Life Is Like A Valley Full Of Fog

 
With each and every one of us going into it blindly, not knowing what we will find or where we will go.  But we venture forth and, quite by surprise, find many amazing things.
If we are lucky, we find love, we find good friends, we find a mate with whom to start a family and share life’s moments. 
Enjoy your valley, with all its twists and turns, gifts and surprises, for it is yours and yours alone.

Waterfall in Autumn

Waterfall in Autumn
Originally uploaded by emmasdaughter

Although I haven't been blogging much, I have encountered wonderful blog fodder; too much to even try to get into one post. So, I will start with this picture of a waterfall in the small upstate New York town of Ticonderoga.

We went on a mini vacation for my birthday, traveling through the Adirondacks and into Vermont, via the Ticonderoga Ferry. To say it was beautiful would not be enough. The autumn color was astounding. And, we missed the peak of color by a month!

Traveling from New York state, across the river and into Vermont was like moving through time. The scenery was punctuated with bucolic farm settings and quaint towns. We stopped for an early afternoon walk through Montpelier and then moved on to another ferry trip back to New York. This time the ferry was across Lake Champlain; our destination, Lake Placid.

We arrived in Lake Placid just as the sun went down. The air was crisp with just a bit of a bite to it. The Olympic village portion of the town alive with pedestrian traffic and lighted with turn of the century street lamps was a vision to behold.

Because we hadn't a clue where we were going to end up on this trip, we hadn't made hotel reservations. Our first stop for a stay was a downtown hotel that looked promising from the outside. Once inside that promise was quickly broken. We left quickly to say the least and headed for a hotel more in line with a wonderful birthday weekend get-away...the Marriot. To say this was a nice hotel is an understatement.

The next morning we arose and walked around the lake. I pity the people that have to live here all year long. The beauty and serenity would have me feeling as thoug I lived in a different time, a gentler time if there was one.

We spent the morning browsing shops and windows; enjoying one anothers company. Then it was time to head back.

The longer I live in this area of the country, the deeper in love with it I fall. Each new day, each new season, brings with it a different type of beauty and creates, within me, a serenity I have never felt before.

Another Damage Pic

NY Spring 092
Originally uploaded by emmasdaughter

Here is a shot taken by the Boyfriend from directly beneath the damage. I was too afraid to straddle the tree to get a shot like this as the other half of the tree is still whipping around in the wind!

Evidence of the Damage!

NY Spring 087
Originally uploaded by emmasdaughter

This is the corner of my house. A mere 1 and1/2 stories up from where I was sitting at the time of the incedent. My poor house was hit. I am sure it was friendly fire as my neighbor is not home and did not have the slightest idea that her tree was ready to topple in my direction. All I can say is that I aged 20 years in 2 seconds. My poor Jezzie won't come into my little room. She it too afraid of the next one falling. I don't want to be in my little room!

Collateral Damage

My neighbor's tree was a victim of a wind gust. It was a huge, beautiful old pine that shaded my yard nicely and allowed my ferns to grow without fear of the sun.

Yes, my neighbor's tree was a victim of a wind gust and my house received collateral damage. Will get pics when the wind dies down enough that I am not taking my life in my hands to snap them. Poor tree...My Poor House!

Let Your Life Bloom!

Make a Smilebox postcard click on the heart next to the box to see the caption

"There is no use trying," said Alice; "one can't believe impossible things."

"I dare say, you haven't had much practice," said the Queen. "When I was your age, I always did it for half an hour a day. Why, sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."

Lewis Carroll; Alice in Wonderland

Sounds of Silence

Lilac
Originally uploaded by emmasdaughter

My morning routine has settled in along with spring.

Coffee, in the form of an iced mocha or hot, depending on the weather,

Jammies still on,

Boy-o off to school or in bed of a Saturday morning,

Me time.

The back porch beckons.

It beckons daily.

This morning was no exception...

As I sit on my back porch enjoying my morning coffee and relative silence, I realize that the silence is not quiet.

Aside from the cars traveling past, an annoyance at best, are the birds.

They are raucous in their joy of the morning.

The songs they sing a harmonious tune to the rising sun.

A lone red-winged black bird sits in the middle of the expanse of lawn, looking for his sheltering grasses. "They are down the hill at the pond," I say more to myself than to him.

