Mother's Day Madness

This Mother's Day was my chance to be at my passive-aggressive best. Luckily, fate stepped in and saved me from my worst self while enabling my higher callings to prevail - against my will, of course.

We harken back to spring/summer of 2009. I had two weeks to kill in Rockport and I was itchy to do a project. I always felt that the view out of the kitchen window was needing improvement. It looks out onto a half dead patch of grass and a boring hedge. No one used that part of the yard and it was a wonderful blank slate just waiting for my magical touch. I wanted to put in a little island of flowers so Joan could gaze upon it in rapture whenever she spent time at the sink. Joan agreed and I made a plan. Oddly, every time I spoke of it, Joan threw an obstacle in my way. I countered with a well reasoned solution. On and on it went until it was obvious that Joan did not want me to build the little island of joy. I was quite disappointed and unreasonably hurt and we talked it out and left it there, two stubborn old broads both secure in the knowledge that they were right.

Fast forward to April 2010. Since then I had done much work in my yard with raised beds. I realized that was just the thing. For Mother's Day I could enlist Danny as my man on the scene and erect a surprise raised bed of wonderful flowers that she would see on Mother's Day morning. For one split second there was the true spirit of love and giving, until I laughed a wicked laugh and thought, "And you can think of me, old woman, and know I was right!" Hence the passive-aggressive nature of the "gift".

Enter Phoebe. She loved the idea and thought she would sneak up on the 8th of May and help Danny with the bed and be there for the unveiling. They both kept it secret because once it got into the Cheney committee it would get chewed up and vetoed and spit out and who knows what, wonderful clan that we are. So, mum was the word.

And here is where I was saved from myself, puppet-master that I am. Joan had knee surgery and Phoebe went up towards the end of April with plans to stay until after Mother's Day. Mother Nature, as it turned out, did not give a damn about our well crafted gift/gotcha and acted like it was not spring at all, but late winter. Phoebe chose some beautiful plants and flowers and Danny never made a bed, thinking Phoebe was bringing a premade bed with her (communication is critical in these covert ops), and since the weather was too evil (a reflection of my intentions perhaps) they arranged the flowers in the sitting room and presented them to Joan in there. The old witch has her own ideas about where she wants the raised bed, but it ain't over 'til it's over... Happy Mother's Day! (and she is my favorite stepmother and far from a witch)

I have not been able to inbed the video- for her reaction go to: Danny's youtube video

Below are pictures Danny took of some of the flowers.







And now the inevitable garden update. My camera is broken so my usual medium quality pictures are now low quality because they are taken by cell phone.

My new vegetable markers. The magic marker washed off so I used acrylic paint and an artist's gold pen. I do not know yet how they will do in the elements. Acrylic is pretty tough, though.

I LOVE this rose bush - a shrub rose called Iceberg. It is not strongly scented, but with so many roses blooming it smells pretty great right now.