Garden + Gnome pt.2

Well, it looks as though the Gnome , which Logan has named 'Rock' has finished moving in. Over the last couple weeks, little tools, a table and plants have been appearing in his garden. We were waiting for his door to go in, and this morning there it was. He has finished moving. Welcome Rock!

We have also continued bringing up wheelbarrows of dirt and slowly building our garden. So far so good. AND we finally have grass - YAY! Everything is starting to take shape and fill in. Maybe that's why I'm popping Robaxacet like it's going out of style...

Garden + Gnome

We have been working non-stop this spring on our outdoor space. We've been building rock gardens, fencing, bringing up wheelbarrow after wheelbarrow of dirt, and clearing away the HUGE amount of fallen trees from when we cleared the property. Geoff just finished hauling out the last of the logs last weekend and, as a result, we have uncovered a lovely, somewhat flat, sunny space. How exciting!!

I noticed the other day, that at the base of one of our old cedars, there was the perfect little hidden spot for a gnome garden. Logan's imagination is amazing, and his fascination with little tiny 'things' (the baby from a stacking doll, tiny travel size toothpaste, little bottles of hand cream...) gave me the idea to create a little tiny gnome garden. I showed him the spot and told him if we cleaned it up a bit, maybe a garden gnome would find it, and start to set up house. We spent the rest of the afternoon on Wednesday, pulling weeds and clearing an area for the gnome. First thing yesterday morning he checked to see if the gnome had moved in...nothing yet. So well he was napping, I started to build the gnome garden. Take a look:

There's a little pond (a Becel container with gravel in the bottom) that has a lovely deck (tree bark) a little stone pathway to the front door, rock gardens and plants from around our property (mostly, we did buy a couple special ones as a housewarming gift). When Logan woke up, we went outside to play, and the first thing he wanted to check on was the gnome. All I can say is I wish I had my video camera...he FREAKED OUT! It was so cute!! I hadn't quite finished everything yet, so he helped me put together the finishing touches like adding larger rocks (because the gnome couldn't lift them) and we also gave him a little fence (popsicle sticks) to help keep out the Bowen Bear (yes, a bear has made it's way over here this week). I have ordered a lovely door for the gnome and little miniature table and chairs, wheelbarrow, gardening equipment and watering can. I'm going to put that all together when Logan is not around and can't wait for his reaction!! Here's what's happening on the rest of the property.

This is the area that was filled with fallen trees (I think there was about eight or nine that Geoff bucked up and hauled out). It's quite large and gets tons of sun.

This is one side of it (gnome garden on right) that we're going to make a nice little seating area. I'm thinking old bricks, with moss inbetween and maybe a brick fire pit.

And this is the other side where it starts to get a bit steep again. We're going to leave in the two large logs on the left, as they have created a nice retaining wall. We're thinking of putting in a little stream that cascades down into a pond as it's fairly level and an interesting shape. Pretty exciting!!

We're growing herbs. Apparently I'm really good at growing oregano.

Rock gardens, rock gardens and more rock gardens. Plus there's four more on the other side of the pathway. Then there's the entire backyard to do.

And a little memorial garden for Lucy (where I'm constantly finding sticks, feathers, seashells and rocks that Logan collects for her).

Well, there you have it. We still want to start some decking this summer, build a play structure for Logan, make some pathways....but it's a start!

TINY OASIS

Good Morning Lovelies!! As I'm sure you can tell by the lack of posts this month, the weather has turned into glorious sun and I have found myself spending less times indoors and more out. I am attempting to tackle our 1/2 acre plot and am feeling incredibly overwhelmed. It seems that I've been raking, making rock gardens, shoveling and planting and barely making a dent. Oh well....baby steps.

During my morning visit to Etsy yesterday, I stumbled upon this article. I found it very inspiring and am thinking this may be how I start with my garden. A tiny oasis is better than no oasis at all!