A brave chickadee sits quietly on my porch rail as if to give me company.

So brave.

A robin joins the blackbird as a raven sends his boisterous call into the beyond.

A pair of doves, cooing at their approach, land beneath the feeding station to clean up after the rest of the diners above them.

A pair of bright, yet diminutive gold finches exchange seeds in a lover's ritual. He must have dropped his as she is now scolding him severely.

Ernie and Earl, the resident chipmunks get into an argument over the pumpkin seeds in the ground feeder.

Earl wins the disagreement as Ernie runs off, squeaking his departing threats.

A nuthatch, living in his upside down world, watches the encounter before resuming his downward path on the old maple tree, disgruntled chipping sounds aimed at Earl.

A fat squirrel, larger than Earl by at least 100 chipmunk lbs, joins Earl and dares him to pick a fight. Earl slinks off to bully the more easily frightened doves as another squirrel attempts to approach the ground feeder.

No luck.

Mondo, mega squirrel, the titanic, the gargantuan, looked at the interloper.

That is all.

So long.

So much noise.

So much activity.

I think I am tired now.

Funny Story (Rated R for explicit anatomical wording)

As you know, I have an older dog, Roz (fuzzy creature on right). Roz is the sweetest dog ever. Roz is not a normal dog. Roz has "issues".

First, Roz has seizures. They are now controlled with heavy drugs. She is drugged morning and night and rather enjoys her state of drugged bliss. No more seizures. Improved living through pharmaceuticals. Living in happy land.

Second, Roz is a hermaphrodite. Yes. You read that correctly. H. E. R. M. APHRODITE. Why does it not rhyme with Aphrodite? That would be funny. But, I digress as usual...

Roz had a cyst on her side that was growing and getting really bad. Made an appointment with the vet to have it surgically removed. Brought her in, dropped her off, went home, awaited the call to pick her up.

At about 11 I got a call from the vet. The vet was concerned because Roz had what she thought was a cystic growth in her vagina. We talked a bit. The vet said it was so close to the vulva that it would soon protrude and block the urethra.

Protrude? Protrude, I thought. HA!!! This was my vet saying that my hermaphrodite dog had a cyst! I interrupted the woman's cautionary cancer tale with "You do remember that Roz is a he/she? A hermaphrodite. Before you go removing this "cyst", make sure you are not palpating a penis."

Vet, very condescending, "Hermaphrodites don't present as female."

"Mine does. Please just make sure it is not a penis."

Vet, still condescending, "Alright, but..."

"My dog has a penis, it protrudes on occasion. She is not a she. She is not a he. She is the poster dog for Transgender beings everywhere. Scientific proof that it does happen!"

Vet saw no humor in this. Said she would call me back after a visual inspection of my poor Rozie's privates.

A few minutes later, humbled vet, "You were right, it is a penis. I have never seen such a thing."

Poor Rozie, the humiliation of it all. I need to take her to therapy now because she didn't know she was built wrong...

Moral? Is there one? Are you a veterinarian? If so, sometimes the owner is right!

Knitting With Violet(s), The African Kind

I have been knitting.

Really.

I have.

But I have also been playing with my green thumb.

In the garden.

In the house.

At friend's homes.

Anywhere and everywhere.

Invited or not.

It is like a social disease.

"Oh, look! Here comes that crazy plant lady again!"

"Run! Run! Quick!"

"Hide the Daffodils!"

Just don't understand it.

Anyway, the knitting first.

The knitting has been a shawl.

The Madli.

If you are on Ravelry, I have a picture of some cobweb weight lace yarn that had been languishing in my stash for some years now.

It has come into the light and onto the needles.

Making a very nice, squint your eyes when you knit, shawl.

What do you think?

And, when I am not knitting, the garden and my little plants begin to talk to me.

Lately I have been reviving my African Violet collection.

When we moved I gave my friend all of my violets. Didn't want to stress them out with a long move.

Now,

I am back to collecting and thought I would share them in my little room.

Have you ever seen a semi-mini African Violet?

What about a micro-mini?

They are just about the cutest little plants around.

Perfect little doll house sized plants.

In the pictures I have put my cell phone for perspective.

They are really that small!

First,

is a little one called "Lil Periscope".The flowers rise above the plant as if peering around, searching for something.

Then we have A little number called "Teeny Bopper".

