How I Spent My Summer Vacation - Part Deux

So, the first Saturday was spent excavating the hole for the patio, leveling the surrounding landscape bed as much as possible, and moving a lot of rock. Everything was ready for the pavers so we had Tommy call and have them and the sand delivered by the next Friday afternoon along with the plate tamper we would need to tamp the pavers into place and force the jointing sand between them. Our plan was to head to Tommy's Friday right after work and get as much done that night in the shade as possible, spend the night, then get up really early to start laying pavers while it was cool. Tommy and Shannon were not going to be home that weekend. They had left Wednesday on a previously planned camping trip, so Mom and Dad were doing this part of the project by themselves.

As luck would have it, Tom had a horrendous day at work Friday and got off much later than usual. We didn't arrive at Tommy's until after 8:30 PM - almost dark. I had stopped for food while Tom headed straight to their house to start working. By the time I got to the house, Tom had started bringing wheelbarrows full of sand from the driveway where it was dumped to the hole. We got all the sand dumped in the hole before we went inside to eat. It was late by now - 10:30 PM and it was too dark to try to lay pavers, so we went in and went to bed. We got up really early (5:30 AM) Saturday. Tom went outside first, then came back in almost immediately with bad news. They had brought the wrong pavers for the soldier field - the row of pavers that would serve as the border for the patio. They were to have been standard sized pavers and instead they had brought us half standards. Now we were really up a creek. The landscape supply place didn't open until 8 AM. We were so disappointed because we were losing out on great shade and cool temps. We spent the time leveling the sand and then figuring out how the soldier field that ran along the walkway was going to have to be cut. You see, the walkway wasn't a nice straight line. It flared out from the step to the front door on down to the step down to the grass level, so every paver in that first row was going to have to be cut, each one differently, in order to keep the patio square. That meant 30 pavers had to be marked exactly, numbered, and taken to the landscape place to be cut - and we couldn't do that until we had the right pavers. At 7:45 AM we headed over there. We told Ryan at Gibsons what the problem was. No problem. He could deliver the right ones right away and pick up the wrong ones. Well, we were there with the Suburban so we decided we'd take some of them so we could get started with the cuts. When we started loading pavers into the Suburban we realized we could fit all 138 in the back, so we just loaded them all up. Of course, that meant we had to unload them all once we got to Tommy's. Well, actually I had to unload them all. Tom took the 30 he needed for the first row and set about marking them for the cuts while I unloaded the remaining 108 and carried them to the hole. From the driveway to the patio location was a roundtrip of about 50 yards. I made this trip, over the course of this project, well over 200 times, usually carrying at least 25 pounds of something - pavers, rock, sand, whatever. Quite the workout!

In about 20 minutes, Tom had the pavers marked for cuts. Now I had to load them into the Suburban and head over to get them cut. While I was gone doing that, Tom would finish leveling the sand since he couldn't start laying anything without that first row in place. Fortunately, the cutting and drive back and forth took only about 30 minutes. So, by 9 AM we were ready to roll. We got the first soldier field in place and then started working on the pattern. It's called an Ashlar pattern and is comprised of three sizes of pavers, a half standard, a standard, and a double standard. A standard is about your normal brick size, so you can figure out what the other two sizes are. The pattern is laid with the double standards sort of stair-stepped and the standard and half standards alternated between them. It's hard to explain and kind of confusing to get started on, but once we figured out a rhythm, we flew! By 12:30 I was back at Gibsons picking up the jointing sand. Ryan was shocked. He said "you're not ready for this yet are you?" I told him we were halfway finished already and he replied "do you hire out?" We had really made good time. The last half took a little longer - it was another blisteringly hot day and lugging pavers from the driveway to the patio over and over, bending to pick them up and then to put them down, handing them to Tom, and then Tom on his knees for hours laying them... well, it took its toll on us. We were dying. Finally, at 3:30 PM were laid the last paver. I called Gibsons to tell them to come pick up the incorrect pavers and the plate tamper at 4:15 PM. We poured the sand on and Tom ran the plate tamper over them for about 30 minutes. Gibsons arrived to pick up the extra pavers we didn't need and the ones they'd delivered incorrectly as well as the plate tamper. The guys were shocked that we'd finished so quickly. I think we were too. After they left we stood back and admired our hard work. It looked awesome! I was ready to go home, but Tom wanted to put the sealant on the pavers. Unfortunately, during the tamping, water from below had seeped up and the sand and some pavers were wet and you can't seal wet stuff. I suggested we put the landscape rock around the patio to give it a more finished look. What was I thinking? We ended up spending almost 3 hours laying landscape fabric and shoveling, wheelbarrowing, and pushing this huge river rock into place. Another exhausting day wherein we ended up filthy, sweat-streaked, starving, and dog tired. So, here are the results of that day's work: First is a view from the front porch.

