Mother's Day in the garden

I installed the fountain in the pond.

My lavender is finally taking off after 3 growing seasons.

Ah the fragrance! I want a lot more of this.

Ed and Mary spent all afternoon cleaning out the pool pump house and cutting brush. All of this is headed to the dump.

I planted wave petunias in the flower boxes on the pool pump house.

and hung the pretty urns that Mary brought back from Italy a few years ago.

My mother always had a large garden and she used it to feed her large family. What she didn't cook and serve during the growing season, she preserved (canned) and stored in the cellar to be eaten in the winter months. Happy Mother's Day Mom. I miss you so much.

A short hike on Saturday

The 70 foot boats with 11 man crews on the Volvo 9 month 36,000 nautical mile sail around the world has made its only stop in North America here in Boston. They scheduled an in-port race for 1PM today so Jim and I went up to Deer Island to witness it.

The beginning of the trail.

Could this be the summit?



At look back at Winthrop.

and west to Boston.

Oh no, there is much more.

How nice that it is paved.

Vernon, taking a rest break.

Jim, you are lagging behind, and it is starting to sprinkle rain.

Lunch

Not much further.

Ah, the top of the trail.

We are high above Winthrop, a wonderful vantage spot to view the boats.

We look out to sea.

This all that we see.

We wait for one hour past the scheduled starting time but all we saw were some spectator boats arrive, so we reluctantly returned home

It was a pleasant outing and good exercize.

Those blooming trees!

Even on a cloudy morning the garden lifts my spirits.

My mini kitchen garden just outside the back door

May Basket

When I was a child in northern Maine we used to make May Baskets.

At the end of April every year, Harry Hart would stock up on colored tissue paper in his general store at the foot of Cherry Hill.

He would lay these colored papers out on the table for a few days and we would buy a few sheets for pennies.

The tradition was that boys made these baskets, put a chocolate candy in the bottom, and hung them on favorite girl;s doors. They would knock on the door and when the girls appeared they would run down the street.

The girls would chase them, and when chey caught them, give them a kiss.

The baskets are relatively easy to make.

Place one sheet of paper on top of the other.

Fold across as shown below

Cut the end off as shown. The rectangle will be cut into strips for the handle

Fold the large triangle into a smaller triangle

and again

Makr one last fold as shown below

Cut back and forth starting about 2 inches from the point.

Don't cut all the way across

Continu cutting in opposite directions towards the top being careful not to cut all the way acroos

Carefully infold the cut paper

Pick the paper up and invert in on your index finger

Cut two strips of the paper and fold them back and forth across each other to make a handle.

The handle

Attach the handle, place a chocolate candy in the bottom, and voila! a May Basket

I have been making these baskets for Cissy O'Shea every year for at least 15 years.

Happy May Day, Cissy!