This little plant has the smallest leaves imaginable in an African Violet. It is also a trailing AV. Rather than grow into the common circular plant, it sends out little runners. If you put a small pot next to it and pin a little plantlet to the soil, you will get another little Teeny Bopper.

This one is called "PeeWee Purple".

PeeWee isn't in bloom right now. But, when he is, he has the cutest little purple (of course) flowers. So tiny...

This little cutie is "Rob's Twinkle Pink".

Rob has a nursery in Naples, NY, where he developes new micro and semi-micro plants. I want to take a trip up there and grab a few more of his little hybrids. He has developed one that looks like a small opal plant! But for now, Twinkle graces my collection beautifully.

Here is "Lil Ballerina".

She likes to dance so much that her flowers went away. But they will be back. And when they do, they are tiny white, with a hint of lavender flowers sporting bright yellow centers.

And here

Is "Pip Squeak". Need I say more?

And "Irish Flirt" with her green flowers.

The next one is a semi-mini trailing type violet. It is much larger than the micro minis, but still small compared to the standard sized violets. It is called "Ramblin' Lace". She is ramblin' so much that you can barely see my cell phone beneath her trailers!

And lastly, my one and only standard. The cell phone is there somewhere beneath all those leaves. I have no idea what this one is called, but I call it Happy. Happy is a very happy violet and keeps sending out blossoms. She can't help herself when surrounded by little cuties.

Thanks for taking the time to look through my little obsession.

And, plantlets are going to be available soon! Don't make me turn into the "Crazy Cat Lady" with my violets. Don't be shy. If you want one, let me know!

Where Are My Daffodils?

As I was driving up the hill today to make my weekly "farm fresh" run I saw homes. Many homes. Many old and quaint little colonial, early American homes. They were all so cute and had such character. Some of them had porches canted to one side - not conducive to playing marbles. Some had roofs that were growing moss. Some had doors that no longer fit straight in their jams. They were all cute. They all spoke of ages past. And they all had masses of DAFFODILS!

Why? Why? I ask you. My neighbor has blooming daffies, every house in a 50 mile radius from mine has daffies! I have daffie leaves. Not a bud. Not a bloom. Just leaves. Why? Again I ask. Why?

Should I sneak next door in the dead of night and cut some for my table? Or should I politely knock on the door and beg shamelessly for a few to grace my home? Or, rather than attack one house, and one so close to home mind you, I could drive the back roads and cut one or two from every cute frickin' little house I pass on my way!

All I have to say about this little rant is "Where Are My Daffodils?"

My Little Garden Update

Today the garden box got filled to capacity.
Here is a rundown;
Back 4 sections contain sugar snap peas, 8 in each square.
The next row contains, from left to right: 4 heads romaine lettuce, 2 kale, 2 kale, 2 kohlrabi.
The next contains, again from left to right: 2 kohlrabi, 4 swiss chard, 4 swiss chard, 4 swiss chard.
Then the front row contains, yes, from left to right again: 9 beets, 9 beets, 16 carrots, 16 carrots.

Next month I will be building 2 or 3 more boxes to fill. Need. My. Colors!

My Little Garden

As I posted last, gardening was something I had been missing. That feeling of getting down on ones knees on the earth. The sense of groundedness (no pun intended) that you have when working in the soil. The connection that you have, albeit unknowingly for some, with the greater spirit of the past and our ancestors.

Before I get too far off the deep end I will go into my first garden in New York state.

Wyoming was one of the most difficult areas I had ever lived for gardening. There was no soil! the wind parched the ground and blew the top layer off into Colorado somewhere. The lucky people of that state got to partake of the Wyoming nutrients. For Free! Then, one day as I was shelving books at the local Barnes and Noble, I picked up a book to put on the shelf and it was the first edition of "Square Foot Gardening" by Mel Bartholomew. It was love at first read. I put together a couple of boxes and went to town. We had vegies coming out of our ears and the neighbors beating down our door to find out how we did it.

Now, in New York, I am doing the same gardening technique. Not because of the lack of soil or water, but because of the ease of planting and care of the garden - for I am a lazy sort and have more to do than tend a garden. Mel now has a web site that I have been reading with interest as I longed for my plot at the community garden

I couldn't wait for the plot to be ready.