Now a view from out in the yard. That's Tom with the hose.

And finally a view from the side yard looking toward the walkway, driveway, and front porch.

As you can see, there remained a lot of landscaping to complete and the patio had to be sealed, but the major project was finished, and in record time! The guys at Gibsons told us they didn't think we'd finish in one day and that they charge $8/sq. ft. for this work. That means we saved Tommy & Shannon close to $1500! We said we'd settle for a nice steak dinner sometime. I wish I had before pictures. The entire area where the patio is was covered in mounds of 4' tall shasta daisies, overgrown vinca, thistle, all sorts of perennials I can't even remember. It was just a wild, overgrown, weed-filled mess and not very inviting. That wildness pretty much extended to the area surrounding the patio as well and the other side of the walkway. The kids cleared out a ton of stuff, which in itself was a big improvement.

Next - part three - Horticulture 101.

How I Spent My Summer Vacation, part 1.

First of all, I can't believe it's been so long since I last posted. Where in the heck do the days go?! I'm sorry for the lack of updates. There's nothing (to me) more frustrating than finding a blog you like to read and having the blogger not update regularly. I will try to remedy that situation and maintain some sort of regular timeframe when it comes to updating. That said, I have been extraordinarily busy of late.

Last week we were on vacation. We stayed home doing projects around here until Wednesday morning, at which point we headed for Vancouver and Victoria, BC. But before I go into the details of that trip, let me regale you with tales of the project that consumed the three consecutive Saturdays preceding last Saturday.

Our oldest son bought a beautiful home in the Spokane Valley almost two years ago. They already had a nice house in Liberty Lake (just east of the Spokane Valley), but it was in a very crowded neighborhood filled with cookie-cutter houses on small lots with just a few feet between them. They put a for sale sign on that house and sold it in three days. Their new home is in a beautiful development called Morningside and is situated on a hill, or rather collection of hills, about 3 miles south of "downtown" Spokane Valley, overlooking the entire Spokane area. The lots are big - half an acre or more - as are the homes. All the houses have three car garages, are custom built, have sprinkler systems, and beautifully landscaped yards. Tommy's house was no exception. The photos on the realtor's web site showed a gorgeous yard with beautifully blooming perennials and a healthy green lawn. The interior was immaculately decorated by the lady of the house with each room painted a different color and sporting wallpaper walls and/or borders. It was quite a step up from their other home, although the layout was almost identical, just larger.

It didn't take long for them to realize the landscaping required far more maintenance than either of them could manage. The previous owner was a stay-at-home mom who had plenty of time for pruning shrubs, deadheading flowers, and doing the many chores that accompany a heavily planted yard. Tommy and Shannon are on the go constantly. When they're not ferrying Sydney to and from basketball games, tournaments, camps, and school, they're taking Alyssa to swimming lessons or daycare, going to the gym, playing basketball themselves, or working. Throw in some summer fun, visits to Sandpoint, a vacation here and there, and you have a recipe for yardwork disaster. Before long, the shasta daisies were overrunning the front landscape beds, carpet roses were so big and overgrown with blooms they were an eyesore rather than an accent to the yard, vinca was sprouting from every spot in the yard that wasn't covered with grass, and thistle was sprouting from the middle of the few junipers in the yard. It was a nightmare - and that was just the front yard. The backyard is an even bigger problem, but not one so glaringly visible to every passerby. In a neighborhood of perfectly cared for yards, theirs stood out as an eyesore. At one point early this summer, they decided to put the house on the market - after all, the housing market was going crazy, values had skyrocketed, and it made sense to get out while the getting was good. The plan was to sell the house, pay off bills, get out of debt, move to Sandpoint and build a house the way they wanted it for less money. Well, after several open houses with dozens of prospective buyers tromping through the place, after dropping the price by several thousand dollars, the house remained unsold. Too many new homes were being built all around them that could be had for almost the same price. I don't think the overwhelming landscaping helped. When they realized a sale would not be imminent, they adjusted their plan. If they had to stay in the house, then they had to deal with the yard. That's where we came in. If there is one thing we know, it's landscaping for maximum curb appeal but minimum maintenance.

