Pictures! The Benz and The Check List

The grand finale of all the promised pictures is here!

Here it in all it's glory! The Benz! Still pondering a good nickname for it, but I'm sure it's a him. Suggestions welcome!

(above left: full shot, fancy controls on the door that adjust the seat to about a million different ways. Below left: the awesome third row seat that pops up backwards, the fancy interior console, and Pooch ready to go for a ride.)

Here are all of our landscaping efforts from last weekend: mulching, planting mowing the lawn.

(above left: the "Charlie Brown" peach tree, the fancy pancy tree that I always forget the name of, and the dogwood, all with fresh mulch. Below left: our pretty mowed lawn, the front landscaping. There are about 2 dozen flowers there in the front but a bit hard to see.)

Behold, my planting efforts:

(Above left:the eggshell garden in the kitchen window. I'm starting most of my herbs, poppies, and gerber daisies. Once they sprout you pant the eggshell and all and it provides calcium. I know how to garden, I just have problems with execution. Dying sleeping jonquils, the mint in the herb garden that doesn't look so good. Below left: green onions in the herb garden that are coming back, flowers planted in the window boxes on the garden shed, the small container garden of wildflowers packed with compost. Apparently something in the compost is appealing to pooch as he sniffs it out.)

The herb garden containers are bolted to the banister of our kitchen porch. In the winter I use it as my compost pile. I toss out tons of organic items in it such as coffee (the acid is good for roses, tomatoes, and holly bushes), eggs, apple cores, veggie peels, etc. When it's time to plant the herbs I rake out all of the compost and put it on the fresh plants as a little springtime feed. Throughout the spring and summer we take out compostable type items straight to the plants daily. I know all about how to garden properly, but plants come to me to die! Here's hoping we change that this year.

Now I leave you with one of my favorite parts our home, the patio:

I realize from the picture that it needs pressure washed. I'm going to get Hubs right on that. You can't see the firebowl from this picture but it's a spring, summer, and fall favorite. We roast marshmallows on it and make s'mores. We also just sit around it with wine and beer and call it a Southern Saturday night. It's a big hit with friends and guests.

Also, I must brag that the fabulous patio furniture you see here was all garage sales or, even better, free! The chaise lounger and the glider were purchased at the end of last summer but with wedding gift cards (yes, we held onto some a year and a half in). The tables and chairs were all garage sale or craigslist finds. We sanded with a wire brush, painted them all black, and spayed on healthy coats of polyurethane. We also have a smaller circular table but it's stored in the garden shed currently. It will go on our deck should we ever decide to build it. The grand total for a round table and four chairs ($40 at garage sale) and the oblong/oval table with six chairs and a bonus chair and side table ($125 on CL) was $165. You can't even purchase the small set for that price! We love having plenty of room for drop-in spring guests.