French Garden Ideas

On the trip, I took some pictures that I hoped would inspire me in my own gardening at home. Of course, there are some things that just won't translate. I know I will never be able to grow hydrangeas like I saw in Biarritz--hillsides of them with blooms the size of basketballs. Sure, there are some that are hardy here in MN, but I see my neighbors pampering them they never look like these. This does reinforce my thinking that you should grow what wants to grow in your yard. Sure the French have hydrangeas and lavender (I've tried to grow that unsuccessfully as well), but I have lilacs.

This wisteria vine was taking over a structure on the site of the Chateau de Chenonceau. When I saw it, I couldn't wait to get home and see how much the one I planted this spring had grown. Mine isn't up to castle standards yet, but it's alive and sending out new shoots. This plant was my splurge when I purchased plants this season, and I'm interested to see how it does. I've heard it's a rapid grower, though not so easy to coax into a bloom. This one was beautiful and gives me something to shoot for in the coming seasons.

I was a little sad that I will not be able to duplicate some of the lovely window boxes I saw in the urban areas of France. Our house just isn't a window-box kind of house. It does show that you can garden anywhere.

In the category of "maybe someday" are the espaliered apple trees that made a 18-20" high fence around the potager garden at the same said castle. It was a cloudy day, so the picture isn't the greatest, but these apple trees were the perfect border around the prettiest herb and vegetable garden I've ever seen. This is gardening devotion.

Finally, for overall "ooh-ahh" I had to take a few pictures of the formal gardens around the castle. For the most part, there wasn't anything fussy or fancy growing in these gorgeous gardens, but what was there was well cared for and planted in the right combinations. A secret that works even my little suburban plot.

Home!

And it is good to be home. We had a great time in France, but Dorothy knew what she was talking about. There's nothing like sleeping in your own bed, using your own personal bathroom, and driving your own car.

Not one more thing could have been jammed into the two weeks we spent in beautiful France. Castles, cathedrals, museums, countryside, beaches--you name, we saw it. My only regret is that I didn't bring my pedometer to log the miles we trekked everyday. Thank goodness for sensible shoes!

In the end, we decided that we Americans could learn a thing or two from the French. They know how to slow down and enjoy life a little better than we do. Maybe it's all the great French wine!

Au revoir

This sounds silly, but I was going to be very disappointed if those huge buds on my peony plants didn't open before I left for France this week. And as if on cue, they started to open yesterday. I had to cut a few for the table. There won't be any perfume in Paris that will smell better than these blooms. Les fleurs sentent bon.

My bag is packed--as lightly as possible. My iPod is charged and full of movies. We're ready to go.

Watch a little movie yourself while I'm out.

Stranded

Ahhh, wool. It's the best. I just cast-on the Double Knit Mittens from The Knitter's Book of Yarn for a little summertime challenge. As much as I love multi-color knit objects, I have never been very happy with my own projects. (It's the reason I bought a knitting machine.) I thought this pattern would be a good way to try again since most of the time you are knitting with two strands of the same color. I figured my mistakes could be camouflaged, and if they weren't perfect, what the heck, they're mittens. Right?

So far so good. I've got the cuff knit on one and a few rows of the solid. I've experimented with different ways of holding two strands of yarn at once. One in each hand. Both in one hand split over two fingers. Throwing. Picking. I've decided that there's just no two-handed knitting for me. Being left-handed, I'm usually pretty flexible, but it's not going to happen. On the two color knitting, I ended up picking up each color, one at a time. (I know, lame.) On the single color, 1x1 stranding, I've worked out a way of holding both yarns in my left hand over the same finger and picking up the strand I need. We'll see.

Sideways Cardigan

This afternoon I got the buttons on my completed Sideways Cardigan, and I think I'll enjoy wearing it this summer--if it ever warms up around here. It's just enough to cover your shoulders on a chilly evening or in an over-air-conditioned restaurant.

After knitting two cotton sweaters in a row, I am reminded just how much I love wool. There's no forgiveness in cotton, either in the knitting or in my hands. I think I will need some wool between my fingers soon.

Oh, What a Beautiful Morning! Oh, What a Beautiful Day!

What a gorgeous morning! The lilac bushes are in bloom, the birds are singing, and the sun is shining. We haven't had too many days like this so far this spring, so we've really come to appreciate them when we have them.

You'd think I'd take advantage of this beautiful weather and go for a walk outside, but when I woke up this morning--obscenely early, by the way--I dragged my butt over to the Y and got in a good workout--including some weight training. We've been gone so much, and I've missed having my muscles trained. We did have a great time up North last week. A little fishing, some golf--I get to drive the cart--and some fun with my niece and nephew. Isn't it a great plan that we don't have kids when we're old? They are a handful. What entertainment! Now we have a little time to catch up before we head off to France next week.

My Sideways Cardigan is on the blocking board this morning and is almost dry. Not much left to finish it off: sew some seams, pick up a knit an edging for the neck, and knit on a buttonhole band. Since this is a cotton yarn and the pattern for the yoke is so lacy, I think that I will crochet the shoulder seams together to add some stability. This was a fun project--slightly more of a challenge than I anticipated, but that's not a bad thing. The challenge is all in the yoke shaping, but once I got the hang of the yoke pattern and how it worked in the decreases, it was fine. I did have a blonde moment when I knit the last front piece while watching the Twins the other night and neglected to reverse the shaping. (Ever knit two mittens for the same hand?) It was easily corrected--not so for the Twins.

Okay, get off the laptop and get outside. Errands to run for the tennis banquet tonight. Then we're free--free at last!

Graduation Day

It's the big day. High School graduation. (Cliche alert!) It seems like he just started kindergarten. It went so fast. I can't believe he's going to college in a couple of months. I can't believe it's been thirty years since I did this. (A little moment of selfishness.)

It looks like it will be a beautiful day for all the festivities. The ceremony, dinner at one of his favorite restaurants, and the all-night party--then it's off for the Northland for a few days of hurried-up R&R with my family.

Knowing we would be gone for awhile, my big priority this week was to get my gardens and pots all planted, and, "Whew!" I got it done. It took a few extra trips to the nursery to fill in a few spots, but it's done. The cool spring has put us behind a couple of weeks, and what a great year to have that happen, because I'm about three weeks behind.

Check out my rhubarb plant this year! It's taking over. I baked a coffee cake with it last week , and it barely made a dent. The guys aren't that crazy about rhubarb, so you-know-who ends up eating the most, and I'm not a big lover of sweets. I have a recipe for a sauce for fish that I might dig out--in my free time.

I actually found some time for knitting this week. I finished a Prayer Shawl--and then forgot to take it with me to church. I'm also on the second front piece for my Sideways Cardigan. Now that I've got the hang of the yoke pattern, I tossed aside the chart for the shoulder and neck shaping and followed the directions in the original pattern in the magazine, and it works great. It was all a little confounding at first, but now I'm on my way. My only disappointment with the yarn is having to work around knots in four of the six skeins I've used this far. I'm not worried about running out, but it's annoying--there's no splicing cotton.

Enough! I must have coffee before Pomp and Circumstance.