We had always felt that the area right outside their bay window next to their walkway and "porch" was perfect for a patio. The yard is two levels - the lawn and driveway are on one level with steps that take you two steps higher to another level just in front of the front door and front of the house that was filled with these impossibly overgrown perennials. Another two steps up takes you onto the small porch from which you enter the house. A long, exposed aggregate sidewalk takes you from the driveway, up the steps to the door. A brick retaining wall with two short columns divides the upper level from the lower one. It was our perception that a patio to the left of the sidewalk would be a perfect addition to the front of the house. In order to put one in, all the perennials would have to be removed. Tommy and Shannon decided they liked the idea and set about preparing for the creation of the patio. They also followed our recommendation and got rid of all the bark in the landscape beds with the intention of replacing it with river rock. Rock is much cleaner looking, doesn't fade every year and require replacement with fresh rock like bark does, is less likely to foster the growth of weeds, and makes killing any that do try to grow a lot easier. They had their work cut out for them.

About a month ago they called us and told us they had removed all the bark, had ordered rock, and were ready for us to start helping with the patio. We drove over to see their progress and were amazed at what a difference just getting rid of the overgrown perennials and bark made. The place already looked neater, cleaner, and much more inviting. They also had concrete curbing put in around all the landscape beds that matched their brick on the house and the retaining wall. You could actually see the front of the house for a change. We decided we would come very early the following Saturday and start the patio. We went with them to the landscape supply place and helped them decide on the pavers for their patio, the pattern they wanted them laid in, and the color they wanted the pavers in. The hardscape guy at Gibson's Nursery in Spokane was super helpful.

We arrived at Tommy's at 7AM ready to start excavating for an 11x15 patio. Their soil is pretty sandy so we didn't think the excavation would take too long. A few shovelfuls into the project we realized we were in trouble. The entire area was filled with rocks, roots, and hard, hard soil. It was amazing anything had grown there. Tom realized there was no way we could excavate by hand so he had me get out the yellow pages and start calling around in hopes of finding someone with a mini backhoe who could come excavate that day - a Saturday. Yeah, right. I didn't hold out much hope that this was even a remote possibility. To my surprise, we did find someone! The guy drove over to look at the job, called his backhoe operator to see if he felt like doing the job, and said it was a go. Within 20 minutes we had a mini backhoe on site digging out the patio. Tom and Tommy hauled away wheelbarrow after wheelbarrow of dirt to Tommy's backyard (he has this huge area on the side of his house that the previous owner used for storing an RV and a race car). After about an hour and a half, the excavation was done. It cost $150 but was worth every penny. We'd probably still be digging if the backhoe hadn't come. Apparently, the area where the house sits is glacial moraine. That means that it's full of rocks, sand, clay and all sorts of other unwelcome stuff. Add to that the construction debris, like cinderblocks and roofing shingles, that was obviously just plowed under when they finished building the house, and you have a real mess. Thank goodness for the mini backhoe!

Now the work began in earnest. We now had a big hole and a lot of dirt piled around that we had to level and make into the hole for the patio and prepare for the surrounding landscaping. Oh, did I mention that this particular Saturday was the hottest day of the year so far - and that the house faces southwest so is in blazing sun all day long? Yeah, that was a really nice feature of this project. There was only shade until about 9AM and then again at about 7PM. Aside from that, full sun, blisteringly hot, reflecting off of the brick facade on the house all day long. This particular day temps reached 98 degrees. I swear it was 108 in the sun with the heat off those bricks. After the backhoe left, we had a lot of dirt to spread around and still more digging. There had been this crazy mound of dirt at one end that we had to level out and a slope that needed to be made less steep. Tom, Tommy, Shannon, and I raked, dug, raked, moved dirt, carried away boulders, and raked for hours. Then the guys started bringing in the crushed rock that would be the foundation for the patio while I started spreading landscape fabric and rock in the surrounding landscape bed. Every time one of the guys brought a wheelbarrow full of rock to be dumped into the hole, I had to stop what I was doing to lift the front of the wheelbarrow up the two steps so the wheelbarrow didn't chip the steps. I must have done this 100 times. After they'd dump the rock, I started spreading it in the hole. Shannon was inside making something to eat and then taking care of Alyssa for most of this. My forearms were screaming, as were my hands. It was brutally hot and none of us could get enough to drink. But time was of the essence and we had to keep working.