I took over my contained mulch area that had been a dog run and was actually large enough for a rather nice garden area! This is what I started with this morning. The leaf pile was contained within a 12x16 foot pen, fully enclosed, in the sunniest part of the yard. I had been sitting for months wondering where I could put a garden amongst all the shade and pavement and trees, when it was right there! Right there waiting for me to recognize the potential. It wasn't until this morning that I did. It was like one of the "Ah HA" moments. A slap upside the head. Now it is mine and I can give my community plot to someone who needs it.




This is the front corner of the compost pen. It was relatively clear of leaves and other composting mater. So I got the old rake out and began clearing a section large enough for my first Square Foot box. It needed to be a bit larger than 4x4 feet, which didn't take long!





Before I could finish my little corner of the area, the Boyfriend was moving right on in! Not that I minded of course. His pots, very large pots, made ready for his hops, found their way to one side of the plot. That is cool. You always need your organic hops to make your organic beer. Right?

It was starting to look more like a garden. Two large pots, large enough for a good sized oak tree right next to my little spot for my little square foot box.

The spot was ready, so first came the box, placed carefully over a double layer of weed guard, landscaping cloth. I know it doesn't look like much yet. But I painted it a happy Bumblebee yellow so the little seeds would begin to think spring and be ready to come out of hiding. Sure, I know, too many gardening fairy tales as a child. But back to the box. It is a simple box built from a 2"x6"x16' board purchased at Lowe's. The nice man in the lumber department even cut it into 4" sections for me. Cost of lumber? $7.98 plus tax. The yellow paint I already had at home so that was a previously absorbed cost. The landscape cloth I purchased at Wally World - 3'x330' for $12.00. (lots of little square foot gardens there!) Now, I usually staple the fabric to the box, but the staple gun was still hiding from our move.

With the box in place, the next thing was to fill it with gardening medium. No, not dirt, not
soil...medium! Very important use of words here. I went from store to store and purchase different brands of compost and a large bag of vermiculite. The vermiculite was the most expensive part of the entire process. If it wouldn't insult Mel, I would find a less expensive "medium" to use in my planters. Maybe ordinary potting soil...hmmm.

Anyway, I mixed all of this stuff together in the box. Using a rake it is easy...just make sure the tines are facing up so you don't puncture your landscape fabric. Silly but true. As I was mixing my compost, I noticed that the local bag had some free worms in it. Yay! the little worms will enjoy thier new home, I am sure.
Now that the box had the planing mix in it, it was time to make it a "Square Foot" garden.


The section pieces were still needing to be installed. I always do this last because I mix my "medium" in the box rather than on a tarp and then dump. Once the soil...er medium is in the box it is a simple matter of nailing the wood to the top of the box. I used strips of wood that was in the garage when we bought the house. Although a bit thicker than I would have liked - lath works great - it was free. Free is a good thing!


Now my first little garden box was ready. Time to gather the tools of the "Square Foot Gardening" trade. One of the reasons I love this method of gardening is its "sandbox" quality. All you need is a pail, a shovel (trowel), a bucket, a pencil and a cup. I keep all of them right there in the garden. The pail is left to catch rain water or to fill with water to keep at ambient temperature, the trowel for digging, the cup for watering each square. But a pencil? No, I don't graffiti the cross strips. It is for planting. You use it to poke holes in the soil to place your seeds in. So, not only is this method of gardening easy and practically labor free, it is tool free as well. I bought the trowel and bucket at the local dollar store, stole the cup from my son, cuz he wasn't home for the weekend and the pencil was in his room too. How economical is that?

What good is a garden unless you plant something in it? Not much! I had been using the stolen cup to soak some sugar snap pea in and was now ready to plant them. This is a pic of one square foot of the back row, which is along the fence line. In each square foot I planted 8 little peas. Yes, 8. The medium is so nutrient loaded and moisture retaining that it can handle this amount. So along the back of the box are 32 potential sugar snap plants. If all goes as planned, there should be about 5 pounds of these sweet little morsels of vegetarian candy headed to my table!

There is the beginning of my little garden. Soon there will be more boxes. I shall have one for just salad goodies, one for larger crops like cabbage and broccoli and even one for my cut flowers. I love this method of gardening! If you want to know more about it, go to your local library and check out his book. He has come out with another one that takes this method to the next level and does so much more with 4 square feet. Over the summer I will be spending more time in my little garden and less time in my little room. Hey, it is spring, time to start thinking outside the box!

