Elizabeth & Brendan

I can now post pictures taken on my phone to the blog. Expect a lot posts with pictures coming at you.

Here is Eli running in our first snow fall.

And now we are trying to figure out how to keep Eli from running through it when he is barking. Tonight we have put a fence up on the back end but not sure that is enough. We will see.

Here is the garden all nice and planted.  We have planted:

• Cilantro
• Bell peppers (green and orange)
• Hot peppers
• Beefsteak tomatoes
• Cherry tomatoes
• Cucumbers
• Zucchini

Here is Jerry the Gnome under the tree.

Here is Gil the Gnome by the willow tree.

Eli with Gil the Gnome.

Here is the new hydrangea that is doing well except on the really really hot days.  It gets too much sun so I have to water it a bit more but other than that it is thriving.  Our neighbors gave us a great article on taking care of the hydrangeas in “This Old House” magazine.  It is a really good magazine and I may soon replace People with TOH.

You will notice a bump to the left of the hydrangea.  This is my attempt to grow raspberries like Grandpa Thienel.  If my garden is half as good as his, I will be mighty satisfied.

These are some dahlia sprouts.

Eli has taken to hiding in the evergreens.  Here is coming out of the hole.

This is a wider shot of Eli in the hole.

On Saturday we did a big Home Depot trip to get fill for the garden.  Our car had a nice earthy smell with the peat moss, soil, and manure we had.  Once we got home, Eli wanted to play.  So we let him on the deck with the gate closed while we hauled the bags (many bags) into the yard.  Eli was whining.  He wanted to come out with us.  He then was trying to get to us through the fence.  Below is a picture after he let out a long whine and laid down.

Here are some Eli pictures!!

Back before all the rain, we had some really warm, beautiful days.  Eli loves to sit on the deck, sunning himself.  When he comes back in half of his body is warm from the sun and he is really happy. 

Here Eli is being cute with Pig.  He was playing with Pig and I guess decided to sleep on him instead.  We noticed Pig had some “issues” and it looks like Pig will be needing to visit the hospital for some open heart surgery.  It should be routine and fairly okay. 

Brendan mowed the lawn.

Eli slept.

Once I get my camera battery recharged I will be showing you pictures of my raised bed garden built by Brendan. Also, major planting is about to begin the next few weeks. Stay tuned.

B bought me  some cupcakes for Valentine’s Day and also got Eli a pupcake!  The bakery sells dog treats which Eli loved!

A few weeks ago, B and I went to the pet store for dog food and of course we left with more than just food.  B saw this toy and had to get if for Eli. As B said, “Eli would love it.”  So into the cart it went.  When we got home, we introduced Eli to “Chicken” and Eli was immediately into Chicken.  (We have tested Chicken versus Pig and Pig is still winning.)  Eli and B played fetch with Chicken and I realized that Chicken will be good to play with in the house (we knew Ginger was on his way out).

The problem came about 2 weeks later, after Eli learned that this toy was Chicken (he will go to his toys if you ask for it, he may not bring it to you).  I was looking at Chicken and thought “I think this is actually a duck.”  So we may have a duck called Chicken but Eli loves him just the same.

I introduce to you: Chicken (or Duck?)

Our driveway. With all the snow we have been getting it is great to not have to worry about saving/finding a spot. In Medford, we started to follow our neighbor’s cues. If Dave saved his spot, we saved ours. If Dave stopped saving his spot, we stopped. We had an orange cone we used. Some days I was as worried that someone would steal the cone as well as still the spot.

I love this pictorial review of the items used to save spots on Boston.com

http://boston.com/realestate/gallery/parking_space_savers/

Also with all the snow we are running out of places to put it. We have mounds and mounds around the house. We had to shovel a path to the yard so Eli can get to the yard to do his business.

On Christmas Eve, we got word of a blizzard.  As the holiday played out, the blizzard got bigger and bigger.  We decided to cut our stay short in order to beat the storm.  We left Brooklyn at 9:30 and got home around 4:00.  This included a stop for gas, the bathroom, food and firewood. We made it home just before the driving conditions got too bad.

This morning getting Eli out in the yard to do his business was difficult.  Being the smarty that he is, he realized that it was cold and snow deep.  He needed to be coaxed out.  So ahead I went, paving a trail to make it easier for him to walk.  Here he is scoping out the scene.

And here he is trying to walk around.

The current accumulation is at about 15 inches and it is still snowing…