OT: Backyard Photos posted.

Lovely yard, Tia Mary! Your back yard looks *so* inviting!

Thanks for posting the pics.

Joan

What a charming set of designs, Tia Mary. I especially like your flagstone walk. What do you have growing between the stones? Is it creeping thyme or what? Deb

The front flagstone walk has Irish Moss and Blue Star Creeper (or something *very* similar) growing between the stones. I started off with nothing but the moss but it didn't like the living conditions. It was *very* slow to grow so I added the creeper. I have added more moss every spring and will soon put in some annuals )gomphrena is the name, I think) along the sides of the path. We put a misting/drip system in 2 years ago and that has really helped everything to take hold and grow better. CiaoMeow >^;;^<

PAX, Tia Mary >^;;^< (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at

Nice progress. It looks so nice with the woods behind you. I do miss our old yard with the old growth and privacy.

Looks really nice. We're thinking about putting in a river birch in the rear...depends . Hoping to get our nursery guy to find us a pair of Golden Curly Willows - they only get about 15' tall and wide - perfect for this size yard. Our neighbors did a pair of River Birches, and they're doing well. Yours look great.

I think I'll try to take a photo of the progress on Poseidon later.

Thanks for sharing. Looks great.

Ellice

I do like the pine straw mulch. That is/will be a lovely backyard. A great compliment to the front and side. You and your landscaper have arrtistic souls. Which I lack ! I just enjoy the results of others.

Although I agree your view is good. It is not my idea of a perfect view...extend it about 30 - 50 miles and put those trees down in any draw. The space between me and the horizen to be just grass and whatever animals that might be grazing there. OKay okay.. I grew up in a different part of this US And now I think I'd better duck and hide :^]

Barbara T Today >Hi Guys,

Oh -- I grew up in the city (LaLa Land to be exact), lived there until I wa 18 and them moved to Lizard Land (Phx). I LOVE trees and like to have them up close and personal. Now, my idea of perfect would be on a BIG mountain, 80% surrounded by trees, a view out to the horizon for that other 20% -- oh and let's not forget a nice big creek meandering through the property, too. A meadow just beyond the first rank of trees would be quite beneficial -- a nice place to feed the wildlife that happened to wander by. I don't want much, do I -- LOLOL? CiaoMeow >^;;^<

PAX, Tia Mary >^;;^< (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at

thistletoes wrote:

Which mountains do you live in ? I just saw a Modern Marvels episode about mountain roads and they showed the one through Glacier Nat'l Park -- Road to the Sun I think is the name. OOO was it beautiful. We will retire to the mountains in Lizard Land and will have the trees but that's about it. There's no water to speak of in Arizona

-- very sad indeed. Then again, we have loads of deer, squirrels, birds and HUGE elk that will occasionally walk down the middle of the street! Here in Magnoliaville, we have a small creek at the bottom of the "gully" that has water in it most of the year. We have a few deer, too but we hardly ever see them although I did see some deer poo in my side yard a few weeks ago. Now, if you want to talk small critters, we have lots of them here. Loads of birds -- especially Mr. & Mrs. Cardinal who visit the largest bird feeder and must live in my trees. There are two adult squirrels and a baby who is about half their size. We call the baby Flip because when he's not scampering around, he sits quite still and flips his tail so fast it's a blur -- LOL! I occasionally see &/or hear some wild turkey and there have to be opossum and raccoons all around as I see them on the road side after they have lost the battle with the traffic. And I know there are bunnies but not on my side of the street -- they live in my neighbors yard and eat her new plants every spring :-). I will surely miss living in north Georgia but can't wait to get back to the mountains. I have come to realize that I absolutely LOVE mountains and forests. Besides, living in the mountains in Lizard Land means we are just a few hours drive from the family. I miss the family more than anything and would *almost* agree to living in the city again. Almost agree but not quite. The heat makes me physically ill and absolutely crazy and is NOT good for my mental, physical or emotional health!! Even here in north GA where the summers can't hold a candle to Phoenix, I still get depressed in the summer heat. I need to win the lottery so that I can have several houses and travel between them depending on the weather -- LOLOL. As if THAT would ever happen, :-) CiaoMeow >^;;^<

