For the past year, we have enjoyed our granddaughter in our home for five days every ten days. This has been possible mostly because her family (my daughter) moved closer to us. The first four years had visits frequent but not as often because of the travel distence. So this early spring began with Kayleen's graduation from pre-school.
Kayleen was a good helper with Keith and I at Settlers Village in Wheatland where Keith and I do the gardens as our volunteer project with the Missouri Master Gardeners, Hickory County Chapter. This is my 10th year and I have earned the Emeritus status. This means I will retain membership with benefits for life without having to put in the required 20 hours volunteer work or 6 hours continuing education. Keith has a couple more years to go and we likely will continue until at least then. He is this project's manager and I help out as needed but he does much more for now. Kayleen helps out but is mostly there for the donut breaks and playground nearby!
Our first garden priority has always been our own landscape and gardens which we began shortly after we moved to Hermitage in 1986. It has been a lot of work and it shows but for us it was always something we loved to do and make new plans every year. Early Spring is the busiest. We are quickly rewarded with new growth and that motivates us even more!
Haney's Double Poppies are always volunteers. They self-seed each year since neighbor Clifford Haney gave them to me sometime in the 1990s. Since he has passed away, they are a reminder to me of what a good gardening neighbor is as he had the best garden around and was always generous to share.
I am so happy to finally have pink dogwood blooming in my front yard! This is my third attempt to grow one and it is in it's 5th year now. Not all plant projects have been successful but we keep trying and mostly have winners.
Peonies are one of the oldest plants in our yard. They are a good sign of Spring and are at their best by Memorial Weekend.
Our house came with lots of yellow and purple irises mostly from the local high school selling them back in the 1980s for a fund raiser showing their school colors; The Hornets. I had since moved them all to the edges of the backyard along the street and started new iris gardens with these fancy ones.
Gooseberries are plentiful in the wild around here in SW Missouri. Many years ago, we dug up a few bushes on the old homesite in Avery of our former neighbor, Goldena Trollenger, and planted them in our yard. They are thriving and I can get at least two large pies each year from the early spring pickings.
My Missouri Native Garden is beginning to show up in early Spring. I have a variety of asters, chicory, rose verbina, cone flowers, salvia, blue mist, slender mountain mist, yarrow, purple poppy mallow, and several others that surprise me as I'm always adding and forgetting about what I transplant! The blue flower in front was gifted to me likely by a little bird many years ago and it likes it here very well. It is nigella aka Love in a Mist. Who wouldn't keep such a beauty?
I love to see the coral honeysuckle (Missouri Native) bloom on the trellis over my garden swing in early spring. It means I must set out my hummingbird feeders because they will be here soon if they aren't here already!
About the same time as the ruby-throated hummingbirds arrive, the orioles aren't far behind. Sometimes they are first seen trying to get some sweetness from the hummingbird's feeder. They also like the suet feeder. It isn't long before I put out their special feeder that has the sweetened water, orange halves, and grape jelly they love so much. I think I may spoil them a little much but they bring me such joy and a lovey song.
Not to be left out but a rare find at least a couple times a day in the early Spring are the Summer Tanager. This is the female. The male is a bright red; smaller than a cardinal. I know they raise their family nearby. They are a little shy.
We always get at least 1-2 broods of bluebirds in the box in the front yard which is easily viewed. Some years we get 3-4 broods!
By the time Kayllen stays early in the Spring, we have our first crop of strawberries that she helps pick and shares with Grandpa.
For as long as I can remember (at least mid-1990s), my brother Ed rides his Harley from Iowa to visit a few days around Memorial Weekend. We always do the same things and sometimes add something different now and then. He always like to see out Pomme de Terre Dam outlet at full force in the early Spring from the rains. Some years the lake is quite high and it is a big show!
He also likes to go to Lake of the Ozarks which is a short drive. The Bagnell Damm is another big show when the water is let out from the Spring rains raising the lake too high. Ed always likes to stop and check out the coins at Richard's Relic Shack on the Bagnell Dam Strip. Richard is getting pretty old now and was not at the store with his little old dog, Elizabeth this year.
Another regular stop before we leave Lake of the Ozarks is Andy's Frozen Custard. Everyone leaves with a smile on their face!
This year was another trip to Ha Ha Tonka State Park for a walk to the Spring (in the Springtime, of course) and a walk to the Castle Ruins. It is a good way to get exercise after all the eating we do when brother Ed comes to visit. We also walk below the dam at our Pomme de Terre River Trail.
The Castle Ruins at Ha Ha Tonka never get too old to see!
One of our favorite restaurants is floating on Pomme de Terre Lake near our home. The 3-mile trail is just across the road at the bottom of the dam outlet.
One of the newer events brother Ed likes when he comes is the car races at Lucus Oil Speedway 5 miles from our house. It's been around about 10 years or so. Everyone wears ear plugs!
The grand finale of his trip to visit us is a drive to Springfield where a regional car show takes place every Memorial Weekend. This is what he and his friends do even in Iowa...several times a week, I understand! There's even a couple of his Iowa friends here at this show. I come to find out that this nice lady and I used to work together at Harris Drug in Onawa Iowa in 1972! She remembered me! She and her husband regularly spend time with my brother and his wife at the car shows in Iowa with their car club.
Golden Correl is one of my brother's favorite restaurants so he treated us and my daughter's family to dinner in Springfield the day before he returned to Iowa. See you again next Early Spring, if not before!
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