Eye Candy

Okay so this isn't an interior design blog, and I am an outspoken critic of the tendency of bloggers to write about other people's blogs, but please let me indulge both of these urges now and publicly freak out over this home: http://www.designspongeonline.com/2010/03/sneak-peek-nancy-neil.html

At heart, I am a country girl - I grew up in rural Florida, and explored my neighborhood by foot and horseback. I lived in agricultural country, across the street from tomato fields and avocado groves. And most of our trees produced some sort of delicious tropical fruit like mangoes, tangerines, loquats (my absolute favorite) and starfruit. If I could live on a farm in Santa Barbara with my adorable family I would be as happy as a lark.

Treeeeeeebate!

What's better than planting a tree?...Getting paid to plant a tree!

The city of Portland is giving a $40 rebate if you plant a 6' or taller tree by May 1st. $50 if it's a native tree. If you want to plant a tree on your property, Superwonderful can help you select and plant the right one.

More info HERE on the treebate

I love garden trees. To me, they are the most important part of the landscape, anchoring all of the shrubs and perennials. They actually even resemble an anchor come to think of it. I have dreams of sitting beneath shady trees in the summertime. Remember the cherry tree we lost last April? Well, a new 'Rubra' dogwood is going in it's place. And, you better believe I'm gonna get my treebate.

(photo courtesy of New York Botanical Garden)

PS - I just realized the blossoms of the dogwood are the exact same color as the Superwonderful logo! I guess I picked the right tree!

Right Around the Corner...

On my walk today (in 58 degree weather!) I noticed a few plants in bloom. Do you know what that means ya'll? S-P-R-I-N-G is coming! Are you ready?

New Dawn Viburnum


Edgeworthia


Rhododendron (In Peninsula Park)


Witch Hazel


And, lilac buds!

2009

In honor of all the 'best of' and 'year end' lists, I'd like to wrap up this amazing year with a month by month look at the year that was the least productive work-wise, and pretty low on the social events and traveling due to a swelling belly, but most life-changing year in my personal and married life.

If 2007 was the year of bike racing, and 2008 was the year of weddings, 2009 was the year of the baby.

JANUARY


Sorry about starting out with a photo of me with a gun in my hand, but January in Portland is pretty uneventful, and shooting guns is very exciting.

FEBRUARY


In February, I had a booth at the Yard Garden and Patio Show and talked to visitors for what seemed like 3 days straight.

MARCH


I turned 34 in March.

...and celebrated by visiting Los Angeles and the Huntington Gardens.

...and a weekend at the Ace Hotel in Palm Springs.


APRIL


Our most beautiful cherry tree fell over in a freak wind storm and our back yard will never be the same (at least not for another 15 years when the new tree is mature).

MAY


The garden in May is lovely. We spend most of our afternoons and evenings in the back yard with friends BBQing and sitting around a fire.
*Note: This month's photo should be of me shredding on my mt bike, but at this point I am 6 months pregnant and leading a less 'extreme' lifestyle.

JUNE


Although I was doing lots of designs for clients this year, I only got to install one large project with the help of some able-bodied sub contractors.

JULY


I posed for some silly maternity photos with my friend Heidi Swift.

AUGUST

I was supposed to have a baby in August, but she wasn't interested in vacating my uterus yet, so I decided to remodel the bathroom 2 weeks before my due date.

The final product was well worth it!

SEPTEMBER

Miss Sunday Joyce Cardinal graced us with her presence on September 6th, and our lives are forever changed.

OCTOBER

I go on my first 'real' bike ride in about 10 months. A lovely day I will not soon forget.

NOVEMBER

I go back to work part time but spend most of my time starring at and photographing the most beautiful creature I have ever seen.

DECEMBER

Every Sunday, we go to cyclocross races, and I miss not racing and look forward to racing again next year. We visit family and have our own little family and we're thankful for our health and happiness and creative careers and amazing friendships.

Finally, wedding bouquets

I am just now getting around to posting pictures of the bridal bouquets I did this summer for my friend's wedding. See the table arrangements here. It was a fun project and looking at the photos again in November already makes me long for summer.

Also, here are a few more photos of the table arrangements and boutonnières. (Photos by Heidi Swift)

Terrain Online

Trust me, I am an all-out supporter of local business. In fact, I love the fact that plant material is difficult to sell via the internet because what's the point of buying plants if you don't get to go to beautiful nurseries to the see the plants in person and pick up one or two other gems that weren't on the list but you couldn't resist?

I will admit though, that I have been dying to go to Terrain at Styer's in Philadelphia since they opened a couple of years ago. This is one of Urban Outfitters concept stores and from photos I have seen, the place looks awesome. If you have seen an Anthropologie store, imagine what they can do to a nursery. Here is a good set of photos if you like:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ohjoystudio/sets/72157604819436047/

Well, Terrain just opened an online store where they are selling their hard goods - outdoor furniture, containers, garden structures. This company goes to great extents to find and procure goods from around the globe, and I think they have a nice little selection of garden items too. www.shopterrain.com

New Addition

She's here! She's finally here! Ten days after her due date, following a long bike ride under the full moon, I went into labor and 15 intense, painful hours later, Sunday Joyce Cardinal greeted us. It was a moment Matt and I will never forget and we spent the next 2 days just starring at her, holding two armfuls of the most beautiful example of perfection we will ever know. If I were a poet, I would write books about it. In fact, I'm considering becoming a mommyblogger instead of writing about boring landscaping. Just kidding.

Let me address some of the questions I have been getting in case you, the internet, were wondering the same thing. We named her Sunday because we like the word and all it implies. Matt's mom's name is Sandra Joyce, so we played on that name a bit. Also, Matt and I met on a Sunday and were married on a Sunday, and yes - Sunday was born on a Sunday. We're big fans of this specific day of the week.

Night time IS very challenging. We've started down the path of darkness: co-sleeping. Sunday sleeps right next to me, between me and Matt. No, I am not worried about rolling over on her. This arrangement makes feedings very easy and she doesn't wake up screaming in another room which would stress out all three of us. I know this situation can lead to a hard habit to break, but from what I have read, it seems the benefits out-weigh the drawbacks. Let us hippie-out on this one, alright?

Yes, she is the cutest baby ever. Most people say she looks like Matt. She makes really funny faces and was born with an old man haircut. (long in back, bald on top.)
She weighed 7 lbs. 1/2 oz. and didn't even lose any weight in the days following birth as most babies do. (She's a really good eater - my pain is her gain!)

I was totally sober when I labored and delivered her. AKA - I had a natural child birth. Another controversial topic here, and one that I now see why most people go with the drugs. It was extremely painful and difficult - I'm not gonna lie to you. And, yes I did beg for an epidural once or twice, but we kind of assumed this would happen and we had prepared for it. When I asked for an epidural, Matt was to by no means allow me to get it. It worked, although Matt was kind of put in a pickle on that one. I am happy that no drugs were introduced into Sunday during the delivery and that is my consolation when I look back on the experience.



Anyway, the boss lady is stirring, so I'm going to end this post. Thanks for all the support and love, and I promise to stay focused on garden writing in the future. I am so excited to dig in the dirt again!