Nature Class

So one morning I was out on my front porch watering the plants when I kept hearing this "peep peep" sound. I look around trying to find out where it was coming from then realized it was in my floral arrangement hanging on the wall near the door bell. I quickly ran inside to look out the window and investigate. See I have this fear of things that fly, so I figured being behind glass I would be protected just in case something decided to escape. Well to my surprise this is what I found.

five little baby birds calling out to their mommy for food. It has been so fun to watch these little guys grow and be taken care of by their mother-- and yes the dad even visits from time to time with a big plump juicy worm. My kids cant wait to get up in the morning and run down stairs to check on them. Whats so funny is that for the past two years I had this arrangement hanging on the front door and for two years this same momma bird would lay her eggs but I guess because of us going in and out the door- the eggs would never hatch. I would eventually have to toss them because they would decay and start smelling. Well this past fall I moved it to the wall and low and behold they hatched- she finally got her family- poor gal she was probably starting to think she needed fertility shots because she couldn't produce.

This whole experience has reminded me how much God cares for each and every living thing and how much more He cares for us. I keep thinking of the scripture Matthew 10:29

29Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father.

Random acts of "kindness"

So today I'm having the steam cleaning people come and clean my nasty carpets. Yes I mean nasty- its quite embarrassing- but with two kids and a dog what do you expect. (and no I am not going to post before and after pics- its that bad) But after my wonderful hubby moved all the furniture out I started walking around and noticing things--- like the walls and how they desperately needed to be painted, then I noticed little random acts of "kindness" left by my children over the years. For some reason with all the furniture and "stuff" crammed in the rooms you don't notice these things. This first one is from my daughter- I know this because she LOVES lip gloss. Apparently one day she decided to "kiss" the wall with her velvety lips.

and notice the small chocolate stain above it- I believe that one was from my son and his chubby chocolate covered fingers or is that mud?- you know with him you never know.

Then there is this one left by my son via pink marker...

There is also a yellow "drawing" done in crayon . but that one did not come out well on camera. So if you would like to see that one you will have to come visit.

I just don't have the heart to remove these random acts just yet. Because I know one day they will be grown and my heart will ache for times like this.

So just know when you come visit our "art museum" - the carpets will be clean but the walls...well..........

Smith street shop window garden of beauty and love

Just look at what I found wandering Smith St.
What a great city Melbourne is. I must change my ways and never again say a mean thing about succulents. The chance you may wake up to a day that contains a gracious tableaux like this makes life juicy with potential joys.



Here is the shops creatrix, with her aquamarine eyes. A fashion designer who would almost certinaly be a great balcony designer: I wish I could say she stole my idea of a fake-lawn covering for a balcony garden (when its mischevious like this, you can get away with it).
But she carried out the idea, and I did not. And in true Permaculture spirit, she even found a way for Bunnings to give her the lawn bits at a third of the price.
Now about the windowgarden, that's the work of her loving husband. They all came from the one plant, and the both of them keep an eye out for white ceramic pots for the new babies. The first rule for beautiful balcony gardens is harmonizing pots, freeing your eyes to enjoy the plants, and here is the result in all its glory. "Their little faces all look to the street, like puppies', she said. I wish I'd asked her name. I wish I hadn't lost her business card. I hope she finds this blog.
Thank-you!

Weekend wonder-WWOOFer

Garden bath, drawn on Sunday for next month's Dengon Net column.
I wonder if I could actually make one..?

The most upstream act of greening your world would be to register as a WWOOF host. Delegation is the best way to end procrastination, and has you thinking up creative projects to do with your Willing Workers when they arrive on your doorstep, bundles of creative energy waiting to be unleashed.
The distraction of having a lovely WWOOFer, Rachel O'Connell, was most welcome this weekend, as it was the day the beautiful Italian man I had such hopes for went back to Italy. The end of a dream.From my balcony garden I watched this horse-drawn carriage pull up in front of our house. For a moment, it was though maybe my Filippo would be taken to the airport romantically. But it was for a bride from the apartment next door. What would life be like if I made more enchanted endings?

