March through June are full of green growth, spring flowers, cloudy days mixed with fair ones, and rain. July 1, the faucet turns off and the sun turns on. Summer flowers begin to bloom. In early July in our corner of Virginia, many of the butterfly attractors begin to open up, and host plants have … Continue reading Early July in the butterfly garden
Time has slowed down since the pandemic began. Weekend errands, drives to and from the aquatic center, and swim meets are all gone. We planned to sail on Saturday. We had the boat hitched up and drove further away from our house than we have in 72 days now. But the highway was closed, and … Continue reading Weekend of green leaves, books, and flowers
I’ve spent the past five days in the open air. I am on my annual garden vacation. Instead of listening to news of the coronavirus, I’ve been outside in garden gloves and hat. Over the past five years we’ve lived in our house, I’ve killed a lot of grass to create flower beds for butterflies. … Continue reading My work is (mostly) done. Now I can enjoy the garden.
Midmorning yesterday, my husband was restless. He wanted to get out of the house. “I think I want to go for a hike. You want to come?” I had just been thinking about how lately I’ve been reading stories more than I’ve been getting out in the world and experiencing life. “Yes, I just need … Continue reading A spontaneous winter hike to a waterfall
A lot has happened in the garden since my last update in May. Flowers have blossomed and gone to seed, and now that we’re in August, butterflies are everywhere. Everything starts out so fresh and clean in June, and by August things are looking pretty raggedy. But August is when the butterflies are laying eggs. … Continue reading The summer garden
After exploring the wild windward coast of Curaçao and taking a trip into the capital of Willemstad, we opted to spend the rest of the week on the calmer west coast. We hit several different beaches, each of them offering something unique: sea turtles and easy snorkeling at nearby Playa Lagun, a wide sandy beach … Continue reading Beaches, boats, and blue water
