Tuesday, January 26, 2021

Hello From The MountainTop!

Hello at long last from the frigid mountaintop!! It's been eons since I've posted anything on here, I can't believe how the months have flown by. I'm sorry I've been away so long - every day I think about you all and plan to put up a post, and then the days/weeks/months slip by once again. 

Thankfully we are all staying safe and well through this horrible pandemic. Sweetie and I have kept our distance from pretty much everyone once we had to move indoors for the winter. It's funny, I always said I didn't have enough time at home, and now I'm home all the time....yet I don't get sick of it! I'm still working remotely, which I love....and the pups love it also. Molly is absolutely my little shadow now, heaven forbid I leave her for a second! 

My job has taken on a whole new level of stress, which is largely the reason I haven't been on here. What a year to be in the wedding planning business! We are hoping and praying we can resume hosting weddings this summer, but who knows what that will look like. I shut the computer at the end of my workday and sadly it's the last thing I want to look at until I absolutely have to again. 

I bought myself a little lap desk so I could move from the kitchen counter (where I was for the first 6 months of working from home) to anywhere in the house. I settle myself on the sofa in the living room, closer to the fire for these blustery days. I can see out the living room window, to my bird feeders and the gently falling snow. There's a pup on each side of me, and every now and again Molly gets up to give my hand a little kiss - she's such a little lovebug. I'm grateful for the simple moments of peace in my days, to help me through the stressful work hours. 

Despite the absolutely frigid temps we are experiencing at the moment, there are signs of spring in the changing light and the lengthening days. The first seeds have been started in the utility room, which gives me something else to focus on other than getting through this crazy pandemic. So far I have started all my herbs along with a few varieties of peppers, celery, leeks, and some spring flowers - stock, osteospermum, nicotiana, and sweet peas. The impatiens seeds arrived yesterday and will be the next to be started. 

I started my seeds two weeks earlier this year - I have a constant struggle with growing peppers up here, and I'm hoping if I set out bigger plants in spring I will finally have a good pepper crop. 

I think I will try them in pots this year, rather than in the veggie garden. Perhaps if they are not competing with so many other veggies in such a small garden they will do better. If I put the pots on the stone patio, maybe the heat radiating from the stones will also help them out. Fingers crossed! Every year I swear I'm giving up on peppers, yet every year I try again. I guess I'm an eternal optimist! 

I miss my spring and summer evenings on the swing, but I know they will come around once again. Time really flies as I get older - I can't believe it's nearly February already. Before you know it I'll be doing my daily walkabout in the garden, searching for bulbs popping up. I planted a bunch of new bulbs in the fall, so I'll be super excited to see what the critters didn't eat, come spring! I also split and moved a ton of daffodils in spring so I'm hoping year by year I'll see a sea of bobbing yellow heads as I walk my property. 

Until that time comes, I'll do what I normally do in winter....hunker down and enjoy my cozy house. My houseplants get a little extra TLC in winter, when they aren't competing with my outside plants. The amaryllis is out of dormancy and growing like a weed. 

The geraniums I have tucked here and there around the house aren't flowering yet, but they're happy, so that's good. I usually overwinter all my geraniums using this method but I have noticed that some of the younger/smaller ones don't do as well as the larger, more established ones. This year I decided to bring the smaller ones in (they are all pieces I rooted from larger ones) and scatter them around the house. 

I ended up bringing in 7 potted geraniums, which are now in every window I could tuck them into. Two are even in the guest shower, under a skylight. 

I imagine as our days get longer they will begin to bloom, and of course once spring settles in on the mountain top, they will go outside and join the rest of the deck garden. 

I hope you are all staying safe and well, and I'll try not to leave it as long before the next update. Thank you to all of you who have reached out to make sure I'm ok - I truly do miss all of you, I am just having a hard time balancing my work and personal life, I need to get better at that. 

Until next time, my friends xo 

38 comments:

  1. Beautiful views to enjoy while working, we sure would like some snow here in Kentucky! Thanks for motivating me to start my seeds early this year, I Enjoyed your post. Patty

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    1. Hi Patty - my seeds have brought me comfort somehow this year - maybe it's the promise of what's to come, and something to look forward to. Spring seems a long way off when I look at the forecast but since time seems to fly by so quickly I guess it will be here before we know it!

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  2. Your plants all look great! Watching seeds germinate and pop through the soil is a real joy. The Urban Farmer received some seeds in the mail today so I imagine that is what he will do tomorrow...set up his seed beds.

