The State of Our Yard - Sunday Edition (With an Update on the Great Flower Thief)

 Sunday, September 21, 2025

Dale and I got home from church this morning and noticed that our celosia had been ripped from the pots which border our driveway. No other flowers were taken. The celosia planted closer to the house was untouched. At first I thought a squirrel or a rabbit may have done it but they would have made much more of a mess getting it out of the pots. All six stalks of it were completely gone with no mess left behind and there's no way small animals could have disappeared it so cleanly. 

Again, they only took from the pots which bordered the driveway so they didn't need to come into the yard. I moved two of the pots  closer to the garage so they're harder to see. Hopefully this was a one and done. 

UPDATE - On Tuesday, September 23, Dale and I made a trip to Bachman's to replace the flowers that were stolen. 

Ran into our next door neighbor, Andrea, who told us that on Sunday morning, while we would've been at church, her dog Marcia was barking at something near our driveway. 

Ran into our next door neighbor, Andrea, who told us that on Sunday morning, while we would've been at church, her dog Marcia was barking at something near our driveway. 

This was indeed confirmation that it was actually a person and not an animal but this made it even more baffling. I mean, a kid I understand might not know better but a full grown man? Rather sad. I think most people would agree that stealing flowers is rude, crude, and social unacceptable.  For realz.

The State of Our Yard - Thursday Edition

 Thursday, September 18, 2025

Dale went with me to Bachman's today and we bought some more flowers. 

It's nice to get a bit more color in the yard. 

The State of Our Yard Today

 Wednesday, September 17, 2025

I stopped by Bachmann's today to pick up some flowers for our garden. With all of the malarky going on in the world today I'm looking forward to creating something of beauty. I've meant to do more in the yard this summer in terms of planting flowers but this is the first I'm getting to it. 

Picked up some celosia (also known a plumed cockscomb) and some mums.

The celosia is the tall stuff that looks like flames and the mums have the more traditional looking flowers. Dale's always loved the garden in autumn. I do too. Even when I plant in the spring I like to go with fall colors in anticipation of late August thru October. Now there's even warmish weather into November. Although I'll never complain about pleasant weather, summer in November in Minnesota is quite sad for the overall state of the planet. 

Dale moved the lawn today.

It got quite shaggy while we were in Arizona for nearly a couple weeks and I felt I was back in the 70s when we got home on Monday. 

The daylilies are not flowering as prolifically as they were earlier in the summer but we still get a few blooms now and then. 

The ferns have held up pretty well this year and have lasted quite a while mostly due to the amount of rain we've gotten however they're starting to brown....

...although not nearly as much as the lily-of-the-valley. 

The sedums are flowering and will turn a brilliant auburn red as we progress through fall. 

Bought a few gourds at Bachmann's too but these will stay in the house for now as the squirrels will gnaw them mercilessly. 

Remembering June 2012

 

Remembering May 2012

 

Photo taken back in May of 2012. Our next door neighbor at the time trimmed back his bridal wreath spiria and I was pissed. I think it looked more beautiful in our yard than it did in his. The branches draped over into our yard and the white flowers that appear in the spring looked beautiful. It was like a waterfall of white. Anyway, they grew back eventually and looked great again. Now, in 2025, the bushes are not as full as they used to be. Maybe they're just old. 

Lily of the Valley in 2012.

Snow on the Mountain, 2012.

Another photo from 2012. The hosts around the back yard pine tree don't come in as nicely as this either. 

Bleeding Hearts, 2012

Summer Cigars

 Friday, August 22, 2025

Cigar in the back yard yesterday. 

Cigar in the backyard today. 

The cicadas are out in full force. As a kid I thought the buzzing sound they made was electricity surging through the power lines. 

I'm also seeing and hearing the grasshoppers. It's just that time of school again. 

Dale mowed the lawn today. Josh from next door lets us borrow his electric mower. 

I watched lots of planes come in today. Dale said there's a closed runway so they're bringing all the planes in from the north. One flew by just about every 4 minutes or so. I didn't see a single plane taking off. 

Been doing lots of trimming back lately. Lot's is getting a little overgrown. 

Have a few books I'm working on. Read a little while out in the yard. 

Snow, Shoveling, Cigars, Cocktails, Dinner, Movie

Saturday, February 8, 2025

Finally some snow. We've had relatively little this season and it's so much easier to deal with psychologically when you haven't already had 3 months of it. 

The sun was out for a decent amount of time.

Which made 20 degrees not feel as cold. 

Dale and I got most of the snow shoveled earlier but we got a trace bit more so I decided to get that up since I was outside.  

The sun along with blue sky and snow looked really pretty. 

Dale and I drove to the store to get makings for oven baked pasta. 

Cocktails and snacks while dinner was in the oven.

Broccoli along with the pasta.

We were in the mood for Alfred Hitchcock so we watched Rear Window. What an awesome movie. The ending is still suspenseful even if you've seen it before and know what's gonna happen.