Desert Magnolia

GG (hubby) works hard to keep our yard gorgeous. We have an amazing garden, water features, grass, fruit trees, and a gorgeous Japanese maple that has found a home in the Buddha corner of our yard and is thriving after nearly dying from our climate. When GG was driving our girl to the East coast this summer, I took care of the house and yard and stuff and whined mightily. Doing that on top of work and school was a lot, and some days I felt like there weren't enough hours to handle everything well. Anyway, the grass needed mowing, and GG decided to handle that task before dinner Sunday night. I was inside studying (I know, I am so boring right now - finals are a killer), and suddenly he burst in the back door with a red face, and FURIOUS!  He's a mellow guy, so this behavior is startling, to say the least. Apparently we have a hornet's nest in a wall next to the grass. And one of those stinging insects attacked GG. He said he felt a sudden searing burn on his leg, ...

The other night hubby and I were enjoying a late night glass of wine on the patio. It was cool, it was lovely, it was the first time all day it had been possible to go outside without breaking into a sweat within 5 seconds. When my husband went back inside to get the wine bottle, I saw a small creature in my peripheral vision, and of course I jumped up and then crouched to look beneath the chair it had skittered under. Which is when GG came back outside, and when he asked what I was doing. I told him I'd seen a mouse. He immediately straightened up, threw his shoulders back and said, 'I'll get the traps.' Gulp. And he did. Which he baited with peanut butter, then distributed around our yard. As he was doing this, I felt a terrible weight descend upon my shoulders. I'd outed a mouse, and not only that one, but its entire family was in danger because I couldn't keep my mouth shut. To date the traps have netted 3 mice. I sincerely hope the rest of t...

Timeline: 1:30 a.m. this morning, Albuquerque, New Mexico. Rain! Thunder! Lightning! And that fresher than fresh smell that accompanies the rain..that sweet, lovely, moist air, mmmmmm. Confession? I dreamed through it all. All of it. I woke up to puddles on the patio, droplets dripping from the roof, sparking moisture on the plants...but I somehow managed to snooze while all of this miraculous moisture was falling. And the lightning was flashing. And the thunder was booming. Someone is grateful, but a little bit sad that she missed it. But also, really? I can't remember the last time I slept so hard I managed to ignore the heavens opening up. The daily yoga must be working. Happy 4th, friends! -Stevie