We finally took a break about 1:30 PM for half an hour to eat lunch. That break made it extremely difficult to go back to work. We had two yards of rock to move from the driveway into the hole and then to level. We also had about 6 or 8 yards of river rock to put into the landscape beds - a part of the project that is still ongoing. We worked until 8 PM and finally got all the rock in the hole, leveled, the dirt spread, shrubs trimmed and/or removed, and things ready for putting the pavers in place. It was one of the longest, most miserable days of my life. We were filthy. I had worn my Chaco sandals so my feet were caked with dirt and water. My legs were streaked with dirt and sweat. I felt as if someone had dumped me into a barrel of salt while I was wet thanks to the dried sweat that covered my body. We were going to take a shower at Tommy's before heading home, but we were so tired we just drove home filthy, showering once we got home and falling into bed immediately thereafter. What an ordeal! And there was more to come.

Next... laying the pavers, with accompanying photos.

Hotter than blazes

I'm not sure what exactly happened to summer this year. June was, well, weird and not at all summer-like. Actually, I think April had hotter weather this year than June did. Then came July. We went from rain, rain, and more rain, to blisteringly hot unbearable hotness overnight. We went from needing the heater on and closed windows and doors to all doors and windows open 24/7, fans going, and it's still unbearable at 10PM. Go figure. And no, I don't attribute it to global warming. I am not sure I believe in global warming as much as I believe in cycles. Weather always goes in cycles (remember the ice age?). Anyway, we didn't have a few weeks of nice high 70's low 80's temps like we usually do. We just jumped right into the 90's and we've stayed there for weeks. They are forecasting some rain on Saturday with temps about 77, which would be a welcome relief. But Sunday is supposed to be clear and hot again. Normally, we get our hot days in late July, and there are usually just a few strung together - maybe 6 or 7 - before we get rain and cooler temps. Not this year. One good thing though - we haven't had the 100+ temps yet. Now, I'm not complaining really. I do love sunny, warm weather. I just wish it wasn't SO hot. The other day I went to get the paper at 8AM and it was already hot. I felt like I was in Vegas or Palm Springs it was that hot. Weird weather. We had practically no winter. Spring was warm and fairly dry. Summer started out cool and wet and is now insanely hot and dry. I wonder what fall will be like.

I love autumn. I hope it stays warm well into October. That would be awesome. I would also love another mild winter, but the plants and bugs need a real winter, a cold, snowy one. The plants need the deep moisture and the bugs need to be killed off. We've got all sorts of weird bug strains we don't usually see because of the lack of a snowy winter last year. I am not too thrilled with the copious numbers of bugs in my lawn and on my plants, so I could go for a very cold and snowy winter if it means fewer bugs next year - and healthier flowers and plants.

This is a really boring, pathetic post so I am going to end it and go home and barbecue tri-tip for dinner.

Where was I when everyone else went to Europe?

Okay, that does it. I've come to the conclusion that I am the only person in the US who has not been to England or Europe or Japan or even Hawaii. What's up with that? I regularly read the blog of Nathan, Jonathan's freshman year roommate. Nathan is in England right now as part of Whitworth College's British Isles Study Program. That alone makes me so jealous I can hardly stand it. Along with Nathan are several other Whitworth students, of course. Some of them blog as well. One girl has been to England twice before! Even Nathan's parents have been to England! Nathan's sister just returned from the Czech Republic, and Nathan's friend, Shaun, is in Japan.

So, what's wrong with me? When I was in college, going to Europe was out of the question. The cost of air fare was completely out of reach. I don't recall vast numbers of fellow students winging their way to Europe. Then again, there were all those kids backpacking around Europe, traveling by train, staying in youth hostels, and returning to taunt the less fortunate with tales of their escapades abroad. Oh yeah, I forgot... my then husband's sister spent a semester in Greece her senior year of high school too. In the ultimate betrayal, shortly after college, my own brother went to Italy wtih our ex-stepbrother, found our grandfather's family home, found our Italian cousins in that home, hung out with them for several days, trekked around Switzerland, went to Morocco, and returned to regale me with his adventures, while I stayed here in the US, working, working, working. He even went back across the Atlantic to India and Switzerland after he was married. And, to add insult to injury, he recently returned from Hawaii with his oldest son. My kid sister has been to Italy and Paris recently with a friend and I am sure she was in Europe once before when she was in the Air Force. My own father has been to England on a couple of occasions when he was in the Air National Guard. He used to arrange to do his active duty there so my stepmom, who is British, wanted to visit her sisters. My very best friend has been to Europe. She lived in England for a year while her father taught at some university. My other best friend is going to Hawaii for his honeymoon in less than a month. Oh... and two coworkers took European vacations this year - one to England and Paris, one to Italy. Gina has been stuck in the Western US and Canada her entire life. That is so sad.

