling

This is my friend Karleen and I and one of the places we went snorkeling. This was a nice little cove that was protected from the waves and I felt safe knowing I wouldn't float out to far. It was hard for me to get the breathing thing down. Listening to yourself breath under water takes some getting use to. Once you do though, it is so relaxing to just float on the water, and enoy the view and all the different colored fish.

One beautiful sunset

Here is one of the beautiful sunsets we were watching from our home in Kauai. It was soooo delightful.

Relaxing

Awwww!!! Just relaxing and watching the beautiful sunsets with friends on the beach. I would like to do that again. Once we get finished with the house, I will be ready for a vacation. I'm glad we get a break over the 4th of July for a week.

Hawaiian flowers

It was sooooo delightful and warm in Hawaii in March. The flowers were unbelievable and beautiful.

Taken at 10:30 pm

I took this picuture for you who live in the lower 48 to show you how light it is almost all night now. This picutre was taken at 10:30 PM a few days ago. Now it's even lighter longer. About 18 hours of day light. I LOVE IT!!!
Here is our summer project that we're about half way finished with. We now have the rest of the top old siding taken off and the "tyvek" barrier and the "fan fold" insulation up and ready to add more of the siding. By the time Tom tears off the old siding, we pick it up and haul it away, add the "j trim" , then the tyvek, and fan fold over the whole section again. It's a lot---We worked a lot on it Saturday, and today both of us were pretty sore and just relaxed. We both needed the time to unwind and rest our weary bones, before we're back at it this week. ") I now have a new appreciation for people that do this type of physical work, for a living. Thank you Jason. :-)

Puppy love

Now this is what you call puppy love. This momma had 10 of these adorable little things. This is an old picture, but I thought I would post it anyway. They are Bernese Mt. dogs. Great dogs--I can still feel their little tongue licking my face. Sooo fun for the couple of hours I was visiting them. "-)))))