A Perfect Hunter Gatherer Day

Since our move I have missed certain things. Most of them not things one would think of as being important.

I have missed farm fresh eggs, raw milk, enough room for a garden, getting out in the fresh air to work in the dirt.

Yesterday a friend of mine, who I cherish more each day, went a long way to filling all of those missing desires.

First, she took me to her friend's house. This friend has a son who has a hen yard filled with the most beautiful and well tended hens I have seen since mine! He gave me a tour, proudly showing off his prize hens. He handed me feathered creatures to hold and pet and coo over. He was proud of his flock and ecstatic that someone found as much pleasure in these creatures as he did. I walked away with 2 dozen freshly laid eggs and the assurance of "as man as I want or need!"

Then, this same friend of my friend, walked us a mile down the road to her brother's DAIRY! Again, the same pride, the same care taken, the same joy that someone else understood and even loved what they were seeing. Her brother explained that he was getting so little for his milk that it was crazy! The price we see in the market is more than quadruple what he is paid. He went on to tell me that he doesn't sell much milk out the back door, but what he does sell that way gives him more money than selling through the governmentally mandated channels that commercial dairies have to follow. To make a long story short, if I bring my gallon jug to his barn between 7 and 9 any evening, I can fill it up with fresh, raw, untouched by human hands milk for the paltry sum of $1.50! And he makes more from back door customers?!

After the visit to her brother's dairy, my friends and I walked back toward home. On the walk a community garden was mentioned. A new community garden. Anyone that wanted a plot just had to stop by a little church on the outskirts of town and put their name on the list, first come, first served. My eyes lite up! The church is just around the field from my home!

On the drive back to my home, we passed this little church and saw a small group of people standing in the field behind it. My friend and I stopped. We inquired. We each got a plot. My friend knows nothing of gardening. She gave me her plot. All she wants are some tomatoes!

What a perfect hunter, gatherer day! Now I just need to get a freezer.

FO And A Touch of Spring

Finally! A finished project! And, the first Christmas gift of the year. It is the Triinu Scarf from Knitted Lace of Estonia. It is currently on the wires and pinned out. Loverly lace. And just heavy enough to make an excellent winter scarf for the recipient. Hope she like it. It was fun to knit and I thought of her the entire time it was in my hands.
Although the picture shows the back side of the scarf, the lace is still catching. The yarn, Brown Sheep's Wildfoote Sock Yarn was perfect for the project. Being machine washable makes it an easy care accessory. And, the colorway, Ragtime, is in her favorite color family. How many hints does it take to inform the giftee that it will be coming to her?

Over the past couple of weeks the snow has disappeared. Once the weather decided to turn warmer the poor snow didn't have a chance. It was gone within days. Shortly after the snow said goodbye, I began walking the yard, looking for signs of spring. First there was nothing. Then, slowly, and with steady progress, things began to come alive. Today on my morning walk about, I had my camera with. As I passed the old lilac bush in my back yard I spied a bud. Yes! A bud! A sign of life renewed. It is lovely in its promise of the new season. It tore me away from my morose in the loss of the snow. This little bud. A harbinger of things to come.

My Bad...My So Very Bad

Yesterday the Boyfriend took the day off.
We went for a drive.
I didn't bring my camera.
We saw this!
Waterfall!!!
I didn't brint my camera!
My Bad...
My So Very Bad!!!

My Day Has Begun

This morning started like every other morning. Alarm went off, I hit snooze - lather, rinse, repeat. Finally, after playing the snooze button dance for about 20 minutes, I rolled out of bed.

Slippers on my feet, eyes open just enough to see, I staggered down the stairs.

The dogs greeted me excitedly; not so much in delight, but with the urgent need to get out the back door to take care of doggie business. Out the door we went, into the frigid cold (-9 degrees Fahrenheit!) that has been sitting over us for the past couple of days. Thank goodness they were quick!

The cold was the shock it took to truly awaken my system - sense of humor first. All of the sudden, everything was funny! My coffee grinder didn't want to grind my coffee. I laughed and called it names. I sang to my darling "Miss Sylvia" as she dispensed my morning espresso. The banter between my son and I was in my favor, so quick was my wit this morning. The dogs each got a song, freshly composed, about their life abilities and prowess at nothing.

