A Light in the Garden Shed

 

This week I've spent some time in the garden shed, sowing seeds.   My vintage trough/bin is where I mix up the soil and it's always been a bit of a dark corner.  However, last year Bryce put in a light for me and it's made a huge difference!   

I got an inexpensive pink (naturally!) metal farmhouse type light  that hangs from the ceiling.  It's darling and works brilliantly!  

We get electricity to the lamp via a solar panel that Bryce put on the shed roof.  It's also how we get electricity to the greenhouse, though it's not enough to heat the greenhouse in winter.  While not at all a flattering backside picture, this picture was all I could find that showed the solar panel on the back of the shed.  It's worked great for us and our needs!

An Owl House

 

For my birthday, Bryce made me an owl house to put up in the woods!  I've always loved owls and wish I could spot them on one of my woodland walks!  I hear them, but I've never seen them.  Sadly, this winter I didn't even hear them which has gotten me worried!  

Bryce followed instructions build a house for the eastern screech owl, which is what have here.  We wanted to get it hung earlier but the snow prevented us from doing that safely.  As it is, the installation seemed a bit dicey to me!  I'm so hoping an owl family makes it their home.  

Leah and Eloise Visit

Harris was home on spring break this week and it coincided with Bryce's sister, Leah, coming for a visit.  Eloise, who is absolutely darling, accompanied her Mom for a mother/daughter trip and we loved having them!

We went into Philly and saw the bell, had a cheesesteak, visited the oldest inhabited residential street in the US and saw where the Constitution was signed.  We had a great time with them!

Two things from that day that I think are absolutely crazy....

As we traveled down the highway, a car next to us ran over a piece of metal that jumped up and came at us!  I was in the passenger seat and had flashbacks to when Harris had his jaw surgery and another woman was in the surgery at the same time because a piece of metal jumped up and came through the windshield and shattered her jaw.  That story has always haunted me.  We were super lucky in that the piece stuck in our grill and didn't even damage the metal of the car.  

Also, at the President's House site (a National Park exhibit), we saw where the slavery exhibits have been taken down due to the administration's executive order to remove anything that can be seen as divisive or disparaging to America.  Erasing history is a dangerous and slippery slope and we should all be concerned.  Acknowledging our weaknesses and our shameful past can only help us moving forward as a nation.  It doesn't make us stronger, it makes us weaker in all ways and is frankly gross.   Of note:  a federal judge has ordered the reinstatement of the exhibits but clearly they have not all been put back as of yet.  

Celebrating Grace

This was the first time we've had Grace home to celebrate her birthday in many years, which was so nice!  We started the weekend with a toast by the fire with one of Grace's favorite things- oysters!  The snow was the perfect way to keep them on ice!

Afterwards, we met my family for a celebratory dinner and then came home for some cake... which Grace made for herself!  She loves to make complicated and interesting things so this year she made a Chocolate Chip layer Cake (with passionfruit curd and coffee frosting).  It was delicious!

On her actual birthday, after our traditional pan"cake" breakfast, she and one of her besties, Kathleen, headed into Philly for a night of fun.  I think it's fun to note two things that Grace wore.  Several years ago, after cleaning out for a move, my friend Gretchen gave Grace one of her vintage fur coats, which Grace wore!  

Secondly, for her top she wore my Hermes scarf (which I won at a charity raffle years ago!) as a Halter top!  Ah, youth, to be able to wear a scarf as a top....