Early May in NH is unremarkable. The greenery is slow to appear which requires patience for those that are yearning for color after a long winter. By mid-May the greenery finally pops, and we are on our way to the full gardening and outdoor season.
Since arriving back in our bubble after a glorious vacation for almost a month in South Carolina, we have been working on clearing the branches from the April snowstorm, raking garden beds, weeding, planting pumpkin and squash seeds and onion sets, fertilizing plants, creating a new garden bed with a newly planted crabapple tree, wrapping up the bathroom project, cleaning the screened porch, getting the "guest" / vacation rental cottage ready for the season; now we have to tackle the monumental task of cleaning the Barn Lounge after it was a workshop for months.
So, we've been busy, but nothing super fun happening. It's the time of year that we have to get things in order so that we can enjoy the warm months ahead.
Here is the breakdown of the exciting life of W&W for early May. We wrapped up April by taking a work trip in the mobile condo / office to far eastern Maine, five hours from home. It looked and felt like winter there.
Breaking down broken branches was made easier with the battery-operated mini chainsaw. This tool has made it possible to easily cut up large branches with one hand.
After getting the branches under control I made a dead hedge in the way back to be backdrop to the sunflower and Joe Pye Weed plants. Next to that area I made a small veggie garden for onions, butternut and buttercup squash, and pumpkins. I fenced it with retired screened doors from the cottage and our house using thick branches as the posts. Leaves are used as mulch. Fingers crossed that seeds germinate.
I planted the pumpkin seeds to the left of the fenced garden area. It will be nice when they grow because the plants will fill that whole area with big leaves.
In an effort to create vertical interest in the driveway area and after researching small tree options, I chose and planted a Gladiator crabapple. If I keep it pruned it will be fifteen feet high by nine feet wide. That will be a perfect size for the space. Leaves are used here for mulch. That is my new favorite since we have an abundance of leaves, it is beneficial for the soil, and it's free.
After cleaning and tending to seasonal maintenance, etc. our cottage is ready for family to visit for three weeks. I'll share highlights of the visit later this month. Praying for decent weather so we can enjoy the outdoors. While family is at the cottage I (Wine, always Wine writing) will be tending to yardwork, landscaping, and outdoor projects at the cottage.
I'm happy to report that my sourdough starter Homer, is alive and well after being left unattended in the fridge for a month. Once home, I gave Homer a healthy feeding and the starter took off and bread baking commenced.
Whiskey took a business trip to Dallas flying out of Logan in Boston. After I dropped him off at the airport Bell and I stopped at the beach in Rye NH. While it was partly cloudy, it was not Hilton Head weather. This made me miss the warm sunshine. Patience, it will come. ☀️🌞
Once the screened porch is cleaned, dust covers removed from furniture, rugs rolled out, and ferns put in place we can now sit and relax for happy hour.
As you can see, like most of us, there is much to do around the house to move from winter to summer. We try to get it over with as fast as possible. Not working full-time has allowed me to tackle all of this and have time in the evenings to unwind. I think back to the years we did all of this times three and now appreciate the smaller workload.
In an effort to drown out the street noise during the day, I put chirping birds on the TV. Willy enjoys watching birds on the TV even though live birds are right outside the window.
I am delighted to have Bell hanging out with me wherever I am. She is Homer 2.0. I am incredibly grateful that she is wonderful pup and eagerly wants to play with other dogs. She finally got to meet the neighbor dogs and enjoyed a fun play time with Moses, who is the close to the same age as Bell.
Bell is with me inside or outside. She loves being outside in the dirt.
If you made it this far in this post, thank you. Future posts will hopefully highlight beautiful weather, flowering gardens, boat rides, and good times.
Life is good, even the mundane and unremarkable.
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