And then, the birds at the feeding station began to sing. All winter long they have silently partaken of the bounty provided. This silence broken only with the occasional scolding from a little chickadee. But this morning, the cardinals were chatty, the chickadee couldn't silence their conversation. The male goldfinch, just coming into color, was obviously practicing for some opera and the scolding chickadee couldn't silence his aria. And my favorite, the diminutive little titmouse (visions of tiny mouse breasts run through my head) with his large voice, calling out to the sun as it rises and spreads its little bit of winter warmth across the yard. They must be feeling spring in this cold that blankets us. Their joy must be a sign of spring just around the corner.

It is now silent. Hijo Segundo is gone for his day of learning and friends, the Boyfriend is working to provide me with money to spend, and I am sitting here at my computer surrounded by dogs and one lone little cat, sharing my thoughts, as silly as they are, with the cyber world. My day has begun.

A Gift On The Last Day

Today when I woke up and looked out my bedroom window, it was snowing! Snowing really hard! The automobiles, carrying their cargo of humans to work made almost no sound due to the muffling effect of the heavy snow. A light breeze whispered through the branches of the tree outside my window and the sound of the snow falling from the cradling boughs made a soft breath of a thud as it landed on the roof of the porch, just beneath my window.

The scene was, to me, a glimpse of heaven on earth. White! Cold! Soft as a feather! Giving Jack a quick good morning scratch beneath the chin, I jumped out of bed and into my jeans and a heavy sweater. Roz and Jezz greeted me at the door to the kitchen that they call a bedroom, with excited whines and barks. They seemed as excited as I to get out into the snow for a quick romp.

We, the two dogs and I, ran down the stairs to the side door. With leashes attached, boots and coat on, we stepped out into the wonder of the snow. Now, none of us expected it to be as deep as it was. After all, yesterday the driveway was clear all the way to the blacktop. This morning? It was so deep that Jezz, the snow hound, found it difficult to manuver! She and Roz made a game of tucking their noses beneath the snow and rooting along like little wild boars! They looked so silly with their noses covered in snow as they romped around like puppies.

As I looked over the open expanse of white between our house and the neighboring rectory, my heart filled with a sense of peace. The sound of the snow falling and the dogs enjoying life gave me solace. What is it about winter, white snow, crisp air, silence that gives me such joy?

I am looking at this snow as a good omen of the year to come. On this last day of 2008, a year that has seen many changes in my life, I was given the gift of one of the things that I truly love. Snow.

May you all have a happy and joyous New Year!

After the Storm

After the storm our ancient maple had more snow around the base. The snow blower added another layer of snow at the 3 foot level and extending about 2 feet up - that means the top of the blow snow is about 5 feet up. We now have a good 18 inches or so on the ground.

And - Another storm hits tomorrow! It should bring us another 6 to 9 inches. Get ready for another "after" pic.


The snow that we have received so far this year have been so different from the Wyoming snows. Here the snow seems to be falling like a whisper. Gentle, soft, powdery upon landing. The Wyoming snows always seemed harsh; angry, blowing, slapping your face when you ventured out.

The snow here makes me yearn to ski, to snow shoe, to make a snowman. The snow there made me want to sit at my window and watch as the pasture fence came into and went out of view.

I do believe I prefer the New York snow. It stays where you put it!

Before the Storm

Here is a picture I took this morning at 8:32 am. It is an ancient maple, right outside my door. This will be my focal point for the storm. The snow on the ground, from a previous storm, is about 3 inches deep. Our snow blower threw snow on the side of the tree. This snow is approximately 3 feet from the ground.
That is it for now. We shall see what the day brings.

• 11:04 a.m. Snow began.
  

Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!

A major winter storm is expected to hit the northeast today! We are expecting anywhere from 8 to 15 inches from this "fast moving" storm. We shall see.
The snow hasn't even begun to fall, yet the schools are informing everyone of an early release.
Storms seem to be taken seriously here.
In Wyoming, they didn't get serious until there was about 8 inches on the ground and the wind was gusting to 70 miles an hour.
Here?
Hey!
Big storm people!
Batten down the hatches!
Gather your loved ones safely around you and stay OFF the roads.
I like that.

As the day progresses I will be heading out to my yard to get pics. Headed out right now to get one for a "Before and After" comparison.