Mid morning, I was lucky to be received by Gail, the lovely lady from down the road, who let me view her ornamental grapevine, in its full, stained-glass glory.
The ironwork dome for the canopy was designed and made by her architect son and his mate.
I would love one for my climate-control garden at Buoyancy Foundation.Grapes provide shade for the house, leaves to wrap dolmades in spring, fruit in autumn, and after that, a water color painted by God. Gail taught me that almost everything gets clipped away for the winter, letting warming sunlight into the house. Then, it grows two miles again the next spring. The leaves compost easily, and she has promised to invite myself and my next wwoofer to come and help ourselves to fallen leaves, which break down quickly into good mulch and compost.
The beautiful children from down the lane, Singen and Cathier, come each Saturday afternoon. They make inventions, plant seedlings, and tend my balcony and veranda gardens. Rachel said that hanging out with them was one of the highlights of the weekend.
The cuttings and orchid shoots Gail gave me are immediately given homes by the children. Left to me, getting around to planting the poor litttle things could take days...
Here is the hessian-covering technique Rachel invented today, which keeps the black plastic rim of the pot hidden, while not letting the hessian get soggy. Its our present to the world - please copy, enjoy, and send me any photos of your beautiful work.

Tuck the hessian over a length of wire , tied around the pot with elasticPull the wire together, gathering up the hessian, and twist it tighly with pliers.Scatter with twig mulch, here from the hydrangeas pruned today, and enjoy.

Oh my............

I dont know what to say. Except that I thought I'd document a typical day in our household. First I hear the screams and them "Mommy Ethan fell in the dirt" . Im thinking ok- no problem he probably just got a little "dusty". "Tell him to brush it off" I say. "He can't" and then in walks my little man- with a nice "eye patch" of caked on mud. So as I pick him up to take him to the sink for a good washing- I come across the living room-- "oh my" is all I could say.

Apparently while I was checking my emails he had time to not only have a mud facial but make "snow" in the living room out of tissues. If you look closely you will even seen a pair on my underwear and shirt strewn about from my freshly folded laundry. *sigh*

climate friendly Buoyancy courtyard garden vision

Buoyancy needs dappled shade to cool the building, and to allow people to gather in the formerly blazing courtyard. Here are some ideas to import from Tokyo, just to start:


Creeper over mesh over bald or seamy walls, that is what this sandpit needs, being careful to avoid the hot spots. This potplant found behind Spiral Hall in Shibuya is a good model






30 centimeters can be all you need for a garden. This Tokyo garden would fit just right here:






Under-bench potplants
The soil and pot don't need sun or exposure, just the plant: I loved this space-saving idea I saw in Japan: Permaculture stacking. Although there is a gap at the back of the bench for the vines to grow up and out, it would be best to find a carpenter who can adjust the bench to be openable, like in a boat bench. Heres the spot for it:

My little Art-sy Bookworm

So this little guy LOVES to get into stuff. Especially his Daddy's office. Usually when Im on the comptuer this is what is going on......... he gets the chair- pushes it up to the desk, climbs up and stands on it- playing with the blinds, turning the computer on and off --playing with the phone, etc, etc, BUT today he decided to do more- he decided to leave his MARK so to speak-Magic Marker- mind you. But I must say he did a pretty good job- it does look like a little stick man with a large head. Anyway- I've been scrubbing this for hours and its still there- so Im off to the store to get one of those Magic Erasers (hope it works).

Poop Happens

Ok-- please tell me that you Moms of little boys have this happen to you too. Because if not-Im in big trouble.

It happens at bath time. Warm water, yummy suds, fun toys AND poop. Yes every time we get in the bath my little 1-1/2 yr old launches these little brown submarines. And let me tell you fishing them out with toilet paper is a futile effort. AND draining the tub is not piece of cake either- these little "tootsie rolls" get stuck in between all the little holes in the bath mat. Needless to say bath time has become a chore. My tubs gets Clorox scrubbed every night.



So if any of you out there have some suggestions- I welcome them. I wonder if they make pooper-scooper's for bath tubs? Or maybe I should put him in those Little Swimmers-- OR I could take the little guy outside and hose him down- I don't know- whaddya think?



You know Im starting to see a pattern of gross blogs here- Vomit, poop--- I need therapy.

Kristen--http://www.wearethatfamily.com/ Im right there with ya! By the way her gross stories are much more entertaining to read! You should check them out.