PAX, Tia Mary >^;;^< (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at

While we are 5 miles uphill from the nearest little village, I do a lot of my shopping via Internet, because of the lack of availability of certain things. It does sound rather idyllic, doesn't it? Well, try moving here from Central California and discovering, for the first time, snow 11 feet deep - yes, all at once in certain hard years, plus black ice, frozen pipes, and several other dubious delights. I was a victim of Country Living magazine and their marvelous photo spreads. I was blind to what all that white stuff can do but have been handily re-educated by Mother Nature. Still, I am settling in after all these years and quite happy. I especially love the cool evenings in summer and no need for AC.

We are a bit too high for rabbits and have seen only 1 chipmunk in all these years. Friends higher up and way down in the village are plagued with squirrels, rabbits and raccoons, all of which are cute but quite tricky and destructive. We have deer, elk and moose galore, cougar, birds of every kind and they start singing at 4am. The pond has cattails, bass and bullfrogs, and they sing all day. The frogs, that is. It is a hunter's and fisherman's Eden, but personally, I am not a hunter. Rather the opposite to my hubby's (a native Idahoan) amusement. He thinks I am a "city gal". Hmmm. I do enjoy eating anything fish and his beer-battered venison bite-sized steak, though. Yum!

So, reading, playing on the PC, gardening and stitching are my loves. And getting those stitching supplies is a challenge at times. Fortunately, when I moved here, I brought a life-time supply of various fabrics and patterns so I am set, there. I do miss the comradeship of fellow stitchers, which is why I am enjoying this group and all the interesting people who contribute!

Speaking of winning the lottery so you can have several houses, this is one of the last great, affordable places to move. Maybe you should come here and open a wonderful needle-work boutique!

Deb

thistletoes wrote:

Not a snowball's chance in hell of THAT happening. I doubt if I could handle your winters. I was born in LaLa land and moved to Lizard Land when I was 18, lived there for 35 years and them moved to No. GA in

2000. The winters in the White Mountains, where we will be (right along the edge of the Mogollon Rim at 6,700 ft elevation) are relatively mild. There is very rarely more than a foot of snow total for the whole winter. It gets almighty cold but there isn't too much precip. Up the road a piece (about 10 miles) is the little town of Forest Park at 7,000 ft. and they get horrible snow storms. They are inland from the Rim quite a bit more than we are (but probably not more than a few thousand feet) so I think that and the additional 300 ft altitude results in vicious snowstorms. So, to be honest, I am not physically set up to deal with heavy snowfall either! I love the winters here -- usually in the 40's during the day and it's not unusual to get into the 30's for a daytime high every now and again. There's usually a sprinkling of snow one or two days during the season and it's not unusual to get several inches. That only happens every few years though and the snow never lasts more than a day or maybe two at the most -- not sure just *how* I would deal with 11 FEET of the stuff -- LOL. Here, it's just enough to make things look pretty and make me feel like it is really, truly winter -- never enough to make me drag out the long johns -- LOL! Dh would go ballistic if I ever even mentioned a desire to live where it really snows. He was born and raised in the far northern reaches of Minnesota so for him, 11 feet of snow is pretty much a moderate snowfall -- LOL! The poor man has seen it snow 4" in JULY and 40" in one day isn't unheard of either. He DOES NOT like snow in those quantities. Four inches he can hang with and he was even pretty fair tempered the one Easter weekend we spent at the cabin in AZ when we got 24" in 24 hours. Of course, with my luck, by the time we move up there and live in the cabin while we build a house, the warming trend will likely be in full swing and the winter lows will barely reach freezing let alone result in any snow :-(. I think I need to learn how to summon the snow -- in moderate quantities, of course :-). CiaoMeow >^;;^<

PAX, Tia Mary >^;;^< (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at

Deb

Now that I could agree with. I really like to be able to have 'elbow room' and that should provide it. Trees too close crowd me. Again I'm late but we don't always have a clear view of the south.

Barbara T Today near Ga>Barbara Thomps>> .................