Le Jardin

This is the first year my husband and I have attempted a garden. It will not be the last, but the "attempt" turned out to be "hard work." Tilling the land, mixing the soil, fertilizing, sprinkling the lime, planting the seeds, planting the plants, pulling the weeds, watering the plants, and building a fence to keep the animals from eating our produce. Only for a success rate of about fifty percent. Half of what we have sewn has not survived due to the Carolina clay soil, the stubborn seeds absolutely refuse to germinate, or because some mystery animal has taken to munching on our veggies while we sleep. We looked for tracks, feces, holes that had been dug under our fence; but NOTHING! So my husband walked around the garden, through the sky-high jungle of weeds, and found several deer beds! However, the fifty percent of produce that has survived (and probably tastes like tears, sweat, and blood) has been well worth the work, and I have some new ideas for next year's garden!

Beefsteak and cherry tomatoes

My excitement over this one squash is quite ridiculous, I'm sure!



Cucumber plant



Carrot tops



Banana pepper plant



Mint and Lemon Balm

Avian Rescue

One Saturday morning, my sister happened to be outside and heard a faint cheep. She looked around and saw a baby bird who fell out of its nest! It was a gray and brown songbird, and was crying endlessly while laying helpless in the morning sun. My sister scooped it up, put it into a box lined with towels, and went to the Animal Welfare League of Arlington. There, a nice woman informed her that the bird is probably a grackle, not even a fledging yet. The baby bird will go to a wildlife rehab, be fed and taken care of until it is a fledgling and can learn to fly. Then, it will be released back into the wild. Three cheers for happy endings!