    Your little office assistants are precious. Jacob is sitting on my lap but he wasn't interested in the pictures...ha!

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    1. I love that nickname, Donna - The Urban Farmer - that's great! You're right - there's something about planting a seed and nurturing it and watching it grow up that's truly a simple pleasure!

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  3. Those little seedlings hold such promise! It was so nice to see a post from you, again. -Jenn

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  4. Welcome back! Your house plants are so pretty, and I still LOVE that dining room. Can't believe all the little seedlings you have started. Good luch with the peppers. Peppers used to be what grew best for me, up until the last two years. I will try again this summer.

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    1. I think our growing season is just too short and not hot enough, Henny - it's weird, we do fine with tomatoes, but peppers have always been a struggle!

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  5. Good to see you posting again. I do follow you on instagram so I've been keeping up with you there. I know all that snow must mean a lot of work for you but it sure is pretty! As always, love seeing what you've bee up to!

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    1. I had to shovel three times with this storm, Diane - but of course that makes it easier than one big shovel. It's not so bad when I'm home and can take a break and keep up with it.

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  6. I've missed you! I don't do Instagram, so I haven't known how you've been. I wish I had room to start seeds. But I can't figure out a place to do it. The last few years I've had plenty of peppers in containers. Have you tried them separately in containers?
    Brenda

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    1. I've missed you too, Brenda! That's exactly what I'm planning this season - peppers in pots! I think when I put them in the veggie garden they get overwhelmed by the larger leaves of the squash plants and don't get the hot sun they need. I think the last time I had luck with them was the year I rented a house with a huge deck (but no garden) and I grew all my veggies in pots on the deck. We'll see....fingers crossed!

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  7. It's wonderful to see a post here even though I enjoy your Instagram updates. I was just showing my husband your video of the snow and told him you've had deep snow regularly. We envy you!

    I love seeing the rooms in your home and your sweet fur babies. And I'm glad that you are enjoying your time at home. We only had two large pots of jalapenos and a smaller pot of a small sweet pepper last summer and they did so well sitting on top of a big stack of leftover concrete roof tiles that we made our patios out of. The pile was supposed to be temporary but I think it will stay as it is in almost full sun and is the best place for sun loving plants. Peppers are almost my favorite plant so we want to try more varieties this spring. We've never grown bell peppers but I want to after seeing your stuffed pepper dish on IG. I've had a lap desk for years and love it for laptop work and any paperwork too. I do have to set my timer for 50 minutes to remind me to get up and get moving or I'd sit there for hours. I love all your houseplants! We've had a problem bringing in plants from outside in the fall that are full of ants but I would love to overwinter geraniums. Ants were in my amaryllis too. Ever have that problem?

    I hope your wedding events will be back to full speed this summer!

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    1. I have never had ants in my plants, Dewena, but I do get these annoying little gnats at times. I use an insecticidal soap for the gnats - I spray the plants liberally before bringing them in for the winter. Last year I tried to overwinter a gorgeous petunia but it didn't work....oh well, you can't win them all!

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  8. I have missed you and glad to see a post from you. I am on IG but rarely go there. Not enough hours! So glad to see your thinking and getting ready for Spring and Summer with your plants. I cannot wait for Winter to pass us by. Glad you could work your job from home and did not lose it. Let's hope the year will get better for all of us. Love seeing the fur kiddo's too. xoxo Kris

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    1. Hi Kris - I'm glad I can work from home, too! The folks that are on the front line in the resort are under serious stress this year, trying to get through the season safely. What a year it's been! I'm looking forward to spring also, but I also have to be realistic....it was still snowing in late May last year! But I'll take those odd nice warm days that pop up as we get closer and enjoy every second of them. They aren't coming this week, that's for sure - we are heading into an arctic blast of brutally cold weather - brrrrrr!

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  9. I was so glad to see your post pop up. I enjoyed hearing what you have been doing. Since last we spoke, we sold our house in NC. My husband retired finally and we moved back to Naples, Florida where we had previously lived for year. All during this crazy pandemic!

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    1. Wow, Penny, I feel as if you just moved to that house! Congrats to your hubby on his retirement, and I'm sure you're enjoying your new home in Florida. I know some folks who retired in Naples and they love it there!