My travels? Outside the US, I've been to Tijuana, British Columbia (Victoria, Creston, Nelson) Alberta (Calgary, Edmonton, Banff, Jasper, and the towns in between) and that's about it. The farthest east I've been is Nappanee, Indiana, and that was to check out library software. I didn't get to sightsee or anything, just drive from Chicago to Nappanee and back. I was in Chicago for a couple of days but didn't even go downtown to see the sights like Navy Pier. I was alone and it was just too weird. I did drive from Chicago to my sister's house in Spooner, WI and spend a few days with her. Then back to Chicago, back on the plane, back to Sandpoint. I've visited or lived in pretty much every state west of Colorado, but that's the extent of my travels. Pathetic, isn't it? Well, that just has to change! The plan is for the three of us, Jonathan, Tom, and me, to go to the UK as soon as Whitworth gets out in May 2006. I also really think Jonathan needs to find a way to do a study abroad. Whitworth has several opportunities for students to go to Europe, Central America, and various other places for class credit. I know once I visit anywhere in Europe, I am going to want to go back more and more often. I am sure Jonathan and Tom will feel likewise, so I think the plan now is to save for a trip abroad at least every two years. If Jonathan can go with fellow students in one of the study abroad opportunities, all the better. I just don't want him sitting at his computer one day wondering "why on earth didn't I make sure I went to Europe before the kids, mortgage, and job tied me down?"

All you kids who are in Europe or Japan or wherever right now... you'd better post a lot because I am living vicariously through your blogs! I hope you all realize really how lucky you are and cherish this experience.

More Photos

Since I had some weird issues with Blogger Images yesterday, I decided to post a couple more here. Here is one more of the finished shed project. Note the terrific, perfect, level floor all nicely edged with the treated 2x4s, the fresh coat of paint on everything, and the perfectly mowed lawn - that's MY contribution - well, I held boards while they were nailed in place, held levels, fetched materials, and so on. All actual construction was done by Tom, of course. Oh yeah, I washed, on my hands and knees with a scrub brush, in the driveway, 5 sheets of lattice - both sides. THAT was a horrible job!

So, shed photo -

And this is a photo taken just last weekend of the pots on the patio. Notice how beautiful they are now that things have grown a bit. Notice, too, the freshly sealed patio. It looks SO nice. Tom did that arduous task Saturday morning bright and early (as in 6AM), before the sun hit the patio. Again, take note of the perfectly manicured lawn. That is my handiwork. I mow the front yard with the push mower twice a week. Jonathan mows the back with the rider, also twice a week. We mulch, so you have to mow often or it gets too long to mulch.

Okay, some flower pix I tried to upload yesterday. These are of the lilies along the driveway. Now only the daylilies are blooming as the pink Asiatic lilies have finished blooming. They really are a sight to behold when they are blooming in such profusion. They just keep getting thicker and thicker each year. I love it!

The Shed Project

Tom calls it a "lean-to". I call it a "carport" for the riding lawnmower. To me, lean-to sounds like something you throw up with scrap lumber with a tarp for a roof or something equally as makeshift. When Tom kept talking about building a lean-to onto the shed, I envisioned something not all that attractive or functional. I wasn't really keen on the idea. Boy, was I in for a surprise when we started building it - a pleasant one! I don't know why I ever had a negative thought. Tom is a perfectionist. Everything he builds, everything he does, is done perfectly, tastefully, and with great skill. If he can't do it well, he will hire someone who can. The crazy things is, when it comes to house and yard stuff, I have yet to see a project he had to hire out. From the paver patio out front to the fountain/pond to this carport, he's exceeded my hopes, let alone expectations, every time. See for yourself: These first photos are during the construction. The roof is on - it's made from that corrugated polycarbonate stuff - but we have yet to put the floor in and the lattice that will enclose it is just leaning against the neighbor's fence. The floor is made of 12" x 12" x 2.5" concrete patio blocks. Tom leveled all the dirt, put sand down, and leveled each block. It was only about 95 the day he did it and this part of the yard gets sun pretty much all day long.


