Rain is fascinating to watch from inside. My dog is mesmerized by it. Her ears point forward to listen to it splat against the window. Her eyes widen to watch the water lines glide down the glass. She has a chance to observe rain without getting her fur wet. Ruby is a stray. She knows how to dash inside a leafy shrub or under an evergreen tree at the start of rain. One rainy day, I could not coax her out of the Arborvitae tree next to our house. I had to carry her inside from the rain. She trusts nature for shelter.
We adopted our one year old Corgi/Mix almost two months ago. The rescue group found her in Alabama. She is a sweet, gentle and cuddly girl who easily curls into our laps. We wonder about her days as a stray. We imagine she lived in the woods or near farmland. She seems more comfortable in those types of locations than our suburban neighborhood. She lets out a nervous bark and tries to chase the trucks, cars or lawn mowers passing by the sidewalk. She trots confidently along the trails through a field or woods and stands alert and ready at sight of a bird or squirrel. Sometimes when we are on a walk, Ruby will stop and sit on the grass next to a stream or on a hill overlooking an open field. She sits calm and quiet. The fur on her neck fluffs in the wind. She lifts her head up and glances towards me, as if to say this is mine. I say, “come!” She walks next to me back to our house. Indoors is now her home, too.
Today thin green spinach seedlings popped out of the seed starter soil, a perfect start to Spring. During our late winter snowfall last week, I planted seeds for our summer kitchen garden. I found this wire rack at the Goodwill and thought it perfect to hold our seedlings. This year I plan to make our raised beds more visually appealing with a mix of flowers planted among vegetable plants. I picked attractive vegetable plants including peppers, eggplants and spinach for our garden below the deck. I will grow patio tomatoes in pots on the deck to keep them from getting unruly. I learned my lesson from last year. My son requested his favorite flower, Forget-Me-Not, so we started those from seed, too. My husband planted garlic last fall, and tall green stalks are appearing around the raised beds already. They will be harvested in July, so I am hoping they will not detract from the plan to have a more beautiful garden that invites relaxation. The snow in this photo has melted. Spring is here bringing many garden dreams!
Our Garden Plot 