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  10. You came to mind the other day and here you are! So good to see you and your lovely home and to read about your life and plans. Glad you are all safe and well. You do really well with houseplants, not something I am good at. ~ FlowerLady

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    1. Hi Lorraine - well you are certainly good with outdoor plants, that's for sure! I am glad to hear from you also and hoping you are also staying safe and well!

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  11. So wonderful to see a post from you again! As you know, I follow you on IG but it's just not the same as your chatty, wonderful blog posts. I can understand though why you wouldn't want to be on the computer at the end of a long work day! Hopefully, this virus will get under control soon and we can all go back to our "normal" lives. xoxo

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    1. I don't know if my job is ever going to return to 'normal' Melanie - we were bought by a huge company a little over a year ago and they have a completely different way of doing things. I'm grateful to have a job, and to have one I can do from home, though!

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  12. PS - can you tell me where you got your cream colored dining room rug? Thank you!

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    1. Absolutely, Melanie! The same place I got all my throw rugs from - Rugs USA - when they have a sale their prices can't be beat, and the quality is top notch! Now if I could just convince Sweetie to stop giving the pups messy tidbits from the table on top of the rug that would be fantastic! So grateful for Oxy Clean Rug Cleaner Spray!

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  13. I will need to get some seeds started soon and hope to get back to blogging this spring. Our nephew and his wife had a drive in wedding at their church. We could see it on the screen and hear it on the station they told us to listen in on. They came around to the cars and served munchies. I got my first covid shot but having a little reaction from it so hope the 2nd one is not worse. My friend has a little dog that looks like your "lovebug". Nancy

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    1. Hi Nancy - my daughter and her fiance both got their shots and are having reactions to them as well. My sweetie got his shot and he was fine except for a sore arm. I hope you feel better soon!!

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  14. Happy to hear from you, Debbie! Very glad all is well (but sorry for the exponential stress of the new way of planning weddings). Take care and continue being safe!

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    1. Hi Rita - I think it will be hard after all this time of avoiding people and social distancing to go back to a 'normal' way of life - I feel as if this is almost ingrained in me new! Hopefully the world will return to normal by next June, when my daughter is getting married!

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  15. Debbie so sorry to hear about the added work stress. I would think there are fewer weddings and so a bit less work, but it sounds like just the opposite! Is your resort still booking weddings?
    I remember some of your blogs when you would do a ton of work before leaving the house and just yearning to stay home. I totally related. I too work from home and love it.
    Keep your eye on the prize:Spring!
    In the meantime enjoy that wood burning fireplace.

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    1. You're so right, Susan, keep my eye on the prize!! Every wedding and event got cancelled for the 2020 season but we have hopes for the 2021 season. The governor of NY just announced they plan on opening up weddings for 2021 starting March 15th so that's fabulous news!

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    2. I predict weddings will come back with a vengeance!

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  16. I have always enjoyed seeing your plants inside and out. So glad you are well and hanging in there. Molly looks a comfort. And how inviting it is to see all your indoor plants just growing like crazy at the windows. Your dining area is really lovely. It is nice that January is just about over and let's get February past, too. All your seedlings will do wonders on your deck again this year. It was delightful to see your "flowering" post last summer. Lynn

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    1. Hi Lynn, Thank you!! I've always been kind of a houseplant fanatic, ever since I got my very first apartment so many moons ago. They sure help to cozy up a home, don't you think? February will fly by, and soon it will be March and we'll be starting to look to see if any of the bulbs are popping up yet....that's always an exciting time!

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  17. How nice to see a few seedlings growing! Molly is adorable and I'm so glad you can spend time with her at home now. Your new view from your "office" is gorgeous! Debbie, your house is so beautiful, you have it beautifully decorated and it definitely looks cozy!! :)

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    1. Oh thank you, Rain, so sweet of you to say!! I definitely say my style of decorating is 'the cozier the better!' Today is a day to certainly appreciate my cozy home as the snow just keeps falling....and falling....and falling. Every time I go out and shovel (4x already today) I turn around and the paths are coated again!

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  18. Good to see a post from you! Blessings from cold and dreary Kentucky. Hopefully, Springtime is coming soon.

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    1. Hi Sherry - it's cold here too, and we are absolutely buried in snow, but at least the sun came out today - it's the first time in ages, it feels like! I know once we get through February the sun starts to shift, and I get super excited for spring....but we have a long way to go, sigh. I do take advantage of any nice afternoon to enjoy a little sunshine, but I bundle up!

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