Before I buy so much as a pot of daylilies, however, I sit down with the official survey of our property, photos of the yard, graph paper, pencils, crayons, my well-worn garden diary (where I keep track of how various plants have performed in the past), garden books, catalogs, and a master plan I’ve worked on for months, so that my landscaping will complement our mid-century modern house. Because the architecture of our house is far more common to California than the Midwest, the gardens are a living experiment. I’m always trying to find native plants to approximate those used in California landscapes. It’s mostly trial and error, and I don’t mind the errors at all. In fact, I hope my gardens will never be finished, because that means I always have more to learn. And that’s the most satisfying reward of all.

Here are some of my favorite nursery websites:

Forestfarm, a nursery in Oregon with some 5,000 offerings, specializes in out-of-the-ordinary plants. The owners, Ray and Peg Prag, have been operating the nursery for more than 25 years and treat their online customers as friends. Visit www.forestfarm.com.

Eastfork Nursery, operated by Dave and “Sam” Schook in Washington State, specializes in Japanese maples and dwarf conifers. The nursery is small, so the plants receive plenty of TLC before they arrive in the mail. Visit www.eastforknursery.com.

Garden Vision, a small nursery operated by Darrell and Karen Probst in Massachusetts, specializes in epimediums, a hard-to-find and underused plant for the shade garden that comes in hundreds of varieties and colors. Darrell Probst is considered one of the country’s foremost experts in this charming plant. Visit http://home.earthlink.net/~darrellpro/.

The Wild Orchid Company, a small nursery operated by William Mathis, whose fascination for orchids growing outside tropical climes was the subject of his Ph.D. studies. His nursery offers wild orchids that grow in cultivated gardens throughout the United States. Visit www.wildorchidcompany.com.

Comments

I admit I listened with a frozen smile on my face when she told me about her hobby, making a mental note to avoid further social interaction. But, eventually, curiosity got to me and I went to www.letterboxing.org  and www.atlasquest.com  to see what she was talking about. These sites offer clues to finding boxes in your area.

Here's what I learned: Usually hidden in a public outdoor spot like a park or nature sanctuary, the boxes contain a unique, hand-carved stamp and a logbook. You need to bring your own stamp, stamp pad, notebook, and pen. So when you find the box, stamp your own stamp in the logbook and then take their stamp and impress it in your notebook (letterboxers usually make their stamps themselves; details on how to do it are on the aforementioned sites). Note the date or any comments in the logbook. Then put it back, well hidden, contents intact. Not all letterboxes are in the wild. Where we live in New York's Hudson Valley, many of our libraries have letterboxes hidden on shelves.

OK, I get it now! It's like going on an art tour because you get to admire the gorgeous creations of others, but it also feels like a treasure hunt. Not to mention, your kids will actually be excited to take a walk in the woods.

                          

Comments

 
Now, 13 years later, the whole world has fallen in love with A Day with Wilbur Robinson, Santa Calls, Rolie Polie Olie, and the classic Dinosaur Bob and His Adventures with the Family Lazardo.

                     

It was such a comfortable day at Bill’s studio in March ‘07, when most of the photography was shot. He was in and out preparing for the gallery opening for Meet the Robinsons. Trish Farnsworth-Smith, managing director of Bill’s company, howdy ink, LLC, was there to help us with anything we wanted, but we really had free reign. It was impossible not to be mesmerized by all the notes and drawings tacked to his inspirational walls. Hope you feel spellbound by your visit, too.

              
 
Websites:
http://www.rif.org/art/illustrators/joyce.mspx

http://disney.go.com/disneyvideos/animatedfilms/meettherobinsons


Comments

Saxon was a shark expert at the time, so he drew some scary-looking predators on blue construction paper, going to great lengths to make sure they were anatomically correct. “Great whites have a second row of teeth behind their main ones, Mom,” he explained patiently as we cut them out. “And they’re serrated like a saw, so they can tear off large chunks of flesh.” (Those Scooby-Doo valentines were starting to look better and better.) After outlining the sharks with blue glitter, we had the most fun thinking up sayings such as “Love at first bite” and “I’m hooked on you, Valentine!”

                    
                                  Sax and Kim’s handiwork.

He reserved the best card for his crush, Sydney, who is the sweetest thing since sliced cinnamon bread. A star soccer player, she weighs all of 30 pounds soaking wet, and at the time was missing her two front teeth.

Saxon has traded in his shark research for penguins, and we are hard at work on this year's penguin-themed valentines. A little less bloody, a little more cuddly. Slogan possibilities include “Waddle into love, Girlfriend,” “Melt my icy heart, Valentine,” and “You make my blubber boil, Valentine.” With a special one reserved for Sydney, of course.

                 
                                          Sax and Syd.

I know the time is coming when he won’t want to sit around and do crafts with Mom. But it’s been sweet while it’s lasted, and I can honestly say that I learned a lot about my son (not to mention sharks and penguins) as we sat at the kitchen table together, surrounded by glitter and glue.

Need a little inspiration? Visit the websites below:

http://familyfun.go.com/arts-and crafts/season/specialfeature/valentines_cards_ms/

http://rubyglen.com/holiday/valentinekids.htm

http://www.allfreecrafts.com/valentine

Comments