Ajax is 22 Months Old Now

What can I say except he is still a puppy, still headstrong, still adorable and horrible at the same time, totally photogenic and still wants to be a cuddly lapdog. Chris is starting to warm a bit to him, but its a slow process.

He loves watching the bees on all the flowers

And I just love that he is a westcoast dog at heart

He loves hanging with me on the bluffs

Or climbing the shoreline rocks filled with mussels

Mostly what I love is watching him on the bluffs just gazing out over the pacific.  What does he think, what does he see?

He seems to love being high over the water more so than deep in the forest. 

He is the most interesting pup.  Still not leash trained, but then we don't go anywhere that he needs a leash so does that matter?  He comes when he is called, and that's important. 

Wildflowers Don't Care Where They Grow

This is my theme song for this blog - Wildflowers.   And this is the best time of year to be spotting them.  Hiking with Ajax provides an opportunity to spot all kinds of things in nature.  Here are my recent finds:

Wild Lupins

Wild Foxgloves almost ready to bloom

Death Camas, a beautiful but totally toxic plant.

And though not in bloom in this shot, I have found an area where the trails are just full of this lovely Stinging Nettle.  I took a friend their yesterday to harvest some as she likes to dry it for tea.

Creatures in the Garden

There is no other frog like the Pacific Northwest Chorus Tree Frog.  These little one inch creatures are so noisy you need earplugs at night.  I came across this little fellow yesterday while gardening.  I just love frogs!

The other precious creature who must not be forgotten is my little feline friend Gypsy.  She loves to supervise my gardening activities.  Cats are great!!

West Coast Getaway

Almost forgot to share a recent 2 night getaway to Tofino with my friend and neighour, Bonnie.  I wanted to take in a story telling event by one of my favorite west coast native artist Roy Vickers.

It was a bit of a whirlwind trip but still a great getaway.  We stayed at the Ocean Village Resort, and it so happened that Roy was staying there as well, so we got to meet and chat.

               Weather was great and the sunsets were awesome both nights:  Typical west coast colours!

                             Bonnie                                                                             Me

 Ravens on Chesterman Beach

Driveway Project

Continuing from the last post on the projects, the driveway project was a big one. But before I go into the rest of the photos, I need to communicate how peaceful the atmosphere is when you garden. Birdsongs, scents of lavender,  a litte kitty in the grasses .....my mind is immediately diverted through a sensory bombardment that would override any whirring brain. I feel energized yet tranquil when I am gardening.

The driveway gardens are huge and were inherited when we bought the property.  I may have done it differently, but it is what we have.  I started with the fence lines, clearing both opposites sides to make clear pathways.

To put it in context,  the picture below shows the full driveway

Below are the photos of the end results. 

No doubt its a lot of work, but it is also very satisfying work to know you can get it done and stay on top of it. Neighbours have noticed the improvement as well and have commented.  I'm ready to tackle anything now!!

Projects

When it comes to "do it yourself" projects you wouldn't believe how many there can be when you are retired and looking around for one-day projects that can spruce up your yard, space or morale!!
The list is so long, but I started with the great outdoors.  Why not enhance the curb appeal of our long driveway?
Our driveway has been neglected the past few years and the bamboo had overtaken a cedar tree.  I tackled both sides of the driveway garden and was able to stand back and be proud of my accomplishment.  This is a shot of the stripped back bamboo and no weeds in the corner near the gate.

 Speaking of gates - our iron gate in the driveway was really looking shabby - with rust and moss and chipping paint.  I should have taken a before picture but did not think of it.  I used 30 seconds to clean off the green slime and moss, then scraped off the old paint and sanded it all.  Using Trimclad spray paint I finished it off and it looks good as new almost.  I also found some white paint and touched up the close the gate sign.  I'm on a roll.

 Next project was re-staining all our landscape ties.  We have landscape ties around all our garden beds including the driveway.  Well - trust me, these are all re-stained now and looking quite fresh.

 13 more outdoor projects on my list!  Who has time to go to work?