Now - the finished project:

Well, I have two others showing the shed in more detail, but Blogger won't let me post any more photos so... you can sort of see the wonderful floor, all framed out in pressure treated 2x4's. The lattice will help keep the stuff dry and keeps prying eyes from seeing what's inside very easily (it's the privacy lattice as opposed to the more common garden lattice). The riding lawnmower fits nicely inside (under its new cover) while there is plenty of room for the two walk-behind mowers and the fireplace thing we used on July 4th (it's in the back corner). The overall dimensions inside are 8 feet wide by 10 feet deep. I'll post more pix of the finished project tomorrow when Blogger frees me up to do so.

A Plethora of Photos

Okay, this post is going to be nothing but photos and captions.

This is a shot of those lilies from Jonathan more fully in bloom. They were even more beautiful in person!







Who says white men can't jump? This is Tommy taking a couple of shots during Hoopfest, the largest 3-on-3 basketball tournament in the world, held in Spokane the last weekend in June every year. Pretty good height for a 5' 9" white guy! (They won the game AND their bracket!)

4th of July at our house...
This is our backyard. We roasted marshmallows, made S'mores, and shot off fireworks from back by the property line once it got dark (about 9:45PM). In attendance: Shana (left with red sweatshirt on), Tom (leaning back on the deck steps), Shannon (sitting next to Tom), Olivia (blond in pajamas), Sydney (in pink PJ's), Tyler (roasting a marshmallow), Ryan (in shorts and yellow t-shirt), Jonathan (in beige shorts), Alyssa (purple shirt and blue jeans), and Tommy (Carolina Blue shorts).

In the following photo you can see the empty lot behind us. The lake shore is just beyond those trees across the street from the lot. That house on the left fronts the lake. In the winter, we can see the water from our yard when the trees are bare. You can see one of the three tents the kids put up to sleep in that night. It was a gorgeous night, perfect for fireworks and sleeping outside.





As the night progressed, so did the quest for the perfectly roasted marshmallow. Here's a shot of a couple of likely candidates roasted by Jonathan.






The grandkids all enjoyed the fireworks, especially the sparklers. Alyssa is having fun with hers in this photo. The key was keeping them from lighting each other or the tents on fire.

Well, I've tried twice now to add three more photos, but Blogger is not cooperating. Maybe this is a sign that this is where this post should end.

No wonder I have no fans!

When one doesn't update one's blog, one loses readers! I should KNOW that because I have given up reading a few blogs wherein the bloggers fail to update. I am stunned that the last entry in my blog was 19 days ago! Honestly, where did the days go?

I know I promised photos, so here they are, at long last. So, first photo is of our patio in May, right after I planted the big flowerpots. On the left you can see a bunch of flowers still waiting to be planted. As usual, clicking on the small photo will take you to a larger version.

Next is a photo of the fountain we have in front of the dining room windows with all the flowerpots around it.

And then I potted the pots you see in this photo with red geraniums, pansies, and lobelia. There are four of these pots and they sit between the daylilies and asiatic lilies that have yet to bloom in these photos.

This photo was supposed to show you the three pots - one on each side of the arbor and one in the concrete birdbath - that supplement the flowers on the side of the house, but they don't show up all that well. That shed is the subject of that project Tom and I worked on during our vacation. Those photos are forthcoming.

A year ago, I was having a bad day. Jonathan felt bad for me, so he went out and bought me a pot of beautiful orange lilies. They really cheered me up. When the blooms faded, I potted them outside. Surprisingly, in early fall, they bloomed again! I half forgot about them over the winter. They lived outside through the winter months. This spring I looked at this pot and saw the lilies emerging from the soil. They had more than doubled in number! This is a shot of them when they had just begun to bloom. I have another shot I'll post of them in full bloom. They were gorgeous! I can't wait until next year, when they will again multiply in number. They are neat in that they are short - only about 18" to 2 feet tall. I planted some columbines and petunias in with them so it becomes an interesting, perennial pot to look forward to each spring.

Well, I think I will post the other photos in a different post and end this one for now. This is the first time I have used Blogger's photo upload service and I'm curious to see how it looks.